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marysuevirus2024-08-08 01:16 pm
ladydeathfaerie) wrote in marysuevirus2024-08-08 01:16 pm
Entry tags:
Among the Strong
Title: Among the Strong
Chapter Twenty Six: Checking In
Fandom: the Marvel universe
Rating: 18 and up
Warnings: graphic violence, language, sex, dark themes, anything else i can toss in.
Disclaimer: the recognizable characters and places contained herein are the property of Marvel. i'm merely borrowing for the sake of entertainment. no money is being made from this venture. Haley belongs todazzledfirestar Morgan belongs toginevra Roxxy belongs tonanaeanaven Jehnna belongs to silverfox_chan and Dare belongs to me. the concept and title of The Mary Sue Virus are used with permission from dazzledfirestar .
Author's Notes: this is almost entirely Daz's fault. okay. so it really isn't. its actually almost 100% my fault. Daz just did a whole lot of encouraging. this fic is going to be kind of dark, so please keep that in mind while reading.
Among the Strong - the index
"Are you going to tell me what's going on?"
Her question was answered with silence. And she didn't like it. For the past two days, Johnny had more or less stood at one of the windows in his bedroom, staring out over the city skyline. Ever since he'd come back from Westchester. She knew he'd taken off the night before that with a word about something happening. She'd assumed that something had been to do with Haley. But when Johnny had returned the next day, he'd been sullen and quiet. Which was very much not like him.
So for the past two days, she'd watched as he'd stood at the window and simply stared out. He'd been brooding. It had gotten bad enough that even Spencer was worried about his father. Reed had suggested she leave him alone and let him deal with whatever seemed to be bothering him on his own. Ben hadn't offered much beyond being willing to slap Johnny upside the head in an effort to knock some sense into him. Sue had tried giving him space in the hope that he'd figure this thing out on his own. But it was becoming apparent that such an event was not going to happen.
She'd decided to take matters into her own hands.
"Johnny? Please. Talk to me. Tell me what's going on." Sue couldn't keep the plea from her voice. Couldn't keep the worry from coating her words. He was her baby brother and she was worried about him. She stepped into the room and closed the door behind her. If she got him to talk, she felt certain it wasn't something he wanted his kids to accidentally overhear.
Johnny shrugged a shoulder. She moved closer, until she stood directly beside him. The look on his face was the same one he'd worn when their mother had died all those years ago. Lost and hurt and in need of something that would fix all of his problems for him. She sighed.
"Does this have something to do with Haley?" she asked softly.
He'd broken away from his brooding to take the kids up to Westchester yesterday. The only reason she could see that he'd do that was because someone had found Haley and that's where she was. They'd been gone several hours and, upon their return, she'd encountered an array of different attitudes. Spencer had been subdued and slightly sullen. TJ had been excited. Everyone else had been quiet and confused. And she was sure that had something to do with Haley.
At the mention of his wife, Johnny shifted his gaze so that it met hers. Sue offered him a faint smile. "TJ was excited and she told me she saw her mommy. She also said Haley is pregnant." That single word saw his expression close off and Sue felt like she understood where some of the brooding was coming from. "I see. The baby isn't yours."
"No." His answer was terse. A muscle worked in his jaw, a sure sign he was trying to push his feelings down.
"Its okay to be angry about that, Johnny. You know that, right?"
He said nothing, simply turned to stare out the window once again.
"Johnny. I need you to talk to me. I want to help. But I can't do that if I don't know what's going on," she said, laying one hand on his arm.
"Its Summers' baby," he got out. Sue blinked. Summers? Scott Summers? Haley was pregnant with Scott's baby? That was something of a surprise. She'd never gotten the sense that either one of them had any kind of feelings for the other.
"You're sure its his baby?" she questioned. It had only been a week. The way TJ'd spoken, it had sounded like Haley was going to give birth any day now. Which was...
"Yes," he acknowledged. Then he heaved a sigh and ran his hands through his hair. Hair that was already disheveled and unkempt. Sure signs he was confused and anxious. She curled her fingers around his arm and tugged him away from the window. Toward the bed. Together, they sat on the edge and she made sure to look him in the eyes.
"I think I'm missing something, Johnny. Haley was only gone for a week. How can you know the baby she's carrying is Scott's?"
"Sinister held them in a pocket dimension. They were there for a year," he replied. Sue chewed on his words for a while. She'd learned a good deal from Reed over the years and pocket dimensions were not unheard of. It would explain why it had been impossible to find Haley and the others and it would explain any time discrepancies. She heaved a sigh.
"That explains why TJ insisted she was going to be a big sister any time now," Sue replied softly. Johnny nodded, his gaze sliding away toward the window. Sue frowned and sat back, crossing her arms over her chest. "Right, then. Out with it. Its obvious there's more eating away at you than Haley being pregnant with another man's child."
Johnny shot her a look that could have killed Galactus at one hundred paces. And Sue thought that he would keep it to himself. That he would bottle up whatever it was that filled his head. But he sighed again, then turned to look at her. "She's in love with him."
Sue blinked. "Excuse me?"
"Haley is in love with Summers," Johnny admitted. She heard the hurt in his voice. His heart was breaking because it was Haley. It had always been Haley. Even when he'd gone through one girl after another like they were tissues. He'd always been in love with Haley.
"Ah."
"I don't know if I can stay with her, Sue. I love her so much. It killed me when she was gone. And now, even though she's back, its like she's still gone," he whispered. "I love her and I want her to come home. But she loves him and... My chest hurts with it. Because my heart is breaking. And I don't know what to do."
He looked up at her, his blue eyes shining with tears and so much like the ones that had stared up at her when their mom had died.
"What do I do, Sue? What?..."
Sue pulled him into a hug, her hands rubbing at his back gently. What was she supposed to tell him? She couldn't make this better, no matter how much she wanted to. And she wanted to a lot. She wanted her brother back. She didn't like seeing him like this. "I can't tell you that, Johnny. You're the only one who can make that decision," she told him. It was the honest truth and it was going to make his heart hurt all the more. "You're the only one who knows what's best for you. But I need to ask you a question. And I need you to think before you answer or get mad or anything like that. Okay?"
He drew a breath, his face still buried in her shoulder and his body tense. No doubt he was considering whether or not he could actually do those things for her. Eventually, after several long moments of silence, he pulled away and gave a single nod. She hated seeing sadness in eyes that were always laughing. She hated seeing tears on his cheeks. She hated that he had to go through all of this. But if it was this hard for him, how hard must it be for Haley?
"Go ahead," he said, letting her know he was ready.
"You said they were in the pocket dimension for a year."
"That's what Haley said," he responded even though she hadn't phrased it as a question.
"How do you think that year was for Haley?" she asked him, her voice soft and gentle.
Her words gave Johnny pause, and he sank into thought. After several long moments, he shook his head. "Honestly, I can't even imagine."
"I can." Sue had been privy to a conversation between Reed and Henry just the other day. Reed had checked in to find out how Roxxy was doing and their talk had shifted from Roxxy' recovery to the return of the rest of Purple Team and the missing men. Henry had told Reed everything he'd learned, plus he'd mentioned samples he wanted to send over to see if Reed could find any changes to blood and DNA. So she'd picked up some information to which Johnny might not have access. "Sinister kept Haley locked in a room the entire time he held her captive. With Scott. And he pumped that room full of pheromones."
She watched her brother frown. Chances were good he hadn't known that.
"Imagine having your power and your autonomy taken from you. Imagine being made into a doll to be positioned and played with at someone else's discretion." Sue paused to let that sink in. After several seconds, she continued on. "That's what happened to Haley and everyone Sinister had the horsemen take. Horsemen, I might add, that apparently bear a striking resemblance to the people they took captive for Sinister."
Johnny lifted his gaze to her face, his eyes clouded with confusion and something else. Fear. "You're saying Sinister forced them to have sex with one another." Sue could hear the disgust in his words. And the anger behind it.
