"Float Like A Butterfly"
Chapter 7: Rebound Girl
by: Mochaije

Disclaimer: I do not own Dark Angel or its characters. Other than that, the story and characters are mine.
Summary: Max goes to the blood clinic, unknowingly accompanied by the S1W...
Rating: PG 13

Logan's POV

Someone's saying "knock, knock" from just outside the door. I get up from the computer and walk over to the door, hoping it's Asha. It's not, but close enough. It's Max, wearing a different coat and looking a little worried. She brushes past me and into the guest bedroom, closing the door to it behind her.

"Where's my leather jacket?" She calls. I hear her sigh, frustrated, and rummage through the closet. Max emerges in a different pair of pants, holding the other pair, folded up, in her hand. "I gotta do some laundry. Do you mind? I got some nasty grease on these pants." I'm about to ask her why she left earlier and where she went, but she blew me off and raced out the door and down the stairs. I go into the guest bedroom to clean up in case she hadn't. It was a bit of a mess and would only take a minute or two to clean up. A wallet tumbled out of her duster when I picked it up off the bed. It was incredibly fat and a bit heavy. Curiosity gets the better of me and I open it. There's a driver's lincense belonging to Anya Scott. Wasn't that the fake identity that I set Asha up with?

"They got the mustard ooouuuuutt," comes Max's singing voice from the lobby of my penthouse. I finish folding and hanging everything, then go back into the living room. Max is leaning on the wall, singing the lyrics to some song about drycleaning in a very off-key, oft-tone way--probably to get my attention. She stops, a bit embarrassed, when she sees me, then meets me halfway to her. "We gotta talk." She takes my hand and leads me over to sitting area, inviting me to sit down on the couch beside her.

"What's up?" I ask, knowing this is going to be about why she left. She's quiet for a moment, picking at her newly-manicured fingernails. She looks at me to say something several times, then looks away. Sound finally comes out of her mouth.

"I... I was talking to you and I realized I was just going to be your rebound girl, because I kissed you and you kissed back but Asha's only been gone like, what? A few hours? So I left and I ran into this blood clinic, so I thought, 'maybe I should make sure I'm pregnant'. But of course, I've got no I.D., so I go out looking for someone who looks like me, and guess who I bump into? Syl, of all people... So, we walk around, y'know, catching up on things--I left out the part about telepathy though--and then we've both gotta pee, so we run in this low-end Kwik-E-Mart and the two pregnancy test brands I used were recalled, turns out. So I go for a piss and... And there was blood," her voice falters towards the end. She almost looks like she's going to cry. "So I borrowed Syl's duster because, um, there was blood on my pants. Then I left there and she went the other way because she was a bit wierded out by me looking at pregnancy tests and needing her duster... So I finally find this brunette who looks like me, and she fights back, which kind of sucks because I de-revved myself before going into the clinic, and I get back to the clinic with her wallet and a pad, and it turns out the woman is quite rich and the only I.D. she's got belongs to your girlfriend, or Asha, or whatever she is to you now... Or at least it looks like it does," she says, regaining her emotional strength a bit, looking at the wallet in my hand. "But, it's 'that time of the month' and I was only bleeding a little bit and I can't believe I'm telling you all of this." She looked away and shook a little bit. "Holy fuck, what if I miscarry this thing? If there is a thing there?" I put my arm around her to console her and almost say something sympathetic--even though I haven't got a flying fucking clue what to say to her--and she pulls away.

"Look, I'm going to go back to that clinic, hopefully with an I.D. this time, and you go and figure out this Asha thing... Then come talk to me," she says, getting up. "Syl will probably be around to get her duster, so.." She waves her arms a bit, then lets them fall to her sides and leaves. I get up to follow her and she turns.

"Max... How about I get you a fake I.D. and you take a nap or something," I offer. She shakes her head and tells me to go to Asha's again, then walks out the door. How does she know me and Asha aren't getting along...?

