Are you ready? I am. Anyone else see the trailer for season 2? My mind is thinking away. I even have a few possible titles brewing in my head for the jinXed sequel. We'll have to wait and see. I'm glad you guys liked my portrayal of angry John. Makes me feel better. Shout out time to the people who followed, reviewed, favorited, and theorized: InannaStar, heartofsteele, Emily01111, 25, masoxrista, and najamuzen. Let's go!
As soon as the portal sealed, Clarice let out a sigh. Even though Turner had helped them out, she was still wary of him. It seemed her helping keep his partner alive really did have a benefit. She also wondered if what he had said was true, that something had changed. Enough to change his mind about mutants?
"Clarice, you okay?"
She must have zoned out but John's voice brought her back into the present and she launched herself at him, the emotions she'd been pushing down flooding forward. John didn't wasted any time, picking her up off her feet thus allowing Clarice to lock her ankles together at the small of his back, arms wrapping around him clutching fistfuls of his shirt as she sobbed against his neck. He didn't mind her cries, his arms tight around her, surrounding her in warmth and his reassuring scent.
"J-John…John…" She couldn't say his name enough.
"It's me Ohpitsa, it's me. I found you. It's okay. I got you, I got you. Ohpitsa, sil n'zhoo, sil n'zhoo."
She let out another particular sob. She didn't think she'd get to hear those words again. Didn't think she'd have her John back. The thought that she would be the only one who remembered their time together had crossed her mind and it had terrified her but his words comforted her.
Clarice felt his lips press into her hair and a sudden urge seized her. It wasn't enough. Hands going from shoulders to his jaw and cheeks Clarice pulled back just enough to plant a desperate, searing kiss that was quickly reciprocated. She let out a whimper but only because the pain, the aching chasm that she'd felt in the deeps of her being for weeks, was rightly filled once again with the pure essence of John. She was complete, a calm falling over herself.
"Ngo oi nei. Ngo oi nei." She whispered the words against John's lips, their foreheads pressed together as they basked in each other's presence. She hadn't said the words enough in the past and now it was all she wanted to say. "I love you."
Hickory eyes drilled into her own, dark in their intensity. John's arms tightened just a fraction and Clarice could feel the rumbling in his chest as he growled back at her. "Love you Clarice."
This time his lips captured hers hungrily, nibbling at her bottom lip in a way that had her whining. But not from pain, definitely not pain.
"Are you two done? We technically haven't escaped quite yet."
Tabitha's voice broke the spell, Clarice looking over to see that both Tab and Mario had turned their backs but the young woman also had her hands covering the boy's ears. Clarice furrowed her eyebrows, "What's with the ear muffs?"
Tab looked over her shoulder, quirking an eyebrow. "You two haven't seen each other in four years. It was only a precaution in case you guys got a little carried away. Which I was right about seeing as that last sound wasn't exactly child-friendly."
Clarice's face grew hot but John leaned close, his lips brushing against her ear. "Seems we're out of practice."
The heat on her face from embarrassment swiftly turned into a flush that spread across her entire body. They'd lived in a house with six other people, regardless of that fact none of the younger kids had been the wiser. John's implications sent a thrill down her spine, her legs tightening.
He chuckled at her. "Tab's right though, we should get moving."
Clarice had jumped them into the woods about four miles north of headquarters, far enough that Turner wouldn't be able to see the building if he caught a glance through the portal but close enough for the quartet to manage on foot. Of course Clarice refused to relinquish her hold on John so she simply clung to him as they walked, discussing how Clarice had met Mario, taking the boy under her wing when he'd been brought to Trask two years ago, but also how Tabitha had ended up at Trask. Clarice was definitely gonna have a come-to-Jesus with a certain someone when they got back.
One interesting conversation was how Tabitha managed to withstand the drugs they'd pumped her with. She'd "given up" early on in the brainwashing process, making it seem like she was turned but that wasn't all that had helped her.
Apparently Tabitha also had a shield of her own. All of the kids did.
