div class="chapter preface group" style="border-width: 1px 0px 0px; border-image: initial; outline: #111111; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.5em 3em; padding: 0.643em 0.643em 0px; background: #333333; color: #eeeeee; box-shadow: none; float: none; border-color: initial #222222 #222222 #222222; border-style: solid initial initial initial;" role="complementary"
h3 class="title" style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: 400; font-style: inherit; font-size: 1.286em; font-family: Georgia, serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0.5375em 0px; padding: 0px; line-height: 1; background: transparent; text-align: center;"a style="color: #ffffff; border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-bottom-color: initial; border-image: initial; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" href=" /works/29785383/chapters/73763736"Chapter 4/a/h3
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div class="userstuff module" style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; width: 1088.64px; float: none; overflow-wrap: break-word; color: #eeeeee; background-color: #333333;" role="article"
h3 id="work" class="landmark heading" style="border-width: 0px 0px 0.25em; border-color: #555555; border-image: initial; outline: 0px; font-weight: 500; font-style: inherit; font-size: 0px; font-family: Georgia, serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0.125em; line-height: 0; opacity: 0; height: 0px; clear: both; color: #ffffff; text-shadow: none; background: none; border-style: initial initial double initial;"Chapter Text/h3
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"Emma stared out the bedroom window, careful to keep hidden behind the drapes. She could sense what was going on in the other room and she ached with jealousy over it. Shalimar was out there, kissing Richard.../p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"But thankfully that was all they were doing./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"Turning on her comms, she updated Adam on the situation./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;""I'm going to send the guys out in the other Helix," Adam promised her. "Jesse'll pick up the Helix you took with Shalimar while Brennan swings around to retrieve the rest of you. Do you think Dr. Saunders will be willing to come back to base with you? It sounds like he's going to need a fresh start."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"Given the way he was currently lip-locked with Shalimar? "He'll come along," Emma assured him dryly. "I think Shalimar has blinded him with her feral charms."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"Adam snickered in amusement, which brought a reluctant smile to Emma's face. "I'm sorry," he said, "it can't be comfortable being an empath around two feral mutants experiencing such an intense... limerence for one another."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"Hopefully limerence wasn't just a fancy word for lust. Though it probably was. "I'll live. Just make sure Brennan floors it or I might wind up pissing off Shal by dumping ice water down her back."/p
hr style="margin: 0.875em auto 1.2525em; border-style: solid; border-color: initial; border-image: initial; width: 359.25px;" /
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"Emma does not end up dumping water on the 'happy' couple. But Richard can't seem to stop touching Shalimar's shoulders and it's starting to really piss Emma off by the time Brennan arrives and they join him back on the ground outside the apartment complex./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"The look on Brennan's face when he sees Emma is sympathetic, which just makes Emma that much more irritated even though she knows how much he cares. Or perhaps because she knows how much he cares. /p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"Shalimar notices Emma's irritation, though, because guilt spikes through her as they settle into the Helix's seats. It's an awkward flight back home all around and Emma lets Brennan drag her off once they land. He takes her to the gym and starts teaching her to throw a better punch. She's not bad, but her form could use improvement. And her current frustration puts her in the perfect mindset to hit the punching bag over and over and over again. Until Brennan stops steadying the bag and chucks a water bottle at Emma's head./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"She catches it on instinct instead of getting smacked in the forehead. Brennan just laughs when she glowers at him for it./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;""Feeling better?" he asked./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;""No. I spent most of the day as either a third wheel for you and Jesse or for Shalimar and Mr. Just-Wants-To-Be-Normal." Emma took a long drink of her water. "I know it's not fair of me to judge him so harshly, but... I had a friend, in high school. She was a lesbian and her parents sent her to a religious conversion therapy place. Afterwards her parents sent her to a completely different school. I never did find out what happened to her. And everything he says about that serum of his... that it's a 'cure' like we're sick, like we need to be fixed. Converted."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"Brennan wrapped his arms around her, rocking Emma back and forth./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;""What if he convinces Shalimar to leave us?" Emma asked, tears starting to run down her face as she buried her face against Brennan's shoulder. "What if he convinces her to give up being a New Mutant? If he takes away everything that makes her shine so brightly with joy? She's so bright, Brennan. She's just so bright and happy and he wants to change everything she is so that she'll be more like him."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;""We just have to trust in Shalimar. That she really does love who she is too much to give it all up for some guy with dimples and a tight ass." Brennan stroked Emma's hair and continued to sway. "That she loves all of us too much to leave us behind so easily."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"They stood there for several minutes longer, until Emma's tears ran their course. And then, tentatively, Emma pulled away. She was still sniffling a little as she said, "thanks Brennan."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;""You're welcome. Though," and there was a teasing lilt to his smile as it slowly appeared on his face, "you should probably go shower now. Worked up quite a sweat there."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;""Yeah, yeah," she said, smiling despite herself and sticking her tongue out at him as childishly as possible. "You know... you and Jesse..."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;""We're still figuring ourselves out, Emma. But I might be asking him out for dinner later this week. If I don't psych myself out too much. Does he..."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;""He'll say yes. I've no doubt." It made her feel a little better to feel some of the stress ease out of him at her reassurance. Even if Emma wasn't going to get her happily ever after, at least Brennan and Jesse had a shot at happiness together./p
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p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"Emma opted to have dinner alone in her room that night and, on an impulsive whim, flipped on her TV to the local station that ran Genomex's Proxy Blue program for an hour before the nightly news./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"Proxy drones on about freaks with fanciful powers and Emma wonders how many of the stories are true. How many New Mutants will they be able to save and how many will the GSA snap up without them ever even knowing there was anything wrong? And then, as Emma finished the last of her dinner and the program was coming to a close, Proxy Blue said something a little more interesting than her usual bigoted tripe./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;""Word is a woman experiencing a psychotic break was able to jump fences twice her height downtown last night. No one was quite sure what happened, but reliable reports say she'd turned savage and was growling like some kind of animal. It must have been some case of rabies and I wouldn't have been surprised to hear she was frothing at the mouth too. But whatever it was ended in some rather painful looking seizures and death," proclaimed the smug CGI face of Proxy Blue. "Keep safe out there. It's a weird world and getting freakier by the minute. Proxy Blue, out."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"As the image on the screen faded to black, Emma found herself sitting up ramrod straight. She couldn't know for sure that last report was anything real, but something told her that it was real. That it was Donna./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5;"Some quiet certainty, pulsing in Emma's head telling her that Donna was dead./p
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