A dying man is given a second chance. This story is a fan fiction that takes place in the Whateley Universe

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My eyes were closed, but in my head, I could clearly see an image of paradise…or at least of one of the happiest days of my life. I was in the back yard, manning the grill with a beer in my hand while Meg put food on the table. Her belly was swollen as she was pregnant with Rich, and she seemed to glow with joy over it. Just a short distance away, two little girls in dresses chased each other around the yard, with Melanie teasing her little sister by keeping her favorite doll away from her.

When I finally opened my eyes, the scene in front of me looked almost the same. Mark was standing in front of the grill, holding one of his fancy micro-brews in hand while he flipped the burgers. Melanie was setting picnic the table, looking quite happy with herself, though she showed no signs of being pregnant again. And just a short distance away, two girls in dresses chased each other around the yard.

Kimberly had been more than happy to wear a dress for the party, though Kaylie had been a little more reluctant. I was pretty sure my eldest granddaughter was only wearing a dress because Melanie had convinced her to do it for me. Of course, Kaylie’s currently dress was all black and she was trying out the gothic lolita look in my honor, though I suspected a large part of that reason was really just mess with her mother.

I smiled as I looked over the back yard, somehow feeling like the king…queen…princess of my domain. After all, it was my birthday party and all this celebration was being done in my honor. Or at least, my birthday made a pretty good excuse for a party. And since it was a beautiful Saturday afternoon, the weather was absolutely perfect for it.

It was August eighteenth, my fiftieth birthday. Under normal circumstances, turning fifty probably would have left me feeling old and depressed, but it was hard to feel old when I saw a little girl staring back at me from the mirror. And since the doctors had been almost certain that I wouldn’t even be alive to see this day, I actually felt pretty damn lucky.

I went to the cooler and grabbed myself a beer, which I promptly poured into a large plastic cup. I felt a little silly drinking beer out of a plastic cup with Disney characters all over it, but this was part of the compromise I’d made with Melanie after I’d moved in. My daughter hadn’t wanted the girls to see someone who looked their age drinking alcohol, so I disguised my drinking habits whenever they were around. No one was fooled, but Melanie was satisfied and I still got my beer.

Just then, Rich called out, “Sorry I’m late…

My son had just arrived, stepping out of one of his portals along with his new girlfriend. Min…AKA Mystery Woman, was dressed in civilian clothes and was holding onto a casserole dish. From what I understood, the two of them had bumped into each other a few times at the Clinic, and somehow they ended up dating after that.

“I got caught up at work,” Rich told me with an apologetic smile. “The company had me running a few rush deliveries…” Then he paused and added, “One of my deliveries was to someone with the last name of Goodkind, but I’m pretty sure she wasn’t one of THE Goodkinds. Then again, Trin and Macintyre are pretty expensive, so someone involved in the delivery has a lot of money.”

“I seriously doubt it was one of THE Goodkinds,” Min told him with a faint smile. “None of them would ever rely on mutants for anything, not even delivering their mail.”

“Anyway,” Rich told me with a broad grin. “Happy birthday…”

“Thank you,” I responded, giving him a brief curtsy the girls and I had been practicing. The look on his face was enough to make it worth the effort.

“Um…how old are you?” Min asked me a little awkwardly.

She’d been stunned when she first found out who I really was, not to mention my relationship to Rich and Rachael. After her initial shock, her response had been, “That explains so much…”

“Fifty,” I answered cheerfully. “Going on ten.”

“I still think you look closer to nine,” Rich teased me. “Maybe eight…”

A minute later, Rich and Min took the food they brought to the picnic table and began helping themselves to snacks. I just stood back, watching everyone and feeling pleased to have the family together like this. Of course, there was one notable absence, one that made me sad just to think about. Rachael.

About a week ago, I finally got in to visit Rachael in prison, and to my surprise, she seemed to be doing fairly well. She’d been wearing that tiara and wrist bracer that kept her under control, and she’d even seemed more relaxed than she had in her own lab.

