Glory And Gore (5H AU)

Chapter 7 - Face Your Fears

So on Saturday morning, after their usual post-practice meeting, Lauren presents the list of fears on a sheet of paper, neatly folded, and hands them to the trainer. The woman glances at them momentarily before tucking them into her Team 5 binder.
"Good work, Jauregui."
So the weekend passes, and the girls are just as confident heading into Monday afternoon practice as they were last week, if not more. After Lauren brings up Ally's date, the girl expertly avoids the topic and shifts it over to that of Brad and Normani.
"It was definitely the nicest first date I've ever been on," the girl assures them, trying to hide the shy smile developing on her face. "He's a real gentleman and pretty funny.
"He's got a precious smile," Camila chimes in, always happy to add her two cents.
"How hilarious that the best friends are dating the same person, just the guy and girl versions," Lauren laughs, nudging the older girl gently in the ribs.
"I know, talk about similar tastes," Normani jokes along. "I don't know guys, I think this could actually go somewhere."
Lauren almost doesn't notice the way Dinah clenches her jaw, but she spots the subtle movement, and instantly chuckles to herself. She has a similar sassiness when it came to talking about Ally's date. Someone is obviously not happy with the idea of sharing her friends.
"Mani and Bradley, sittin' in a tree-" Ally starts to chant playfully, before Lauren mischievously hijacks the verse.
"F-U-C-K-I-N-G!"
Everyone else bursts out into laughter before the eldest girl shrieks and smacks her teammate aggressively on the arm, using the moment of contact to send a telepathic threat to her teammate. "Don't make me tell Camila what you may or may not have done with her girlfriend's body."
Lauren's eyes go wide as she shakes her head vigorously. "It won't happen again!"
"He's a good kisser," Normani informs them, smiling shyly as they pass by the fountain towards the Colosseum.
Ally nods in approval. "I bet he is."
Lauren's mind begins to wander, and before she knows it, she's trying to suppress the thought that pops up in her head. Thankfully, Ally's not touching her, because the thought pops up anyways.
(You know who else is a good kisser? Camila fucking Cabello.)
"My friend Jade's roommate has a messy relationship with him," the small brunette informs them, which snaps Lauren out of her own head and back into the conversation with her teammates.
"Tori told me all about that," Lauren nods. "They're on and off, but Brad says it's strictly physical. Apparently, he cut her off as soon as Chameleon over here popped up."
"Oh, well that makes me feel safe and secure," Normani deadpans, pursing her lips nervously.
"Brad really likes you, Mani," Ally assures her, rubbing her roommate's back gently. "You have nothing to worry about."
Lauren grins and pokes her in the ribs, trying to lighten the mood. "And if you're worried about Jesy fucking Nelson, don't forget we have a hybrid who could probably pick her up and throw her all the way back home to the UK."
She motions to the Tongan in front of them, who turns around and gives a goofy, toothy wide grin that gets them both to laugh.
"Let's not underestimate them though," Ally warns, forever the voice of reason. "There's probably a good reason those girls are another top 5 team. I mean, they've barely been put together for a few months and they've already gotten field work. They don't graduate until next year!"
"Well, we've already broken several of their simulator records, and Dinah demolished their captain's 5-miler record," Lauren points out, before grinning smugly. "Honestly, at the rate Team 5 is going, that little quartet is going to be dust in the wind. We'll destroy each one."
"Can we be gentle with one of them, at least?" Camila begs, and the girls all give her questioning looks.
"Jade has been my roommate since we were just kids in the Alpha dorm," the brunette explains. "We even roomed together when we grew up and moved into the Beta dorm. She was supposed to come into Epsilon with me but that obviously did not happen."
Lauren simply winks at her teammate and clicks her tongue, to which Camila rolls her eyes and continues.
"She's been like a sister to me and Demi. Please, just, be gentle with her. The rest of them might be terrifying, soul-less monsters, but she's really sweet and a really good person over-all."
A pause ensues, but Camila gives a knowing smirk and picks up her pace to walk ahead of the rest of the girls.
"Plus, she may or may not be developing a massive celebrity crush on one of you."
Lauren and Normani glance at each other simultaneously, eyes wide. The blue-haired girl leaps forward to grab Camila by the shoulder. "Wait, which one of us?"
The younger girl chuckles and pretends to zip her mouth shut. "I promised I wouldn't tell, but she's not the only one. Even Zendaya is fangirling over this person, it's insane. And Ally's not gonna get it out of me. Resistance and Evasion Tactics has significantly helped me keep Ally out of my head."
"It's helped all of you," Ally pouts. "Y'all are no fun any more."
"Anyways, so we're gonna demolish 75% of those little Brit-Brats," Lauren continues, going back to her original competitive tone. She pops her knuckles, smoothing out her hair into a high ponytail. "We're already crushing Liam's team, full-force."
"Oh trust me, Ariana is not happy about it," Camila snorts. "Although, I don't think she hates you as much as we all originally thought."
Lauren tries to hide the look of panic that rushes over her and instead turns away, facing her other teammates. Her voice cracks nervously as she starts to speak, which Ally notices with a questioning quirk of the eyebrow. Lauren clears her throat and addresses the girl. "Who else do we have to go through?"
Dinah, who checks the statistics with Ally every morning, answers immediately. "One is a trio, led by a gentleman named Harry Styles."
Remembering the pleasant stranger she worked out with at the gym the other day, Lauren nods approvingly. "Met him. Lovely guy."
"The other is the team your girlfriend's brother is in," Dinah nods, before shooting a dirty look at Ally as she mentions the next part. "One of their members, Connor Ball, broke the record for reflexes at the Breakers this year."
Ally glares right back at Dinah unapologetically, shrugging her shoulders indifferently. Lauren is nervous that the gesture upset one of them, but after a beat, Ally can't help but grin and nuzzle her face into Dinah's arm as she reaches out to hug her. The younger girl simply smiles happily, that gentle look coming over her as they walk hand-in-hand. The captain lets out a sigh of relief and turns to walk backwards, deciding to lighten the mood by doing what she does best- irritating Camila.
"Easy enough. Ladies and Camila, let's go kick some ass."
After an especially aggressive glare from the pyrokinetic and a threat to burn her hair off, Lauren ends up running for her life to the Colosseum. The rest of the girls simply laugh and run behind, watching the bickering pair as they sprint away and disappear inside the building.
Lauren scrambles into the locker room and drops her bag onto the tile floor, letting out a satisfied exhale after she's convinced that she'll be safe here.
That is, until a 5'2 speed train plows into her and grapples her to the ground.
The two girls wrestle in a tangle of limbs as they roll around on the floor of the empty locker room, Camila grabbing Lauren's wrists in an attempt to force her down. The captain laughs the entire time, growing weak to the point that the tiny brunette can overpower her and force her on her back, quickly pinning her down.
"Woah Cupcake," Lauren teases playfully, feeling her ribs ache from the laughter escaping her mouth in between words. "I know the sexual tension is killing you, but I actually have a girlfriend."
Camila's glare is dead serious, but the faint smirk tugging at her lips is clearly playful.
"It's not killing me, but I'm gonna be killing you."
"So you're admitting we have sexual tension?" Lauren prods, and it only adds fuel to Camila's exasperated aggressiveness.
"Oh shut up, Jauregui," she hisses harshly, but not without letting a few giggles of her own escape as she forces Lauren's entire body onto the tile floor. The older girl is about to tap out, howling with laughter, until she notices the faint burning sensation resinating on her wrists where Camila has her pinned down.
She giggles a bit, before realizing that is not a pleasant feeling. She wrinkles her nose, still grinning a bit. "Shit Camila, you're actually hurting me."
"That's the point," the younger girl snickers, her pink tongue poking out of the corner of her mouth as she focuses on trying to keep Lauren overpowered.
Lauren's smile disappears entirely as Camila's grip starts to scald her hand. She winces, clamping her eyes shut at the smoldering sensation. "No, you're actually fucking- shit, Camz, that really fucking hurts."
Camila doesn't even seem to notice the familiar nickname as her face immediately falls, her eyes widening in horror as she realizes what she's done. She throws herself off of Lauren, staring down at her hands in disgust as she stares over at the red marks left on her captain's wrists.
Lauren peels off her hoodie, tossing it by her bag, and uses the water from the container of her warmup to wrap around her wrists, soothing the burn instantly. She glances up at her teammate nervously. "Camila, it's okay-"
"I'm sorry," Camila whispers, stepping away as she covers her mouth with her hand in front of her mouth, looking endlessly ashamed of herself. "I'm so fucking sorry."
