808/R U OK

R U OK
Date of Scene:	27 March 2020
Location:	Separate Apartments
Synopsis:	Alex and Emma talk after the incident at the HFC club where they experienced their greatest fears, due to the Scarcrow's fear toxin. Emma discovers an odd mental
Cast of Characters:	Alex Summers, Emma Frost

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Alex Summers has posed:
    Alex Summers was one of many unfortunate visitors to the Dungeon that were caught up in the Scarecrow's latest fear experiment; unlike most, he was unfortunate enough to have a mutant power that nearly wrecked the building had it not bee for Power Girl's intercession. In the aftermath, he was taken in to be checked over by paramedics and admitted to a hospital overnight with symptoms of "exhaustion", and allowed to sleep until the following afternoon, where he was pronounced able to check himself out. At which point he discovered both his phone and wallet hadn't survived the night. A sympathetic nurse was willing to at least let him use her phone, first to call Frost International (to which the secretary would only tell him that Ms. Frost was unavailable), then to call an Uber to get himself home (which was a conversation with the driver).

    There, after a change of clothes, he was able to venture out with a backup credit card to purchase a new phone right off...and practically the first thing he does as he walks out of the shop and moves to the side to lean against the wall is to type in Emma's number from memory, trying to call her personal line directly as he taps a foot. "...c'mon, Emma, pick up..." he murmurs, closing his eyes, trying to fight back that horrific image from his visions of the beautiful CEO going up like a torch as his powers ran wild...

Emma Frost has posed:
Emma's cell phone rings twice, then the call is redirected to the same secretary that had answered Alex the first time. "Ms. Frost's office. How may I direct your call?". Emma seems to have her cell phone forwarding calls, which isnt unheard of.

Alex Summers has posed:
    "Ah, Alex Summers again." Alex begins. "I'm just trying to check on Miss Frost, I wasn't able to get an answer to her condition before." He frowns a bit, shifting from foot to foot. Is she unconscious like he was? He can't imagine what it would have been like for a telepath to be exposed to everyone in the place seeing things like he did...

Emma Frost has posed:
"Ah yes. Mr. Summers. Ms. Frost is still unavailable to take calls." She pauses, her voice quieting. "She has been answering texts though for the past hour or so. Her phone is set to forward to her office until tomorrow." Back to her normal pitch, she says, "I can leave another message that you called."

Alex Summers has posed:
    "Ah...no, thanks, I'll see if I can contact her another way." Alex says, sounding grateful at the hint. "Have a good day." He hangs up, then hold sup his phone in both hands now, opening up his next window then starting to type.

    'R U OK? Can't get through by phone. Worried about you. *hug emoticon*

Emma Frost has posed:
Emma had been in the Hellfire infirmary overnight, letting the toxin pass through her system. She had been out of the infirmary by the time she gets Alex's text for an hour or so, sitting in her apartment, "resting" for the rest of the day.

Resting so far had consisted of throwing out her clothing from the night before, ordering a six pack of raspberry lemon sparkling water brought to her apartment, and sitting in pajamas on the couch feeling morose while occasionally absently replying to texts from her office.

Her outfit had been ridiculous. Twenty years out of style, no one wears that anymore. She knows, intellectually after she came to her senses, after speaking with one of the doctors and Sebastian, that she had ingested a fear toxin. But even knowing that didn't help the sinking, ugly feeling inside her that her fears were truth.

When her phone buzzes, she picks it up, expecting to answer another mundane question from any number of her high level employees that have been texting her. Seeing the message is from Alex, she puts the phone back down. She can see what she saw in him last night: pity and mockery. Was that real? was it part of the illusion? She waits a few minutes, going back and forth on it before she picks up her phone and taps out her reply.

'Out of infirmary. Phone forwarding for now, drs orders. At my place resting. Are you hurt?'

Alex Summers has posed:
    Tension drains out of Alex's body as he pauses, closing his eyes to rest his head back against the wall behind him for a moment as he inhales deeply, then exhales, relaxing slightly. After a moment, he opens his eyes again and resumes texting.

