Emma and Shalimar were sitting in a chair watching. Emma had popcorn, like she had joked. With Shalandra's challenge to the guys both women exchanged a look of surprise.
"Are you sure you want to do that? The odds are a bit against you." Jesse said, surprised that she'd suggested it.
"I'm sure and we'll see." Shalandra said teasing.
With that the game was on. After the first half Jesse and Brennen had the lead but not by much, 2-1. They had decided to take a break. Shalandra went to get a drink.
"I don't know but I'd say she's holding back on you two somehow." Shalimar joked, slightly amused. At that Shalandra returned a grin on her face.
"Ready for more?" She asked.
"Sure, are you? We're winning." Brennen said.
Shalandra laughed. "Only because I'm being nice and seeing what the two of you have for moves." She said.
The second half of the game proved more interesting. Every time Jesse or Brennen thought they were going to get the ball it would land in Shalandra's hands. She sank one ball into another in the hoop. So far the game was a tie, 4-4. Shalandra had the ball and was grinning wickedly as Jesse moved in for a steal. Shalandra ducked at the half court and looking at the ball threw it through the hoop. The score was now Shalandra 8, the boys 4.
Emma and Shalimar were both laughing and joking with the boys from their chairs. Shalandra had the lead she wanted and decided to play fair for what was left of the game. An hour later the three exhausted mutants finished their game. Just as promised Shalandra had kicked their butts. She had 12 points to there 5. She laughed trying to catch her breath.
"I told you two that I was going to kick your butts!" She said and sat down in a chair.
"That was very amusing." Shalimar said. Emma shook her head agreeing.
"How'd you do that?" Brennen asked.
Shalandra laughed more. "I may have hid my abilities from others for a long time, but I do know how to use some of them quite well." She said.
"Telekinesis?" Emma asked.
"That's one of them. Sometimes if I'm not tired I'm really good at it." Shalandra said. Everyone headed for the common room. It appeared that it was going to be a quiet night.
"So what else can you do?" Brennen asked. Everyone looked at Shalandra interested in her answer.
"Telekinesis, mental suggestion, give people headaches, astral projection, heal a little, track people, sense emotions, telepathy, foresight, I'm very agile when my arthritis isn't acting up, I can jump real well, I can shoot fire from my hands, but it scares me, I can also control weather sometimes." She said thinking of weather or not she missed anything.
"Wow, that's a lot." Shalimar said.
"Oh and when I get pissed off there's usually a large storm nearby. I also have a tendency to mildly shock people and myself sometimes." Shalandra added.
"Can you control all of it?" Emma asked.
"I wish! Most of the mental stuff yes, with exception of astral projection." Shalandra said.
"We're going to explore a new club later. Want to join us?" Jesse asked.
"Sure think we can get Adam to join us?" Shalandra said.
"Maybe, I'll go ask." Emma offered.
Emma walked into the lab.
"Hey Adam, we're going to check out a new club with Shalandra tonight, want to come?" Emma asked.
"You sure that's a good idea?" Adam replied.
"I think she's spent most of her life alone and needs to have some fun." Emma said.
"Sure, I could use a break. Which club are you guys going to?" Adam asked.
"A new one called Dragon's Claw." Emma said.
"Sound fun." Adam said again getting into whatever was on the computer.
Emma went back to the others. "He'll come." She said excited. It wasn't often they could drag the leader of Mutant X out clubbing.
"Cool!" Shalimar and Shalandra said at the same time.
After dinner that night everyone went to get changed. Shalandra looked at Shalimar. "I don't have anything to wear." She said.
"I'm sure Emma or I will have something that you'll like." Shalimar said.
Shalandra followed Shalimar to her room and they looked through Shalimar's wardrobe.
"Hmm, how about this?" Shalimar asked pulling out a short halter style black dress.
Shalandra blushed a deep red. "Whoa, that's way too revealing for me!!" she said eyeing the outfit.
Shal continued searching through her wardrobe. A few minutes later she pulled out a light blue dress that was a little less revealing, but had a bit of a V. "ok how about this one?" She asked.
"What size are you?" Shalandra asked.
"10 to a 12, depending on who makes it." Shalimar answered.
"I wonder what size Emma is." Shalandra said thinking.
Shalimar laughed. "Last I checked she's a size 8."
"Ok, so that definitely won't work!" Shalandra said.
"So?" Shal asked still holding up the dress.