"If you guys are doing something inappropriate, we're coming in!" Normani calls out from outside the doors, sending Dinah as the tribute and the first to enter. The other two follow promptly after, and the tension is instantly lifted when Ally begins to poke fun at Normani's "SURFBOART" sweatshirt.
The trainer comes in nonchalantly as the girls are changing and getting their warm-ups adjusted, sipping on a cup of coffee and examining the statistics from last week's practices.
Dinah, who's black suit is accented with an army green color, opts to go with a custom setting (as do all the girls). The top is long sleeved, skin-tight and showing the definition of every muscle in her body. The sleeves stop at her wrists and the neck-line just barely shows her clavicle. The bottom part is adjusted into shorts, ending just at her mid-thigh and exactly as tight as the rest of her suit.
Camila goes for a minimalist approach, turning her warmup into an incredibly tight singlet for the top and even tighter shorts for the bottom.
Lauren doesn't know how to react when she sees the edges of the scratch marks peeking out from behind the shoulder straps of the singlet, so she just averts her gaze and adjusts her own warmup into a full-body suit, her sleeves ending just past her elbows and her pants at just above her ankles.
Normani (the only person who is aware of the almost-hookup) watches her captain's nervousness, eyes widening in shock as she realizes the true extent of what Lauren meant by "heated." Her warmups, accented by a royal blue color, are long sleeved like Dinah's but with shorts to match Camila's.
Jojo watches as the girls line up, Ally being the first in position and ready to go after getting a short sleeved, mid-thigh configuration for her suit. The other girls follow shortly, until they are lined up and standing proudly in front of their trainer.
The older woman lets out a huff, rolling her eyes in distaste as she stares down the line. She clucks her tongue.
"You guys seem to be getting incredibly overconfident in your abilities. Focusing entirely on your strengths will do nothing to prepare you as a team. So this week, I'll be working on breaking down every last shred of arrogance your bodies and bringing you back to humble beginnings. Understood?"
The girls, all with a nervous tone, respond in unison. "Yes ma'am."
She holds out a small mason jar, full of little papers, motioning for the captain to step aside. Lauren does so, and Jojo goes down the line, handing the jar to each of the other girls. "Pick a number."
Normani draws 1, glancing over at her friends nervously.
2 is drawn by Dinah, 3 by Ally, and so 4 is automatically assigned to Camila.
Ally reaches out for Lauren's hand, furrowing her eyebrows up at the girl as soon as they touch. "What is going on, Lolo?"
The captain swallows down a lump in her throat, giving Ally's hand a gentle squeeze of remorse.
"Our worst nightmare."
"Ladies, welcome to real training. Each girl is assigned to a different day of the week, starting with Normani. Lauren will come last."
Everyone seems to go pale as the scenarios run through their head, each one terrified of what the trainer has in store for them. The older woman grins sadistically and claps her hands together.
"Let's go."
The trainer takes them all to the second level of the Colosseum and to the simulators, the energy sombre and thick with tension. Nobody says a word as they all head into the room, nervousness raking over their bodies out of fear of the unknown. Lauren's body gets rigid, tense with a horrific sense of anticipation that is just eating her from the inside out. The trainer hands an earpiece to each of them, before heading back to the control station.
"Hamilton, step aside."
Normani does so nervously, and as the trainer sets the simulator, the setting changes entirely. They are warped to a massive city, but as Lauren looks around, she realizes the horrible conditions. The area reminds her of an apocalypse, deserted and desolate. She recognizes the skyscrapers and the wide streets as that of New York City, now abandoned and hopelessly grotesque.
Out of nowhere, someone rounds the corner of a street, running towards them at a quick pace. Camila waves to the survivor, before the girls all gasp in realization that the creature is a sickly purple-green color, with yellowed eyes and red irises. The fact that it's missing an arm and its ribcage is wide open is also a pretty good indicator that this isn't a someone, but a something.
"Zombies, Jojo?!" Ally shrieks, slapping away the hand of one as it moans behind her. She lets out a squeal at the dirty creature and seeks safety behind Dinah, who takes immediate offense that the corpse dare touch her favorite person in the world. As hybrid claws and fangs tear the zombie behind her, Lauren keeps examining her surroundings.
"Why not?" The trainer's voice rings out through the earpieces loud and clear. "The idea of reanimated cadavers isn't beneath me, nor could it be beneath an enemy. It most definitely wasn't beneath the bio terrorist that decided to destroy New York City and infect it with this horrific virus. Your only survivors are up there."
The team all look up and spots the mass of humans on the rooftop of the building, some peering over the edge down at the swarm of the walking dead limping down the empty streets, approaching them at a concerning pace.
"You have children dying, people screaming in pain. Someone is infected, and if they die, they turn and can wipe out the only remaining population."
The trainer pauses.
"The only real healer you have, the only one who can help these people stand a chance, is the one and only Normani Hamilton."
Everyone turns to face their second eldest member, who is staring up at the building with an edgy, unnerved clench of her fists.
"Your mission is simple. Get to the survivors, and heal them. Turn them into Dinah, even Lauren would work in this situation. Once they're healed, they can fend for themselves and your mission will be complete. No rescue is needed."
"What's the catch?" Lauren asks, instantly skeptical of the simple task.
"Your teammates cannot get bitten, and nobody is allowed to get you up that building but yourself."
"Whoop, there it is," Camila mutters under her breath, taking her battle stance as she prepares for the magic word.
"Begin."
Lauren spins around, assessing the situation. Corpses spew from the building, indicating that the girls will have to figure out a new way up to the rooftop.
"I can take her up on a forcefield," Ally suggests, eyeing the approaching zombies nervously.
"No can do," Lauren reminds her. "She has to get on that roof by herself."
"I can throw her," Dinah suggests, with a shrug and a glance over at the blue-haired girl. "As long as she lands, it should count, right?"
Normani laughs, shaking her head vigorously. "Thanks for the idea, Dinah Jane, but I don't think my body can withstand going that fast and that high."
Lauren shoots a stream of high-pressure water at a zombie creeping up behind Ally, launching it backwards into a wrecked car. "New plan," she says hurriedly. "Climb this building and make our way over to the other building somehow."
Camila leaps forward and sends a wall of flames at the mob approaching them, buying them a little more time before they are surrounded.
"Are you coming up with me?" Ally asks Normani, glancing up at the sky scraper in front of them.
"No, Ally, I want you, me and Camila up there immediately. Dinah, do you think you guys can figure something out?" Lauren turns to face the youngest team member.
The hybrid nods and motions for them to go on. Lauren sends her an approving glance and watches as her other two teammates scale up the skyscraper. Camila launches herself upwards by blasting against the ground with flames from her hands, and Ally uses her trusty forcefields to help her escalate the side of the building.
Lauren herself throws chunks of ice into the side of the building, jumping from piece to pice effortlessly as she makes her way up to join them.
Watching in complete terror, Normani looks over at Dinah with wide eyes. Spotting the zombies approaching, the younger girl takes hold of the situation with a laser focus and a powerful determination.
"Hold on tight, Mani," she instructs, swooping her up and tossing her over her shoulders and onto her back, koala style. The younger girl grunts, but then breaks out in a mischievous grin, rubbing her hands together in preparation, always having loved getting to show off her physical capabilities. "This is going to be fun."
The blue haired girl swallows down the lump in her throat and locks her arms around the hybrid's neck, watching as the girl's eyes glow a solid amber. Within seconds, Dinah launches herself at the side of the building, smashing through glass with clawed fists and launching herself upwards. She moves like this the entire time through, Normani clinging onto her back and trying to avoid any flying glass, as Dinah uses her strength and speed to essentially run up the side of the building.
As soon as the team is reassembled, they all look over and see the survivors using a helicopter landing pad as the sole domain of one single person, cast out from the rest of the group. They know for sure that this is the infected individual and must be the first to receive any attention.
"Now the challenge is getting Normani over there," Camila vocalizes the thoughts of everyone there. They all take a synchronized inhale and get to brainstorming.
"I can send you on a platform," Ally offers.
"She has to move on her own," Lauren reminds her teammate, growing increasingly frustrated with her own inability to figure something out.
The hybrid's eyes light up with a sparkle as she comes up with her contribution. "Well, maybe-"
"DINAH. Once again, you are not throwing me!" Normani shrieks.