"Yes," Sue confirmed. "Try to imagine that, Johnny. Being held captive and forced to have sex with someone to whom you have no ties. To someone who has ties to someone else."
"That son-of-a-bitch!" Johnny snarled, shooting to his feet so that he could pace across the room. He stood at the window for a moment before turning and marching back to the bed. "He might as well have raped her himself."
"He pretty much did. He just used someone else to do it," she told him. His hands fisted, knuckles going white as anger rode him. It told her that Johnny hadn't known any of this. She hated being the one who told him. Because she knew that it would eat him up. But he had to know. He had to hear what had happened so he could understand why things had happened as they had. "So imagine you're locked in a room with someone that you have no prior relationship with. And you're forced to have sex with one another. And I do mean forced, Johnny. Sinister made sure of it."
It didn't take him more than two second to figure out that she hadn't said. "Ew. That's gross."
Sue nodded. She agreed. And she wished she didn't have to tell him more, that she didn't have to hurt him more. But he had to know. He had to understand. "So you're trapped in a room with someone you have no emotional ties to. And you're forced to do things with them you'd never considered doing with them. After some time, Johnny, that person will become a lifeline. No matter who they are. No matter what's waiting for you outside that room. They are the only friendly face you get to see."
He considered her words. "You make it sound like Haley didn't have a choice."
"That's because she really didn't. And neither did Scott. They took comfort from one another because they were all they had. It makes sense that she would fall in love with him. He represented safety where there really was none. He probably held her when she was scared and angry." Sue fell silent a moment. She wasn't sure that any of this was getting through. The hurt was still too new. His emotions were still too raw. "I know this is a lot, Johnny. And I know, right now, that the hurt is all you can see or feel. I know you need time to process. But I want you to consider this. What would happen if it had been you taken? What would happen if you'd been paired off with someone else and held captive for a year? How would you have handled things? Could you honestly say you'd have been able to do it differently?"
Leaving Johnny with those words to think upon, Sue stood and crossed to the door. Before she went through, she turned and looked back. He stood beside the bed, hands balled into fists at his side and head hung as he digested everything she'd told him. He looked lost and forlorn. He looked like a lost little boy.
Sue sighed and shook her head. He wasn't a little boy anymore. He was a grown man. And he was going to have to figure this one out all by himself. Sue stepped out of the room and closed the door behind her.
~*~
The suite Morgan shared with Warren was much larger than Haley had been expecting. As far as she could tell, there was a living area centered between two other rooms. A door on either side of the room suggested as much. One likely served as the master bedroom while the other was obviously the nursery. The living room was only partially furnished, a large red sofa dominating the space. The walls had been painted a very soft grey that reminded her of the wings of a dove. There were a few paintings hung to give the room some life and some color. A large area rug of creams and browns covered the floor in the center of the room, obviously where the furniture was going to be staged when they were finished decorating.
Various lamps, both table lamps and floor lamps, were scattered through the room to cast some soft light on the area. All of the light and pictures did nothing to disguise the fact that there were no windows at all.
Haley was presently settled on the sofa, only a few feet from where Morgan sat. The door to the right was pulled almost completely shut, save for a scant quarter inch of space between the wooden panel and its frame. Haley figured that was the nursery and that Kayla was presently sleeping. The other door was open, but the room wasn't very well lit, suggesting no one was in there. Morgan looked at Haley, her gaze slightly critical and very unnerving. "I apologize for the mess. We're still not done putting the room to rights. The nursery and the bedroom were of higher importance than the living area. In all honesty, I'm surprised to see you."
Morgan's words gave Haley pause for a moment. "I'm still Purple Team's leader. As such, its my duty and my right to check up on my team." She did her best to not sound affronted and hurt. Based on the look Morgan sent her, she didn't think she succeeded.
"That isn't what I meant." The other woman stopped and sighed, then leveled a look on her that was filled with a maturity that Haley hadn't seen on Morgan that often "I know you have other worries and concerns, Haley. You're just as messed up about all of this as the rest of us. "
"My team... my friends are my concern and my worry. You are all more important to me than anything else," Haley responded. It wasn't a lie in any sense of the word. She had been worried about everyone the moment she'd realized what had happened. That worry hadn't abated any now that they'd been returned to their home. If she was being honest, it had only grown. None of her friends had come out of this whole mess unscathed. Not even Roxxy, who hadn't been taken.
No, she hadn't been taken. Roxxy had joked about that when she'd helped Haley change clothes. She'd found it faintly amusing, figuring that she hadn't been taken because she'd been fixed after the last set of triplets. The joke might have been a little funnier if she hadn't been in the process of explaining to Haley how she'd almost fucking died thanks to her encounter with Pestilence. And Haley hadn't even known about it. She'd filed that away with the rest of her failures.
She hadn't been able to protect herself or her team. She hadn't been able to help the men who had been taken. She hadn't even known her friend had been dying. The guilt trip was going to last for the rest of her goddamn life.
"One of your best qualities, Haley, is your dedication to your friends. Its one of the many things we all love about you. But its also one of your worst qualities because you ignore yourself in favor of that dedication." Morgan paused and gave her a searching look. "In normal circumstances, that isn't such a bad thing. But this is not a normal circumstance and you need to be easier on yourself. What happened out in the desert... That is not your fault."
Haley understood what Morgan was trying to get at. It was a mission and sometimes, missions went sideways. She knew that. The mission to California to deal with the cult had gone all kinds of sideways. But this one had ended up being so much more personal than it should have been. They'd fought their children, for fuck's sake. Children who had so very easily trounced them. She still felt the shame and guilt that had washed over her when she'd watched her friends fall to the horsemen. Even Dare, who was capable of destroying damn near anything, had fallen so easily. It had been a laughable fight and her ego, her pride, still stung.
"I'm supposed to lead the team. Where did I get us that day, Morgan?"
Morgan made a sound of frustration. She'd heard the other woman use it a lot where Dare was concerned. Which meant she thought Haley was being far more stubborn than she needed to be. "We both know that was a no-win situation, Haley. There was nothing on this planet that could have prepared us for that fight. No matter how good you've helped make us, nothing could have made us ready for that. Stop kicking yourself for things that aren't your fault."
Haley shook her head. She hadn't come here to have Morgan tell her what she was and wasn't responsible for. She'd come to check in and ensure that Morgan was okay. That her baby was okay. "Let's put all of that aside. We're going to have to agree to disagree on what was and wasn't my fault. I came here today to ensure you're good."
"Haley," Morgan tried, only to fall silent at the look Haley shot her way. She sighed again, a sound that was full of disappointment. Then she glanced around the living area, still in the process of being made into a comfortable place. "I'm fine, Haley. I mean, a little bit of sunlight couldn't hurt. But things aren't too bad as they are."
Haley had her reservations about things not being too bad as they were. But she didn't get to voice her opinion about it because there was a rustle of sound a moment before a yawning Warren stepped out of the other room. He was shirtless, clad in a pair of ridiculous pyjama bottoms that were covered with cherubs. Haley took a moment or two to admire his bared chest and arms before she looked away. The last thing she wanted to do was get caught ogling him. She had enough man troubles of her own without adding to them.
"I thought I heard voices," Warren said, his voice still heavy with sleep.
"Haley came to check in on us," Morgan said to him, a soft and sweet smile on her face. It made Haley's heart ache to see it. She was careful to keep anything damning from her face, instead offering her own smile to the pair of them. If it was a touch tight at the corners, they were kind enough not to notice and bring it to her attention. "Warren was an absolute angel and got up with Kayla last night. Every time she got up."
Warren gave a snort at Morgan's stupid pun, but his smile was broad and genuine when he looked at her. "I'm happy to do it. There was no need to drag you out of bed if she wasn't hungry. I'm sure you're exhausted."
"And you aren't?" Morgan responded. "You've been putting the suite together for us when not doting on Kayla and I."
"You did all the work carrying and giving birth to her. Its only fair I do my part now that she's here," Warren replied. As if his words were some kind of magic spell, a whimpering cry from the other room let all three adults know that Kayla was awake and demanded her parents' attention. Warren started for the other room. "I'll be right back."
