~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Lucy rolls so that Xander's on top of her, blocking the steady rainfall. She groans, knowing that she's soaked through to her clothes. "Ugh, okay, who decided that we should try out my ideas?" she laughs. "I honestly don't think that I've ever been this wet before."
Xander takes in the sight of her. Her blonde hair is soaked, making it a darker color, and is plastered to her face. ~She's gorgeous~ "I don't doubt that." he agrees, rolling off her and pulling her to her feet.
Mud squishes through her sneakers, and the grip is gone, making her slide around in the mud. She lets out a half-squeal, half-laugh. "I can't walk!" she cries, trying and slipping onto the sopping grass. Xander scoops her into his arms, kissing her on her wet nose. She smirks at him, her eyes glittering. Well, at least that's what Xander guesses- it's quite hard to see through the torrential downpour. "You're so whipped!" she teases, and he almost drops her from shock.
"Uh uh, no way, missy. Genetically enhanced soldiers don't get whipped. It's like a rule." he scolds her jokingly, carrying her into his apartment building.
Lucy full-out grins now, remembering their first meeting. "Well, you are a rulebreaker." she says nonchalantly as he places her on the couch. Xander could have kicked himself for her good memory. Also remembering the only way to shut her up, he plunks down on the couch next to her and starts tickling her.
They subside after a while, leaning against each other and talking until dawn's light starts filtering through the window, neither one aware of the dangers they're about to face.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~St. Francis Fort Army base, Seattle
Ames White stands in front of the Conclave in a dimly lit basement, not surprisingly overconfident- after all, this is Ames we're talking about. A member of the board, an old man with a very interesting scar on his face, clears his throat, unofficially announcing that the meeting has begun.
"The Conclave would like to know why we haven't gotten the girl yet. She's a critical part of the Ascension, and we need her." he says, looking angrily through the dimly lit room to glare at Ames reprovingly.
"Don't worry," White says, grinning grimly, "I have a plan, one that will rid us of the nuisance that is Terminal City at the same time."
The other members of the board smiled happily, glad that the transgenics would be out of their way. "Ah, yes, killing two birds with one stone." Mr. Scarface says delightedly, "but tell me, White, how do you expect to do that when you haven't even been able to catch the elusive 452?"
"I have a plan, don't worry. The Sandeman girl has the power to produce a protective sort of sheild, which she, in theory and with practice, could use to defend Terminal City. Last time we had her here, the only way that we could get her to stop was by playing a video of her family's deaths...it weakened her emotionally and physically-she produced an amazingly strong barrier for a few seconds, and then it died out, leaving her weak and defenseless." he explains, saying the word Sandeman like it's a dirty word. Funny, considering he's one of them... "So, once she's out of it, we storm TC, killing the transgenics in one blow and bringing the girl back."
"Very good, Ames. You've redeemed yourself from your family name, that's certain." a woman looking amazingly akin to a pig says, nodding in approval.
"The tape has been sent, and we await news of the girl's failure." Ames says proudly.
"That is all." the scar-man says, and Ames walks out of the room.
~This is too easy~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~TC, Max's Apartment, 2 days later. (The day of the dance)
"So, you and your boy finally got togetha, boo." Original Cindy says while curling Lucy's hair. Max smiles from the doorway as she tries to zip up her dress.
"Yeah, we did. And I love being with him. It's so great to have someone and - I'm going to stop before I sound like a Hallmark card." she says, blushing slightly and turning around to let Lucy zip the dress, giving up herself. "But, in my defense, Lucy's just as mushy."
OC looks at Lucy through the mirror, and the girl's cheeks turn a bright pink. "Well, he's just so sweet, and funny, and cute...." she sighs, Xander immediately controlling her thoughts. Noticing both girls' exasperated stares, she snaps back to reality. "Well what? It's true." she mumbles, applying shimmery eye shadow.
"Did you hear how they asked us?" Max asks, and Lucy grins, thinking of how cute Xander was when he was nervous. OC shakes her head. "They serenaded us. Alec! Serenading me! Who'd have thought that would ever, in a million years, happen?" she asks, rolling her eyes at Cindy's perturbed look. "Ok, besides you?"
