A/N: 5 month pause? What 5 month pause?

Just...read. And listen, to "Paralyzer" by Finger Eleven while you do so. Notes at the bottom.

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"One of the greatest misconceptions about life is that
there are no misconceptions." -Anonymous

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Crash and Burn

Chapter Seven: Don't Take My Sunshine Away

"Murder by boredom strikes again."

Sue glanced up from the files in her hands and spared her intern a rueful smile. "We're not back to that again, are we?"

Though, Sue admitted that she could sympathize with her friend. The mission was scheduled to launch in two days and they had spent the whole day reading up on SOP and further requirements; for example, everything they needed to know should something to wrong up in space. Reed, Ben and Johnny all had formal NASA training, but Sue and Kassie didn't, and they needed to catch up as quickly as was possible without developing insomnia at the same time.

They had both come in to the office at seven that morning armed with Starbucks, and it was getting dangerously close to eleven at night.

"I don't know which is worse," Kassie said, standing up from the conference table, her arms full of briefing files. She walked over to an open file cabinet. "Reducing my body fat from nine percent to practically nothing, or reading briefing reports, the length of which would rival anything Dickens ever wrote."

Sue laughed. "Believe me, Kassie, you'll be grateful to have the knowledge with you once we're up there." Sue grinned, "And Dickens was paid by the word."

"Will the team already at the space station be assisting us?" Kassie asked, tucking a few stray files between her chin and collar bone as she slid several others into their marked folders.

"They'll be present, but the initial testing will be done by you, Reed and I," Sue replied. "The team will fly back with us once the mission is complete."

"And won't they be thrilled to be Earth-bound," Kassie said, smiling. "They've been up there four months now, right?"

Sue nodded appreciatively. "The next rotation is scheduled to launch a week after we return..." Sue trailed off, her eyes narrowing at the file she held in her hands.

Kassie looked up as she shut the file cabinet as she filed the last report. "What's wrong?"

"They need a copy of your immunization records to keep on file here, in addition to what's already on file with Medical," Sue said, looking and handing the page over to Kassie. "It's for insurance purposes. Do you need to pick up a copy from your doctor?"

Kassie shook her head, glancing down at the paper. "I have them at my apartment...I didn't think I needed another copy after I cleared my physical exam."

Sue nodded sympathetically; the rules and regulations of completing paperwork...an endless maze, including double-backs and double-checks.

"Johnny's already on his way over to pick me up," Sue said, checking her watch. "I can have him get the records, if you'd like."

Kassie smiled at Sue's kindness and, pulling out her cell, she hit the '1' on her speed dial, "Matt's at the apartment, he knows where they are."

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"Thanks again, Matt."

"Sure thing, Fish," Matt spoke into his cell. He had it on speaker as he shuffled through the stack of papers on his cousin's desk.

"Don't--"

"--Call you Fish. I got it, cuz," Matt chuckled as he slid aside a few more papers, looking for the records Kassie had described to him. A packet of several photocopied pages came into view, "Aha! Got 'em. Who's coming over again? And at this ungodly hour?"

"Oh, I'm sorry. I forgot you went to bed by nine."

"Very funny," Matt made a face as he picked up the white sheet and walked out of Kassie's room and back into the living room of their apartment. "At least I don't sleep away my mornings."

"Since Sue is giving me odd looks, I'll pretend I didn't hear that. Her brother's the one stopping by; Johnny Storm. I'll be home in an hour, all right?"

"I'll be snoring," Matt chimed into the phone. A satisfying click sounded on the other end of the line, but not before he swore he heard his cousin laugh.

Matt walked out of Kassie's room and into the kitchen, grabbing a Coke out of the fridge. Contrary to what his cousin believed, he actually wasn't going to bed early that night. The art gallery he was working at was hosting a big show in two weeks and he was in charge of organizing the event, which included hiring caterers, contacting the featured artists and sending out guest lists. It wasn't one of their bigger art showings, but he was a new employee and wanted to make a good impression.

