As expected his not so brilliant at all plan soon turned against him. Mike’s weight advantage led to Ben been thrown off him and subsequently sat on. Ben knew that there was no real way he could have avoided this, except maybe by staying completely clear of the whole situation. And that was something he had never been prepared to do.
As Mike shifted his position a bit his knee caught Ben in the damaged ribs making him bit down on his lip to stop himself from crying out. The darklight bubbles he had created were long since history and as his vision blurred from the pain all he could do was force himself to take shallow breaths to try and limit the suffering.
His vision clearing a little he saw the grinning face of his opponent. It was not a pretty sight because all it revealed to him was the fact that this pounding was far from over. When he saw Mike’s fist close and rise over his face he tried to form some kind of barrier between it and him but his concentration was too blurred with pain.
So the only thing he could do was attempt to stop himself from crying out. That was one satisfaction he was not willing to give Mike. So when the punch hit him squarely on the corner of the glasses he bit down on his lip. He had been so impressed with the glasses given to him by Scott Summers they fitted his needs perfectly and on top of everything they were unbreakable. Which in this case was not a good thing; their frame had dug brutally into the tender skin on the side of his eye.
Ben did not hear Hoods threatening words to Alex his whole body seemed to be made of pain which instead of making him meek only fuelled his temper.
‘Mike! Let Ben go.’
As his opponent lifted himself off him slightly Ben felt some of the pain ease. But then Mike hadn’t finished with the nasty surprises. To his disgust Ben had to suffer being spat on as well, he quickly lifted his hand to wipe it away. But in some way that gesture of barbarism reassured Ben. Mike was obviously not intelligent enough to be satisfied with a victory he wanted to humiliate his victim as well. Which if they ever came into conflict again would mean that Ben could use Mike’s pride as an advantage.
In an attempt to show that he was not completely beaten he shoved the rising Mike the rest of the way of him. He knew he was relatively safe as Alex had called Mike off, come to think of it a bit like a master calling off his dog. He did not know where they would go from here; it seemed that everything was down to Hood and Alex.
He turned to face the astro projection of his friend, he had Alex held in an arm lock. He also looked at Michael’s actual body… it was in a bad state. Things were going to get very messy if Alex did not walk away here. But at least now the pain was fading a bit, so he moved away from Mike a short distance toward Michael’s prone body. He hoped that his action was viewed as him backing away form Mike rather than him moving closer to his friend’s body.
He was hoping that if all hell broke loose again he could erect a wall of darklight between him and the bullies and by moving closer to Michael he hoped to enclose him as well. If anyone had come down the corridor at that point they would have seen a robin hood styled projection holding a goon in an arm lock, while to others stood around Ben who from a distance looked like he was crying blood.
Re: A thank you
It looked like Alex was going cooperate after all, calling out to Mike to release Ben. Michael felt the relief sweeping over him as he realised he wasn’t going to have to make good his threat. Not that it had been a bluff. He had been quite prepared to drag the bully before a teacher if he’d had to. In fact he knew that was what he should do even now. Report them. Make sure their cruel little games were stopped there and then and yet…..
He hadn’t been at the school long enough to know how people would react to the fact they had been fighting in the corridor. Sure he hadn’t started it. Certainly he had only been defending himself from an assault that would probably put him back into med lab but still…..
“if you put one foot out of line I will dismiss you from your assigned group”. Although tme had passed and the two students had now moved towards friendship Riley's words still haunted the back of his mind, breeding doubt and uncertainty. It didn’t seem likely that the incident would get him expelled from the school, that was a possibility that was too horrendous even to contemplate, but his place on the team? There was just a chance it might cost him that.
The idea of getting kicked out of Green Rescue Squad.filled him with dismay. One thing he was very well aware of was the fact that most of the students at the institute weren’t on teams. They didn’t even know of the existence of the secret facilities that lay in the basements of the institute. Being a member of green rescue was a privilege not a right, one he had tried hard to be worthy of, pushing himself to his limits during the training session to prove to Lexi that he was an asset not a liability despite his all to obvious handicap. It had been hard and painful but he had done it and now he was not about to risk losing it all because of these bullies if he could possibly help it.
And then there was Ben to think about as well. He had flung himself into this fight to save Michael from harm. Looking at him now as he pushed Mike away from him and struggled to his feet, the astral mutant could see he had already paid dearly for his actions. His face was pale and blood streaked but still defiant, ready to defend his friends body if need be regardless of the price.* ‘I’m damned if he’s going to get into trouble over this* Michael thought. *That really wouldn’t be fair.* The best way to make sure that that didn’t happen was to bring the ugly little scene to an end and Michael moved now to do just that.
