Blood Price: Chapter One
Cross-legged on the platform Emma sat with her eyes closed, listening.
She could hear Jesse typing away on the console; Brennan turning the page as he lounged by the water pond. And she could hear Adam as he entered the main room of the Sanctuary; the hiss of the door as it slid shut behind him when he exited the lab. Breathing in and out she listened to her world, the sounds she knew and the ones she didn't. The trickle of the water running over the rocks; the incessant prattling of Proxy Blue as she informed the crowds on a muted level.
There was another noise that she had never heard before; it wasn't one that she heard with her ears but rather with her mind. Furrowing her brow she tried to focus in on it, to find out what it was, where it was coming from. In the back of her mind she knew it, but Emma couldn't place it, couldn't give the noise a name.
"You all are going to love me!"
Opening her eyes Emma looked down at the young woman who had just entered the room behind Adam, her coat open and drifting out behind her as she walked. Emma could feel the excitement that was coming from the feral even without using her gifts, it was obvious in everything about her, from the snap in her eyes to the spring in her step. Something had Shalimar in a tizzy, and Emma suspected it was good news.
"What's up, Shalimar?" Jesse called as he glanced up from the console.
"You look like the cat that swallowed the canary," Brennan grinned. "Pun intended."
Flashing her eyes at him Shalimar's mood was too buoyant to be brought down by his friendly teasing. "I just scored us five tickets to the concert, tonight, at Central Hall."
"But tonight is the Culture Armada Concert. Shal, they've been sold out for months!"
"I know," she grinned a Cheshire grin. "I have a friend who works their crew, he scored me five front row tickets. We are in!"
"Cool!" Jesse cried, his excitement growing rapidly.
"Not me," Emma smiled as she descended the stairs quietly. Sitting on the last few she met Shalimar's disbelieving eyes. "I already have plans tonight."
"Emma!"
Smiling at Brennan, his disbelief as vast as Shalimar's, the young woman only shook her head. She could understand it. Culture Armada was the group to see and yet she was turning down a chance to see them, live. "Thanks, but I'll have to back out this time. I'm sure you'll have fun though."
"You don't know what you're missing," Shalimar told her pointedly. "You'll come though, right Adam?"
Taking a deep breath Adam thought over the invitation for all of three tenths of a second. "No." He smiled at the group, their stares turning from Emma to him. "I've never been one for modern music. Give me a dead composer any day."
Growling in frustration, her plans for a night of fun falling apart, Shalimar put her hands on her hips. "Well what are we supposed to do with the extra tickets?"
"Ya know, I heard that Tony's near town..." Jesse began with a hope filled voice.
Rolling his eyes Brennan sighed, ruing the day he had introduced Jesse to his hacker friend. Having nothing better to do with the tickets Shalimar gave one to each of the guys; at least she wouldn't be going alone. There was nothing worse than going to a concert solo. "Why don't we all meet for dinner before hand? I hear there's a new place near Central Hall, it's supposed to be really good. Very upscale and prissy."
Laughing they all agreed. Dinner together and then they would go their separate ways.
X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X
Standing on the street corner in front of the chosen restaurant, Firefly's, Adam held the door open for the ladies, allowing them to enter before he and the men entered last. As he shed his coat to be hung up in the coatroom Adam saw, for the first time, what his team was wearing. Shalimar, not surprisingly, was in all black, her leather skirt clinging tightly and a silky shirt hung low. Brennan too was in all black, his classic look, and Jesse was wearing a simple pair of pants and a button up shirt.
While each of them looked good in their chosen outfits it was Emma that stole everyone's attention. As she handed her coat to the clerk Adam saw that she had chosen to wear a simple black dress, almost an evening gown. The thin strap that hung around her neck offered a clear view of her creamy shoulders and the dress fell to her ankles in deep black velvet. She was enchanting.
