Title: Voices

Fandom: X-Men Universe comics / movies

Pairing: Emma F. / Ororo M. / Jean G.

Rating: PG-13

Notes: I will post more chapters soon. I've been taking some much needed advice and not trying to rush things along.

Disclaimer: I don't own these characters, but I do love them.

The blonde continued to stare at Ororo with a stark expression on her face. Her caramel team leader just smiled and sat the glass back on the table. "Suit yourself. But don't say I didn't warn you." Ororo says taking another sip of the cucumber water. "Do you have suitable clothing if not I have some things that may fit you. And as for your shoes, we'll be going barefoot today."

The blonde stared glowering at her team leader her mouth slightly opening as she frowned. She shook her head. "If I didn't know any better I'd think you might have glanced over a few things in my profile. Gardening is at the very top of the list of things I dislike and just below that is wearing someone else's clothing. So once again, I suggest you change your agenda for this meeting." The blonde groaned.

"Alright Emma, I will give you a few options. You can follow my directions; help Hank with the bile teens in the medical lab, or you can leave my team and take your chances with team 4. Your choice."

The blonde softly shook her head and took a deep breath. She was resolved to her fate. The blonde stood to her feet and held out her hand looking away from Ororo. Her team leader smiled and put a glass of cucumber water into her reluctant subordinate's hand. "I knew you'd make the right decision. Follow me." Ororo says to Emma as they walk into the caramel woman's bedroom. Ororo had read Emma's profile carefully. She knew exactly how to get the most out of her insubordinate teammate.

The Garden

The platinum blonde X-woman stood irritated waving bees away from her face randomly hardening her skin when they tried to sting her as she watched the 5'11" caramel goddess slowly get to her knees and crawl through a row of dirt. The blonde couldn't help but watch, as the thoughts of her team leader groveling on her knees flew through her mind one after another to the point that she was full on gazing at Storm's toned backside and slightly arched back. "There are only a few occasions that would move me to prostrate myself Miss Frost, this is not one of them." Ororo said continuing to crawl elongating her back. "I'm sure you can get a much better view down here, come join me."

Ororo said lying down in the row next to a patch of watermelon patting the ground motioning for her subordinate to join her.

"Is this really necessary? I can see fine from where I am." Emma huffed already exhausted from the walk to a greenhouse on the outer edge of the forest. She continued looking away realizing she may have been projecting. Jean had warned the blonde that the weather witch is just as sensitive to thoughts intuitively as they were telepathically. The blonde didn't believe her girlfriend until that moment.

Ororo turned and gave her a knowing look. The blonde rolls her eyes and reluctantly laid next to the woman gritting her teeth as dirt had already managed to find its way underneath her well manicured finger nails.

"Now what…" Emma barked in an annoyed tone.

"Close your eyes take a deep breath and don't move. This soil and everything that grows from it is alive. Right now all of these living things are allowing us to share in their existence. Clear your mind and listen to them. Their voice is a gentle -," She says as the blonde interrupts her. Emma takes in a deep aggravated breath as she tries to get up not wanting any part of what she assumed was her team leaders 'be one with everything' spiel. She crystallizes her skin as Ororo grabs her arm and holds her still.

"Don't…..move." Ororo says with a stern expression.

The blonde rolls her eyes. "You must be out of your mind if you think I'm going to sit here an -," Emma is rendered speechless as smooth vines slowly creep up her body. Her chest begins to heave as the vines reach her neck. She de-crystallizes and telepathically communicates with Ororo. The feeling of these vines on her body made her feel so disgusted she didn't want to speak.

~ Get….. these things…. off of me… this instant. ~

To her surprise the caramel woman began to sing a song a melodious song. The vines begin slowly retracting from the blonde's body as Ororo continues to sing. "Now very slowly lay back down in the dirt." She commands the blonde who decides to stand to her feet. "I don't think so. I'm done for the day. I didn't sign up for this."

Ororo lets go of Emma's arm as sea blue orbs lock into ice blue eyes. "Alright. If you can leave, I'll release you for the day." She says nonchalantly as she turns and begins to examine one of the watermelon buds. Emma crystallizes her body and walks down the row. Vines, bees, wasps, butterflies, and even dirt begins to converge on her. Within a few feet she is pulled to the cold wet ground which had hardened. If she hadn't been in her diamond form she would have been seriously injured. The vines continue to tighten though not hurting her in the least bit, she still couldn't move.

The more she struggled the tighter the vines got after about 10 minutes her team leader stood up and walked over to the restrained blonde and shook her head. "I can help if you want to listen. Just follow my instructions." She says looking down as the blonde shakes her head no.

The blonde took this as a test to her pride. She would not allow herself to show weakness in front of the woman, whether she was restrained or not. The blonde wasn't going to let Storm get the best of her. She was Emma Frost, the hyper intelligent White Queen. She could figure this out.

After another 10 minutes Ororo decides to sit next to the woman as a few birds land on her shoulder. "You don't seem to be getting very far. Did you discover a strategy that's working out for you? Are you close to being released?" Even through the crystal Ororo could see the blonde's disdain for her.

"They can keep that up indefinitely. Will you be staying the night? I should probably let Jean know though. I'll go give her a call." Ororo says standing to her feet and walking down the row. The blonde would be red with anger if she weren't covered with impenetrable diamond skin. She felt sick thinking she would have to ask anyone for help, let alone Ororo Fucking Munroe. She knew this was going to happen, the blonde could now see that her team leader had indeed read her profile and had masterfully planned all this out based on the blonde's well known personality traits.