    'Exhausted, they said. But not hurt."

    He pauses, then resumes after a moment.

    'So relieved. When woke up, was still remembering what I saw. Saw you hurt. Nightmares. No injuries?'

Emma Frost has posed:
Emma reads his texts and sighs softly. She stares at her toes for a couple of moments.

'No. Just overwhelmed by the toxin. Doctors said it was a hallucinogen.' She hits send. Then she bites her lower lip. 'I didn't like what I saw of you.'

Alex Summers has posed:
    Alex winces as he reads, frowning quietly. Of course she would. His power went wild. He wrecked a chunk of the club...he could have destroyed all of it if he hadn't been removed. He doesn't blame her for it.

    'I'm sorry.'

    He starts typing, then deletes several times, before finally adding.

    'I'm glad I didn't hurt anyone.I understand if you don't want me around. As long as you're safe.'

Emma Frost has posed:
Emma looks down at her phone and lets out a tiny noise of distress. She puts the phone down on the couch beside her, drawing her knees to her chest and burying her face for a few minutes. Maybe it hadn't been an illusion until the Sentinel had come. Maybe everything before that HAD been real.

She finally picks up her phone, almost seven or eight minutes after Alex's text.

'I'm safe. If you feel that way, I understand. I don't want you to feel obligated.'

Alex Summers has posed:
    Meanwhile, Alex is forced to just...wait. As time drags on without a response, his mind conjures the worst of responses. After all...someone like Emma, who would believe he ever had a serious chance with a woman like her? Maybe she's just figuring out how to let him down gently. Or she's just not going to talk to him again. Maybe ever again. Maybe-

    And then his phone chirps as he jumps a bit, then quickly scrambles to respond.

'What way? I don't feel obligated. I nearly blew up your club. I could have killed you. I understand if you think I'm just too dangerous to be around like I am. I couldn't forgive myself if I hurt you.'

Emma Frost has posed:
Emma bites her lower lip again, then sighs softly. She swallows, then pushes the 'call' button, letting the phone ring. Her heart pounds, though she purposefully smooths her expression, taking a deep breath and forcing herself into an icy calm.

Alex Summers has posed:
    The phone rings..this time faster than the text. Alex takes a deep breath, then lets it out before he picks up. "Emma." he says immediately. He doesn't say anything further, letting her talk first.

Emma Frost has posed:
"Alex..." Emma leans back on the couch, staring up at her ceiling. "I wish you were here," she sighs softly. "I just want you to want to be, you know?"

Alex Summers has posed:
    Alex frowns uncertainly. "Of course I want to be. I'd go now, if you wanted." He pauses. "But if you're afraid of me..." He trails off, then sighs a bit. "I don't...I don't want to hurt you. Or make you scared of me, that's the last thing I want to do."

Emma Frost has posed:
There's some silence. "I'm not afraid of you," Emma replies, a touch of haughtiness in her tone. "I could turn you into a head of broccoli, Summers." It's a little bit of bravado. "Maybe a turnip." She giggles a little, but squeezes her knees closer to her chest. "I... saw you... everyone... they despised me. And then one of Trask's stupid... stupid robot extermination machines.... I just." She reaches for the can of sparkling water and takes a swig. "What do you mean, you nearly blew up the club?" She hadn't seen it.

Alex Summers has posed:
    Alex furrows his brow for a moment. "...hold on." he says, fiddling with his phone a bit until he can switch it over to a video call, looking into the camera. "That's...not what you were talking about?" he says uncertainly. "I don't despise you. I saw..." He gets a slightly haunted look. "My powers went wild, they...everyone burned. Including you. And then you...your body it..." He cuts off what he was trying to say. "...I lost control. Not as bad as I thought. But I nearly blew away Tony Stark and his wife, apparently. And the building. Power Girl yanked me out and took me into the air before I exploded." He doesn't remember that the reason Stark lived was because of Sebastian, because he'd feel even worse about that. And nearly frying Harley.

