Marvel: 2010-06-22 - Siobhan's Hope

It is early afternoon when a car arrives at Siobhan's and Mrs. O'Connor's house. A red headed woman gets out of the car and moves around to get a wheelchair out of the trunk. She brings it around to the front passanger side, and opens the door. A bald headed man soon slides out with the red head's assistance into the wheelchair. The car door is closed and the woman soon pushes the bald man up along to the front door out the house. She reaches out one slender finger and pushes the door bell.

The house is relatively quiet, for the afternoon anyway, but as the door bell rings, rustling can be heard from inside. When the door finally opens, a petite redhead stands framed in the doorway, a wary expression worn on her features, despite the smile she pastes on. There is no doubt she's worried about the enemies she's been trying to protect herself and her daughter from, but seeing the man in the wheelchair helps her to relax.. but only a little. "Yes.. May I help you?"

A warm smile from Xavier, "Greetings. I am Professor Charles Xavier, headmaster of Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters. It is a nearby private school. I apologize for not calling ahead Mrs. O'Connor, but Siobhan's psychologist, Dr. Undon called me asking me to meet with your daughter. I'm hoping to have good news for you today." His hand is raised and offered now.

The red head appears like a young college student and smiles warmly. It reflects in her eyes. A lovely young woman really.

Mrs. O'Connor's smile becomes more genuine when she hears about the psychologist having sent the visitors. "Oh, please, do come in. Forgive my poor hospitality." Her relief is much greater than that shown, her mind filing away the terror in a little compartment she tries to keep it in.

She steps to the side to make room for the young lady to help the professor. "I hope it's not too difficult for your chair." She says, a bit embarrassed. Her accent is difficult to hide (I won't even try to pose it), the thick, Irish brogue. "Dr. Undon thinks you might be able to help her?" She gives a little shake of her head, a sadness touching her features. "We were beginning to fear schizophrenia, or something."

Xavier did take notice of it but decides not to dig too deeply at this time. The young woman wheels hiim inside. "Not at all, like I said, I should have called.

The red head speaks, "It should not be a problem," and expertly gets Xavier's chair through the doorway and inside the respectable house. The odd thing about the two, is Siobhan won't be able to sense emotions from these individuals.

"If my suspicions are correct, it is not. Also, if I am correct, I hope you both agree that my news is good." He thinks it is. "Ah, let me introduce you to one of my former students, Miss Jean Grey. She is attending college right now."

Jean bows her head respectfully, "A pleasure to meet your acquaintance Ms. O'Connor."

Mrs. O'Connor closes the door behind the two as soon as they're in her home. "Please.. please.. call me Lynea. May I get you something to drink?" Her gaze flits to the stairs, then back to the pair. "Siobhan is upstairs in her room. Ever since things began.." She pauses, and a few images flit through her mind of some incidents at school. ".. well, she hasn't wanted to be around many people."

She ushers the two into the small living room.. the entire home is very modest.. about all she could afford to rent on what little she makes. "Please, make yourselves comfortable."

"Thank you Lynea, a glass of water would be wonderful. Jean?"

Jean shakes her head gently, "No thank you. I shall go get Siobhan then if that is fine?" She waits for permission before she settles Xavier beside a couch and moves to head upstairs to knock on the young girl's door to ask her to come downstairs.

"You have a lovely home." Modest, but it is a 'home'. Xavier sounds sincere in his words. "Thank you for welcoming me within it."

Lynea nods to Jean, then slips into the kitchen right across the 'hall' from the living room, to get your water. "It's not much, I know.. but it's been our home for the past thirteen years. We graduated from a small apartment. I'm very grateful for what we've been given. The Lord is good."

She returns with a glass of water, handing it to the professor. "I just hope you can help." She sinks into the cushions of the sofa, folding her hands in her lap. "I know she's scared. She doesn't like what she does sometimes when the episodes come upon her." Even if the professor couldn't read her mind, the woman's worry is evident in every line of her face. She doesn't look like she should be very old, but the minute she begins to worry.. it ages her a good ten years.

Siobhan is cautious when she opens the door, peering out and expecting to be 'hit' with a wave of something.. but she doesn't know what. She's completely surprised when nothing changes. She blinks a few times, straightening and opening the door a little further to examine the young woman standing in the hallway. She doesn't say anything, but steps out, closing her door behind her, and heads down the stairs, looking over her shoulder several times, as if she expects something to happen.

Jean just smiles, "I'm Jean Grey. The headmaster of the private school I graduated is here to see you. Don't be afraid, we won't hurt you." She sounds patient and kind, but you don't get any emotions from her.