Never releasing his hold on Alex’s right arm he placed his own left hand on the older boys left shoulder ensuring that hi movements were thus restricted and eased him away from the wall.”Now why don’t you reach real carefully into your pocket and hand over what you took from me” Hood said “and then we can all be on our way”
Re: A thank you
Alex fumed silently while he waited for Hood to answer him, just wait until he met this stranger again, next time things would be different and it would be Hood lying on the floor instead of Michael.
”Now why don’t you reach real carefully into your pocket and hand over what you took from me” He felt Hood loosen the pressure on his body, allowing the older boy some movement with his left arm. Alex had to fight back the sudden desire to whip around and throw himself at Hood.. to punish him for ridiculing him in this manner … and in front of his friends. “and then we can all be on our way” Alex grunted slightly, aware that behind him Mike had climbed off Ben, the large man moved over towards Cody, flashing the unfortunate fire mutant a frosty glare. Cody needn’t think he was getting out of this Scott free, friends stuck up for one another. Cody winced slightly as he saw the look in Mike’s eyes
Alex slipped his long fingers into his pocket and pulled out the tickets and money, he held them up in the air, clasped between to pale fingers. He would have liked to throw them on the floor but he was sure that Hood would make him pick them up and hand them to him and he didn’t want to loose any more face with his cronies than he already had.
‘Fine … alright now, you’ve got the stupid tickets.. now let me go.’ He didn’t really twig that this guy had spoken about the tickets as if they belonged to him, the fact wouldn’t register till later. His hands closed around the tickets, crumpling them a little in a slight defiance to the man who held him pinioned to the wall.
Cat: How can I tell him the secret yearnings of my hear
Re: A thank you
Hood gave a sigh of disgust at Alexs last petty gesture of destruction. As if he couldn’t have been content with the damage he had already done. *I’m not sure he even realises how bad things are* Michael thought cynically *Not that he’d care anyway. It would probably just give him a bigger kick to know he’d hurt me that badly. And how easy it was to do*
That was what was always frightening. How fragile his real body was. The pain was always there even on the good days, held at bay by the drugs but always lurking, waiting for a chance to overwhelm him. And the slightest knock….It didn’t even have to be deliberate like it had been today, the memory of Alex’s boot driving into his shattered leg making him feel sick with its implications for the future. Any stupid accident, any fall and weeks of careful progress went up in smoke.
He felt like he was clawing his way up a cliff face but every time he started to make anything that seemed like headway someone stamped on his fingers and sent him spiralling down again. And each time it was harder to get up and start again. *The time will come when I just wont be able to it,* he thought *But its not going to be today. I wouldn’t give these guys the satisfaction. I refuse to go down because of their stupidity.*
Making sure not to release the pressure on the bullies arm Hood plucked the crushed tickets and money out of Alex’s hand taking care not to tear them in the process. They had cost him and Ben too dearly for him to treat them with anything less than the utmost respect. One thing his Hood costume was sadly lacking in was pockets so he tucked them firmly into the waistband of the leather trousers before resuming his hold on Alex’s shoulder.
“Ok then” he said “I’m going to let you go and then we’re all going to back off. Understood.?” So saying he dropped Alex’s arm and took a smooth step backwards, his body still alert for any sign of trouble from the silver haired mutant but his hands well away from either the sword at his side or the impressive longbow that hung at his back.”Now like I said” he continued “this stops here and now. Before we all go too far.”
Re: A thank you“Now why don’t you reach real carefully into your pocket and hand over what you took from me and then we can all be on our way”
It was at this point that Ben realised that he had no idea what had caused this fight in the first place. But for one of the few times in his life he didn’t care, what was done was done and there was no going back now. He had never been one to act rashly so this burst of anger was surprising and seeing how things had turned out unlikely to be repeated any time soon.
As he heard Hood mention the idea of just walking away from this he grew worried. It was one of those ideas that looked great on paper but just seemed to go horribly wrong when put into action. He stood his ground next to Michael’s prone body and readied himself in case the three bullies decided to walk away not so calmly. He tried to have his mind ready to erect a darklight wall around himself but if it came to that he highly doubted that it would do much good but in the state he was in it was the best thing he could come up with.
