A.N.: I picked up the pace last chapter, and that pace is going to continue for a while, hope you can keep up.

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A New Hope: Chapter Seven

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Hope was not having a good day, and neither was anyone else it seemed. Driving rain kept the students inside, and since they were inside Logan had the brilliant idea to ‘put them through their paces’, which was giving Hope a head ach. Student after student was coming in with all sorts of complaints, all trying to get out of today’s sessions. “Kurt, your eyes have always been yellow, you have no fever and, your finger is not broken, go back,” Hope said for the third time, taping her fingers on the edge of the third bed that was needed for those standing outside the door, waiting.

“But…but,” Hope clamped a hand over Kurt’s mouth, and gave him a steely eyed glare.

“I don’t want to hear it Kurt, you go back to training, or I’ll inform Mr. Logan of your efforts.” Hope stumbled forward as Kurt disappeared. Coughing she waved away the smoke that was hanging around and turned towards those with actual medical problems. Bobby was back with a fractured finger, Hope had figured out the x-ray machine. She had also had the pleasure of resuscitating Berserker, Ray Crisp, which had been tense five minute ordeal that had ended well, but Hope was keeping him here for the rest of the day. “You boys okay?” Hope asked, walking over to open the door to the next patient.

“Yeah,” Bobby called.

“You bet,” Berserker answered, his voice not as strong as Bobby’s, but Hope was grateful that she could hear it.

“Wolfsbane, what’s wrong?” Hope asked as the girl pulled herself up onto the table and sat, feet dangling off the edge.

“Just got caught by one of Evan’s spikes, Mr. Logan sent me down,” the girl explained, Hope loved listening to the slight Scottish brogue in her voice.

“Well, let me see about that, you might get to spend some time with these two,” Hope pulled over her stool and started to look over the shallow wound, “Hold still,” Hope ordered when Wolfsbane jerked her shoulder away.

“Well you’re the one who shocked me,” she replied.

“Sorry to say I’m just going to clean this out and put a bandage over it, that should heal it quickly enough.” Hope smiled at the girl, backing up on her stool she pulled open a drawer and grabbed one of the larger bandages, and a small bottle of iodine. Still smiling Hope wheeled back over and started to spread the iodine over the cut. When she moved to place the bandage over Hope puzzled. The wound was gone, but hadn’t she just run over it with the iodine over it? “I hope the iodine isn’t too painful,” Hope commented.

“Nope, don’t feel a thing Doc,” Wolfsbane replied, looking down, “Hey, where’d it go?” So she noticed it too, Hope thought, wiping away the iodine. There wasn’t even a scar Hope noted.

“Have you ever had any sort of healing powers before?” Hope asked, pulling out the small note pad she kept in her jacket pocket, and made a note to check with Charles about this.

“No, you think my powers are evolving?” The girl sounded excited, Hope thought.

“Your shifting abilities may be changing, but why don’t you go sit by Bobby and wait until I finish with those out in the hallway.” Hope wasn’t completely focused on the girls answer, she was thinking about what was going on. Taking a deep breath Hope pushed the oddity out of her mind and went back to work. The students who were in the hall had just finished a session with Logan, Hope made a new note to order more ice packs since students had walked away with multiples for the multiple bruises they had received. Chewing on her lip Hope addressed the problem of Wolfsbane’s self-healing. I should get Logan, Hope thought, he’d understand this better than I do.

“Bobby, would you mind getting Mr. Logan for me, tell him it’s urgent,” Hope said, pulling out a pen light from the drawer with other little doctoral tools.

“What about my finger splint?” he asked, holding out the ice incased finger.

“That’s right, sorry about that,” Hope said, cursing her temporary forgetfulness. Wasn’t she the one that told Bobby to keep it on ice while she got to work on Berserker? “I’ll splint it and then you can go get Mr. Logan and give him your excuse note.” Anticipating many of these types of injuries Hope, along with Kitty and Jean, had set the splints in easy reach. “Hold out your hand, and get rid of the ice,” Hope ordered, sitting in front of Bobby’s offered hand. She placed the finger in the bottom half of the splint, very careful as she held it in place with one hand.

She pulled the splint away to shape it more towards the shape of Bobby’s finger, “Ouch!” Bobby suddenly yelled, pulling his hand back.

“Sorry, did I hit your finger?” Hope asked, not sure why Bobby had startled.

“No, you just shocked me,” Bobby said, the tip of his finger in the mouth, he was sucking on it and what worried Hope was he wasn’t in more pain from that.

