Disclaimer: Mutant X and all its characters belong to someone who isn't me.
Eight days later.
It had taken more that a week, but Adam was finally starting to make something resembling progress. He had been sitting at his desk in his lab for hours, poring over the readings he had taken of Shalimar, as an adult and as an infant, scrutinizing every piece of information on pathogens he could find, and examining the blood sample he had taken - with great difficulty and many tears and screams from Shalimar - the previous week.
Shalimar, who had been playing contentedly in her playpen for the past few hours, was bored. Deprived of her favorite playmate, she had tried various ways of regaining his attention and showing her displeasure, even resorting to screaming at the top of her lungs and throwing her teddy bear at him. Adam had come running with a clean diaper and a fresh bottle of warm milk, fed her, changed her and spent a few minutes playing with her before returning his attention to his work.
Enough was enough. Shalimar decided that it was time to take matters into her own tiny hands.
The makers of the playpen had not factored the abilities of an infant feral into their design. An ordinary baby would have had little alternative but to stay where he or she was, relying on an adult to lift them out. Not so Shalimar Fox. As agile as a monkey, she climbed over the railing, landing with a soft thud on the floor of the lab.
Deeply engrossed in his work, Adam didn't hear anything and, quick as lightning, baby Shalimar crawled across the room and out the door in search of adventure.
* * *
The kitchen was her first stop. She spotted the refrigerator and made a beeline for it. This was where they kept their food. She gurgled, clapping her hands, delighted by her discovery. Opening it was another matter. Shalimar came to a halt, sitting down in front of the refrigerator while she planned her strategy. The adult members of MutantX had not had much time to 'baby proof' Sanctuary and, while all electrical outlets had been fitted with protective coverings and all of the sharp or dangerous objects moved out of reach of little fingers, nobody had gotten around to putting a lock on the refrigerator yet. Dragging herself into a standing position, she could just about reach the handle if she stretched her arm. She pulled with all her strength, falling and landing on her bottom when the door suddenly opened, revealing the treasure within.
Shalimar had thought that she was alone in the kitchen but she was mistaken. Jesse, who had come in for a snack just minutes earlier, was sitting at the table, camcorder trained on her, trying his best to suppress the laughter he felt bubbling within him as he filmed baby Shalimar pull out item after item, discarding, in turn, fruit, cheese, juice, Emma's yogurts, Brennan's sodas and even Jesse's chocolate doughnuts, finally lighting on the item of her choice - a raw steak.
Both fascinated and a little repulsed, Jesse watched Shalimar tear into the plastic wrappings and pull out the steak, chewing on it for a few moments before tiring of it and tossing it aside, leaving it lying on the ground amid the other items she had already dropped or spilled, before crawling away, leaving the refrigerator door wide open and a mess of spilled foods in her wake.
Surveying the mess she had left behind, Jesse whistled softly.
"Christ, Shal!" He said aloud, getting a close-up shot of the damage she had done. "I never thought the day would come when I'd feel so sorry for your parents!"
* * *
Blissfully unaware that Jesse had spotted her and was bitterly regretting ever agreeing to the 'first one to see the mess, cleans the mess' policy that the team had adopted, baby Shalimar continued her quest for entertainment.
Emma was meditating beside the pond, lost in her own thoughts. Shalimar paused for the briefest of instants before deciding that Emma was going to be as boring a playmate as Adam and dismissing the pond as a potential play area and crawled away before the telempath sensed her presence.
The next stop on her tour of Sanctuary was the rec room, where she found her last hope for amusement.
Brennan was sitting on the couch, absorbed in a book. He did not realize that she was there. Baby Shalimar crawled over to the couch and sat down at his feet, patiently waiting for him to notice her presence. After about thirty seconds, she gave up on this technique and tugged Brennan's trouser cuff to get his attention.
Brennan, his attention so rudely dragged from the novel he was reading, looked down to see a cherubic face surrounded by a halo of blonde curls staring up at him. The angelic appearance was tarnished slightly, however, by the tinge of blood around her lips.
"Up, Nan!" Baby Shalimar commanded, holding up her arms.
Brennan quickly looked around the room for rescue. Seeing nobody, he sighed and bent down to pick Shalimar up, gingerly setting her down on the couch next to him and moving a little away from her.
"Isn't Adam supposed to be watching you?" he asked her accusingly, as though she could answer him. "Why aren't you in the lab with him?"