    He rubs his face with his other hand. "...your....corpse was talking to me. Telling me...saying things that I know wasn't you, but at the time..."

Emma Frost has posed:
Emma flips her phone to video mode too. Her hair is pulled back into a messy ponytail, and she's not wearing any makeup. Plus her eyes are slightly puffy. "That must be what Sebastian meant when he said he was glad we are insured." She sighs softly. "You didn't hurt me, Alex. See? I'm fine." She gives a half smile at the phone. "I'm not dead, though this headache makes me wish I were." She looks away.

Alex Summers has posed:
    "Fuck yeah, I bet." Alex says fervently, frowning. "I can't imagine what it was like to feel all of that mess." He does look more than a little relieved to see Emma in person, so to speak, as his voice softens. "I'm glad it's nothing worse than a headache."

Emma Frost has posed:
Emma tilts her head, looking back at him. "Do you... want to come over? You can see for yourself I'm still here." And Emma being Emma, she can check his mind for truthfulness, because that's just how she is.

Alex Summers has posed:
    "Yes." Alex says immediately. "I'll grab an Uber over." Because seeing her on the phone just makes him want to see her in person all the more. "See you soon?"

Emma Frost has posed:
"Yeah. Your key should still work," Emma replies. "See you soon." She gives him a grin before hanging up.

Then she leans back on the couch again, letting out a long, relieved breath.

Alex Summers has posed:
    A moment later there's a text. 'About that. I didn't really have functional pants after last night. Will need a new key.'

    But other than that, Alex will...take an Uber to Central Park and have it wait. Run off into the woods. Fire off his current plasma charge carefully into the air. Run back and then ride over to Emma's place before the local police to find out what the hell is going on with people shooting off plasma bolts.

Emma Frost has posed:
Once Alex arrives to the Hellfire building, the concierge at the front desk is able to print him a key for the 6th floor and Emma's apartment easily.

Emma is still on the couch when he arrives, idly flipping through her emails and sipping her water.

Alex Summers has posed:
    Alex unlocks the door, then slips inside, sliding off his sneakers as he closes the door behind him. "...hey." he says, seeing Emma on the couch, then padding over to sit down beside her. His mind is a mess of emotions. Worry for Emma, worry about what she thinks of him trashing her place, worry about what she saw, and afterimages of what he saw, of a burning skeleton hissing poisoned words...he tries to dismiss the last quickly, shaking it off, then hesistantly opens his arms, watching Emma in silent invitation.

Emma Frost has posed:
She stands, moving over to him and sliding her arms around his neck, leaning up to kiss him gently. She lightly skims his surface thoughts as she does, and a small shiver goes down her spine at some of the more horrific parts. Emma tweaks some of the memories just a touch so the worst of them are lessened in intensity.

Alex Summers has posed:
    Alex immediately slides his arms around Emma, pulling her close as he gives her a quiet squeeze and kisses her back. There's no disguist or distain in his mind, only relief and...comfort at having her there, like a knot inside him has relaxed a bit. The visions he saw are...pretty bad. Enough that until Emma pushes them back, they're weighing on him.

    And there's an odd...knot, in his mind. In his memories.

    It wouldn't even be detectable normally, likely, but his mind keeps trying to go back to it, like an itch he can't scratch, then sliding off it, forgetting about it, then repeating the cycle. When Emma pushes back on the memories from that night, his mind stops going in circles with it, which only contributes to the relaxed state as he reaches, up, stroking her mussed hair quietly.

Emma Frost has posed:
Emma frowns as she pulls slightly away from Alex, breaking the kiss. "Mm. I hope you brought something to change into," she teases lightly. But telepathically, she prods a little more, not fully delving into his mind.... but there was a... sort of knot there. "After last night all I want is to feel your arms around me."