The slow dripping of blood down his face was a real distraction. It wasn’t exactly a constant flow of blood more like a steady drip that was slowly turning his face crimson and creating a dark green stain on his light green t-shirt. He did not think the wound was too bad as the area around the eye was only made up of a small layer of skin. So the wound would not be deep and he hoped he would not require stitches. But the bruising was probably going to be rather impressive…
He shuddered, this was one of the times he was not so happy about having a logical mind. It had a horrible tendency of providing him with facts he really did not want to know. Like the fact that not only had he already considered the problem of his eye but also that of his ribs. He had deduced from the fact that his breathing was painful but not laboured that he had not punctured a lung. But if the ribs had splintered then there would be a possibility that he had ruptured his spleen which would cause bad internal bleeding. But although Mike was strong Ben did not think that his punch had carried enough force to cause that type of damage.
“Fine … alright now, you’ve got the stupid tickets… now let me go.”
So this was about… ticket? Ben had to admit to being totally confused by this statement but if Michael had been willing to stand up to them then it had to be something worth fighting for. And even if it was not then Ben did not really have any remorse those bullies needed to be stood up to… he just wished he had done a better job of it.
“Ok then I’m going to let you go and then we’re all going to back off. Understood?”
Ben tensed as he watched Hood slowly release the silver haired boy, which brought a spasm of pain from his ribs. He really hoped that Alex would decide to call it a day for he knew that he was in no condition to have a rematch with Mike. So all he could do was wait with baited breath for the bully to make his decision.
“Now like I said this stops here and now. Before we all go too far.”
If it had been any other time or place Ben would have laughed. Too far? By his reckoning they had reached to far a long time ago and where now into the realm of possible suspension. Well let them suspend him at least he will have gone down fighting… literally.
EDIT: Wrong account.... Oh well it happens to the best of us Edited by: X andry X at: 9/11/05 10:29 pm
Re: A thank you“Ok then” Alex struggled to keep his temper under check; obviously this wasn’t the time or place for anything like this. Anyone could walk down the hall at any moment and see the six of them and then they’d all have some very difficult questions to answer. “I’m going to let you go and then we’re all going to back off. Understood.?” For now yes … but this guy needn’t think that he was getting away from this that easily. The institute wasn’t that big and Alex was sure he’d bump into this guy soon enough and perhaps next time the situation would be more appropriate for this kind of encounter.
His eyes flicked over towards Michael, the white pupils radiating no visible sign of worry for what he’d done to the younger man. As far as Alex was concerned you shouldn’t start something if you couldn’t stick up for yourself. Michael’s body lay in a pathetic little crumpled heap, his face pale, his eyes closed. Alex shrugged his shoulders a couple of times as Hood let go of him and stepped backwards. The night vision mutant curled his lip as he turned around, the pale eyes boring into Hood’s face.
“this stops here and now. Before we all go too far.”
‘Don’t think for a second that this is over.’ Alex growled before the three of them disappeared away up the corridor. Cody hung back a little behind the others, looking miserable, knowing the he’d have to answer to Alex and Mike as to why he’d not joined in the fray when they’d needed him.
Cat: How can I tell him the secret yearnings of my hear
Re: A thank you
He hadn’t known it was possible for Hood to shake but watching Alex and the others back away he realised that it was. Shock was setting in. Shock and anger in equal proportions. He hated letting them walk off like that leaving both him and Ben bloodied in their wake.
*Damn it all! I can’t just let them get away with this*Michael thought desperately But there didn’t seem to be a solution. He just wasn’t ready to take the chance of losing his place on Green rescue squad to bring them down. Not to mention dragging Ben into the whole mess.
Michael looked over at his friend taking in the pained expression and the blood that was trickling down his face and his spirits sank to new depths. What had he done? He had not only put himself in a difficult position he had somehow managed to take Ben down with him as well And yet….
It had been the right thing to do. Deep down he knew that. No matter what it had cost. And it had cost him a lot . Of that there was no doubt. Looking down at his body he could see that all too clearly. *Oh God I don’t want to go back in there* he thought despairingly *But I’m going to have to if we want to get out of this unnoticed.*
It was already a miracle that no one had come across them as it was. But then most of the other students had just gone into their respective classes which no doubt helped. .But that wouldn’t be enough if he didn’t move fast. “We’ve got to get out of here Ben ” he said quietly. ”And I’m going to need my crutches if were going to have any chance of doing that.” The window was still open and the drop hardly worth talking about for someone as athletic as Hood.
Tucking the hard won tickets securely into his belt he swiftly he cleared the window sill, landing lightly in the flower bed still moist from the previous day’s rain. The crutches were easily found .Cody hadn’t flung them too far.*Aye but then he didn’t have to* Michael thought bitterly *After all a cripple couldn’t have got them back from here now, could he?* It hurt to think like that but he couldn’t help it. The whole incident had been a harsh reminder of how things were in the real world. It didn’t matter if you had right on your side. If you couldn’t stand up unassisted then you would still get the crap kicked out of you.
