Dawn of the Evolved |•| Wakanda x Xmen

Chapter 7: Ororo

Squirt still hasn't woken up by the time we arrive at the gate to my grandparents' estate. Though I'm sure whatever T'Challa did to her is helping. T'Challa. Just thinking of the name makes me smile. I can't believe I have a prince.

There's a buzzer next to the gate, so I ring it. After a while no one replies. So I ring it again, this time  for longer. Nothing. "Hello?" I say into the mic. No response. "It's me Ororo, your granddaughter. David and N'Dare's daughter." Still no one answers.

Since there's no sound coming from the buzzer, I don't even think it works anymore. It looks like my grandparents aren't a fan of housekeeping.

"Stay here." I tell Squirt, even though she can't hear me. I push on the gates with all my strength and just like I thought they creak open. They weren't even locked. I change my mind about leaving Squirt here, something about this place creeps me out. So, Squirt floats behind as I follow the cobble stone pathway to the lavish cottage entrance.

The cottage looks almost exactly like the picture, more like a mansion than a cottage. But the one in front of me looks like it aged a century. Even in the dark of night I can tell the lavender paint is almost completely peeled off and where it remains looks more like a grey. Ivy covers most of the building and the windows are so dirty that I can't see through them. I shiver, something isn't right.

When I push on the door it's unlocked too, allowing me to enter. Inside is pitch black. The batteries in my flashlight died a long time ago, so I can't use that. I decide to try something. I focus on my hands and soon they're a light with crackling electricity crawling across them. It doesn't help with the lighting much, but it helps me feel less claustrophobic in this dusty old house.

I can see a light at the other end of the hall way so I follow it, I can feel Squirt silently floating behind me. Soon I find out the light is from the moon outside. It shines from two windows of the set of doors which lead to the backyard. I push them open and go outside. Even though I was only in the house for a couple of minutes, it feels so much better to breath the fresh air.

The backyard is huge and branches off into a forest, making me wonder how far the land reaches. Then I notice 2 objects sticking out of the ground. It's not a regular rock or bush, maybe it's something that can help me figure out what's going on.

I lightly jog towards them. What I see makes me stop in my tracks the two objects are rocks, gravestones to be exact. I'm all too familiar with the sight. I bring my hands closer so I can read them to confirm my suspicions. There are dried flowers around the bases and just as I though two familar names. Harriet and David Munroe, loving parents and lovers of justice.

Then I do another thing I haven't done since my parents' deaths, I cry. And the skies flood in sympathy.

**

"Come on Ororo!" Mom yells at 5 year-old me, pulling my arm to get out of the house.

I scream, "No! I'm not leaving!" They can't do this. We've lived in this house my whole life, I don't want to move to Kenya.

My dad drops his bags in the car and walks towards me. He flings me over his shoulders while I scream and punch some more. I'm crying now, not sure when I started. "You can't do this!"

Mom tries to take my hand, but I slap it off. "Sweetie it's no longer safe here." She's talking about the civil war that's threatened to rip Egypt apart. Being five I don't understand its magnitude.

"I don't care! We can fight mama, we can't just go." She sighs with a tired look in her eyes. I bet if her hair wasn't already white she would have grey hair, despite her young age. She has that wise beyond her years look.