Malibu Mall Madness
Disclaimer: "Monitors 1-8, no dummy! Monitors 9-16, no dummy!" - Meatwad, Aqua Teen Hunger Force
Chapter 6: Reunions.
The Malibu Mall
"Grrr..." Kyle Wildfire snarled as he stomped through the Mall. He had to get away from everyone for the moment. The young mutant grumbled and muttered under his breath, mainly various foul oaths towards the X-Men and Jenni Starr. As he muttered, he was stomping past a computer store, where a certain X-Woman was walking out with a bag containing some parts and items. In his anger, the electrokinetic was not watching where he was going, not realizing he was about to collide with the woman. "One of these days, one of these days, the Thunderbolt is going to rip the X-Men's damned heads off, turn them sumbitches sideways, and stick 'em straight up their roody-poo candy asses-!"
Bonk!
"Oof!" Kyle and the woman both muttered as they collided and hit the ground.
"Hey, you stupid jabroni!" Kyle snapped as he and the woman got up. "Watch where you're going!"
"Me?!" The woman snapped in an English accent. "You should be more careful, you-!" The woman stopped when she looked at Kyle. "...Kyle?" Kyle blinked in disbelief.
"Tessa?"
"...Kyle!" Tessa, aka Sage, grabbed Kyle in a hug. "Oh Kyle, I have missed you!"
"Ack!" The Bostonian yelped as he got swept up in the hug. "Tessa! Can't breathe!"
"Oh, sorry!" The young woman yet the young mutant go. "It's just I'm so happy to see you again! I was so worried about you."
"Yeah, yeah, yeah." Kyle nodded, brushing off his sleeves. "Where the hell you been, Tessa? Went back to that bald-headed bastard Xavier, huh?"
"Yes, I joined the X-Men proper." Tessa smiled. "I'm glad you and Jake are safe...Jake is alright, isn't he?"
"He's fine. Pissed, but fine." Kyle nodded. "Those bastard Joes dumped us in California and wouldn't let us help fight the Organization."
"Considering how you and Jake humiliated the Hellfire Club, I don't blame the Joes for hiding you."
"Took our parents, too. Locked them away in protective custody."
"Not surprising." Tessa nodded. "Considering how ruthless those Hellfire Club bastards are, they would go after your family, so it's understandable the Joes would cover their bases."
"Still don't like it, though." Kyle grunted. "Jake and I can protect our family. We don't need nor want the Joes' help." Tessa looked around.
"We shouldn't be talking in public." Tessa reminded her young friend. "The X-Men don't know that we know each other."
"So?" Kyle sneered. "Let 'em know! The Thunderbolt don't give a damn what they know or think!"
"Maybe you don't, but it may cause more problems." Tessa eyed the store. "Come on. Let's talk inside."
"Oh, you gotta be kidding the Thunderbolt!" Kyle grumbled as he followed Tessa quickly into the store. "The Thunderbolt hates this cloak-and-dagger crap."
"I know." Tessa chuckled. "You complained about it constantly when we shared information."
"This spy crap ain't the Thunderbolt's style. The Joes knew that, but they didn't give a damn."
"You and Jake did pretty well as spies." Tessa smiled.
"Yeah, yeah." Kyle grumbled. "Just because we hated the job doesn't mean we were going to half-ass it." He then looked at Tessa. "It is good to see you, Tess. Me and Jake have been wondering how you've been."
"I've been doing alright." Tessa answered. "Been dealing with some more troubles with the X-Men and Misfits."
"Heh heh." Kyle snickered. "Hopefully, those two packs of jabroni clowns end up tearing each other apart one day." Tessa rolled her eyes.
"You would like that."
"Yeah. Especially that damned frog."
"Why do you hate Toad so much?" Tessa blinked. She knew that Kyle hated all the X-Men and Misfits with a passion, but Toad seemed to bring out a certain kind of venom in the young Thunderbolt.
"Why? Because that amphibious bastard got to have a damn Keyblade. But not just ANY Keyblade. A Keyblade of friggin' electricity. Look at me, Tessa!" Kyle held up his fist, electricity crackling on it with a light buzzing noise. Tessa's eyes widened.
"Kyle, stop that!" Tessa whispered harshly. "General Whithalf told me you had to keep your powers secret."
"The Thunderbolt don't give a damn what General Whithalf thinks, wait, what?" Kyle blinked, putting his fist down. "You talked to that senile old prick? When?"
"When I was fleeing the Hellfire Club." Tessa explained. "He found me and helped me part of the way. He told me that he sent you and Jake to infiltrate the Hellions, and reassured me you were alright. He also asked me to keep you being a mutant a secret." Kyle threw his arms.
"That old bastard!" Kyle scowled. He moved to kick a display over, but stopped himself. "That sonofa-!"
"Kyle, calm down!" Tessa knelt down and put her hands on his shoulders.
"He just couldn't stop, could he?" Kyle grumbled. "He couldn't leave my family alone, and he couldn't even leave my friends alone! He had to get to you, too!"
"Kyle, please." Tessa pleaded. "He just wants to protect you."
"Everyone keeps saying that!" Kyle snapped. "No, they don't! The Joes don't want to protect me or Jake! They don't care!"
"Kyle, if they didn't care, why are the Joes trying to keep you and Jake safe from the Hellfire Club? People protect the people they love."
"They wouldn't me and Jake protect out family." Kyle countered. "We're not afraid of the Hellfire Club! We're not going to hide from those bullies!"
"Kyle..." Tessa hugged the young mutant. "The Hellfire Club are not just a bunch of schoolyard bullies, you know this. They are powerful, connected, dangerous, and ruthless people. They would stop at nothing to get their hands on you and Jake. You know this."
