Choices

Gee…it's been a month and only one review. Is this because I made Merc power-free for the time being because it's not gonna last.

Merc wasn't very happy. Not at all.

It had started the day she and Johnny went to join her parents. Just before they entered, Reed had sent a message to Johnny saying that they were needed because there was some bad stuff happening that they had to deal with. Merc sighed but told him to go ahead and go. Johnny just gave her a look but she pushed and he flamed on, flying away. She still joined her parents though and told them everything. They accepted it, surprisingly enough.

Every other day there seemed to be something going on that made the other four members of the (still for some odd reason) Fantastic Five leave. Merc spent more and more time with her parents but her suspicion of them remained high and personal issues weren't spoken with them. There was a news story about it: the youngest member of the Fantastic Five gets reunited with estranged parents. There were even pictures but, another surprise, her parents didn't appear to have done any interviews.

After a month of being power-free, Merc realized that she hadn't really seen Johnny at all except in the morning and when he got home from…whatever it was he was doing when he wasn't with the other three. She didn't know what to think of that so she just didn't comment on it. Subtly, she stopped eating and started losing weight. Merc had learned to keep it hidden what she felt and had gotten good at making people believe she was happy.

"So…Sue's birthday is coming up soon." Merc said, sitting on one end of the couch while Johnny sat on the other and her feet were on the middle cushion. The placement confused Johnny when Merc had instantly sat down and put her feet up so that he couldn't sit next to her. He had tried moving them, making it seem like a joke, but then gave up as she wouldn't budge.

"Yeah I know." Johnny said. "I still don't know what to get her though."

"Maybe…I dunno." Merc said.

"Well I know what she might like which is kinda like a gift to all of us." Johnny said. Merc tilted her head and raised an eyebrow. "Moving out."

"Her or you?" Merc asked.

"Us." Johnny said, pointing between him and Merc. Her other eyebrow joined the first one. "You know…me and her were living separately for a while and then all this happened and now we're living together yet again." He rolled his eyes but smiled. "It's just getting weird though. It's like one weird, dysfunctional family. We're all great together but nearly twenty-four seven of all of us…" Merc made a noise of disbelief that Johnny seemed to miss. "It gets to be too much."

"Uh huh." Merc said.

"Especially now that, even though we promised, Ben and I really can't keep friendly." Johnny said. He blinked and looked at Merc oddly. "What do you mean 'uh huh'? As if it didn't matter." Merc shrugged and crossed her arms. Johnny narrowed his eyes slightly as he noticed she hadn't looked at his face at all through their conversation and that the long sleeved shirt she was wearing, which had seemed the right size a few weeks ago, now seemed a bit too big. He shrugged it off, thinking that Merc had stretched it or something.

"Nothing, it's fine." She said, reaching up and tucking her hair behind her ear.

"What's fine?" Johnny asked, not really sure if she was talking about her monotonous statements or the idea of them getting their own place or something else.

"Whatever, everything's fine…doesn't matter." Merc said.

"Are you ok?" Johnny asked.

"Yeah, fine." Merc said.

"Will you quit saying that?" Johnny asked.

"Johnny I'm fine, really." Merc said, smiling. For the first time in…he didn't know how long…Johnny could see how fake it was. He frowned slightly, finally noticing something was seriously off with his girlfriend.

"Well…what do you think about it? Us moving in together?" Johnny asked.

"Aren't we already moved in together?" Merc asked.

"I meant by ourselves." Johnny said. "You know…without my sister or future brother-in-law or your uncle hovering around."

"Sounds ok." Merc said. Again, that disinterested tone. Something was wrong.

"If you don't like the idea…" Johnny said.

"No, it's good. It sounds great." Merc said with another fake smile. She still didn't look him in the eye and that seemed to unnerve Johnny as much as the fake smiles and the rest of Merc's odd behavior. "It'll be good for everyone. But can we maybe not go too far?"

"Well the floor two down from here has a room…" Johnny said. "Not like it's gonna be anywhere near as big as this one but…"

"Good." Merc said. "There's way too much room in this place. It's impossible to get it all messed up without powers." They heard a song start playing and both looked around. "Oh…it's Bill and Margo." Merc got off the couch and Johnny watched her walk over to where her phone was before answering it. "Hi…different ring tones for different people remember." Johnny watched as a real yet small smile appeared on her face as Merc walked back and forward by the time. "Yeah ok…sounds like a good idea. Umm…I don't think so. Busy probably." Johnny frowned. "Yeah…sure. Alright, see you then. Bye." She hung up.