Alex Summers has posed:
    Alex snorts a little, a crooked smile on his lips. "Nope. You'll have to put up with me wearing the same thing tomorrow if I'm staying." he says amusedly. He can't really sense the poke, so he doesn't react to it. But the knot appears to go pretty deep. Down into his subconscious most likely. He reaches out, manhandling Emma just a bit as he wiggles to stretch out on the couch, pulling her on top of him where she can rest on his chest and his arms cand rest loosely around her middle.

Emma Frost has posed:
Emma giggles as she's manhandled-- anyone else trying that, especially with her already digging around inside their skulls, would likely have been reduced to a drooling idiot before they made the first attempt-- and snuggles down on top of him, dropping a couple of kisses along his jawline.

She continues to lightly, carefully prod and tug at the knot, like it was a ball of very expensive yarn she was trying to untangle. She stays gentle and slow in how she is manipulating the knot... for now, undetectable by someone who isnt also a telepath. But this... huh.

"So that professor at the school... the mutant school... you said he is a telepath and he helped with a block you had?" she asks casually.

Alex Summers has posed:
    Alex's chest rises and falls under Emma as he mmms?, distracted as he nuzzles back against her neck and hair lightly as she kisses. "No? What block, you mean why my powers didn't kick in until a month ago? He wasn't sure why it happened, he said. But he didn't poke around in my head or anythiung really, other than to make sure I wasn't a threat. Xavier is his name." he confirms. He shifts a bit, a sense of unease running through him the more Emma tugs at the knot. It's not done by someone with Emma's skills, certainly, but it's a pretty good one. Part of it is already unravelled, however, meaning the construct as a whole is weakened, and slowly starts to come undone as Emma tugs at it. "Why, are you poking at why I hallucinated that stuff?"

Emma Frost has posed:
Emma considers a moment before she responds. "Mm. Alex? There's something here... I don't know what it is, but its deep. It's not natural either... not something your mind made itself to protect itself from trauma." She shifts, straddling his waist and looking down on him, concerned. She has stopped picking at it for the moment. "It is... it's like a seal, that's been damaged." She leans down, kissing him suddenly and fiercely for a few moments.

Alex Summers has posed:
    Alex is listening, really! Though the kiss is...very distracting, so his mind goes all wibbly wobbly a bit while he's enjoying that as he returns the passion, kissing back deeply, before he breaks it, looking unsure. "...is it why I couldn't use my powers before?" he wonders slowly. "Or...do you know...when it happened?" For the record...early teen years, probably 14-15.

Emma Frost has posed:
Emma frowns. "I'm not sure. I..." she bites her lower lip, tracing a finger down his chest. "I can try and see what I can without disturbing it more..." she looks thoughtful. "I... if I do that, Alex, its..." she hmms. "I'd see everything." She must be feeling kind tonight. Normally she wouldnt grant such a warning.

Alex Summers has posed:
    Alex frowns, thinking that over. "I trust you." he says after a moment. Even if it's a lot of hormones talking. "I mean...I don't know what it is. But I'd rather you see it if anyone is going to." he decides.

Emma Frost has posed:
Emma closes her eyes, taking a deep breath. "I... can bring you with me. I think." she leans back down and kisses him again...

And pulls him into a mind scape. Her own powers are the engine creating it, but his thoughts and desires shape it. At first, it's like they are both floating in a sea of chaos... but the mind scape settles and becomes a pristine outdoor place, with a bit of snow on the ground, and the skies in the distance shimmering with color. Emma looks around. "Mm. This is something old, I think."

Alex Summers has posed:
    Alex looks around uncertainly. "Mmm. Alaska." he says. "At least it's summer." He glances at Emma amusedly. "With your normal outfits you'd freeze solid otherwise. He looks curious. "Is this how you always experience memories you look at?"

Emma Frost has posed:
Emma handwobbles. "Yes and no. It's more... direct for me alone. This is to help you see and understand it better." She licks her lips, glancing slyly to him. "And... I can change things... create something just as I want it, if I want." There's a... interesting thrill as she considers some entertaining possibilities for sharing a mind scape with Alex...

She shakes her head, focusing a bit. "This is older than where the knot is. But its... stable." She looks around.

