(A/N For future reference: Riley is Phoenix.)
Chapter 29
"Will you at least go shopping with us?" Jean asked once they were at home. A fresh pot coffee with four mugs and a note left by Gabriel decorated the bright lit kitchen in the late November afternoon. Leyla and Magenta were at the house as well. Phoenix was in a icy blue mood, cold and unmoving. She had been feeling nostalgic since they had returned from Japan. Always keeping her thoughts to herself, she was a great actor.
"Shopping? For a dress?" she asked her best friend.
"Well, yeah. The dance is tomorrow night," Leyla pointed out.
"And besides, don't you want to surprise Warren?" Magenta asked. Sighing she saw that there was no way out of the situation and with only a few short weeks until her birthday, Phoenix agreed.
At the mall, the lines at the fitting rooms were stretched out. Watching her three friends try on dress after dress, Phoenix laughed because at one point, all of them had tried on the same violet dress. Coming out one by one from the room, all of them stared at each other.
"I can't believe you guys!" Magenta exclaimed, "I'm getting this dress because none of you can pull it off like me."
"Oh come on, Maj," Leyla said with a comforting sound in her voice, "Zack is going to glow like the moon once he sees you in that."
"Shut up!"
"Oh not you too!" Jean said, coming out of her room. Her fiery red hair contrasted greatly to the color of the dress.
"I already said I was buying this one," Magenta complained. Phoenix remained silent once she stepped out. Hearing the commotion outside her dressing room caused her to come out of it anyways.
"I think Magenta looks better than all of us in this one," she said. Retreating back into the room, she still had one more dress to try.
"Are you two done trying to steal my style?" the animal shape shifter asked.
"Ugh, I guess so," Leyla said, returning back into her room. Jean followed shortly after. A few minutes later, Magenta, Leyla, and Jean walked out wearing the outfits they had came in.
"Hey, Phoenix? Are you done?" Jean asked gently while knocking on the door. Opening the door, she let her telepathic friend step aside. Dressed in an ivory tunic which hit her slightly above the knee with thick bold crimson ribbons tied in a bow behind her back, Phoenix stepped out further. Combing her hair in the three full length mirror, her lips curled into a sly smile.
"What do you think?"
"You look great!" Leyla answered.
"Good, because I am buying it," Phoenix said, "Did you find a dress Jean? It has to at least surprise Gabe, you know."
"Having a relationship with your god brother is harder than it looks. Keeping secrets from him is even harder with him and I having side chatter through thinking our thoughts aloud at school." Laughing as she nodded, Phoenix excused herself to change out of the flattering dress.
While the girls spent the remainder of the day at the mall, the boys had been summoned by Gabriel at the Stronghold residence.
"How long do we have Gabriel?" Will asked.
"To save the city or her?"
"What do you mean by 'her'?" Warren asked voice uneven. Sighing, Gabriel knew that keeping the inevitable from happening was impossible, he began to foresee the future of the battle. The recurring nightmares began a few weeks ago. He kept those thoughts hidden from his love, Jean, so that she would not worry and Phoenix, who probably knew her fate as well.
"You all know that I'm a telepath, right? So seeing the future is something I often dream about. I can only see the future of those I hold close ties to. Rile-Phoenix, is my god sister. Our families first met during the last gathering in London a few years ago. We have known each other for most of our lives that it was considered that I'd be family in her eyes. We are god-siblings, but for simplicity's sake, we often give the cousin excuse. Marlboro, her power crazed uncle, has the same powers she has; that of an Element Controller. Although he is not psychic, that's the side of her he wants. He wants her to join him in his quest for world domination. It is his jealousy for her psychic abilities that feeds his anger. You see, there is something that she has been avoiding since she discovered her powers."
"And that would be...?" Zack asked.
"Self-destruction-burning so bright with extra energy will kill her for sure. She can knock out everything once that happens. All living things are dead. We'd all burn until all that is left are our ashes and she will fall along side with us. Marlboro has that possibility as well, but we have to keep that from happening. Phoenix can handle Marlboro, she has been fighting him since she was five. There is no doubt in my mind that she can defeat him. It is the other villains I am worried about."
"Others?" Ethan questioned.
"Who else is joining him?" Will pressed.
"Aside from Marlboro there will be two psycho ex-girlfriends hell bent on revenge, Lash and a rather large fat fellow whose speed is faster than Mach Three, some cheerleader, a trigger happy clown, Barron, and a young talented Japanese comic author-Brushogun. All villains in their own right, but all are subordinate to Marlboro. Phoenix can't win against them all, but it would not be a fair fight. Seven against one is not a good. Therefore, we must keep them busy while Phoenix squares off against Marlboro."
"By we, you mean Jean, Magenta, Leyla and us, right?" Warren asked. Gabriel nodded.
"It is the only way to keep her focused. To be rid of Marlboro and to live through that experience, would ease her mind. Lately, at home, she keeps to herself. She destroyed the Silver Box. We didn't have power throughout Thanksgiving holiday. She is dreading her birthday even more. Christmas Eve-the day of the planned attack. It could be sooner, but she and I talk more through thoughts. Hearing her thoughts and seeing what she sees in forms of dreams is what gives me all this information and I have all ready come to my conclusions about them. She is trying to enjoy her life the best that she can, and lately she is not sleeping well. Always waking up, not being able to sleep for days at a time, that is what has got Jean worried, so for the day, she took her shopping for Homecoming dresses with Leyla and Magenta. There is still time to celebrate because tomorrow is December first." Gabriel said with a small smile on his face.