"Pway!" Shalimar demanded, looking up at him with beseeching eyes.
Brennan groaned. "Can't Adam play with you? Or Jesse or Emma? Why don't you go find them - I'm not good with kids!"
Baby Shalimar stuck out her bottom lip, determined not to budge from her position. "Nan pway!" She insisted. She crawled across the couch and climbed into his lap, squirming a bit until she was comfortable. "Pway!" She ordered.
Brennan scowled. "I don't even know what to play!" He complained.
"Howsey!" Shalimar answered, as if she had understood every word he said.
The dark-haired elemental felt his cheeks grow warm as Jesse - with his camcorder, of course - entered the rec room in time to hear the exchange.
"Go on, Brennan." Jesse mocked. "You heard the lady. Play horsey."
Baby Shalimar smiled expectantly. Even Brennan, a self-confessed hater of babies, found it difficult to resist her.
Difficult. Not impossible.
"Wouldn't you rather play with Jesse?" He coaxed. "I'm sure Jesse would love nothing more than to play horsey with you. Right, Jesse?" He shot his friend a desperate look.
Jesse shook his head, zooming in on Brennan, laughing inwardly at the thought of what grown-up Shalimar would say to him when she saw this tape.
"I wouldn't dream of depriving you." He answered solemnly. "Go on, Shal, play horsey with Brennan."
"There is no way I'm going to play horsey with you filming me!"
Baby Shalimar's bottom lip trembled and she drew breath to yell.
"Okay, okay!" Brennan exclaimed hurriedly, bouncing her on his knee to placate her. "There, happy?" Shalimar smiled beatifically. Brennan looked up at his teammate. "Jesse, I am begging you, if you ever had any regard for our friendship, please, call Adam."
Jesse, taking pity on his comrade, nodded, and between fits of laughter, spoke into his comm.-ring.
"Adam, it's Jesse. We have someone you may be looking for."
To his great astonishment, Adam didn't freak out and come charging into the rec room to reclaim Shalimar.
"I've found it, Jesse!" Adam's voice was laced with excitement. "I know what happened to Shalimar!"
TBC.
I'd like to thank everyone who reviewed the first chapter. I'll update again when I get the chance.
Eight days later.
It had taken more that a week, but Adam was finally starting to make something resembling progress. He had been sitting at his desk in his lab for hours, poring over the readings he had taken of Shalimar, as an adult and as an infant, scrutinizing every piece of information on pathogens he could find, and examining the blood sample he had taken - with great difficulty and many tears and screams from Shalimar - the previous week.
Shalimar, who had been playing contentedly in her playpen for the past few hours, was bored. Deprived of her favorite playmate, she had tried various ways of regaining his attention and showing her displeasure, even resorting to screaming at the top of her lungs and throwing her teddy bear at him. Adam had come running with a clean diaper and a fresh bottle of warm milk, fed her, changed her and spent a few minutes playing with her before returning his attention to his work.
Enough was enough. Shalimar decided that it was time to take matters into her own tiny hands.
The makers of the playpen had not factored the abilities of an infant feral into their design. An ordinary baby would have had little alternative but to stay where he or she was, relying on an adult to lift them out. Not so Shalimar Fox. As agile as a monkey, she climbed over the railing, landing with a soft thud on the floor of the lab.
Deeply engrossed in his work, Adam didn't hear anything and, quick as lightning, baby Shalimar crawled across the room and out the door in search of adventure.
* * *
The kitchen was her first stop. She spotted the refrigerator and made a beeline for it. This was where they kept their food. She gurgled, clapping her hands, delighted by her discovery. Opening it was another matter. Shalimar came to a halt, sitting down in front of the refrigerator while she planned her strategy. The adult members of MutantX had not had much time to 'baby proof' Sanctuary and, while all electrical outlets had been fitted with protective coverings and all of the sharp or dangerous objects moved out of reach of little fingers, nobody had gotten around to putting a lock on the refrigerator yet. Dragging herself into a standing position, she could just about reach the handle if she stretched her arm. She pulled with all her strength, falling and landing on her bottom when the door suddenly opened, revealing the treasure within.