Silence filled the space between Haley and Morgan for a short time before Morgan laid a hand on Haley's. It was then Haley realized she'd unconsciously put her hands over her belly, over the swell that marked where the child Scott had helped her create rested. When she looked at the other woman, it was to find that Morgan was regarding her with an expression that was equally concerned and curious.
"You love him, don't you?"
The question caught Haley off-guard. And, for a moment or two, she considered playing dumb. But there was no point to it. Denying it would be pointless. So she sighed and fought not to cry because Warren and Morgan looked so... normal. As if they had no issues. Haley knew that wasn't true. "I love both of them," she admitted softly.
"You know I'm not talking about Johnny. But I know you love him. You've been in love with him since you came to the school. That's a long damn time. But Summers..." Morgan drew a breath and stared, obviously considering her next words carefully. "Look, I can understand the attraction. The man is put together very nicely. But I guess I don't get the actual emotional aspect. Its never been like that for me where he's concerned. And maybe I'm still a little too caught up in the things that happened way back when. But you and I are different people. We have different wants and needs. And you have to figure out what, and who, it is you want and need."
Haley shook her head. "That's a moot point. They both walked away from me."
Morgan opened her mouth to speak, but closed it again almost immediately. "Well, Scott's got Jean to contend with. Johnny is no doubt dealing with his temper. Maybe you should try talking to him."
"Maybe," Haley shrugged a shoulder. Her gaze flicked to the door through which Warren had disappeared. She had no doubt that he could hear their conversation. She also had no doubt that he was entertaining Kayla in the nursery to give her and Morgan time to talk. He was being terribly considerate. Haley really didn't want to think about either Johnny or Scott, though, so she decided it was time to turn the tables. One hand gestured around the room. "Have you tried talking to Remy? About this and where you and he stand."
Morgan frowned and shook her head. Not fast enough to keep Haley from seeing the hurt that briefly filled her gaze. She understood that hurt all too well. She should have felt bad about putting it there, but she needed to distance herself from thoughts of Johnny and Scott and the baby she carried and what all of that meant. It was easier to focus on Morgan's problems than her own. "No. I haven't wanted to bring all of this up. He's frustrated and worried about Dare. I can feel it through the link. Its getting worse every day. I didn't want to add to that."
"She's still not talking to him?" Haley asked. Not that she really needed to ask.
"She's not talking to pretty much anyone," Morgan admitted. "And I can't feel her through the link at all. Which is worrying. She shouldn't be able to cut us off. The link has never worked that way. All I feel is a dull buzz where the link is supposed to be. I'm concerned about her, Haley. She's never shut me out like this before."
"I understand. She barely talks to me and we're sharing a room," Haley admitted. "Hell, I barely see her much. Though Duke apparently found her and got her to talk to him. For a moment or two."
"Maybe we need Duke to sit watch on her," Morgan said, and she was only half-joking when she did.
"I'm sure he'd jump at the chance." Warren rejoined them, Kayla cradled gently in his arms. Her little fists were in the air and moving around. She was clad in a pale yellow onesie with angel wings on it. There was no missing the wisps of hair that graced her head, a paler blonde than her father's hair. For now. "Its feeding time, Mom," Warren told Morgan as he transferred his bundle to her arms. Haley stared at her, a wash of emotions engulfing her at the sight of such a tiny, perfect baby. She wanted to laugh and cry at the same damn time. Fucking hormones. "I changed her stinky diaper before bringing her to you."
"I knew you'd come in handy," Morgan teased. She glanced up at Haley. "You don't mind, do you?"
"No. I think I've seen your boobs enough in my life that watching you breast feed your daughter won't throw me into a fit of the vapors." That statement brought a smile to Morgan's face, then she set about shifting her clothes around so that she could put Kayla to her breast.
It was a pretty picture, Morgan nursing her baby with a soft smile on her face while Warren stood behind her, a gentle expression on his face while he watched over his family.
It was beautiful and it was sweet and it made Haley's heart hurt for what would never be.
~*~
She slipped from one tree to the next, using the shadows to navigate her way around her target. Hints of moonlight filtered through the leaves to leave splatters of silver here and there. Similar to the splatters of red that surrounded said target.
Bird song echoed through the canopy over her head, while insects on the forest floor added their voices to the evening choir around them. Her feet were silent as they picked their way around the forest, barely pressing against dried twigs and fallen leaves before moving on to the next place. She could see him clearly as she circled him. She could see he was trying to track her, trying to anticipate her next move. Let him try. She'd take him down, no matter what he did.
A gentle breeze drifted across the clearing and came toward her, bringing with it the strong scent of copper. Fresh blood. No doubt oozing from the marks she'd left on him. The smell of it made her hungry. For more violence. For more bloodshed. For the taste of his flesh in her mouth.
She moved around until she was behind him. Waited while he scanned the shadows for her. Waited for five beats of her heart before she launched herself into motion. Large paws barely touched the ground as she allowed them to carry her out of the shadows and into the light. She knew the moment he sensed her attack because he started to turn. But she was too swift for him and the silvery light of the moon caressed the golden fur of her flank as she leapt into the air.
He was fast enough to catch her, hands grabbed her around the ribs. But he wasn't fast enough to avoid the way her fangs sank deep into his arm. Nor was he fast enough to avoid the claws that sank into his shoulders. There was a cry of pain from him, then her fangs and claws were ripped from his flesh and she found herself airborne.
The tree that stopped her flight cracked when her spine connected with it. She dropped, boneless and limp, to the forest floor. A shadow soon fell across her. He stood over her, gloating. The wounds she'd given him were gone, telling her that he'd been toying with her. That he'd let her get the upper hand in order to lull her into a false sense of victory. Bastard. She released her anger and pain in a roaring cry that shook the leaves over her head. And a moment later, she was on her feet. Ready to charge him again.
The forest was gone in the blink of an eye. Her target, too. All that remained were the steel walls of the Danger Room. She growled low in her throat, then roared out her displeasure at having her attempt at revenge stolen from her. "Stand down, Catseye."
Her gaze, golden and glittering in the overhead lights, came to rest on the owner of the voice. Another rumbling growl rolled up her throat. Of course it was him. How dare he try and tell her what to do? Especially with what he'd done. She let go another growl, punctuating it with a roar made to make her prey's hair stand on end. He did not look ruffled in the slightest.
Asshole.
"Stand down, Catseye. Don't make me put you down," he warned.
She roared at him again. Try it.
Energy coiled up tight within her before she exploded into motion. Her paws only touched ground for a second with each forward leap. Anger burned in her veins, fueled her actions as she launched herself toward him. Her fangs were bared to show him her fury. She got within five feet of him when red light flooded her vision and blinded her. And then she was on the ground ten feet away, chest heaving with anger and frustration.
"Get fucked, Summers!" Roxxy spat, pushing herself up from the floor on hands and knees that were shaky. Some how, the generated version of Sinister hadn't managed to make her lose her cat form. But one hit from Summers' optic blast had done it. To make it worse, the blast had been pretty low on the force scale. "I didn't ask for your interference."
"Henry is worried about you," he responded, ignoring her temper and disrespect. Which, of course, only made her angrier. "He said you should be resting and healing up. You almost died, Roxxy."
"I'm fine," she spat. The look he shot her suggested he didn't believe her. She made a point of crossing her arms over her chest and giving him a knowing look. "You don't need to worry about me. I think you have bigger things to worry about."
It didn't take him long to figure out what her words meant. When he did, his brow furrowed and his lips went flat. "My personal life is none of your concern, Roxxy."
She huffed a laugh at that. "It isn't? Really? How do you figure? Because from where I stand, you fucked my best friend, got her pregnant, and then left her high and dry. Which makes your personal life my concern. Because Haley is my concern. And she's hurt."
Her words seemed to take some wind out of him. "Things are more complicated than that. I don't think you have the whole story."