Alex Summers has posed:
    Alex gets a thoughful look, then walks over to Emma, regarding her curiously, before he reaches out and extends an index finger, then pokes her. In the boob. Just to see if it feels the same! "This is where my dad's last posting was, before the plane crash." he says quietly. "Last time my brother Scott and I were together before we got separated by the foster system."

Emma Frost has posed:
Emma makes a short noise of surprise. "Alex!" she half laughs, shaking her head. "If that's what you want to do..." and for a moment the mind scape shifts, and Emma does too, dressed in almost see through lingerie instead of the pajamas she had been wearing. But it's only a moment, and the mindscape shifts back from a fancy, almost royal bedroom to Alaska again. Emma is now 'wearing' warm boots, pants, and a slightly puffy white jacket.

"This is something you've been thinking of a lot lately?" she asks, tilting her head. "I can see it, having been reunited with your brother again."

Alex Summers has posed:
    Alex grins. "I just wanted to see if everything felt the same!" he protests, holding up his hands, watching that flicker of lingerie with interest. "Maybe....after this though." he says, looking interested at the possibilities now himself. He mmms, then nods a bit. "...I don't know why, really." he admits, sliding an arm around Emma as he gives her a little squeeze. "I know that the Scott I remember...he's nothing like the Scott now, probably. Other than being bossy, possibly." he adds dryly. "I don't know, I haven't gotten to even really talk to him with all the things he's off doing."

Emma Frost has posed:
"Its beautiful here..." Emma says, watching the colorful lights dance across the sky. "Mm. I'm going to bring us close to where the block is. Don't be afraid as things shift, Alex, it's just your mind organizing your thoughts and forming this place from them." With that, she reaches out with her mind and pulls towards the knotted seal in Alex's head.

Alex Summers has posed:
    Alex nods slightly, his fingers tightening briefly as there's a little surge of nervousness from him. "Yeah, okay." he murmurs, watching as the image seems to shift. Not Alaska...or at least, not mountainous country. Very flat. Midwest somewhere, perhaps?

    Definitely suburbs, from the look of it. A school, an older one, with the front doors and the area around it done up like a stylized castle tower, though the attached newer wings look more standard cheap and simple construction. A much younger Alex is standing outside, adjusting a backpack strap over one shoulder over a purple and white letter jacket as he looks around with an expression of mild annoyance, then checks a cheap digital watch on his left wrist. He's wearing a very different outfit too from the other kids making their way out to a nearby parking lot where a couple busses wait or teens are getting into cars t drive home...khaki slacks, and a polo shirt in a dark green, to the other kid's more relaxed jeans and t-shirts, or sun dresses and blouses/skirts for the girls. Not really his colors. His hair is trimmed neat and short and parted on the right, isntead of the mussed look he has in the present day.

    There's almost an immediate sensation of revulsion from Alex. "...god I hated that fucking shirt." he mutters.

Emma Frost has posed:
"Awww. You were adorable." Emma slides up beside him, in tight fitting jeans and a tank top now. She looks around, but for her... it's more like feeling around. "Mm. Something strange here. Like there is a piece missing..." with her mind she reaches out and hunts... looking for the bit of string, so to speak, to tug on. It's not easy to find.

All Alex would see is a look of concentration on her face, though. She glances to him momentarily while she "looks", giving him an encouraging look.

Alex Summers has posed:
    Just then a girl comes running up to him. Dark hair back in a long french braid, plaid skirt, white blouse, a little ribbon tied at her neck that matches the bottom of the braid. "Sorry Alex! Let's head home..." the girl says, as Alex mmphs. "Kate, it's about time...c'mon, we can still make the bus if we hurry..." And they start running that way.

    But it didn't happen this that way, the figures jumping a bit, flickering as Emma finds that loose string on the knot and tugs lightly as Alex sways, a wave of dizziness washing over him as the memory flickers and shifts. "Kate was late...and we went home late." he says in a monotone, the bus pulling as the two figures wave at it, then start walking down the sidewalk instead, before vanishing and resetting to their start position. Then it's just Alex again, standing and waiting as the implanted memory tries to reassert itself again.

