Highmauve: Family Day

Karen shakes her hand, but as soon as she sees Agnes approach, she gives a sly grin and steps aside. She wasn't going to let her presence ruin a moment for those two lovely girls. She found her way over back to Joy and Tobi's parents, talking about the game and the next event. She believed it was a three-legged race?

Noelle, meanwhile, looks at Tobi, giving a sly smile "Yeah, you did. This time, it was my turn. You did alright, though." It was a friendly, flirtatious tease, and she found herself reaching for his hand. While she was smiling and speaking in a carefree attitude, she was very concerned about Tobi. The game took a lot out of her, but it looked like he was going to keel over. Maybe next round, she would sit out with him. Hopefully, he could get in a cat nap.

When Agnes approaches, Noelle bit her lip to contain a smile. While she was worried what Winter's parents might see, she knew these two girls were smart, that they wouldn't do anything stupid. Plus, seeing them next to each other, Noelle had to admit it was cute. There was an opposite thing going on physically, but the confidence and self-assuredness of both girls were similar. Well, she hoped. Winter seemed to get flustered around attractive girls.

Noelle squeezes Tobi's hand, gently, relaying a silent message. Can't wait to see where this goes.

Winter grinned at Noelle. Even if her joke was a bit dark, at least the girl was able to joke about it. Plus... It did come in handy so who was she to fault it. The mutant girl took a step back from the two and placed her hands on her hips. Winter had been going out of her way to kinda avoid Noelle. She didn't want to press her luck sort of thing. Plus, she didn't want to have Noelle treating her differently. That was now forgotten as Winter felt that her friends should know that they were amazing!

Winter nodded at Noelle's question. "Yeah. Yesterday afternoon. They're leaving early tomorrow morning. I wish they could stay longer but my little bro, Henry has school and he already got out of a couple days cause of flights and stuff."

She blinked when Noelle's mother addressed her. She took a moment to translate the accent in her mind before smiling wide. "Yep! I am the one and only Winter! Im glad to hear that Noelle speaks of me. I do hope it's all good things, even if your daughter and I started off on the wrong foot!"

Winter the grinned up at Tobi. "You did! And it was one hell of a shot! Too bad you couldn't have an encore."

Winter was about to say more when she heard Agnes's drawl greet her. Suddenly, all of her self confidence deflated. She blushed. "Uh... Hey Agnes. Long time, no talk." She said. She couldn't very well say 'see" a she's been staring at her all day. Sshe ran a hand through her short hair. She was painfully aware that they weren't alone and that everyone seemed to be watching them.

Tobi looks back at Noelle with the most long suffering looks that's ever graced his face. He's accustomed to his sister's antics, and he almost feels a little bad for Winter, being the latest target of his twin's affections. Still, he's gotta agree. Winters got the same sort of energy that his sister has, that same self confidence and snarky sass. They could both take charge of a situation with ease and while they never really hung out, he could tell Winter was a nice enough girl.

Hell, she was cheering them on and seemed a little disappointed that he didn't knock even more of Evan's teeth out. The girl was a ok in his book.

'Now only she could fin' some'a that confidence,' he thinks with an amused half smile as he watches Winter stammer in front of them. Behind him, he can hear those in charge announcing that the three legged race would be starting soon. That, he thinks, he's gonna sit out.

Agnes meanwhile gazes down at the girl in front of her. 'She really is right cute.' she thinks. 'Girl got curves that don't quit.' She's blushing and fidgiting hard, and while Agnes feels a bit proud that she's able to do that to someone, she knows it's not entirely her. They're surrounded by people, parents, families, and while her own didn't give two rats asses about who she or her twin found attractive, others might. Agnes decides to give the girl a break.

"Winter," she smiles. It's a little less toothy. "Ple'sure's mine. Missed y'all after homecomin', should'a dropped by. Was a party." Beside her she can hear Tobi grumbling about missing moonshine, and how he 'fuckin' knew it'. She ignores him. Behind them again, she can hear the announcement for the three legged race and little feet running her way. Her tiny partner has a plan, she just knows it.

"Catch up later, yeah?" Agnes says she's pulled away by Joy. She hasn't seen the text yet, but she gives a wink and a flirty look before turning back around , picking Joy up onto her back, and running towards the starting line.

Tobi shrugs off Agnes easily and rolls the movement into a stretch. Tired grey eyes look at Winter, and he offers a very small smile. "She likes ya." He says simply. It's his own attempt at reassurance. "Lawd help ya, but she likes ya." With that he turns to go find his Pa. He needs a nap, and the man's got a cardigan the size of a twin sized sheet. If he knows his Pa, the man has opted out of this game too.

Joy didn't really notice what was going on. She didn't really care either. Marching right by Noelle and Winter, she grabbed Agnes hand and brings her over to the starting line. Her mother flashes her a particular scalding look, so Joy looks over her shoulder, saying a quick "Sorry!"

Once they are at the starting line, they receive a medium-sized length piece of rope. Without skipping a beat, Joy steps onto Agnes' thickly booted foot and starts to wrap the rope around her entire body, grinning wickedly. She looks up at her big buddy "Can you finish it?"

Joy kept an eye out for her mother, who was preoccupied with asking and explaining the event to Tobi's mother. She knows if she was caught before the race, she would be asked to sit out.

