By The Way
Ok so I know the new Fantastic Four movie isn't out yet, which kinda works in my favor. I've seen the trailer for it a lot and it's given me an idea.
"Hey there, babe." Johnny said as Merc's eyes finally opened. She was lying on her bed with him sitting next to her.
"Oh…" Merc said. She sat up. "It was so weird…I thought my parents were here."
"Umm…Mercy…" Johnny said.
"You mean it wasn't a dream?" Merc asked. Johnny sighed and shook his head. Merc groaned and dropped her head onto Johnny's shoulder.
"Hey, hun. Don't worry." Johnny said. "We'll…get through this. Just go talk to them. The sooner that happens, the sooner they'll leave."
"Really?" Merc asked.
"Yeah…I think." Johnny said. Merc sighed and lifted her head before sliding off the bed. Johnny went with her down the stairs to see Merc's parents sitting with Ben in the kitchen.
"Hey!" Ben said, noticing them first. He stood up and went over to them. "You ok, Mercy?"
"Yeah…no concussion or anything like last time." Merc said. "Although my head does hurt but that floor is hard so that's probably why." She looked at her parents. "Johnny…this is my mom and dad…Margo and Bill."
"Umm…hi." Johnny said.
"Nice to meet you, Mr. Storm." Margo said. Merc stopped herself from rolling her eyes.
This hot head better not have done anything to my baby girl… Bill thought.
"EXCUSE ME?!" Merc said. Everyone looked at her. "Since when do you have the right to just waltz in here and start calling me your baby girl?"
"I…didn't say anything." Bill said.
"Oh honey…she's a telepath remember." Margo said.
"Oh…that's why you're here." Ben said. "You heard about everything."
"That may be…partially why we're here." Margo said.
"Oh gee…so glad to know my parents care about me so much." Merc said, sarcastically. "They care so much, they drop me with my uncle six years ago, haven't spoken to them or heard from them since then…and then all this publicity shit happens and you two decide to make a grand entrance back into my life."
"Now Mercy…" Bill said.
"Don't!" Merc said. "You don't have the right to call me Mercy." The glass in front of Bill shattered making water spread out over the table. Bill and Margo jumped up to avoid getting wet.
"Hey, hey…relax now." Johnny said, moving over in front of Merc and putting his hands on her shoulders. "Ok remember the deep breath stuff Sue's been teaching you?" Merc rolled her eyes but nodded and took a few deep breaths. "You keep making things explode and we're gonna be in a bit of trouble there." He looked at Ben. "Where'd my sis go?"
"She and Reed decided it would be better to go and do some wedding planning." Ben said. Johnny nodded and looked back at Merc.
"All calm now?" He asked.
"Yep." Merc said. Johnny nodded again and returned to standing next to her. "So why are you guys here?"
"We missed you." Margo said. Merc raised an eyebrow. "We feel so bad for being away for so long and…"
"Cut the crap." Merc said. "Just tell me the truth so I don't have to go into your mind to find out."
"Well…that is the truth." Margo said. Merc rolled her eyes and looked down. Johnny looked at her.
"I can't deal with this." Merc muttered.
"Wanna get out of here?" Johnny whispered. Merc nodded slightly. He looked at everyone else. "Well you two know where the door is…Mercy needs some fresh air and I don't think Ben's up to anymore family reunion-ing today." Merc held back laughing. "Maybe some other time…see ya later Benny."
"Yeah." Ben said. Johnny didn't give Bill and Margo time to say anything because he and Merc just turned and left as fast as they could without running. Ben looked at his sister and brother-in-law. "Well…you heard him…you know where the door is." Bill glared at him but Ben just glared back. Eventually Bill and Margo left and Ben sat down again. "We definitely gotta get better locks on this place…maybe like passwords or something."
"So what exactly happened between you and your folks?" Johnny asked.
"Well like I said…six years ago they decided to go traveling so they dropped me at Ben's with a suitcase full of stuff for a few weeks." Merc said. "For a while I thought they'd be coming back but you know…weeks turned into months, months turned into years…it's why you never met them."
"I see." Johnny said. "Because you know…as your best friend then…I had the obligation to meet your parents."
