Sinister's London, Undiscovered Location

The Past, Six Weeks Ago

Five was in her bed, the covers wrapped tightly around her, wishing to not have to relive the events of the day. She had known it would only be a matter of time before she would be summoned to the physician. Today had been that day. She felt a wave of nausea pass over her as she thought of his cold hands on her, examining her. Would that she could will herself into oblivion during that time, return to her vapid, mindless existence. When he had finished with the examination, the physician had ordered rest and a follow-up appointment scheduled for the day after next. Five had run out of time.

Poppet was still missing, having been sent on her fool's errand. Five feared for him. She felt responsible for the clone. At the very least he was safe from Sinister Prime's attentions. His Majesty had been looking for his missing pet. He was in a foul temper.

Five heard the clock chime the fourth hour. In two more hours, it would be dawn. She wished the day to never come. She wondered why she had left her sanctuary, the heat of the white room where she'd existed before coming here. She thought she would be safe; that the Phoenix Force had been dispersed across the universe. For some reason, she had believed she'd been called back to Earth. And she had been lonely. But when she awoke, it was to find herself in this body, in this nightmare. Five burrowed deeper into the blankets.

There was a soft, even tapping sound. At first, Five thought it was the ticking of the clock. Then the sound stopped and started up again double time. Five raised her head. Poppet was in the window. She could see his dark form and glowing red eyes. She tossed back the covers and dashed to the window. When she pushed the window open, Poppet slipped inside the room. He brought chill and damp with him.

"B-bon ma-matin, ma chère," he told her. His teeth chattered.

"Poppet," she breathed. She wrapped her arms around him briefly. He was cold and wet. "You're freezing!" Five drew back and took his hands in her own. She chaffed his chilled fingers between her palms.

"It was snowing," he told her and wiped his nose on his sleeve.

"Don't do that," she told him and handed him a handkerchief from her nightstand. "Come by the fire."

Poppet followed her to the fireplace and she poked at the smoldering log there until the fire stirred itself. She turned her attention back to the clone. "Here, take off your coat. It's soaked through." She began to undress him, but he stopped her. He reached into his coat and withdrew something from the pocket. He presented her with a crushed purple crocus.

"Where have you been?" she asked him and took the flower. She twirled it slowly by its broken stem. "I was worried."

"Your note," he said. "I tried t'deliver it."

"Did you?" she asked hopefully. Five set the flower on her vanity, then returned to Poppet. She pulled off his wet coat and unbuttoned his shirt. She draped the garments over the back of her chair to dry. When she stood before him again, she rubbed her hands up and down his bare arms.

"De letters on de note didn't match," he told her and shook his head. "It was de wrong sign. It didn't say: Ex-ay-vee-eye-ee-are."

Five's heart rose all at once and then fell. She felt tears prick her eyes. "The Xavier School is gone?" she said quietly.

"I'm sorry, ma chère," he told her.

She shook her head sadly. "It's okay, Poppet. I'm sorry," she said. He was still shaking with cold. "I shouldn't have sent you." She took his hand and guided him to the bed, then lifted the covers. "Here, lie down. It's warm."

He sat on the edge of her bed and pulled off his boots. When he climbed into the bed, she followed. Five pulled the blankets over them both and wrapped her arms around him. He convulsed with shivering. She whispered to him: "If you get sick, I'll never forgive myself."

"I feel warmer now," he said, though he still shivered. His breath stirred her hair.

They lay there silently for several moments until he wasn't shaking as badly. Five felt that she had run out of options. She hated having her choices taken away from her. It was an all too familiar experience. Soon, the physician would come for her. There would be an examination room and hospital gown, a sheet-draped bed and stirrups. Five pressed her face against Poppet's shoulder. His hand cupped the side of her face.

"Don't cry, ma chère," he said quietly.

Five thought that she might have a choice after all. Not a very good one, but better than no choice at all. Five took Poppet's hand and pressed her mouth to his palm. She unlaced the front of her nightgown with her opposite hand. She put his hand inside her nightgown. His hand was still cold. Her skin pebbled with gooseflesh. When she kissed his mouth, he inhaled sharply and moved towards her. She let him pull her nightgown up to her waist. Her hands moved to the front of his trousers. Their kissing intensified. Five opened her mouth slightly, creating a tighter seal of their lips. When his hands became more adventurous, she took his wrists in either hand. She moved over him, straddling his hips. He looked up at her. From the pale light through the window, she could see his expression was playful, mischievous. She released his wrists and he sat up to wrap his arms about her waist. He kissed her throat. She put her fingers through his hair, mussing it. Five lowered herself onto him and he made a low, hungry sound. She was surprised to feel a spike of pleasure flash through her. She wondered that anything should feel so good. His thoughtful touch replaced the cold clinical feel of the physician's hands. His impassioned embrace, the feeling of warmth radiating from where they joined together, chased away the sensation of violation.