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Noelle follows Tobi, quietly. She looked at the scene unfold around them- some college-aged students were lounging around with their parents, talking about their college career, a couple younger kids weaving in and out, and the occasional grandparent carrying a paper plate of food from family to family.

She also spotted Trevor and Jake from the game before their own. Trevor's nose had stopped bleeding, but his nose now occasionally leaked a brown-green pus which burned the grass where he stood. Jake looked like he was trying to get his friend to cheer up, but Trevor looked pretty upset. Noelle didn't know Trevor from anything besides the program meetings, but she had a couple classes with Jake. He was a really nice guy, and she offered him a small wave from her spot with Tobi.

Tobi only has eyes for one man right now, and that man is currently sitting a little off to the side of the races watching Karen and Tobi's Ma tie their legs together. Thomas Virgil turns his head at the sound of his son and Noelle approaching. The braid that his wife had done before the dodgeball came is coming out a bit, and up close it looks like the woman had stuffed some small flowers in the creases between games. Petals dot the ground around him while his warm blue eyes look over his son with a sudden intensity. After a moment, he speaks.

"Y'all get o'er her, boy." His voice is low and brooks no argument. Tobi isn't about to provide one either as he settles himself at his Pa's side. The large man has always run warm, especially now. Tobi sinks heavy against the densely muscled side before his Pa shifts into a more comfortable position and reaches for the pile of shoes and clothes that he had dragged over with him to his current spot. His large hand wraps around the weighty cardigan and he tucks it around his son. A minute more, and Tobi's out.

His Pa leans back and sets one arm behind Tobi to keep him from falling over while he sleeps. "Ain't seen him tha' tired since he were little. School wearin' him out somethin' bad." He murmurs low before he turns his focus back toward the game.

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The two mothers have successfully tied their one leg together. They stand at the starting line now, chatting animatedly and waiting for the signal to start. Neither of them notice their daughters farther down the line.

Agnes and Joy have successfully tied Joy's entire body securely to Agnes's leg. She tests it, moves around a bit to get used to the extra weight. It's not too much of an encumbrance, but still. She feels like she could get away with a little extra help. She lets her body shift the tiniest bit, just enough for her pupils to shift sideways and the very start of fur and horns to peek through. Shouldn't be too noticeable.

This plan is terrible, she thinks with a laugh as she walks forwards towards the starting line, but the good kind of terrible. Even if they get disqualified for this, it's gonna be some serious fun.

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Jake pauses talking to Trevor to wave back at Noelle. He remembers her from some of his classes, the program meetings, and has seen her around outside mostly with another mutant from the program. Tobi, he thinks the name is. Trevor grabs another tissue from Jake's hand and shoves it against his nose. It's not really doing much, but at least it's something. He's still mad about the dodgeball game, about the stupid other team, about his stupid nose.

Noelle watches Jake and Trevor, tilting her head ever so slightly. She felt bad about Trevor, but she thinks he's going to be okay. She remembers a time in a program meeting when Trevor had a bad cold, and he sneezed out that pus. It was extremely acidic and would leave an unpleasant smell wherever it landed. During the meeting, he had an unexpected sneeze, and a huge glob got on the table and burned through before it dissolved.

She then turns and watches as Tobi gets tucked in and falls asleep, half amused, half concerned. She pulls her mother's tote from next to her and starts to look around. First, she takes out a bottle of water and a bag of orange slices. She takes a drink, readjusting her ponytail. Then, she looks in the bag again. Eventually, she found a thick book- by the size and letter size, it looks like the unabridged works of William Shakespeare. She opens, trying to find her spot but stops when she hears Tobi's dad make the comment about how tired his son was.

She looks up at Thomas, her eyes suddenly very concerned. The dark brown meets the warm blue, and she says, very softly. "I don't think it's just school, Mr. Maynard." She pauses, then states the obvious "I'm worried. There's something... different. I don't know how to describe it. I don't think he's slept at all in the past week."
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Joy wriggles her arms out of the bindings before the knot is too tight. She also pulls out some marbles from her back pocket, giggling. But when she looks up at Agnes, she gasps her gap-tooth smile as wide as it can be "Whoa!! That's so cool!"

She looked at the other teams, sizing up the competition. Evan's brothers were tied together, already fighting each other about what foot should take the first step. Evan's father was tied to Evan, and it looked like they were in deep discussion about the game. That was ridiculous. It's a three-legged race, how much strategy to you need? The only team that really brought fear to Joy was the mothers. If she was caught, she was dead.

Still, this was going to be the most fun that she had in a while. She holds her marbles tightly in her fist, eye on the prize.

Winter looked down and then forced herself to look up and smile at Agnes. Her cheeks were still bright red. "Yeah... I didn't want to intrude. Plus I was dealing with the police..." She smiled all the same. Agnes was able to flustered her unlike any other person.

She nodded. "Yeah... I will catch ya later. Uh.... Check you phone when you can. ." She said as Joy pulled her away. Man... She wished that they could have talked more. Maybe later...

She watched her go. God.... She was sexy.... She blinked when Tobi spoke. She looked down. "Oh I uh.... Well...." She chewed on her lip. She dropped her voice so that no one else could hear. "I like her too..." She looked up. "I gotta get back to my family. I'll see you guys around."

She waved, her confidence returned after Agnes left. But it wasn't fully back as she realized that she just admitted that she liked a girl. Noelle knew officially but Tobi didn't. Granted ... She was not that subtle about her crush on Agnes.