"And now as my boyfriend you just did." Merc said. "Sorry about that."
"I've been through worse." Johnny said, kicking a can that was in front of him.
"Oh I bet you have." Merc said.
"Hey what's that mean?" Johnny asked.
"I dunno…ever been chased out of some girl's room by her big ass boyfriend?" Merc asked.
"Uh…let me think…no!" Johnny said.
"Alright then." Merc said. "So…what are we gonna do?"
"I can think of a few things." Johnny said, looking around.
"That doesn't involve taking me into an alley?" Merc asked.
"Yep…what about a movie?" Johnny asked, nodding at the Cineplex.
"Oh…sure." Merc said. "You're paying."
"Yeah, yeah." Johnny said. They spent a minute deciding what movie to see before Johnny bought tickets and didn't even bother with his 'I paid for tickets so you pay for snacks' thing and bought the popcorn and drinks before Merc could even say anything. She looked at him curiously.
Maybe she'll relax more now. Johnny thought. Merc sat down and looked at him, taking her drink from him as well before he sat down next to her. Her parents got her pretty stressed but she's been that way for a while now that I think of it. Merc frowned, trying to figure out how she's been stressed out for a while. I definitely don't appreciate being woken up by her rolling around and having nightmares. But what would they be about? Johnny looked at her to see Merc watching him.
"I've been having nightmares?" Merc asked.
"You heard?" Johnny asked. Merc nodded. "Yeah…I don't know anything about it really but you just roll around and mutter stuff and look kind of scared. Actually last night you made a few things start floating, which is why the lamp is broken now."
"Oh…sorry." Merc said. She frowned as she tried to figure out what was going on in her head. "I don't know what it's about. I didn't even know that I was doing that. And I'm stressed?"
"Yeah…at least around me you are." Johnny said.
"I'm sorry…I'm not meaning to be." Merc said. "Something's just…"
"Oh my god, you're Johnny Storm!!" Merc flinched as a couple of teenaged girls in little outfits came into the row in front of them and kneeled on the seats.
"Uh…yeah." Johnny said.
"You are so awesome!" One of the girls said. "Can we have your autograph, please?" They each held out note pads. Merc started wondering how many people actually carried notepads around. Johnny looked at her before writing his name on the pads and giving the girls a smile. He looked at her again and instantly looked worried as Merc looked like she was going to be sick.
"Hey, you ok?" Johnny asked, putting his hand on her shoulder.
"Uh…yeah…I'm fine." Merc said. She looked at the girls and flicked her hand, making them slide over and out of the way as the previews started.
"That was a little…mean." Johnny said.
"I know." Merc said.
"You sure you wanna be here?" Johnny asked.
"You just spent all that money. Yeah…we're gonna stay." Merc said. The more people that came in, the more Merc started feeling sick. For the last week she had had a good amount of control over her telepathy but today, things seemed to be going wrong. She couldn't find a way to stop all the thoughts entering her head.
This movie is going to be so cool!
I hope there's some cute actors in this.
Why did I let my girlfriend drag me here?
He's so sweet to have agreed.
Oh hot chick over there…wonder if I can get her.
Why are previews so long?
What's wrong with her?
"Merc?" Johnny said. He put his hand on her arm. "Hey…you ok?"
"I'm hearing everything, Johnny." Merc said.
"Ok, we're getting out of here." Johnny said. He didn't let her argue. He stood up, pulled Merc to her feet, and they left. Outside, things were worse for Merc. Johnny finally found a spot that was relatively free of people and then called Sue's cell phone.
"Hi Johnny…what's up?" Sue answered.
"Merc and I went to the movies but something's wrong with her." Johnny said. "She says she's hearing everyone's thoughts like when she first got the powers. She's been fine for the last week but now she looks like her head's ready to explode."
"Ok we'll be there in a minute…where are you?" Sue asked. Johnny told her and then hung up before going back over to Merc who was sitting in a corner, all curled with her hands holding fistfuls of hair at the sides of her head. She was rocking slightly.
"Merc?" Johnny asked. She looked up at him, her hands loosening their grip on her hair.