There was nothing good on TV, but Matt couldn't work in absolute silence. Even at the quiet gallery, he always had his iPod earphones in, blasting his latest musical favorite. Tonight, though, he raided his cousin's stash of CDs and popped in one of her newer albums, Finger Eleven's Them Vs. You Vs. Me. Matt found it amusing that, in the apartment, all the band posters belonged to his cousin and the paintings were from the gallery he worked at. (He had even stolen one of his Kassie's too large concert tees...his laundry had been calling his name since last week.)

The very first track on the album kicked off and so did Matt as he sat, pulled out a bar stool and got to work, spreading his folders out on the small kitchen counter that overlooked the apartment's living room.

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Johnny was singing to himself the last few lines of Livin' On A Prayer as he hit the 'Up' button on the elevator pad. It was late, but he was in a surprisingly good mood, thanks to a one Candy James he had run into earlier that night. Candy most likely wasn't her real name, but it was a good thing Johnny didn't deal in real names when it came to having a good time. Bon Jovi had been on the radio on his drive over and though he felt a little like his sister's messenger boy, he figured he owed her after she let him sign up as the head pilot to Ben Grimm's co-pilot on the upcoming mission.

That had been a sweet day when he'd found out Ben was going to be his subordinate.

The green light above the elevator let out a soft ting! and Johnny got into the elevator, pushing the button that led to the eighth floor, just like Sue had told him over the phone. 4th and Chambers, not a bad part of Manhattan. Thankfully - wherever his sister's intern lived - the building didn't have annoying elevator music. (He had suffered enough Celine Dion from his sister during her moody teenage years.)

When the elevator arrived, Johnny stepped out and walked down the hall towards apartment 8C. He knocked a few times, waiting with his hands in his jean pockets, his fingers playing around with the keys inside one pocket. He glanced up and down the hallway a few times and decided that it seemed like a pretty nice apartment building.

Johnny wondered how Sue's intern could afford the rent on her own, but his question was soon answered when the door opened to reveal a guy about the same height as Johnny - maybe an inch or so shorter, but Johnny wouldn't rub that in. He had dark brown hair, spiked in different directions with a black ACDC T-shirt and dark jeans.

Cool guy, Johnny concluded.

"You Johnny?" The guy asked him.

Johnny nodded, "Sue said you needed something picked up?"

The guy extended his hand, "Yeah. I'm Matt. Matt Hedge."

"Johnny Storm."

Johnny followed Matt into the apartment, his eyes taking in most of the details as a first time visitor would. Though the walls were a standard white, the living room was decorated with a subtle flare for style; red suede couch with a couple tan armchairs, checkerboard carpet, and stainless steel coffee table.

There were a few art pieces on the wall, but also some concert posters. Johnny looked them over as Matt, who he figured as the girl's boyfriend by the way the music posters were mixed in with the art pieces, walked into the kitchen and reappeared later with a manila folder in hand.

It was then that Johnny heard the music in the background, coming from the stereo that fit snugly into a compartment below the TV on the modest entertainment center the apartment had. There were some picture frames on hanging shelves across the room, but Johnny didn't bother to get a closer look.

"Here're the records," Matt said, handing the folder to Johnny. "Sorry you had to come by so late. Kassie's a real workaholic sometimes."

Johnny shrugged in understanding, "Got a sister like that, too."

Matt nodded. "Well, thanks for coming by - and good luck, with the mission."

"You know about that?" Johnny asked curiously.

"Kassie told me," Matt replied. "It's all she's been talking about the last couple weeks."

Figures Sue's intern would have a boyfriend, Johnny thought, but all he said on his way out was, "I'll catch ya later."

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The launch facility was located in a remote area somewhere in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, with a surprisingly serene lakefront view. The location was stunning and the technology could even rival NASA, but Kassie couldn't stop wondering whose arm Victor von Doom had to pull to get the funding or the clearance - or lack thereof - to get it built, but she pushed those thoughts from her mind as she mounted the elevator that would take her up to where Sue had told her to meet the night before - sixth floor, where the facility's locker rooms were located.