Snapping his eyes away Adam resisted the urge to pull at the collar and clear his throat. As they waited for the maitre' d to confirm their reservation Adam wondered what he was doing. He knew that Emma was very special to him, all of them were, but he and Emma had clicked almost from the beginning. From the moment she had accepted her place on Mutant X she had become his assistant of sorts. Her knowledge of the medical field had come in handy on more than one occasion and he could always count on her to help him with whatever problem they were facing.
She wasn't a violent person, though from recent events he had seen that there was a side of her that would take such drastic measures. While the other three were out, fighting the enemy with their powers, Emma stayed behind most of the time, working on the problem from a different angle. They spent more time together in the labs than anyone else did; sometimes working through the night to solve whatever it was that was holding them up.
More than once, when he'd been called out to the field himself, he'd returned to find her asleep at the desk in the lab having worked through the night. Adam's mind called up the image of Emma, chewing on her pen as she thought over the problem in her mind, jotting down notes every now and then, making a notation here or a marker there, and he had to smile.
'Yes,' he admitted to himself. 'Emma is very special.'
Or was it more than just special?
Called out of this thoughts Adam followed the group to the table and soon they were seated, ready to enjoy their meal. The conversation flowed through the night until it finally came time for Jesse, Shalimar, and Brennan to get going, meet their dates, and get tot he concert. Once again they were standing on the street corner, bundled up in coats against the harsh winter wind.
"The concert lets out at ten, why don't we met for drinks after that? Say at eleven, down at Mason's," Brennan proposed. "Emma, your thing will be done by then, right?"
She nodded. "It closes at nine."
"Do you mind waiting for a little bit?"
"No, I don't mind."
"Good, then we'll meet up then."
The three friends headed off towards Central Hall leaving Adam and Emma standing on the street. Turning to face him Emma wondered, "Did you have plans Adam, or were you just going to go home?"
He shrugged. "I don't know really. It's been quite a while since I had the night off, nothing to do. I was thinking maybe I'd take it and do a little living for a change. Don't worry about me," he assured her with a smile. "I'll find something to do. It's a big city, I'm sure I'll find something interesting."
"Okay," she smiled.
"You'd better get going, I'd hate for you to be late."
Nodding Emma said goodbye and began to walk down the sidewalk. She had barely taken ten steps when she turned around to see Adam still standing on the corner watching her leave. "Would you like to come with me?" she invited.
Meeting her gaze for a moment Adam smiled. "Yes, I'd like that."
Closing the distance between them Adam and Emma continued down the street together, side by side, until they came to the Art Palace. Now he understood why she was so dressed up. Once more they checked in their coats, Adam pocketing the stubs as they entered the main lobby. All around him men and women in formal eveningwear examined the art on the walls, the statues on the floor, the sculptures encased in glass boxes on pedestals.
Offering his arm to Emma, she smiling at him as she accepted it, they wandered around the rooms of the Art palace, looking at the various forms of art and expression. As they came to a side room of the exhibit Adam noticed that Emma skipped right over it, passing the room by to keep looking at other items. "Emma?"
"I'm sorry Adam. It's just that... Well I usually save that display for last."
Nodding his head he accepted her reasoning, wondering why but waiting until they got there to try and figure it out.
Emma was caught up in the magic of the night, the mystical mist of enchantment that seemed to hang in the air all around her. She was glad that Adam was here to share it with her. He was such a big part of her life now, that it made her happy to be able to share a part of her past with him as well. There were so many things that he didn't know about her, secrets she knew she could never share with anyone, that she was glad, almost relieved, to be able to share some of it with him.
Their tour of the exhibit was complete, save for the one room they had skipped over. After taking a moment to sip some of the champagne that the waiters were carrying Adam and Emma moved to the last part of the tour. As they neared it he could feel Emma begin to tremble, her excitement was nearly tangible. They stood in the doorway of the room and Emma closed her eyes, inhaling the scent that was unique to this particular room. The scent of lavender seemed to hang in the air, with it mixed a little of something Adam couldn't quite place.
"Emma?"