Xavier accepts the glass of water when Lynea returns with it, taking a drink of it. "You have done well for yourself and your daughter, do not doubt this." He moves a hand free from the glass to touch Lynea's hand when she sits beside him, a comforting gesture. "There is always hope." That is what Siobhan sees when she enters the room. Xavier then respectfully removes his hand and smiles up at Siobhan, "Greetings Siobhan. I am Professor Charles Xavier, headmaster of Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters. I was asked by Dr. Undon to speak with you. Do you have a few moments? This won't take long, I promise." Again, you can't sense any emotions from the man in the wheelchair. Jean moves to stand beside him, placing a hand upon his wheelchair protectively.

Lynea offers a brief smile to the Professor when he lays his hand on hers. She realizes the gesture is comforting, and yet, it feels a little odd to her. She's been so careful over the years.

Siobhan may not pick up emotions from the guests, but she can feel her mother's hesitation, and she, stops dead in her tracks, not moving an inch in any direction. She doesn't understand the hesitation she feels, not even realizing it's coming from her mother.. or why.. only that she feels it. "Dr. Undon? I thought..." She gives a shake of her head, trying to remember back to her last session when the good doctor alluded to schizophrenia. He didn't say it outright, but Siobhan's a smart young lady. It's not as if she wasn't thinking it herself. She begins to wonder if the two of you aren't here to have her admitted to some psych ward, or something.. just dressing it up as a school.

Alright, so Dr. Undon actually got a brand new friend he suddenly remembered that he had, yet never really had. Best not to look at the details, it might worry some people. And that is when Xavier chuckles, "No, we are not here to take you to a psych ward Siobhan." He then looks over at Jean.

The young woman nods, "She is a strong Empath sir," her expression compassionate. "It's frightening at first, I understand. I've been through it as well Siobhan."

This should likely confuse you and your mother, but Xavier says calmly, "Please, have a seat Siobhan. This explanation is never simple. If you have questions, do not hesitate to ask."

Stunned, Siobhan is speechless, but her mind races with questions. Sure, she's heard the word empath before.. but used in a different form.. empathy. Sure, she's always been sensitive to others, but what did that have to do with her losing her mind.

Her mother is equally silent, though tense, when Siobhan enters the room. She's not sure how her daughter will react to the guests. Sometimes it's been good, sometimes it's been horribly wrong, and her fear of what could happen begins welling up inside her.

Siobhan can feel it.. as if it were her own, and her first, immediate, thought is to flee. "Go away.. go.. go away. I don't want to hurt you."

Xavier shakes his head, "This is off to a rocky start." He then turns to look at Lynea. "Lynea, please, calm down. I know this is difficult for everyone, but your daughter is picking up your emotions and is reacting to them. She senses your fear for her, and doesn't realize it is /for her/, and not /of us/." Xavier then looks at Siobhan, "No one will get hurt. Jean? Perhaps a demonstration?" And suddenly, one of the big chairs in the small living room moves by itself and smacks Siobhan behind the knees just enough to force her to sit down in it. Xavier then says, "Thank you Jean. You are not mentally ill Siobhan. You have a beautiful gift of the mind, though sadly with no control over it. As a result, you cannot filter out the incoming emotions all around you and they assault you. Time for your first lesson. Close your eyes and breath deeply." Xavier sounds so calm and matter-of-fact, his hands neatly clasped in his lap as if this isn't unusual at all. He looks intently at Siobhan to see if she compiles.

Jean on the other hand moves behind the couch and whispers toward Lynea, "Please do not be upset. There is nothing wrong with your daughter, she needs you now more than ever. Do not abandon her." Jean is trying to off-set any spike of fear at finding out her daughter is a mutant, instead trying to generate love and loyalty.

It's difficult for Lynea to calm herself down, but she does her best. She's never been very good at controlling her emotions, at least on the inside. She's become a master at keeping them from being read on her face, but that doesn't help around Siobhan. The thoughts going through her mind have nothing to do with fear of mutants.. only fear /for/ her daughter. She's watched her child for the past three years, struggling with something no doctor has been able to explain, afraid her daugther was losing her mind. Her fear stemmed from her concern of what her daughter might do to the guests.. relating to past experiences. She's only mildly startled to see the chair move, making her daughter sit.. but it does help to calm her fear.. a bit.

The poor girl, buffeted by her mother's fear, mingled with a bit of her own, is startled with she feels the chair behind her, and wonders when she backed up. She flops back into the awaiting cushions, but straightens, sitting up. She's not quite sure about closing her eyes, but as she feels the fear begin to ebb a little, she's more willing to close her eyes, taking several deep breaths.

"Good. Now empty your mind. Seek quiet and peace. This is not something you will master immediately, and we will enter more reliable meditation techniques later. Still, it is time to let the world fade and to find yourself." Xavier's voice is kept even and calm, so it doesn't distract too much.

Jean pats Lynea's shoulder gently before stepping back to stand by Xavier's wheel chair.