The youngest girl pouts and shakes her head. She holds her hands out, motioning for everyone to stop and focus. "What if Ally makes a platform to the building? Normani can walk across it on her own and make it over."
"The building is on the other side of the street," Normani points out, clearly hesitant. "Can you even make a forcefield that long?"
"Please," Ally huffs, feigning offense as she tosses her hair over her shoulder playfully and steps towards the edge of the roof. "It's almost as if you don't trust me, Mani."
"Good girl, Dinah Jane," Lauren grins, nodding as she watches Ally gather her focus and concentrate on setting up a make-shift bridge. "Very good girl indeed."
"Uh guys?" Camila squeaks, nearly jumping out of her skin as something rams aggressively at the locked door leading to the rooftop. It slams against the door again, and she takes a step back, bringing her hands up in an offensive stance in preparation to attack. "I think we have company."
The captain turns instantly to face their other teammate, motioning wildly for her to move. "Normani, you have to go now."
"But I can't even see the damn bridge!" The girl protests, her voice quivering and her legs shaking. "Ally's forcefields are invisible, in case you have forgotten."
Lauren exhales sharply, knowing her teammate has a valid point and her safety is always the priority. Sensing that her abilities are better used in helping the pyrokinetic keep the zombies away, Dinah hunches over, heading over towards Camila to help keep the door closed.
"Allyson Brooke, you and I are going to focus all our energy and concentration into making the safest structure we can to get Normani over to those survivors, you hear me?"
"Aye aye, captain."
"DJ, Camila, you guys are on zombie duty. Think you can handle that?"
The two youngest team members share excited glances, happy to be assigned to the demolition crew.
"Gladly," Camila grins.
Lauren nods at them and takes in a deep breath as she wills a giant stream of water to come up, spotting the area where it stops. Knowing this is where the forcefield is, Lauren clenches her fist and creates a solid block of ice beneath the forcefield and around it, essentially making a tunnel with the top exposed.
"Okay Mani, it's now or never."
The blue haired girl takes a shaky inhale and nods, stepping onto the makeshift bridge. She grips onto the ice barrier to keep her balance and hold herself up like railings, her feet making contact with Ally's forcefield.
"Oh my god, guys," she croaks, catching a quick glimpse of the perilous drop potentially awaiting her.
"Normani, you can do it," Ally assures her, her eyebrows furrowed in focus as she tries her very hardest to keep the barrier up.
"Lauren, I'm gonna slip and fall," Normani cries, trying her very hardest to maintain her composure and not pass out right there and then.
"You're stepping on the forcefield, not the ice. Ally's formations are tactile, you won't slip," Lauren calls out to her shaking teammate, her heart aching at the sight of the girl's pure terror. "I promise."
"We have a bit of a-" Dinah grunts as she shoves against the door, Camila stepping back in preparation to shoot down the impending zombies, "-situation."
Lauren wants to focus entirely on Nomani, to ensure her teammate's safety as she crosses the dangerous narrow bridge, but she knows the hundreds of corpses attacking her teammates will quickly overpower them if she doesn't help. She winces and tosses her other arm in the direction of Dinah and Camila, sending a blast of ice to smash the door against the struggling zombies.
Normani screams as the ice recedes, the handles disappearing and only leaving the narrow visible bridge.
"I'm gonna fall!"
Hearing this, the youngest member snaps her head around, her focus shifting entirely to her teammate as her eyes go wide.
"Normani!" Dinah shouts, letting out a growl as she rips the heart right out of the chest of a zombie in her grip. Lauren sends a look to Ally, pleading with her to go over and calm their friend. The girl nods and keeps one of her hands held out towards the blue haired girl, keeping the bridge supported as she quickly grips onto Dinah's hand. The hybrid snaps to look over at the shorter girl, the two sharing a heated telepathic exchange from what Lauren can tell as herself and Camila fend off the aggressive cadavers.
The captain watches in pain as her teammate struggles to keep her balance, clamping her eyes shut as the wind picks up. Lauren feels her stomach lurch as the girl wobbles unsteadily, holding her hands out in an attempt to steady herself. As a leader, her body feels torn in a million different directions.
She wants to run over and carry Normani to the other side, to take her teammate out of harm's way and remove her from the most terrifying situation she has probably ever had to face.
On the other hand, she wants to fight right alongside Camila and Dinah, entrusting the safety of their teammate to Ally.
It's not that she doesn't trust Ally, she trusts that little ray of sunshine with her life, it's that the idea of putting Normani's life in someone else's hands, of putting any of her teammate's lives in hands other than her own-
Then, inspiration hits in the moment of chaos.
"Chameleon!"
Normani simply squeaks in response, her eyes still shut as she tries not to plummet down to her death. Even though the girls all know that the simulator can't kill them, it's still just as terrifying to be in a situation like that. Everything may not be real, but it feels real. And as each of the girls know, the mind is a powerful thing.
The door crashes open, and Ally has to stop her mini therapy session to return all her focus to keeping Normani's platform steady. It seems to have worked, though, and Dinah's mind is off of Normani's safety and back onto holding back the zombie hoard with Camila.
"You did gymnastics as a kid, right?" Lauren yells over, shooting a chunk of ice right through the forehead of an approaching zombie.
"I don't see how that has anything to do with me being 34 stories above the ground, Lauren!"
"Balance beam," Lauren breathes, and the girl's face instantly changes from one of fear to one of genuine focus as she listens to her captain's plan. "That thing was less than half a foot wide and you still managed to get across with little to no effort. Imagine the forcefield is a balance beam, Mani. You'll be across and done with the heights in no time."
The girl hesitates, but the moment she hears the screams of a child on the other side, she knows the responsibility now lies completely on her shoulders.
"Spot your wall-"
Normani starts, focusing on the rooftop of the other building and avoiding looking down.
"-find your center-"
She takes a deep breath, tightening her core muscles she prepares to face her fears.
"-and go."
And before they know it, the girl is flipping her way down the forcefield-ice platform like it's nothing.
"You're doing it, Mani!" Camila cheers, happily watching out of the corner of her eye as she fires another ball at the undead creatures approaching her.
"Half way there, Chameleon," Lauren encourages, watching in awe at the fluid movements of her teammate.
Dinah lifts her head, covered in dirt and random chunks of what used to be a corpse. "Almost done, Normani!"
As soon as her hands come in contact with the floor of the rooftop, Lauren loses it.
"Hell fucking yeah, Chameleon! You fucking did it!"
Moment later, after Normani bolts towards the infected individual and turns him into her teammate, they appear back in the simulator room, each girl covered in sweat from the grueling physical stress caused by the exhausting trial.
"The fear of heights is directly linked to the fear of falling," Jojo informs them, stepping towards the panting girls as she takes down a few notes in her binder. "But as you obviously saw, Miss Hamilton is more than perfectly capable of traversing dangerous heights by herself."
She moves her hand and reads off the notes she has written before her out loud.
"Normani Hamilton is afraid of being high up, but only because it comes from a lack of confidence in her abilities. She has a fear of disappointing, fear of not being good enough and letting others down. Stemming from immense personal insecurities."
Normani stares at the ground silently, not even bothering to fight what the trainer had just said.
Jojo turns on her heel, her short dark hair flicking over her shoulder with the sharp movement. She waves her hand in the air.
"Dismissed."
As soon as they step outside wordlessly, the blue haired girl collapses into Dinah's shoulder, clinging to her arm for support. The hybrid immediately reaches out to hold her up, her eyebrows furrowing as she realizes her teammate is bawling her eyes out into her jacket.
"That was intense," Camila murmurs, letting out a low whistle.
"You guys were incredible," Lauren immediately starts, knowing the morale is low and will only plummet if she allows them to sulk in their misery.
She starts with the star of the day, poking the blue-haired girl aggressively in the shoulder as she gushes about her accomplishments. "Normani, the way you got over there, flipping and shit like it was no big deal and getting over your fear, hot damn, Chameleon. That was fucking insane."
She turns and grabs Ally by the wrist, shaking her playfully.
"Ally, that platform was so sturdy, I was beyond impressed. And the fact that you managed to talk to Dinah and hold that bridge was amazing. Talk about multitalented."
Knowing the youngest teammate can handle rougher contact, she shoves the hybrid playfully, giving her an approving grin.
"Dinah, you lost it for a minute there, when Normani was shaky, but you made a good, quick recovery. You smashed up those zombies like it was no big deal."
Camila stares at her hesitantly, trying to figure out whether or not Lauren would say something genuine or just be usual "my sole purpose in life is to irritate Camila" Lauren.