Both of them looked toward the man who had cried her name. As the man rushed towards them Adam felt her grasp on his arm tighten instinctively. When he had reached them he took Emma's free hand in his, bringing it to his lips for a moment, squeezing it tightly within his own hands.
"Emma DeLauro, it is you," he smiled at her. "I wasn't sure if you were going to make it before we had to leave town. Tonight is the last night of the exhibit."
"I know," she said softly. "It was the first chance I had to get here." Smiling she introduced the two men. "Pierre, this is my friend Adam. Adam, this is Pierre Mantilla, the owner of the exhibit."
The two men shook hands.
"I'm sure you wish to visit with her, Emma. I'll leave you to the art."
"Thank you Pierre."
Beginning on the one side of the room Adam and Emma slowly, much more slowly than before, looked at each painting that hung on the wall. Taking her time Emma savored the art, the colors, and the emotions. It had been too long since she had gazed upon them. The memories they pulled to the surface were bitter sweet and it wasn't long until tears began to form in the corners of her eyes. Trying to blink them away she succeeded until they came to the final painting.
Adam stared at the painting in wonder. The young girl that had been captured by the paints seemed to be alive with innocence yet the storm clouds that hung over head warned him it would not always be so. The girl herself seemed so familiar, as though he had seen her before. It was then that Adam realized who the young child was.
Emma.
The young girl in the painting, in the lacy white dress, playing in the forest, was Emma, the woman who stood next to him at this very moment. Looking down at her Adam saw the tears resting on her lashes. She was crying. "Emma?" he asked softly, concerned by her tears.
"This was the last one she painted before she died."
Her voice was soft, filled with love and pain, sadness and joy. A bittersweet combination that made Adam wonder at what had happened. Directing him back to the beginning of the room Emma told him about each painting. Where they had lived when it was painted, what her life had been like then, travelling around with her mother and father. When they came to the last painting she was silent for some time.
"We were in New York when she painted this one, an old state park called Letchworth. It was autumn but it was warm enough to go without a jacket. Dad was already gone and Mom was getting closer and closer to giving birth every day. We had gone to the park and spent the entire day there. I remember it was a beautiful day, not a cloud in the sky."
Her voice faltered but Emma kept going.
"That was the last time she was able to pick up a brush. A few weeks later she gave birth to my little sister but everything went wrong. Julie was two weeks old when Mom died. I didn't see this painting again until I was sixteen. I asked my uncle why she had painted the dark clouds and he told me that it was because she had known that hard times were coming. My mother knew that she was going to die, the doctors had warned her not to birth naturally, that it would kill her, but she refused to listen to them."
"I was with her when she died. She held me in her arms and she kept telling me how proud she was of her little girl. Then she told me that I had to take care of Julie, that I would be the only one she had left and that she would need me to tell her about her mother and father, to remind her how much they loved her. We lived with my father's brother until he died. By then I was old enough to be on my own but Julie wasn't. The courts refused to grant me custody so they put her in a foster home."
Adam stared at Emma as she told her tale, the tears shimmering, unshed, in her eyes, resting on her lashes. He put his arm around her, drawing her close, as the pain became more prominent in her voice. Through the emotions in her voice, the feelings that flowed from her eyes, he was transported back to the bed, the sight of a mother and daughter's last moments playing before his eyes.
Emma suddenly turned to him and tilted her head back to meet his eyes. "Thank you Adam," she whispered. "Thank you for coming with me tonight."
Standing up on her tiptoes she placed a gentle kiss on his cheek before turning back to the painting that hung in the wall. In silence they stood, staring at a mother's goodbye to her daughter, before turning to collect their coats; the exhibit was closing. Out on the street, arm in arm the duo made their way to Mason's, a little coffee shop, to wait for the rest of their team. Adam and Emma were still silent as they walked; no words were needed between them that night.
X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X
Lying in her bed, sleep a long ways off, Emma stared at the ceiling of her room. No matter what topic she tried to call forth Emma couldn't get her mind off Adam. Unbidden her thoughts drifted back to the hours they had spent in the little coffee shop, waiting for Shalimar, Brennan and Jesse to join them. They had simply talked. No mention of work, the GSA, New Mutants, or anything even related to those topics.