"I'll try it on and we'll see." Shalandra said taking the dress to the bathroom. She put it on. It showed a bit more cleavage than she'd have preferred, but it looked good. She walked out of the bathroom.
"That looks good on you." Shal said grinning. Once again she dug through her closet to find a pair of boots or shoes to match it. Shalandra sat down blushing a little. She had never warn anything like this before.
"What size shoes do you wear?" Shalimar asked.
"9 - 9 1/2 and very low heals." She answered.
"That'll work, I wear a 9." Shalimar said pulling out a pair of shoes that matched the dress. "Try those on." She said.
Shalandra sat down and put the shoes on. They were a perfect fit. She then took off the ponytail holder that was forever in her hair and shook her head. Long wavy dark blond hair shook out.
Shalimar pulled out a black dress similar to the first one that she had shown Shalandra. She then pulled out a pair of matching boots.
A little while later Emma knocked on Shal's door. She was wearing a sea green dress and a pair of shoes with a sweater. She stopped and looked at Shalandra. "Wow, you look great." She complimented.
Shalandra blushed. "Thanks." She said.
"You guys ready?" Emma asked.
"Yup." Shalandra said.
The guys were down in the common room already dressed and waiting for the girls. Jesse looked up and saw the girls, giving a whistle. Brennen and Adam also looked up.
"You guys look great!" Brennen said.
Shalandra blushed a deep red. "Thanks." She said.
They headed for the Audi. "Have you eaten yet?" Adam asked Shalandra.
"Yup, I worked up quite an appetite kicking the guys butts at a game of ball." She said bragging a bit.
"Good. If you feel lightheaded or weird let me know." Adam said smiling.
"Why, what's up?" Shalimar asked concerned for their new friend.
"She's hypoglycemic, which means her blood sugar drops sometimes suddenly." Adam told her.
"Oh." Shalimar said.
"She plays a mean ball game." Brennen said, while Jesse drove.
"You can say that again." Jesse muttered.
"You're just surprised because she took both of you on at once and won." Shalimar said laughing.
Now Adam was a bit surprised. "She did?" He asked.
"I'm telekinetic and took advantage of it once. They never caught back up." Shalandra said grinning.
"I've got an idea. How about the next time us three gals take on you three guys." Shalimar suggested.
The guys grinned. "Sure." Jesse said.
Dragon's Claw:
The nightclub looked like it was named. A dragon's claw. It was a good thing the team arrived early because within minutes the place was packed. Shalandra looked around and paled a bit.
"You okay?" Adam asked.
"Um...Yeah, I've never been around this many people in a place like this." She said hoping her claustrophobia wouldn't ruin the fun.
Jesse smiled at her. "Want to dance?" He asked.
"I only know how to do the slow ones." She answered.
"Come on, I'll show you a few moves." Jesse offered. The two headed for the dance floor. Shalimar and Brennen were already dancing. Emma took the opportunity and dragged Adam out also.
Shalandra couldn't concentrate on trying to follow Jesse's lead. It was really crowded and she was feeling slightly shy.
"You ok?" Jesse asked.
"I didn't think it would be so crowded here." Shalandra said.
"Focus on me and you'll be fine." Jesse said.
A slow song came on sending several couples off the dance floor including Shalimar and Brennen.
Jesse smiled at Shalandra and they moved closer swaying to the music. God, that smile is amazing! Shalandra thought. Emma and Adam were dancing nearby.
At the bar Shalimar and Brennen ordered drinks watching their friends.
"Looks like those two are getting along good." Shalimar said looking at Shalandra and Jesse.
"I know. Once she warms up she makes friends fast." Brennen said about Shalandra.
Shortly after a faster song came on. Brennen and Shalimar headed back out to the dance floor while the other four headed to the bar and ordered drinks.
"Having a good time?" Emma asked Shalandra.
"Yeah great!" Shalandra said.
"Good." Adam said.
After a while another slow dance came on. Shalandra had two drinks and was feeling a bit lightheaded. Emma and Adam headed back out to the dance floor.
"Want to dance some more?" Jesse asked Shalandra.
"In a few minutes. I'll be right back." She said headed for the ladies room.
In the ladies room there was a young, skinny redhead, in a black dress suite washing her hands.
"Hello." She said smiling.
"Hi." Shalandra said headed into a stall. A few minutes later she came out and washed her hands. The other lady was still there.
"You from around here?" The lady asked.
"Nope, just got here today." Shalandra said. The lady was making her nervous for some reason.
"Where are you from? I'm from Dallas." The lady asked.