Winter returned to her family as the three legged race started. She sat down and her father bugged her about Tobi. Wibter groaned. "Dad..... Tobi has a girlfriend. I like them together. I am not breaking them up!" She was starting to regret the fact that her parents didn't know that she was gay. At the same time.... It's probably for the best.

Tobi breathes softly in the space he’s carved out at his dad’s side. It’s nothing like the deep, bone shaking snores that usually accompany his rest. His Pa looks between Noelle and his son. There’s worry there in his eyes as he watches the cardigan move softly up and down in a slow rhythm.

“Somethin’ diff’rent…” he hums, closing his eyes. There’s a quiet then. The easy cadence of the world echoes around them; children running from parent to parent, students discussing schoolwork, the sizzle of hot food and the clink of ice in plastic cups. It fades in favor of what’s behind. A soft breeze rolls through the leaves above them, rustling them soft. A few break loose and land around them. There’s nothing out of the ordinary, but at the same time nothing overly familiar in the rhythm. Nothing (or no one, he supposes) is guiding the beat.

“Knew it.” Thomas Virgil nods. “Don’ know why he doin’ it, but I know what he doin’.”

He glances sideways at Noelle, then towards the game. There’s a silence between them even as the race starts and cheers erupt from the crowd. He leans closer to his son, brings him in a little closer to his side to shield him from the noise. Kid’s out hard if even this don’t wake him. After a long beat, he starts to speak. It's low but clear, even in the loud environment.

“Usin’ what the Lawd gave ‘im is as natural to ‘im as breathin’. Always been. Right now though, f’some reason, he got a cord round hi’ proverbial neck tied by hi’ own two hands. Tha’s why he ain’t sleepin’.” A huff of breath then and a very soft but fond, ‘stupid boy’. “More he use it, more he’s got it under control. Kid’s gonna hurt hard when he fine’ly comes t’his senses.”


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The student in charge of the race announces the start, and all the participants are off as fast as they can. Some stumble a foot from the start, other’s catch an easy rhythm and set off at a fast pace.

And then there’s Agnes and Joy.

The ref hadn’t caught onto them before the race. The moment that start had been called, Agnes had sprinted forward, a little slower for the extra weight but still hauling ass. She leapt over a team who had stumbled and cleared the two of them with the grace of the animal her larger form most closely resembled. She has laughing now; laughing at the faces of their fellow contestants, laughing at the ref, laughing at the absurdity of it.

The two of them charge past Evan and his dad. Agnes flips him the bird as she tears past him.

Noelle chews her lip. Her hunch had been right. They're usually right, but she didn't want to assume anything. Didn't want to think about it. She just wanted to help.

She listens to his father, carefully, and silently. The silence continues when he finishes as she tries to fit the pieces together. The papers. The lawyer. The advisory board. The lack of use in his abilities. It started to come together, slowly, but the picture is unfocused. It's incomplete. If only she had insisted on reading through those papers, maybe she would have understood and knocked some sense into him.

Noelle isn't watching the race, her eyes are fixed on the grace, her body still. After another moment, she opens her mouth, then closes it. She didn't want to sound stupid, to sound overbearing. But something told her that Tobi's father wasn't the type to judge. She sighed and said "I think it has something to do with the lawyer he saw. I'm not sure why, or even who this guy was, but I'm pretty sure I know why he met him. It was most likely about him renewing his scholarship. And while I don't have any idea what the lawyer offered to do to help him, I have an idea of why Tobi is doing this."

Her eyes flick back to Trevor and Jake. They were both sitting with their families, but people passed them, throwing looks of disgust. A couple audibly scoffed and Noelle thought she saw one frat boy spit in their direction. And Trevor only grew more visibly angry. Jake tried to talk him down, his family tried to offer solace, but Trevor was practically vibrating with rage. Eventually, when a plastic cup was thrown his direction, he promptly stood and walked away, his family trailing after him. It wasn't yelling and screaming. But it was enough. Jake eventually followed, leaving his family behind.

Noelle brings her knees to her chin, watching the entire scene before her "Tensions have been high since Homecoming. Since... well, you know. It's enough to put everyone on edge... I think... I think Tobi might be suppressing himself because of it. Whether that is someone told him to or he feels guilty or whatever else it could be, I don't know."

She stopped talking, chewing her lip again. But her eyes flick to the field when she heard screaming.
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The screaming was Evan's mother. As soon as Joy and Agnes passed her family, she was screeching "CHEATING! DISQUALIFIED! THEY'RE CHEATING!"

As soon as Joy heard this, she laughed. Of course, they were cheating, they weren't planning on winning, they were planning on having fun. She blew another raspberry in her direction, before nonchalantly dropping the marbles that lay in her hand in the path of Evan and his dad.

What happened next was akin to a Looney Toon short- The combined leg of Evan and his dad rolled on the marble, skating them backward, but their separated legs planted themselves on the ground, making them swing their bodies back. Eventually, they got their balance back, but they surged forward, making them lose their balance again. It looked ridiculous, and once it was combined with the swearing and red faces, it was downright hysterical. Joy started to cackle as the finish line came into sight.

Karen saw the whole thing and swore under her breath. They weren't far behind, but she quickened her pace. As funny as she had to admit this situation was, it was still unsportsmanlike and unfair, two things that the mother of two was very against. When she was in hearing distance of her daughter, she was going to let her have it. Possibly take her home early. But then she heard Evan's mother, and she rolled her eyes. Seriously? She was complaining about an 8-year-old? They weren't even competing for anything and it was obvious that if the two of them won, it wouldn't count to anything. She looks at Tobi's mother, while tandem running and groans "I hate moms like that."