Emma Frost has posed:
Emma frowns deeply. "It... it's a false memory. Hold on Alex." Emma deftly untangled another knot in the series of knots... then stops. "This is.. almost surgical. What in the world...? Alex, who was in your head?"

She lightly moves the other knots, not untangling them yet, seeing how far they go. "...this isnt the work of a normal telepath..." she murmurs to herself. "What kind of monster would... do this?"

Alex Summers has posed:
    Alex sways a bit as Emma works, watching as the false memory replays again. This knot is tied not just to this moment, to a period of maybe fifteen minutes, but leads off into Alex's subconscious, tied to something hidden there. The broken part of it seems...much like a supression of memory as well, but a more active one, something torn free...probably by Alex's own will struggling against it. It might have been what was keeping him from realizing he had power, unconsciously bleeding it off at night, tied to his REM sleep.

Emma Frost has posed:
"Alex..." Emma looks over to him. "This goes deep. Very deep. And I don't know if your mind will handle it." She mentally holds the central knot: pulling it loose will loosen all the rest at once, freeing whatever memories... or worse... have been locked back. She moves to him, sliding her arms around his neck, kissing him gently. "Do you trust me, Alex? I will try and shield it."

Alex Summers has posed:
    Alex shivers a bit as Emma presses up against his back, blinking slightly, before closing his eyes for a moment. "...when I was hallucinating...there was a demon. With a knife. He looked like...a boy. And he hated me. But I'd never seen him before. I should remember something like that, right? I should remember someone....hating me like that." He reaches up, covering Emma's hands with his own. "...I'd rather know. If that's what this is...I want to know why I can't remember this. Why my powers were locked away."

Emma Frost has posed:
Emma nods. "Hold onto me, Alex." She waits until he has a good hold on her... its isnt real, exactly, but it will give something for him to focus on... and then she tugs that final, master knot free.

Alex Summers has posed:
    Alex lets out a gasp, swaying as the stubborn knot begins to unravel. The image resets itself. This time, Alex is dressed the same, but is actively searching around the side of the building, frowning. He pauses as he finds a girl's ribbon snagged on a branch. //This is Kate's...she never takes this off when she's got the braid on. The heck?// He looks around, then there's a sharp female cry muffled around the building that has him taking off like a shot and rounding the corner.

    In one of the little 'alleys' between the buildings where there are no windows, just some old pallets and a dumpster, Kate is struggling with an older boy, who's gripping her firmly by the back of the neck as he pins her against the wall with one hand. The other is holding a folding knife, the blade out. The boy looks much larger that Alex, maybe older than a senior, with a squashed nose that looks like it was broken and never reset properly, with a scar running over his top lip.

    "Shut the /fuck/ up you little bitch! No Braaaaad to listen to you whine now..." Crooked teeth grin as he leans in. "Still remembered that 'thump thump' when he went under the wheel...fuckin' boy scout deserved it. But. /YOU/." He bangs her head into the wall. "You just had to fuckin' run your mouth and tell them it was me, didn't ya! You know where my old man fuckin' sent me!?' He scrapes the knife along the wall next to the terrified girl. "Lemmee show you somethin' I learned..."

    Alex freezes, staring, then after a moment jerks out of it, running forward to grab a loose board lying by the pallets and charges at the other by, bringing it down on his back as hard as he can. The older boy lets out a shout as a loose nail gouges into his skin, shocked free enough that he jerks back and reflexively shoves hard against Alex, sending him careening across the alley to slam into the wall.

    "Oh /fuck/! It's replacement Braddy!" he singsongs, his eyes glinting with an evil delight as he sees Alex, then smashes Kate's head into the wall again, the dazed girl falling to her knees as the older boy advances on Alex.

Emma Frost has posed:
Emma flinches, feeling everything Alex does as the true memories begin to pour from the tied off space. It's like a wound inside his mind, one that had been stitched up by a telepathic surgeon. But why? Emma watches the memory with growing horror. Oh no.