Emma had seen a whole other side to Adam that night.
She'd always seen the work side of him, the part of the man that dwelt on fixing the problems he had created. But that night she had seen the other side, the man behind the genius. And now, nearly a week later, she couldn't get that night off her mind. 'What is happening to me?' she wondered silently. 'I'm acting like a little girl with a...'
Refusing to finish that thought Emma stood and donned her robe, slipping out the door, down the hall to the water pond. What was she thinking? It was ridiculous! He was so much older than she was, enough years stood between them to make him her father. But it didn't change the small little seed that had been planted in her heart that night almost a week ago.
Somehow... someway... she had fallen in love.
Sitting on the edge of the wooden block overlooking the pond Emma closed her eyes, her mind summoning unbidden memories of him standing in the labs as they worked, his one eyebrow raised as he tried to think of a solution to their problem. The way they both raised when he finally found it and the joy that would suddenly appear in his eyes just before he shared it with her. She remembered the softness in his touch when she had woken up after being 'split' some time ago.
But most of all, above everything else, she remembered the feel of his arm around her as she had told him of her life, the death of her mother and father, the birth and loss of her little sister Julie. Never before had she felt as safe as she had at the moment, his arm around her offering her the silent strength and support she needed to finish telling her tale. Sighing Emma stared at the water below her.
Emma was in love... with Adam.
X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X
"You're dropping your fist again."
Ready to scream in frustration Emma chose to glare at Shalimar instead. Smirking Shalimar readied her stance, waiting for Emma to begin the attack again. Their weekly sessions had helped Emma to improve her fighting skills tremendously but she still had room for quite a bit of improvement. With a sigh she raised her fists and began to attack again.
On the floor, watching the two women go at it, Brennan and Jesse were making bets as to the amount of time until Shalimar knocked Emma down again when Adam walked in. Raising his eyebrow at the two men Adam shook his head, not bothering to hide the smile that played over his face. Standing with them he watched as the girls fought each other. It was only a training match but they could all see that Emma was putting everything she had into the fight.
Back and forth they sparred until once more Emma dropped her fist as Shalimar had warned her that she was doing. Making her point the feral landed a punch on Emma's shoulder, knocking the girl off balance. She couldn't regain her balance in time and fell over the edge of the platform, managing to grab the edge of it before she fell to the hard floor below her.
"Emma!" they all yelled, concerned for her safety.
Closer than the others Adam reached her first. Holding his arms out he told her to let go, catching her as she dropped easily into his arms. There, suspended in his arms, held tightly to his chest, her arm around his neck, their faces were mere centimeters apart from each other. Eyes caught in the others they stared at each other for a moment, neither one knowing what was going on, only that they didn't want it to end. Adam released one of his arms, letting her legs fall, his other arm supporting her back as she slid along him to the floor. Staring up at him Emma was locked in the trance of his deep brown eyes.
"Emma are you all right?" Shalimar called, running down the stairs from the platform.
Blinking, the link broken, both Adam and Emma stepped away from each other, each one reeling from what had just passed between them, the electricity, as shocking as the voltage that shot forth from Brennan's fingertips.
"You okay?" Jesse asked as he and Brennan reached the group. "You almost took quite a dive there, Em."
"I'm... fine..." she hesitated, unsure how to make her voice work again. Clearing her throat she put a little more confidence into her words. "I'm fine, I just lost my balance is all. Guess I gotta work on that."
A beep rang out from the computer, interrupting their concern. Stepping away to the computer, needing a moment to pull his head back together, Adam checked the console. It was a message for Emma. Calling it to her attention Adam watched her cross the room to his side, her eyes everywhere but his. Giving her some privacy to read her message Adam, along with everyone else, was startled by the small gasp that escaped from her throat.
"I gotta go!" she cried before fleeing the room.
They called after her but it was too late, she was gone.
