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Friday afternoon, Alex returns to his suite after a little impromptu training session, to find Shiro still being sick. Something funky happens, and the two find themselves outside. Soon Sunfire makes his grand reappearance.


Shiro had spent most of the day in bed, usually sleeping. While his little excursion on Wednesday night had rejuvenated him some, he had been feeling even more awful since waking up on Thursday morning. He figured it was probably time to go visit the doctors again, but he couldn't be bothered to move. Even his hair hurt.

Alex was pumped. After talking to Moria a bit that afternoon, Alex had wanted to try out his power again for himself, the talk having given him some ideas. So that afternoon, he'd gone outside to the targets used for the energy projection class and attempted was the best word. He tried imagining Lorna, Shiro, Scott and many other people at the mansion in danger, hoping it would kick start something inside of him. And while it was fairly weak, when Alex relieved the events of Tuesday in his mind, he'd gotten two bolts out. They'd fizzled out before they hit the targets, but they had been something! But now he was more concerned about a shower and a change of clothes, the small exertion had still been a lot of work on his part.

Shiro's eyes opened slowly as he heard footsteps outside. Something felt different in the air. It was dryer, hotter, and altogether nauseating. Shiro reached over and grabbed the bucket by his bed, vomiting so loudly that he didn't hear the door open. He gently put the bucket down and took a cool washcloth from his nightstand to wipe his mouth off and slumped back to bed, swearing to himself in Japanese. Something around him felt odd, but he couldn't put a finger on it.

Alex had opened the door as quietly, hoping to get in and out as fast as he could so as not to wake Shiro if he was asleep. He saw Shiro throw up and winced in sympathy. Figuring he was awake from the swearing, Alex walked over to his friend's bed. "Hey dude. How you feeling?" He touched Shiro's arm gently in a comforting gesture.

A shock ran through his arm at Alex's touch, and he instinctively withdrew it. "Kuso. I am miserable," he moaned, eyes closed. "Why is it so hot in here all of a sudden? It was cool a few minutes ago." He kicked off his comforter, revealing that he was only wearing his boxers.

Shiro pulling his arm away caused Alex to frown and put his hands in the pockets of his sweatshirt to prevent anything further. "I didn't notice any difference though I just walked in...Can you get you anything?"

Sitting up (slowly and painfully), Shiro looked around the room, like there was something hiding and he had to find it. "Do you feel it? There is something here. ~Something hot and itchy~," he said in Japanese. "~What is it~?"

"Dude, I'm picking up a bit of Japanese but I have no idea what you just said." Alex followed Shiro's gaze around the room, everything was in its proper place, still not understanding what was wrong. "And I don't feel anything...I think you better lie down again." He took one hand out of his pocket and gently moved to feel Shiro's forehead for a fever. Dr. Bartlett would want to know if he did. "I'll go get you some ice or something if you want..."

A jolt ran down Shiro's body at the touch. Shiro felt a sudden burst of energy, and batted Alex's hand away so he could stand up. He felt off, like there was something he could see in the corner of his eye, but no matter how much he moved, he couldn't see it. "I need to get out of here . . ."

Alright this was starting to slightly freak him out. Shiro was acting really odd. "Ummm Shiro, are you sure? What's wrong? You're scaring me bro..." It looked like Shiro was trying to watch a fly or something the way his eyes flickered everywhere. He backed away to give Shiro room. "Let me go get Dr. Bartlett, maybe she can help you..."

"~It's like Hiroshima.~ I picked up the dirt and I could feel it." Shiro turned to Alex, looking more alert and focused than he had in days. "I need to go outside. I think . . . I don't know, but I can't be here." Picking up a pair of discarded sweats on the floor, Shiro pulled them on and headed to the door.

Alex nodded, biting his lip. Shiro was still unnerving it, one minute he couldn't move, the next he was practically bouncing to get out of the room. He moved aside to let Shiro out but followed him. "I'm coming with you."

Nodding absently, Shiro left the suite and started down the stairs. He was moving as fast as he could, which was not that fast, but definitely quicker than he'd been able to manage the last time he had left his room. Alex quickly fell in step with him, and he felt the burning sense of urgency grow.

He couldn't help it, Alex was frowning to himself. This sudden change in Shiro worried him. And the fact he was practically running to keep up with him. Something was just not right.

Shiro burst through the doors and walked outside. It was a clear day, very few clouds in the sky, and the sun was shining brightly. The sun. Shiro looked up, staring at the cosmic ball of flame for a second before turning away. "It is getting hotter, Alex," he observed. He took a few more steps forward, down the front steps, and looked around. Everything was brighter than he remembered, and a little bit redder, too.

Alex couldn't help but repress the shiver that he always got when he first stepped outside. "Warmer? Dude, it's cold out here, how can it been warmer?" Again confining his hands to his pockets and after getting a good look at Shiro, he noticed his best friend was glowing. "Dude, you're glowing...your powers..." His voice was shocked to match his expression.

