Strange Meeting (open)

[ian]

Well Ian, if what you say is true, then we must meet as soon as possible.

Where?

Meet me at the Harbor Island Park Beach at 12pm tomorrow

And that was the end of the conversation yesterday. "Jane" had said her goodbyes, and Ian was once again left with too many questions and two few answers. He laid there in bed that night, staring up at the ceiling as thoughts of Pitsha, Cain, Rose and the conversation with Jane played in his thoughts, until finally sleep overtook him.

He woke up the next morning, almost forgetting about the whole yesterday from Pitsha to Jane, until he looked at the clock and saw he only had an hour and a half before he had to leave. Granted he could make it to the beach in less then a second, but lately he just didn't seem as fast as he use to. It was as if, when Rose "died", his reason for speed died to.

Now he stood on a barren beach, his coat zipped up as the chilled ocean air blew against him. He looked at his watch, which showed 12:25pm. Only five more minutes until Jane showed. What would he say? Would he be able to say anything at all? Would he want to? He ran his hand through his hair, which had started to become a habit when he was frustrated, nervous, or on edge.

[jane]

What the hell was that Milena thinking?!

Why was that... that woman bringing some no name kid into the 'loop', if you wanted to word it that way? But none the less, if Pitsha Milena called on you personally, you had to oblige. Else you'd risk dishonoring the entire family! And seeing as her family liked to keep face... Well you'd be disowned if you did something that stupid. And Jane wasn't that stupid.

So, when she'd gotten a call from some random punk, who she had no idea who he was, and had been going mad with how he got her number and seemed to know who she was.... Well she was more then a little upset. When he mentioned Pitsha's name though, she was forced to cooperate.

The slightly older boy had agreed to meet her the next day, somewhere out of the way but not to hidden. At this time of year? Who the hell would come to the beach? It was getting to cold for that kind of stuff! So there wouldn't be any hippie crowds to deal with, but if he tried something there were the stores across the street.

At first, Jane had contemplated standing up the guy named Ian, leave him waiting for hours upon hours, before finally deciding against it. This Ian had somehow made himself enemies with Cain, one of the last Milena's, and most of the Nightshade family. That was odd enough on it's own. Taking everything else into consideration... Well things just weren't looking up for the guy. She couldn't figure it all out.

He'd left things out when explaining his situation to her. She was sure of that. Things didn't add up. Why had he gone after Cain to begin with? Why did the Nightshades hate him? Why was he so... well zombieish to put it nicely? Either he hadn't really thought the information was important, or it was painful. With his zombie demeanor though, it was probably the second.

Janes thoughts were brought to a halt when she finally reached the place with only a minute to spare. Her gaze wandered. Now where could he be? Was that him? It probably was... She'd spotted only one person on the beach, and it looked like a man...

Slowly, she approached, the wind whipping her wavy brown hair in every which direction, her body covered in a black leather jacket and jeans. "You're Ian?" Her voice was much quieter then it had been on the phone. Meeting people in person, or just talking face to face wasn't her favorite thing to do.

Even as she was making her way to the place they'd agreed to meet, her doubts kept arising still. What was so special about some punk?

[ian]

Where the hell was she?

He looked to his watch again, 12:35. He'd give her five more minutes, and then he was gone. He couldn't believe he was standing out on the beach catching God knows what, waiting for someone that probably wouldn't show.

Why would she? She doesn't even know who I am?

He didn't know what was going on or why he even called that number. Why is Cain and the Nightshades warrant on him so important to people he didn't even knew existed? He sighed, slightly shivering from the cold. He would give anything to have an insulated jacket, something to keep him warm, but those thoughts would soon taken away when he heard a voice behind him. He turned around, seeing a woman who's voice was quieter than it was on the phone. So quiet he could barely hear her. She was looking at him no doubt in the same way he was at her.

"Yeah," he said with a nod, "and you're Jane right?"

[jane]

Her nod in response was small, barely even discernible through her mass of hair. "Yes." With the sort of introductions done with though, what exactly was she supposed to say? She didn't even know entirely why she was here! Or what she was supposed to help this slightly older guy with! If she could, she'd curse the Milena woman for this. Again though, she didn't want to be disowned!

"You left things out on the phone.... If I'm supposed to help you figure things out, you can't keep secrets." She paused for a moment, her gaze wandering a little. "Not here though... Some lucky person might overhear." Her gaze returned to Ian. "I hope you don't get motion sickness."