Luckily for her, it's the first.
"Cupcake, you were amazing. You took initiative and kept us safe, and set a whole fuck-ton of those things on fire. If you were scared, I sure as hell couldn't tell."
After ensuring that every single girl was smiling, and Normani had stopped sniffling, Lauren claps her hands together.
"Guys, go home and get your homework done. Go to bed as soon as possible. This is gonna be a long, tough week. I want you with all the energy you have."
Ally has never seemed prouder of Lauren in her life.
So Dinah is the first to break off from the group, heading towards the Omega boarding house with a friendly wave to her teammates. The remaining four chat happily until they enter the building and part ways to head into their separate houses. Lauren's expecting for Camila to blab her mouth off about their accomplishments that day the entire way upstairs, but even as she unlocks the door, she doesn't speak a word.
Lauren tosses her bag onto the floor by her bed, quirking a thick eyebrow at her teammate, who immediately goes towards the mini fridge for a sports drink.
"You okay, Princess?" The older girl finally asks, staring at the back of the girl's jacket as Camila remains facing the counter.
"I'm fine."
"I don't think you are," Lauren answers back, stepping towards her to grab one of her smoothies from the fridge. She leans against the counter and tries to get her roommate to look at her as she twists the cap off. "Where's the girlfriend?"
Camila immediately turns away, taking her bottle with her as she goes to grab an outfit for tomorrow. She rummages through her dresser, effectively avoiding Lauren's eyes. "Her team got a fieldwork project. She's in Montana right now, she'll be back on Friday."
"Have you called her?" Lauren asks, knowing how close the two are in terms of communicating daily.
"In case you haven't heard, you're not allowed to contact students while on a mission," Camila snaps, but her tone quickly softens as she tries to explain it to Lauren less aggressively. "It compromises the safety and confidentiality of your work. The pagers only work to contact your teammates."
"Oh. I bet that's tough," Lauren tries to sympathize.
Camila snorts. "I'll survive."
Lauren knows Camila isn't in a receptive mood, so she opts to let her cool off and take a shower first. She happily completes all her homework before the girl finally finishes, the two trading places almost wordlessly as Camila sits at the desk in front of the window and Lauren enters the already steamy bathroom.
By the time she comes out, Camila is biting on the end of a pencil, deep in though. When Lauren realizes that the book in front of her isn't even open, she knows she has to help her roommate and keep her from bottling up her emotions. She takes a nervous breath, not really sure how to start a conversation like this. But like everything else in her life, she sort of just thinks "fuck it" and hopes for the best.
The younger girl drops the pencil out of nowhere, letting out a sharp exhale and simply getting up to get in her own bed. Lauren takes this opportunity before she sleeps to say the first thing that sort of just comes to mind.
"If you want to talk, I'll listen. I know we're not on the best of terms for whatever reasons you have, but I'm always here for you, Camila. You're my teammate, we have to support each other."
Camila's gaze is expressionless as she nods appreciatively, turning in her bed to face the wall. Lauren waits a few minutes before she hums, neither girl questioning the routine action as Camila dozes off peacefully to the tune of Lauren's voice.
The next day, class seems to fly by in anticipation of the day's practice.
Lauren claps her friend on the back as they head out towards the Colosseum, their bodies taking the route now almost instinctively. "DJ, today's all you."
"I trained on my own all night. I'll be able to demolish anything she tries to throw at me today," the youngest informs them, holding the strap to her duffel bag in her hand as she shifts it over to the other shoulder. "I'd like to see her try and break me."
"Dinah, I don't think these are physical tests. They're more psychological," Ally explains gently, trying her very hardest to educate her teammate without freaking her out. "We're learning to get over our fears and trust our teammates."
Everyone can admit that they're curious as to what the trainer has planned. Dinah is easily the strongest of the group by far, with the most training, and the most emotionally reserved. Lauren has never really seen Dinah be truly terrified of something, so whatever the trainer has in store for her must be something quite significant.
Lauren holds the door to the locker room open for the rest of the girls, stepping in afterwards as they all get their suits ready and head upstairs. "Let's just agree to work our hardest this week. It's not gonna be easy, considering that we've been cruising since last week, but it's necessary for our improvement."
Jojo is quick and to the point today, not bothering to greet the girls as they enter and tossing each of them an earpiece carelessly. She immediately points to a spot away from the group, and then at Dinah.
"Hansen, you're up."
The girls then find themselves in a cavern, a fiery-red light emanating from the bottom of the pit in front of them. Dinah appears in front of them, trying to keep her balance as she stands on top of a chain-link cage, suspended by four thin wires above the perilous chasm beneath her.
"Your challenge is one of the easier ones," the trainer explains. "Your teammates are working to rescue you. You are not allowed to step out of your own cage unless your teammate helps you out. Your container is suspended by wires. If you move too much, they snap, and you plummet to your simulated death. We will restart until you guys get this right."
"Is the lava really necessary?" Ally questions, glaring down at the bubbling molten rock at the bottom of the pit.
"She has a flair for the dramatic, can't you tell?" Normani snickers, rolling her eyes.
"Alright, Hybrid. Step inside the container."
The container itself is made out of chain link fence, with a solid bottom for Dinah to comfortably stand on. The size is considerably small, and all Lauren can compare it to is that of a handicapped bathroom stall. Dinah is visibly stressed by the mere sight of it, her expression resembling that of their first visit to Tori's office. Everyone can feel Dinah deteriorating from where they stand, and all the progress they've made to help her adjust practically flies out the window at this point.
The trainer's words are harsh, aggressively repeating the command. "Step inside the container."
"Dinah, we will get you out in less than 10 minutes. I promise you this," Lauren calls out, giving the hybrid an apologetic smile. "But I need you to get inside."
The girl clamps her eyes shut and lets out a whimper, lowering herself into the cage and closing the opening behind her. Lauren hears it lock into place, and immediately afterwards, Jojo's voice rings out through all their earpieces.
"Begin."
Lauren gets straight to business.
"Okay, all we have to do is get over there without snapping those wires. Camila, I think you'd be able to burn through the material and get her out, right?"
The brunette glances over to get a look at the material, before nodding confidently. "I've got it."
Normani can't seem to tear her gaze from her terrified teammate, letting out a shaky breath as she warns the others. "Guys, she's not looking too good."
"We're figuring out a plan, okay DJ?" Ally calls out, her face pained with genuine concern. "Just take deep breaths, it'll be over soon."
The team is starting to panic, realizing their time is just as limited as Dinah's temper. Lauren can see the girl blinking harshly, and even from there, she can see red streaks appearing in her eyes as she tries to keep her composure.
"Dinah, stay calm!" The leader yells over to her.
The crack in Dinah's voice destroys each girl.
"L-Lauren, help me."
"We're almost there, DJ," Camila coos, forcing herself to look away with a wince at Dinah's anxious movements. "Just hold on a little longer, you can do it."
"Well, maybe if we-"
The girls all freeze as they hear a loud roar followed by a howl.
"We're out of time," Lauren whispers, her eyes widening in shock as she realizes just how vulnerable and weak and entirely out of control just a few minutes in a container has made her teammate.
The cage shakes violently, the ragged breaths of their teammate easily heard from outside. The hybrid slams herself against the walls, raking her claws down the sides of the chain-link fence in an attempt to rip the container apart. She lets out horrible growls, snapping her jaws at the metal in an attempt to free herself. A cable snaps, causing it to tilt one way and lead to excess tension on the others.
"Dinah, if you break the cage, we restart," Jojo's voice rings out through the simulator, reminding the youngest girl of the rules.
"Mani, turn me into Ally," Lauren commands, knowing her abilities will be futile near the heat of the lava. The girl quickly obliges and does so, Ally immediately taking Lauren's hand to give her a crash course in how to control her abilities. Lauren, in turn, explains the entire plan she has developed in mere moments.
"Chameleon, you're gonna have to let us know how those wires are doing," she orders, watching in fear as Dinah only continues to thrash around. "Buttercup, get ready to run over and work fast."
"We're at two wires, and the other ones are gonna go at any time!" Normani informs them, watching nervously as the slender cord snaps down the middle due to their teammate's movements. Her breath is caught in her lungs as both of the remaining wides snap at the same time. She barely manages to let out the warning of "all gone!"
"Now, Ally!"
The girl furrows her eyebrows as they both toss their arms out in front of them, watching as all the cables snap and yet the container stays in place.
