X-Men: The Gifted Ones

50. INFIRMARY, XAVIER MANSION, WEST CHESTER, NY

Polaris found Jane in the infirmary, doing what she did best. She stood in the doorway and watched Jane check the vital signs of the young patient on the bed. She noticed that Charles was sleeping on a bed nearby.

"Will she live?" Polaris asked.

"Yes, thanks to Sway's quick thinking. Hank arrived just in time."

"Is the Professor OK?"

"Oh," Jane laughed, "he's fine. Just getting some rest so he can be here when she wakes up."

"I need to talk to you," Polaris said. Jane could sense that something was weighing heavily on her.

"Is it about last night?"

Polaris blushed, "I don't want you to..."

"What? Be happy for you? How long has this been going on?"

"A while. Since... since around the time Jason had arrived. He would always try to sleep in Hank's room, and one night..."

"Hank came into your room?"

"Just to talk, to hope that Jason would give up trying to sleep in his room, and he would return to his own once he knew Jason was asleep, but he ended up staying."

"Staying or...staying?"

Polaris flushed at the implication, "Staying. But soon..." She couldn't keep the giggle from escaping.

"So why hide it?" Jane wondered. "Do you love him?"

"I do, but...remember, Sway used to like him."

"I think Sway's over him. He never showed too much interest in her. As she's trained, she's seemed to realize maybe Hank isn't for her. Besides, you haven't noticed how much time she's spent with Banshee?"

"That is true, but to fall in love? It's a bad idea!"

"Why? You think if you give in to love it will weaken your focus? Weaken you?"

"Magneto killed my family, Jane. If he finds out I have someone else to love..."

"But Magneto no longer is concerned about getting you on his side. He has other plans he is trying to hatch."

"I can't give anyone something else to take away from me!"

Jane looked over at Charles. He appeared to be sound asleep. "Polaris," she said, her voice low, "take it from me, if you give in to love, you aren't giving something to your enemy. You give yourself a reason to fight, a reason that you have to persevere!" Polaris looked as if she was about to reply and Jane cut her off. "Try not to think about what happened before! You've learned so much since then! You were a child when that happened to you, and now... now you're a weapon stronger than anything I've seen in the Army!"

Polaris looked over at Charles. She motioned for Jane to lean close, although she was sure that was pointless around a telepath. "Love involves a certain loss of control, when you...your guard is down, and..."

Jane found herself blushing. "That is the point when your power is the strongest," she admitted. "That point of serenity and pure passion, it unleashes something deep in you. You know how I first focused?"

"How?"

She found herself giggling like a teenage girl confessing secrets at a slumber party. "I used to imagine myself kissing him. I noticed once I started doing that, having that pleasant daydream, my powers were stronger, I was more focused, more aware. When I have to inflict injuries, I imagine what I would do if someone were to hurt him, because I have that something to lose. Once I married him, I became stronger."

"That is how you broke my femur the other day?"

Jane nodded and laughed. "So you see, if you let yourself feel those feelings, have that serenity, that passion, that something to guard that you would give your life to protect, your powers will only be enhanced."

"Speaking of enhancing powers," Polaris smiled conspiratorially, "is that why sometimes at night, the lights flicker? From... you two? There are times at night that I wake up at night, and I feel this rush of... invincibility. Sway's felt it, too. We never felt that before you two were married. But if he's not able to..."

"There are ways beyond the physical. Especially with a telepath!"

"Clearly!" The two shared a laugh.

Charles stirred a little. They stopped laughing and stared at him in horror. When he didn't wake up, they resumed their conversation.

"I have to admit, when you and the Professor first started to show interest in one another, I thought maybe..."

"We were in it for all the wrong reasons?"

"I hate to admit it, but yes. I mean, he's a rich man, clearly, has this big home. I wondered if that was your intention all along."

Jane was taken aback. "If that was, I can assure you he would have found it out. As it was, when I was assigned here, I assumed the 'Professor Charles Francis Xavier' was some dusty old fart or a middle-aged, balding mad scientist."

"No one expected..." she looked over at the sleeping Charles. They both laughed. "Something tells me he didn't expect you, either."

"He had Cerebro. How I looked was no surprise."

"I mean... the one who made him realize that he was still human. You seemed to have brought him back to the world of humanity. He isn't so aloof anymore. And opening the school? When he announced it, and that it was your idea, I realized that you really belong here with us."

"I didn't think I did for a while. I mean, all of you with your energy blasts and repelling this, or creating that. And I thought, here I am. Uh, a living band-aid."

"Yeah, then you break Havoc's arm and we all about fainted!" They both laughed. "I'm glad I talked with you."

"Me, too," Jane smiled. "And I hope you decide to be more open about being with Hank. Let that guard down, open yourself up to that higher point of serenity and passion, allow yourself to love with a force so strong that you would fight to the death to protect it. You'll become more powerful than you can ever imagine, and may God help Magneto if he crosses you again."