Magenta pulled a long black jacket out of Mary's closet. "This is so cool."

Mary turned her head a little to look at the garment, making sure she wasn't interfering with Layla's work on her hair. "That's one of Stephen's. Made it for his sister but she'd moved on to a different look."

"This one?" Magenta held up a green pleated miniskirt with crossing leather belts.

"Part of a combo piece between Pierre and Claude for a class. Pierre did the skirt and Claude did the top that's on the next hanger. If you add those high healed boots, it's a great outfit for a party."

Magenta pulled out a dark green croptop tanktop with long sheer sleeves. "They gave this to you?"

"When we were set to leave France, a lot of my designer friends gave me the clothes they made so I would have something from them." Mary smiled at the shirt. "That one has always been my favorite."

Magenta raised an interested eyebrow. "I hear a story behind that."

Mary chuckled fondly. "Oh, there is." When Magenta continued to stare, Mary continued. "I was…very different in France. I still took care of the twins, of course, but when they were with a nanny or babysitter and I was with my friends…I rebelled. A lot." She pointed at the top. "I wore that to a David Guetta concert. Leslie had managed to get tickets from some kind of give away. Loud music, great friends, and a feeling that anything could happen." A pause filled the bedroom and Mary fondly shook her head at the memory. "Magenta, if you want to borrow some of my clothes, I don't mind. I'll even take a few pictures and send them to the designers. They'll love to know people like them."

Magenta's eyes widened. "Really? You don't mind?"

"Not at all. Help yourself."

The goth girl returned to the closet with glee in her eyes. Layla chuckled from behind Mary. "I think you just made her night."

Mary smiled and held still as Layla secured the bottom of the braid she'd been working on. The red head looked at some of the clothes Magenta was pulling out of the closet. "You should wear more of those. I think you'd look pretty cool. Probably become popular."

Mary shook her head. "I get enough attention as it is being Nightmare's kid and all. But I have a few pictures of when I modeled them."

"Oh, I want to see."

"They're downstairs." Mary stood up and made her way to the living room, her friends trailing behind. She pulled out a brown photo album, setting it on the table.

Layla opened it and her eyes widened. "This is you?"

Magenta looked over the girl's shoulder. "Wow. You're like a different person."

A series of photos were carefully placed in the photo album, all quality work. Mary was dressed in a variety of clothes from punk rocker to elegant lady. In each shot, she posed effortlessly with make up and hair done almost perfectly.

Layla turned the page. "You could be a model."

Mary shrugged. "I had a few offers but I prefer the other side of the lens. Besides, the life of a model doesn't lend a lot of time to look after the twins."

Layla turned the page. The pictures here were of other teens. Some were professional shots of beautiful models, both male and female. Others were candid pictures of the same teens laughing around café tables, at concerts, over a few opened books, and various other scenarios friends found themselves in. Mary was in a few of them looking as if there weren't a care in the world.

"These your French friends?" Magenta asked.

Mary nodded, pointing to a picture of her in the middle of five other teens that were featured heavily in the other photos. "This is Pierre, Michelle, Claude, Isabel, and Louis. They were my closest friends. Pierre, Claude, and Michelle were designers. Isabel and Louis showcased most of their clothes."

"They're hot," Magenta said, gesturing to the boys.

Layla raised an eyebrow. "What about your boyfriend?"

Magenta shrugged. "I can still look and appreciate a nice looking guy that isn't Zach." She pointed to a beach shot with the boys flexing without shirts. "Just like you can appreciate a nice pair of abs."

Mary chuckled. "Pierre and Louis spend a lot of time in the gym to get those abs. They're impressive but I like Warren's better." She paused as she realized what she said. When she raised her eyes, she found her friends staring at her with knowing grins.

"And when did you have a chance to see Warren's abs?" Magenta asked. "What kind of attention has he been giving you?"

The heat rose in Mary's cheeks. "It's not like that! It-it's my new power. It bends light so I can see through things and…" Her voice lowered in embarrassment. "I saw through his clothes."

Layla's mouth fell open as Magenta laughed. "You saw him naked?!"

"It was an accident! I didn't know I could do that."

"So," Magenta asked with a glint in her eye. "How big is he?"

"Magenta!" Layla said as Mary's face turned even redder.

"What? Weren't you thinking it, too?"

"What's going on?" Will asked as he rounded the corner with bags of take out.

Warren followed after, Suzy resting on his hip as Randy hung on his back. He didn't seem to be weighed down by them in the slightest. Layla and Magenta stared. "What?"

The girls laughed as Mary buried her red face in a pillow from the couch.

"They're weird," Randy said as he slipped off Warren's back. Suzy nodded in agreement and Warren set her down so she could take a bag from Ethan.

The pyro knelt down next to Mary and took the pillow from her hands, revealing her red face. He pressed a hand to her forehead. She felt her skin warm under his touch. "Is your fever back? Should I get you some tea?"

Mary frowned. "You bring that foul stuff near me again and I'll spit it back in your face."