"Actually, Xander and I did. We're so right." Lucy says, mentally adding one point to the Xander/Lucy team. All of a sudden Lucy looks stricken, like she's hyperventilating, which very well may be. All of the color, except for the blush staining her cheeks, leaves her face, and she gasps.
"Ooh, baby boo, did I burn ya?" OC asks, pulling the curling iron out of her hair.
"Oh, my god. Big problem here, guys- I can't dance!!!" Lucy cries, throwing her hands in the air and standing up from the stool she was previously occupying. She paces outside the door, looking very comical pacing angrily in her angelic attire. "That's it- I'm soooo not going! Uh uh, no way, mister, never ever going to a dance, ever!!!!!" she rants, completely oblivious to the knowing grins on Max and OC's faces. She turns to them, on the verge of tears, and gapes at their bemused smirks. "What's so funny!!! My life is over!" she cries melodramatically, collapsing on the couch in true drama queen mode.
"Get off that couch, you'll ruin your dress, girl." OC orders, pulling a pouting Lucy to her feet. She dusts off some invisible lint, smiling encouragingly.
"Nobody really knows how to dance, Lucy. You make it up as you go." Max advises, watching Cindy put mascara on Lucy, who's quickly becoming the night's Cinderella story.
"I'm just so nervous. What if Xander laughs at me? I'll feel like a complete idiot." Lucy admits, toying with the hem of her dress.
"He won't laugh at you. Are you kidding me? I think he'd rather die a painful death and still be in your favor rather than do the tiniest thing to make you mad." Max laughs.
Applying one more coat of mascara, Cindy twirls Lucy around to face Max. "All done. I do damn fine work, don't I?" she asks, smiling widely as Lucy looks in disbelief at the mirror.
"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" Lucy squeals, pulling both Max and Cindy in a hug. "You guys rock!!!"
The doorbell rings, signaling the arrival of the boys, and tearing at both of the girls' nerves. They look at each other, both of their hearts stopping in their throats. OC says something about getting the door, but neither of them pay attention. They're too busy doing last-minute teeth checks and spraying on the last coat of hairspray.
"Tell Alec I'll be out in a minute. I need to find my purse under all this beauty stuff." Max tells her, and Lucy looks nervously to the door, half-heartedly contemplating if it's worth the risk to just jump out the window and run. The jumping and falling part she's fine with, it's the running in heels that scares her.
"Xander?" she calls out nervously, self-conscious of herself beyond belief.
"Yeah, Luce?" she hears him call, his voice soothing her nerves a little bit.
"Promise you won't make fun, ok?" she asks, nervously shifting her weight from one foot to another.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Max's apartment, TC
"What? Xander asks, knowing that he'll want to do anything but make fun of her. He runs his hands through his hair for about the thousandth time, his nervous habit threatening to pull his hair out by the roots.
"Just don't laugh. Promise?" he hears her plead, sounding unsure and, in truth, a little afraid.
"I promise." he says, willing her to come out of Max's room.
"Pinky promise?" she asks, and he chuckles at his girl.
"Pinky promise. Now just come out, you're making me nervous." he tells her, and hears the soft click of high heels as she enters the room, Xander's eyes nearly popping out at the sight of her.
She walks into the room, embarrassed at being the center of attention. A goofy grin slides on Xander's face, and he momentarily visits Happy Xander Land. "You're, uh...wow!" he announces eloquently as he takes her in, marveling at her beauty.
She looks like an angel, with her golden hair let down in soft ringlets. The white flowy dress, strappy sandals and shimmery eye shadow lend her a sort of ethereal glow, so beautiful that she seems unfit for this world. ~She's an angel. My angel~ Xander thinks, holding out his hand to her. She grabs it, and steps a bit wobbly in her borrowed pair of heels, closing the distance between them.