Frankie, since their separation, had worked on improving the psionic shield he'd placed in Clarice and John's head and now it was almost like an extension of his consciousness. All six kids had this link and were able to communicate with Frankie or the others if they wanted to. The shield he'd placed would also protect them from any kind of mental manipulation, keeping them safe from mind control like Esme and her sisters were capable of but also from Sonia's mental reading.
What he'd done to the two adults was a bit different seeing as it was his first attempt and done quickly. He'd placed a shield around their minds for general protection but Frankie had also filtered through their memories. He hadn't taken them away, only taking anything pertaining to himself or his foster siblings and placing a secondary shield around it. He had also inlaid triggers and traps that were sensitive to any psychic probes that were harmful or had the intent to be harmful which was why Shirley had been fine and Esme's passing glance hadn't hurt her.
It was only when her and her sisters had tried to mess with Clarice that it had lashed out. John also mentioned that the shield had mentally attacked the two hounds for their assault. The damage to the exam room she had been held in but also John's cell seemed to be the work of the shield, this time creating blasts of energy to physically attack.
Tabitha had near full control of her own shield, seeing as she had more time to work with it and it was more advanced. Because of that she'd been able to reach out to John when Campbell had questioned him earlier. She had had to be careful though while she'd been stuck in Trask, last thing she had needed was for them to find out who she was and who she knew.
Clarice was excited about the prospect of trying to train her own shield, hoping to be able to communicate with the kids. I'm But two out of six was better than none. They were nearly to the building, maybe a little over a mile and half when John paused.
"So should we just walk straight in?"
From her perch in his arms Clarice looked over at Tabitha and Mario. The boy was in his prisoner garb, eyes a bit wide at the prospect of seeing the underground. Tabitha looked bad, pale skin with limp hair still dressed as a Trask hound. That would certainly caused mass panic.
"Maybe we should stop by my room before we reveal ourselves. We need to change, at least Mario and Tab. Definitely Tab."
John agreed, placing her back on her feet, much to her dissatisfaction. The ease of ripping open a portal mystified Clarice after the struggle she'd had the past few weeks. But seeing as she had her memories and her John back, it definitely fueled her.
Joining the others in the converted office Clarice was surprised to find it empty. She thought one or two of the kids would be here but Clarice figured that Dane would make sure to keep them busy.
Clarice held up a blanket, letting Tabitha change into some spare clothes of hers while John was with Mario on the other side of the room, giving the boy a shirt of Andrew's to borrow. The pants were a bit more complicated so they decided he would keep them on. John and Clarice stayed in their attire, intent on meeting up with the others as soon as possible. Apparently Esme and her sisters were here. And Clarice was eager to get her hands on them.
~~~jinXed~~~
"We might not have made it out of there if it wasn't for you three."
One of the sisters, Marcos wasn't sure which, smiled a little too smugly. "You're welcome."
"Don't mention it." The father-to-be spat. He was still pissed about what they had done a few days ago. "Better yet, how did you even find us?"
One of them rolled their eyes. "We told you already, we have sources."
Marcos snorted. "Of course. Now what do you really what? I know you didn't help us out of the goodness of your black hearts."
Lorna reached over, gripping his forearm in an attempt to calm him. It worked, getting him to settle against the desk next to her. At least for now it worked.
The trio shared a look. The middle one, who Marcos was sure was Esme sighed. "You're not wrong. We need your help."
The left one, Sophie or Phoebe, he didn't care. "You saw those things, Trask hounds. We can't leave them out there to wreak havoc."
"So that's what you've been trying to tell us. That's what Campbell's been working on?"
The trio nodded at Lorna. "That's just the start, it's going to get much worse. Our sources say Campbell is working at his political connections. If he gets enough support, he could take this program national."
"How so?" As much as Marcos disliked them, if they were telling the truth, then the underground needed to know what was going on.
The left one spoke again. "In a couple of days he's gonna be heading to Charlotte."
The right one finally. "He'll be attending a summit. Humanity Today to be precise."
Lorna raised an eyebrow. "You serious? That's what they call it?"