She waited only a moment, before her body seemed to vanish, fading before his very eyes, but if he looked at his own self, so was he! Before he could have any real reaction to it, the beach had vanished and it was like they were moving thousands of miles in the blink of an eye, like when he were running only faster.

Things seemed to be settling around them, until finally their feet returned to earth, the world no longer spinning. They were definitely not on the Beach anymore. The place looked like a park, with both of them standing in a gazebo large enough to hold at least ten people comfortably.

With out a moment's hesitation Jane sat down at one of the tables. "You'll be safe explaining things here. No one can get into this place."

[ian]

He knew he had left somethings out, but what was he going to tell her? He wasn't sure at all himself on what was happening, but his curiosity grew a little when she said they would be safer talking somewhere else. He looked around for a place that would be suitable and out of hearing, but they were completely out in the open. Then she mentioned something about motion sickness.

"Not really, why?"

He then noticed her beginning to vanish, and as he went to reach out for her, he realized that he was disappearing as. What was going on here? When he looked up again, he saw the world around the two of them speeding by faster then he had ever ran before. He was just starting to get dizzy when things began to settle down and he found himself in a gazebo in the middle of a park that he didn't know where it was.

"Wha...where are we?"

[jane]

Ian's reaction was expected. After all, not many people were used to being physically transported to a completely different place, other then teleporters! Sure, telepaths tried to imitate the process sometimes, but it was never the same.
"Another dimension. One I created."

Okay, that would probably confuse him even more. Great, how was she supposed to explain this? Well, since Pitsha had brought him into this, he might as well know... "Let me reintroduce myself. I'm Jane Ellwood." He probably wouldn't know what that was supposed to mean, but he'd get it after she explained. "You're probably confused why that's important or not..." She sighed, shaking her head and staring out at the lawns with a blank stare.

"You've somehow gotten yourself with two Ancient families hunting you. Or... One Ancient family and one of the last from another. You probably know a little about the Ancient Families. They're the... well people call them 'mutants by blood'. Where the X-gene is really strong and will go through the family for generations." She paused, staring down at the table and letting her fingers trace the pattern in the wood. "There are the Nightshades, who have you on their most wanted for who knows why, the Milenas, who are near extinct except for Pitsha and Cain, and the Ellwoods, my family."

Another pause and sigh as her gaze wandered yet again. Why was she the one having to handle this?! "You know about the Nightshades, I assume. They're.... unpleasant most of the time. The Ellwoods.... Well the other families like to call us Naturals, because we're just naturally stronger then the Nightshades. And the Milenas... They're bizarre. The woman you met, Pitsha, is their founder. She's lived for who knows how long, because she jumps to new bodies. They're natural talents to, because no matter how much human blood gets mixed in, they still manage to hang on to the X-gene."

Great, she'd probably only confuse him more by saying that! If he had questions though, he'd ask. They did have plenty of time after all....

[ian]

"So...you create dimensions?"

That's the only way he could put it. He traced his finger along the wood of the gazebo structure as he listened to her explain herself. As she continued to explain about her lineage and how he was caught up with two ancient families, he couldn't help but smirk at the thought. Just my luck he thought to himself and all this started with me saving Rose. He continued to walk along the gazebo as she spoke.

"So it's a little like being a vampire. Some people are mutants by , others get it later on." he stopped, looking at her as he realized the comparison he made, "Um...no offense."

He smirked when she said the Nightshades have him on their wanted list. That was one thing he could answer, and it had to do with that same he thought about before. He was brought into this mess by Rose, and still fought for her even after her . If she really is anyway., he thought. He gave her a shocked and angry look when she mentioned Pitsha and Cain related.

"So she is related to him." he leaned against the wood, "I knew I didn't trust her for some reason."

He looked away a bit when she said the Nightshades were unpleasant. He had to admit he didn't like any members of that family, all except for two people. One who had become his best friend over the months they had been living in the same school. He looked up at Jane as she spoke of Pitsha and herself. He understood it, but he wasn't sure how he was mixed into all of this.

"I get all that, just don't know where I fit into all of this. I know Cain's after me because I ruined his factory and destroyed half his sentinels. The Nightshades? That's an easy one, they're after me because of Rose and Parker. I'm pretty much the only thing standing between them and the two...or one." he stopped, once again remembering that black spear going through Rose.

