Title: Team Player
Fandom: X-Men Universe comics / movies
Pairing: Emma F. / Ororo M. / Jean G.
Rating: PG-13
Notes: This is in addition to my story OMEGA. It documents how the relationship between the three women grew. These are the things that weren't fully expressed or explained in OMEGA. The focus is on Emma and Ororo. There was so much about their relationship that I didn't think I had room for, so here it is. Fair warning there will be a few time leaps.
Disclaimer: I don't own these characters, but I do love them.
Flashback 13 years ago...
Xavier Institute's newest addition caused quite a stir since her arrival. The woman single-handedly destroyed a marriage that was long thought to be as stable as the pyramids at Giza, managed to alienate the entire team from her and one another, and practically caused Professor Xavier to have a mini stroke now having to rework the sex education curriculum to include differently orientated intercourse to field all the questions students now had seeing Jean and Emma together on campus. To say Emma Frost entered their lives with a bang would be an understatement.
If her attitude didn't turn off half the population at large her regular attire sure did the trick. Kitty once commented during a training meeting that she thought the scantly-clad blonde looked more like she was trying to screw for humanity rather than trying to save it. Emma's new girlfriend Jean Grey rather enjoyed her woman's sense of fashion. She liked the fact that whenever her lover walked into a room that every pair of eyes would zero in on the blonde like she was the only source of light in a dark cold world.
Jean had all but moved in with the woman when Charles decided to take Emma off her and Scott's team and move the blonde to team 7. The tension between the blonde and Scott Summers were palpable. He couldn't stand the sight of the smug arrogant expression she wore on her face, knowing she had stolen his wife from him. When either of them were in the same room together you could cut the intense rage coming off the red sunglass wearing X-man with a chainsaw and still not get all the way through it. The only thing that saved the team from completely imploding upon itself was Ororo. She'd always elegantly divert attention away from the blonde and get the group meetings back on track.
Emma found it irritating to say the least as she was beginning to look forward to her regular verbal bouts with her partner's soon to be ex-husband. She would have never admitted it, but up until that point Scott was the only person other than Jean, Charles, Ororo, and Hank who was willing to stand her presence longer than a few minutes.
The blonde's interest was piqued when Jean's best friend Ororo agreed to allow her onto her team. Ororo was an enigma to Emma. She wasn't convinced of the weather witch's regal, peaceful, generous, and nurturing demeanor. Everyone at the institute regarded the woman as some sort of saint, a Mother Teresa, Oprah Winfrey hybrid. The blonde found it hard to believe considering her encounters with Storm when she was still with the brotherhood. The weather goddess was so cold and aloof the blonde thought the woman's real last name could have been Frost, not to mention the woman's frightening anger, more than a few times Ororo had almost killed her in battle. The rumors of Ororo's indomitable will were beyond true, none of the blonde's psychic and psionic tactics worked on her.
Their shared past didn't stop Ororo from making several attempts to befriend her when she first arrived, but the blonde was having none of it. Like the time Storm tried to comfort her when Scott first returned to the institute. A few members of the team and quite a few students had gathered in the foyer to welcome him back. The blonde elected to stay at the top of the staircase as Jean went about her wifely duties greeting her husband after his self-imposed exile in the wilds of America after he had been freed from Apocalypse's possession.
Storm approached her from behind almost startling her she was so focused watching Jean's every move that she wasn't paying attention. Ororo softly placed her hand on the blonde's shoulder and spoke quietly. "Emma, you can pretend like you don't care about what's happening down there, but this wouldn't be easy for anyone to deal with. You two have gotten very close over the last few months. It's obvious that you care about her." The blonde adjusted her body shaking Ororo's hand off her shoulder. The white-haired woman took a deep breath and continued to speak as she saw the blonde's body stiffening from the unwanted physical contact. "Your apprehension toward me is warranted given our past altercations, but I can assure you that I hold no ill will toward you. You were doing your job and I was doing mine. But you are a member of the X-men now. If you need to talk about anything, my greenhouse door is always open."
Emma was fuming inside. How dare she think it was appropriate to touch her? She didn't need anyone's sympathy or pitiful attempts at half-hearted comfort. She turned to stare into Storm's sky blue eyes attempting to warn her away with her most arctic gaze. "I neither requested or appreciate your attempt at subterfuge. The rest of these morons may have fallen for your little act, but I won't. Don't lump me in with this little kumbaya puppet show Charles has going on here Munroe. I wear this X, but I'll never be one of you. I've seen who you really are and I'll thank you to stay out of my personal affairs from now on." The blonde turned her back on the woman as she quietly walked down the stairs diverting everyone's attention away from her telepathically. She knew Storm didn't really like her. It annoyed her that the woman kept trying to force a friendship on her that she could care less for. Jean was all she needed.