Esme shrugged. "Better than Kill the Muties. Doesn't look good to the voters."
The right one. "Every major anti-mutant figure will be there. Business leaders, politicians, even Purifiers. Security will be tight."
"So what's your big plan then?" Marcos was pretty sure he knew where this was going.
"With the underground's help, it'll be our chance to grab Campbell, use him to shut the program down."
Marcos stood up. "Oh, kidnapping now. That'll make us look real good. Listen, we just lost one of our own days before plus the fact that they still got John and Clarice in that place. Right now they're our priority."
Esme took a step toward him, making Marcos' hands heat up. "And if we do this, we can shut it down, save them before it's too late. Hell, they'll be thankful for the rescue."
"Not likely."
Marcos was pretty sure he gasped right along with Lorna, seeing both John and Clarice walking out of one of the darkened hallways leading from Clarice's area toward their group. He was sure she had portaled them back. The two were wearing the prison uniform and Marcos could see how tired the pair looked but he also spied the smears of blood on John's knuckles. They'd fought to get back. His mind went blank, only thinking one thing. "Holy shit."
Esme smiled. "Oh good they made it back. Now that they're here, we can get this job done-"
No one was prepared.
Upon reaching the group Clarice swung at Esme, her fist making a sickening crack against the blonde's face, the triplet falling to the floor.
"Holy shit." Lorna whispered next to him. They both moved to intervene but weren't needed as John moved to block one sister while Clarice stepped up into the other one's face, her green eyes narrowed and angrier than he had ever seen the teleporter.
"Try me." Clarice snarled, daring the sister. For a second Marcos was sure those green eyes of hers flashed white. The challenged blonde flinched, stepping back and pulling the other triplet away from John. The two picked Esme off the floor, the blood from her nose making her scowling lips macabre.
"You're making a mistake." With those words the trio disappeared, the newly reunited group watching them leave.
Once they were sure the three woman had left headquarters Marcos turned unbelieving eyes to John and Clarice, reaching out to hug his co-leader. "What the fuck man."
"Seriously." Lorna was hugging Clarice, even though Marcos knew the teleporter wasn't big on touching. But surprisingly she laughed, giving Lorna a tighter, happier hug then he was expecting.
"What the Hell happened guys? How are you here? Are you still you?" Marcos took his turn to hug Clarice and again she surprised him by giving a proper hug.
They parted and Marcos immediately noticed a difference. The two gravitated to each other, John making minute adjustments whenever Clarice moved, positioning himself behind her slightly to the side, but mere inches apart. They weren't like this a few days ago.
"There's a lot we need to talk about and we will but we need to do one thing first."
Clarice took over for John, her eyes bright. "Where are they?"
~~~jinXed~~~
Oz sat on the ground, back pressed against the tree, watching the others around him. Dane had kept the rest of his siblings occupied for the past few days with tasks around the compound but also outings like this. They were south of the bank, within eye sight but he'd created a wall of near impenetrable dirt around their area, Andrew thickening the underbrush and branches of nearby trees to better hide themselves.
Andrew had the others gathered around himself, working on their language skills apparently. Andrew spoke fluent Spanish, Oz had seen him talking to Marcos on occasion, and had been teaching his siblings for the past several years. Oz felt most of them sounded quite fluent but Andrew insisted that their accents were a bit off along with some pronunciation and he was working on making them sound as native as possible. The only one Andrew deemed native enough was Norah for the fact he had started teaching her when she was two.
Interestingly he wasn't the only one who spoke a different language. Harper could speak French and she also had her own days when she taught the others, Andrew being the best at it as both languages were a part of something called the romance languages. All in all, they were using this as a way to distract Norah.
There was no word on if the adults were coming up with a rescue plan to get John and Clarice out and it was making Oz crazy. In lieu of the adults Oz was coming up with different ways he could try breaking into Trask. He was pretty sure he could do it. He'd been trained well. There was the option of asking for help but he wasn't sure if he should. At least not yet.