Once Winter calmed down her embarrassment of her family constantly pestering her, she watched the race. She watched amused as Joy and Agnes came up with a way to cheat the system. She giggled to herself. While she saw nothing wrong with the act, she knew that others will. It didn't matter in the end since the games were just for fun after all. Once the race started, Agnes took off with Joy in tow. God, Agnes was graceful even with the extra weight of Joy on her leg. It was entertaining to watch, that's for sure. Then she started to laugh as Evan and his father struggled to catch their footing. She was certain that she had seen Joy drop something from her hand. She just wasn't sure what. That girl was devious and from afar, Winter started to appreciate her spunk. She was a far cry from Noelle.

She glanced around to see if anyone else was noticing what the two girls were up to. Obviously Evan's mother did as she was screaming. What a bitch. It was only a game. She rolled her eyes and continued her look around the grass. She was someone throw a cup in Trevor's and Jake's direction. She frowned. What the hell was that about? She watched as Trevor stood up suddenly, looking pissed. At first Winter thought that he was going to attack but fortunately, he just walked away followed by Trevor's family and Jake. It's been like this since homecoming. Even she had a few dirty looks in her direction. She was the one that had stayed to talk to the police and people knew that. She had even heard people in her classes saying that she lied to the police to cover for her "muttie friend". Winter had shared a few choice words when she heard it.

Winter had hoped that tensions were go down after a while but they were only getting bigger. She didn't want to see it hit critical mass. Highmauve was supposed to be a symbol of inclusion but now it seemed like the mutants stuck with other mutants and the normals stayed with the normals. Even her own nonmutant friends barely spoke to her now. She sighed and looked back to the match. It seemed like her family were blissfully unaware of the visible tensions between mutants and nonmutants. Lucky. Her mood had soured after watching the scene. If there weren't so many people around, she would have given tat frat boy a piece of her mind.

Tobi’s dad hums his agreement. “Me n’ my wife, we always been wary.” He doesn’t say of what, but makes the same gesture his wife did the night she visited. “Strange times.” He nods, more to himself. His boy curls in on himself and Thomas Virgil shifts to better accommodate him. There’s a quiet moment where he’s just supporting his sleeping son.

“He always been good. Rather turn hurt on his’self than hurt anybody else.”

He turns back towards the game. His wife and Karen are making good progress with an easy rhythm and fast pace. His attention is soon taken up by his daughter and the little girl she’s become so attached to. Literally in this case. He chuffs out a laugh that seems to come from the bottom of his chest.

“Tha’s my girl!” he beams with pride as he watches Agnes tear across the grass.


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Agnes ignores the screaming of the woman behind her as she pulls forward. Evan and his dad have recovered from the marbles and are chasing right behind. She can also feel her ma’s gaze burning twin holes in the back of her neck. Whatever. She’s her own woman, and she can make her own terrible choices. She can hear her Pa cheering on the sidelines, the thought makes her laugh.

The two of them cross the finish line. Agnes slows from her run into a light jog, and from that jog into a long stretch. “Good job, squirt.” She reaches down to the girl still strapped to her leg for a high five, grinning when she slaps her hand. She bends down to untie Joy, but shouting and loud footsteps make her look up.

Evan and his family, led by the mother, are stalking towards the two of them, and they’ve dragged a poor ref along for the ride.

Evan's mother has a shrill voice on a good day, but this was comparable to a Capuchin Monkey. Her shriek rings across the field as she grabs the ref, yanking him to the pair of girls.

"Wuh oh!" Joy looks up at Agnes "Looks like she saw the marbles."

But she's grinning widely, wickedly. She's ready for whatever the fight brings to her. So she looks at the group striding towards her and says "Is there a problem, officer?" She says this with a goofy voice to cut the tension. It does not work.

"She is a little cheater! Look at this! How could you have let this happen!" Evan's mother had a vein on her forehead that looks like it is about to pop. The ref is about to say something, sheepishly. He knows that this kid didn't mean harm, that this was ridiculous, but Evan's mother didn't let him defend himself "Of course you let this happen! It's these damn freaks on campus! They get away with everything!"

Meanwhile, Karen had crossed the threshold and untied herself, making her way over. She was fully prepared to apologize for Joy, for this act of defiance. But then she heard the word freak and her eyes narrow into slits. She makes her way over, looking at Evan's mother "Excuse me. I understand that you are upset. But I am not going to allow you to stand here and call my daughter and her friend names. It's juvenile and, quite frankly, pathetic." There is steel in her voice and eyes. The warmness that is always there had been replaced with a fierce protectiveness. Karen kneels down and starts to untie her daughter, continuing "I suggest you walk away. Before I report you for harassing a minor."

At this point, Noelle had politely excused herself from Tobi's father, her own face like stone. She strides over to the group, her large book in hand. When she gets over, She watched Evan and his family carefully. She had seen them enough today to know their tics, their tells. Hell, she knew Evan's like the back of her hand at this point. She watched them, carefully. Evan smirks at her approach but stays where he is.

Evan's mother huffs, looking at the ref "You know what these families did, right? Who they are?"