Warren's lips twitched but he nodded and handed her a take out cup filled with Coke. She took a long sip from the straw but darted her gaze away as the previous conversation played in her mind again and she remembered how very well built Warren was under his clothes. She didn't think she'd be able to look at him properly for a while.

"Hey," Ethan said, picking up the album forgotten on the table. "Are these your friends from France?" Mary nodded. "You look pretty happy with them."

A soft smile lifted Mary's lips. "We had some great times together." She laughed. "Michelle's the wildest one. You know, she convinced me to do a lot of things I never thought I'd do."

"Like what?" Ethan asked.

"Like getting blue streaks in your hair?" Magenta said, noticing the faded color.

"Yeah." Mary looked at one of the photos where they were all smiling. She was wearing the same shirt Magenta had pulled from her closet earlier. The others were wearing punk like clothes, as well. "This was taken a few months before I left France. We'd just left the concert and didn't want to go home, so Michelle took us to a party one of her friends was holding. It was amazing. By the end of the night, I was tired, hoarse from singing, and sporting a fresh tattoo."

"A tattoo?" Layla said, eyes wide. Warren looked up from the food he'd been pulling from the bags, interest showing in his eyes. Mary's eyes fell to the flame tattoos on his forearms.

Magenta grinned. "Nice. Where is it?"

Mary hooked a finger into the collar of her tank top and pulled it low enough to reveal the soft curls of lettering that spelled 'Belle Âme' in blank ink over her heart. "It means 'beautiful soul'," she explained. "Louis thought it was appropriate." The others stared, which she didn't mind. It was Warren's intent gaze, however, that made her heart race and her cheeks grow red. She dropped her hand, letting her top settle back over the ink.

"Are these you?"

Mary looked over at Will, noticing the album in his hands. He'd turned back to her model pictures. "Um, yeah."

Suzy nodded as Randy pulled his food from the bags. "These look like the pictures they sold at your old school, Mary."

"Huh?" Zach tilted his head to the side. "Your school sold pictures of you? That's a bit creepy."

"If you'll remember, my old school was an artistic school. We had painters, fashion designers, models, and others like that. Much of our funds came from showcasing our talents and allowing the school to sell them." Mary waved to the pictures. "I mostly worked behind the camera but was asked to model a time or two. Those are ones they sold when other models didn't have anything new out."

"Strange school," Will said, flipping the pages again.

"Yes, because a school floating in the sky meant to train young teens to control superpowers so they become superheroes isn't strange," Mary said with a slight smile. Warren handed her a burger, fries, and a Coke. She unwrapped the burger and sank her teeth into the bun, moaning as the hot meat and flavorful toppings filled her mouth. "Oh, god. I really needed that." She took another bite, licking a drop of ketchup from the corner of her mouth.

The rest of the food was quickly passed out. Suzy reached into a different bag and pulled out a few movies. "We found a few things at the library. Do you want to see Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Shrek, Treasure Planet, or Howl's Moving Castle?"

Mary picked up the last movie and turned it over, scanning the back. "I've heard of this one. It's supposed to be good. But I'm not sure if it's appropriate for you and Randy."

"They'll be fine," Zach said, popping a milkshake dipped fry into his mouth. "Can't be worse than what they see on the news."

"If it gets too intense, we'll switch to something else," Will said.

Randy took the movie and popped it into the player. He returned to Mary's side but Warren was already sitting there, his back resting against the couch. The little boy frowned but Warren patted his lap. Randy smiled and climbed into the teen's lap, picking up his fries as he settled himself. Warren picked up his drink and caught Mary looking at him.

"What?"

"Nothing," she said softly as the movie started up. "It just amazes me how well you get along with the twins."

"They're good kids. Makes it easy."

Mary chuckled. Suzy shushed her before turning back to the screen. Warren offered an onion ring, which Mary happily took. They turned back to the movie. It wasn't as bad as Mary had thought and the twins seemed to enjoy it to no end. She made a mental note to pick it up for a Christmas gift.

"That was awesome!" Zach said as the credits started to roll. He stood up and took the movie out of the player, ready to put in the next one.

"I want a castle like that," Suzy said. "Do you think there could actually be one out there?"

"Of course, Little Lamb," Zach said. "We'll find it and make it our new secret lair. No villain will ever find us."

Mary chuckled at the childish excitement in her friend. No wonder Zach got along with the twins; he was practically their maturity equal.

As the others got up to throw trash away and refresh their drinks for the next movie, Randy pulled his book bag into his lap. He reached into it and pulled out a stapled pile of papers. Mary looked at them as he put them in her hand.

"Extra curricular activities for school," she mused. The list of possible sign-ups spanned two pages, the third being the official sign-up for the children. It looked as if all the activities would be organized and run through the school. They'd stay a little later than usual and take a later bus home. Mary looked to her brother. "Was there anything you wanted to do?"

Randy squirmed slightly as he looked around. No one was looking at him and he quickly pointed to one. Mary smiled at his choice. "I have some of my old dance shoes you can use until we get new ones." The little boy smiled until Warren spoke up.