He heard a huff of breath next to him, bringing him out of his planning to see golden eyes staring at him before the large cat folded and collapsed next to him, stretching her large body out to nap.
Never in his wildest dreams or imagination would he think he'd be this close to an adult mountain lion. Hesitantly he laid a hand on the cat's side, petting her coat. All he got was deep purring. He had to hand it to Norah, her ability was amazing.
Shouts from the bank had all the kids standing up in alarm, Oz immediately strengthening the wall in case it was an attack. The animals in their midst were tense, Corie puffed up and Tony chattering in alarm. Slinky was curled around Norah's shoulders, poised in a strike position and Sara was grumbling deep in her chest, weaving her way back and forth between the kids, tail flickering in agitation.
Dane, being the oldest of his siblings, moved to the front, Andrew covering his left. The teen glanced at Jessica. "What are you feeling?"
The young girl tilted her head slightly, her eyebrows furrowed. "They're…happy. Excited. But some feel wary, worried."
Dane nodded, turning to Norah. "Can you send Corie to see what's happening?"
The slightly scared girl turned to look at the large black avian who promptly sailed over the wall. Norah closed her eyes, apparently telepathically connecting with Corie to share his vision. It didn't take long to find out what had happened.
Norah's eyes snapped open and she let out an excited scream. "They're back!"
She didn't need to specify for the group to know who she was talking about.
Oz immediately melted the wall away, the trees around them clearing out and several of the kids took off at a full sprint, only Dane, Andrew, and Oz following at a slower pace.
They heard the excited squeals before they saw the happy group but there they were. Clarice and John, still dressed in the same prison outfits Andy and Lauren had been wearing, stood with Harper and Jessica surrounding them, hugging and asking the pair question after question. Norah was up in John's arms, her own tight around the man's neck, playing with his hair and speaking quickly, her blue eyes bright.
Oz held back, letting Dane and Andrew overtake him as they made their way to the reunion. John reached out to the two boys, ruffling their hair and giving both a one-armed hug. Clarice heartily embraced them both, complimenting them on keeping everyone together and safe.
Seeing them interact made Oz's arms itch, wanting to run to the pair and hold on tight. But he knew it would seem weird so he stayed back though he ached to join in.
John noticed him first and Oz's breath hitched as the older male smiled at him, this grin different than the others he'd sent his way in the past week. He crouched to place Norah back on her feet, nudging Clarice as he stood back upright.
Now both of them were staring at him, Clarice giving him a mischievous smile like the ones she always gave from before. The other kids seemed to understand that something was going on because they parted, leaving a clear path to the two adults.
Clarice raised an eyebrow. "Well? You gonna hug us or are you too old for that now Oscar?"
Something was wrong with his lungs. He couldn't breath. He couldn't move, his body somehow frozen. Tears started building up but he refused to clear them as he stared back at the adults. It was too much to hope for. But he couldn't help it. His breathing suddenly came alive and was speeding up, nearly hiccupping as he spoke. "C-Clarice? John?" M-mom? Dad?
The purplette's own jade eyes started to gloss over, lips quivering as she smiled, her voice giving off the slightest waver. "Yeah, baby. It's us."
Oscar didn't remember running. One second he was standing frozen in disbelief the next his arms were wrapped tightly around her waist, Clarice speaking to him in the familiar Cantonese she'd taught him when he was six and John's heavy comforting hand on his back as Oscar sobbed.
So cute. At least I thought so. How was it? Legit should be two chapters left maybe? Three if I stretch it but no more than that. It's the endgame! Let me know how you felt about this, I'm so curious. And yes, if it's not obvious, Oz is actually Oscar, one of Clarice's foster from four years ago. Thus I would like to take this time to congratulate a few people who got Oz's (Oscar's) identity correct: Mangagirl4, NaomiBlue, ShadowTeir, InannaStar, jukmare, babyshan211, and one guest. I'm sure there were others but these were the only ones who let me know their guess. Well, it's that time again where I must leave you. Hope you liked the chapter. Bye everyone! Peace out. -Mez