"What whole story is that? The one where you declared to Haley that you wouldn't leave her, then promptly fucked off when Jean showed up? Is that the whole story you're talking about? Or is there another whole story I don't know anything about yet?" Every word out of his mouth made her temper spike higher and higher. Pure rage ran through her veins and Roxxy couldn't quite contain the urge to rip into him with claws and fangs. The desire was so intense, it felt like her gums and fingers tingled with it.
"Jean's my wife. I owe her--"
"And Haley's pregnant with your baby! Or have you forgotten that now that you're back home and with your wife?" The last word came out on growling sneer. Roxxy's mouth hurt saying it. Her fingers ached.
"I haven't forgotten," Scott replied softly. It sounded like there was regret or something similar in his voice, but she couldn't hear it over the way her blood roared in her ears. The way the cougar inside of her demanded she rend the flesh from his bones. "But I can't just walk away from Jean. She and I have been married for a long time. It isn't as simple as you seem to think it is."
"Lies!" she snarled, throwing one hand out to point at him. "You're nothing but a big fucking liar, Summers!"
The room around them went dead silent in a heartbeat. She saw the way surprise crept across Summers' face by the way his eyebrows rose. The way his mouth went lax. And she realized, as she stared at him, that the finger she was pointing at him was topped with a claw. Roxxy held both hands out before her so she could look at them. So she could see the wicked claws that topped each finger. Claws that looked a whole lot like the ones she sported in her cougar form.
There was a moment of surprise. But it was quickly replaced by the sudden realization that she didn't have to switch forms to rip the asshole apart. That thought prompted a smile that saw Summers staring even more. "I am going to take great joy in making you hurt the way you made Haley hurt. And then I'm going to rip you to fucking shreds."
She'd barely gotten the words out of her mouth when she once again charged at Summers. This time, she was still human and on two feet. And, this time, she had a touch of surprise working in her favor. Because Summers stood stock still and stared at her like he'd never seen her before. Roxxy used it to her advantage and closed on him, fully intending to take him apart piece by piece. But he pulled himself together at the last moment and managed to fire off a blast.
Roxxy rolled and twisted in a truly impressive acrobatic feat and avoided the blast, then rounded on him to attempt another attack. She was close enough that it forced Scott to dodge out of the path of her claws. She growled and swung at him again.
If she'd been in her right mind, she might have wondered at the fact that she had claws in human form when she never really had before. Also, there was the burning anger that felt like it wanted to consume her. She'd never felt the like before. But something about it was familiar. She just wasn't able to place it. Her thoughts were blurred and consumed by the rage. All she wanted to do was hurt. Destroy.
She swung again and again, each time so close to him that he had no chance to use his optic blast to push her away. All he could do was dodge and block to the best of his ability. He attempted to employ some hand to hand skills, but Roxxy's claws made it hard to do. And with her speed, it was almost completely useless.
"You need to stop this, Roxxy. I'm not the enemy," Summers said, voice modulated to sound harmless. Genuine. She let go a rumbling warning that told him he needed to shut the fuck up. And then she swung. She was faster than normal. He was slower than usual. She heard the material rend. Felt the skin tear. Smelled the blood. And it drove her wild.
She faced him, snarled to remind him that she was a predator and he her prey. And then she went in for the kill.
"That's enough, Roxxy!"
The snarled order came with a pair of arms wound around her. Strong arms. They'd wound around her from behind. She didn't need to see who it was to know who had tried to pin her down. The smell of cigar smoke and wildness told her that it was Logan. She wasn't going to let the Wolverine pin her. She wasn't going to let him stop her from beating the ever-loving shit out of Summers.
She drove her elbow back into his ribcage. At the same time, she stepped back between his spread legs. And she bent at the waist. It was a trick Dare had told her about once. It was how she'd managed to get him off her back, literally, a time or two. His body was heavy where it rested against her back. But she continued bending forward until she could toss him off of her. It sent him to the floor with a loud thud. She came up with a roar and turned on Summers, who looked stunned that she'd taken Logan down.
It gave Roxxy the opening she'd been looking for.
Her feet propelled her forward, moving with the speed of her cat. There was a snarl on her lips and she had one arm drawn back, fingers curled so that she could dig deep with her claws. This time, she was going to take his heart right out of his chest.
"Move, Slim!" Logan ordered. A moment later, he was shoving Summers aside. And a moment after that, Roxxy's claws sank deep into the meat of his chest. So deep that blood arced and sprayed when she ripped them free. An animalistic roar left her throat as she prepared herself for another attack.
Then she saw it. Logan was on his knees, one hand pressed tightly to his chest. Blood coated his hand, thick and red under the lights, and his face was a mask of pain. And it hit her then. She'd just attacked a friend. She'd tried to harm another. Her anger rushed out of her and left her weak with confusion and fear. She could only stare as Scott moved to Logan's side in an effort to offer help.
"Fuck!"
"Logan?" Scott's question was obvious.
"Get Hank. It ain't healing."
"You're sure?" Scott asked.
"Yeah. Shoulda started almost immediately and it ain't. I don't feel it," Logan told him, voice rough and horse with pain.
The guilt hit her like a Mack truck. Roxxy looked down at her hands, claws still visible. Her right one was coated in glistening blood. A lot of it. There was a puddle of it on the floor next to Logan. A large puddle. A smaller one was growing at her feet from the stuff that dripped off her hand. What had she done?
"Ah. There you are, Rosemary. I've been looking all over for you. What are you doing here? You should be resting," Henry's voice cut across the plateau, breaking her out of her stupor. Roxxy turned to face him, to ask him to help, but the look on his face stopped her words in her throat. "My stars! What is the meaning of all this?"
That's what she'd like to know.
Chapter Twenty Six: Checking In
Fandom: the Marvel universe
Rating: 18 and up
Warnings: graphic violence, language, sex, dark themes, anything else i can toss in.
Disclaimer: the recognizable characters and places contained herein are the property of Marvel. i'm merely borrowing for the sake of entertainment. no money is being made from this venture. Haley belongs to
dazzledfirestar Morgan belongs toginevra Roxxy belongs tonanaeanaven Jehnna belongs to silverfox_chan and Dare belongs to me. the concept and title of The Mary Sue Virus are used with permission from dazzledfirestar . Author's Notes: this is almost entirely Daz's fault. okay. so it really isn't. its actually almost 100% my fault. Daz just did a whole lot of encouraging. this fic is going to be kind of dark, so please keep that in mind while reading.
Among the Strong - the index
"Are you going to tell me what's going on?"
Her question was answered with silence. And she didn't like it. For the past two days, Johnny had more or less stood at one of the windows in his bedroom, staring out over the city skyline. Ever since he'd come back from Westchester. She knew he'd taken off the night before that with a word about something happening. She'd assumed that something had been to do with Haley. But when Johnny had returned the next day, he'd been sullen and quiet. Which was very much not like him.
So for the past two days, she'd watched as he'd stood at the window and simply stared out. He'd been brooding. It had gotten bad enough that even Spencer was worried about his father. Reed had suggested she leave him alone and let him deal with whatever seemed to be bothering him on his own. Ben hadn't offered much beyond being willing to slap Johnny upside the head in an effort to knock some sense into him. Sue had tried giving him space in the hope that he'd figure this thing out on his own. But it was becoming apparent that such an event was not going to happen.
She'd decided to take matters into her own hands.
"Johnny? Please. Talk to me. Tell me what's going on." Sue couldn't keep the plea from her voice. Couldn't keep the worry from coating her words. He was her baby brother and she was worried about him. She stepped into the room and closed the door behind her. If she got him to talk, she felt certain it wasn't something he wanted his kids to accidentally overhear.
Johnny shrugged a shoulder. She moved closer, until she stood directly beside him. The look on his face was the same one he'd worn when their mother had died all those years ago. Lost and hurt and in need of something that would fix all of his problems for him. She sighed.
"Does this have something to do with Haley?" she asked softly.