X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X
Cross-legged on the platform Emma sat with her eyes closed, listening.
She could hear Jesse typing away on the console; Brennan turning the page as he lounged by the water pond. And she could hear Adam as he entered the main room of the Sanctuary; the hiss of the door as it slid shut behind him when he exited the lab. Breathing in and out she listened to her world, the sounds she knew and the ones she didn't. The trickle of the water running over the rocks; the incessant prattling of Proxy Blue as she informed the crowds on a muted level.
There was another noise that she had never heard before; it wasn't one that she heard with her ears but rather with her mind. Furrowing her brow she tried to focus in on it, to find out what it was, where it was coming from. In the back of her mind she knew it, but Emma couldn't place it, couldn't give the noise a name.
"You all are going to love me!"
Opening her eyes Emma looked down at the young woman who had just entered the room behind Adam, her coat open and drifting out behind her as she walked. Emma could feel the excitement that was coming from the feral even without using her gifts, it was obvious in everything about her, from the snap in her eyes to the spring in her step. Something had Shalimar in a tizzy, and Emma suspected it was good news.
"What's up, Shalimar?" Jesse called as he glanced up from the console.
"You look like the cat that swallowed the canary," Brennan grinned. "Pun intended."
Flashing her eyes at him Shalimar's mood was too buoyant to be brought down by his friendly teasing. "I just scored us five tickets to the concert, tonight, at Central Hall."
"But tonight is the Culture Armada Concert. Shal, they've been sold out for months!"
"I know," she grinned a Cheshire grin. "I have a friend who works their crew, he scored me five front row tickets. We are in!"
"Cool!" Jesse cried, his excitement growing rapidly.
"Not me," Emma smiled as she descended the stairs quietly. Sitting on the last few she met Shalimar's disbelieving eyes. "I already have plans tonight."
"Emma!"
Smiling at Brennan, his disbelief as vast as Shalimar's, the young woman only shook her head. She could understand it. Culture Armada was the group to see and yet she was turning down a chance to see them, live. "Thanks, but I'll have to back out this time. I'm sure you'll have fun though."
"You don't know what you're missing," Shalimar told her pointedly. "You'll come though, right Adam?"
Taking a deep breath Adam thought over the invitation for all of three tenths of a second. "No." He smiled at the group, their stares turning from Emma to him. "I've never been one for modern music. Give me a dead composer any day."
Growling in frustration, her plans for a night of fun falling apart, Shalimar put her hands on her hips. "Well what are we supposed to do with the extra tickets?"
"Ya know, I heard that Tony's near town..." Jesse began with a hope filled voice.
Rolling his eyes Brennan sighed, ruing the day he had introduced Jesse to his hacker friend. Having nothing better to do with the tickets Shalimar gave one to each of the guys; at least she wouldn't be going alone. There was nothing worse than going to a concert solo. "Why don't we all meet for dinner before hand? I hear there's a new place near Central Hall, it's supposed to be really good. Very upscale and prissy."
Laughing they all agreed. Dinner together and then they would go their separate ways.
X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X
Standing on the street corner in front of the chosen restaurant, Firefly's, Adam held the door open for the ladies, allowing them to enter before he and the men entered last. As he shed his coat to be hung up in the coatroom Adam saw, for the first time, what his team was wearing. Shalimar, not surprisingly, was in all black, her leather skirt clinging tightly and a silky shirt hung low. Brennan too was in all black, his classic look, and Jesse was wearing a simple pair of pants and a button up shirt.
While each of them looked good in their chosen outfits it was Emma that stole everyone's attention. As she handed her coat to the clerk Adam saw that she had chosen to wear a simple black dress, almost an evening gown. The thin strap that hung around her neck offered a clear view of her creamy shoulders and the dress fell to her ankles in deep black velvet. She was enchanting.