“Hello my darling daughter,” she’d greeted me with a smile, obviously amused by that whole misunderstanding. Of course, that whole misunderstanding may have been the only reason I was allowed to visit her. We’d only been allowed to talk for about an hour, but it had been a nice conversation. “The cot isn’t very comfortable,” she complained, “but I’ve actually been sleeping a little better than I have in years. And the food sucks…but it’s still better than I’m used to…”

Rachael told me that while she’d been locked up, she’d only had a few episodes, all triggered by her frustration over not being allowed to build anything, and they’d all been cut short by her device. Then she told me about her lawyer, and how he was going for an ‘insanity’ defense. Apparently, he was going to use the fact that she’d designed her own restraint device to push for leniency, along with the way she’d helped rescue the Marquis’ prisoners. And though I had serious doubts that they’d ever let her leave prison after what she’d done, I still hoped and prayed that someday she’d be given another chance at having at least some kind of decent life.

The thing that had surprised me most was when Rachael told me that Pinnacle had continued to visit her. Apparently, he’d come to ‘interrogate’ her six times since she’d been locked up, and she actually seemed to be looking forward to his next interrogation. It was nice that she’d found someone to talk to, though I couldn’t help but laugh at the irony of it being the super hero who’d spent years trying to lock her away.

Then before I’d left, Rachael had given me a gentle smile and said, “Don’t worry about me. This place isn’t really that bad, and as long as I’m here, I don’t have to worry about hurting anyone else.”

I’d left the prison with mixed feelings and a heavy heart. It had been nice to see Rachael again and see that she was doing a lot better than I’d feared, but it still hurt to see her locked up like that. It hurt to know that she’d probably never leave that place again, and this just fueled my determination. I wasn’t a doctor, scientist, or shrink, but I was going to do everything I could to help find a cure for that damn disease.

“Are you okay,” Melanie asked, coming over and putting a hand on my shoulder.

“Yeah,” I told her with a faint smile. “I was just wishing Rachael was here with us.”

“Me too,” she admitted sadly.

I turned my attention back to the girls, chuckling as Kaylie told her sister, “No, I’m not gonna play dolls with you… I’m too old for dolls…”

I watched Kimberly, suddenly having a temptation to go over and play dolls with her. One thing about being a little girl, it might not do much for my dignity, but it sure as hell made it easier to get to know my granddaughters. However, instead of going over and doing that right then, I just continued watching them, especially Kaylie.

So far, Kaylie hadn’t shown any signs of manifesting as a mutant, which made me wonder if maybe the Marquis had been wrong about her. I kind of hoped he was since being a mutant had brought Rachael nothing but problems. Still, Rich seemed to really enjoy being a mutant, and if it wasn’t for being one myself, I’d probably be pushing up daisies rather than spending time with my family. I guess we didn’t really have any choice but to wait and see how things turned out. And as I’d learned, sometimes life could really surprise you.

My thoughts turned to Whateley Academy, and more specifically, the fact that I hadn’t received any response from my application. School was supposed to start up in just a couple weeks and I didn’t even know if I’d been accepted or not. I suspected that the lack of news meant that I hadn’t been. When I’d filled out the application, I’d been pretty honest about my mutation, including my gender change and age regression. In hindsight, that was probably a bad idea since I doubted they’d want someone like me in that school. In fact, they’d probably take one look at it and assume I was some kind of pervert.

I was just starting to think about what options I might have when Kimberly suddenly ran into me and exclaimed, “Tag, you’re it.”

“Oh no I’m not,” I responded, thankful for the distraction. I grinned evilly, then began chasing after the giggling girl, calling out, “I’m gonna get you my pretty…and your little dog too…”

“Hey, don’t call me a dog,” Kaylie joked before she made a show of running away as well.

An hour later, we’d all finished eating and it was time for cake and presents. Melanie pulled out the cake, which only had ten candles, much to my amusement.

“It was easier to use ten candles than fifty,” Melanie teased me.

“Hurry up and get it cut,” I joked. “I’m not getting any younger…”

Everyone started laughing at that, then Rich pointed out, “I hope not. If you got any younger, we’d be changing your diapers.”

“Oooh gross,” Kimberly exclaimed.