Siobhan struggles with the exercise, having great difficulty trying to find that peace and calm with her mother so close. Her eyes squeeze shut more tightly as she focuses hard, then gives up for the moment, opening her eyes. She gives a shake of her head, sliding to the floor to sit cross-legged in a position she learned in yoga. She bites her lower lip as she lays her hands, palm up, resting on her knees. "Let me try again." Her own accent is evident, but not nearly as strong as her mother's. She closes her eyes, shaking her torso as if she were trying to limber up before an exercise, and begins to take several deep breaths. When she's all alone, she's been able to use this to help her achieve a calm state.. but with her mother close, and her emotions.. it's much more difficult.

Xavier lets Siobhan practice. He doesn't believe she will fully succeed in either case, but the goal is to have Siobhan try and want to try. To want to master herself. He smiles in approval. He then looks over at your mother and speaks to her telepathically though his mouth moves as if speaking. This is done to not disturb Siobhan. In either case, he starts to explain about the school and how they strive to assist specially gifted individuals to master their abilities and become productive members of society. To work toward establishing mutant-kind as a part of the world, rather than something separate or to be ashamed of. He lets Lynea know that there are other students that would understand Siobhan's struggle and work to help her as well as her teachers. It is a place in school where 'accidents' will be understood, and worked with. And how Siobhan will not be singled out.

Tears spring to Lynea's eyes. At last.. there is some explanation for her daughter's behavior.. other than schizophrenia. There is also relief, but at the same time, an intense sadness at being parted from her daughter. She looks over at the Professor. "Can I see her? I couldn't bear.." She has to stop as a sob wells up, choking off her words. She's already lost her husband, and spent all this time protecting her daughter.. to lose her now.

Feeling her mother's sadness, it hits Siobhan intensely, her concentration broken right away as she begins to sob uncontrollably. Were it her own emotions, creeping up on her, she would have been able to control them better.. but she's not prepared for the sudden onslaught of her mother's sadness, and she can't keep back the tears. She cups her face in her hands, her coppery curls falling forward like a curtain around her face.

Xavier speaks speaks out loud because of Siobhan's lost of concentration, "Of course you could see her. She will have freedom to come to North Salem when classes are not currently being held and as long as she obeys curfew. I have thought of having her as a commuter student, but with her power as uncontrollable as it is, I would suggest against it. This is my life's work, helping young mutants. So you will not have to worry about the cost either."

He then looks toward Siobhan. "I have an offer to make to you Siobhan. A chance to attend school again with other students, students like yourself. Mutants who are learning about their powers while gaining an education. It will not be easy, just as even at home you are assaulted by emotions, it will be the same. However, we are better equipped to handle the breakouts, and we do have a place where you can retreat to when it gets too much."

Jean feels for the child, and walks over to her to lay her hand comforting on her back. "You are experiencing your mother's sadness at letting you go Siobhan. Recognize the emotion for what it is. She loves you very much, can you sense that too?"

Watching her daughter break down in tears, tears at Lynea's heart only fueling the sadness Siobhan feels. "Please.. excuse me." Lynea does her best to stifle her own sobs. She doesn't understand how this works, but she doesn't want to bring anymore pain to her daughter. "I.. need to use the restroom." She pauses, briefly, to look at Siobhan, then walks quickly to the stairs, heading for the upstairs bathroom.

As Lynea gets further away from Siobhan, the sadness lessens.. and the longer she feels it, the more she becomes accustomed to it, able to handle it a little better. She takes a halting, deep breath, trying to calm herself. "I know she loves me..."

Jean nods, "And that was her own emotions she was feeling. You will need to learn how to block them out, how to only let them in when you want to, and to recognize what emotion is coming from whom." But she pats your shoulder.

Xavier then nods. "I think it will be easier to take care of this now than extend it." He goes to pull some paperwork from the back of his wheelchair for Lynea to look over and sign. "Jean, why don't you take Siobhan upstairs to pack? I'll speak with her mother and handle things down here. Explain to Siobhan about the school some, please."

Jean nods and goes to help Siobhan up off the floor and to go upstairs with her. She starts to explain about the flexible classes, the fun stuff to do at the school, and that there is a room there that blocks out -everything-! Jean is so gentle and considerate about it all. "Like the Professor said, it won't be all easy. Some of the students because of their own gifts have strong emotions and difficulties at times. As a result, you will feel often overwhelmed. If you hide away, you won't conqueror your fears. Still, understanding them helps a little bit? You will grow to understand them even more of the months to come. You also can join some of the summer courses! There is horseback riding." A warm and lovely smile.

Siobhan is rather quick to pack, considering some of the tempting offers Jean tells her about. Soon, the papers are signed and she's downstairs with three suitcases worth of things she just /can't/ possibly live without.

Siobhan says a tearful goodbye, heading out with the two people who have made the biggest difference in her life since she turned twelve.