He'd broken away from his brooding to take the kids up to Westchester yesterday. The only reason she could see that he'd do that was because someone had found Haley and that's where she was. They'd been gone several hours and, upon their return, she'd encountered an array of different attitudes. Spencer had been subdued and slightly sullen. TJ had been excited. Everyone else had been quiet and confused. And she was sure that had something to do with Haley.
At the mention of his wife, Johnny shifted his gaze so that it met hers. Sue offered him a faint smile. "TJ was excited and she told me she saw her mommy. She also said Haley is pregnant." That single word saw his expression close off and Sue felt like she understood where some of the brooding was coming from. "I see. The baby isn't yours."
"No." His answer was terse. A muscle worked in his jaw, a sure sign he was trying to push his feelings down.
"Its okay to be angry about that, Johnny. You know that, right?"
He said nothing, simply turned to stare out the window once again.
"Johnny. I need you to talk to me. I want to help. But I can't do that if I don't know what's going on," she said, laying one hand on his arm.
"Its Summers' baby," he got out. Sue blinked. Summers? Scott Summers? Haley was pregnant with Scott's baby? That was something of a surprise. She'd never gotten the sense that either one of them had any kind of feelings for the other.
"You're sure its his baby?" she questioned. It had only been a week. The way TJ'd spoken, it had sounded like Haley was going to give birth any day now. Which was...
"Yes," he acknowledged. Then he heaved a sigh and ran his hands through his hair. Hair that was already disheveled and unkempt. Sure signs he was confused and anxious. She curled her fingers around his arm and tugged him away from the window. Toward the bed. Together, they sat on the edge and she made sure to look him in the eyes.
"I think I'm missing something, Johnny. Haley was only gone for a week. How can you know the baby she's carrying is Scott's?"
"Sinister held them in a pocket dimension. They were there for a year," he replied. Sue chewed on his words for a while. She'd learned a good deal from Reed over the years and pocket dimensions were not unheard of. It would explain why it had been impossible to find Haley and the others and it would explain any time discrepancies. She heaved a sigh.
"That explains why TJ insisted she was going to be a big sister any time now," Sue replied softly. Johnny nodded, his gaze sliding away toward the window. Sue frowned and sat back, crossing her arms over her chest. "Right, then. Out with it. Its obvious there's more eating away at you than Haley being pregnant with another man's child."
Johnny shot her a look that could have killed Galactus at one hundred paces. And Sue thought that he would keep it to himself. That he would bottle up whatever it was that filled his head. But he sighed again, then turned to look at her. "She's in love with him."
Sue blinked. "Excuse me?"
"Haley is in love with Summers," Johnny admitted. She heard the hurt in his voice. His heart was breaking because it was Haley. It had always been Haley. Even when he'd gone through one girl after another like they were tissues. He'd always been in love with Haley.
"Ah."
"I don't know if I can stay with her, Sue. I love her so much. It killed me when she was gone. And now, even though she's back, its like she's still gone," he whispered. "I love her and I want her to come home. But she loves him and... My chest hurts with it. Because my heart is breaking. And I don't know what to do."
He looked up at her, his blue eyes shining with tears and so much like the ones that had stared up at her when their mom had died.
"What do I do, Sue? What?..."
Sue pulled him into a hug, her hands rubbing at his back gently. What was she supposed to tell him? She couldn't make this better, no matter how much she wanted to. And she wanted to a lot. She wanted her brother back. She didn't like seeing him like this. "I can't tell you that, Johnny. You're the only one who can make that decision," she told him. It was the honest truth and it was going to make his heart hurt all the more. "You're the only one who knows what's best for you. But I need to ask you a question. And I need you to think before you answer or get mad or anything like that. Okay?"
He drew a breath, his face still buried in her shoulder and his body tense. No doubt he was considering whether or not he could actually do those things for her. Eventually, after several long moments of silence, he pulled away and gave a single nod. She hated seeing sadness in eyes that were always laughing. She hated seeing tears on his cheeks. She hated that he had to go through all of this. But if it was this hard for him, how hard must it be for Haley?
"Go ahead," he said, letting her know he was ready.
"You said they were in the pocket dimension for a year."
"That's what Haley said," he responded even though she hadn't phrased it as a question.
"How do you think that year was for Haley?" she asked him, her voice soft and gentle.
Her words gave Johnny pause, and he sank into thought. After several long moments, he shook his head. "Honestly, I can't even imagine."
"I can." Sue had been privy to a conversation between Reed and Henry just the other day. Reed had checked in to find out how Roxxy was doing and their talk had shifted from Roxxy' recovery to the return of the rest of Purple Team and the missing men. Henry had told Reed everything he'd learned, plus he'd mentioned samples he wanted to send over to see if Reed could find any changes to blood and DNA. So she'd picked up some information to which Johnny might not have access. "Sinister kept Haley locked in a room the entire time he held her captive. With Scott. And he pumped that room full of pheromones."
She watched her brother frown. Chances were good he hadn't known that.
"Imagine having your power and your autonomy taken from you. Imagine being made into a doll to be positioned and played with at someone else's discretion." Sue paused to let that sink in. After several seconds, she continued on. "That's what happened to Haley and everyone Sinister had the horsemen take. Horsemen, I might add, that apparently bear a striking resemblance to the people they took captive for Sinister."
Johnny lifted his gaze to her face, his eyes clouded with confusion and something else. Fear. "You're saying Sinister forced them to have sex with one another." Sue could hear the disgust in his words. And the anger behind it.
"Yes," Sue confirmed. "Try to imagine that, Johnny. Being held captive and forced to have sex with someone to whom you have no ties. To someone who has ties to someone else."
"That son-of-a-bitch!" Johnny snarled, shooting to his feet so that he could pace across the room. He stood at the window for a moment before turning and marching back to the bed. "He might as well have raped her himself."
"He pretty much did. He just used someone else to do it," she told him. His hands fisted, knuckles going white as anger rode him. It told her that Johnny hadn't known any of this. She hated being the one who told him. Because she knew that it would eat him up. But he had to know. He had to hear what had happened so he could understand why things had happened as they had. "So imagine you're locked in a room with someone that you have no prior relationship with. And you're forced to have sex with one another. And I do mean forced, Johnny. Sinister made sure of it."
It didn't take him more than two second to figure out that she hadn't said. "Ew. That's gross."
Sue nodded. She agreed. And she wished she didn't have to tell him more, that she didn't have to hurt him more. But he had to know. He had to understand. "So you're trapped in a room with someone you have no emotional ties to. And you're forced to do things with them you'd never considered doing with them. After some time, Johnny, that person will become a lifeline. No matter who they are. No matter what's waiting for you outside that room. They are the only friendly face you get to see."
He considered her words. "You make it sound like Haley didn't have a choice."
"That's because she really didn't. And neither did Scott. They took comfort from one another because they were all they had. It makes sense that she would fall in love with him. He represented safety where there really was none. He probably held her when she was scared and angry." Sue fell silent a moment. She wasn't sure that any of this was getting through. The hurt was still too new. His emotions were still too raw. "I know this is a lot, Johnny. And I know, right now, that the hurt is all you can see or feel. I know you need time to process. But I want you to consider this. What would happen if it had been you taken? What would happen if you'd been paired off with someone else and held captive for a year? How would you have handled things? Could you honestly say you'd have been able to do it differently?"
Leaving Johnny with those words to think upon, Sue stood and crossed to the door. Before she went through, she turned and looked back. He stood beside the bed, hands balled into fists at his side and head hung as he digested everything she'd told him. He looked lost and forlorn. He looked like a lost little boy.
Sue sighed and shook her head. He wasn't a little boy anymore. He was a grown man. And he was going to have to figure this one out all by himself. Sue stepped out of the room and closed the door behind her.
~*~
The suite Morgan shared with Warren was much larger than Haley had been expecting. As far as she could tell, there was a living area centered between two other rooms. A door on either side of the room suggested as much. One likely served as the master bedroom while the other was obviously the nursery. The living room was only partially furnished, a large red sofa dominating the space. The walls had been painted a very soft grey that reminded her of the wings of a dove. There were a few paintings hung to give the room some life and some color. A large area rug of creams and browns covered the floor in the center of the room, obviously where the furniture was going to be staged when they were finished decorating.