The ref looked between them "Hey, why don't we just-"

"What is she holding?" The blonde mom stared at Joy's fist, frowning. Joy was balling her fists not to conceal tricks, but because the little girl looked like she was about to hit the screeching woman. So Joy tells her "I'm not holding nothing, lady!"

Evan's mother scoffs and grabs Joy by the arm, causing her to yelp loudly. Karen is the first to respond, pushing past the ref who was acting as a barrier between the two groups. "Get your filthy fucking hands off of my daughter!" She lunges but Evan's dad steps in between. Joy struggles, telling the woman that she didn't have anything, if she let her go she could show her. Karen pushes past Evan's dad, fuming. She reaches for the other mother, who is just out of reach. Noelle tries to move forward but the beefy father stood in her way. She holds up her book like a weapon.

Tobi’s father looks up at the shouting and the feeling of Noelle leaving his side. The commotion is enough to rouse even Tobi, who blinks blearily and yawns wide. The world comes back into a shaky focus for him as he’s still slightly asleep. Beside him, his Pa shifts to better hear the shouting. He can see his wife stalking behind Karen in support of her towards whatever’s happening.

He stands, and Tobi finds his way to his feet with him. One large hand on the young man’s shoulder steadies him as Thomas Virgil looks above the gathering crowd. He can’t get a whole sense of what’s happening, just sees his daughter in the middle of it and his wife off to the side. He trusts their judgement and stays where he is. For now at least.


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Agnes bristles as Evan’s mom comes over and starts accusing Joy of cheating. Joy. Really. She’s the fully-grown woman who went along with the plan in the first place. She’s about to say as much, but Evan’s mom doesn’t leave a lot of time for opposing arguments. At the word ‘freaks’ she just about loses it.

“I’ll show you freak, stuck up bitc…” a look from her ma is enough to quiet her rage. They’re all angry, yeah, but she knows one move and the rest of her family moves, and they don’t need that mess right now. Those around them are just looking for someone to blame. She’s angry, annoyed, and this close to popping off, but she keeps her cool.

She does, that is, until the woman grabs at Joy. Joy struggles, and Agnes sees red. “Get yer hands off her, y’ old’ fuckin’ hag!” she yells. She tries to move forward, but she’s held back by her own mother and blocked by Evan’s family.

"Get off of me!" Joy yelps, the grip getting tighter and tighter. She struggles, trying to wrench her hand out of the woman's grasp. Karen is trying to get to her, but the grasp is just out of reach. Evan's mother is pulling Joy away, demanding that this would have never happened if everyone played a fair game. The ref is trying his best to keep things civil but is pushed aside by Evan's dad. Noelle is now approaching, but Evan's mother keeps the hold, which is making Joy even more erratic. She even opens her palm "I don't have anything! Let me GO!"

THWPT

Evan's mother screeches again, releasing and pulling her hand back, staring at Joy's arm in horror. The 8-year-old's arm was now covered in thin spines, jutting out from her skin. There are 5 spines on her forearm, and another is growing quickly between the third and fourth. In a matter of seconds, the spine grows again. Joy looks at them, part horror, part excitement. She looks back at Evan's mom- the spine was stuck in her hand. It wasn't drawing blood, but the sucker was stuck in. For a moment, there is silence. The people nearby had noticed and watched in avid terror. A new mutant had manifested on the lawn. And the world had seen it.

And then all hell broke loose.

Evan's mother started yelling, demanding for someone to call the police, that she had been attacked, that this was on purpose. Karen moved to her youngest daughter, in front of her, looking at Evan's mother with a wild look in her eyes. Noelle kneeled next to her sister, who was frozen in place, more spines beginning to grow on her arms, the back of her neck, poking through her new t-shirt and the back of her jeans. She is beginning to look like a human porcupine, but Noelle carefully holds her hand, ignoring the poking.

Karen's eyes shine bright, daring the family across from her to attack, to do anything else physical to her or her family.

Tobi’s family hadn’t come into this day expecting to adopt an entire family. Agnes specifically hadn’t come into this day expecting to make such a great, tiny new friend, but the girl had wormed her way under her skin. She had spunk, she knew how to had fun, and Agnes loved that. When she had struggled against the woman the first time, Agnes had wanted to defend her, wanted to jump in and do something, anything. But this second response, with Joy feeling threatened enough to actively defend herself and manifest her mutant genes in front of them?

Agnes loses whatever cool she had.

Bones creak and pop as her body shifts in the way that so familiar to her by now. The sound is like creaking wood and old tree trunks behind in the wind, and the roar that’s unleashed from the end result is the loud herald to a coming maelstrom. Where Agnes had stood now stands the Spirit of Shenandoah, a massive deer like creature near twenty feet high. Her front feet pound the ground beneath her, leaving large dents in the grass below and shaking the two men blocking her way off their balance. She pushes them aside with her large head, knocking them back and away from the family on the ground.

Her mother, now focused on the little girl and her family in front of them, had let go of her daughter. Feathers flare and her eyes narrow in anger at the Evan’s family in front of her. Her mouth opens in a sharp screech and hiss aimed towards Evan’s mother that exposes lines of razor sharp teeth. Beneath her, the ground ripples much like rolling tide before masses of thorny bushes and vines erupt from the dirt. They unfurl in thick ropes and hit the ground hard and fast, the cracks in the earth remaining as more and more burst forth. She spares a brief thought for what she’s let loose as she screeches. She knows what comes next, even before the fog reaches her.