Why couldn't she just leave her be? There had to be another reason she was trying to get close to her. The blonde was a master of observation she had watched Ororo very carefully when she was around her so called best friend. Emma's PHD in psychology and hands on experience with the Hellfire Club had refined her skills so well that they could have easily been classified as a latent mutant ability. However she didn't need them to figure out what Ororo's real motives were. Her faux friend had feelings for the redhead, it was obvious to the blonde, even if Jean and the rest of the team chose not to see it.
The redhead would always tell her suspicious girlfriend, "Ro is my best friend, she's like a sister to me. There's really nothing for you to worry about Em. I'm not going anywhere, I promise." The blonde would just shrug it off but in the back of her mind it continued to nag at her.
~ Hump, best friend, sister, yea right more like kissing cousins if you ask me.~ She thought to herself.
"What was that….?" Jean would ask. The blonde would simply shrug her shoulders and smile innocently at her girlfriend, silently admonishing herself for unconsciously projecting her thoughts.
The blonde's deductions were rarely wrong when it came to this type of thing. Emma trusted Jean with her heart that much was true, but she wasn't going to fool herself into thinking that Jean wouldn't leave her. Marital problems or not, everyone whether they were friend or foe knew about the marriage that had been forged by the god's themselves. It was thought to be unbreakable…..at least until Emma came along anyway. No one knew the redhead bisexual except maybe her 'best friend', but she couldn't be sure.
The blonde's irresistibility was obvious, she couldn't blame Jean for falling for her, but she had seen too many unfaithful spouses in her day. Of course she was always a willing participant in infidelity. In her mind the person's partner was their problem not hers, but now that she was on the other side of that equation watching her partner being so close to another person was putting her on edge.
It didn't help that said person was now her new team leader and required one on one meetings every week with her subordinates. Ororo nearly fried the woman during their first training exercise together. She claimed it was an accident, but the blonde knew better. Their first one on one meeting was short, but to her surprise she left feeling much more at ease with the woman than she had anticipated, besides she had succeeded in slightly unsettling her new team leader when the subject of the redhead was brought up.
"You've been interested in her for a long time." Emma said.
Ororo shakes her head and furrows her brow shocked by the statement as her heart begins to race. She clears her throat. "I'm not sure what you mean. Jean is my closest friend and an invaluable member of the team." The blonde continues to walk around the room not looking at her team leader. "That wasn't a question." She laughs to herself. "May I ask what you found to be so humorous?" Storm asks.
"Nothing at all. Your clitoria lilies are quite lovely, by way. You have quite the green thumb." Emma turns her body toward Storm as she examines the lilies. "Jean seems to be rather attached to you. She mentioned that she enjoys watching you work in your garden, said that you… taught her a few things." Azure eyes meet aqua orbs. "I'm sure your lessons are educational. I'd appreciate if you kept them to minimum. Jean's hands are being occupied elsewhere at the moment." The blonde walks back to her seat still holding Ororo's gaze.
Storm can hear the blonde's message clearly and decides to forego the pleasantries. "Jean is an adult. She knows how to manage her time appropriately. I suggest you talk to her about this. But since we are on the subject…..." Dark clouds gather around the institute and thunder begins to boom causing slight vibrations in the windows as Ororo leans forward a breath away from the blonde. Emma can feel static electricity in the air. "She cares for you deeply and thanks to you she's going to be under a lot of stress dealing with all the commotion around the institute. I could care less for your sophomoric insinuations. Jean is my best friend and it pains me knowing what she will be going through with her divorce. I'm very protective of her. If she ever tells me that you are following in Scott's footsteps, the Phoenix will be the least of your problems."
The blonde smirks dropping her eyes to Ororo's plump lips taking a breath through her nose then returning to her eyes. "I'll be sure to keep that in mind and don't worry about Jean's stress level, I'LL be giving her 'ALL' the therapy she needs from now on. Are we done here?" She says as she sits up straight no longer smirking. Ororo takes a deep breath through her nose and nods her head. Her heart is still racing. Emma stands and begins to walk out. She speaks as she walks through the greenhouse door. "I was informed that these weekly meetings are a requirement of your team membership. What is your schedule like next week?" She turns and waits for Ororo's response. Storm gives her head a quick shake composing herself clearing her throat. "Yes, I'm available Thursday evening." The blonde walks out the door. "I'll see you at 7 then, ta ta."
The Greenhouse
Emma arrived 15 minutes early for their appointment as was her custom for any meeting. She used it as an opportunity to catch her associates off guard. If they were disorganized and unprepared she wouldn't do business with them. She was even generous enough to give a few CEO's a second meeting. It was corporate suicide if they failed her test a second time.
She quietly tapped on Ororo's front door and got no response. It was clearly open but she wasn't fond of the place and decided to wait. She folded her arms across her chest and began to look around tapping her foot when a posted note with a piece of tape on it got stuck to her shoe. She reached down and picked it up.
Emma,
Please make yourself comfortable. I'll be up front in a few minutes. There is cucumber water on the table. Thank you for keeping our appointment.
Ororo.