Shiro looked down at his hands. The sight should have startled him or something, but nothing registered. He drew a blank as he looked back at the sun, feeling its power flow through him. "~Just like Hiroshima.~" He started down the jogging path, unaware that the gold aura was growing in intensity.

Alex noticed the glow getting brighter and brighter. Cautiously, he followed Shiro a ways. It was obvious Shiro's powers were returning, but Alex was going to be damned if he was going to let anything bad happen to Shiro.

"You should stay back," Shiro told Alex, not even bothering to look back at him. "It is advisable to stay away in the event that something bad happens." A few more feet forward, and he wasn't so much glowing anymore as he was on fire. He was enveloped in red-gold fire, tendrils of flame snaking their way across his body.

Stopping at Shiro's suggestion, Alex was frowning a bit, still worried which helped him ignore the cold. "What's going on, Shiro?" He stopped before added 'Are you going to be alright?'

Now standing at least thirty feet away from Alex, Shiro turned around to face him. "Can't you see?" he asked loudly enough so Alex could hear. "Look! I feel . . ." Whatever he said next was lost as his power burst. A force wave emanated from his body throwing Alex back, and a pillar of solar flame erupted, enveloping him and everything within a ten foot radius.

Alex fell hard into the ground, being thrown a couple feet and very lucky to just miss a tree. His shoulder hit first and he winced in pain, knowing it was going to be sore for a few days. He heard the fire erupting behind him and he quickly sat up, rolling his shoulder and trying to see Shiro through the flame.

It took an agonizingly long minute before the fire began to die down, leaving the air hot and ionized. Shiro stood where he had before, but was now wearing a suit of fire. The flames burned so brightly that his body was entirely cloaked underneath it.

He couldn't help it, Alex blinked in amazement. Shiro's powers were definitely back. "Wow."

Shiro was in a daze. The sudden rush of power had nearly knocked him out, but he still remained on his feet. Well, more like he remained suspended an inch or two above the ground, keeping the air beneath his feet hot enough to keep him afloat. "~This . . . how did this . . .~ Alex, is this real?"

Alex nodded as he slowly stood up and walked a bit closer to Shiro, the heat not bothering him. Instead he felt his own power jolt in his finger tips, the same feeling he got after he used them. "Dude, your powers are back...It's real as anything I've ever seen."

Not quite believing Alex, Shiro tried to rise up higher off the ground. Concentrating, he lifted himself up slowly. He hesitated to do it too fast, afraid that his powers would disappear again and that he would fall. But he kept himself steady, and soon was up above the trees.

Watching until Shiro cleared the trees, Alex then glanced down at his own hands. He flexed them, wondering why he was reacting to the return of Shiro's powers. Shaking his head, he turned his attention back to his friend.

Shiro did a loop-de-loop, the trail of fire at his toes actually leaving a flaming ring hanging in the air for a moment before dissipating. "Alex! Look at this!" He did it again, this time bigger, moving faster to produce more energy which would leave the ring in the air for longer. He touched down and beamed behind the fire. "I cannot believe this."

"That's some fancy flying Shiro!" Alex yelled up as he watched his friend showing off, his arms now crossed over his chest as he waited for Shiro to land. He grinned back. "You're lucky bro, really lucky."

Concentrating, Shiro willed his powers to flow out and his aura to extinguish. In a couple of minutes, the human torch was replaced by an ecstatic looking young Japanese man. "Oh. My-my skin." It was not black anymore, but the yellowish-brown tone it used to be. Shiro looked at his hands in amazement, and then at his arms, his stomach, his legs . . . and realized that his initial burst of power had disintegrated his clothes. Hands covering his crotch, he blushed and looked away from Alex.

Trying very hard not to giggle at Shiro's embarrassment, Alex quickly removed his sweat pants. Thankful that his own powers let him not feel the cold that much (and for some reason it was working overdrive at the moment) he could handle being just in his boxers to save his roommate's modesty. He even turned away so Shiro could dress.

"Thank you," Shiro muttered, accepting the pants and quickly pulling them on. He tried to forget the fact that he was going commando in his friend's pants, and just reminded himself that he should at least wash them himself before giving them back. "I think . . . maybe it's time to go back inside now?"

Alex raised his eyebrows as he turned back around. "I think that would be best." He slung his arm around Shiro's shoulders. "I'm glad you got your powers back dude. Makes things more fun around here..."

Shiro smiled, the first genuine one in a long time, and put an arm around Alex's shoulders. "I can't believe it. Dr. Bartlett said that my sickness may have been caused by my powers, but I never thought it could be true." He chuckled, feeling truly giddy for the first time in his life. "This is amazing."

The giddiness was contagious, Alex couldn't stop smiling. "Since when has Dr. Bartlett ever been wrong? Dude, this is awesome. You're back and better then ever!"