Various lamps, both table lamps and floor lamps, were scattered through the room to cast some soft light on the area. All of the light and pictures did nothing to disguise the fact that there were no windows at all.
Haley was presently settled on the sofa, only a few feet from where Morgan sat. The door to the right was pulled almost completely shut, save for a scant quarter inch of space between the wooden panel and its frame. Haley figured that was the nursery and that Kayla was presently sleeping. The other door was open, but the room wasn't very well lit, suggesting no one was in there. Morgan looked at Haley, her gaze slightly critical and very unnerving. "I apologize for the mess. We're still not done putting the room to rights. The nursery and the bedroom were of higher importance than the living area. In all honesty, I'm surprised to see you."
Morgan's words gave Haley pause for a moment. "I'm still Purple Team's leader. As such, its my duty and my right to check up on my team." She did her best to not sound affronted and hurt. Based on the look Morgan sent her, she didn't think she succeeded.
"That isn't what I meant." The other woman stopped and sighed, then leveled a look on her that was filled with a maturity that Haley hadn't seen on Morgan that often "I know you have other worries and concerns, Haley. You're just as messed up about all of this as the rest of us. "
"My team... my friends are my concern and my worry. You are all more important to me than anything else," Haley responded. It wasn't a lie in any sense of the word. She had been worried about everyone the moment she'd realized what had happened. That worry hadn't abated any now that they'd been returned to their home. If she was being honest, it had only grown. None of her friends had come out of this whole mess unscathed. Not even Roxxy, who hadn't been taken.
No, she hadn't been taken. Roxxy had joked about that when she'd helped Haley change clothes. She'd found it faintly amusing, figuring that she hadn't been taken because she'd been fixed after the last set of triplets. The joke might have been a little funnier if she hadn't been in the process of explaining to Haley how she'd almost fucking died thanks to her encounter with Pestilence. And Haley hadn't even known about it. She'd filed that away with the rest of her failures.
She hadn't been able to protect herself or her team. She hadn't been able to help the men who had been taken. She hadn't even known her friend had been dying. The guilt trip was going to last for the rest of her goddamn life.
"One of your best qualities, Haley, is your dedication to your friends. Its one of the many things we all love about you. But its also one of your worst qualities because you ignore yourself in favor of that dedication." Morgan paused and gave her a searching look. "In normal circumstances, that isn't such a bad thing. But this is not a normal circumstance and you need to be easier on yourself. What happened out in the desert... That is not your fault."
Haley understood what Morgan was trying to get at. It was a mission and sometimes, missions went sideways. She knew that. The mission to California to deal with the cult had gone all kinds of sideways. But this one had ended up being so much more personal than it should have been. They'd fought their children, for fuck's sake. Children who had so very easily trounced them. She still felt the shame and guilt that had washed over her when she'd watched her friends fall to the horsemen. Even Dare, who was capable of destroying damn near anything, had fallen so easily. It had been a laughable fight and her ego, her pride, still stung.
"I'm supposed to lead the team. Where did I get us that day, Morgan?"
Morgan made a sound of frustration. She'd heard the other woman use it a lot where Dare was concerned. Which meant she thought Haley was being far more stubborn than she needed to be. "We both know that was a no-win situation, Haley. There was nothing on this planet that could have prepared us for that fight. No matter how good you've helped make us, nothing could have made us ready for that. Stop kicking yourself for things that aren't your fault."
Haley shook her head. She hadn't come here to have Morgan tell her what she was and wasn't responsible for. She'd come to check in and ensure that Morgan was okay. That her baby was okay. "Let's put all of that aside. We're going to have to agree to disagree on what was and wasn't my fault. I came here today to ensure you're good."
"Haley," Morgan tried, only to fall silent at the look Haley shot her way. She sighed again, a sound that was full of disappointment. Then she glanced around the living area, still in the process of being made into a comfortable place. "I'm fine, Haley. I mean, a little bit of sunlight couldn't hurt. But things aren't too bad as they are."
Haley had her reservations about things not being too bad as they were. But she didn't get to voice her opinion about it because there was a rustle of sound a moment before a yawning Warren stepped out of the other room. He was shirtless, clad in a pair of ridiculous pyjama bottoms that were covered with cherubs. Haley took a moment or two to admire his bared chest and arms before she looked away. The last thing she wanted to do was get caught ogling him. She had enough man troubles of her own without adding to them.
"I thought I heard voices," Warren said, his voice still heavy with sleep.
"Haley came to check in on us," Morgan said to him, a soft and sweet smile on her face. It made Haley's heart ache to see it. She was careful to keep anything damning from her face, instead offering her own smile to the pair of them. If it was a touch tight at the corners, they were kind enough not to notice and bring it to her attention. "Warren was an absolute angel and got up with Kayla last night. Every time she got up."
Warren gave a snort at Morgan's stupid pun, but his smile was broad and genuine when he looked at her. "I'm happy to do it. There was no need to drag you out of bed if she wasn't hungry. I'm sure you're exhausted."
"And you aren't?" Morgan responded. "You've been putting the suite together for us when not doting on Kayla and I."
"You did all the work carrying and giving birth to her. Its only fair I do my part now that she's here," Warren replied. As if his words were some kind of magic spell, a whimpering cry from the other room let all three adults know that Kayla was awake and demanded her parents' attention. Warren started for the other room. "I'll be right back."
Silence filled the space between Haley and Morgan for a short time before Morgan laid a hand on Haley's. It was then Haley realized she'd unconsciously put her hands over her belly, over the swell that marked where the child Scott had helped her create rested. When she looked at the other woman, it was to find that Morgan was regarding her with an expression that was equally concerned and curious.
"You love him, don't you?"
The question caught Haley off-guard. And, for a moment or two, she considered playing dumb. But there was no point to it. Denying it would be pointless. So she sighed and fought not to cry because Warren and Morgan looked so... normal. As if they had no issues. Haley knew that wasn't true. "I love both of them," she admitted softly.
"You know I'm not talking about Johnny. But I know you love him. You've been in love with him since you came to the school. That's a long damn time. But Summers..." Morgan drew a breath and stared, obviously considering her next words carefully. "Look, I can understand the attraction. The man is put together very nicely. But I guess I don't get the actual emotional aspect. Its never been like that for me where he's concerned. And maybe I'm still a little too caught up in the things that happened way back when. But you and I are different people. We have different wants and needs. And you have to figure out what, and who, it is you want and need."
Haley shook her head. "That's a moot point. They both walked away from me."
Morgan opened her mouth to speak, but closed it again almost immediately. "Well, Scott's got Jean to contend with. Johnny is no doubt dealing with his temper. Maybe you should try talking to him."
"Maybe," Haley shrugged a shoulder. Her gaze flicked to the door through which Warren had disappeared. She had no doubt that he could hear their conversation. She also had no doubt that he was entertaining Kayla in the nursery to give her and Morgan time to talk. He was being terribly considerate. Haley really didn't want to think about either Johnny or Scott, though, so she decided it was time to turn the tables. One hand gestured around the room. "Have you tried talking to Remy? About this and where you and he stand."
Morgan frowned and shook her head. Not fast enough to keep Haley from seeing the hurt that briefly filled her gaze. She understood that hurt all too well. She should have felt bad about putting it there, but she needed to distance herself from thoughts of Johnny and Scott and the baby she carried and what all of that meant. It was easier to focus on Morgan's problems than her own. "No. I haven't wanted to bring all of this up. He's frustrated and worried about Dare. I can feel it through the link. Its getting worse every day. I didn't want to add to that."
"She's still not talking to him?" Haley asked. Not that she really needed to ask.
"She's not talking to pretty much anyone," Morgan admitted. "And I can't feel her through the link at all. Which is worrying. She shouldn't be able to cut us off. The link has never worked that way. All I feel is a dull buzz where the link is supposed to be. I'm concerned about her, Haley. She's never shut me out like this before."