"Johnny, make it stop." Merc said, crying now. Johnny was instantly down on his knees next to her, hugging her. Something was terribly wrong and whatever it was, it was hurting Merc badly. Johnny didn't think it was just all the thoughts returning that was doing this to her. Merc whimpered slightly and felt Johnny's arms tighten slightly around her. She wanted it all to stop. She didn't care how it was going to stop…she just wanted it gone.
"I can't do anything, Mercy." Johnny said, quietly. "I'm so sorry…"
"Johnny?" He looked up to see Sue and Reed. They spotted him and ran over.
"What's wrong with her?" Reed asked.
"I don't know." Johnny said. He felt Merc slump somewhat against him and looked down to see her unconscious. "Maybe now she'll be ok for a while."
"Let's get her home and run some tests." Reed said.
"What's going on?" Ben asked a while later as Johnny came in, carrying Merc, and Reed and Sue went past him and into the lab to set things up. "What happened?"
"We don't know." Sue said. "But we're gonna find out." Ben looked at Merc who was still unconscious.
"Johnny, put her over here." Reed said. Johnny nodded and put Merc down on the examination table. He and Ben watched as Sue and Reed muttered to each other and kept looking at Merc.
"Come on, kid. I don't think we're gonna be much help." Ben said. He and Johnny went into the kitchen. "So what happened?"
"After we left, we walked around a bit before going to see a movie." Johnny said. "A couple of girls asked for an autograph and Merc got kinda mad so she made them move out of the way because they were right in front of us and blocking the screen. Then she started acted weird and as more people came in, the weirder she acted."
"Like when she first got her powers?" Ben suggested. Johnny nodded. "Ok…then what?"
"Well I made her leave as soon as we stepped outside, things got worse." Johnny said. "So I got her away from all the people and called Sue about it. Next time I looked at Merc, she was all curled up and looked ready to tear her hair out of her head."
"What is going on with her?" Ben muttered. Johnny shook her head. "You think it might happen to us as well?"
"What?" Johnny asked.
"Just…feeling all that pain…I guess." Ben said.
"I don't know." Johnny said. "I don't think so. I think it's mostly just because of her telepathy."
"But it hasn't been this bad before." Ben said, looking out into the lab. Reed had put the helmet thing back onto Merc's head. He looked back at Johnny. "What if they can't figure it out?"
"They will…they always do." Johnny said, not really believing himself. The two just sat there and tried to hear what Reed and Sue were saying but the couple was talking too quietly. There was a loud bang and Reed and Sue were yelling now. Johnny and Ben ran into the lab. A bunch of beakers shattered and a few things were now floating off the ground.
"Reed! What's going on?" Ben yelled.
"The helmet blew up…literally!" Reed said. A chair was thrown at him and his entire upper half moved to the side to avoid getting hit.
"What did you do to her?" Johnny asked.
"We didn't do anything!" Sue said.
"Obviously you did!" Johnny said as another chair was launched at Sue who stopped it while a force field.
"All we did was put a needle in her arm…we never got to inject…" Reed started but never got to finish because another thing, this time a table, was launched in his direction and he had to move his whole body to get out of the way.
"Well that must have done something." Ben said.
"She's unconscious…how would she know what we've done?" Sue asked.
"The unconscious mind is pretty powerful, Susie." Ben said.
"She must know something because she's only attacking you two." Johnny said. There was an instant where everything that was in the air froze before falling to the ground, a few things breaking. "Try not to stab her again, ok?" He sounded really angry as he walked over to where Merc was lying, still unconscious. He looked at her arm to see a bit of blood, obviously where Reed or Sue had stuck the needle in before all of the mayhem started.
Somehow they managed to do a few tests without anything happening. Once they finished, Johnny carried Merc up to her room and laid her on the bed. She groaned and opened her eyes.
"God…I have the worse headache." Merc muttered. Johnny smiled softly at her. He got up and got a bowl of water and a cloth before returning to her side. "What happened?"
"Wish I knew, baby." Johnny said, putting the cloth on her forehead after getting it wet. "You fainted and Reed and Sue have done a few tests."
"Again?" Merc asked. "Gee…what am I? A lab rat?"
