Recovery's a Witch (open)

Emma couldn't breathe. The room was too tight and her heart was pounding against her breast like if it tried hard enough it could actually escape her. The sweat that pooled atop her lip and brow was cool, unlike the heat that was trapped in her room. She burst out from beneath the covers, tearing away the curtains and pushing open her window while still trying to gain control of herself. Should she be saying 'their' window? Cyclops wasn't there. He hadn't been for awhile. She didn't know where he was, and to be honest, she didn't care. Right now she wasn't in the mood to talk, which is exactly what they needed to do.

As the chilled air hit her, she finally got to inhale. This heat. Emma was certain that it was just the aftermath of everything she had went through. This was the trauma that she would have to endure, if just for the time being. Perhaps she needed to talk things out. Maybe it didn't have to be Scott, either. But who else was going to talk to her? She hadn't really left everyone on the best of terms. She was lucky they even let her in.

The White Queen slid to her knees, placing her forehead against the cool windowsill and trying to steady herself in more ways than one. She had had a nightmare. That was it. But the heat hadn't helped. Next time, she'd make sure to turn down the thermostat. Neglecting to shut the glass panes, Emma turned into a sitting position, back relying on the wall for support. She needed to get herself together.

Maybe a therapist would be the best thing for her. A quick mental comb through of the new mansion, just to make sure she had no more need for worrying, and Emma arose with new found dignity. Not like anyone had seen her small moment, but it would be all the better to get back into her natural air before leaving her chambers. Which seemed to have dwindled. More of a spare room, then anything. That's what she got, for leaving the school in the hands of Wolverine. A downgrade.

She didn't feel right. It was this place. The Jean Grey School, even the name didn't sound welcoming. Not to her. This wasn't her home. Not anymore. But where else was she suppose to go? Her money could get her a nice penthouse apartment, and she was considering it. But she needed to deal with things.

Doing a quick once over in the attached bathroom, Emma splashed water on her face and made her hair slightly more presentable before strapping her cape back into place and voyaging out of her room. Coat in hand. She could still feel the raw heat of her dream, lurking in the shadows of her mind. Fresh air would do her good. Walking would help, maybe. To be honest, she just needed something, but even she couldn't tell you what that was.

Headmistress Katherine Pryde had been hard at work reviewing three new student's enrollment papers since she woke up at 7 AM. That would be a lie, really. After Kitty spent a long night assessing a few of the veteran students write-up forms, one of which had become something of a regular in the school's detention facility, she could not find the will to sleep. Or rather, could not let go of her will to remain awake. There were those days when Kitty found her body wired, unable to rest but also reluctant to move forward through the day and accomplish things. Be productive. Do her job. It was yesterday that Kitty had found herself stuck in a sort of energy stasis. Hours flew by on the digital clock while Kitty watched, her eyes heavy been not closing, her limbs weak but not resting, her mind fatigued but still processing the events of the day. She rose at 7 AM, which she would have done anyways had she gotten sleep. Work had to be done and there were deadlines to be met.

Kitty started to work on background checking three new students, whose guardians had faxed in a few documents. It was highly uninteresting work. Kitty would have rather met each of them personally and got to know them herself, and then decided. Of course, not on a day like today. Kitty amounted to little more than a zombified version of herself. She begrudgingly brought her eyes to scan article after article on her computer screen, detailing each student's previous schooling and in one case, a disastrous event written about in the local news. Kitty barely paid attention to the article, but gathered that there was an explosion and two people were injured and the student was made a mockery of. That was enough to gain the student's acceptance. The school was meant to help young mutants, either by quelling their thirst for destruction or assisting them in getting a handle on their new-found mutation. Kitty stamped the enrollment form with the Jean Grey seal of approval and moved on.

The other two didn't get finished by noon. Kitty took a breakfast and four breaks. One of the breaks, she spent a little over an hour in the bath. It wasn't that she lost track of time. It was that she didn't care to look at the time at all. Even though she knew deep down she would regret putting off the work when she received even more that evening, Kitty procrastinated her way into an ignorant bliss. She found herself roaming the halls at 12:10, with students bustling this way and that to reach their class after lunch break. Classes started at 12:15, so most of these students were stragglers. A few of them looked to be loitering, but Kitty decided not to play the hypocrite and ignored them. Her friendly demeanor would not have allowed her to punish them, anyways. Kitty had never agreed with the disciplinarian aspect of being a headmistress.

It was at this time that Kitty headed toward one of the break rooms, where she intended on pouring herself some coffee. Surely, someone had brewed something up earlier, and Kitty didn't care if it was cold; the caffeine was what counted. She finally found a pot, slightly warm, and poured herself a generous mug of the black brew. Holding her breath, Kitty swallowed down a sip and left for other duties... whatever they may be, she really had no idea where she was going. On the way to her unknown destination, Kitty noticed Emma walking her way. She looked serious as always, but also a little grim. It was understandable for Emma to be grim. In all honesty, Kitty still felt malice toward Ms. Frost. But, there was no point making unnecessary conflict in the middle of a school that had enough controversy, from both the students and outside forces.