Five lay over him and closed her eyes. Poppet put his arms around her, his hands resting at the base of her spine. They lay that way until their breathing calmed.

"I'm not cold at all now," Poppet said.

"Shh," Five hushed him and put her hand over his mouth.

"That was fun," he mumbled against her fingers. "Again?"

She lifted herself slightly to look at his face. "Please," she said.

Later, she said: "Thank you."

~ oOo ~

Five was in the shade garden sitting on the edge of the fountain. She had her legs drawn up and her chin resting on her knees. There were a few chickens pecking around the mossy cobblestones. Every once in awhile, Five would toss out a handful of cracked corn and the chickens would rush about in a flurry of clucking. Poppet was standing near the fountain with a sharp stick in his hand poking the green sludge in the stagnant water.

"Are there any more eggs, Poppet?" Five asked.

"Hens won't lay if there's not enough light," Poppet responded, lifting his stick. There was a blob of green goop stuck on the end of it. He examined it carefully.

"How do you know so much about chickens?" she asked with mild amusement.

His nearsighted gaze on the green sludge transferred to Five. He blinked at her and his expression grew confused. "I don't know," he said, somewhat mystified.

"Don't think about it," she told him. She worried about triggering a memory that would upset him. He returned to stirring the muck in the fountain with his stick.

"Where does the light come from?" Five asked, casting her eyes upward. The faint bluish light seemed to flicker and fade at times, intensify at others.

"De rocks," Poppet answered absently. "They glow. It hurts my eyes."

"Glowing rocks?" she asked.

Poppet paused and rested his stick against the side of the fountain. He fished in the pocket of his coat and withdrew a bright stone that glimmered in the dim light. Five reached out her hand for it and he placed it in her palm. The light from the strange stone left spots in her vision, like the light from a flashbulb. It rolled around on the bowl of her palm. "How pretty," she said. "There's more of these?"

"A lot," Poppet told her and picked up his stick. He climbed to stand on the ledge of the fountain.

Five put the rock down the front of her blouse. She watched Poppet stalk along the edge of the fountain. He paused and stabbed downward with the stick. When he raised it, there was a strange creature speared on the end of it. Its six limbs and long slimy body flailed in its death throes. A hideous mouth with several rows of teeth opened and closed.

Five recoiled. "What is that?" she asked. The chickens scattered.

Poppet stared at it, then stuck his index finger in the thing's mouth to quickly withdraw it before the creature could bite him. "Baby monster," he said, twirling the creature on the end of the stick.

"Ugh, it's hideous. What do you mean it's a baby?" Five asked.

"Dis is just a small one." He glanced up at her and grinned. "I have an idea," he said.

"Uh, oh."

"Follow me," he told her. Poppet hopped down from the fountain and slipped down the alley leading to the stable. Five trailed after him. She followed him through the stable and across the courtyard. They both ducked under the kitchen window. Poppet raised his head to peer over the window ledge and into the kitchen.

"What are you thinking, Poppet?" Five whispered to him.

His eyes flashed. "You tell me," he said with devilry in his voice.

She stared at him for a moment, then nodded to herself. She rose and moved to the doorway to the kitchen. Five threw open the door.

The cook startled and looked over at her. "Lady...uhm...?" he began. "What are you doing down here?"

"His Majesty commanded a daily constitutional," she said imperially. "For our health. We require a second helping of dinner."

"Y-yes, at once. Lady...Two...?" he guessed and began to bustle about the kitchen. He placed a bowl onto the countertop and ladled watery gruel into it. Five watched the cook, staring contemptuously down her nose at him. When he presented her with the bowl she sneered.

"You don't expect me to eat this down here, do you?" Five asked, aghast. "Like a servant?"

"N-no, my lady!" the cook stammered.

"Bring it to the dining hall, you dunderhead!" Five shouted and pointed upwards.