He sighed, pushing off of the wall and beginning to pace around the floor in front of Jane. Rose was , he saw it with his own eyes. But Pitsha tells him that Rose is still alive in another body, and he had to find her before Cain and Shadow found out about it.

"I dunno...something Pitsha told me is bugging me the most. Rose is , I saw her kill herself to save us." he leaned back against the wood of the gazebo, "But she says that she saved Rose by transferring her soul into someone else. How can I know it's true? She expects me to believe her, but...her and Cain...how can I believe someone related to that monster?"

[jane]

Jane just shrugged softly. "Sort of. I only create one. It collapses after I leave, so I have to remake it every time." Sure, her power wasn't exactly the topic they were supposed to be on, but it at least gave them something else to talk about before all the serious business began.

His comparison made her smile a little. "Well, sort of. It's a bit more complicated then that. The X-gene is in most of humanity, but never manifests itself. It's how it's survived so long. If there weren't carriers that didn't 'become' mutants, then there wouldn't be any X-gene today. Everyone with it would have been killed a long time ago. The Ancient families don't have those hidden carriers."

Ian was obviously wary of Pitsha, and for good reason. The woman didn't make sense most of the time, and sometimes Jane worried about her sanity, but she wasn't like Cain. Not all that much, anyway...

She just listened silently as he explained his theories of why he was hated by the Nightshades and Cain, trying to put two and two together. "You're probably right about Cain. From what I've heard about him, you don't mess with him. It probably irritates him even more that you're not exactly a..." She paused, as if hesitate. "Please don't be offended, but you're not a huge threat to him. Or you shouldn't be. All you do is run really fast. You can't really hurt him." Oh how she hoped he wouldn't get mad at her! "It'd really make someone like him mad if someone like you made a mess of things. Not to mention it'd hurt his standing with the people he needs to be in good graces with." A short pause. "How do you think Shadow would react if she found out someone like you ruined his plans so easily?"

"The Nightshades are pretty emotional too. It's no secret that Shadow's been after her little brother for years, because he's the only one that can become head of the family if she's found incompetent. She doesn't want the competition. But it wasn't Shadow that put the bounty on your head..." She hesitated for a moment, her gaze slowly wandering to Ian. "It.... was Sky..."

Ian was obviously confused about things. He didn't know what to believe anymore, which was understandable. For someone like him to get in the middle of something like this was pretty insane. "You and Rose were really close... right? Like... really close?" She could see his reaction when he said Rose's name...

"Pitsha's a freak, there's no question about that. She's probably crazy, messing with peoples lives with out a second thought. And she's dangerous, because... well the same reason. But she doesn't lie, and she doesn't mess with people that way for no reason." She paused, trying to think of a way to explain things. "I don't even know if she's even met Cain face to face, she's his who knows how many greats Grandma after all. I can't tell you if he even knows she exists... But I can tell you she doesn't care what goes on in the world just as long as she doesn't get personally involved. She won't go to the X-men, even though she could probably tell him how to win this war in a heartbeat. But at the same time she won't go to Cain to help him win the war either."

Jane sighed, running her fingers through her hair as she leaned back on the bench a little. "If it helps, I've only met the woman once, and there's only one thing she cares about, and that's keeping the Milena line going. So if she ever did contact Cain, it'd probably be to threat him if he died with out carrying on the line."

"I'd trust her word when she says Rose is still alive. She's just like that. She wouldn't lie about something like that. Not to mention she has a soft spot for Teens and kids..." She paused for a moment. "That's the weird thing about Pitsha's power. She sort of... grabs the soul right when it leaves the body, so they technically do die, and anyone that watches will believe for sure they are dead. After that, she puts the soul in an object that she's carrying until she finds a new host body that's recently deceased, and as close to the original age as possible."

[ian]

"Makes a good escape, that's for sure."

He nodded as she explained that he was close on the comparison, but in need of a little bit of correction. As she talked about Cain, he couldn't help but laugh. If she only knew how many times he was considered a small threat to Cain and Shadow. He had to admit that putting a major damage on Cain's ego was more fun then it was a challenge. To think that one boy made a mess of his plans, and not to mention ruining things before they even started.

"You're not offending me, it wouldn't be the first time I wasn't considered a threat." his smile faded when she mentioned Sky and he sighed, "Sky...does she me that much?"

