Disclaimer: I do not own The Gifted. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.
"We're doing this again, really?" Lorna grumbled when she answered her door.
"Not exactly." Andy said as they walked past her, again wearing their ugly sweaters.
"What? It's an eight day holiday, right? Why wouldn't we keep celebrating it?" Esme questioned, "Especially as you're supposed to get presents on each day, which totally makes me want to be Jewish too."
"Fine!" Lorna rolled her eyes, and shut the door behind them, "But I'm not wearing the sweater again."
"I thought you said you were going to burn it?" Esme teased.
"And I will." Lorna insisted unconvincingly.
"Huh, and I see Dawn is still wearing hers." Esme beamed.
"That's only because she seems to like it." Lorna grumbled, adding in her head so only Esme would hear it, Probably because it smells like you, or whatever.
Been smelling my clothes a lot, have you? Esme teased Lorna telepathically.
"No!" Lorna snapped out loud, not meaning too and then blushing slightly.
"Erm, can we get this over with?" Andy complained, correctly guessing the girls were having a silent conversation in their heads, and then explaining to Lorna, "Esme drag me away from my PS4 for this, and promised it would be a once in a lifetime experience."
"And it will be." Esme reaffirmed, dragging Andy over to Lorna, "Now, form a circle and hold hands."
"What?" Andy frowned.
"Hold hands." Esme insisted, having already taken Lorna's hand in one of hers and holding her other out for him, "Come on Andy, it will be fun."
"What's wrong Andy, is holding hands with your friends gay?" Lorna teased him with a raised eyebrow.
"No! It's just... weird." Andy protested, imagining how much weirder for him it would be if they were all guys, before pointing out, "And, and are you sure it's okay? That, you know, you wouldn't prefer to be alone."
"It's not a sex thing. It's a family thing. And Lorna considers you family." Esme said simply, before adding softly, "I consider you family."
"Really?" Andy said softly.
"Yeah, you're like the annoying little brother I never knew I wanted." Lorna said dryly.
"Besides, you won't be the third wheel. Dawn will be there too." Esme explained, ignoring Lorna's jab, "It's just easier for me if we're touching."
"Fine." Andy said, taking Esme's hand, "So, where..."
Having experienced this particular trick before neither Lorna and Andy was surprised when the next second they were somewhere else entirely. Or at least, they thought they were. In reality the three of them were standing still while Esme took control of their minds and made them see whatever she wanted them too. In this case on the top of a giant mountain covered in snow, Lorna extremely grateful for the fact that she was covered in head to toe in winter gear. Specifically, skiing gear, which matched Esme's. Meanwhile Andy seemed very pleased with his snowboard, and Dawn was there giggling with delight in a tiny toboggan, which couldn't possibly go wrong.
"Interesting choice!" Lorna grumbled.
"What? I always wanted a skiing holiday." Esme defended the choice.
"I think it's great." Andy grinned as he admired the view, before cautiously asking, "Erm, we can't die, right?"
"No." Esme told him.
"Awesome!" Andy exclaimed, hopping on his board and beginning to slide down the slope, calling out to them, "Last one at the bottom is a rotten egg!"
"Is that true?" Lorna frowned suspiciously, before clarifying, "The death part, not the egg part."
"If you die, you wake up." Esme shrugged, then grinned, "But what's the fun of a fantasy if you can't get hurt?"
"Oh you magnificent bitch!" Lorna laughed, not bothering to hide this smile.
"So, do you think you can reach the bottom first, without smacking into a tree?" Esme challenged.
"You're on." Lorna beamed, before checking, "But after this we're snuggling with coco, right?"
"Absolutely." Esme beamed, pushing Dawn's toboggan over the edge before she and Lorna joined her.
"Wait, what about Dawn?" Lorna asked just before they went.
"Please, as if I'd ever let something hurt that precious child." Esme scoffed, ensuring that despite going before them Dawn's toboggan ended up directly behind them down their flawless dissent.
"So..." Esme asked much later, when they were cuddling in bed with their coco, "What did you think of today's present?"
Lorna shrugged, "Better than an ugly sweater."
Andy, who was in the bed next to them in a cartoonish full body cast, grumbled, "I hate you both."