The cook placed the bowl and spoon onto a tray and hustled from the kitchen. Five slowly walked after him. She left the kitchen, but not before seeing the quivering baby monster appear like a grotesque stick-puppet from behind the counter. Poppet moved unseen towards the stove, the stick held aloft. For a moment, the creature was held poised over the bubbling pot on the stovetop. The next moment, it had vanished into the soup with a plop.

Five was later seated at the dining table. The others slowly gathered for the midday meal. Five's three sisters entered like a line of ducklings. One looked at Five with irritation. Five stared back a challenge and crunched into a bite of toast. The butler appeared and Sinister Prime not long after. He took his seat at the head of the table.

"Are we well today, ladies?" he asked.

"Yes, Your Majesty," One, Two, and Three answered politely.

"Jolly good," Five muttered in a thickly-laid on accent.

Sinister Prime glanced over at her. "I beg your pardon?" he asked and set his napkin across his lap.

"Hm?" Five turned to him as if she hadn't heard.

A bowl of soup was placed before Sinister Prime. He took up his spoon and while he stared at Five, he moved to eat the soup. Five nibbled on her toast and fixed her gaze across the room, staring blankly into space. The spoon made it to Sinister's mouth. A moment later, he made a sort of strangled noise and then choked. Five attempted a neutral expression.

"Is everything all right, Your Majesty?" One asked.

Sinister fished about the soup bowl with his spoon. When he raised it again, there was a strange jawbone with many jagged teeth hanging off the end of the spoon. He stared at it, then wiped his mouth with his napkin.

"I would like a word with the cook," Sinister Prime said and rose from his chair. He departed from the dining hall.

That afternoon, when Five went looking for Poppet, she found him in the kitchen. He was sitting cross-legged on the countertop with a bowl in his lap. He was stirring the bowl's contents with a whisk. The cook was nowhere to be seen. The handsome rooster was sitting above on the pot rack. It turned its head to look at Five as she entered. Poppet looked up as well.

He smiled at her. "I hope you like your food spicy," he told her.

~ oOo ~

Five left her window open so Poppet could come in and out whenever he liked. He returned to her room that night. He climbed into her bed and curled around her. She pulled his arms close and brushed her lips back and forth across his knuckles. He was silent for so long, she thought he had fallen asleep. Five closed her eyes.

"I love you," Poppet announced.

Five smiled a bit and shook her head against the pillow. "No, you don't, sweetheart," she told him. "You just like sex."

"No," he told her. "I love sex."

She breathed out a laugh and turned in his arms to look at him. The blue-white glow from the stone on her nightstand illuminated the room. She could see a dark bruise coloring the side of his face. Five made a sound and touched his cheek.

"Poppet, what happened?"

"Two was mad at me," he told her.

Five felt a flash of hot anger. "That little –," she began. "I'll snatch her head bald."

Poppet brushed her hair back from her face. "Rouquine ardent," he murmured. "So angry."

"Damn right, I'm angry," Five told him.

He regarded her silently for several moments. "I was angry...before. I don't like to remember."

"You don't have to, Poppet," she told him. Five felt something other than anger. She felt resolve. Now there seemed to be a reason to persevere, other than self-interest. She whispered to him: "We'll get out of this."

"Oui, ma chère," Poppet said.

Five moved forward and kissed him gently. "You're very agreeable."

He nodded and his hands moved down her sides. "I have another idea."

"I'm sure you do."

Poppet shared his idea with her. Five was able to sleep afterwards, and the thought of what the next day would bring was pushed to the back of her mind. When she woke again, it was to the chiming of the grandfather clock. She counted the bell tolls. Her eyes fluttered closed at the fourth chime, but flashed back open at the fifth. With the sixth, she sat upright. Then came the seventh. Her heart leapt.

"Poppet," she hissed and shook him awake.

Poppet murmured and tried to pull her close.

"No, Poppet. Get up," Five said. "It's seven o'clock!"

Poppet yawned widely, seeming not to care. Five had to climb over him to get out of the bed. She hurriedly began pulling on her clothing. "Poppet!"

Poppet sat up as she hopped around on one foot, trying to pull up a stocking. He reached out and seized her around her waist and pulled her into his lap. Five pulled free and shook her finger in his face. "Naughty!"

He laughed at her. She tossed his trousers into his lap and said: "Put your pants on!"

Still smiling, he stood and obeyed. "Oui, ma chère," he said and his eyes were playful. He stooped and picked up her other stocking.

