Part two
AN: If this story sounds familiar to you it's probably because there were
some traces of "In the Happpy Now" lingering in my head. If you must,
you could consider it somewhat of a continuation with a slightly different
premise. But as it is, it's meant as a stand alone. Thanks for the
encouragement.
If it hadn't been for the blasted virus, Max would have liked to go up close
and personal with Logan and enlighten him as to the errors of his ways. Here
she was, unwilling leader of a pack of motley transgenics whom the
assembled police and NSA forces in front of the gate, give or take a few
familiars, could hardly wait to blow to pieces on sight. And Logan, Logan of
all people, remembered that it was freaking Halloween and asked her to go
trick or treating no less. She wouldn't have expected this, not even from
Alec or Joshua.
Her disappointment must have shown on her sagging features and yet Logan
still sported that half grin she almost had a mind to kiss off; he was still
waiting for a verbal reaction to complement the array of confusion,
annoyance and rage that had followed one another on her face.
Max sighed, trying to control herself. "Logan, if you think that I have even
one second for that mindless attempt of yours to... to... I don't even know
what!" Her shoulders heaved with exasperation. "Can't you see all those gun
slinging machos out there waiting for our slightest mistake? Are you nuts?!
Which reminds me. We need to get you, Original Cindy and Sketchy out of
here."
"Max, I never thought I'd say this, but you need to lighten up a bit and let us
help you. All those responsibilities are getting to be too much."
Max was almost touched by his caring, but she was too enraged to give in to
the feeling. "And the way to get rid of all that is to celebrate Halloween,
right? Like there aren't enough transhumans around here, like I'm not a
monster myself! Or maybe that's what you meant?" she challenged, a
sickening tendril of doubt creeping into her heart.
Maybe he had finally realized that in spite of the alluring packaging, she was
in fact just as much a monster as Mole and the others. Maybe he had finally
seen her as the queen of the nest. It was almost relieving to think that
everybody knew by now. She was what she was and that was it. And he…
he needed to get out of Terminal City.
Logan's features darkened. "No, Max, all I mean is that you need help. I
thought…"
"Help? Even professional help, maybe?" Max interrupted, a sneer on her
face.
Logan recoiled at seeing her so strung up. Sure, he thought it would be
fitting, but he had never expected her to blow off like that. It had started so
well… Almost like old times. If only she'd let him finish….
"Max, by trick or treating I meant going out to get some ammo and supplies
I managed to scrounge up. I thought with Halloween we could have a better
chance of remaining undetected once we're out of Terminal City."
Max looked at him once again like he had sprouted an extra eye on his
forehead.
"Er… Supplies? Oh…" Silence enveloped the two while her mind was
working feverishly. Maybe she was the one going crazy under pressure.
Still…
"I'll try to send Alec, although I really don't know if he can get through."
"It won't work, Max. I went through a lot of trouble to set things up and we
need to do it through this informant. He won't give up the intel to anyone
but me. Plus, it would be a good way for you to relax a bit, kick some ass
here and there, just not too much."
Still looking at him suspiciously, Max wondered what Logan was up to.
"Okay, I'll send someone with you. Any preferences?"
"You, Max." Logan had stepped forward and was now meeting her gaze.
It wasn't as if this came totally unexpected. But for some reason, he wasn't
getting it. She had responsibilities here. There was so much to do, so much
to prepare for. White or the military could launch an attack at any time. The
situation was explosive. And he wanted her to sneak out with him and go on
a wild goose chase. Well, not exactly. They were supposed to get supplies.
Still… What was going on?
"Logan, you either tell me what is going on, now, or this conversation is
over." Her tone was unmistakably that of a leader and Logan could not
disregard that.
"We need to go meet an informant and we get the supplies he provides for
us. That's it. I need you to be there to make decisions about the weapons and
ask questions you need answers to."
"And Alec can't do that? Or you can't do that over the cell phone?"
He had her. That one moment he knew he had almost won. "I need you to be
there, Max. There are decisions no one else can take but you. Trust me."
She had him. Indeed, there were decisions only she could take. He would
never accept to leave Terminal City on his own. And while she needed him
next to her, so much so that it hurt, she also needed to get him out before the
shit hit the fan. And this was the perfect opportunity. They would go on a
supply run together. But only she would come back. For one moment she did
think of his reaction to her intentions, but she figured she'd cross that bridge
when she got there. It was the perfect occasion.
"I do, Logan. I trust you. We'll go get the stuff and we'll be back before
White can even blink." Max tried hard to make her voice sound cheerful, but
somehow she failed. Logan however, didn't seem to notice.
"Good. I'll go scrounge up some costumes."
"Hey, anything you can find, as long as it's not from the serpent family."
Max' pitiful attempt at a joke got her a small grin from Logan. "Oh, and
while you're at it, we need some for Original Cindy and Sketchy, too. They
both need to go home." The rest of her thoughts remained unspoken
between them, a specter they were both aware of but chose not to deal with
at that moment.
"Get some sleep, Max." Logan almost stepped forward, only to turn on his
heel at the last moment and head to the door.
"You, too, Logan." His back was already half turned on her, but when he
heaved the door up to be able to close it without causing anymore damage,
their eyes met for a long second. Stepping out, Logan slowly pushed the
broken door almost closed, giving up on the last inch, for fear it would fall
apart.
Behind him, the faint light crept out through the crack and illuminated a
small portion of the corridor. Logan closed his eyes. That must have been
the best acting performance in his life.
