"I'll stay strong, I'll be fine
Carry on with my life
I still stare at the sky
Pray for rain, all the time…"

--Cold

"Brennan, look at me. Look at me, Brennan!" Shalimar takes his face in her hands and makes him meet her gaze.

Brennan looks at her with unfocused flashing eyes.

"Brennan?"

"I…I'm damned, aren't I? There's nothing else to do…" He mutters to himself. "I don't know why I'm even fighting it…"

Jesse shakes Emma, who is still outside of the room. "Emma, we need you, Brennan needs you…"

"I can't. He's too powerful…It's killing him…" Emma mutters, still shaken by the blast of power she sensed from Brennan. Jesse stays with her, trying to help her regain her senses.

Shalimar and Adam are by Brennan's side.

"Brennan?" Shalimar whispers.

"Hey, Shal. Sorry about that…" Brennan shakes off his daze and recovers his composure. Adam is holding a towel on his bleeding hand.

"Brennan. We need to do something…" Adam starts.

"Okay, Adam. I give up. Just fix me," Brennan says, resigned. He takes his hand away from Adam, holding the towel tightly around his bleeding hand. He shakes off Shalimar's concerned hand and gets to his feet. He walks past his friends into the lab. Adam follows him, several steps behind.

"Brennan…"

"I don't want to talk. I want you to fix me. I don't care what you do, but you have to do something," Brennan states, holding his bleeding hand under a faucet and then wrapping it with gauze.

"Brennan. We need to talk…" Adam starts again.

"I'm done talking. Scan me, Adam. Tell me all about my DNA mutating and how you're going to fix it. Better yet, don't tell me anything. I need some quiet," Brennan says, flatly. His face is blank and Adam cannot tell whether he is angry, upset or just indifferent.

Adam silently motions for Brennan to lie down on the table and he begins running a diagnostic of tests. Brennan lies there in silence. Adam steps beside him to try and take a blood sample.

"Brennan, I need to take a blood sample," Adam says, quietly. Brennan puts his arm out and Adam tries to ignore the self-inflicted scabs and scars on his wrist and arm. Adam gently fills a syringe with a blood sample and steps back. Brennan gets up suddenly and rushes into the bathroom to vomit. He returns, paler. He lies back down on the table.

"You okay?"

"Your guilt. It's making me sick. Sorry," Brennan says, quietly. "I haven't figured out how to shield myself from other people's emotions yet…"

"Brennan…"

"You had no other choice, Adam, I don't just get the one side. I get the guilt and I get your reasoning behind it. I…I've just got other shit on my mind right now without questioning your motives. I know you were doing what you thought was best…"

"Britt is not going to bother you anymore, Brennan…" Adam starts.

Brennan puts a hand to his head, as if in pain. "You don't know the half of it, Adam," He replies, quietly.

"What do you mean?" Adam asks, concerned by the younger man's tone. "Has he tried to contact you?"

"Drop it, Adam," Brennan says, still holding his head. His eyes begin to flash rapidly again and he blinks, losing focus.

"No, Brennan, I need to know if…" Adam starts.

"No, you don't…I mean it, Adam. Just leave it alone," Brennan mutters, hopping off the table and starting to pace. Adam realizes that every time he takes a step, flames lick at his feet.

One of the scans that Adam was running signals its results. He leaves Brennan for a moment and glances at the computer screen.

"…Fuck…" Brennan mutters. Adam turns quickly and sees that Brennan is hovering several inches off the floor and he is engulfed in flames. He doesn't appear to be burning because he is not crying out in pain, but his face is tight with tension.

"Brennan!" Adam calls out.

"Hang on," Brennan says, slowly starting to spin in midair as Emma and Shalimar step into the lab. Brennan, still aflame, slowly falls to his knees and the flames fade back into his skin.

"Well, that was interesting," Brennan mutters, his eyes normal for the first time in days. He lets Emma and Shalimar help him to his feet.

"Brennan, why don't you get some sleep and I'll come in and talk to you when I know something, okay?" Adam asks, quietly.

"I think I should stay in here," Brennan replies, quietly. "I'm a little flammable."

"Come on, Brennan. We'll stay with you. If you start to burn, we'll spray you down," Emma says, taking his arm. He shakes off her hand.

"Okay," He agrees, subdued.

"Why are you so sensitive today? You're pulling away from Emma like…" Shalimar questions, seeing his sudden movement. His eyes flash light blue for an instant.

"I'm having some control issues from my new psionic side," Brennan interrupts, quietly.

"Oh. Come on, then," Shalimar pulls on his shirt and the two girls walk with him out.