"We're going to be in so much trouble," Five said and tried to pull the stocking from his hand. He refused to release it. He pulled it from her grip and held it over her head. She jumped for it and grasped the end. He turned and she leapt upon his back. Poppet laughed and tossed her onto the bed. She let out a yelp of surprise. He tied her stocking around his neck like a tie.

"You are ridiculous," she told him. But she couldn't decide if she was mad at him or not.

He went to her wardrobe and looked at the clothes inside. He picked out a purple dress and turned to show it to her.

"That one?" she asked and climbed out of bed. "Okay. But I can't put it on by myself. You'll have to help me."

She raised her arms and he dropped the dress over her head. While she adjusted the top Poppet went to the vanity and picked up the purple flower there. He returned to tuck it in her tousled hair.

"What am I going to do with you?" she asked.

"I have an idea–," he began and she put her hand over his mouth.

"Shh," she told him and kissed him.

The bedroom door was thrown open. Five whirled to see Two standing in the doorway, a vindictive grin on her face.

"You're dead," Two said.

While Five stood paralyzed in momentary shock, Poppet flew forward to pin Two against the wall. Somehow the scissors from the vanity had materialized in his hand. Two looked stunned as the blades of the scissors were pressed into her throat.

"Poppet, no!" Five said, surprised at his sudden viscousness.

Poppet lost the advantage of catching Two unawares, and she threw him across the room with her telekinesis. He crashed into her vanity, shattering the mirror there. Five turned on her sister and for a moment, they were both trapped in a battle of wills. Neither proved stronger than the other and finally Five dashed forward. Making good on her declaration from the night previous, she seized her twin's hair and shoved her against the wall. Two's nails raked down Five's throat. With a cry, Five thrust her sister from her against the open door. The pair fell into a tangle of arms and stumbled through the doorway and into the hall.

Two stumbled backwards and Five fell against her, slamming them both against the wall. With a snarl of frustration, Two shoved Five back. Five hit the doorjamb and rebounded. Seeing her opportunity, Two seized Five by the back of her hair and sent her stumbling down the hall. Five caught herself against the wall and Two was upon her in a second. Five drove her elbow back into Two's side and she grunted in pain. Turning, Five shoved Two towards the railing overlooking the main hall. The other woman stepped back into her gown, tripping herself. Five lunged and pinned Two against the railing. Two cried out as Five bent her back over the railing, Five's hands clutching her twin by the throat. Two seized the front of Five's dress as she began to fall backwards. The fabric tore, and Five felt herself falling forward. She let out a sharp cry.

Poppet suddenly appeared to grasp Five around her waist and pull her back. Two struggled to right herself, clinging fast to the railing. Her face was flushed with anger. Before she could pull herself forward, Five used her telekinesis to give her twin one last shove. For an instant, Two's face was a mask of surprise. Just then, there came the blast of an explosion. Both Five and Poppet were thrown down the hall by the force of the blast. Five's elbow went through the glass panel in the grandfather clock, slashing in the inside of her arm. The skylight above the main hall shattered; the chandelier held in the center swung and toppled. There was the sound of Two's shriek and then the crash of shattering glass and crystal. Several more explosions made the building shudder as the gas lamps along the hall burst, igniting the carpeting and walls. The world was lost in a haze of dust and smoke. Five struggled to her hands and knees, coughing as bits of wood and plaster fell around her like hailstones.

For several dizzying moments, she saw a great blaze of white energy engulf her like the flash of an atomic bomb. She briefly glimpsed the sight of the glittering chandelier plummeting downwards. When she blinked, the image sank like a stone into the depths of her mind. Five realized she was seeing the last living moments of her sister Two. She was dead, but not gone. She was now a part of Five.

"Poppet," Five called weakly and coughed. The hallway behind them was a conflagration, the flames glowing orange through the haze of smoke and dust. There was a stirring and Poppet crawled forward. His hair was full of soot and debris. Five clutched her arm where blood was running freely. Her ears were ringing from the sound of the blast.

"Poppet! What happened?" she shouted.

Poppet grasped her arm, looking at the cut there. He looked up into her face. There were flakes of ash in his eyelashes and a dark smear of soot on his upper lip.

Five imagined she must look just as bad. "What was that?" she asked. "What was that explosion?"

"An emergency," he answered.

"Now we run?" she asked.

Poppet nodded. "Now we run."

~ oOo ~

Next time: Meanwhile, back at the bank...