The preparations continued over the next several days.
And things shifted a little within the household.
Emma definitely gave Shine a bit more of a wide berth.
She mentioned to Morph what happened though. Morph had, of course, already won her friendship...and they did have a lot of similar experiences, world-wise.
It did not escape Emma's notice how annoyed Mystique got when she caught them talking, even casually...and to be honest, Emma played off of it on purpose. But Morph never seemed to realize this fact.
It was Morph who told Emma more about how Shine and Wally had arrived and worked their way into everyone's trust.
The stories alone made Emma have to rethink some of her remarks... It was...all rather unsettling, wasn't it?
Morph asked her if Shine had gotten to her yet.
"She has a quick tongue," Emma said.
"Yeah...well, she means well," Morph said. "And...she's usually right. She's just trying to help. I've learned a lot."
"Everyone here seems to be under the impression I need to learn something," Emma said. "May I remind you, I did not come here by choice? I'm simply making the best of it."
She sipped her tea deliberately.
"Sure," Morph said. "Well...I did come here on purpose...but I think this is making the best of it."
Emma had no response.
Mystique walked in, shot her a hostile look, and walked back out.
"Weird..." Morph said.
"Perhaps she wonders what we talk about," Emma said slyly. "The world things probably. She's too curious for her own good."
"Who wouldn't be though?" Morph said. "But I think Shine is right about not talking about it too much. Wally told me some scary stuff about his world, too, and their problem with dimension crossing..."
"Hey, you don't have to explain yourself to me." Emma shrugged casually. "I just think some of the others here may feel out of the loop. But it's not my problem."
Didn't mean she couldn't stir the pot though. Emma rather liked doing that, much to the annoyance of the X-men she'd known before. And to these, she had a feeling.
* * *
"Frost sure doesn't waste time," Mystique complained to Shine, while Shine was trying to do laundry.
"What's the problem with them talking?? I'm sure they have a lot to catch up on," Shine said. "News from home is always interesting."
"Yeah, but don't you find it suspicious at all?" Mystique said. "She's still hiding something."
"You want to talk to me about hiding things?" Shine said.
Mystique shrugged. "I wasn't so open about it."
"Sorry." Shine slammed the washing machine door shut. "I have a lot on my plate right now. I guess I'm taking Emma as I find her. I guess all of us are, until we find out more."
"How long can it take? Surely someone is looking for her," Mystique said.
"Yes...well, that is what bothers me," Shine said. "But Wally is right, we can't hurry this along--we tried.... We'll have to wait for them to make a move. It'll happen sooner than you want it to, believe me. This stuff is never nice to deal with. I'm trying to enjoy the lull before the storm."