However, Kaylie laughed and joked, “And I’d get to babysit her…”

Then came the presents, with Kaylie exclaiming, “Open mine first…” Kaylie’s present wasn’t really wrapped for obvious reasons. It was basically a lacy black umbrella with a ribbon wrapped around the handle. “It’s a parasol,” she exclaimed proudly. “I thought it would really go with your look…”

“Um…than you,” I told her, taking the parasol and making a show of walking back and forth while holding it over my shoulder. That seemed to make Kaylie happy.

When I opened Mark’s present next, it was a box of good quality cigars, which immediately earned a grin from me and a glare from his wife. Ever since my transformation, the only cigar I’d been able to enjoy had been the one in the Freelancers’ headquarters. Thanks to the way I looked now, I couldn’t exactly go into a smoke shop anymore, so I was going to take my time and enjoy these.

“A very thoughtful gift,” Melanie told Mark, who just chuckled in response. Then she gave me a flat look, letting me know that I’d better not smoke those in the house or when the girls were around.

“I can’t believe he’d give cigars to a kid,” Min whispered to Rich. “I know she’s not really a little girl, but still…”

Rich leaned over and quietly responded, “I think he’s just trying to make up for the way Mel keeps trying to make her more girly…”

Melanie’s present was next, and when I opened the box, I saw that it came in several parts. On top, there was a hand mirror with a beautiful silver metal frame and handle, and a matching hair brush that went with it. Beneath those, there were three books. The first was ‘Manners and Etiquette,’ and the other two were, ‘How to be a Lady’ and ‘101 Things Every Girl Should Know’.

“Are you trying to tell me something?” I asked Melanie wryly.

“Well,” she responded, just a little defensively, “When you go to this new school, you’ll have this wonderful opportunity to completely reinvent yourself, and I thought it would be nice if you tried to act more…ladylike.”

“Instead of like an auto mechanic,” Rich added with a grin. I stuck my tongue out at him, earning giggles from Kimberly and Kaylie.

There were a couple more presents, then Min told me, “Pinnacle was planning on stopping over, but he got caught up chasing some villain who decided to start bouncing off buildings downtown like she was in some kind of giant pinball game…”

“I saw it in the news,” I responded, remembering May O’Connel giving the report just before everyone started getting ready for the party.

Min nodded at that. “Anyway, he asked me to pass this on to you.” With that, she handed an envelope which had ‘Alyss’ written across the front in a smooth script that I knew wasn’t Pinnacle’s.

I opened the envelope and found a letter which began, “Happy birthday Daddy,” in Rachael’s handwriting. I smiled at that and read through the letter, forcing myself to take my time and to read much more slowly than I normally would. My eyes got a little teary as I read my daughter’s birthday wishes. Then near the end, she said, “Roger promised that he was going to arrange another visit before you head off to this school…”

I paused at that and mused, “Roger?” I wondered who Roger was for just a moment, until I realized that she had to mean Pinnacle. I was a little surprised at that and guessed the two of them had become a little friendlier than I’d thought if she not only knew his real name but felt comfortable using it.

While I was distracted by the letter, Melanie began cleaning up, taking some of the leftover food into the house. She was just coming back out for another trip when she paused at the door and announced, “Someone’s ringing the doorbell…” Melanie rushed back into the house to answer it, returning just a minute later and awkwardly calling out, “Alyss… It’s for you…”

“Who?” I started, getting up to go see. The last time I had a surprise guest asking for me, it had been Pinnacle. However, when I looked at the woman who’d come into the back yard behind my daughter, I didn’t recognize her at all. She was a very attractive blonde in her late thirties, and she was wearing a professional looking gray suit and skirt.

“Mrs. Carson?” Min blurted out in surprise.

The blonde woman…Mrs. Carson looked at Min with a faint look of surprise. “Min Hinaka,” she responded with a smile. “I certainly wasn’t expecting to encounter a former student on this trip.” Then she turned her attention to me, staring at me for several long seconds with a thoughtful expression. “Miss Morgan,” she finally said. “If we could speak in private…”

“Sure,” I responded with a nod, giving her a curious look. From the way Min had reacted to her and the way she’d referred to Min as a former student, I guessed she might be a teacher from Whateley.

I led Mrs. Carson back into the house and into the living room, which was empty at the moment since everyone else was in the back yard. “Would you like something to drink?” I asked to be polite.

“I wouldn’t mind a glass of water,” she answered, watching me with a curious look.