Snapping his eyes away Adam resisted the urge to pull at the collar and clear his throat. As they waited for the maitre' d to confirm their reservation Adam wondered what he was doing. He knew that Emma was very special to him, all of them were, but he and Emma had clicked almost from the beginning. From the moment she had accepted her place on Mutant X she had become his assistant of sorts. Her knowledge of the medical field had come in handy on more than one occasion and he could always count on her to help him with whatever problem they were facing.
She wasn't a violent person, though from recent events he had seen that there was a side of her that would take such drastic measures. While the other three were out, fighting the enemy with their powers, Emma stayed behind most of the time, working on the problem from a different angle. They spent more time together in the labs than anyone else did; sometimes working through the night to solve whatever it was that was holding them up.
More than once, when he'd been called out to the field himself, he'd returned to find her asleep at the desk in the lab having worked through the night. Adam's mind called up the image of Emma, chewing on her pen as she thought over the problem in her mind, jotting down notes every now and then, making a notation here or a marker there, and he had to smile.
'Yes,' he admitted to himself. 'Emma is very special.'
Or was it more than just special?
Called out of this thoughts Adam followed the group to the table and soon they were seated, ready to enjoy their meal. The conversation flowed through the night until it finally came time for Jesse, Shalimar, and Brennan to get going, meet their dates, and get tot he concert. Once again they were standing on the street corner, bundled up in coats against the harsh winter wind.
"The concert lets out at ten, why don't we met for drinks after that? Say at eleven, down at Mason's," Brennan proposed. "Emma, your thing will be done by then, right?"
She nodded. "It closes at nine."
"Do you mind waiting for a little bit?"
"No, I don't mind."
"Good, then we'll meet up then."
The three friends headed off towards Central Hall leaving Adam and Emma standing on the street. Turning to face him Emma wondered, "Did you have plans Adam, or were you just going to go home?"
He shrugged. "I don't know really. It's been quite a while since I had the night off, nothing to do. I was thinking maybe I'd take it and do a little living for a change. Don't worry about me," he assured her with a smile. "I'll find something to do. It's a big city, I'm sure I'll find something interesting."
"Okay," she smiled.
"You'd better get going, I'd hate for you to be late."
Nodding Emma said goodbye and began to walk down the sidewalk. She had barely taken ten steps when she turned around to see Adam still standing on the corner watching her leave. "Would you like to come with me?" she invited.
Meeting her gaze for a moment Adam smiled. "Yes, I'd like that."
Closing the distance between them Adam and Emma continued down the street together, side by side, until they came to the Art Palace. Now he understood why she was so dressed up. Once more they checked in their coats, Adam pocketing the stubs as they entered the main lobby. All around him men and women in formal eveningwear examined the art on the walls, the statues on the floor, the sculptures encased in glass boxes on pedestals.
Offering his arm to Emma, she smiling at him as she accepted it, they wandered around the rooms of the Art palace, looking at the various forms of art and expression. As they came to a side room of the exhibit Adam noticed that Emma skipped right over it, passing the room by to keep looking at other items. "Emma?"
"I'm sorry Adam. It's just that... Well I usually save that display for last."
Nodding his head he accepted her reasoning, wondering why but waiting until they got there to try and figure it out.
Emma was caught up in the magic of the night, the mystical mist of enchantment that seemed to hang in the air all around her. She was glad that Adam was here to share it with her. He was such a big part of her life now, that it made her happy to be able to share a part of her past with him as well. There were so many things that he didn't know about her, secrets she knew she could never share with anyone, that she was glad, almost relieved, to be able to share some of it with him.
Their tour of the exhibit was complete, save for the one room they had skipped over. After taking a moment to sip some of the champagne that the waiters were carrying Adam and Emma moved to the last part of the tour. As they neared it he could feel Emma begin to tremble, her excitement was nearly tangible. They stood in the doorway of the room and Emma closed her eyes, inhaling the scent that was unique to this particular room. The scent of lavender seemed to hang in the air, with it mixed a little of something Adam couldn't quite place.
"Emma?"