"Tessa..." Kyle sighed. "We can't run away from people like the Hellfire Club. We have to stand up to people like them. If he hide from them, it'll just give people like those bastards license to do whatever the hell they want, and that can't happen! That shouldn't happen! That is not why Jake and I agreed to help spy on them! We wanted to help stop them! And we're not doing that!"
"You are, Kyle." Tessa tried to reassure her friend. "Thanks to us, the Joes and the X-Men know a lot about the Hellfire Club."
"Yeah, but I'm a fighter, Tess." Kyle frowned. "The Thunderbolt should be on the front lines taking it to the Organization, not running around talking to people like some damned researcher!"
"Kyle, we can't win against the Organization and the Hellfire Club without information. Thanks to you and Jake, we have information. I know what you and the Superstars are really doing, it wasn't hard to figure out." Tessa smiled. "Knowledge is power, Kyle. The more knowledge we have, the better we can fight against them. Think about it." Kyle sighed.
"Knowledge can't kick Organization XIII's ass." The electrokinetic scowled.
A bookstore in the Malibu Mall
"...We might as well talk it out." Lila sighed. "But first, how have you been?"
"...Fine."
"That whole thing with your father, I know it must've been rough. I do hope you're holding up."
"I'm...dealing with it." Bobby sighed. "Lina said that it does get better." Lila mentally scowled.
Huh. So that bloody bug bitch actually provided some actual good advice. The interstellar teleporter thought. Still, just because she acted all nice towards Bobby doesn't mean she genuinely cares about him. She probably doing it to keep him under her thumb. After all, she's really mooning over the Blob. But she just has to bloody string Bobby along, simply because she can. I'll have to remember to punch that spawn of Jeff Goldblum right in the mouth next time I see her. Lila sighed, mentally casting out her jealous thoughts. Now was not the time for this.
"Look, Bobby...I just wanted to say I was sorry."
"For beating up my dad, yeah." Bobby finished, scowling "Sure you're sorry."
"I really am, Bobby." Lila continued. "I know it was not the best way to handle the situation, but I just couldn't help myself."
"Is that how you solve all your problems, by beating the holy crap out of them?" Bobby frowned, crossing his arms.
"Look, I get that you are mad." Lila held her hands up. "I do get it."
"You had no right to do that!" Bobby snapped.
"I know." Lila nodded. "But, let me explain..." She sighed. "Bobby, I...I was just angry. I-"
"You were just angry." Bobby grunted.
"I was angry about the things that your father was saying to you and about you at the concert."
"What do you care?" Bobby snorted. "You got fame and fortune. You're a big star! Why would you care about me?"
"Because..." Lila sighed. What am I supposed to say here? I can't tell him I'm a mutant myself. I also can't tell him I'm a West Coast Misfit. She looked at Bobby. God, I can't even tell him how I feel. Unlike that bitch Chakram, I actually do care about him. Times like this, I really hate being a West Coast Misfit. "...it...it wasn't right, the things your father said. You deserved better than that." Bobby's angry facade dropped a little.
"I...suppose." The ice-maker grunted.
"It was just..." Lila drooped her head shyly, trying to hide the slight blush on her face. Bobby still noticed the blush, and he let out a slight quiet sound of amusement.
She's blushing. I wonder what she's blushing about? The ice-maker pondered. You know, she is kinda cute when she blushes...
"...I...I know what it's like." Lila admitted. "I know what it's like to be stabbed in the back by people that were supposed to love you."
"Really?" Bobby frowned in disbelief. "No offense, but I doubt it."
"I really do." Lila countered.
"How do I know you are telling the truth?" Bobby frowned. "Not a lot is known about you guys before the band was formed. All I know about you in particular is that you are from England."
"I don't like those bloody vultures people call the paparazzi rooting around in me past." Lila explained. "None of the Superstars do. We have families, and we don't want reporters bothering them all the time."
"...that makes sense, I guess." Bobby wondered. What is wrong with me? Bobby thought. I wanted to tear into this girl! She and that blonde bimbo Starr ruined any shot I had at reconciling with my family one day. He looked at her. It was those eyes. I can't stay mad at her with those eyes of hers. They are pretty. Much prettier than Lina's. Lina is gorgeous, just her eyes aren't as nice as Lila's...
"You alright?" Lila asked in concern, unintentionally interrupting Bobby's train of thought. The ice-maker shook himself back to reality.
"Oh, uh yeah." Bobby nodded. He then took a breath. "I am really angry at you. I was hoping that maybe I could reconcile with my family one day. I knew that was unlikely, but there still was a part of me that hoped..."
"I've been through that myself, mate." Lila reassured, putting her hand on Bobby's shoulder. "I've accepted the fact that my family and I will never be on good terms again. You will, too. At least you got the X-Men." Bobby smiled slightly.
"And I guess for you, the Superstars are your family."
"Pretty much." Lila smiled. Not just the Superstars... "The Starr family practically adopted me, ha ha."
"Heh heh, I can imagine that." Bobby smiled. "I bet you get into some wacky stuff."
"We're a rock band that tours all over the world." Lila laughed. "You'd be surprised at all the wacky adventures we get up to!" Lila laughed. "I could tell you some stories."
"I'm sure you could."
"Well..." Lila smirked wickedly. "There was this one little misadventure we got into in Paris..."
Well, well, well! Looks like things are picking up! What insanity will happen next? Will the villains wreck the mall? Can the heroes save the day? Find out in the next chapter! Suggestions needed badly!