"Go go go, it's heavy and she's terrified. Get her out right now, Mila," Ally pleads, wincing as she struggles to keep the entire weight of the thick-bottomed container up. Lauren gets ready to end Camila out on her own forcefield as soon as Dinah stops moving and provides a safe footing for her teammate.
The youngest team member has jerky movements, hitting the cage before stopping mid-way, and then once again starting up again with her aggressive endeavors. She worries for the safety of the both of them, so she goes out on a limb and spews the first thoughts that come to mind.
"I know you're thinking about the labs, and what they did to you, but you have to focus on something else," Lauren begs her. "Doctor Jekyll is trying to control you, to make you base your emotions off of the fear and the horrible memories. Dinah, you have to fight it."
She sees the light in Dinah's eye, the amber glow as she tries to fight off Dr. Jekyll and replace it with her hybrid abilities.
Her talking is working, and it needs to keep working.
"Listen to the sound of my voice. Close your eyes."
The girl does so, now gaining control of her head and neck. She no longer slams her head into the cage, but still writhes and thrashed about, scratching at the walls with massive claws.
"Think about a happy time," Lauren insists. "What do you see?"
The jerky movements start to slow, still dangerously powerful, but now much less frequent.
"I see my team," the Tongan manages to choke out, through strained breaths and pants. "Ally has the sun in her face, Normani is laughing. My brothers are there, Zayn and Tristan and Niall, they're free. Camila is holding your hand, you guys aren't fighting. That makes me happy."
The two roommates glance at each other, brown meeting green with similar looks of confusion, before Lauren prods her to continues.
"Focus on that, DJ. Focus on your happiness."
Camila seems to have a better idea, instead stepping forward and taking Lauren's hand within her own. She interlaces her dainty fingers within the larger one's of her captain's, squeezing onto her hand as if her life depended on it.
"I'm holding her hand, Dinah Jane," Camila calls out, holding their embrace in front of their bodies for the girl to see clearly. "Look. We aren't fighting. We're working together."
Dinah cracks an eye open, and as soon as she sees the small gesture, she throws herself aggressively into the corner of the cage. Her body writhes almost painfully before she just goes limo, her skin glistening with sweat and her breathing ragged and labored.
"My pack is safe," she practically chants, the cage finally still enough to allow Camila to come in by Lauren's forcefield and melt down the side of the cage. "My pack is safe. I'm human, and my pack is safe."
After Camila hoists her up and helps her onto the forcefield, Lauren slowly brings them back together. Ally allows the container to plummet into the lava, disappearing with a hiss as it hits the molten rocks. The girls stumble as they pop back up in the simulator room, Dinah too weak to hold herself up after thrashing around so aggressively for so long. If the girl that can run a mile in 3 minutes is exhausted, Lauren can only assume the force she used would have broken the skull of any normal person.
The hybrid tumbles forward, and Normani is right there to catch the larger girl. She maintains her balance as she wraps her arms around Dinah's torso, holding her easily in place as she feels the girl's racing pulse beat out of her chest. Ally instinctively goes behind Normani to hold Dinah's face gently in her hands, examining the tired features of her teammate with a look of pure concern.
"Dinah, you're safe," she whispers, biting her lip to keep herself from crying. "You're out, and you're safe."
Jojo clears her throat, commanding the attention of the team.
"Dinah Jane Hansen is scared of being contained. Originating from her experiences being held down and locked up in her training camp, she physically cannot stand the sensation if being restricted. The deeper root cause is stemming from the fear of not being able to escape, to lose control and to give into the instincts that have ruled you for so long. You've got a demon inside you fighting to reign. Dinah Jane is not afraid of the containers themselves, but rather, she is afraid of losing her humanity."
The girl simply hangs her head, clamping her eyes shut, and once again, nobody can form words.
"Dismissed."
So the girls help Dinah outside until the girl finds stability on her own two feet, giving Camila a grateful nod as she takes her bag from her.
Normani smiles, trying to lighten the mood by poking Dinah in the stomach. "You can cry if you want to."
"I don't think I know how to cry," the girl admits shamelessly, leading the group to laugh. She grins, before nodding vigorously. "But if I could, I most definitely think I would."
"You were amazing, DJ," Lauren assures her. "All of you were."
"Good work today girls," Ally chirps, smiling happily.
Lauren hums in agreement. "Yup. Good work indeed."
So as they get to the dorm, Lauren decides to strike up a conversation with her roommate. They enter the room, Camila heading straight for a pot out of the cupboard and filling it with water. She turns on the stove, setting the pot down on the blue flame.
"You kicked ass today, Camila," Lauren compliments, flopping backwards onto her bed. "You really stepped up for DJ when she needed it most."
She gets distracted by her pager, which buzzes up at her. She fishes it out of her pocket, staring down at the screen as it hums to life in her hand.
1 NEW MESSAGE
Tori: Hey
Lauren: hey, whats up?
Tori: Just thinking about you. <3 How was practice?
After realizing that Camila hasn't responded, Lauren glances up at her teammate, furrowing her eyebrows as she sees Camila's distracted expression.
"Camz, are you sure you're okay?"
The girl shakes her head, pulling the pot of boiling water off the stovetop. "I'm fine. Do you want tea?"
"Sure."
Lauren: scary as hell. Jojo's a fucking psychopath, you know that?
Tori: Know it? I LIVED IT. I still live it.
"That was really smart of you, to hold my hand," Lauren compliments, trying to keep the conversation going.
"I didn't want to," Camila informs her.
The older brunette snorts. "Yeah, I can tell by how you let go as if I had leprosy or something."
Lauren: hey, I was forced to have her as my trainer. you two chose to move in together
Tori: Well, who else is gonna kill the spiders? There's a reason I'm in stationary work (;
Lauren lets out a chuckle at her girlfriend's response, sending a multitude of kissy faces. Camila hands her a mug, going back over to turn the stove off.
"Why do you think us fighting makes Dinah upset?" Camila finally asks, looking up from the counter and over at her roommate with knit-together eyebrows. Lauren decides to put her pager on silent and tuck it under her pillow.
"We're her pack, Camila," she explains, after waiting moment to choose the right words. "We're the closest thing she has to family. It's not exactly like she's got people at home to call, or other friends to hang out with. If she's not with us, she's working out. We're all she really knows. Imagine the most important people in your life just bickering constantly."
Lauren pauses, before letting out a chuckle. "Does that even make sense?"
Camila nods her head, waving her hand at her roommate as if she's brushing off the comment. "No, I got you."
After a moment of inspiration, Lauren pulls out her pager, promptly dialing a number on the screen. Camila watches curiously at her teammates urgency, running the teapot under cool water to remove any leftover heat so she can put it away
"Hey Dinah," Lauren greets, smiling excitedly as soon as her teammate answers. "So, today was pretty tough, you went through a lot. Well anyways, Camila and I have plans to watch something together but I don't want her thinking it's a date. Do you wanna come spend the night?"
"What plans?" Camila questions, letting out a laugh as she watches her teammate grab her comforter and toss it onto the floor.
"The plans I just made right now," Lauren grins. "She's the only one who lives without a roommate. Today was hard on her. I want her to at least feel a little better."
Camila whips her laptop out, scrolling until she pulls up Netflix with an excited smile. "Way ahead of you."
So 60% of Team 5 binge watch The Legend Of Korra, Dinah wedged in between the two girls as they point out every similarity between their own powers and those of the show until they get tired. Lauren knows it's futile to try and hide her singing from Dinah, since the girl was already there the first time is had happened, so she simply pretends the hybrid isn't there and serenades Camila to sleep.
"Ally's trial is today," Dinah says solemnly, as they walk over to meet the other girls for breakfast.
"How does that make you feel?" Lauren asks, cautious and curious to see how the hybrid is holding up.
"I don't want her to go through the same things I had to. She deserves good things."
"We'll look after her," Camila assures her teammate. "If you and Mani made it through, Ally should be able to as well."
The air is thick with nerves after school as the girls arrive at the simulator. Ally is squeezing Dinah's hand, who is staring down at the ground with a painfully sharp focus. The trainer hands an earpiece to the each of them.
"Oh, lighten up girls. You're halfway through," the woman smirks, heading back over to the control panel.
"Let's get this done and over with," Ally pleads, clenching her fists.
The girls all move to hug her, Camila planting a sweet kiss on the girl's temple. The eldest member takes a shaky breath and looks back over at Jojo.
"Hernandez, step aside."