Both of them looked toward the man who had cried her name. As the man rushed towards them Adam felt her grasp on his arm tighten instinctively. When he had reached them he took Emma's free hand in his, bringing it to his lips for a moment, squeezing it tightly within his own hands.
"Emma DeLauro, it is you," he smiled at her. "I wasn't sure if you were going to make it before we had to leave town. Tonight is the last night of the exhibit."
"I know," she said softly. "It was the first chance I had to get here." Smiling she introduced the two men. "Pierre, this is my friend Adam. Adam, this is Pierre Mantilla, the owner of the exhibit."
The two men shook hands.
"I'm sure you wish to visit with her, Emma. I'll leave you to the art."
"Thank you Pierre."
Beginning on the one side of the room Adam and Emma slowly, much more slowly than before, looked at each painting that hung on the wall. Taking her time Emma savored the art, the colors, and the emotions. It had been too long since she had gazed upon them. The memories they pulled to the surface were bitter sweet and it wasn't long until tears began to form in the corners of her eyes. Trying to blink them away she succeeded until they came to the final painting.
Adam stared at the painting in wonder. The young girl that had been captured by the paints seemed to be alive with innocence yet the storm clouds that hung over head warned him it would not always be so. The girl herself seemed so familiar, as though he had seen her before. It was then that Adam realized who the young child was.
Emma.
The young girl in the painting, in the lacy white dress, playing in the forest, was Emma, the woman who stood next to him at this very moment. Looking down at her Adam saw the tears resting on her lashes. She was crying. "Emma?" he asked softly, concerned by her tears.
"This was the last one she painted before she died."
Her voice was soft, filled with love and pain, sadness and joy. A bittersweet combination that made Adam wonder at what had happened. Directing him back to the beginning of the room Emma told him about each painting. Where they had lived when it was painted, what her life had been like then, travelling around with her mother and father. When they came to the last painting she was silent for some time.
"We were in New York when she painted this one, an old state park called Letchworth. It was autumn but it was warm enough to go without a jacket. Dad was already gone and Mom was getting closer and closer to giving birth every day. We had gone to the park and spent the entire day there. I remember it was a beautiful day, not a cloud in the sky."
Her voice faltered but Emma kept going.
"That was the last time she was able to pick up a brush. A few weeks later she gave birth to my little sister but everything went wrong. Julie was two weeks old when Mom died. I didn't see this painting again until I was sixteen. I asked my uncle why she had painted the dark clouds and he told me that it was because she had known that hard times were coming. My mother knew that she was going to die, the doctors had warned her not to birth naturally, that it would kill her, but she refused to listen to them."
"I was with her when she died. She held me in her arms and she kept telling me how proud she was of her little girl. Then she told me that I had to take care of Julie, that I would be the only one she had left and that she would need me to tell her about her mother and father, to remind her how much they loved her. We lived with my father's brother until he died. By then I was old enough to be on my own but Julie wasn't. The courts refused to grant me custody so they put her in a foster home."
Adam stared at Emma as she told her tale, the tears shimmering, unshed, in her eyes, resting on her lashes. He put his arm around her, drawing her close, as the pain became more prominent in her voice. Through the emotions in her voice, the feelings that flowed from her eyes, he was transported back to the bed, the sight of a mother and daughter's last moments playing before his eyes.
Emma suddenly turned to him and tilted her head back to meet his eyes. "Thank you Adam," she whispered. "Thank you for coming with me tonight."
Standing up on her tiptoes she placed a gentle kiss on his cheek before turning back to the painting that hung in the wall. In silence they stood, staring at a mother's goodbye to her daughter, before turning to collect their coats; the exhibit was closing. Out on the street, arm in arm the duo made their way to Mason's, a little coffee shop, to wait for the rest of their team. Adam and Emma were still silent as they walked; no words were needed between them that night.
X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X*X
Lying in her bed, sleep a long ways off, Emma stared at the ceiling of her room. No matter what topic she tried to call forth Emma couldn't get her mind off Adam. Unbidden her thoughts drifted back to the hours they had spent in the little coffee shop, waiting for Shalimar, Brennan and Jesse to join them. They had simply talked. No mention of work, the GSA, New Mutants, or anything even related to those topics.