Shalimar had thought that she was alone in the kitchen but she was mistaken. Jesse, who had come in for a snack just minutes earlier, was sitting at the table, camcorder trained on her, trying his best to suppress the laughter he felt bubbling within him as he filmed baby Shalimar pull out item after item, discarding, in turn, fruit, cheese, juice, Emma's yogurts, Brennan's sodas and even Jesse's chocolate doughnuts, finally lighting on the item of her choice - a raw steak.
Both fascinated and a little repulsed, Jesse watched Shalimar tear into the plastic wrappings and pull out the steak, chewing on it for a few moments before tiring of it and tossing it aside, leaving it lying on the ground amid the other items she had already dropped or spilled, before crawling away, leaving the refrigerator door wide open and a mess of spilled foods in her wake.
Surveying the mess she had left behind, Jesse whistled softly.
"Christ, Shal!" He said aloud, getting a close-up shot of the damage she had done. "I never thought the day would come when I'd feel so sorry for your parents!"
* * *
Blissfully unaware that Jesse had spotted her and was bitterly regretting ever agreeing to the 'first one to see the mess, cleans the mess' policy that the team had adopted, baby Shalimar continued her quest for entertainment.
Emma was meditating beside the pond, lost in her own thoughts. Shalimar paused for the briefest of instants before deciding that Emma was going to be as boring a playmate as Adam and dismissing the pond as a potential play area and crawled away before the telempath sensed her presence.
The next stop on her tour of Sanctuary was the rec room, where she found her last hope for amusement.
Brennan was sitting on the couch, absorbed in a book. He did not realize that she was there. Baby Shalimar crawled over to the couch and sat down at his feet, patiently waiting for him to notice her presence. After about thirty seconds, she gave up on this technique and tugged Brennan's trouser cuff to get his attention.
Brennan, his attention so rudely dragged from the novel he was reading, looked down to see a cherubic face surrounded by a halo of blonde curls staring up at him. The angelic appearance was tarnished slightly, however, by the tinge of blood around her lips.
"Up, Nan!" Baby Shalimar commanded, holding up her arms.
Brennan quickly looked around the room for rescue. Seeing nobody, he sighed and bent down to pick Shalimar up, gingerly setting her down on the couch next to him and moving a little away from her.
"Isn't Adam supposed to be watching you?" he asked her accusingly, as though she could answer him. "Why aren't you in the lab with him?"
"Pway!" Shalimar demanded, looking up at him with beseeching eyes.
Brennan groaned. "Can't Adam play with you? Or Jesse or Emma? Why don't you go find them - I'm not good with kids!"
Baby Shalimar stuck out her bottom lip, determined not to budge from her position. "Nan pway!" She insisted. She crawled across the couch and climbed into his lap, squirming a bit until she was comfortable. "Pway!" She ordered.
Brennan scowled. "I don't even know what to play!" He complained.
"Howsey!" Shalimar answered, as if she had understood every word he said.
The dark-haired elemental felt his cheeks grow warm as Jesse - with his camcorder, of course - entered the rec room in time to hear the exchange.
"Go on, Brennan." Jesse mocked. "You heard the lady. Play horsey."
Baby Shalimar smiled expectantly. Even Brennan, a self-confessed hater of babies, found it difficult to resist her.
Difficult. Not impossible.
"Wouldn't you rather play with Jesse?" He coaxed. "I'm sure Jesse would love nothing more than to play horsey with you. Right, Jesse?" He shot his friend a desperate look.
Jesse shook his head, zooming in on Brennan, laughing inwardly at the thought of what grown-up Shalimar would say to him when she saw this tape.
"I wouldn't dream of depriving you." He answered solemnly. "Go on, Shal, play horsey with Brennan."
"There is no way I'm going to play horsey with you filming me!"
Baby Shalimar's bottom lip trembled and she drew breath to yell.
"Okay, okay!" Brennan exclaimed hurriedly, bouncing her on his knee to placate her. "There, happy?" Shalimar smiled beatifically. Brennan looked up at his teammate. "Jesse, I am begging you, if you ever had any regard for our friendship, please, call Adam."
Jesse, taking pity on his comrade, nodded, and between fits of laughter, spoke into his comm.-ring.
"Adam, it's Jesse. We have someone you may be looking for."
To his great astonishment, Adam didn't freak out and come charging into the rec room to reclaim Shalimar.
"I've found it, Jesse!" Adam's voice was laced with excitement. "I know what happened to Shalimar!"
TBC.
I'd like to thank everyone who reviewed the first chapter. I'll update again when I get the chance.