A/N: ok, so I know that I haven't updated in a while, so I doubled up two chapters into one (took me a while, so I hope ya like it!) Thank y'all for the reviews, I really appreciate them and they give me the tinglies, so if you could keep it up, that'd be cool.
btw, the ()blahblahblah() is for the flashbacks, k?
Well, hope you like!
-molly jeane
The snow fell onto Seattle, mixed with the ever-constant rain. Max, the stubborn leader of Terminal City, sits on her desk, sitting Indian-style with her arms crossed over her chest in a stance of defiance. Maddie's not dead, she's not, she's not, she's not, she keeps repeating to herself, a silent mantra.
Alec stands outside the door, contemplating on what to do once he opens the door. You see, she's locked herself in. And while every resident, down to the littlest X8, knows how to pick a lock, no one wants to mess with an angry transgenic.
He knocks on the door softly, and a sharp "Go away!" answers it. "Max, it's me." he says, and he hears silence for a moment. "Oh." He knows that's his cue to walk in. He knows that he's the only one who can see her way. He's her mate, and that's his job.
He quickly picks the lock and the door swings open. The normally strong, tough Max is sitting on her desk looking for all the world like she has just lost her best friend. Which she might well have. He comes closer, sitting on the edge of the desk and wrapping her in his arms, knowing that she'll feel safer with him near her. It's instinct.
"I just want her home, Alec." she whispers. "This would have been our first Christmas, all of us." He pulls her tighter.
"Baby, we're doing the best we can to find her." he tries to tell her, but she shakes her head.
"We should be doing more...I just want my sister back, Alec." she tells him, finally meeting his gaze. The sorrow in those chocolate eyes overwhelms him.
"We'll find her, Maxie. We will." he says, taking notice of the new runes forming on her hands and neck. He shouldn't tell her now- she's already upset, no need to make her more so. He'll tell Dix later. Now he needs to make sure his Max is all right.
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::Dorm room
Bobby slowly came to, shaking his head and peeling off the history paper that's attached to it. He then rubs his head, realizing that shaking it wasn't the best idea. He stretches, stifling a yawn.
He looks at the clock, groaning. "Oh, crap," he mutters, running down the empty halls to the Med Ward, hoping that she isn't sleeping.
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::Girl's room
Her eyes flew to John's lighter, which he flicked as incessantly as he talked. She watched, amused, as he and Rogue flirted, pausing every so often to ask her what she thought about something. She nodded or shrugged, if the answer needed explaining.
She was busy thinking, trying to remember. She needed to think, but that damn clicking! It was infuriating, and if he didn't put a stop on it soon, she might have to remember some of her training and go transgenic on his ass.
She did like them, though. Rogue and John, that is. They seemed nice, if a little random. "No way, the Smurfs were way better than the Snorks, and you know it!" John exclaimed, and Rogue shook her head. He reminded her of someone, but she couldn't remember who. Not surprising, considering that her memory of everything after the escape was fried. And she only remembered bits about her life before the escape. She wished she never remembered those ones.
"Well, it's getting pretty late. It's been nice meeting you." Rogue says, noticing the far away look on her face. The girl nods, and she takes elbows John to stop him talking.
"Yeah, it's been really nice seeing you not ready to kill me." John says, and she smiles softly, recalling the story that John told her about her scaring him. "We'll visit you tomorrow." he promises, and Rogue nods.
"Yeah, it's Christmas Eve tomorrow." Rogue says, smiling. "I'll be sure to bring some Christmas cookies."
The girl smiles at them, but there's something sad in her eyes. I should be with my family, if any of them made it through the escape, she thinks, trying to ignore the stabbing pain that hits her as she thinks about what could have happened to those children from her dreams.
She slowly stands up, grabbing her healing stab wound, and gingerly making her way out of the room. She looks down the empty hallway, searching for some sign of life. Finding none, she turns towards the end of the hall, where a large window is.
She walks to it, and leans against the wall. She stares out the window, into the winter night. Snow falls down, like a layer of glitter over the dead earth.
She hears footsteps down the hallway, and glances back, but doesn't see what's there. Her world turns black, and she feels herself slumping against the wall as a memory makes itself known.
() Lydecker stands across the hall as Eva's body falls to the ground. She's dead- blood is on her lip, and her eyes are unseeing. Her family stares in horror as their father figure, the one that the revere as a cruel god, doesn't even flinch. ()
Bobby races down the hall, grabbing her as she falls to the floor. He looks around frantically, but there's no one there. He carries her underfed body to her bed, and tries to think about what to do. He can't leave her there, but he needs help.
Just stay there, Bobby, I'll be there soon, a voice echoes in his head. Thank god we're a school of mutants, Bobby thinks, realizing just how helpful it is.
()She jumps out the window, curling into a ball in hopes that the glass won't cut her. It still does, but she doesn't notice the blood dripping from her cuts. The gunfire and shouting gain her full concentration.()
Professor Xavier wheels into the room, a worried look on his face. Bobby holds her in his lap, stroking her hair soothingly. "What happened?" the professor asks the teenage boy, who looks up for the first time since he walked in the room.
()She runs to the meeting place, and fifteen heads pop up from hiding places. She sits by Zack, unaware of the fact that her feet are red from being bitten by the snow. He motions for them to split up, and tears fill her eyes. She knows that she can't argue with him- he's the oldest, their C.O., and he knows the best. He motions for her and Bri to go together, and they nod. Luke sits next to her, and holds her icy hand. She looks at him, worried, but he gives her hand an encouraging squeeze.()
"I don't know," Bobby says, shaking his head. "I was walking down the hall and she was staring out the window, and then she just kind of fell."
()The two soldier-children run across the frozen river. She looks at Bri, and he smiles a little, even though bullets are flying past them as they make their way to the ten foot high fence. Suddenly, his smile falters. She sees the spattering of blood on his Manticore-issue nightgown, and stops running, staring in horror as the crimson stain blossoms.()
"Will she be ok?" Bobby asks as Dr. Grey takes her vitals.
"She'll be fine, Bobby, but I don't know what caused her to pass out." Jean says, a little unsure of herself.
()Bri lies there in the snow, looking at her like she's crazy. Worry rises in his eyes. "Maddie, go. You have to go, ok-kay?" he asks, getting paler by the minute. He's shivering. "Leave me here, baby sister. Get t-to the outside." he tells her, but she shakes her head, ignoring the sounds of the barking dogs, coming. A sense of defiance rises in his eyes. He knows what he has to do. "T-that's an o-order, s-s-soldier." he says sternly, his eyes betraying his concern for her. She nods, kissing him on the forehead and jumping over the fence, with one last glance at Bri's now-still body.()
She stirred, for the first time in only a few minutes, but to Bobby, it feels like years. Her hand twitches lightly, and her eyes draw open slowly, showing pools of clover-green, filled with sadness that's so immense that he never wants her to feel. "Are you all right?" he asks, and she shakes her head, leaning against his shoulder.
"I remember the escape." she says quietly, sniffing, trying to forget. Bobby nods, knowing that it must be hard for her to remember what that Manticore place was like. Professor Xavier told him what it was like there.
He was gone now, the Professor, trying to contact somewhere in Seattle where the transgenics were allegedly 'gathering before making a stand' or something like that. Her voice stopped his train of thought.
"Maddie. My name's Maddie" she told him, smiling a little. Maddie, he thought, it fits.