“Doesn’t that hurt, Bobby?” Hope asked, rocking back on the stool. Bobby took his finger from his mouth and looked down at it, puzzled.

“No, it doesn’t,” He sounded puzzled too. Hope got up and pulled the x-ray over. It was on a track in the ceiling and looked very similar to the ones Hope had seen in dentist office.

“Alright, Bobby, you know the drill,” Hope said, placing the x-ray plate underneath his hand, and snapping a picture. Hope took three in total, all different angles on where the fracture had been. “I’ll be back with these in a second, don’t move, any of you.” Hope pushed the x-ray machine out of the way and walked to the room where the three pictures would come out. She flipped off the lights in the back room of the hospital and slid the x-rays into the light table. Please, please still be broken, Hope thought, flipping the switch. She looked over the x-rays for five minutes, no fracture, not a single mark on the bone, anywhere, even when compared to the first three. What was going on, Hope asked herself, as she walked back into the room, still looking over the six x-rays.

“What do they say, Doc?” Bobby asked, he seemed as nervous as Hope was, but she wasn’t about to tell him yet.

“Just stay put Bobby, the red button on the wall will reach me if you need me, I’m going to talk with Mr. Logan, and see if I can find the Professor,” Hope said and walked out of the hospital without a second glance. If luck was holding, which it wasn’t, Hope would find Logan in the Danger room, her first stop though would be the control room. Walking in Hope looked up from the x-rays, no one was in there, but that was okay, she just needed the intercom system. She flipped the switch on the microphone and looked down the room. Logan was easy to find, students surrounded him. He must be explaining something, Hope thought, and didn’t mind interrupting.

“Mr. Logan, I need to see you in the control room for a second,” Hope called, leaning down to speak into the mike. Logan didn’t bother to look up, just waved a hand in her general direction and Hope figured that meant he’d be there soon enough. Hope flipped off the mike and began to tap the films against the counter. What was going on, she wondered. Suddenly everyone was healing themselves after dealing with Logan, could he be the cause, Hope continued to guess at reasons while chewing on her bottom lip in the gesture habitual to her thinking style. He had the power, but could he transfer it, and if he could how was that possible? None of the students had come in physical contact with Logan, well, Berserker had been carried down, but Bobby had fractured his finger in a fall, and Wolfsbane had been hit by a bone spike, none had been injured by Logan himself.

“Doc?” Hope jumped out of her thoughts, Logan had appeared and was looking at her in question.

“Sorry,” Hope said, she distracted herself by spreading out the x-rays over the main console. She had developed the annoying habit of thinking about the single kiss Logan had given…no, taken from her when she looked at him. Instead of focusing on that she stepped back and motioned down to the x-rays, “Take a look at these would you?”

“Wouldn’t that be your job, Doc?”

Hope rolled her eyes, she should have expected this, “Would you just look at them, please?” Hope growled, pointing down at the shot of the bones of Bobby’s hand. Logan sighed and walked over to the pictures, he looked down and grunted.

“There hands,” Logan pointed to the first set, “These are broken,” he moved the finger to the second set, “There aren’t.”

“They’re from the same person,” Hope continued, trying to see if Logan’s face triggered anything, but he stayed blanked faced, maybe a little curious, but nothing else, “They were taken hours apart.”

“There mine?” Logan hazarded a guess, looking a little annoyed, but Hope growled, and shook her head.

“There Bobby Drake’s,” Finally Hope got a reaction from the man, even if it was only a raised eyebrow, “Does he have this ability, or should I talk with Mr. Xavier?”

“Charles isn’t here, he’s with Hank and Ororo on a call,” Logan pulled the corner of his mouth in the tight line, “Are you sure he didn’t patch it with ice?”

“Ice wouldn’t show up on an x-ray, and I could still see through it. Mr. Logan, is it possible for Bobby to do this?” Hope asked her original question, drumming her fingers in impatience.

“No, Doc, Bobby shouldn’t be able to do this,” Now Logan looked worried, finally, Hope thought.

“Look, when you have a free moment, come to the hospital, there are a few more questions I want to ask you and your students are losing their focus.” Hope pointed out one of the large glass windows at the students that seemed to be rioting.

Logan reached down and flicked on the mike, “Cut it out, or I’ll make this longer,” instantly every student stopped. “We’re done here,” he told them, and Hope could hear the sighs of relief from where she stood. “We’ll talk now Doc.”

“Have it your way, but we’ll talk in the hospital,” Hope snapped, snatching up the x-rays, and noticing how many of the students looked grateful for her interruption.

“Fine,” Logan growled, switching off the mike they walked together in silence, Hope still going over possibilities.