Asha's POV

So, I'm sitting at my dining room table. What time is it? Two in the afternoon? I slouch a bit, then position a pencil between my two fingers and do the 'rubber pencil' thing with it. I smile slightly at the wiggling piece of wood and lead, then drop it accidently and let out a sigh. I think about leaving Logan next time he gets me to do Eyes Only stuff. I'm pretty sure I love him but every time I plan something with him, Eyes Only rears it red, white and blue head. I don't care if he still runs it and all, just as long as he keeps some of our dates. I wonder if Max ever had that problem. I wonder why I never found out about her til she 'died', and why she never found out about me either. Logan's a sneaky one.

Speaking of Logan, the phone rings. I figure it's either him or someone wanting me to switch telephone companies. I pick it up--it's a cordless that sits in the middle of the table most of the time--and give a polite hello. It's Logan. He says it would be better if we stopped seeing each other. I guess he sees Eyes Only shit as dates. I agree, trying to sound a bit let-down. We're both silent for a moment, then he says goodbye, I respond with the same word, and we both hang up. I put the phone back in it's charger cradle and tap my foot uselessly. Boredom and singleness are probably going to be a combination that ends up with me at Crash, losing at billiards and drinking. I smile at the thought and the phone rings again.

"Hello?" It's one of my S1W buddies this time. We talk in code.

"Jenny's been throwing up all night, Nicole," he tells me. "Could you come by and watch the other kids while I take her to the hospital?" I agree and tell him I'll be there in a bit., then hang up again. Suburban blood clinic has been extorting money from it's patients, it seems. I stop by my equipment room to grab some firepower and head out the door.

Max's POV "What the hell do you mean, I have to give you five large before you'll process that?" I question the young doctor. I bet he's not even an intern, just looking for money. I wish I'd brought some heat with me. I don't like using guns, but this guy's being an asshole. He shrugs and demands the money again. I tell him no and he picks up the blood sample he'd just taken, holds it high above his head, which is about six and a half feet from the linoleum floor and asks for the money again. I sigh, belt him in the gut and take the vial of my blood. I hear Asha and her crew bust in the waiting area and let out a frusrated sigh, shoving the sample in my purse and walking out to the waiting area. I hop on the receptionist desk before Asha does.

"Alright guys, we're the S1W. Process our blood," I yell in a monotone. She puts her hand on her hip and grunts. The other people in her group relax their weapons a bit. Everyone in the office has their eyes on me. "Sorry, did I do it wrong?" I ask sarcastically. Her and Logan have been messing everything up lately. I cross my arms on my chest, still standing on the desk.

"It's like this," Asha said. She pulled a gun from her coat, pointed it at the ceiling, and fired. I nod and so do her cohorts. I jump down and take her gun, wave it around a bit.

"Get these people their blood results right now," I tell them. An Eyes Only broadcast kicks in on the small monitors that were broadcasting wholesome, children's stuff. The entire office looks away from me and Asha, their gaze fixed on Logan's eyes and his red, white and blue motif.

"Do not attempt to adjust your set. This is a streaming freedom video bulletin. The cable hack will last exactly sixty seconds. It cannot be traced, it cannot be stopped, and it is the only free voice left in this city." I hear snickers from the cubicles and yell a "Shut up!" in their general direction. Asha looks smug.

"For almost five years, a small blood clinic has been extorting money from expecting mothers--" I wince--"diabetics, and other people needing blood tests for other reasons. They demand anywhere between twenty and five thousand dollars to process blood tests and may become violent if patients do not agree with them. Please avoid the 31st Street Blood Clinic, and when Eyes Only obtains enough information, he will act. This has been a streaming freedom bulletin." Four security gards burst through the door in full gear, guns out. I swing my own firearm around, pointing it at them. My uselessness without my abilities is going to really weigh me down. Asha's pulled another gun out of somewhere, and it's aimed at the same place mine is. We glance at each other and then, ever so slowly, move forward.