Emma had seen a whole other side to Adam that night.
She'd always seen the work side of him, the part of the man that dwelt on fixing the problems he had created. But that night she had seen the other side, the man behind the genius. And now, nearly a week later, she couldn't get that night off her mind. 'What is happening to me?' she wondered silently. 'I'm acting like a little girl with a...'
Refusing to finish that thought Emma stood and donned her robe, slipping out the door, down the hall to the water pond. What was she thinking? It was ridiculous! He was so much older than she was, enough years stood between them to make him her father. But it didn't change the small little seed that had been planted in her heart that night almost a week ago.
Somehow... someway... she had fallen in love.
Sitting on the edge of the wooden block overlooking the pond Emma closed her eyes, her mind summoning unbidden memories of him standing in the labs as they worked, his one eyebrow raised as he tried to think of a solution to their problem. The way they both raised when he finally found it and the joy that would suddenly appear in his eyes just before he shared it with her. She remembered the softness in his touch when she had woken up after being 'split' some time ago.
But most of all, above everything else, she remembered the feel of his arm around her as she had told him of her life, the death of her mother and father, the birth and loss of her little sister Julie. Never before had she felt as safe as she had at the moment, his arm around her offering her the silent strength and support she needed to finish telling her tale. Sighing Emma stared at the water below her.
Emma was in love... with Adam.
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"You're dropping your fist again."
Ready to scream in frustration Emma chose to glare at Shalimar instead. Smirking Shalimar readied her stance, waiting for Emma to begin the attack again. Their weekly sessions had helped Emma to improve her fighting skills tremendously but she still had room for quite a bit of improvement. With a sigh she raised her fists and began to attack again.
On the floor, watching the two women go at it, Brennan and Jesse were making bets as to the amount of time until Shalimar knocked Emma down again when Adam walked in. Raising his eyebrow at the two men Adam shook his head, not bothering to hide the smile that played over his face. Standing with them he watched as the girls fought each other. It was only a training match but they could all see that Emma was putting everything she had into the fight.
Back and forth they sparred until once more Emma dropped her fist as Shalimar had warned her that she was doing. Making her point the feral landed a punch on Emma's shoulder, knocking the girl off balance. She couldn't regain her balance in time and fell over the edge of the platform, managing to grab the edge of it before she fell to the hard floor below her.
"Emma!" they all yelled, concerned for her safety.
Closer than the others Adam reached her first. Holding his arms out he told her to let go, catching her as she dropped easily into his arms. There, suspended in his arms, held tightly to his chest, her arm around his neck, their faces were mere centimeters apart from each other. Eyes caught in the others they stared at each other for a moment, neither one knowing what was going on, only that they didn't want it to end. Adam released one of his arms, letting her legs fall, his other arm supporting her back as she slid along him to the floor. Staring up at him Emma was locked in the trance of his deep brown eyes.
"Emma are you all right?" Shalimar called, running down the stairs from the platform.
Blinking, the link broken, both Adam and Emma stepped away from each other, each one reeling from what had just passed between them, the electricity, as shocking as the voltage that shot forth from Brennan's fingertips.
"You okay?" Jesse asked as he and Brennan reached the group. "You almost took quite a dive there, Em."
"I'm... fine..." she hesitated, unsure how to make her voice work again. Clearing her throat she put a little more confidence into her words. "I'm fine, I just lost my balance is all. Guess I gotta work on that."
A beep rang out from the computer, interrupting their concern. Stepping away to the computer, needing a moment to pull his head back together, Adam checked the console. It was a message for Emma. Calling it to her attention Adam watched her cross the room to his side, her eyes everywhere but his. Giving her some privacy to read her message Adam, along with everyone else, was startled by the small gasp that escaped from her throat.
"I gotta go!" she cried before fleeing the room.
They called after her but it was too late, she was gone.
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