Before they know it, the simulator shifts and they find themselves in nothing but darkness. Lauren turns and finds a pair of glowing amber eyes in the dark, approaching them immediately. Dinah holds her hands out and grabs her other teammates, Camila immediately holding her hand out and creating a small flame to help illuminate their situation.
They can hear Ally whimpering through the earpiece, trying to keep her breathing calm and even.
"Dinah, can you see?" Lauren asks, seeing the glow of the girl's eyes in the dim light.
The hybrid nods, glancing around them at their surroundings. It looks like they're in a short hall, but as soon as she sees the hall split in two different directions, she realizes it's not a hall at all.
Jojo explains the mission immediately as they get a hold of their surroundings.
"You need to get out of the maze. Your teammates can see you, but not touch you. They must stay out of your sight, or else the cycle is restarted and the maze shifts. Their job is to work to get you out as quickly as possible."
Lauren's skin crawls as she can practically hear the trainer's sadistic smirk.
"In one piece," the woman adds.
"How is she supposed to see her way through without light?" Lauren instantly questions, though she soon realizes that must be part of the challenge.
"Camila, can you send a fireball to her or something?"
The girl shakes her head disappointedly. "It's too far of a distance. I can't keep it going that long. Plus, I'd have no idea where to actually send it. We don't know her exact location."
"Fuck. Okay, Mani, can you turn me into Dinah, please?"
The girl nods and puts her hand on Lauren's shoulder, focusing for a moment before Lauren feels her body tingle. She immediately sees in the green tinge of a night vision camera, and feels her body gaining a significant amount in height.
"You'll be able to tell the difference thanks to our uniforms," Lauren points out, motioning between Dinah's army green accents and her own violet ones. Her voice is strange to her, hearing the commands from this voice obviously throws everyone off.
They examine their surroundings, seeing the two different paths they are able to take. Ally's breathing becomes more ragged, but she still remains quiet for the most part.
"How are we doing, Sunshine?" The captain asks, trying to keep tabs on her teammate to gauge how she's responding to the environment.
"Lauren?" Ally questions, hearing the strange nickname coming from the unfamiliar voice. "Uh, I'm managing."
The hear whispers, faint mumblings in an echoing voice, before Camila shoves Normani out of the way and launches a fireball at a figure behind her. The figure appears to be a shadow made out of solid matter, in the form of a massive spider, dissipating as soon as the ball of light hits it. Others begin to crawl towards them on the walls, and Lauren knows it's go time.
"Mani and Camila, you guys try to climb up the walls and spot her from above. Direct DJ and I. We'll go in for her," Lauren instructs, to which the two girls nod. They stop to fight off a few more of the shadow spiders.
Ally inhales a gasp, her breath shaky and her voice cracking as she tries to communicate with her captain. "Lauren, I hear them whispering!"
"We're coming for you, Ally. Just hold on," she assures her, throwing a punch at a shadow so hard, it dents the wall. Her eyes widen at her new strength, grinning as she flexes the muscles of her new arm. "I could get used to this."
"Can you stop fangirling over Dinah's insanely ripped body and go find our teammate, please?" Normani groans, glaring at her captain as she does a backflip, allowing Camila to shoot another fireball at the aggressive shadow-creatures.
"Good luck," Lauren nods at the pair. Normani runs towards the original hybrid, and Dinah uses this momentum to grab her and toss her into the air. The blue haired girl grabs onto the edge of the maze wall, hoisting herself up and balancing neatly on the narrow edge. She waits for a moment as Dinah throws Camila up as well, who illuminates the area for them with a tiny flame and runs alongside her teammate, trying her best to keep her balance.
Hearing the quick, shallow breaths of her teammate, Lauren's heart goes out for the terrified girl. She tells her exact what her mother would tell herself and each of her siblings as children afraid of the dark. "Ally, just close your eyes. The dark can't do anything to you."
"I can still hear everything, and I have no idea where it's coming from," Ally whimpers, on the edge of breaking down. "Lauren, I can't freaking do this."
"Stay calm, Ally. You'll be okay, I promise," Normani soothes her roommate, running along the top of the maze in an attempt to find the girl. Lauren can still see Camila's flame from here, so she gives her teammate a quick warning.
"Camila."
"Hmm?"
"It's Lauren. Keep the flame small. If Ally sees it, Jojo restarts the simulator. We're back to square 1, and Ally will have to go through this all over again."
"No problem," the girl responds cheerfully, and Lauren instantly sees the light dim.
"I feel like I'm gonna scream, Lauren I'm so terrified," Ally murmurs, her voice trembling as she tries to stay quiet. The whimpering noises she makes, trying not to break down and cry, break everyone's hearts.
And then everything clicks into place.
Lauren's eyes go wide as she finally makes the connection. "Ally, scream."
"But they might find me-" the eldest immediately objects, before the captain cuts her off and assures her of the plan.
"Allyson, I would sooner cut off my own arm than put you in a position of danger. I have a plan, and I promise you, I am doing everything in my power to keep you safe. Now I need you to shut your eyes, clear your head, and scream. Focus on the sound of your voice."
And as she lets out a wailing cry, she stumbles back in shock.
"I saw something," she whispers, in complete and total surprise.
"Can you click your tongue?" Lauren asks.
"Yeah, why?"
"You'll see a smaller picture, but the creatures won't be as attracted to it. Ally, click, and keep moving."
"Echolocation," Camila whispers to herself. "The only way to see in the dark without eyes."
"Camz, Mani, new plan," Lauren instructs, turning around to take her surroundings into consideration. "Take out as many of the shadows as you see. Let Ally navigate her own way out of the maze."
"We got it," Normani assures her.
After a few moments, the silence begins to overwhelm Lauren, watching all the shadow figures slink across the walls towards the sound of Ally's clicking.
The captain turns to face the youngest member, who is examining Lauren curiously. The older girl ignores this and continues with her commands. "DJ, how good are you at distractions?"
The girl shrugs, pursing her lips in response.
"I need you to make a lot of noise," Lauren explains. "We can howl together or something."
"You can howl," Dinah tells her, taking a few steps back and popping her knuckles. "I have something else in mind."
Lauren steps aside and watches as Dinah brings her head down, shoulders forward, and runs headfirst, full-speed into the metallic wall of the maze. The girl's head disappears into the structure, but the sheer force at which she hits manages to bring the massive wall tumbling down.
Lauren's eyes go wide, as she lets out a loud cackle of entertained surprise. "Did you just fucking headbutt a block of metal to the ground?"
"The outside is metal," Dinah corrects as she pries her head out of the hole, letting out a cough as she dusts a white powder from her face. "The inside is a cheap drywall. Pathetic."
Lauren grins, shaking her head with a chuckle. "Dinah Jane, your finesse never fails to impress me."
The girl smiles proudly right back up at her captain. "I made noise."
"Yes, you did," Lauren observes, stepping back cautiously as the whispers begin to speed up and increase in volume. One peeks its head out from around the corner, and rearing it's arachnoid body out towards the pair. The girls are sure they can take it.
That is, until hundreds start pouring out behind the first.
Lauren brings her fists up, ready to fight. Just as the first one swoops towards her, they find themselves back in the white enclosure of the simulator room.
"No fucking fair, I was ready to smash his face in! He wouldn't have even touched me!" Lauren objects, throwing her hands into the air.
"You're done with the simulation," Jojo informs her. "Ally found her way out."
"Allyson Hernandez suffers from a common childhood phobia of being in the dark. Frequent in children, it has manifested in her adult life as well. This overgrown fear actually stems from fear of the unknown, and being left vulnerable."
The trainer shrugs, taking a sip from her tea.
"But through this, we've unlocked a new aspect of her ability. You're welcome. Dismissed."
Lauren glares at the woman as they leave, who doesn't seem the least bit remorseful.
"I need these to be over already," Normani groans, turning Lauren back as they gather their things and head out the door.
"That is literally the worst thing I've ever had to go through," Ally laughs shakily. The girls all watch nervously as the girl's smile fades, and in a matter of moments, she's breaking down in tears.
She reaches out for Normani, the taller girl immediately wrapping her long arms around her roommate as the girl cries into her shirt. Lauren steps in and caresses her hair, shushing her gently in an attempt to calm her. Camila purses her lips and rubs her friend's arm in her own attempt to show compassion. Lauren looks up at Dinah's expression, and the poor thing breaks her heart.