"Alright, guys, this isn't going to get ugly if you all put the guns away," one of them says slowly. I relax and shove the gun in my coat, and Asha follows suit. After a moment, the guards and the other S1W people put their weapons away too. The next part is going to be really bloody hard without my telepathy. The ten of us rush the guards and the people in the office start shrieking, running for cover. Asha's having problems with her guard--He's practically wiping the floor with her--But I got lucky, taking a large security guard. The S1W members are really struggling, probably due to their dependence on guns. Speaking of those, one of them whips one out and shoots the fourth guard point-blank in the head. Everyone stops at the sound, me and Asha remain in our fighting stances. She relaxes and I knock out the last two guards by smacking their heads together, and everyone looks over.

"Uh, yeah, idiot?" I call over to the shaking S1W, still holding his gun out. "Not needed." I throw a glance at Asha and pass her gun back, informing her that I have places to be and leave, blood vial still in my purse.

Logan's POV

I take off my exoskeleton, put my pants back on, and stand. I'm standing. I'm actually standing. Standing doesn't really excite me any more, but it is an improvement from not being able to feel anything. A little bit of surgery, nanocytes, and using my legs all the time seemed to do the trick. I feel wierd as hell not having the exoskeleton on and walking, but I manage my way into the living room. Max bursts in then, almost knocking me over.

"Exoskeleton on the fritz, buddy?" She questions, looking me up and down. "You look like a three-year old on a bike." I agree with a chuckle and assure her that the exoskeleton is working fine. She's got a bruise on her shin and her lip is split. She gives me a wierd look and goes into the kitchen, and I follow.

"Get into any fights lately?" I ask casually. She opens the fridge, grabbing a coke.

"Yeah, the S1W interrupted my blood test session... You got straws?" Max touches her lip gingerly. I grab her one and she smiles at me slightly. "You and Asha sorted out? Or was she too busy dodging bullets at the local blood clinic?" She slurps on her soda while talking to me.

"I dunno," I tell her. "Did you get the results?"

"No. The doctor was halfway through 'extorting' me, then Asha came in, then your broadcast started, then we rushed some security guards, then one of her S1W buddies shot one of the guards, then I left," she said, chewing on the straw a bit. "Fuck, I hope there's nothing wrong with me. You know any lab techs that could read this for me?" Max pulls a vial of blood from her bag and hands it to me.

"I'm sure you're fine... I'll get Sam to look at it," I say sympathetically. She smiles.

"You're a sweetheart, Logan. I gotta go get my shit from Ben's," she says suddenly, sticking what's left of her soda back in the fridge. My legs give way as the door closes. Shit.

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CHAPTER EIGHT PREVIEW: AND I'M GETTIN' OLD

I don't even bother calling, I just head over. He doesn't look quite so shaky any more. I decide not to take my chances with the roof, but my arthritic knuckles ache when I try to pick the lock. Helpless, I surrender to knocking. Logan tells me that my hair is less grey. I thank him for noticing.

"I got a hold of Lydecker. He said he could get in touch with a lab tech from Manticore and get you the cure." He babbles on and on for a minute or two about how I'm going to be okay and everything. I tune him out. He seems a bit pissed off.

"Max?" My name snaps me out my daze.

"Yeah?" I ask him, a little shaken. "So where's this lab tech? What does he want as payment?"

"Your body..."

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AUTHOR NOTE

I decided I didn't want my fic going the route of every other "Max has Logan's kid" fic, so that's why all of this is happening. I haven't seen any fic showing Asha as even remotely good yet either, so that explains her part... Ben, Ima, and Zack will be thrown back into the mix next time, this is just setting up the last half of the story.

Err, yeah... I didn't say Asha has long hair did I? :) I really need to slow down, apparently. I've decided to leave Eric as Ben (GRRR I am a moron!) and leave Tinga getting handcuffed in Chapter 2, just because I am lazy and I'm rushing. Didn't I just say this on the review page? Uhh, anyway... Ah yes, I'm in Canada by the way, but we use waaayy too much British slang here, in case you were wondering.