Kassie passed various workers in matching grey jumpsuits, all rushing to complete one task or another before liftoff. The countdown clock read T - 4 Hours and she understood the rush. She'd be boarding the shuttle within the hour and be taking off as soon as all the final checks were run. The people rushing around her were the ones making sure that nothing went wrong with their flight, and she wished them luck with it. Kassie hadn't been briefed on the entire mission, but she knew enough to understand how groundbreaking this mission was going to mean for both the Doom Corporation and for the United States.

She got off the elevator on the sixth floor and followed the signs to the locker rooms, but heard a voice call her room from a partially open door.

"Sue!" Kassie said as she walked into the makeshift conference room. Sue was standing at the head of the table, straightening up various stacks of papers. "More briefing reports?"

Sue gave an exasperated nod, "The last ones, at least until we land. Victor wants this done by the book." She alligator clipped several stacks before sliding them into different colored folders. Glancing down at her work, she nodded satisfactorily and then turned her attention to Kassie again. "I have to show you the suits we're wearing for the mission."

"All right," Kassie laughed at Sue's enthusiasm as she followed the woman out of the conference and down the hall. They walked into a smaller changing room that branched off from the main lockers; the rooms were separate for men and women.

Sue walked over to a bench and picked up two blue suits that seemed more like silly putty in her hands than actual fabric. She held one up for Kassie to take and as Kassie let it drape down in front of her, she couldn't help but smile a little nervously.

"Did Victor develop this material himself?" Kassie asked, glancing at her friend who had begun to undress and slip into the suit herself.

The blond woman nodded. "He hired Armani on the side, but he was essentially the one in charge."

Sue smiled while Kassie followed suit, pulling off her sweatshirt and slacks, choosing an open locker to put her keys and wallet in along with her street clothes.

"He wanted something that wouldn't irritate any of the crew members," Sue explained, sliding both legs into the blue spacesuit.

"You mean he didn't want his carefully moisturized skin to chafe," Kassie translated as she pulled the suit up to slide her hands into the silk-like arms. The zipper ran up from her ribcage to her neck.

Inside her open locker, her cell phone went off, it's mechanical ring echoing in the small room. Kassie looked at Sue.

"Take it," Sue said, now finished dressing as well. She grabbed several gray suits that were sitting on the bench. "I hear the boys in the other room anyway; I'll leave a flight suit for you here."

Kassie smiled gratefully at Sue as the woman waved her on, walking out of the room. She reached into her locker and pulled out her cell, worry spreading over her as she recognized the caller ID.

"Rose, did something happen?" were the first words out of Kassie's mouth.

"Your mother's fine," Rose assured her upon hearing the girl's worried tone.

Rose Parker had worked for Kassie's family for the past seven years as a personal home care assistant. The technical title was Assisted Living, but Kassie hadn't thought of Rose as anything but a close family friend since she had begun taking care of her mother, Hannah Rivers. When Kassie's dad was at work, Rose would stay with Hannah at home. It had been a part-time job at first, but as Hannah's condition had worsened over the last couple of years, Rose had been brought on board full-time. Kassie wasn't sure what she and her father would have done without the woman.

"She thinks it's your eighteenth birthday, Kassie." Rose's voice came over the phone in that same assuring, calm tone, but her words made Kassie's heart drop into her stomach. "She wants to sing to you. Do you have time? I know the launch is today."

"I've got time," Kassie said without hesitation into the phone, her throat already tightening.

"I'll put her on," Rose said quietly.

Kassie closed her eyes against the tears, pressing the heel of her hand - the one that wasn't holding the phone to ear - to her forehead to try and force her thoughts not to scatter.

"Honey?" Her mom's voice came over the line; it about broke Kassie's heart. "How are you, Kassie baby?"