TBC…
AN: If this story sounds familiar to you it's probably because there were
some traces of "In the Happpy Now" lingering in my head. If you must,
you could consider it somewhat of a continuation with a slightly different
premise. But as it is, it's meant as a stand alone. Thanks for the
encouragement.
If it hadn't been for the blasted virus, Max would have liked to go up close
and personal with Logan and enlighten him as to the errors of his ways. Here
she was, unwilling leader of a pack of motley transgenics whom the
assembled police and NSA forces in front of the gate, give or take a few
familiars, could hardly wait to blow to pieces on sight. And Logan, Logan of
all people, remembered that it was freaking Halloween and asked her to go
trick or treating no less. She wouldn't have expected this, not even from
Alec or Joshua.
Her disappointment must have shown on her sagging features and yet Logan
still sported that half grin she almost had a mind to kiss off; he was still
waiting for a verbal reaction to complement the array of confusion,
annoyance and rage that had followed one another on her face.
Max sighed, trying to control herself. "Logan, if you think that I have even
one second for that mindless attempt of yours to... to... I don't even know
what!" Her shoulders heaved with exasperation. "Can't you see all those gun
slinging machos out there waiting for our slightest mistake? Are you nuts?!
Which reminds me. We need to get you, Original Cindy and Sketchy out of
here."
"Max, I never thought I'd say this, but you need to lighten up a bit and let us
help you. All those responsibilities are getting to be too much."
Max was almost touched by his caring, but she was too enraged to give in to
the feeling. "And the way to get rid of all that is to celebrate Halloween,
right? Like there aren't enough transhumans around here, like I'm not a
monster myself! Or maybe that's what you meant?" she challenged, a
sickening tendril of doubt creeping into her heart.
Maybe he had finally realized that in spite of the alluring packaging, she was
in fact just as much a monster as Mole and the others. Maybe he had finally
seen her as the queen of the nest. It was almost relieving to think that
everybody knew by now. She was what she was and that was it. And he…
he needed to get out of Terminal City.
Logan's features darkened. "No, Max, all I mean is that you need help. I
thought…"
"Help? Even professional help, maybe?" Max interrupted, a sneer on her
face.
Logan recoiled at seeing her so strung up. Sure, he thought it would be
fitting, but he had never expected her to blow off like that. It had started so
well… Almost like old times. If only she'd let him finish….
"Max, by trick or treating I meant going out to get some ammo and supplies
I managed to scrounge up. I thought with Halloween we could have a better
chance of remaining undetected once we're out of Terminal City."
Max looked at him once again like he had sprouted an extra eye on his
forehead.
"Er… Supplies? Oh…" Silence enveloped the two while her mind was
working feverishly. Maybe she was the one going crazy under pressure.
Still…
"I'll try to send Alec, although I really don't know if he can get through."
"It won't work, Max. I went through a lot of trouble to set things up and we
need to do it through this informant. He won't give up the intel to anyone
but me. Plus, it would be a good way for you to relax a bit, kick some ass
here and there, just not too much."
Still looking at him suspiciously, Max wondered what Logan was up to.
"Okay, I'll send someone with you. Any preferences?"
"You, Max." Logan had stepped forward and was now meeting her gaze.
It wasn't as if this came totally unexpected. But for some reason, he wasn't
getting it. She had responsibilities here. There was so much to do, so much
to prepare for. White or the military could launch an attack at any time. The
situation was explosive. And he wanted her to sneak out with him and go on
a wild goose chase. Well, not exactly. They were supposed to get supplies.
Still… What was going on?
"Logan, you either tell me what is going on, now, or this conversation is
over." Her tone was unmistakably that of a leader and Logan could not
disregard that.
"We need to go meet an informant and we get the supplies he provides for
us. That's it. I need you to be there to make decisions about the weapons and
ask questions you need answers to."
"And Alec can't do that? Or you can't do that over the cell phone?"
He had her. That one moment he knew he had almost won. "I need you to be
there, Max. There are decisions no one else can take but you. Trust me."
She had him. Indeed, there were decisions only she could take. He would
never accept to leave Terminal City on his own. And while she needed him
next to her, so much so that it hurt, she also needed to get him out before the
shit hit the fan. And this was the perfect opportunity. They would go on a
supply run together. But only she would come back. For one moment she did
think of his reaction to her intentions, but she figured she'd cross that bridge
when she got there. It was the perfect occasion.
"I do, Logan. I trust you. We'll go get the stuff and we'll be back before
White can even blink." Max tried hard to make her voice sound cheerful, but
somehow she failed. Logan however, didn't seem to notice.
"Good. I'll go scrounge up some costumes."
"Hey, anything you can find, as long as it's not from the serpent family."
Max' pitiful attempt at a joke got her a small grin from Logan. "Oh, and
while you're at it, we need some for Original Cindy and Sketchy, too. They
both need to go home." The rest of her thoughts remained unspoken
between them, a specter they were both aware of but chose not to deal with
at that moment.
"Get some sleep, Max." Logan almost stepped forward, only to turn on his
heel at the last moment and head to the door.
"You, too, Logan." His back was already half turned on her, but when he
heaved the door up to be able to close it without causing anymore damage,
their eyes met for a long second. Stepping out, Logan slowly pushed the
broken door almost closed, giving up on the last inch, for fear it would fall
apart.
Behind him, the faint light crept out through the crack and illuminated a
small portion of the corridor. Logan closed his eyes. That must have been
the best acting performance in his life.
TBC…