Morgan & Adrienne

[x-copycat.livejournal.com]

Once the dust clears enough Morgan calls Adrienne to let her know Garrison is alive.

Unlike Amanda, Morgan hadn't run to anyone. She had done her job and once everything was calm and they were headed out her phone was pulled out. Her friend's number was on speed dial. Thanks to the tech savvy mutants that had inhabited the silos her cell connection was perfect but there was enough background noise from everyone else around that she wasn't sure how clear she'd be when the other end was picked up. Until then Morgan just waited, listening to the ringing in her ear.

Though she was feeling much less like the walking dead after a second shower, some greasy eggs and hash browns, and a nap in between classes, the ringing of her phone had Adrienne groaning, assuming it was a client. She rifled through her handbag, tossing lighter, wallet, compact, second compact, hand coating canister, third compact aside before finally fishing out the phone. Seeing Morgan's number, she engaged the device with bated breath. "You didn't die, did you?" she asked impetuously, "Cuz just let me say if this is some new form of haunting I'm not interested, thanks."

Her sense of humor wasn't currently present, even though part of her wanted to lightly respond with playful banter. Instead Vanessa swallowed and said only, "He's alive."

The phone clattered to the floor as the shock of the news caused it to slip out of Adrienne's hand. When she crouched to pick it up, everything seemed to spin, and she sat down on the floor in the middle of a hallway in the mansion until she could see and breathe again. "How?" was all she could think of to say- all she could think, period.

"I don't know," came the quiet response. "He looks--he looks like there's nothing wrong with him. Two arms and everything. They're all alive. Pete's in a wheelchair and Jay--well, someone did something fucked up to him. But they're alive. And they're here." She wasn't sure what else to say. Vanessa felt a little like her heart had gotten ripped out of her, which wasn't the reaction she'd thought she'd have at finding out everyone was alive, if not exactly well possibly.

Adrienne was quiet for a few long moments, struggling with overwhelming thoughts and emotions. Everyone was alive seemed to be the thought filtering through most prominently, along with Garrison has two arms and are the nightmares going to stop now? She was trying to breathe around a monumental lump that had risen in her throat, a sob escaping. Because she knew what Garrison meant to Morgan, and because Morgan had come to mean something to her, she managed to squeak out a half-sobbed, "Are you alright?" while rubbing her damp face with her sleeve.

"I wasn't injured. Thanks to Amanda." She knew it wasn't what Adrienne was asking, but she also knew that she would either have to lie or give into that aching feeling. Technically she was still on the job and Morgan couldn't let Vanessa get all emotional. Emotions tended to distract you, cloud judgment, slow reaction time. She wasn't stupid enough to think that something couldn't still pop out of somewhere and attack, even if it wasn't very likely.

Right. Stick to business. None of that sappy personal stuff. Adrienne wiped her face again and took a steeling breath. "Good. But you were s'posed to be watchin' her back, not th'other way 'round." She couldn't seem to get the hitch out of her voice, still fighting to stop sobbing. "Is he with you now? Where are you?"

"I did." A little of the softness in Vanessa's voice ebbed away as her stronger mask tried to slip back into place. "She took off after Pete when she saw him, nearly got attacked in the process. Thing about an ambush is it's hard to watch all your sides. She just happened to see it before I did that time, that's all." After a long drawing in of breath, she calmed herself and reoriented herself. "He's not with me, he's with the others. He's being brought back, though. I'll come see you when we're back, yeah?"

Adrienne wasn't sure if she wanted to see Morgan, or anyone, until she'd pulled herself together. She was a mess, and it would be embarrassing. "I... I don't know if I can... be here... when they come... it's all so overwhelming, I can't... I don't know how to deal with this, how to process it." Self-preservation had kicked in- she wanted to hide in a dark, silent room, away from everyone, until she had all these stupid feelings and thoughts figured out. "I thought when I knew I'd be... it would be easy, but..." She suddenly understood why Manuel had been warned away. Because of this. The emotion. She felt as if she were drowning in it, and she was just one person. To feel this from everyone at the mansion once they knew would be maddening. "I might be at my office in the city." She'd been embarrassed around Morgan before, after all. If Morgan wanted to share whatever it was they were both trying to ignore, then so be it.

"It should have been easy," Vanessa told her, voice softening once more. "But it's not. It's a sucker punch to the gut and no matter how you try to suck in air you still can't breathe." Her voice dropped in volume as she spoke, as if she didn't want to admit it to anyone but Adrienne and wanted to make sure no one else would hear. "I know. I'll see you when you come back from your office." It was as good as saying she'd rather deal alone as well, though the truth was Vanessa wouldn't likely be alone. In fact, she was already planning to take up semi-permanent residence in Jean-Paul's bed.

"Thanks." She rummaged around her handbag with one hand for makeup, wanting to erase any signs of tears, and came across a familiar business card, which brought a question to the forefront of her thoughts. "You're... you're coming back? To get your things? You said you would stay until we knew, but now that he's back you'll be leaving again?"

That was a thought that which had been occurring to her as well. She said she was only staying until his funeral or until she saw him well. Even if she left she still had to make arrangements, find out where the guys were and figure out travel to hook up with them. "I don't know any specifics yet. Nothing can be done immediately anyway. I've got to go, cupcake, but I just thought you should know." Morgan hung up without actually saying goodbye and let the line go dead suddenly. She didn't want to think on what was going to come next much; she was having too much trouble with right now for that.

Finding herself saying 'thanks' again to a dead line, Adrienne hung up, only to dial her driver to arrange for a ride to the office, heading to her suite so she could pack a few things she'd need to camp out for a day or two.