“Get down from there,” Hope called to Bobby who was reaching for her stash of ice cream she kept in the freezer along with the ice packs. “If you want some go get some, you are free to go,” Hope turned towards Wolfsbane, “You too, though both of you might be called back to answer some questions.”

“What about me?” Berserker asked, watching his only company leave.

“You had a mild heart attack, you stay,” Hope said, motioning for Logan to follow her to the back room to talk, she didn’t think the students should hear about this.

“What were those questions you had?” Logan asked staying within the doorway, leaning a shoulder on the wall.

“It wasn’t just Bobby who was mysteriously healed, Wolfsbane also had an injury that healed on its own, now her’s may be just her powers advancing, if she can change into a wolf, there maybe other skin shifting feats she can perform, but Bobby’s the oddity,” Hope said while sliding in the x-rays and turning on the light table, “I started to wonder about what could cause this, what the single connecting factor in both of these students was.” Hope drew a breath, “You.”

“Me?” Logan looked skeptical, “I wasn’t near these students when this happened.”

“No, but you have had sustained contact with them, you were with them when you were working on their training, and your powers are self-healing, what if your powers have changed?” Hope leaned against the long metal table that the light table was on, studying Logan as he so often studied her.

“I would have noticed, Doc, I don’t think these two spontaneous healings have anything to do with me.”

“These x-rays aren’t faked, they aren’t taken weeks apart,” Hope pointed her thumb over her shoulder, “These are from the same person, and they’re from the same hand, Mr. Logan, what suggestions do you have?”

“Your machine is faulty, and Wolfsbane never had a cut.” Hope stormed past Logan and grabbed the pair of rubber gloves she had used when looking over Wolfsbane’s wound, turning back she brandished them at Logan.

“Whose blood do you think that is?” Hope asked, one had waving the gloves, the other fisted on her hip, her chin jutted out an extra inch, “How do you think it got there?” Logan still watched her skeptically, “Would you like me to do a DNA test and prove to you its Wolfsbane’s blood?”

“Alright Doc, say my powers are changing, what do you suppose I do about it? Neither kid was hurt by it, and I’m not hurt by it,” Logan commented with a shrug and distant look. Hope was actually stuck dumb, which was a very hard thing to do considering Hope’s intelligence.

“He’s got a point there,” Berserker joined in the conversation, earning a glare from both parties.

“Mr. Logan this may just be just the beginning, something worse might happen, what if your power reverses, so that you’re touch becomes a necrosis or your metabolism begins to work at a speed that eats away at you, there are other things that could happen here,” Hope ranted, she hadn’t dealt with these kind of things before and learning to deal with them was going to take some getting use to.

“Doc, just breath, stop, and listen, the Professor will be back tomorrow, I’ll be fine until then,” Logan said walking past her, “I’ll make sure two dinners are sent down to both of you.” And he walked out the door, leaving a very furious Hope in his wake.

“That man is going to get himself killed and I will stand over his grave and laugh,” Hope said to herself, forgetting that there was a set of ears in the room besides her own.

“You don’t really mean that do you?” Berserker asked, looking shocked that mild mannered Doc had uttered something so mean.

“Ask me again when I haven’t just lost an argument,” Hope took a deep breath and tossed down the gloves, “You want rocky road or mint chocolate chip?”

“You’re going to let me have some of the ice cream?”

“Don’t sound so surprised,” Hope said as she pulled out the two little quart containers, “Ice cream is an excellent sedative.”

“Rocky road.”

~**~

Logan slid into the chair in the communications room, and typed in the number of the direct line to Black Bird. Ororo’s face fitted the screen and Logan slid on the head set, “Where’s Charles?” he asked directly, actually shaken by the doc’s suggestion.

“Right here Logan,” the image changed to Charles, and Logan leaned back in his chair.

“Did you find it?” He asked, business first. Charles had gone to track down a lead on the doc’s laptop and some information that sounded like her work.

“No, but it was definitely her work, how it got leaked the source won’t tell, but that’s not the reason you called is it?”

Logan sighed, “No, the doc was taking care of a few of the squirts today, each had a legitimate reason being there, Bobby broke his finger, Wolfsbane got a scratch,” Logan held up a finger when Charles would have interrupted, “The doc comes to get about an hour later and claims that Bobby’s broken finger healed and Wolfsbane’s scratch also healed.”

“Did Hope have any idea how this might have happened?” Charles was worried again, his brow drawn together and he was frowning into the screen.

“She thinks it’s my doing,” Logan sighed and dropped the fake relaxed look, “She believes my powers are evolving.”