The blonde gritted her teeth in irritation as she opened the door. Yet again her sensitive nose was assaulted by the scent of lavender and lilies when she walked through the door. She could already feel the onset of a headache; she wanted to get this over with as soon as possible. Walking to the side table she looks at the container of cucumber water. Jean always had some waiting for her at their apartment. It was her favorite but who knows what Ororo had done to it. She opted not to have any. Five minutes pass and she is aggravated with her team leader's lack of respect. Having no desire to raise her voice for fear of breathing in some unwanted pathogen in the air she walked to the back of the greenhouse seeing the silhouette of a woman behind a glass frosted door.
Knocking gently, she gets no response and decides to open it. A cool breeze of air with a calming gentle scent ruffles her golden locks. The sound of a generator turning on blares in her ears. She walks inside and sees Ororo bent over examining a flower. The blonde raises an intrigued eyebrow as her eyes unconsciously travel up her caramel team leader's body. She was wearing a white cashmere jumpsuit that accentuated every single one of her curves. The blonde couldn't help but smirk and cock her head slightly at the view from behind. Jean sure knew how to pick'em. "Emma, I'll be out in just a moment." Ororo says raising her wrist to look at her watch still examining the plant. "Our appointment isn't for another eight minutes. I do usually like to start early myself, but this night lily only blooms once a year and I have to collect its pollen at just the right moment. Would you mind helping me out and grab that small dropper near your shoulder?"
The blonde is startled out of her mental musings remembering her annoyance with the situation. "I'm no gardener Miss Munroe and I have more important things to do than play Johnny Appleseed with you all…-," The blonde is speechless when Ororo stands to her full height and turns to face her. Her hair was up in a high ponytail with long beautiful bangs falling over a pair of gorgeous professional use small framed Champagne Ivory Dolce and Gabbana glasses. The buttons on her suit were slightly undone revealing a tastefully teasing amount of cleavage.
She takes the glasses from her face and puts her hand on her hip, blowing her bangs from her face. "Consider this a requirement of your training Emma. My team must be ready to follow my orders no matter the situation. You don't have a problem with that do you?" The blonde rolls her eyes and picks up the dropper holding it out to Ororo. The caramel woman looks at it and turns to face the plant. "Come over here Emma. I want you to see something." The blonde reluctantly walks over and is handed a pair of glasses. "Here look at this." Ororo says examining the flower as it slowly opens.
Emma shakes her head puts on the glasses and looks at the flower. She was amazed. It looked like a beautiful starlit night sky. She was so enthralled that she moved her face closer she was a few inches from Ororo's cheek. Her caramel team leader softly smiled. "Slowly take the dropper and take a bit of the nectar from the center." It was incredible as soon as the pollen was removed all the little stars converged on the empty space. It looked like a small galaxy swirling in the center of the small blue flower.
The blonde's mouth was slightly agape as she watched in awe. Storm gently touched the blonde's wrist to get her attention as their eyes locked. They both felt their hearts flutter for a moment. Emma turned her eyes back toward the flower stood up and swallowed hard. Ororo slowly released a breath she didn't realize she was holding. She also stood up holding out her hand as the blonde put the dropper in it. "This is how my team works Emma. We fill in whatever is lacking for one another. It won't work with just one person. Everyone must do their part."
The blonde rolls her eyes and takes off the glasses. "Yes, well telling me that would have been sufficient. There was no need for theatrics." Ororo took a deep breath and walked to a small freezer and put the dropper inside. She opened the greenhouse door and motioned for Emma to leave before her. "This isn't a show Emma. If you are going to be a useful member of my team, you have to learn to see beyond your old beliefs and understand that you are not alone anymore." She closes the door behind them and they walk toward the front of the green house. Storm walks over to the side table and pours herself some cucumber water as the blonde takes a seat. "You are going to need a change of clothing today."
The blonde sits up straight and crosses her legs as she examines her nails. "I don't think so. You did not make me aware of that ahead of time. So whatever you were planning needs to change, these are new pumps. I have no intention of ruining them." Ororo smirks as she pours another glass and hands it to Emma, who shakes her head no. She sits the glass on the table. "You and I are going to work in my garden today." The blonde sits with her hand on her knee and looks into Storms eyes taking a deep breath. She was beyond annoyed.
"That is completely out of the question. It was my understanding that these meetings were to be one on one conversations about teamwork, truth, justice, and whatever insipid values you people discuss in your free time." Ororo lids her eyes staring into the blonde's blue orbs speaking in an teasing tone. "They are. This is a lesson in adaptation. Besides, I thought you might like to see what Jean has been learning…while we talk." She picks up the glass and hands it to the blonde again. "I make a fresh batch every morning for Jean. She says you enjoy it. You should have some. You're going to need to stay hydrated for what I have planned." Emma raises a challenging eyebrow as she breaks Ororo's gaze taking a deep breath with a deadpan expression.
'What was this woman up to?'
TBC…..