With a nod, I hurried to the kitchen, coming back with a glass of water for her. I’d left my beer outside and didn’t think it was a good idea drinking it in front of her anyway, what with the whole ‘being a minor’ thing.

“I am Elizabeth Carson,” she finally began. “The headmistress of Whateley Academy.”

“Okay,” I responded in surprise, not sure what to say to that. I’d guessed she was a teacher, but not the damn principal.

“As you might guess,” she said carefully, “we don’t come and personally interview every applicant to the school. However, it is my responsibility to ensure the safety of my students, and a security check found something in your background that has us…concerned. That’s why I’ve come here to personally see whether or not you might be a potential threat to the students.”

I nodded at that, just a little surprised by her honesty but appreciating it as well. I’d always hated it when people danced around a subject and never really got to the point. “My real age,” I said after a few seconds. I’d been afraid that they wouldn’t take a fifty year old former man since it would probably be creepy having me around the kids, and it looked like I was right.

“You wouldn’t be the first student who’s gone through a gender change,” Carson told me with a faint smile. “Nor even the first who’s been rejuvenated and came to Whateley for the chance to start over.” At my look of surprise, she continued, “What I was referring to was your association with Humanity First.”

I was a little startled by that since I hadn’t been involved with Humanity First in a long time, but I guess I shouldn’t be. For a school designed for mutants, that kind of thing would be considered a pretty big deal.

“You’re worried I might be some kind of plant for them,” I said in understanding. She didn’t respond to that, but she didn’t need to either. “I was a member for fifteen years,” I said simply, not bothering to deny it.

“Can you tell me why?” she asked, sounding more curious than accusatory. Of course, she was probably laughing her ass off inside over the irony. After all, a member of Humanity First turning into a mutant was pretty damn funny in a way.

“Mutants are dangerous,” I answered her honestly, remembering how worried I’d been that some mutant who was careless or out of control might hurt my family. “If I suggested you give a fifteen year old kid a flame thrower and then have him to go school, you’d think I was out of my fucking mind…” I paused at that, glancing to Carson and saying, “Pardon my French.” She didn’t respond, so I continued, “I don’t really see any difference between that and a kid being able to throw fire from his bare hands. However he’s making it, he’s a danger every kid in school…and I didn’t want my daughter in that kind of danger.”

“I see,” Carson responded with a guarded expression. “And why did you leave?”

“Because some of my old buddies decided my daughter needed to disappear,” I answered in a cold voice. “I joined Humanity First because I thought it would help protect my family, and I left for the same reason.”

“I imagine your situation would have made you revise your views on mutants being dangerous,” she commented, watching me with a careful expression that I couldn’t quite read.

“Not really,” I answered with a shrug, which seemed to surprise her. “I used to think mutants are dangerous…now I know.”

Carson took a sip from her glass of water, then commented, “I see.”

“My daughter is a mutant,” I said, deciding that I might as well be up front about this since I’d already stuck my foot in it. “But since you’ve checked up on me, I’m sure you already know that.” She nodded faintly at that. “And you probably know who she is and what she’s done.” She nodded again. “And me… It used to be that when I got pissed, I’d haul off and punch whoever set me of. But now, if I do that, I’d likely kill them. All it would take is to lose my temper for one second and…” I paused at that and scowled. “I could do something horrible.”

“So you still think mutants are dangerous?” Carson asked me.

I nodded at that. “How could I not? I mean, having powers can make you pretty damn dangerous, whether you want to be or not. And when it’s a kid with power…” I shook my head, then added, “I wouldn’t trust my neighbor to own his own tank, and he’d been in the Army for years. But some kid, who doesn’t even have a driver’s license can put one together in the garage and cause all kinds of trouble.” I shuddered when I remembered Rachael doing that very thing. She’d been hesitant to actually try the thing out, at least until she had an episode, then I was just grateful that the thing literally fell apart before she’d gone very far.

“And how do you think dangerous mutants should be dealt with?” she asked me, her expression still being tightly controlled and difficult to read.