"Morning Emma... or afternoon, I guess. Sleep well?"

[/color] Kitty met her with a polite smile, holding her mug close to her chest.[/blockquote]

Emma wasn't herself today, obviously. This road to recovery seemed to have a lot of bumps along the way. But it was instinct, the mental bubble that she surrounded herself in. It was simple, really. A way for her to be aware of anyone that came within a certain radius, and it was made even easier when the psyche was so familiar. Shadowcat. Katherine had once been the center of Emma's attention. This was mainly due to the influence of the Hellfire Club, but still. One could even go as far as to say that Kitty was the reason Emma had become an X-man. Not that she would be passing out any thanks. Not today, not right now. The mere knowledge of her presence was almost upsetting. Shadowcat was the new Headmistress, assisting Wolverine in his journey for something better than her and Scott had managed. She might have been proud of them striving for so much more, but she knew how this particular faculty member felt about her.

There was nothing good in there. Could the White Queen really blame her? She'd tried to capture her, put her friends in danger, and eventually became her leader. Emma would have held a grudge too. None of this was new, though. She was tempted to turn back and find a different route out of here, but Kitty had already laid eyes on her. A few adjustments to her memory and she'd be homeward bound. But Emma didn't do that anymore.

Especially since the most recent incident.. How was she ever suppose to recover, when she could still remember the rush of power, every secret of every person, and how she had lost control of it all? Time for thinking was over, though. Shadowcat was actually acknowledging her. Kitty and her kindness. To be completely honest with herself, Emma was scared. She didn't know where she set with this girl, with any of the people in this mansion. Had she ruined her chances with them? Did she even want a chance to start with? The temptation to pry into their minds and get her answers the easy way was demolished by the lingering effect of the Phoenix. She'd never read someone like that again. At least not her once upon a time teammates.

"Afternoon?" Could she let herself be surprised that she had slept so late? Clearing her throat, and proceeding, Emma tried not to give anything away. No need for these people to know of her sufferings. "Hmm, more or less, I suppose. What about yourself? You seem tired." Emma didn't need to go on and explain that this girls mind was exhausted. She didn't have to read it to tell. Just a gentle graze, like being so close to her, and she knew. The duties of a Headmistress were indeed heavy. Emma could understand this as well as any. She'd run two schools before, a company, and lead a team while doing so.

There were worse things in the world. She clutched her coat closer to her abdomen, feeling a slight burn run along the bottom of her rib-cage. Damn. Maybe she needed to go get checked up on by Hank. Would he still consider her a friend? Not knowing such simple things was killing her. Being good definitely had it's downsides.

There were scarcely any good memories between Kitty and Emma. There were tons of memories, but none of them Kitty wished to remember. She desperately wanted to forget all the hate that had passed between herself and Ms. Frost. She wanted to start anew, with a clean slate, so that, if anything, she could learn from her. Emma had been a headmistress, too. She knew the burdens and stresses of running a school by herself. Sure, Kitty had Logan, but what did he contribute to the school but a temper and a few Danger Room lessons here and there. Maybe I can get her to erase my memory... She's certainly good at that.

[/color] Kitty thought bitterly, not worried that Emma probably knew what she was thinking. Could Emma blame her, after everything they had been through? Kitty had been victimized by the woman countless times, and even when they were allies and Emma practically lead the X-Men behind a puppet Scott, she took every chance to belittle her. A part of Kitty worried that she might hurt Emma, that she might let something rude slip. Another part, the part that made her an X-Man, didn't care.

The two of them stopped in the middle of the hallway. Kitty did not mean to stop her. She wasn't looking for a full-on conversation, but if that was what it was going to be, she was going to at least attempt to warm up to the Frost. Heavy emphasis on attempt. The woman was cold, as her name might suggest. If Kitty did not already know her ability to turn to diamond, she would think Emma was an ice-mutant, like Bobby. Bobby... Kitty had already warmed herself up to him, most recently. The thought of Iceman gave Kitty chills, and not the freezey kind. He had been such a good friend to her since... since Piotr. Kitty shoved the thought out of her mind. Thinking about Piotr was not conducive to her well-being. She could probably help with that, too.[/color] Kitty wiped away the better and forced another smile.