"I understand. She barely talks to me and we're sharing a room," Haley admitted. "Hell, I barely see her much. Though Duke apparently found her and got her to talk to him. For a moment or two."
"Maybe we need Duke to sit watch on her," Morgan said, and she was only half-joking when she did.
"I'm sure he'd jump at the chance." Warren rejoined them, Kayla cradled gently in his arms. Her little fists were in the air and moving around. She was clad in a pale yellow onesie with angel wings on it. There was no missing the wisps of hair that graced her head, a paler blonde than her father's hair. For now. "Its feeding time, Mom," Warren told Morgan as he transferred his bundle to her arms. Haley stared at her, a wash of emotions engulfing her at the sight of such a tiny, perfect baby. She wanted to laugh and cry at the same damn time. Fucking hormones. "I changed her stinky diaper before bringing her to you."
"I knew you'd come in handy," Morgan teased. She glanced up at Haley. "You don't mind, do you?"
"No. I think I've seen your boobs enough in my life that watching you breast feed your daughter won't throw me into a fit of the vapors." That statement brought a smile to Morgan's face, then she set about shifting her clothes around so that she could put Kayla to her breast.
It was a pretty picture, Morgan nursing her baby with a soft smile on her face while Warren stood behind her, a gentle expression on his face while he watched over his family.
It was beautiful and it was sweet and it made Haley's heart hurt for what would never be.
~*~
She slipped from one tree to the next, using the shadows to navigate her way around her target. Hints of moonlight filtered through the leaves to leave splatters of silver here and there. Similar to the splatters of red that surrounded said target.
Bird song echoed through the canopy over her head, while insects on the forest floor added their voices to the evening choir around them. Her feet were silent as they picked their way around the forest, barely pressing against dried twigs and fallen leaves before moving on to the next place. She could see him clearly as she circled him. She could see he was trying to track her, trying to anticipate her next move. Let him try. She'd take him down, no matter what he did.
A gentle breeze drifted across the clearing and came toward her, bringing with it the strong scent of copper. Fresh blood. No doubt oozing from the marks she'd left on him. The smell of it made her hungry. For more violence. For more bloodshed. For the taste of his flesh in her mouth.
She moved around until she was behind him. Waited while he scanned the shadows for her. Waited for five beats of her heart before she launched herself into motion. Large paws barely touched the ground as she allowed them to carry her out of the shadows and into the light. She knew the moment he sensed her attack because he started to turn. But she was too swift for him and the silvery light of the moon caressed the golden fur of her flank as she leapt into the air.
He was fast enough to catch her, hands grabbed her around the ribs. But he wasn't fast enough to avoid the way her fangs sank deep into his arm. Nor was he fast enough to avoid the claws that sank into his shoulders. There was a cry of pain from him, then her fangs and claws were ripped from his flesh and she found herself airborne.
The tree that stopped her flight cracked when her spine connected with it. She dropped, boneless and limp, to the forest floor. A shadow soon fell across her. He stood over her, gloating. The wounds she'd given him were gone, telling her that he'd been toying with her. That he'd let her get the upper hand in order to lull her into a false sense of victory. Bastard. She released her anger and pain in a roaring cry that shook the leaves over her head. And a moment later, she was on her feet. Ready to charge him again.
The forest was gone in the blink of an eye. Her target, too. All that remained were the steel walls of the Danger Room. She growled low in her throat, then roared out her displeasure at having her attempt at revenge stolen from her. "Stand down, Catseye."
Her gaze, golden and glittering in the overhead lights, came to rest on the owner of the voice. Another rumbling growl rolled up her throat. Of course it was him. How dare he try and tell her what to do? Especially with what he'd done. She let go another growl, punctuating it with a roar made to make her prey's hair stand on end. He did not look ruffled in the slightest.
Asshole.
"Stand down, Catseye. Don't make me put you down," he warned.
She roared at him again. Try it.
Energy coiled up tight within her before she exploded into motion. Her paws only touched ground for a second with each forward leap. Anger burned in her veins, fueled her actions as she launched herself toward him. Her fangs were bared to show him her fury. She got within five feet of him when red light flooded her vision and blinded her. And then she was on the ground ten feet away, chest heaving with anger and frustration.
"Get fucked, Summers!" Roxxy spat, pushing herself up from the floor on hands and knees that were shaky. Some how, the generated version of Sinister hadn't managed to make her lose her cat form. But one hit from Summers' optic blast had done it. To make it worse, the blast had been pretty low on the force scale. "I didn't ask for your interference."
"Henry is worried about you," he responded, ignoring her temper and disrespect. Which, of course, only made her angrier. "He said you should be resting and healing up. You almost died, Roxxy."
"I'm fine," she spat. The look he shot her suggested he didn't believe her. She made a point of crossing her arms over her chest and giving him a knowing look. "You don't need to worry about me. I think you have bigger things to worry about."
It didn't take him long to figure out what her words meant. When he did, his brow furrowed and his lips went flat. "My personal life is none of your concern, Roxxy."
She huffed a laugh at that. "It isn't? Really? How do you figure? Because from where I stand, you fucked my best friend, got her pregnant, and then left her high and dry. Which makes your personal life my concern. Because Haley is my concern. And she's hurt."
Her words seemed to take some wind out of him. "Things are more complicated than that. I don't think you have the whole story."
"What whole story is that? The one where you declared to Haley that you wouldn't leave her, then promptly fucked off when Jean showed up? Is that the whole story you're talking about? Or is there another whole story I don't know anything about yet?" Every word out of his mouth made her temper spike higher and higher. Pure rage ran through her veins and Roxxy couldn't quite contain the urge to rip into him with claws and fangs. The desire was so intense, it felt like her gums and fingers tingled with it.
"Jean's my wife. I owe her--"
"And Haley's pregnant with your baby! Or have you forgotten that now that you're back home and with your wife?" The last word came out on growling sneer. Roxxy's mouth hurt saying it. Her fingers ached.
"I haven't forgotten," Scott replied softly. It sounded like there was regret or something similar in his voice, but she couldn't hear it over the way her blood roared in her ears. The way the cougar inside of her demanded she rend the flesh from his bones. "But I can't just walk away from Jean. She and I have been married for a long time. It isn't as simple as you seem to think it is."
"Lies!" she snarled, throwing one hand out to point at him. "You're nothing but a big fucking liar, Summers!"
The room around them went dead silent in a heartbeat. She saw the way surprise crept across Summers' face by the way his eyebrows rose. The way his mouth went lax. And she realized, as she stared at him, that the finger she was pointing at him was topped with a claw. Roxxy held both hands out before her so she could look at them. So she could see the wicked claws that topped each finger. Claws that looked a whole lot like the ones she sported in her cougar form.
There was a moment of surprise. But it was quickly replaced by the sudden realization that she didn't have to switch forms to rip the asshole apart. That thought prompted a smile that saw Summers staring even more. "I am going to take great joy in making you hurt the way you made Haley hurt. And then I'm going to rip you to fucking shreds."
She'd barely gotten the words out of her mouth when she once again charged at Summers. This time, she was still human and on two feet. And, this time, she had a touch of surprise working in her favor. Because Summers stood stock still and stared at her like he'd never seen her before. Roxxy used it to her advantage and closed on him, fully intending to take him apart piece by piece. But he pulled himself together at the last moment and managed to fire off a blast.
Roxxy rolled and twisted in a truly impressive acrobatic feat and avoided the blast, then rounded on him to attempt another attack. She was close enough that it forced Scott to dodge out of the path of her claws. She growled and swung at him again.
If she'd been in her right mind, she might have wondered at the fact that she had claws in human form when she never really had before. Also, there was the burning anger that felt like it wanted to consume her. She'd never felt the like before. But something about it was familiar. She just wasn't able to place it. Her thoughts were blurred and consumed by the rage. All she wanted to do was hurt. Destroy.