When she asked about Rose and him being close, the distance in his eyes grew. He thought about the first day they met, saving her from the lake, dodging her exploding orbs in the infirmary. He stood by her through everything, everything but two times. The first was when she was kidnapped by the Nightmares, and the second...he still couldn't bring himself to forgive himself for letting that happen to her. He fought back a tear that threatened to escape as he remembered holding her as she died in his arms.

"yeah...we were close."

He loved Rose, not just the kind a friend would love another friend. Rose was the one he wanted to spend his life with, but did she feel the same about him? It was the one secret he never was able to find out. He wiped his eyes, mumbling something about dust in his eyes. The way she spoke to him gave him the feeling he could trust her, so when she said Pitsha was the kind of person to never get involved in events, he believed her. So she only got involved to make things interesting? That sounded familiar. He looked to Jane when she said that Pitsha was telling the truth, that Rose was still alive.

"She told me I had to find Rose before Cain and the Nightmares found out about it. But how can I find her?"

[jane]

It was hard trying to figure out why Sky would brand Ian on the kill on sight list, especially considering he'd been good friends with Rose, Sky's little sister. But... once you stopped thinking trying to reason it, an answer would pop into Jane's head. Sky wanted revenge. Rose had killed herself, but for some reason Sky thought it was Ian's fault. Agony caused by a loss like that could blind a person. "I think she blames you for what happened..." Not to mention Jane had been hearing some pretty freaky rumors about Sky being pregnant. If that were true, then she'd already be pretty hormonal to begin with!

That distant look in his eyes was stronger then Jane had thought. No, they were more then close. Rose's
'death' had hit Ian hard, hard enough that he'd lost the will to do most things in life. Maybe that was what Pitsha had wanted Jane to help with? Help him get back on his feet? That was rather sentimental of Pitsha... But the woman was unpredictable, and sometimes just did things for the hell of it.

His next comment surprised her a little. Pitsha hadn't explained that? Great.... "If Cain or the Nightshades found out she was still alive, what do you think would happen?" She paused. "It's never happened to me, but from what I've heard, if you're not aware of your soul being moved, it really messes you up. Sometimes you just believe your old life was just a dream, because... well it feels like a dream. Sometimes your memories and the memories of your new body with mix and drive the person crazy because they don't know what to believe. And in the rare occasions you come out just fine, with your memories clear as day, but also being able to recall the memories of your new body." Another short pause. "So, if, let's say Cain, found the new Rose and her own memories are nothing but a dream to her, he'd be able to destroy her, or turn her to his side."

Jane almost laughed at his question, finally sliding off the bench so she could stand and wander the gazebo a bit. "It'll actually be easier then you think. Since she hasn't shown up yet, I'm guessing her real memories are only dreams to her. If she'd realized they were real, she'd have come find you. If they'd mixed, well it'd be on the news because she would have destroyed something!" This time she did chuckle a little. "So, narrowing it down even more, Pitsha keeps people close to their real age, so we can assume Rose is still in her teens, maybe a little older or a little younger. And she'd still be in New York, hopefully, because Pitsha doesn't go far when trying to find new bodies..." Jane paused, blinking, before turning to face the table and staring at it. Instantly a map of New York and a red pen appeared out of thin air.

She returned to the table, popping the lid of the pen off and making a dot at one point. "This is where she died. And here-" She make another dot on the map. "Is the nearest hospital." It was walking distance. "So, considering Pitsha wouldn't have to go very far to find a new host body, I'd say the new Rose lives somewhere in this area..." She drew a large circle around the hospital. "That or she spends a lot of time in the area." That or the new host body had been traveling through the area when she died. If that were true... Well they wouldn't find her this way! She put the lid of the pen back on and turned back to stare at Ian.

"After that... Well, all I can say is just watch people around Rose's age. The new Rose might be really different, but there are bound to be some similarities in personality, not to mention she's probably terrified out of her skin because she just discovered some crazy mutant power. As much as I hate to say it, a disaster in the area would actually make her come out of hiding, because the Rose part of her won't be able to sit back and let people get hurt. She'd make a big display of her power though because she doesn't know how to control it..."

[ian]

"There's a shocker."

He rolled his eyes when Jane said that Sky blamed him for Rose's death. He had to admit that a part of him blamed himself as well, just as Parker blamed him before the two patched things up and became friends. Now Sky and Cain want him dead, which suddenly made him feel like this gazebo was getting smaller by the minute. He looked directly at Jane as she spoke of the consiquences of not finding Rose. The last thing Ian wanted was Rose dead again, or on Cain's side.