"Gotten kinda chummy with your parents now, have ya?" Johnny asked.

"Only noticed now have ya?" Merc asked.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Johnny asked.

"Nothing." Merc said. Johnny stood up. Merc looked at him but still avoided eye contact. "It meant nothing."

"It meant something." Johnny said. Merc went into the kitchen. Johnny frowned and followed her. "Merc, come on, talk to me."

"There's nothing to talk about." Merc said.

"Merc, what is wrong with you?" Johnny asked.

"Nothing is wrong." Merc said.

"Then why are you acting this way?" Johnny asked. Merc shrugged. "Goddamnit will you look at me?" Her eyes finally lifted to his and Johnny hated what he saw. There was nothing. It's like the Mercedes he knew had turned into an emotionless zombie. He shook his head slightly, looking at her.

"Go away, Johnny." Merc said, lowering her eyes again as a sudden rush of hurt filled them. "Please." She walked around him and headed up to her room. Johnny didn't follow, just stood there looking at where she had been.

The next day Merc went and saw her parents, Ben was out with Alicia, and Reed and Sue watched as a somewhat frantic Johnny searched through all the files Reed had from all the tests performed on Merc.

"Are you gonna tell us what you're trying to do?" Sue asked.

"I'm looking for something…" Johnny said.

"I think we figured that out." Reed said.

"Something that'll help me with Merc…" Johnny said. Reed and Sue looked at each other. They were aware of the fact that Johnny and Merc spent little time together lately but they didn't know that there was a problem that required looking through the test records.

"You and Merc have a problem?" Reed asked.

"Is she pregnant?" Sue asked.

"We haven't done that in a while…" Johnny said, pausing in his search. It was true. Ever since she found out her powers were killing her, Merc hadn't even allowed Johnny to sleep in the same room as her. Her trust in his had been completely shattered from that day and with him being out a lot of the time didn't help.

"So…what are you doing?" Reed asked.

"Merc has been acting weird…haven't you guys noticed that?" Johnny asked. Sue and Reed shrugged. "It's like…I think she's gotten smaller, she's forcing all of her smiles and is basically acting like an empty shell."

"So you're looking through her test files?" Sue asked.

"Her powers are like yours." Johnny said. "They work off her emotions. So what if, when you got rid of her powers, you somehow altered her emotions?"

"That can't be possible." Reed said, walking over and joining Johnny in the search.

"But what if it is?" Johnny asked. "Then what?" Reed didn't have an answer.

"You're awfully quiet." Margo said. "Is everything alright?"

"Yeah." Merc said, kicking a stone. Unlike the other times before, they were just walking through a park instead of going somewhere. She faked yet another smile and her parents seemed convinced.

"I'm sorry to ask, it makes us seem horrible, but when is your birthday again?" Bill asked.

"Not for another few months." Merc said. "Sue's birthday is in two weeks though."

"We weren't asking about her." Margo said. Merc looked at them then around at the park.

"Mercy." She turned and saw Ben and Alicia walking up the path towards them. Another fake smile…she was happy to see them but she had been faking smiles for so long now that's all she could do.

"Hey Uncle Ben." Merc said. "Alicia."

"Hi." Alicia said.

"Bill, Margo." Ben said, nodding at Merc's parents. They nodded back. Merc looked between them. The tension was thick and, every time Ben saw Bill and Margo it was always that way. He just couldn't bring himself to forgive his sister and brother-in-law for making their daughter cry for so many nights. A gust of wind made Merc shiver more then it should have. That didn't go unnoticed by Ben who, like Johnny, only now seemed to notice how thin she had gotten. Johnny passed it off as the shirt getting stretched but, after looking at her carefully, Ben realized that it wasn't just the clothes, his niece actually was smaller then she used to be.

"Hey Mercy, do you wanna join us in getting some food?" Alicia said, trying to break the silence.

"Umm…well…" Merc said.

"We'd love to have you join us." Ben said. "It'll be good. We haven't talked in a while."

"I guess." Merc said. She looked at her parents. "I guess I'll see you guys later then."