"You used to do ballet?"

Randy looked up at the boy. He'd forgotten the pyro was here, as had Mary. She searched his face. Not many people would be all right with a young boy learning to do ballet. They might say that it was only for girls and that there might be something wrong with Randy. But Warren was only curious. He looked down at Randy. "Why ballet?"

Thought his face was red, Randy was happy that the boy he looked up to didn't think he was weird for wanting to do dance. "Isabel took me to a few shows and taught me a few things because she does ballet to stay fit for her modeling job. I want to do things like they do in the Nutcracker and The Little Mermaid."

Mary smiled and pulled out a pen from Randy's bag. She quickly filled in the contact information and signed her father's signature on the permission slip.

"Won't your dad get angry?" Will asked, noticing her actions.

Mary shrugged. "He's busy but I know he'd approve of after school activities." She looked to her sister. "And what do you want to do, Suzy?"

The girl grinned and pulled out her own papers. A few things were circles. Mary scanned them with a chuckle. "Hockey, tennis, swimming, band, basketball, soccer, baseball, football." She shook her head. "You can only choose a max of two, Suzy."

"But I want to do it all," the little girl whined.

Mary held the paper out. "Two. Randy's already chosen one and that can be done everyday. You'd best choose two that can alternate days or one that meets at different times."

Suzy sighed and took the list, staring at her choices. Layla and Magenta returned from the kitchen with new drinks and a few snacks they'd grabbed from the cupboard. They set them on the table but Magenta looked over Suzy's shoulder. "Why not try band? Learn an instrument?"

"But band is for nerds," Zach said. "All clarinets and piccolos and tubas. Why do that?" He grabbed a small chip bag, pulling the top open.

Magenta frowned at her boyfriend. "I was in band." Zach paused, turning to her with wide eyes. "I played the clarinet." Mary could see the hard swallow as Zach tried to think of some way to backpedal. Magenta turned back to Suzy. "I also learned to play the guitar. If there's an instrument you want to learn, go ahead and learn it." She then turned to Randy. "Same thing with dance. Do what you want because it makes you happy."

"Wow," Mary said with a smile. "Very inspirational."

Magenta blushed a bit. Suzy thought for a moment. "If I learned an instrument, could we start a band?"

"Dude, that would be awesome," Zach said. "We could rock out and have sweet gigs with lights and-"

"Who said you could join?" Magenta asked.

"Who else would be lead singer?"

"Warren could," Suzy said.

"What? And miss my natural showman abilities?" Zach put a hand to his chest. "I'm hurt, little lamb."

Suzy smiled slightly and looked at the list of activities. "I'll do hockey and band." She turned to her brother. "Why don't you do hockey with me? It'll be fun."

"But I want to do ballet."

"Why can't you do both?"

"But I'll get hurt in hockey."

"You'll get hurt in ballet, too. Why not try it and see if you like it? If not, I won't make you stay."

"It seems like a good idea," Mary said. "Besides, it might help you in your ballet, too. You remember that story on the news a while back about some football players doing ballet because it helped with their balance? What if doing hockey helped with your dancing?"

Randy looked between his sisters. "You won't make me stay if I don't want to?"

"Promise," Mary said. Suzy nodded.

"Ok," the boy said.

Mary took the sign up papers and filled in the forms. She folded them and handed them back. "Make sure you get these to your teachers. Go put them in your bags."

"And then we'll check out the next movie." Ethan picked up the choices. "How about Charlie and the Chocolate Factory?"

"Oh, dude, yes," Zach said. "Let's get our sugar rush on."

Magenta raised an eyebrow at her boyfriend. "Pretty sure you're on enough sugar rush for everyone."

Mary chuckled. The twins returned and were about to sit when Mary shook her head. "Change into your pajamas, you two. Then it's time for your homework."

Randy groaned. "Do we have to? What about the movies?"

"Homework first." Mary looked around at the others. "That should probably go for everyone."

Zach frowned. "When did you shift into Mom mode?"

"When I saw the amount of homework I have for missing two days. Best not to let it pile up." The teens didn't seem to like that idea. "We'll watch the other movies afterward. Promise."

"She's got a point," Ethan said. "We could probably get it done faster as a group. If we keep each other on track."

"All right," Zach said, grudgingly picking his bag up.

The twins finished their work first, though it took a while for Suzy to get through her Geography homework. The teens', however, took a while longer. An hour later, they finally finished their work.

Mary leaned back against the couch and stretched her legs out along the floor. She rolled her head to the side and smiled at Warren's ponytail. She reached out, lazily flipping the hair. He raised an eyebrow at her, which she returned with a tired smile. "It's soft," she said.

"How tired are you?" Warren asked. Mary shrugged. "You should get some sleep." She nodded and leaned against his shoulder. He made a good pillow; his warmth spreading through her body and making her drift off. She was shifted slightly but didn't mind when she grew warmer and was surrounded by the spicy musk that could only be Warren. She drifted off to sleep with a smile.