The earth shakes as Thomas Virgil and Tobias Rudolf Maynard make their way towards the scene. The form pushing its way through the throng of people is massive. Her husband is there in a moment, half shifted with murder in his eyes. The braid has come loose from its hold, letting his hair fall loose and wild around his shoulders. Head to Agnes’s shoulder blades, the man towered over Evan’s family as he pushed his way forward to step in front of Noelle and her family. An impressive set of antlers added even more physical weight to the man as he leaned forward into a protective stance. They curved along his spine and out while heavily armored hands curled and uncurled seemingly in indecision to strike the other family in front of him.

Only a pair of bright blue eyes and vague shapes can be seen through the fog before Tobi slides off from where he had been sitting on his pa’s shoulders. He stands in front of his family, the smallest by far, and eyes Evan and his family up with his too bright, too sharp pale grey eyes. There’s something just a little inhuman there.

“Y’all ain’t gettin’ off wi’ only a few teeth missin’ if this continues.” His glare is wild, fierce, protective, and just as threatening as the rest of his family. He isn’t letting anyone hurt Noelle or her family again, and his family isn’t either. Four pairs of eyes glare at Evan through the fog.

Daring him.

Evan blinks wildly. And for a moment, it looked like he was going to throw another punch at Tobi- test his luck, see where it got him. And then he took a sharp breath through his nose. And he looked at the little girl clinging to her sister, glaring at him. At his mother, who was near faint at the sight. At his father, who was cracking his knuckles. At his brothers, who are twitching and watching in fear. This was all too much. Way too much. And as much as he didn't really care about these freaks in front of him, the anger that rippled off of the families hit him. His eyes flick between Tobi's, Karen's, Thomas, all of them. He makes a decision.

He turns to his family, shaking his head. His brothers run away like there is a fire under their ass, while their father gave a steely-eyed look before trudging away. Evan turns next, shaking his head, silently. Last was his mother, who sputtered and stammered until she uttered "I'm going to charge you for this! You will be hearing from my lawyer!"

"Go ta hell." Karen yells, hoarsely, before kneeling next to her daughters. Her face softens, staring at Joy. Her beautiful baby Joy. Her sun, her partner. She took her hands, the backs nearly covered in spines. She locks eyes with her daughter. Joy's face was bright red with anger, with frustration and that is the origin of the tears in her eyes. It wasn't fear, or sadness, or even just being overwhelmed. It's rage. But Karen begins to breathe deeply, helping Joy focus, helping her control herself a little bit. And after a solid minute, she begins to breathe deeply as well. The spines lessen, becoming fewer and fewer until there are only 5 on her forearm, only a couple inches long. They deflate to her arm, and she looks at her mother.

"It's not fair."

"I know." Karen tucks a stray hair behind Joy's ear, giving a soft and understanding smile. She stares at her daughter. "An' i' won't be fair fuh a long time. Ya gonna have ta figh' fuh ya whole life, Joy."

Her accent is back. When addressing the ref and the other mother, she kept her voice in a tight control. In order for others to take her seriously. But now, in the aftermath, it was back. her voice was hoarse, and she looked tired. She never looked tired. But she looked at her daughter, offering a smile "Hey. T'ain't all bad. I took Noe to ge' ice cream her firs' time. Ya wan' some?"

Joy breathes deeply and nods, not saying a word.

While Evan regarded them, Noelle stood and walked next to Tobi. And then watched them walk away, one by one. She thanks every deity she can think of- while she would have loved to sic some crazy Shakespearean storms or poison on them, she knew that it would just be too much fighting. Too many eyes on them. And after this display, she wouldn't be surprised if Evan was asked to leave the school. Or at least his family would not be allowed to be on campus. Karen would see to that. But Noelle stood with Tobi and his family not to be a peacekeeper- she had every intention to pull out any tricks she could. But it wasn't necessary. She looks at the man next to her, the man she loved. The look in his eyes was menacing, but she didn't take it in fear. She blinked at him, and says in a strong voice "It's over."

There’s a heavy thud. The massive form of Agnes hits the ground front legs first, then back legs as she settles next to Joy and her mother. Her head comes down next to lay next to Joy, one eye watching the girl, and she makes a noise only her mother understands. Tobi’s ma walks over, much more settled now, to rest a hand against Agnes’s neck. Soft crooning fills the small space as she comforts her daughter.

Thomas walks over to join the two women. His heavy form leans against the soft fur of his daughter. As his antlers shrink along with his stature, he leans more and more of his head back against her. The fog is lifting now, and the sun filters through once more. It’s warm, this late in the day, pleasantly so.

Tobi meanwhile, stands and watches Evan’s family walk away. Only Noelle’s voice breaks his gaze away from the other family and he turns to her, eyes still sharp. They blink owlishly at her; once, twice, and then he’s there. His eyes are dimmer now, more tired.

“Ya sister a’ight?” he asks after a moment. A hand comes up to run through his hair. The curls tangle in the space between his fingertips as he goes. “Honestly thouh’ he were gonna fight for a second there.” Tobi mumbles after a pause. He looks back towards his family, towards Karen and Joy. Well, least he wasn't the most dramatic story anymore.

"Yeah. She'll be fine. She's tough. Honestly, she's angrier than anything else. And I thought there'd be a fight too. But, it looks like Evan finally learned something on his own. Which is good. Because I'm pretty sure blood was going to be shed." Noelle pauses, tilting her head ever so slightly. He looked tired, even more drained than before his short nap. She purses her lips, concern playing across her face. "Are you alright?"