She swung again and again, each time so close to him that he had no chance to use his optic blast to push her away. All he could do was dodge and block to the best of his ability. He attempted to employ some hand to hand skills, but Roxxy's claws made it hard to do. And with her speed, it was almost completely useless.
"You need to stop this, Roxxy. I'm not the enemy," Summers said, voice modulated to sound harmless. Genuine. She let go a rumbling warning that told him he needed to shut the fuck up. And then she swung. She was faster than normal. He was slower than usual. She heard the material rend. Felt the skin tear. Smelled the blood. And it drove her wild.
She faced him, snarled to remind him that she was a predator and he her prey. And then she went in for the kill.
"That's enough, Roxxy!"
The snarled order came with a pair of arms wound around her. Strong arms. They'd wound around her from behind. She didn't need to see who it was to know who had tried to pin her down. The smell of cigar smoke and wildness told her that it was Logan. She wasn't going to let the Wolverine pin her. She wasn't going to let him stop her from beating the ever-loving shit out of Summers.
She drove her elbow back into his ribcage. At the same time, she stepped back between his spread legs. And she bent at the waist. It was a trick Dare had told her about once. It was how she'd managed to get him off her back, literally, a time or two. His body was heavy where it rested against her back. But she continued bending forward until she could toss him off of her. It sent him to the floor with a loud thud. She came up with a roar and turned on Summers, who looked stunned that she'd taken Logan down.
It gave Roxxy the opening she'd been looking for.
Her feet propelled her forward, moving with the speed of her cat. There was a snarl on her lips and she had one arm drawn back, fingers curled so that she could dig deep with her claws. This time, she was going to take his heart right out of his chest.
"Move, Slim!" Logan ordered. A moment later, he was shoving Summers aside. And a moment after that, Roxxy's claws sank deep into the meat of his chest. So deep that blood arced and sprayed when she ripped them free. An animalistic roar left her throat as she prepared herself for another attack.
Then she saw it. Logan was on his knees, one hand pressed tightly to his chest. Blood coated his hand, thick and red under the lights, and his face was a mask of pain. And it hit her then. She'd just attacked a friend. She'd tried to harm another. Her anger rushed out of her and left her weak with confusion and fear. She could only stare as Scott moved to Logan's side in an effort to offer help.
"Fuck!"
"Logan?" Scott's question was obvious.
"Get Hank. It ain't healing."
"You're sure?" Scott asked.
"Yeah. Shoulda started almost immediately and it ain't. I don't feel it," Logan told him, voice rough and horse with pain.
The guilt hit her like a Mack truck. Roxxy looked down at her hands, claws still visible. Her right one was coated in glistening blood. A lot of it. There was a puddle of it on the floor next to Logan. A large puddle. A smaller one was growing at her feet from the stuff that dripped off her hand. What had she done?
"Ah. There you are, Rosemary. I've been looking all over for you. What are you doing here? You should be resting," Henry's voice cut across the plateau, breaking her out of her stupor. Roxxy turned to face him, to ask him to help, but the look on his face stopped her words in her throat. "My stars! What is the meaning of all this?"
That's what she'd like to know.
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Johnny, she loves you too!
I love that Sue is there for Johnny in this. And that she is the voice of reason on everything. There's so much he's not really ready to process about all this and he's got the kids to help through it (though I'm sure Haley's trying her best on that front too)... it's going to be a long road. I hope he can see the truth in what Sue is saying. The fact that what Sinister did to them is still getting him angry (as it should) is a good sign, I think. Once he realizes just how bad it was, he'll come around.
I imagine TJ is pretty caught up in her excitement and not really registering that nobody else seems as happy about all this. I hope that doesn't put a damper on her excitement to be a a big sister.
Of course Haley is checking in on everybody. While she sucks at dealing with her own crap, she's not going to leave her girls to suffer on their own if she can help it. Morgan seems to be dealing really well overall, and I doubt Haley considered just how hard it would be to watch her and Warren being adorable with Kayla. That clearly broke her heart a little. She's stronger than I would be!
It's good to see someone tell Haley that things aren't her fault though. That should happen more often across the board, not just with all this.
Using the Danger Room to vent some big feelings seems like a perfectly logical way to go, and I'm not surprised Roxxy wants to rip Sinister apart for her friends and for herself. Scott is an understandable target but I doubt that particular outburst will go over well.
Also, holy shit! Between this and Dare boiling the lake, clearly something huge is going on with the girls! Here's hoping both Scott and Logan will be able to survive! Damn, everybody might want to start testing their abilities in a safer way than taking a slice out of Logan!
I am intrigued hun! Can't wait to see what's next!
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Haley absolutely loves Johnny and having him turn away from her is killing her. we'll have to see what we can do about that.
i cannot see Sue not being there for him during what is probably the worst time in his life to date. with possible exception of their mother's death. i also like the idea that she can maybe sympathize with what Haley's going through just a little bit. i'm sure Haley will do what she can where the kids are concerned. it'll help keep her mind from getting all twisted up and it'll hopefully help Johnny see the whole picture. this is no easier for her than him and i'm sure he'll realize that, given time and thought. it is a good sign that finding out exactly what Sinister did to them made him angry.
i am kind of picturing TJ skipping around the Baxter Building, singing "I'm gonna be a big sister" the entire time.
i'm sure Haley figures taking care of her team will help keep her from thinking about things. unfortunately, that's going to be a double edged sword because of all the babies. i think Morgan might be the one deal best out of all the girls. not that she doesn't have issues. she's just better at sorting it all out.
pretty sure everyone will tell Haley that what happened wasn't her fault. no matter what she thinks.
i feel like, at some point, everyone of them will be in the Danger Room to vent. i imagine there are lots of people anxious to use the Sinister program. kind of surprising Dare didn't. but then again, she'd rather burn the real thing. mmm. no doubt there will be repercussions from all that.
and yes. there is something big happening with the girls. pretty sure no one is going to kill or maim either Scott or Logan. pretty sure.
glad you enjoyed it, sweets. i can't wait, either
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Ah, Haley. So Roxxy has guilt about not being able to save her teammates and Haley has guilt about Roxxy almost dying and not even knowing about it, despite the fact that there's no way she could have. They both think they failed the others. Silly girls. You know it's bad when Morgan is being the voice of reason. Too bad Haley doesn't want to hear it.
Warren is just too perfect, isn't he?
LMAO
What the fuck is up with Roxxy? At first I thought, okay, she's pissed at Scott. Understandable. She's still coming down from being in cougar form and from the hunt. But ... her anger was all out of proportion. That's not like Roxxy. Not at all. And holy shit, she can do a partial shift now? And why isn't Logan healing? Whatever is happening to Dare seems to be spreading. Faye's got some 'splainin' to do. Like now!
Sorry it took so long, bb. I hope to get to get all caught up in the next couple weeks. We'll see if the universe cooperates.
*kudos*
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there's so much guilt going on. so much guilt. i mean, i think its understandable that Roxxy has her guilt, even though she wasn't really in any position to help them much. same goes for Haley. its understandable that she feels guilty for what happened to Roxxy, even though she knew nothing about Pestilence hitting Roxxy with one of her feathers. or just how bad that was going to go for Roxxy. some day, these girls are going to have to sit down and just... spend an hour apologizing to one another and then another hour telling each other that it isn't their fault. maybe some day they'll listen? and yes. its bad when Morgan is the voice of reason.
i am having lots of fun writing Warren. really. and yes. he is.
there had to be a bit of levity in the chapter. so much seriousness all the time. i'm glad that line tickled your funny bone.
yes. she is pissed at Scott. she was keyed up hunting the computer created Sinister. and she was denied that. plus he dealt a serious blow to Haley's emotional stability. but, yes. her anger is absolutely out of proportion. it is so very much not like her to lose her head in such a manner. and yes. it looks like she can. we'll learn why Logan didn't start healing right away later. Faye very definitely has some `splainin' to do. ...but later.
no worries, sweetie. i know your life is hectic. and, as i keep saying, it isn't going anywhere. i'm glad you enjoyed.