It's all…

There's something…

Merc shook her head. She could have sworn she just heard her mother's voice and Ben's voice in her head for a second there. But that wasn't possible…she didn't have powers anymore.

Luckily for her, they went to a buffet that Merc used the excuse that she wasn't overly fond of so that her uncle and his girlfriend didn't push her to eat too much. She could tell that, even though he was rock, Ben was looking at with an odd, confused expression. Alicia didn't say much throughout the meal. She couldn't see the looks passed between uncle and niece and she didn't know that there was anything wrong Merc.

"Well I'm gonna head home. I have an assignment due for class in a few days and I haven't quite finished it." Merc said. She had started classes a while ago and, even though that could constitute as an excuse as to why she hadn't seen Johnny in a while, it didn't seem to fit into her mind. She went to classes during most days of the week and only taught the dance class once a week. She didn't get to go to the show because of an assignment that needed to be done but Sue had taped it and Merc got to see how good the students were.

"Well it was nice being with you again, Merc." Alicia said. Merc smiled slightly and hugged her. Alicia frowned as the younger girl let go. Merc hugged Ben and then left. "There's something wrong."

"What?" Ben asked.

"She feels…smaller…then before." Alicia said. "She doesn't seem very happy much either."

"How do you pick up on this?" Ben asked, smiling somewhat.

"Just because I'm blind, Benny, doesn't mean my other senses don't work." Alicia said, smiling.

"I think this is it." Sue said, holding up a few papers. "The test we did on her a few days after she had gone into the machine." Reed and Johnny rushed over and looked at the papers.

"I can't believe it." Reed said. "Johnny you're right. Somehow…when we got rid of her powers, bits of her emotions went with them. It's as if her emotions were tied so tightly to her powers that…"

"I get it, Reed." Johnny said. "God this is getting so bad. First we have to get rid of her powers because they're killing her…and now, without powers, she's like some emotionless zombie. Can't there just be a happy medium? Like…she doesn't die but she's not a zombie?"

"Give her back her powers and tell her not to use them." Sue said, deadpan. Johnny looked at the machine. It still sat where Reed had built it but hadn't been touched since Merc went in. It was starting to get dusty.

"It's still in working condition." Reed said. "It just might take a bit of…" The phone rang and everyone looked at each other before Johnny went and answered it.

"Hello?" He asked. "This is…ok." He looked at Reed and Sue and mouthed 'hospital', giving them a confused look. His attention snapped back to the phone. "Wait what? How? Well is she ok?"

"Merc…" Sue said, looking at Reed. Reed nodded and they kept their eyes on Johnny.

"Yeah ok…we'll be there in a few minutes. Yeah I guess." Johnny said. He rubbed the back of his neck. "Ok…thanks. Bye." He hung up the phone. "Merc is in the hospital. Someone saw her faint on the sidewalk and they called 911."

"Someone's gotta tell Ben." Reed said.

"Tell me what?" Ben asked, coming in through the stairwell door.

"Merc is in the hospital…we'll explain on the way." Sue said. They all rushed out of the apartment.

He stood over her, his silver eyes roaming over her prone body. He knew she knew he was there but refused to open her eyes. The one person in the whole city that had noticed his arrival was this small, seemingly powerless girl? He tilted his head, his eyes returning to her face and he leaned closer.

"…she seems fine…just suffering from exhaustion and lack of food in her system." He froze, his face only inches from that of the woman lying on the hospital bed. He turned his head and looked at the door. He straightened and looked back at the woman to see her eyes, finally, opened.

"Who are you?" She asked.

"Shh…" He said, pressing a silver finger against his equally silver mouth and smirking. Her eyes widened and both of them looked at the door as it opened, revealing four very upset people and a doctor.

"…and now she's awake." The doctor said.

"God, Merc. Are you ok?" Johnny asked, hurrying to the bed side. Merc looked at him then at the spot where, only a second earlier the silver man stood. Why had he been watching her? Her eyes returned to Johnny. "Merc?"

"Like the doctor said…" Merc said, slowly. "I'm just tired." Johnny put a hand on her forehead then slid it down to her cheek. Merc blinked and looked at him.

"We need to talk, babe." Johnny said.

So there you go. Mr. Silver Surfer makes his subtly grand entrance…or something like that.