Karen hugs her youngest daughter tightly, before looking at the surrogate family around her. She gives a grateful smile, and says, softly "I have no idea how ta than' yuh. All a yuh."

It's the most simple 'thank you' she had ever given. No gifts, no flowery language. Just a tired mother without a voice, without any answers. She sighs, looking at everyone, at the damage. She had a feeling that this just made things so much more complicated- for Tobi, for his family, for Noelle, for this university. For Joy in the future. But she didn't want to dwell on it. She had her daughter. She had security.

Joy had finally breathed herself off of her rage, and she looks at Agnes in her eye, reaching out a small hand to gently stroke her neck. After a moment, she opens her mouth and says, in a soft and broken voice "I'm sorry... This is my fault. I'm sorry."

Karen shakes her head. This was breaking her heart, reopening the wound that had stitched itself over time. It was as fresh as when Noelle looked her, just a little older than Joy, saying how everything that had happened to them as a family was her fault. How every misfortune could be traced to a mutation "T'ain't yuh fault, Joy. Yuh were protectin' yuh self. It's tha' .... evil woman. She's ta blame if ya gonna blame someone."

They could have stayed there. But Karen saw some security to come over. She looked at the Maynards, sighing "I'll stay back. Yuh all shoul' go. Don' wan' ya ta be stuck here fuh hours tellin' ya story."

"But mom.... Can they come get ice cream?" Joy sniffs, rubbing her face.

“Peachy, darlin’.” He says with a sigh and a soft smile. He shrugs then. “Jus’ a tirin’ sort’a day.” His voice is lower and drawl thicker as he shrugs away her concerns.

He’s so tired, he thinks. It had taken an effort just to stand straight and steady in front of his family, to not sway and smack into the ground. The worst part though? He could taste the relief so very close. It had risen in him, pulls him harder with each night of close to no sleep. It had tugged hard at him a minute before as he had ridden on his Pa’s shoulder and had nearly yanked him into the world as he stared down Evan’s family. For a second, he had considered it. It would be so easy just to fall so hard into the world around him and he had missed it so much for little over a week, but…

But, Hawthorne said he shouldn’t.

But, this had woken him to just how uncontrolled his power was.

But. He was a little scared now.

This was the longest period of time he had gone without using it, and something was happening. When he had looked, just briefly, before the fight, the sensations had nearly pitched him to the ground. There had been no effort on his part, yet he was back to his emergence, back to that forest with his Pa, gun in hand and looking at the bright strings that connected everything that he could see.

His fingers itched to touch, to grab, and to yank hard at them. It was all consuming in that moment, familiar sounds that he knew were words and had heard before from a very familiar face swum in his ears, urged him to grab. His mouth opened for him to respond in the same strange language, his fingers were so close to brushing against the vibrant silver of the thick cord in front of him. Black seeped into the corners of his vision, and for a moment he was so very awake.

Then his Pa had pitched forward to slide him in front of them and Tobi snapped back to the present. The mental shock had almost been enough to knock the wind out of him. He had been able to deliver the warning to Evan and stand long enough to look threatening but now, with the adrenaline and whatever the hell that was fading from his system, he was drained. His chest still hurts something fierce, his head is pounding, and he wants to throw up. Just a little bit.

Does that count as losing control? It had only been brief, and he hadn’t actually done anything with it. He doesn’t know what he could do with that, honestly. Even now, looking over at Noelle, he can see faint shimmers of silver threads weaving soft between everything. It’s so faint, but it’s there, and only in the newly dark corners of his peripherals. It spooks him something bad.

“Pea...chy” Her repeats, though his voice breaks in the middle of the word, like he had had to swallow something back. He hasn’t moved, but his voice sounds a little farther away. He starts to walk towards his family, head down and eyes closed. “Peachy,” he mutters again.


------------------------------------------------------------------------


Agnes closes her eyes as the girl pets the soft downy fur of her neck. The girl’s blaming herself now, and that’s just no good. A large breath is huffed out to ruffle the grass in front of her and she stares down the small girl as if to say ‘ain’t your fault’.

Ain’t nobody’s fault, not really, ‘cep Evan’s family. They came into these games rolling for a fight, but they didn’t get one. Not that they hadn’t all been itching to tear them limb from limb for threatening the family and little girl in front of them now. She was new to the whole mutant game, but Agnes hoped she knew she was in good company. Just another freak in a long line of illustrious freaks. She snorts, and the laugh shakes the ground underneath them.

It's funny really. Funny in a weird way, she thinks as her brother makes his way back to the group with Noelle behind him. Their Ma looks up at him, must see something strange there because Agnes with her large ears can hear her make the softest, surprised chirp. She’ll ask later. Right now, she can see security fast approach farther behind her brother.

She lays her head back down in the grass. God if she ain’t tired of big events at this school ending in security being called on them. Tobi’s with them now, leaning into his Pa’s space. Their Ma chirps at him, asks him something in sign, and damn if she don’t hear Tobi respond quietly in a mix of English and the same sort of language their Ma uses. It’s broken and mashed together with little pauses where Tobi swallows down the noises, and the chirps fade almost entirely as he continues to speak, but it was there for a moment. The boy looks frazzled, Noelle looks worried next to him, and their Ma is looking both of them over with a keen eye for injury. Their Pa has settled himself on the ground, and that seems to be where he wants to stay until someone makes him move.