"Starting to seem like it, doesn't it." Johnny said, smiling slightly. Although Merc was acting normal, she looked far from it. She looked really pale and her eyes seemed somewhat duller then normal. Johnny put his hand on her cheek.
"Do I seem any different?" Merc asked. "Something feels off."
"I dunno." Johnny said. "I'm gonna go see what they found out from the tests…you stay here ok?"
"Ok fine." Merc said. Johnny leaned down and kissed her softly before going back to the lab. The instant he entered he noticed that the others all looked uncomfortable and grave.
"Check it again, Reed. It's gotta be wrong." Ben said.
"I've checked it five times now, Ben." Reed said.
"I've checked it a few times." Sue said.
"What's wrong now?" Johnny asked. They all looked at him.
"Uh…the test results." Sue said. "They umm…all say the same thing. Reed and I both checked them over and over and the results are all the same."
"And the end result is…" Johnny prompted.
"Umm…Merc's powers are what caused her to…start feeling…unwell." Reed said. "And…they've begun to…hurt her…whenever she uses them."
"So we just get her to stop using them for a while." Johnny said.
"There's more to it." Sue said. Johnny raised an eyebrow at her. "Umm…every time she uses them she…umm…gets weaker."
"So in…in conclusion to all of this…" Reed said. "Her powers have…uh…they've begun weakening her. And so…the more she uses them…the weaker she gets until…"
"You're making it sound like the usage of her powers is killing her." Johnny said. No one said anything. Johnny's face fell. "No…come on…you gotta be joking. She can't be dying. No…Ben?" He looked at Ben. "Tell me their lying."
"Sorry, kid." Ben said. "I wish I could…god I wish I could."
"The only thing I can think of that'll help her is to get rid of her powers." Reed said. "But she's like you, Johnny…she won't do it. She won't go into the machine."
"So what? You want me to convince her to do it?" Johnny asked. Slowly, Reed and Sue nodded. "No way! She won't buy it. There's no way she'll believe that I want her to get rid of her powers without telling her what's going on and I don't think you guys want me to do that."
"No…we don't." Sue said.
"She's going to find out." Johnny said. "She can read our minds."
"I know…that's what's worrying us." Reed said. "I already started on finding a way to keep her from doing that…at least to us."
"What like a charm or something?" Johnny asked. Reed nodded. "So you're really not joking about this? Mercy really is dying?"
"For lack of a better term…yes." Sue said. Johnny felt numb. He didn't want to believe it but he knew it was true. The look on Sue's face, the way Ben was acting led Johnny to finally accept it.
"What's going on?" Everyone jumped and turned to see Merc standing behind Johnny. The confused and curious look on her face made them all relax somewhat. She hadn't heard anything.
"Nothing." Ben said. "How you feeling?"
"I'm ok." Merc said. "Guess I just needed some rest." She smiled but still looked pale. Johnny smiled at her and forced himself to keep other thoughts at the front of his mind so that Merc wouldn't be able to read the problem one. "I'm kinda hungry. Can we get take-out or something?"
"Sure…we'll get something delivered." Sue said, smiling. Merc smiled again. Johnny took her hand then looked down at their hands. Hers was freezing against his skin. He heated up his own hand and soon hers was warm as well.
"Come on Mercy." Johnny said. "We'll watch TV while they all order the food then go wait for it."
"Ok." Merc said. They sat on the couch and Johnny looked around for the remote. "It's over there." Merc pointed to where the remote sat on a speaker by the TV. "Want me to…"
"NO!" Johnny said, a little too quickly. "No, don't worry about it. You should…umm…save your energy and power for when we need it in a fight or…something."
"Uh…ok." Merc said, frowning. Johnny got up and got the remote. He gave Merc a smile and she just shrugged before cuddling up next to him. Johnny sighed in relief that she didn't ask any questions. He didn't know how long he was going to be able to keep this up if she did start asking.
Ok so the chapter is kinda long and there's not much with her parents. They will return though and you'll find out more of what's going on with Merc. I needed something to bring back some action and excitement into the story…especially when I bring in a villain. Not sure if I should have a new one or bring back Doom.
Also…I'm not sure if I should have Merc actually die or not……