With a shrug, I admitted, “I don’t know. But if you’ve got some kid with powers and you’re afraid he MIGHT hurt someone, you sure as hell don’t jump him or try chasing him out of his home. That’s just going to make it a hell of a lot more likely that someone’s going to get hurt. Nothing is more dangerous or unpredictable than someone who’s scared and desperate. I thought those kind of tactics were stupid when I was with Humanity First, and that hasn’t changed. That kind of thing only makes things worse for everyone.”

Carson nodded agreement and said, “That’s quite true.”

“I don’t know the answer,” I continued, trying to explain my thoughts. “It will probably take someone a lot smarter than me to figure it all out, but I think that giving mutants a safe place to learn to control their powers is a good start. At least that way, there won’t be as many accidents, and maybe not as much reason to be afraid of mutants.”

Caron just stared at me with a flat look, not saying a word for several seconds. I knew that this was just an intimidation technique, intended to make me squirm in my seat, and it probably worked pretty well on most of her students. However, Meg used to do the same thing, and after all those years of being married to her, I’d built up a bit of a tolerance.

“Miss Morgan,” Carson finally said, smiling faintly. “You are a bit of a contradiction.”

“Yeah, I get that,” I responded with a faint smile of my own. “I mean, I’ve got the mind of a fifty year old man and the body of a ten year old girl.”

“True,” Carson agreed. “But I was referring more to the fact that you spent fifteen years as a member of Humanity First…then over the next fifteen years you made numerous donations to a charity that researches treatments for Diedricks Syndrome. A charity run by mutants for the purpose of helping mutants.” I was surprised that she knew about those donations, especially since I hadn’t even told Melanie or Rich about them. “And your will states that after your debts are paid off, everything left of your estate is to be donated to the same charity.”

“It’s a good charity,” I responded defensively, more than a little disturbed by just how much she had on me. She said the Whateley security people had done a background check on me, so whoever they had doing that really knew what they were doing. Either that, or I was really crappy about hiding stuff. Probably a bit of both.

“It is,” she agreed pleasantly, seeming vaguely amused. Then she stared at me for several more seconds before saying, “You seem to have control over your abilities, so why are you interested in attending Whateley?”

I considered that for a moment, deciding how I should word my answer. “I’ve been given a new life,” I began carefully, “and I don’t want to waste it. I want to do something with my second chance, but honestly, I don’t know enough to even know where to start. It’s been pointed out to me that I need a good foundation to start from, and that Whateley would probably be the best place for that.” Then I paused to chuckle and added, “Besides, I dropped out of high school the first time, so I figured I should do things right this time around.”

“You do understand,” Carson told me with a serious expression, “that if you attend Whateley, you will be treated like any other student. Only myself and a select few other staff members will know of your past, unless you choose to share it yourself.”

“I can live with that,” I responded, frowning as I thought about how embarrassing that was going to be. However, it would probably be a little less awkward if no one there knew how old I really was. At least then, they’d just think I was a creepy little girl instead of a pervert.

Carson watched me with an odd expression that softened a little. “It won’t be easy,” she said in sympathetic tone that shifted the conversation from an interview into something more personal. I gave her a curious look and she explained, “Most people won’t take you seriously because of your apparent age, and the nature of your aging issue will ensure you continue to deal with this for quite some time. You’ll need to control your frustration and work harder than most to earn people’s respect.”

I was surprised by her words, and when I looked into her eyes, I saw something in them, something that suggested she was older than she appeared. “You’re speaking from personal experience.”

“Yes,” she responded, smiling faintly but not explaining.

I hesitated a moment, knowing this was a bad question to ask a woman, but I had to ask anyway. “How old are you?”

“Old enough to be your mother,” Carson responded with a faint smile. “I was nearly forty before I looked old enough to buy alcohol.” With that, she stood up and held her hand out to me. As I shook it, she said, “I think our interview is finished.”

“That’s it?” I asked in surprise.

“I’ve done what I came to do,” Carson told me as she began walking to the door. “I’ve confirmed that you aren’t a threat to my school.” Then she paused and turned back to me, giving me a pleasant smile as she added, “Welcome to the Whateley student body.”

The End…for now

This story was written as a fan fiction, but partway through writing it, I was accepted to become a canon author. Now that I've completed the story, I will go back and make a few minor adjustments so this story can be made into an official part of the Whateley Universe.