Dinah simply stares at Ally with her eyebrows knit together, her face pained and her dark eyes full of a compassionate remorse. Ally reaches out from around Normani's waist, still hugging the girl, and grips onto Dinah's extended hand, wrapping her fingers around the hybrid's index finger. Lauren knows Ally didn't say anything, since the rest of them would have heard it too, but this small physical interaction obviously sets something off.
Dinah's eyes harden over, going from a warm dark brown to a harsh, solid mahogany. She pulls her hand away gently, and Lauren can instantly recognize that expression.
Oh fuck.
"DJ, where are you going, buddy?" The captain yells nervously, watching as her teammate practically stomps away.
The hybrid's answer is so nonchalant, the other girls don't actually realize what she says until they actually process it.
"I'm going to go kill her."
After a beat, everyone's eyes go wide and they scramble to get off each other, bolting to catch up with the hybrid. Had it been anyone else, they would have laughed it off, but they know the hybrid means just about everything she says.
"No, Dinah, you are not about to go murder our trainer!" Normani shrieks, trying to grab her wrist and pull her back. Even with her heels planted firmly in the ground, Dinah can manage to pull her along like a sled with no visible effort.
Ally wipes her eyes with her wrist, sniffling as she stops sobbing. She reaches out for her friend, watching as the taller girl stops as soon as she grabs her hand.
"Dinah please, I appreciate the thought but it's honestly not that big of a deal. It's just training, she didn't do it on purpose and it's not personal. It's fine, don't worry about it."
The youngest furrows her eyebrows, turning to face her teammate with big brown eyes and a compassionate expression. She speaks without hesitancy, pouting her lips. "Anyone who takes the beautiful smile off of your face is someone who doesn't deserve an ounce of kindness."
Ally's cheeks turn a rosy pink at the kind words as she smiles down at the ground, loose hairs from her ponytail hiding her face. She sniffles again and smiles at their teammate, letting out a soft laugh. "You can come spend the night with Mani and I. I need a good cuddle anyways, and Mani's shoulders aren't comfy enough."
The blue-haired girl pouts, poking the empath in the side. "Hey! Just because I don't have massive shoulder muscles like this freaking body builder over here doesn't mean I'm not a good cuddle buddy."
Camila and Lauren laugh, waving to their teammates as they diverge towards the Epsilon dorm. Lauren calls out behind her as they go up the stairs. "We'll see you guys tomorrow, then."
Once again, Camila isn't talking.
And that's really starting to piss Lauren off.
So she does the one thing she knows will determine whether Camila really is just "fine" or if something is going on and she just doesn't want to talk about it.
So as they enter the room, Lauren heads over to the counter, plucking a yellow fruit from the bunch on the countertop and holding it out to her roommate.
"Camila, you want a banana?"
Just then, Lauren's pager buzzes, so she checks it with one hand and uses the other to hold the banana out to Camila.
1 NEW MESSAGE
Tori: Hey
"I'll pass."
Lauren puts her pager on silent and shoves it into her back pocket, taking a step towards Camila with an accusing finger pointed straight at her as she starts her rant.
"Okay, you can stay quiet, you can look off distractedly into the distance, but the moment you deny your favorite fucking food, I draw the line. Either you tell me, or I'll do something."
"Do what?" Camila quirks her eyebrow challengingly, setting her bag on the floor next to her.
Lauren narrows her eyes at the younger girl intimidatingly. "You don't want to find out."
The brown-eyed girl snorts, rolling her eyes. "Your empty threats don't intimidate me, Lauren."
"Well then, maybe instead of threatening you, I'll just stare into your eyes and try to find it, Ally-style," Lauren threatens, upset Camila called her bluff.
Camila can't help but laugh. "You're a fucking idiot."
"Admit it. When you stare into my eyes, you can see all you've ever wanted and more," Lauren prods on, grinning playfully at her roommate as she takes a step closer.
Camila rolls her eyes, trying to fight the smile caused by the captain's goofy comment. "I'm so done with you, Lauren Jauregui."
"Actually," Lauren says, stepping right in front of the smaller brunette, "I think you've only just begun."
And so they meet, chocolate brown and molten emerald, and Lauren can feel the goosebumps raising on her skin as Camila's smile fades. She sees the way Camila's eyes flicker, she can feel the focus of the younger girl drifting and eventually coming down to settle on her lips. After a moment, Camila clamps her eyes shut, letting out a shaky breath.
"I'm scared for what she's gonna do with me."
Lauren purses her lips, ducking down to try and meet Camila's gaze as she speaks with all the conviction she can muster.
"I don't care if she straps you to a tank or launches you in a rocket to the sun, I'm gonna do everything in my power to make sure you stay safe. Every time you're in danger, Camila, I'll be there to rescue you."
"I don't need to be rescued," the younger girl hisses, tearing her gaze away.
"But you do need to learn to trust me." Lauren finally manages to get Camila to look up, and stares straight into those big brown orbs of melted chocolate. "I'm never going to let you fall, do you hear me?"
As if perfectly timed, Camila's pager goes off, startling the both of them.
The younger brunette pulls the device out and instantly answers, stepping away from Lauren towards her bed, effectively breaking their eye contact. "Hey Jade."
Lauren chuckles and goes over to the mini fridge to grab an apple. Remembering that her girlfriend had texted her earlier, she pulls out her own pager.
Lauren: hi. how was your day?
"Oh my god, just because you're my best friend doesn't mean I'm gonna set you up with my teammate. Quit drooling over her."
The older girl tries to listen in to figure out just who this team heartthrob is, nonchalantly texting with one hand and chomping into her apple with the other.
Tori: Gooooood. Brad and I are trying to figure out what other things you guys are capable of. We upgraded Mani's gun. It should be ready for pickup on Sunday (:
Lauren: i love when you talk science to me
Tori: Oh trust me, there's much more of that to come (;
"Ew, no thanks. The last thing I want to hear about it your gross sex dream. I see this girl pretty much every day, I don't want to be thinking that when we should be focusing on a mission."
Lauren tries to swallow down her snort of laughter at her roommate's comment, playing it off as a cough.
Tori: Anyways, how was your day? (: <3
"Well, I'm not saying her name because my roommate is still here," Camila informs her friend on the phone, glancing over at Lauren from where she stands. She grins and sets the phone on speaker, motioning for Lauren to talk.
"Hey Jade," the captain chuckles. "Thanks for sticking me with your insanely aggressive ex-roommate. I can easily see why you moved into a different dorm."
"Hi there, Lauren!" The perky girl chimes back, adorable accent and all. "And yeah, I roomed with this girl for nearly 10 years. Any longer and I would have gone insane."
Camila glares at Lauren, narrowing her eyes. "I'm a treasure, I have no idea what you two are talking about."
"It was nice talking to you, Jade," Lauren laughs, grabbing her clothes to head into the shower. Hopefully we'll meet in person soon."
"Same to you, Lauren."
Camila takes the phone off speaker and returns to her normal conversation, Lauren closing the door behind her as she steps into the bathroom.
"Yeah so anyways, I have news. You might be getting some competition for a certain someone's attention. Z got all blushy the other day when she walked by."
Lauren lets out a sigh of relief, since she hasn't seen Zendaya since the "mission," which means she doesn't have to worry about being someone's celebrity crush. She starts to undress, but can't help but overhear the conversation.
"Well obviously she doesn't want me telling anyone. But would you rather know you have competition or just have me stay quiet about it?"
Lauren laughs as Camila aggressively sasses her best friend.
"That's what I thought, bitch."
The next day, after school, the girls walk hand-in hand to training. Camila in the middle, with Normani on one hand and Dinah on the other. Lauren clings to the hand of her blue-haired friend, leaning back to share a nervous glance with the eldest team member on the other end. Ally simply gives her a happy smile and shakes her head, motioning for her to take a deep breath.
"Have I made you guys want to quit yet?" Jojo asks with a smirk as the girls enter the erie white room for the fourth time that week. Even from her spot, Lauren can hear the low growl rumbling through Dinah's throat. Ally instinctively reaches out and gently takes her hand, interlacing their fingers. Lauren watches in complete awe as the simple movement manages to calm the hybrid almost instantly, her body relaxing and her eyes softening within seconds.
"Wait, you can quit?" Normani asks wide-eyed.
"Nope," the older woman chuckles sadistically, handing the girls their earpieces of the day.
"Up today is the resident pyrokinetic. Cabello, please step aside."
