"Yellow and black? Come on, Cess," Velocidad complained while looking at himself in the mirror. The new uniforms were not his colours.
"I want Laura to remember that we're her friends and she can trust us," she said. "Now lets go. Julian must be losing his mind waiting."
At the edge of the island, facing San Francisco stood Hellion. The sky was orange and purple, the sunset bleeding all around them. He stared longingly into the the city. Somewhere among those streets was someone special to him and he knew she wasn't okay. Everyone saw the video at school. What they were forced to go through, what they were forced to do. She had been trying to get away from all of that. Julian's mother used to love saying that a tiger couldn't change its stripes. She said it in a weird, bigoted kind of way about poor people not being the same as the rich even if they got ahold of some money. Julian grew up hating the expression, but lately he had to reconsider. Maybe there was some truth to it, even if his mother used the words like a poisonous weapon. Laura tried time and time again to stop being a weapon but that's all the world wanted from her. And Julian himself, could never seem to shake off the shadow of heartbreak that loomed over him. He needed to find her. He needed to change things for both of them.
"You okay there?" Velocidad asked, snapping Hellion back to reality.
"Yeah, I'm good. Let's get a move on it."
Julian's signature green energy projected itself around his body before projecting over Mercury and Velocidad. He carried them upward into the sky and then forward to the city.
"Where to exactly?"
"The Tenderloin," she said. And with that they were off.
They landed in a dark alley and Cess asked the boys to head to the corner while she figured things out on her map. They walked down what seemed like endless streets turning left and right at seemingly random intersections until they were in front of a row of dirty looking buildings.
Mercury stopped dead in her tracks and turns back to Hellion.
"Look, maybe you should stay here. I think seeing you would be a lot to handle at first. Let me give her some warning."
"I want to see her. Please."
"You will. I promise. I...I just really need this to work, Jules. So please trust me."
Hellion looked away, biting his lip. He had more to say but he knew there was no point.
"Gabe, I'm going to go in. If she smells me and tries to leave I want you on the perimeter ready to hold her," she said before reaching into her bag and throwing two pairs of cuffs at him. "Ankles and wrists. I really need her to listen to me."
Mercury walked toward the third building on the right hand side of the street. A homeless man looked up as she walked by.
"Shiny skin, baby girl," he said, every syllable drowning in booze. "You got some shiny coins to match? Daddy hasn't eaten in a while."
Mercury ducked in front of the man and pulled out of a picture of Laura and put a twenty dollar bill in front of it.
"Have you seen this girl? Is she upstairs right now?"
The drunk man laughed. "That bitch. Yeah she's upstairs with the blonde one. Fourth floor. Door on the left. You be careful, sweetheart," he said grabbing the $20. "They'll eat you up." The homeless man snapped his teeth like he was a biting animal. It wasn't a pleasant sight.
Mercury walked toward the building. "Get help, old man. You can do better." She walked up the flight of stairs all the way to the fourth floor and paused before knocking. She took a deep breath and went for it.
A young blonde girl with dark-looking makeup opened the door, still leaving the chain on.
"What," she barked. It wasn't a question, it was an invitation to leave.
"I want to speak to Laura."
"She doesn't to speak to none of you anymore. So get the hell away from us." She said, slamming the door.
Mercury took another deep breath. Plan A didn't go according to plan. It was time for Plan B. She melted into a silver puddle of mercury and slid underneath the door before reforming inside. The blonde turned around in disbelief.
"Are you stupid? Get out of my house."
But Mercury didn't travel this far to get no for an answer.
"Laura!" She yelled out. "Laura! It's me, Cessily."
The blonde girl tried to push Cess out but her body dissolved and reformed around her hands.
The struggle was interrupted by a loud metal-sounding SNIKT. One of the bedroom doors had slid open and there she was.
"Why are you here?"
"I told her you didn't want to see her. I'm gonna call the cops."
Laura stared at Mercury and the scent told her that Mercury didn't come here alone.
"Leave it, Megan. It's okay."
Megan put the phone back down before she even managed to dial the first number.
"Are you sure, Laura? It's not a big deal to call."
Laura nodded.
"Well if you're going to talk to her I'll give you some space. I'll go to the bedroom. Be careful."
"Why are you here?" Laura asked again.
"Because I need your help," Cess said. "And I thought maybe you needed us too…"
"I am fine."
Cess took a quick glance at the window, a couple of the glass panes were destroyed.
"Are you? No offense, Laura but this place looks a little dangerous. If not for you, then definitely for her," she said, nodding in the direction of the room Megan just entered.
"No one will harm her. She's family."
"She's not your only family."
"Wolverine is-"
"I'm not talking about Wolverine. We saw the video, y'know? The stuff with Arcade. Laura, I'm so sorry." She walked toward X-23. Laura moved only a little so the light would reflect on her claws reminding Mercury who was in charge.
Mercury decided to sit on the couch instead. It was dirty and uncomfortable but considering the entire building had a certain skunk-covered-in-urine scent, it seemed oddly appropriate.
"I need your help. I know I have no right to ask. You're starting again for the the millionth time, but you can't start a new life with the old one handing over you. The loose threads will wrap around your neck and choke you to death. Please, Laura."
She retracted her claws.
"What do you need?"
"I'm trying to find Sooraya's mom. Actually, and maybe I should have said it before but it's more of a 'we' than an 'I'."
Laura took another sniff.
"Gabriel Cohuelo and Julian Keller." Another sniff. "Around the corner of the building and at the end of the street."
"Yeah and if it's okay with you, I want to tell them to come in. We think we know where Sooraya's mom might be and we're hoping you can help us."
Laura didn't make a single sound which Cess took as tacit agreement so she took out her phone and messaged them to come in. A second later Gabriel was at the door. Julian on the other hand took a little longer. When he opened the door, he froze at the sight of Laura. She looked back at him, her classic angry scowl all over her face. He took the first step, slowly. And then another and another..until he was in arm's length of her. He touched her with his metallic hands. But it felt wrong, it didn't like anything. He took a risk and hugged her. The skin of his arms touched her's. It was real. She was real.
Laura didn't hug him back but didn't seem to fight the hug either. Julian still broke it off before it got too uncomfortable.
"Sorry," he said. "I've just...really missed you, I guess."
Cess opened her mouth excitedly, staring at them in a silent ecstasy looking at them back and forth, like she expected them to kiss any second.
"Can we get back to it," Gabriel jumped in, impatiently.
Mercury gave him a death stare before telling Laura what little they knew.
"If Wolverine investigated then she's not there," Laura said. "You are wasting your time."
"Great plan, Cess," Velocidad said.
"Wait, Laura. Just give it a chance. If there's nothing there, you can come back to this. If this makes you happy. But just give this one chance. I really need your help. Please."
Laura looked at her, then at Julian. He was silent but his eyes were large with expectation.
"I need to find somewhere safe for Megan," she said, finally.
The bedroom door slammed open.
"EXCUSE ME?" Megan yelled out. "You can't just leave! We had plans. We're going job hunting again tomorrow!"
Julian smiled.
"How much do you want to make per hour?"
Megan was thrown back. "You can't buy me, you creep."
"If you need somewhere safe to stay while we borrow Laura and you need a job, I have the perfect proposal," he said. "There's this island off the coast, the former mutant island of Utopia. It's safe and it could sure use a little clean up."
Megan stared blankly at him, then at Laura, and then back at him.
"It's gonna cost you extra, rich boy," she said, heading to her bedroom, a smile all over her face.