His head was still full of dark thoughts as he climbed back inside throwing the crutches disgustedly beside his still body. “Ok” he said grimily “Now I’ve got at least some hope of being able to get up. Though I don’t guarantee I’ll stay up for very long. So. Where do we go from here?”
Re: A thank you
Ben watched the bullies walk off knowing that they had won but not completely… he supposed he should view it as more of a grudging draw which really offered no actually satisfaction. He could see out of his good eye that Michael, now still as Hood, was upset and he felt for his friend. How was it that stupid thugs like those could use their strength against someone who could not readily defend themselves and yet leave them feeling like they had done something wrong?
Ben knew he had made the right choice and if he could go back he would do it again, but the timing of it was really quite bad. For he and Michael were supposed to be catching a plane the next day to Oregon where he lived. He had not been able to invite his parents to the parent weekend so instead he was going home for a visit and he had figured that a change of scene would do his friend and team mate good. There was nothing quite like the feeling of insignificance one got while standing at the base of a giant redwood.
“We’ve got to get out of here Ben and I’m going to need my crutches if were going to have any chance of doing that.”
The reality of their situation finally caught up with Ben… if they were found here in this state there would be questions. And right now neither he nor Michael were in a fit state to answer them sensibly. As for the crutches he was ashamed to say that he had not even noticed that they were missing. He looked around the corridor to see if he could spot them but could not. But Hood rapidly provided the answer to his unasked question by hoping out the window.
So the bullies really were cowards, not only do they kick people while they’re down but they also take away any means for them to get up again. The feeling of being in the right grew and Ben really wanted to see those thugs taken down. But at the moment he had to concentrate on taking care of himself and Michael and figure out where to go from here.
“Ok, now I’ve got at least some hope of being able to get up. Though I don’t guarantee I’ll stay up for very long. So. Where do we go from here?”
Ben’s mind was racing and he couldn’t seem to come up with a decent solution to their problem. He couldn’t very well go around the school with his face dripping blood… so where to go to get cleaned up? While he thought he tried to rearrange Michael’s body into a reasonable sitting position, it was the least he could do to help his friend. But with every movement he made the sharp pain in his chest reminded him of the distinct crack he had heard earlier and he hoped nothing was broken. If it was he would risk a punctured lung and he knew that he would have to go to med bay. So first he needed to make himself more presentable and the closest place he could think of was the boy restrooms just down the corridor.
“Right lets take this in stages, I need to get cleaned up and the closest place I can do that is in the rest rooms, just down there.”
Re: A thank you
Watching Ben sit him up like some kind of broken doll didn’t make Michael feel any better, though he supposed he should have been grateful for his friend’s careful consideration. Especially since Ben was hardly looking in the best of health himself, each movement bringing a frown of pain to his bloodied face.* Maybe he should leave me lying there* Michael thought bitterly *Hell I want to leave me lying there. To just turn around and walk away and never ever look back*
But of course he couldn’t do that. Whether he liked it or not the frail body was who he truly was. Hood was only a dream, a pretence, and while most of the time that was enough to get him through the day there were moments like this one when he wasn’t sure that his mutant power didn’t somehow make matters worse. Sure it gave him freedom. It even took the pain a way for a while. But in the end it was always there waiting for him when he got back.
It was certainly waiting for him now. He actually felt physically sick thinking of how bad it was going to be. *Go on Just bite the bullet and get it over with* he told himself sternly.*You’re going to have to do it soon, so just do it, for gods sake. Or for Ben’s sake anyway.* He took one hesitant step towards his body hoping that Ben wouldn’t notice how badly he was shaking.