After the mall, Leyla invited all three of her friends to an all-girls sleep over. Phoenix had Jean phone Gabriel telling him that they were spending the night elsewhere. Stopping by their home to pick up a few things while keeping their dresses in the trunk, all four girls walked in.
"I thought you said you were spending the night at Leyla's house?" Gabriel said, quickly getting a kiss on the cheek from Jean.
"They are," Leyla answered.
"We just came to pack a few things," Phoenix said rushing up the stairs after Jean had left.
"How are you two?" Gabriel asked while Magenta and Leyla sat down at the kitchen counter.
"We're good. Looking forward to Homecoming tomorrow night," Magenta answered.
"And you? How do you like Sky High?" Leyla asked.
"Well, I suppose it's going all right. I'm having trouble in Mad Science, but I can get by. I aced my other mid-terms." Gabriel answered, "It's this time zone that is throwing my sleep off though. London time was what I was used to all my life, now I'm just glad my body's done adjusting. You two want something to drink? Coffee? Orange tea?"
"Umm...orange tea sounds good." Magenta said.
"I'll try it too." Leyla said.
"Two orange teas coming up."
When Jean and Phoenix came back downstairs, their friends had finished their tea.
"Ready to go?" Leyla asked.
"Yeah," Jean answered.
"Magenta, do we need to stop at your place to get anything?" Phoenix asked, as they began shuffling out the door.
"Nope. All my stuff I left at Leyla's."
"All right, see you tomorrow Gabe. G'night."
The sleepover was fun. All four girls experimented with make-up an various hairdos. They had a petite fashion show so that the others would approve of their outfits. In the morning, waking up stiff from sleeping on the pull out couch bed, Phoenix yawned. She looked around to see if there was anyone else still sleeping, but apparently, there were none.
"Figures," she grumbled, the aroma of pancakes wafted underneath the closed door . She the ridiculous chatter of her friends that filled the kitchen. Something dealing with the catch phrase, "That's what she said," and then, "No I didn't!" Opening the door after doing basic stretching exercises, Phoenix opened the door.
"Hey there, Sleeping Beauty!" Leyla said over the sizzling of bacon that Jean was preparing.
"What time is it?" Phoenix asked.
"You have been asleep for the past fifteen hours," Magenta explained, "It's four-thirty in the afternoon."
"Are you serious?!" Phoenix exclaimed.
"Yeah, we woke up long before you did," Jean said, shoving a plate of three pancakes, two sunny-side up eggs, and four slices of bacon on to the counter, "Eat. I just brewed coffee."
"Err...Thank you?" Nodding, Phoenix began to eat.
By the time the girls were finished, they prepped themselves for the night. Keeping in close contact with their significant others (plus Ethan), proved to be rewarding because they were all visually stunned at the modern goddesses that walked out of Leyla's home one right after the other. Jean went firs dressed in her golden ensemble, Magenta and her amethyst (plum) cocktail dress, and Leyla wore a pale silver halter dress with sheen emerald silk ribbons tied in the back.
"You like it?" Leyla asked Will.
"You look stunning," he answered.
"Where's Phoenix?" Gabriel asked, voicing his concern.
"Huh?" Jean asked him, "Oh for the love of God!" Going back inside the house, Jean heard the TV on. It was on CNN and Phoenix sat there staring at the box. Jean stopped as she too heard the news.
"I am calling the villains around the world to join me in my plot for world domination! Residents in the tri-state area should be afraid. Get out of MY city now!!" Turning off the TV, Phoenix stood up. It had been a long time since she last saw her uncle face to face, and how he had produced his own terrorist video calling for the aid of other villains around the globe.
"Let's go, Jean." Phoenix said, standing. Her face was hard and unmoving like a statute. She was rigid ice until the sun hit her in the face. Closing her eyes, and reopening them with more of a gray tint, snow clouds blocked the sun-a sign of death and rebirth.
Inside the safe institution of Sky High, the Homecoming dance was in full swing. The DJ played a mixture of latin, raggaeton, and just basically any music to dance to. There were a lot of techno and house music as well.
"I need some air," Phoenix said as she leaned into Warren in mid-turn. Leaving the gym, Phoenix slumped down by a wall of lockers. She closed her eyes and her mind was filled with possible villainous members of the Brotherhood-their thoughts were more corrupted, yet they came across as arrogant fools.
"Rile-I mean, Phoenix," Warren corrected himself, "Please tell me you're all right." Not getting an answer, but a stare instead, the pyro sat down next to her.
"Do you remember this hallway?" she asked with a warm smile on her face, leaning her head against his shoulder.
"We met here," he answered.
"Mmhm. That is my most treasured memory of transferring to this school." A few moments of silence passed by, but the music from the gym was a distant glimmer of normalcy for the pair of unlikely superheroes.
"Can I ask you something?"
"Anything, Warren."
"Promise me you won't self-destruct when the time comes."
"I can't guarantee that, but I will not. I can assure you that much. I want to survive my eighteenth birthday, live through New Year's, go on spring break, perhaps attend prom, and then graduate along side you, Jean, and Gabriel."
"I am more afraid of losing you now more than ever. You're perhaps the one girl that can kick my ass in a fight and let still be my main weakness. I don't know how or why you did that to me, but it works. We're good together despite the whole dealing with Patricia-green with envy ordeal. I will always be there for you, you know that. Just..."
"Don't worry, I won't be buried six feet under. I will fight a good fight. And in the end, I will be right here." She poked the top part of his head, "Hearing thoughts is an added bonus to being a telepath, my dear."
"I love you."
"Me too. Come on," Phoenix said, standing up, "We should get back to the celebration."