Alex Summers has posed:
    Alex scrambles to his feet, swaying a bit, just in time for the older boy to shoulder check him straight back into the wall as he lets out a wheeze, doubling over as he goes back to his knees, then gets kicked in the chest. ""Man, it's fucking /CHRISTMAS/! I get to carve up the little bitch who fingered me, AND I get to kill her brother /twice/!" the boy cackles, before singsonging again. "C'mon /Braddy/, get up! Don't be a little bitch like the original, all wide-eyed going under the bumper! That terrible aaaaaccident." the boy croons.

    Alex rolls up, coughing as he catches his breath, then lets out a growl as he throws himself at the larger boy, tackling into him to knock him back before another elbow to the back of the head staggers him back.

    "Whatssamatter Braddy boy? Man, you suck at this."

    Alex shakes his head. "I'm /NOT/ Brad..." he shoots back angrily tears lining his eyes. "Shut up, you fucking psycho!"

    In the air around the staggered blonde boy, concentric rings start to form, shimmering in the air as a heat haze starts to rise around him.

Emma Frost has posed:
Emma knows what is about to happen. She can't even say she feels pity-- more like an icy sense of justice. She holds onto Alex, making herself a psychic rock for him to cling to as the memory crashes into him.

Alex Summers has posed:
    Older Alex just sways, as the knot tears open further more and more leaking out as he gasps.

    His younger self scoots back as the older boy stares, then starts letting out a cackling laugh. "Oh shit! You're a fucking /mutant/? Man, they just picked the most defective fucking replacement Brad they could.../mutant/ who sparkles!' He lets out a cackling laugh, then advances with his knife, leaning over Alex as he sways, blood running down the side of his head where the elbow hit.

    "My dad and I agree on one fucking thing mutie...only good mutie's a dead fucking mutie. Soooo, I'm gonna give you a new smile..." The boy mugs a wide, exaggerated grin. "...then I'm gonna ram a few things inin little KateKate and put this knife back in your hand. Papers love that murder suicide shit."
    Kate whimpers as she staggers, trying to get to her feet then falling behind the stack of pallets as she stumbles, as Alex is grabbed by the throat, hyperventilating now as hte knife comes up right under his chin. "Whatcha got for that, bratty /Braddy/?"

    Alex pantss, the rings around him building powerfully suddenly as the older boy gets a uncertain look, then grits his teeth. "Stop it! Stop whatever the fuck you're doing, or I'll...."

    And then Alex lets out a shout, his eyes blazing with energy and for a moment there's a brilliant star for about ten feet in any direction, and a choking, echoing scream from the bully as he bursts into flame, the plasma stnuffing it out as his soft tissues evaporate into ashes, his bones blackening as fire licks out of his eye sockets, the cheap knife handle blazing as the plastic instantly turns into liquid and it tumbles out of the blackened corpses hands, before it simply evaporates, the bully's body vaporizing completely right in front of Alex's eyes, before he topples backwards to the ground, his eyes wide and terrified as he looks at the drifting ash that used to be the other boy, a circle of flames burning with him in the center, just short of where Kate tumbled behind the pallets. Not that she's stayed there, as she's crouched down, her eyes wide and terrified as she looks at Alex.

Emma Frost has posed:
"Its all right," Emma whispers in Alex's ear. "You were protecting your sister. You were protecting yourself," she murmurs softly, soothingly. That was the memory. She could understand it had it been hidden organically... the mind protecting itself from trauma. But this had been artificial, with a false and implanted memory instead. "Alex, I'm here," she runs a hand through his hair. "There's more. The person who did this to your mind..." she pushes away the last pieces of the mental seal, already broken.

Alex Summers has posed:
    There's a little *snap* mentall as the knot comes free completely. The end cloaking the trauma deep in his unconscious mind, the core of his fear of losing control, of failing to keep his powers in check, unwinding and dissolving as his younger self stares in horror at what he's just done.