"Hi, Mom," Kassie said, her voice low. "What're you gonna sing for me?"

"Your favorite..." Her mother said. Her voice went quiet for a moment, before coming over the line in gentle tones:

"Your face is like the sun sinking into the ocean..." Kassie smiled a bittersweet smile, remembering how her mother had always sung her Sparklehorse on her birthday; or at least, on the days when she remembered it was her daughter's birthday. "Your face is like watching flowers growing in fast motion."

"The Christmas bulbs that are swallowed
slept in a tree that's gone hollow
Never a brittle wintertime, baby you are my sunshine
..."

The tears fell silently down Kassie's cheeks as she sat down on the bench in the empty locker room.

"Sunshine, my sunshine
Please don't take my sunshine away
..."

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Kassie walked out of the locker room fifteen minutes later. She had spent six of those minutes listening to her mom's voice and the remaining nine in the bathroom cleaning herself up. Sue was the first one to spot her when Kassie walked into the antechamber that led to the shuttle.

"Everything all right?" Sue asked Kassie, almost knowingly. She rested a hand on the girl's shoulder.

Kassie nodded and hoped her smile didn't look as watery as the rest of her felt. She recognized the two other men in the room from her previous meetings and briefings with them, Dr. Richards and Ben Grimm. She forced herself to clear her mind, ready herself for the upcoming mission. She had been training for this for weeks and she would visit her mother first thing when she got back. She would visit her dad, too.

"Dr. Richards," Kassie said, glancing at the various metal briefcases clutched in his hands. "Shouldn't those already be on board?"

The scientist looked worried for a moment, exchanging glances with his right-hand man. "Should they be? I mean, I put them on the manifest but I didn't want the samples damaged in transport--"

"Reed, relax," Ben said with only a slight laugh in his voice. "We'll load 'em up when we get loaded up."

"Okay, yeah," Reed said, calming down a little. "That sounds fine. It'll be fine. I mean, Johnny's a good pilot, right?"

"The best," Sue admonished, and it was hard to miss the subtle note of pride in her tone.

Kassie saw Ben roll his eyes at Sue's comment and tried to stifle her smile. She was about to ask Reed what kind of samples he had elected to bring, along with the ones she and Sue had already ordered, when she was bumped into from behind.

"Sorry there," a familiar voice said, "You must be Sue's in--"

The voice broke off when Kassie turned around to see Taxi Guy in a flight suit identical to hers. Or, should she say, the pilot of the mission she was about to embark on? She was stunned, but that was an understatement.

"You're her?!" Johnny Storm exclaimed, dropping the boxes he was holding.

And Kassie wanted to melt right into the ground.

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A/N: So you see. . .a pretty long and juicy chapter. I apologize for the nearly interminable delay in updates, but I had some things to take care of and I'm gonna leave it at that. I hope this chapter satisfied you guys for now; the big "WTF?" scene between Johnny and Kassie is up next, along with some space shuttle jargon that took me forever to research ; )

I got a few reviews (can't for the life of me remember who at the moment) that wanted to know about Kassie's parents. Well...there was a scene, and thank you for reminding me to include them! Cookies go to the person who can guess what disease Kassie's mother has, though it's a little obvious. And I dropped hints about Kassie's future powers in this chap; see if you can spot 'em! Because playing mind games like that are fun for authors.

The Sparklehorse lyrics are a tribute to when they used to be sung to me. I know it's mushy, but bear with me. I didn't want Kassie turning into a mindless Mary-Sue, hopefully that scene with her mom made her seem a little more human :-)

Also, over my mini-sabbatical from fanfic, I've decided to write a sequel that goes along with the second movie, though it'll probably start about halfway through the movie instead of taking a few chapters to get to the movie like this one did. Does that make sense? Also changed my penname. Because I'm a skitzo like that and Holly Black rules my imagination at the moment.

A super long author's not, but yeah...let me know your thoughts in a review!