Emma lay there resigning herself to the only option available to her however demeaning it may be. "Wait." The blonde whispers in an almost inaudible tone as her team leader continues down the row. "I said wait!" She yells now biting a vine that has entered her mouth. Ororo stops and turns around.

"Oh I'm sorry were you speaking to me. Did you decide you were staying the night?" She teases leisurely walking over to the blonde.

"Would you like to know how to get out of that now?" She asks as the blonde tries to nod her head. "I'm sorry I didn't hear you."

"Yes." Emma mumbles. "Yes what Emma. Tell me what you want." She can see the blonde gritting her teeth through her diamond covered face. Emma takes in an unnecessary breath. "Tell me what I need to do."

Ororo smiles. "Oh so you mean you can't do this by yourself. That the great Emma Frost is in genuine need of someone besides herself, is that what you are saying?"

The blonde rolls diamond covered eyes and stares at Ororo. "You've had your fun. Now get these things off of me. Now." Ororo stands to her feet and puts her hands on her hips.

"Sing." Her caramel leader tells her. "Excuse me." The blonde says hearing what the woman said but already feeling a sinking feeling in her stomach her diamond lip almost trembling. "You must sing to them." Ororo responds.

"I don't….sing…." Emma mumbles embarrassingly.

"Unfortunately, your voice is the only thing that will appease them now. Let me show you." Ororo says as she begins to sing the same melody she sang earlier. The vines remain coiled around the irritated blonde. "They've become quite attached to you you see. They won't let go until you tell them to."

Emma never sang. Her mind immediately went back to her childhood. She was forced to sing in front of her parents friends at their dinner parties. One horrible day when she wasn't feeling well her voice cracked and a 7 year old Emma watched in horror as all the adults began to whisper and laugh and talk among themselves. Her parents frowned and glared at her. She spent 3 weeks with a brutally strict German singing coach named Helga.

Once she turned 13 she ran away from home, tired of being a circus act for her parents. She decided she would never sing again at least until now. The blonde was furious. Why would Ororo choose something like this for their second one on one meeting? Her dislike of singing was also in her profile. The woman was blatantly forcing her to confront these things. She almost considered just staying there and not moving for the entire night just to spite her team leader.

"What do I do?" Emma asks reluctantly.

Ororo kneels down and whispers into her ear. "Listen to them, they will tell you." She turns and quickly walks out of the row toward the greenhouse door. "I'll inform Jean of your predicament. Don't worry I'll keep her company until you get back."

The blonde practically growls at Ororo as she watches the woman leave the greenhouse and turn out the lights.

She is completely appalled by her team leader's behavior. How incompetent did you have to be to not only lead someone into a hostile situation, but to leave them there was just irresponsible. From what she had seen of the weather goddess, this was not her M.O. There was a reason she did this and the blonde doubted that it had anything to do with her girlfriend like the woman implied. Sure they had their history, but the woman didn't show her any disrespect thus far.

The blonde was fortunate she didn't need to breathe because the vines would have suffocated her by now. The blonde was not big on listening to nature or singing, so this would take more effort than she was ready to expend right at that moment.

She wasn't sure how much time had gone by. She laid there quietly with her eyes closed waiting when she finally heard a faint humming sound. The blonde couldn't identify where it had come from, but to her surprise she felt calm the more she listened to it.

She made an effort to roll over so she could put her ear to the ground, then the sound changed. It became like a siren in the blonde's ears. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath and tried to mimic the first sound she had heard.

"Mmm, huumm,….mmmm….laaaaaa...luuuuuu." The siren sound stopped. So apparently moving made them angry. So they had feelings. That was different. It was unexpected these were just plants.

~ Alright plants or whatever you are. I am listening, but I would like to leave now. Tell me how to leave. ~ She sent telepathically to whomever was around.

Closing her eyes a melody began to play in her head. It wasn't that difficult but she was not the best singer by a long shot and struggled with the thought of embarrassing herself. There was no one around but these plants but she was still self-conscious. The blonde had to admit that the melody wasn't at all unpleasant. She just wasn't sure if she could sing it.

She took a few deep unnecessary breathes and mimicked the tones almost perfectly via the use of her diamond form to alter the frequency and pitch of her vocal chords.

First the dirt began to move away bit by bit so the blonde sang louder the bees and other flying creatures who had taken up residence on the blonde began to retreat to various areas of the greenhouse.

Finally the green vines began to loosen until Emma was finally free. She had learned her lesson. She stood up, retracted her crystal form and listened quietly. The gentle sounds made her feel invigorated and full of life, so much so that the more she sang; the more she began to sweat. The plants began to move around her making strange geometric shapes. 'I have an audience.' She thought to herself with a gentle smile as her voice echoed through the greenhouse. She was filled with comfort and caring, but she wasn't sure of the source of it. All she knew is that for the first time in over 25 years, she wanted to sing and was enjoying herself.

At least three minutes had gone by when she heard clapping from outside the greenhouse. She stopped singing and walked to the door opening it.

Jean had her mouth covered with a few fresh tears on her cheeks as Ororo smiled at the tight-lipped grimacing blonde.

"I see you found your way out Emma. May I ask how you -," Ororo asked as the blonde walked past her hitting her shoulder turning to regard her a look of pure anger on her face. "Be careful Ororo." Emma said as she made a beeline for mansion, anxious to get the disgusting feel of nature off of her body. Jean smiled gave her best friend a hug and followed her pouting girlfriend back to the mansion.

By the time the redhead got up to their apartment. Emma was already in the shower. Jean sighed as she heard a very soft hum coming from the bathroom. She smiled leaning against the door. She had never heard her girlfriend sing before. Her voice was …..beautiful.

TBC….