"New England. How long have you been here?" Shalandra asked.
"I've been here since I was a teenager." The lady said.
"Nice talking to you." Shalandra said and started heading out of the ladies room.
"Wait, what's your name?" The lady asked.
"Shalandra." Shalandra answered and left. She walked back to the bar feeling like she was being watched. She looked around, but saw nothing out of the ordinary. The lady watched from a distance as Shalandra walked back over to Jesse and smiled.
"You ok?" Jesse asked.
"I'm fine. A lady in the restroom gave me the creeps." Shalandra said.
"Want to dance some more?" He asked.
"Sure." She replied headed for the dance floor.
Several hours later the tired team headed back to the Audi. Shalandra stopped and looked around the parking lot, feeling uneasy.
"You ok?" Adam asked, noticing that Shalandra looked like she wanted to run.
"I haven't been able to shake the feeling that I'm being watched since I ran into a redhead in the restroom." She said.
Shalimar's eyes turned yellow as everyone looked around, but didn't see the woman watching from behind the trashcan.
"I don't see anyone, do you guys." Adam asked.
"No." They replied getting into the Audi. This time Adam drove. Shalimar and Brennen also sat in front. The others sat in back with a dizzy Shalandra in the middle. On the way back to Sanctuary Shalandra fell asleep laying her head on Jesse's shoulder.
They all arrived back to Sanctuary but Shalandra was still out cold. "For some reason I don't think she handles liquor very well." Emma said smiling.
"She only had two drinks." Jesse said.
Brennen laughed. "I think she had a good time though." He said.
Adam checked her blood sugar with a kit he had gotten earlier that day. It was normal.
"I'll bring her to her room." Jesse offered.
"Ok." Adam replied thinking.
Shalimar and Brennen headed for their rooms while Adam walked around and made sure everything was secure for the night. "A penny for your thoughts." Emma said following him.
"She was ready to run in the parking lot." Adam said.
"I know. She was really scared about something." Emma said.
"She was programmed to run if GSA are near when she was a baby." Adam said thinking.
"Think the redhead she ran into was one of them?" Emma asked.
"If she wasn't then there was one at the club." Adam said.
"Mind if Shal and I take her shopping tomorrow?" Emma asked.
"Go ahead, but be careful. Don't leave her alone at all. With her health problems she's an easy target right now." Adam said.
"No problem." Emma said as they both headed for each of their bedrooms.
Jesse had just gotten to Shalandra's room when she started struggling, still asleep.
*In her dream Shalandra was being carried by guys in black suits. The redhead was walking behind them sneering at her. "I didn't think you'd go down so easily." The woman said. "Fuck you." Shalandra said and started struggling for everything she was worth. *
Jesse had gotten Shalandra as far as the foot of the bed when she started struggling for everything she was worth.
"Hey, take it easy." Jesse said.
Shalandra woke with a start the second Jesse laid her down. She looked around her eyes wild.
"Your ok." Jesse said softly. That had to have been one heck of a dream.
"The redhead and guys in black suits had me!" Shalandra said.
"You were dreaming." Jesse said.
"When did we get back here?" She asked.
"A little while ago. You passed out in the Audi." He said smiling.
"I don't usually dream that clearly." Shalandra said closing her eyes.
"The alcohol could have done it." Jesse offered.
"I don't get drunk." Shalandra said.
"You did a little this time." Jesse said headed out of the room.
"Stay.... I don't think I'll sleep if I'm alone after that dream." Shalandra said shaking a little.
Jesse turned around and sat in a chair.
"Are you going to sleep there?" Shalandra said.
Jesse eyed her a second cautiously as she got under the covers and put her shirt back on. Shalandra laughed.
"I'm not interested in that, just a little company. I usually don't jump someone's bones the first night I know them." She said.
Jesse blushed then went to the bathroom. When he came back out he was in boxers and his T-shirt.
Not usually, but damn does he look tempting dressed like that! Shalandra thought still shaking a bit from her dream.
Shalandra turned off the lights as Jesse climbed into bed beside her. She was shaking like a leaf!
"Are you ok?" Jesse asked.
"I'll be fine in a little bit. That dream felt real." She said snuggling closer and laying her head on his shoulder.
Jesse put an arm protectively around her back looking at her in the dark. Shalandra began to relax. She had the arm of a handsome guy around her. For now the redhead couldn't get her. Maybe it was just an alcohol-induced dream, though she had her doubts. She looked up at him her head still on his shoulder. A few minutes later the two fell asleep.