Her cherry lipgloss-covered lips quirk into a smile, grateful that he didn't laugh. "Not too bad yourself, mister." she says shyly, kissing him on the cheek. The two teens sit down on a a nearby couch, and Alec is left standing in the middle of the room, holding a rose behind his back and waiting for his girl to come.
~What if she changed her mind? What if she doesn't want to go with me?~ he panicks, and Lucy and Xander and OC smile at his nervousness. "Don't worry, boo, she's been worrying the same thing all day." Cindy comforts him, and he tries to shake off the nervousness.
"I was worried you'd change your mind." Lucy confides in Xander and blushes as he gives her a quick kiss on the cheek. "Lucy, you're so sweet." he whispers, lacing her fingers with his. "Right back atcha, babe." Lucy tells him, snuggling into his chest. Original Cindy watches the two teens, smiling softly at their affection. ~It's funny how you can put two teenagers in completely unnormal situations, and they'll still act like normal kids. They really love each other.~ But her musings are cut short when Max walks in the room.
Her hair is pinned up and curly, thanks in a large part to OC. The black dress she wears fits her perfectl. If Lucy looks like an Angel, then Max looks like a Dark Angel. She walks over to Alec, smiling softly. "You, uh...look beautiful." he tells her, improving slightly on Xander's words, but not by much. Max smiles, tugging on the dress a bit. "I feel like such a girl." she admits, feeling awkward in anything but a tank top and jeans or leather.
Lucy and Xander quietly leave the room and start to the abandoned warehouse where the dance is being held, not wanting to ruin a moment. They leave, hand in hand, and Original Cindy quickly follows, wishing her friend good luck and then proceeding to the nearest sewer entrance to the outside world.
"Well, I think you look beautiful." Alec tells Max, wiping away her nervousness and worry and handing her a rose. "Shall we?" he asks her, holding out his arm like a proper gentleman.
"We shall." Max smiles, linking her arms with his in that regal matter she'd seen on old movies.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~`Abandoned Factory, TC
As Max and Alec walk into the 'Dance Hall', the sweet chords of a slow dance filtering through the air. They chat for a while, neither one wanting to dance for a while.
Max wants to find Lucy, to tell her that she found her an apartment, but she can't find her. After looking for a half hour, she's pretty worried. ~Who'd ever think that I'd be playing Momma Hen to a bunch of teenagers?~ she silently muses, all the while worried sick.
Max spots Dix while looking for them, and waves him over to her and Alec's table. "Hey, Dix!" she greets the misshapen man, and he grins. "Have you seen Xander and Lucy anywhere?" she asks, a little worried after looking for over forty minutes now.
"I just sent them to Headquarters. Something came if for Lucy. Just kinda showed up." he says, makig a comical sight as he bops to the music.
"Who from?" Max asks, worried it might be the BG's. (Bad Guys)
"No, but it's probably a surprise from Xander. That boy would do anything to make her happy. Still, he did seem quite surprised, but then again, we are good actors." he says, moving away as a panther-like woman motions him to the dance floor.
"Max, what's wrong?" Alec asks, handing her a cup of freshly poured punch.
"Lucy got a package, and we don't know who it's from, or what it is. I have a feeling it's White." she tells him, whispering. "Lucy told me her last name isn't really Witkopp- it's Sandeman." She tells Alec, and his eyes widen in panic and worry for the girl he's come to think of as a sister.
"This can't be good." he says, grabbing her hand. They run to Headquarters, hoping that they're in a fair race against time.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~`
A/N: sorry I haven't updated in like forever!!!!!! forgive me!!!! but good news- I have spring break this week, so I'm hoping to update all of my stories.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~JUST REVIEW, OK? YOU'LL MAKE ME THE MOST INSPIRED, HAPPY, CHIPPER, PEPPY, & BUBBLY GIRL IN THE WORLD!! I'LL EVEN BEAT BABY SPICE FOR PERKINESS, NOT AN EASY FEAT!!!! SO REVIEW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
DISCLAIMER: yeah, yeah, not mine- no need to rub it in. *pouts* humph!