Agnes hopes this doesn’t scar Joy. She hopes that the kid keeps her spunk and her loud enthusiasm for the world. She knows Joy is tough but something like this, coming out as a mutant in front of a tense and maybe hostile crowd? Agnes wouldn’t blame her.

Joy’s asking about ice cream now. After everything that’s happened, that is happening, and that’s going to happen, Joy feels that she could use some. She deserves it. They all do. She huffs her agreement.

Karen smiles and holds her daughter for just a moment longer, before turning to Noelle "I got extra clothes in my bag. Let's get huh ou' of those holey ones. Why don't yuh go and change? Maybe showuh? Yuh smell like a locker room."

She offers a smile to the party present, trying to lighten the mood. She knew it was going to be fine, that this would be smoothed over quickly. But, as soon as she turns away from her daughters, her family, her face drops. Every ounce of tiredness from the past eleven years that she had suppressed, that she had pushed away to fight the battles for Noelle accumulated in her face. In almost a moment, she ages ten years, taking a deep breath, closing her eyes. It's only for a moment, but the drop of the cheerful optimism was enough to shake anyone who saw it. When she opened her eyes, she turns back for a moment "There's a ice cream sho' town ovuh. Go' a name like Sprinkles, or somethin'? We'll be there in an hour. Feel fee ta join."

She smiles at her daughters "Joy, Noe's in charge. Don' leave huh sight please."

And with that, she turns away and approaches campus security, the cheeriness, and go-getter attitude back in full swing. She explains the situation, that no fight was thrown, that they had defused the situation and everything was going to be okay. In a matter of 20 minutes, she would have put this all behind everyone.

Noelle looks at Tobi, letting out a deep sigh, her nose scrunching very slightly. It's reminiscent of when she was frustrated with Winter, back in the library. He looked like shit and she was tired of him not telling her what was going on. She opens her mouth, about to tell Tobi that he needed to stop being ridiculous, that shutting down his gates to the world around him was unnatural and stupid. But she looked around and closed her mouth, pursing her lips. After a moment of silence, she pulls her sister onto her back, her expression very clear. We WILL talk about this later. She looks at the rest of his family and offers the smallest smile "Hey. We'll see you there, right?"

_______________________________________
A little while later.

Noelle steps into the old-fashioned ice cream parlor with her mother and sister. She was freshly showered, her skin a faint pink, and she wore sweatpants and a sweatshirt, her hair hanging limp. She didn't really care anymore, she just wanted to indulge her sister the best she could. Joy was fully recovered from the events, wearing her own pair of pajama pants that had little stars on them, and an oversized t-shirt. The only one wearing the family day t-shirt was Karen, who was smiling brightly at her daughter, assuring her that she could have anything she wanted. Her choice.

The parlor was clad in black and white tile with a teal accent. At the bar was a bored looking teenage boy, leaning over, staring at the neon-backlit clock. There were seats at the bar and a couple of booths, and the shops smelled faintly of vanilla and whipped cream. There was a slight chill, but the family pushed past it. They deserved a treat.

Joy takes a seat on a stool, across from the teenager. She looks at the menu, debating. Noelle was fidgeting with the sleeve of her sweater, her hands shaking. The contrast is startling,

Winter's eyes snapped back at the race when Evan's mom shrill, shrieking voice rang out over the area. She rolled her eyes. Was she really getting worked up over a harmless stunt pulled by a 8 year old? This is ridiculous. She was even dragging the ref into this dispute. Agnes and Joy didn't seem to be getting worked up. In fact, Joy was outright grinning. That made Winter smile as she watched, highly amused. The poor ref didn't even know what to say.

Winter's amusement faded when Evan's mother called Joy and Agnes freaks. She frowned a bit as she slowly stood up. This was not good. She was looking to start a fight and Winter knew that Tobi's family at least wouldn't take that sort of challenge sitting down. Fortunately Noelle's mother seemed to have it all under control as she tried to deescalate the situation... emphasis on "tried". All hell broke loose as Evan's mother grabbed Joy. Winter was about to run up there and knock the woman out when her father grabbed her and restrained her. "You can't get involved with this! They got it handled!" He said.

"Yeah! And that woman is attacking a harmless kid! She's insane!" Winter yelled as she continued to struggle but her dad was strong despite his appearance and kept her strained. Winter watched helpless as one by one the Maynards got ready to fight but didn't do anything just yet. THis was getting out of hand and no one was doing anything to stop it! Just when things couldn't get worse... it did. Little Joy's dormant mutation activated and she pricked the woman. Winter's eyes widened. This was bad. Very very very bad!

People started to scream and even Winter's family looked disturbed. "She didn't mean it!" Winter yelled at the screaming masses. "She was attacked and defended herself!" No one seemed to listen as Winter watched as everyone involved geared up to take out Evan's family. It was honestly terrifying to watch. Tobi's family was impressive and she wasn't surprised at all when Evan and company fled. Winter's heart was pounding as her father finally released her. She looked up at him and then over at her friends. Poor Joy.... this was not the way or time to develop her mutation.

She watched them as security was called. "Let's get out of here..." She muttered. "There's placed around town I can show you." Winter decided that it would be best to have her family and herself leave the school grounds. This didn't help the mutant hatred any. The rest of the day would only get worse from here.