Emma grabbed at her sides, as if in pain. Kitty instinctively felt concern for her, but she pushed that away too. She felt like telepath, pushing away all these thoughts like they were tangible. Sometimes she wished she hadn't been given the ability to phase, in exchange for a power that could serve her needs better. Walking through walls did nothing for an aching heart or a tired mind. "Making a trip to the infirmary?"[/color] Kitty mused, wondering if that was the reason she was out and about. If she had been in Emma's position, she didn't think she would leave her room. All the people staring at her, no one talking to her... She would isolate herself from being isolated. Good thing good old Kitty was around to be her nice little self and console her, after everything. It was the goal of a kind person to be the nicest to those who would never do so in return.[/blockquote]

Maybe this was why her and Kitty didn't get along so well. Her kindest would get her killed. And Emma had no more room for death in her life. It seemed inevitable, to be quite frank with herself. Mutants, in her mind, were prone to death. It was like they tried to get themselves killed. She knew it wasn't true, but how could someone handle so much pain? After awhile, you turned to diamond. You made yourself forget, hid the bad away in little black boxes, for example, and only had to relive them when someone tore through your past like a wildfire. Setting everything aflame and making it burn brighter. She'd experienced all of this before. She'd even dealt with being the outcast. It wasn't something new, like people seemed to believe. Just because Emma wasn't afraid to go after whatever it was she wanted, didn't mean she had to like the standards.

Eyeing Shadowcat with a blank expression, trying to hide the distaste that she felt, Emma couldn't help but pick up on her stray thoughts. It's like she practically slapped her in the face with them. She knew when people were talking about her. Or thinking. So, was that it? Was this the answer to winning over Ms. Pryde? The Queen would have thought it pathetic, if she didn't know the pain behind such options.

Clicking her tongue against the roof of her mouth lazily, she tried not to sound bored with their conversation. "No, actually. Fresh air." At least she was being honest. Come on, everyone knew that this conversation was out of pity. And Emma detested that. Her respect actually seemed to drop for the phasing school girl. Which is what she still saw Kitty to be. Maybe her work with this school would change that. Maybe she would rise on Emma's list. Or maybe it would just plummet her further down. Either way, she was excited to watch things play out. For lack of a better reason then to return Kitty's polite gesture, Frost kept the ball rolling. "I'll give you a tip, darling. Don't let the work effect your beauty sleep. I never did."

Stepping past Shadowcat with the same hint of ignorance that she always had, Emma seemed to glide through the hall. Truth be told, she'd spent years perfecting this walk. It was all going perfect, not ending on a bad note, and not necessarily ending on a good one either, until the heat returned with a vengeance, and Emma collapsed against the wall. "Damn. If I ever see the Phoenix Force again, I'll kick it's ass." She muttered to herself, while trying to keep some of her pride. It was failing miserably.

The same old Emma Frost that returned to this fine establishment identity crisis after alignment switch stood before Kitty, rocking the smirk and the casual arrogance. There was an air about Emma that screamed of disinterest. Kitty knew their friendship was 75% politeness, 25% bond of time and experience, but it did not give Emma the right to treat her just like any other lowly entity she passed by in the building. The first sign of the old Emma came when she shoved the suggestion of pain right back at Kitty with the "fresh air" line. How typical was that, covering up a deeper motive with a line as old as "How's the weather?" What is fresh air anyways?! How can you tell if its fresh?!

[/color] Kitty thought with a fury, letting her previous restrains break. Emma was a challenge to anyone, but to Kitty especially. Kitty's kindness versus Emma's persistent frost made for one tornado of a cat-fight more than half the time. For the sake of her friends and the institution and mostly the integrity of her character, Kitty got by with a lot of swallowing down the irritation. Eventually, it became too much.

They stared at each other, Kitty at least pretending to enjoy their little chat, Emma obviously wanting out behind mandatory pursed lips. She made a comment about beauty sleep, and how Kitty shouldn't let her work get in the way of it. Whether true malice was meant by the statement or not, Kitty took it that way. Emma passed by her, a chill following after. Kitty bit her tongue for a few seconds, her face contorting into something else. Her mind pondered the options; she could walk on and forget about the encounter, avoiding Emma til the end of time, she could try to reconcile, even if it was not like Emma to go along with a plan like that, or she could succumb to temptation and yell a bunch. Kitty made a brash decision, very much unlike her. Then again, Emma made Kitty a very different person. She whipped around to face Emma, hips bumping, strutting along like a spoiled peacock. "You know Emma, I-"[/color] Kitty began, but was interrupted by Emma's sudden stumble. She collapsed against the wall, muttering a few inaudible words under her breath. Kitty almost laughed. But then, the real Kitty came out.

She rushed up next to Emma, kneeling down beside her. Her eyes welled with worry as she scanned her features, trying to decide where this sudden outburst of pain had originated from. Emma had been holding her side earlier, so Kitty naturally assumed her torso was the source, though something told her the pain lay farther down. "You're too prideful, Emma.[/color] Kitty relished the words, realizing she could get by with a petty insult and still mean well, since it pertained to Emma refusing to address her injury rather than her whole demeanor. Both were true. "Should I call someone from the infirmary or can you walk? And no, I won't let you get by without seeing someone about this."[/color][/blockquote]