"I have to find her then. If she's really alive then there's still hope, right?"

He watched as a map appeared on the table, a red pen in Jane's hand. Now if she could make a pizza appear I'll really be impressed, he smirked a little as he walked to the table, his face turning serious as he watched her study the map, working around the area of the hospital. So he had the area, and from Jane's explination of Rose and her powers inside a new body, picking her from others would be easy. If only he had a name to go off of for the girl she was in now.

"That narrows it down pretty well, right?"

[jane]

Jane just shrugged. He didn't seem all that surprised by Sky hating him, even if Sky was Rose's older sister. But at least he realized the danger of someone else finding out about Rose's existence before he found her. Who knew what would happen! And it all depended on who found her... Sure, if it was Sky, Rose wouldn't be in any danger. If it were Cain, she'd be either killed or turned. If it were Shadow, she'd most likely be turned, but killed if that didn't work.

"Yeah. And fast. Before someone else figures things out. And what makes it worse is if it is Cain, and he knows about Pitsha, it'd probably endanger Pitsha as well. So she's really put her next out on the line for you two." Why was Pitsha risking so much just for Ian and Rose? Sure she was unpredictable, and sometimes sympathetic, but had it really just been a coincidence that she saved Rose? Or did she have some sort of plan that no one knew about? Only time would tell...

"I can. But I won't." Her comment would probably scare him out of his wits, which made her smile a little. She slowly looked at him as he watched over her shoulder. "You forget, my dimension, my rules." Everything in this dimension was under her control, after all. And if she wanted to hear thoughts, well it didn't take more then a thought herself to make it happen. In here? Jane acted like God.

"Or...." Jane stared off into space, deep in thought. "If you really wanted, you could let that Professor Xavier in on things, and he could probably locate her... But you'd risk other people finding out Rose is still alive. I'd say only tell him as a last resort. The less people that know the better. You control the knowledge that way."

"Oh!" Suddenly she had a thought, one that she should have thought of earlier. "Check the newspapers! They might tell you something! The new body would have been in some sort of accident, or been sick, or something, and then... well died, before suddenly coming back to life with out any medical help. That would definitely be in the papers."

[ian]

"Thanks, I'll keep that in mind."

It sent chills down his spine to think what would happen if Cain or Shadow got ahold of her. Sky though, what if she found out? Would Rose be safe? Would she make Rose hate him? He couldn't risk it, he had to find Rose first, even if it ment looking around all of New York. He looked to her oddly when she commented on his thoughts. She could read his mind to? But he just smiled when she did, figuring those rules of hers included mind reading.

"I don't want anyone else to know, not until I'm sure I found her."

In all honesty he still had his doubts, but those doubts were easily outweighed by hope. The hope that Rose was indeed still alive out in New York somewhere. He jumped as he was yanked out of his thoughts by Jane's sudden outburst. He looked to her oddly as she mentioned newspapers, but smiled widely as she finished her comment. Of course!

"Yeah, I'll check the papers that day for any deaths or things that seemed odd."

[jane]

"Not even Parker?" Sure, Ian could probably use a telepath helping him find Rose, but would it be a good idea? What if Parker let it leak somehow? That would be bad... "Nevermind. Don't even tell him. Telepaths had a hard time keeping secrets." Just as hard as it was to keep a secret from Telepaths! "You're going to have to be really careful around him... Don't think about it near the school, because he'll be able to hear it."

It made her suddenly realize how much trouble she might be in when she got home. Greeeeeeaaat. Sure, helping Ian was a good thing to do, but she'd rather not get in to much trouble. "I'm so grounded when I get home..." She tried to speak quiet enough that he wouldn't here, leaning forward to rest her forehead on the table.

[ian]

"He probably wouldn't believe me even if he read my thoughts."

He smirked, knowing that Rose's hit Parker as much as it did him. If he were to tell Parker or even Alex about the chance that Rose was alive, they would think he was crazy and find some way to get him locked in the confines of the school. He shook his head at that thought, not wanting to let anybody know until he had found Rose and got her safe.

"Aren't you a little old to be grounded?"

He looked at her with a small smile, trying to bring humor into their conversation. She was only a little older than him, or at least that's how it looked. He had a hard time judging people just by how they look these days. He sat on the bench next to her, leaning back against the table. He couldn't help but think of even the smallest chance that he might see Rose again.