    "My. No, we can't have this." says a male voice. English. Upper class.

    There is a man standing at the end of the alley. He wears an unseasonable trenchcloat in deep blue, and a matching fedora, with an archaic walking cane in one hand. His face is partially hidden by a crimson scarf, but the face over it...there's pale white skin with a red diamond set at the forehead, and two glowing red eyes lacking pupils in the sockets below. "No no...you are not the experiment here, and I cannot have a wildcard spoiling my results with the prime specimen. Such wild power will only complicate matters."

    Alex blinks. "W-what?" he says confusedly, tears spilling down his cheeks, before the man holds out a gloved hand towards Kate, who falls to her knees, her eyes going unfocused, then does the same to Alex, before a sharp cut of his hand and a hard breeze snuffs out the burning circle.

    "Now then, young master Summers. I think it best for all if you simply...forget. In fact..."

    The man raises his cane, then touches it to Alex's forehead. "I believe you should forget...all of it. Live a quiet, boring life, unaware of what you are. Alex's eyes flash and he sways slightly, the concentric rings around him vanishing immediately. The man idly taps the head of his cane in his other hand, murmuring. "Or is it better to expunge the lesser genetic path? Hmm.' The man considers for a long moment. "No, no...waste not, want not. You might be useful for something in the future. Now, children...listen carefully to me."

    And as Emma watches, the mystery man begins weaving a powerful telepathic compulsion over both....the source of the knot. And that is the last thing Alex remembers before he and Kate are standing on the sidewalk outside the school. Neither looks injured or even bruised now, though there's a moment of confusion as they look at each other. "...dangit Kate, you made us miss the bus!" Kate blinks, focusing. "S-sorry! It just took longer to change than I thought after gym...c'mon, we can walk home."

    And the two head off.

    And Alex crumples to the ground in the mindscape as it shimmers, then the face of the man, still masked, appears, hovering over Emma. "I don't know who you are, other than you are a telepath. But I would advise you....very strongly...to restore what you have disrupted. Otherwise...I may take it amiss." Those crimson eyes glitter. "And you would not enjoy my attention."

    Like a cloud blown away by a strong breeze, the image breaks apart and vanishes.

Emma Frost has posed:
Emma's nose wrinkles, as if the strange man had personally insulted her. Which he has. His influence has left with the puff of the image breaking up, but Emma sweeps Alex's mind anyway, not exactly ignoring him so much as having more pressing matters to hand.

The mental wound oozes. The stranger wasn't wrong, it wouldn't be good to leave it unattended. She does the mental equivalent of applying pressure to it, coaxing Alex's own neurons and synapses to alter their pathways to bring the gap back into his brain properly. It takes her some time, but within a mindscape time is a strange and flexible process. Once she is satisfied that the mental wound is "bandaged" enough to heal, properly and truly, on it's own, the telepath turns to the crumpled form of Alex in the mindscape.

"Oh, Alex..." she murmurs. She breaks the mindscape and removes her influence from Alex's mind, coming back to herself atop him on the couch in her apartment.

She kisses him gently at first, then a little more insistently. "Alex. Alex, please wake up. I need to know you //aren't// a potato."

Alex Summers has posed:
    The good news is, Alex isn't lacking for brain activity. The bad news is, the shock appears to have knocked him cold for the second time in two nights. He's breathing normally and there no sign of erratic heartbeat or breathing, at least. But it seems for the moment he's retreated into his own head while his mind adjusts to the bandage coming off an old, old wound. He most likely will wake up given some time.

Emma Frost has posed:
Emma isnt much of a nurse, but she can handle the basics. She checks his pulse and his breathing. She sighs deeply, both relieved he seems to just be in a deep mentally healing sleep, and terrified at what she just saw. A telepath whose influence lingered so long since the initial alteration? Lingered deeply enough that their influence continues and awakens when those alterations were touched by another telepath of sufficient power?

Emma shivers. She knows she isnt weak on this score, but this is something else entirely. Adrienne couldn't even fathom something like this. She may need... help.