“Have you felt any different, Logan, anything odd?” Charles also leaned forward, also concerned.

“Fit as a fiddle Charles, haven’t felt odd at all,” which worried Logan the most, there was nothing wrong with him, and there should be if his powers were changing.

“Alright Logan, we should be back by morning, we’ll talk over it in the morning with Hope,” Charles looked saddened, “Until then, Logan, take precautions to stay away from the students.”

“Yeah, I know,” Logan said, sliding off the head set and turning off the screen, “Yeah.”

~**~

Hope didn’t mind staying with Berserker until he fell asleep, she ever draped a blanket over him and kept the lights low, but she wasn’t going to join him in sleep. There was just too much running through her head, how had both students been healing and why had Logan showed no symptoms of a change, as most other mutant did? Hope had pulled out her sheets of notes and gone over the information she had, and it still didn’t make sense. Now she had the TV screen down and was looking over the surveillance tapes of the two injuries. It was exactly as Hope remembered, Wolfsbane cut had just sewn its self together, and in one instant Bobby had been getting fitted for a brace and then he didn’t need it. What were the similarities between the two, Hope asked herself, splitting the screen between the two students. Logan had worked with both students for one, then they’d both come here for treatment, and both had been miraculously healed. Hope tilted her head, both had come for treatment, that was ringing in her head. Hope quietly picked up the gloves, she had yet to get rid of them, they were evidence to her, proof Wolfsbane had been cut. Being careful to avoid the blood Hope washed both gloves, maybe just maybe, Hope thought. Just as careful Hope slipped on the right gloves, it was in perfect condition, then she slipped on the left, and turned her hand over. There was a small tear at the second joint of the middle finger. Hope pulled off the gloves and leaned against the sink’s edge. She had touched Bobby with out gloves, she’d touched Wolfsbane through the tear, both had healed, could it be that she had healed them? Hope shook her head in denial, she did not have any X-gene, she wasn’t a mutant, but Mike was. Hope scrambled to the phone that was hidden in the wall and dialed Mike’s number, he’d be awake.

“Chandler Farms, what can I do for you?” Mike’s cheery voice answered, thought Hope knew he had put in a long work day and was probably tired.

“Can you answer a few questions for my sister?” Hope asked, careful not to wake Berserker by talking to loud.

“Hey, Hope, how are you?” Mike was obviously very happy to hear from Hope, but Hope would delay the pleasantries.

“Mike I know you don’t like talking about it, but how are your…powers?”

“Hope, is that why you called me, to get me involved with your project?” Hope could hear the hurt in his voice, but pushed it away.

“This isn’t for my project, Mike, I’m begging you, how are your powers?” Hope knew the desperation she was feeling had seeped into her voice, and hoped it had made it through to Mike.

“Just as unobtrusive as ever Hope, they help my farm, but don’t hurt a soul. Why, what’s wrong?”

Hope ran a hand through her hair, and looked back toward Berserker, “Nothing Mike, I’ve just been worrying lately, about you.”

“And the first thing you ask about are my so called powers? Hope, what’s really eating at you, if you were worried about me you’d ask me when the last time I got my blood looked at.”

“It’s my job, Mike, being your older sister I’m allowed to change my questions,” Hope lied, something she wasn’t very good at, “Alright, I’ve got a case to tend to, and you’re probably tired, so get some sleep I’ll call you tomorrow morning.”

“Alright Hope, I hope you sleep well.” Hope was the first one to hang up and drummed her fingers on the wall next to the phone. Mike was fine, his powers weren’t causing him problems, so what if Hope’s gloves had a tear in them, did it really matter? Still that little voice of doubt was biting at Hope’s heels. Mike had mutant powers, so logically so could she, but what could they be? If they were just healing others then Hope was ecstatic, she lived to heal others, but could they be something more sinister? Maybe she should find Logan, talk to him about this, neither of them had thought it could be her that the events stemmed from. Yet, Hope thought, I’m still not sure if it was me, so I’ll keep this to myself until I have more evidence. Hope bit into her lower lip, she didn’t like betraying the trust of those here, but a pair of torn gloves wasn’t enough evidence to convince the most open minded person. Hope pulled herself up onto the opened bed and decided it was better to sleep on it.

~**~

“Alright,” Hope said, pushing the hand that was shaking her shoulder off, “What is it?”

“The Professor wants to talk to you,” Berserker said, he was the one to wake her, which didn’t surprise Hope, but waking up to see Charles at the foot of the bed Hope had chosen was.

“Oh, hello Professor, what do you want to talk about?” Hope curled her legs under her and sat facing Charles, a slightly sleepy smile on her face.

