Special

This could have gone so bad. A bunch of casualties... the fact that I sent Raven to this place to get Mariah Stane and Elizabeth Charleston's faces, the fact that I finished the raid early and came to pick her up instead of waiting for her at the designated area. 

All of these little train of events allowed me to save Jean. If I hadn't been here, then Jean...

"You're crazy… you're both crazy aren't you!?" I screamed, I was angry... I was so close to losing her.

"…" Both of them shut up and took the scolding.

We parked in a park nearby after losing Fisk's goons, they must have thought they accomplished their task after blowing the fuck out of that car, those two bodyguards were unaccounted for. 

"And you Jean, didn't I tell you that I wanted you away from this life!?"

"…" She also had no words to say to me, instead... she cried in silence. Jean too was aware of how close of a call that was.

"I'm sorry, Ray…" She apologised and tried fruitlessly to clean the tears that ruined her make-up my chest was heaving up and down, and when I saw her cry something cracked in me. It is because I care too much about her, them... I'm all empty, they're the only valuable piece of existence I still have. 

Emma could have gotten away at any time, she could have gone into her diamond form. I wasn't too worried about her, but Jean's life had been in danger. She's new to this, even if she's a powerful mutant, she still hasn't completely grasped her powers and doesn't know how to act in most situations. 

Fisk sent the big guns without a care in the world, thinking that there was no way Emma would die because of some guns and rockets, but he didn't put Jean into the equation.

"It wasn't that big of a deal–" Emma started, but when she saw my hollow eyes she shut the fuck up like I wanted her to. 

"You put Jean in danger".

Emma bit her lips and eventually, amidst her reluctance, she looked down and shed a single tear. That, coupled with Jean's disheartened cry, finally tore my cold heart down. I knelt and embraced both of them. 

"I'm sorry, I didn't want to scream. But that was dangerous, I could have lost you there…"

Both Blonde and redhead hugged me back tightly. I saved Jean from death, I saved Emma from guilt, and I saved myself from the hollow. I can only be thankful. 

"I'm sorry, too…" Emma finally apologised, it was in fact, a big deal and she knew. 

Raven who had been standing and leaning on my car finally closed up on us.

"That's romantic and everything but what are we doing now? Our night wasn't supposed to go like this, we will be late" She said, and I recalled it wasn't the time for me to be feeling relieved.

First I made a call, utterly angry. 

"Fisk, tell your men to stop. I have Elizabeth" I said, and I hope he knows by my voice that he better not fucking say 'no' to anything.

"I thought we had a deal, Ray. You get Stane's share, I get Charleston" He also didn't sound happy on the other side. 

"I won't break my deal. But your men almost killed my girl".

"Emma wouldn't–"

"I'm not talking about Emma. Tell your men to stop, Fisk. I won't repeat myself." My fists clenched, we're associates, not friends. If I want to massacre him to prove a point, I will. 

"Haha, chill~ Alright, I will do as you say. I trust you will make the right decision to benefit us both. Please relay my apologies to Emma and the girl, it was not my intention for them to go so... savagely~"

He said and hung up the call, whether he was lying or not, I didn't know. I watched the thing from start to end, I didn't think they would need my help. To kill a mere Elizabeth Charleston? He would have been able to kill the goddamn president with that lineup. The moment he knew Emma was involved, he called his goons to go all out. 

"What exactly are you planning to accomplish?" I pulled Emma and Jean both up and made them lean on the car, they calmed down soon enough.

"You know Elizabeth is fighting with Fisk over the ownership of Charleston Industries, why would you antagonise Fisk?" I didn't understand her motives, they're friends and associates, the only reason I could think of is that she was following one of Shaw's orders, which I don't quite like. 

When she saw my frown her body shivered and she hurried to explain herself, " Ray, I was asked by Lourdes! She's Elizabeth's friend, she knows the schemes and wants to take her away from this power struggle. In exchange, she will make things easier for you when you become the black king. They will both retire from the scene in New York so Fisk won't be losing anything! I was not antagonising him, he's just an impatient bastard!"

"And why didn't you tell Fisk all this?" I frowned, she could have explained that to him in the meeting and perhaps that big man would have understood.

Emma frowned and shook her head, "I was going to, but then he showed me proof of him talking with Xavier on a topic regarding you. I suspected he may have been communicating with Shaw too, and stopped. Fisk has no allies or enemies, only pieces"

"Xavier?" Raven joined the conversation and earned Emma's glare. 

"Why are you working with Mystique? You doing your 'stuff' is working with this slut behind my back?" Emma growled.

Raven frowned and walked up to her, two blondes faced off, their breasts squished like they were to fall out any moment now. 

"Watch your mouth" Raven started reaching for her waist where she was concealed carrying.

"Or what? Your mind is open, what can you do?" Emma's head turned and Raven's brows immediately started twitching as if she had a migraine.

I separated the two of them forcefully. 

"Wait, wait… let's calm down and sort things out one by one. I don't want in-fighting, are we clear?" 

Both ladies frowned and reluctantly separated. 

"I will explain everything to you, Emma. But we have things to do so you and Jean should head back for now–"

"I'm not going back," Emma said.

"What did you say?" I frowned.

"I said me and Jean are not going back!" She pulled Jean over, the redhead was confused and didn't even have a word of her own, "I'm not going back home tonight without you, Ray. You're doing dangerous things, you're being investigated by SHIELD for your little stunts"

"..."

"We're not going back, isn't that right, Jean?"

"Eh, y-yeah, I guess?" Jean scratched her hair, girl... you shouldn't even talk. 

"You already put Jean in danger once–"

"You are here, we're no longer in danger, so stop your drama and take us to whatever task you're up to. Surely a pair of gorgeous telepaths are going to be useful" She winked at me, seriously how shameless can this woman be? She thinks because she's a bit pretty...

"Please, babe?".

I sighed. She wasn't going to bug on this.

"Then you both follow me and don't ask questions".

"But–" Jean interjected but Emma smiled and covered her mouth, "Uhmn!?"

"Okay, babe we won't ask any questions for now. But we have to take Elizabeth to my crib where Lourdes is waiting, if that's okay".

I almost burst my teeth at how Emma was behaving. How come this woman knows so well when to be obedient and when not to?

I looked at Raven who just shrugged her shoulders, "I don't mind if they come, as she said, she may be useful".

"May? I can certainly be more useful than you~"

"You blondes always die first in every movie".

"And yet you can't help it disguising yourself as one~"

Raven groaned she was someone very wise but even she couldn't help the itch of Emma's words as she was indeed posing as a beautiful blonde. Her body started to change until she took on Mariah Stane's body, a gorgeous raven-haired beauty with office clothes.

"How petty, if you want to be a hot blonde so much, go ahead".

"Hmph".

I sighed again, I didn't even notice when my hand was entwined with Jean's, she must have been afraid. I kissed her once.

"Ray, I'm sorry..."

"Don't do anything so dangerous again..."

"We didn't think it would be so bad".

"Then don't underestimate anyone again"

She nodded, I wiped her faint tears and kissed her again, this time a bit naughtier, the clear subconscious necessity to enjoy every second I had with the person I had nearly lost. 

Emma told me the address where we had to go.

"Then we will do that first before heading off".

"Off where?"

"To Salem, far away from Manhattan".

"Salem? You mean Massachusetts?"

"No, in New York".

"That's more than a hundred miles up north... do you want to go there at this time?".

"I want to be back before midday, it is a three-hour journey so we better not waste time".