Camila lets out a shaky breath and does so, the scene instantly changing to an underwater cave. The walls of the cave are a dark stone, with light reflecting off the water and onto the walls of the cavern. In the middle, a massive body of dark, cerulean water sits waiting for them, the bottom nowhere in sight. Lauren's skin crawls, but it's a pleasant feeling of anticipation. Along the edge of the cave, Lauren spots a container. This one is significantly smaller than Dinah's, and is solid glass along all the sides. Lauren can compare it to a see-through coffin, with a hatch on the top to enter and several thick cords clipped to the bottom.
She looks over and spots her terrified teammate, her skin pale and clammy as she stares down at the peaceful body of water beneath them.
"Step into the container."
Camila clamps her eyes shut, waiting for a few moments before approaching the capsule. Dinah seems visibly tense, but not nearly as horrible as she would have been if her training day would not have happened. They all watch as Camila lowers herself down into the container, keeping the lid open.
"Today, Camila will be submerged in the water. This container is hooked up to a wire, which has a sensor. The more she starts to struggle, the deeper into the water she will be forced. Think of this as a repeat of Dinah's trial."
"Creative," Normani mutters under her breath, rolling her eyes.
"There are no living or dead attackers for this one. Camila will be completely reliant on her team to get her out. If you fail, I won't restart it until Camila physically passes out. You get one shot."
"As soon as someone pushes the container into the water, you may begin."
"We have to push our own teammate into the water?!" Normani objects instantly, becoming increasingly fed up with the trainer's antics.
Ally, despite being the smallest, steps up with a calm disposition to push it in. She makes sure all the clamps are locked to prevent air from entering. She bows her head in a short prayer, blowing a kiss to the fear-stricken girl in the glass coffin.
"We'll see you soon, okay Mila?"
"You'll be out of there before you know it, Cupcake," Lauren assures her, her heart pounding in her chest.
The smallest girl gives a shove, and they all watch as the container sinks below the surface, taking their teammate down below the beautiful blue depths.
Lauren spins around instantly to face her remaining teammates, knowing time is of the essence. "Here's the plan. Mani, you turn Ally into me. We're going down to working on pulling her back up to the surface. Dinah Jane, how long can you hold your breath?"
"3 minutes," the hybrid answers immediately.
"Not bad, DJ," Lauren approves, grinning as she motions to the other two. "Chameleon, first you turn Sunshine into me, okay? Then, you wait at the top when we bring her up so you can open up the container. It is crucial that you stay calm and work as fast as you can, because Buttercup over there is going to be having a heart attack. Do you understand?"
Normani nods vigorously, a look of focus coming over her face as she steps away and reaches out for Ally's arm. The eldest girl steps away for a moment with her, undergoing the transformation as Lauren assigns a job to their youngest member.
"Dinah, you're gonna spot us at the top. If one of us starts to drown, or if anything happens, I'm going to be trusting you to listen and know when to come down. I know you're strong and you're probably a powerful swimmer, so pulling my body up won't be a challenge. Do whatever you need to get us breathing, alright?"
She then turns to face her mirror image, the girl cracking her neck as she gets used to Lauren's body.
"Ally, you should be able to hold your breath underwater for long enough with my lungs. We are going to dive down and unhook the cords to break the container free. Then, we have to help her back up. If for any reason you need to breath, you have to physically relax your body and think about something pleasant, okay?"
The eldest member nods, looking down at her hands as the ability starts to take control.
"Camila, don't struggle," Lauren tells her, watching as the girl starts to shake. Even with the tiny movement, the container starts to sink deeper and deeper. She motions for Ally to jump in, just to get a feel for the water and how Lauren's body will react to it. "We're coming for you."
"I'm sc-scared," Camila chatters, her voice already quivering. "My hands are warming up, I can't help it."
Lauren immediately knows this means something immensely dangerous in this situation.
"Camila, if you burn, you're gonna use up all the oxygen in that thing. Don't you dare light up, you hear me?" Lauren commands, diving in to the water directly behind her older teammate. They both start to swim down, towards the glass coffin suspended in the water, before Camila's eyes go wide and she starts to flail around. The container sinks in seconds, shooting down even deeper.
"Guys, behind!" Camila shrieks, and both Ally and Lauren turn to face the metal jaws of a massive creature.
Ally lets out an underwater scream and barely manages to swim out of the way, Lauren narrowly missing its teeth by inches.
"There's something down there," Dinah realizes, able to see the dark figure of a shark in the water beneath her. She growls at the trainer through the earpiece, realizing her teammates are in danger. "You assured us there would be nothing down there!"
"I said no alive or dead attackers," Jojo reminds them, seeming eternally unconcerned. "Technically, robots have never been alive, therefore cannot die. They are inanimate."
Lauren lets out a groan, hissing internally at her trainer.
Fuck you, Jojo.
Lauren points at Ally, then points at the shark. She's hoping Ally's quick enough to pick up how to use her power, and luckily, Lauren's prayers are answered as Ally shoots a stream of ice at the giant metal beast.
"You guys have to stay away," Camila warns, her breathing quick and sparratic as she tries to clamp her hands close to her body.
Lauren can feel the heat radiating from the container through the water, and she knows she's running out of time.
The girl thrashes around, and with each slam against the walls of the container, the box only dives deeper into the depths. Lauren checks to make sure Ally has the creature handled, before inhaling the water and blasting herself down towards the glass.
As soon as she sees the captain torpedo-ing towards her, she flails even more aggressively, taking herself deeper.
"Lauren, stay away, god dammit!"
The older girl solidifies her hands into blocks of sharp ice and slices through the cords instead of bothering to unhook them. She alone grabs onto the coffin with one hand, shooting an icicle straight into the mouth of the metal shark and motioning for Ally to just escape and surface. With a hesitant look, the eldest teammate obeys orders and kicks her legs powerfully, coming up within seconds. Lauren, feeling the strain taking over her body, forces the water around her to work in lifting them up, eventually shooting them out of the water like a rocket.
The captain lands flat on her back, hitting her head against the cold stone ground of the cave. Dinah and a soaking Ally hurry over to watch as Normani pries the hatch open in record time, feeling the hot air rush out like opening an oven. Camila gasps for breath, crawling out of the space and letting the tears flow freely as her teammates simply cheer. Normani turns Ally back and high fives the dripping girl, before they all remember their captain sprawled out on the floor.
"Lolo, that was amazing!" Ally beams, as Dinah holds her hand out to help hoist her up.
The brunette takes it happily and stands, letting out a quiet groan as the back of her head throbs at the spot she hit. She grins and watches as Camila steadily gets up. "See, Cupcake? I promised I'd never let you fall."
Camila rushes towards her, and Lauren holds her hands up in anticipation of the hug she's about to receive. Tears still streaming down her face, Camila holds her arms out, but everyone is definitely shocked when she shoves Lauren backwards with all her might.
The captain, while caught off-guard, is still taller and slightly stronger than her tiny counterpart, and simply stumbles back in shock. Camila's hands are hot, but the contact isn't long enough to burn her.
"For Christ's sakes, Lauren, I fucking told you to stay away!"
The captain stares at her teammate in complete disbelief. "I just rescued you from drowning in a glass fucking sarcophagus and you're mad at me for not keeping my distance? What's your damn problem?"
"You are!" Camila screams, tossing her hands up in the air as the vein in her neck throbs, her entire face turning red with frustration. "You think you know everything, and so does everyone else. It's always 'Lauren knows best' around here. But guess what, you can't read minds! Do you know how close I was to physically setting on fire? I would have destroyed everything in a 10-foot radius, even underwater. 600 degrees is really hot, and I know that's not the highest I've ever gone. Do you ever stop to think that maybe, just maybe, I have a reason for doing things, and I'm not just a natural-born bitch?"
Everyone stands in shock, Normani covering her mouth with her hand and Ally gripping onto Dinah's arm to try and soothe the hybrid's distress caused by the outburst. The room reverts to the creamy white of the simulator room, Jojo stepping forward with narrowed eyes and a deep sigh.
"Well, I guess you guys don't need me to elaborate on her after that episode," Jojo sighs. "I've known Camila's greatest fear since the day we met. I could tell just by the way she interacts with you guys. Do you see how fiercely independent she is? Her greatest fear is that of injuring others, due to an immense personal guilt. The drowning thing is just as real, but not as deliberating as her own inner guilt. Likely caused by a traumatic experience with water."
Not bothering to face her teammates, Camila simply buries her face in her hands, scooping up her bag and bolting out the door. Everyone knows it's probably best to leave her alone.
So they do.