“Logan told me you had some strange events happen here yesterday,” Charles began.

“Yeah, I was right here, man it was weird,” Berserker jumped in, eagerly trying to get a word in edge wise.

“Thank you, Ray, I’ll talk to you in a second,” Charles said raising a hand to stop Berserker mid sentence, “I hoped you could clear a few things up for me Doctor.”

“Sure,” Hope slid off the bed, “I’ll be right back.” When she returned she had the x-rays, and set them before Charles, “Bobby Drake, Iceman, presented with a fracture of the left index finger, before I could splint the finger, Ray here, showed up, stopped his own heart again, almost completely forgot about it. When I went to splint the finger, I had cause to x-ray it again, the second set of x-rays showed no fracture.”

“And you are sure it was broken the first time around?” Charles asked holding up the x-rays to the light.

“Oh yes, there was a very clear fracture that even Mr. Logan was able to spot. Something like that,” Hope pointed to the fracture, “would not heal in a few hours, that would be at least three weeks of being splinted, and I’d want to do a follow up set of x-rays to make sure it was healed. Now the second odd case was Rahne Sinclair, Wolfsbane, who presented about thirty minutes after Bobby, had a shallow cut on her right shoulder, I had been about to bandage the wound when it too spontaneously healed. Did Mr. Logan tell you the two theories I came up with?”

“Yes, but I don’t see how you came to the conclusion that this was caused by Logan, his powers have always kept to himself, it doesn’t seem logical that he would suddenly evolve powers that would transfer to others.”

“Does it seem logical that a child could have beams of high power laser beams from his eyes, sir, but with Mr. Logan’s healing powers it would make sense that it might make sense that he could be responsible,” Hope said, stretching her arms over her head.

“I’d like to talk with both students right now, but please make sure I can find you.”

“Of curse Professor,” Hope said, watching Charles until the door closed behind him, “Alright, Ray, let’s get you check over and make sure you’re okay to go.” Hope started by listening to his heart and finished with an EKG, and Berserker was free to go. Hope also escaped the hospital, taking to her room she quickly changed and now stood in front of her book shelves looking for her book on the central nervous system and cell regeneration. Books she had back in her college days that didn’t seem important then, but were now. If she could just remember where she had put them. She wanted the book on cell regeneration because of the chapter on how cells repair themselves. She wanted the book on the nervous system because she couldn’t quite remember what caused static electricity. Bobby had been shocked, Wolfsbane had also, so the logical question was to look into static electricity. Hope grabbed her stool and started to pull books down, they had to be here. Of course maybe you left them in the apartment, Hope thought, tossing a text on thorocotomy over her shoulder. Jumping down Hope stared up at the emptied shelves, neither text was there or on the floor. No problem, Hope thought, picking up her keys and heading out of her room. She’d get the books from the Bayville library, they had those books, Hope knew that for sure. Hope kept up the brisk pace to the garage, sleep wasn’t going to help when Hope was jazzed on a thirst for knowledge.

“Hey, Doc, how are you?” Scott asked, he was working on his car, which Hope admired, but didn’t have time to.

“Scott, if anyone ask where I went, would you tell them I’m at the library,” Hope said, opening the driver side door to her Santa Fe.

“Yeah, sure,” Scott replied as Hope tore rubber as she drove. It wasn’t her life that depended on figuring out if it was her or Logan that cause this, it was those at the Institute. Hope knew that unchecked mutant powers were dangerous, even if they were healing. Hope tapped her fingers on the wheel while listening to Nat King Cole. When in doubt, Hope thought, there’s always Cole. Hope jumped out of the car, locking it she rushed into the library earning a glare from the librarian. Why would my copies of these books be missing, Hope thought, pulling the monumental text on the nervous system from the shelf. Hope had unpacked all the boxes she had brought with her, she had placed those books on the shelves, why weren’t they there now? Hope told herself it didn’t matter as she tucked both books under her arm and moved to the check out line. She had the books now that was enough, Hope told herself as she jumped back into her car. I’ll consult with Hank when I get back, Hope thought. The warning was the ground shaking, and Hope slammed on the breaks as the street before her lurched upwards and walled off her route. Hope slammed on the breaks and turned the car so the passenger side hit first. There was the sounds of breaking glass, twisting metal, and screaming breaks when Hope crashed into the protruding street. Clutching the large bump on her forehead Hope stumbled from the car and stopped when she came face to face with the Brotherhood.

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I finally did a cliffhanger ending, good for me, bad for you, so just stay tuned for what happens next! Read and Review.