But then Ben was planning by the looks of things He had that expression on his face that said all too clearly that his brain had shifted into logic mode. Michael was relieved, not just because it kept his friend from looking to closely at him but also because when it came to plans Ben was an ace. *Which is just as well Michael thought ‘cos at the moment my brain feels as if it’s turned to jelly!*“Right lets take this in stages, Ben said coolly and Michaels spirits lifted just a little.* Aye. Maybe I can get through this if we do that Just a bit at a time Surely I can manage that? *
“ I need to get cleaned up and the closest place I can do that is in the rest rooms, just down there.” Rest rooms it was then. Though they looked horribly far away to Michael. *Don’t be daft* he chastised himself *They’re only a wee bit further down the corridor. You could crawl there if you had too.* But he hoped it wouldn’t come to that. Even after all the humiliation of the past ten minutes he still had some dignity left and crawling certainly wouldn’t do much to preserve it.” Ok” he said pleased that his voice didn’t sound as shaky as he thought it might have.” I’ll just …step back inside and we can get going”
He moved tentatively towards the physical shell that sat propped against the wall, heartily ashamed of how reluctant he was to do so. Still the fear was real and all to justified. *Once I touch it the pain will hit me, all of it all at once and I don’t know how I’ll deal with that. And I don’t want Ben to see me try* But there was no other choice and he knew it all too well. Bracing himself Hood reached out a hand and…………
There was no gentle transition. His body arched as if hit by an electric shock and a gasp of pain burst from him as sensation flooded back. Turning away from Ben he braced his arms on the ground, his head hanging down towards the floor as he drew in one tortured breath after another struggling to stay conscious. His skin felt cold and clammy though sweat was standing out on his brow and starting to roll down his face along with the tears that came from behind his tightly shut eyes. And he was supposed to get up? To walk? It was a bad joke. It just wasn’t going to happen.
Something was sticking to his outstretched hand, he could feel it there a small irritation inside a world of suffering. Opening his eyes slightly Michael realised what it was. A torn fragment of what had once been a thank you card. There were others scattered all around him where Alex had thrown the as he lay on the ground. More in his damp hair, on his clothes.
All at once anger blossomed in Michael like a flame This wasn’t the cold calculating anger that drove his cynical tongue and scathing wit. This was pure unadulterated fury. All the frustration and indignation that boiled within him coming to a head. He wanted to scream. He wanted to smash everything he could lay his hands on and then maybe some more.
What he did instead was reach for the crutches and with something not to far from a scream after all haul himself upright, till he stood, hanging grimly but determinedly between the crutches. His face was deadly pale and his eyes dark, clouded with pain and hatred. But he was on his feet.
Re: A thank you“Ok. I’ll just …step back inside and we can get going”
Ben always found it strange the way his friend referred to stepping back into his own body. It felt to him as if Michael sometimes considered it as a kind of object, which to someone who was firmly stuck inside their body was a very alien concept. Besides now that Ben fully understood what his friends powers really were he did not differentiate between Hood and Michael for in the end they were the same person. He couldn’t help but wonder what it felt like to emerge and reintegrate one’s body and right now he had no indeed exactly what kind of an ordeal it was for his team mate, but that was going to change.
He watched through a vision blurred by blood as his friend’s body arched and Michael cried out in pain. Then his friend turned away from him, preferring to be alone in his pain. This brought back a hoard of memories to Ben and he was suddenly nine years old again and his head felt like it was going to explode. When he was a child he had periodically suffered from strong migraines that none of the doctors could explain. At those times he had been alone with the pain for no matter how hard his mother held him she was powerless to offer any release from it. Then suddenly for a while he had been free of them and he had felt free again.
Regrettably, this respite was not going to last. Then in the first really nice day of April, when he was about thirteen he was running out of the house into his garden to join his friend in the pool when everything went horribly wrong. As soon as he stepped out of the shade offered by the house, his body suddenly crumpled and started shaking uncontrollably. To him it had felt as if someone was trying to peel his skin off with a potato peeler. He had lost all vision and was sure he could hear his mother screaming; then suddenly nothing, everything had gone calm.
The next thing he remembered, the pain was back but not in the way it had been it was just and all round soreness as if someone had used him as a punching bag. It had been his first and worst fit, from that day on he was to go out dressed in layers and carry a shot of adrenaline with him everywhere. Unbeknown to him, this event had signalled the start of his life as a mutant. Now at the institute, he had been given things to minimise his allergy and his life was almost normal.
But his friend had no such relief, although his life at the institute was better than the one he was leading when they had rescued him, he was still subject to other peoples stupidity. And Ben knew he could not really help in his friend’s battle against pain but like today he would do everything he could to help with the bullying.
He could have bent down and helped Michael up, but that would not of helped for his friend was not only fighting against the pain but also for his own feeling of self worth.
Ben did think for a moment that the situation was going to get the better of the astro projecting mutant and that he would let this destroy him. But he was wrong; something triggered a spark of determination in his friend and with a heart wrenching effort he was on his feet. Now all they had to do was make it to the end of the corridor. There Michael could sit down and rest and he could decide where to go next.
Looking at how pale his friend looked now he wondered if even the rest room was to far… but there was no where else. He just hoped that Michael could at least stay on his feet because if he should fall Ben knew he would not get up again.
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