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Spoilered: Vulgar, content. This fic is safe-ish, but it alludes to a lot of previous material involving TG/TF, mind stuff, corruption, and dark themes.
By now, after the passage of several years, she had made peace with the lingering influence of her unique experience. It was livable, especially because sheâd been allowed to stay at Mr. Kingstonâs mansion, and formed an enduring romantic relationship with both his son (her best friend since boarding school) and their mutual girlfriend. During a rough start and some touch-and-go procedures to bring her mutating body under a kind of controlled equilibrium, the three of them came to understand the deep feelings they shared. It made for an amazing, nurturing bond that kept her grounded. Even happy. Without their support and acceptance, Lexi didnât think sheâd have been able to cope with her new state. Probably would have tried something desperate long ago. Instead she was able to enjoy their years together in this sheltered estate, feeling something approaching normality, or a comfortable equivalent, as her remaining alterations were⊠compatible with their mutual preferences. Maybe not accidentally so.
âDoing okay out here by yourself?â he asked with genuine interest. In all the time Lexi resided within his grounds, this stint was the longest sheâd spent by herself. It was gratifying to see her calm and apparently well-adjusted. Spoke to the progress sheâd made, especially after therapeutic assistance from Firmament tapered off. They still kept tabs, as well as they could, for reasons he knew all too well. He did what he could to protect her privacy from them, which put further strain on his already fraught relationship with the organization. But he also secretly recorded his own data. For the good of Darius and Selene, naturally, but also for Lexiâs sake. If he were a better man it would hurt him to keep this scrutiny so concealed, but someone with his past had long ago relinquished claims to being a better man.
âHeh, not going to lie. Itâs lonely. But after those dreams, it was just⊠harder to be around people. Especially Selene and Darius,â she admitted, tightening up a bit. âBut on the other hand, I think the time alone has done me some good, too. Sometimes a clear head only comes with quiet, yâknow?â she flipped a lock of her rainbow mane away from her cheek.
âI know all too well,â the elder Kingston told her with the weight experience. âJust make sure you donât start to disconnect when you shouldnât be.â Since she didnât bring it up, he didnât mention how her body had adjusted to the time alone by growing a little more modest. It was a good sign, reflecting well on her mental state.
âYeah,â Lexi agreed. It was good to talk to Mr. Kingston; she didnât know his past, but she knew he had seen and done things relevant to her trauma and spent years grappling with is own ghosts. âAnyway, just dropping in to check up?â
ââŠ. no,â Mr. Kingston said after a deep, reinforcing breath. âWeâve had some news about the ruins. Firmament thinks the containment zone was breached. They took⊠measures to maintain the quarantine. But even with those measures in place, my sources say thereâs some activity out in the open. Apparently itâs been festering in the last week, slowly gaining ground.â
âLast week?â Lexi asked. Stupid is one thing she wasnât. âSo itâs connected to my dreams?â
âThereâs good reason to think that, yes,â he said, gauging her reaction. It was acceptance rather than surprise.
âIs this the part where you ask me to come out of retirement for one last mission?â she questioned, the overt pop culture reference masking real apprehension.
âIâm not going to ask you to put yourself at risk,â he said; left silent was the implication that he was more interested in protecting his son than her per se. But, again, Lexi wasnât stupid. And somehow, that fatherly priority was endearing rather than belittling. âBut,â he continued, âwith your experience, insights, and unique⊠circumstances. Well, Iâm just going to say it: I think you would be the ideal set of eyes to go in for a look.â
âGo in?â she asked, definitely inclined to reject the proposition.
âItâs not at the mall,â Mr. Kingston said with his hands raised to try and halt whatever train of thought had been gathering steam. âItâs actually at a local college. If youâre up to it. Iâve made arrangements to get you in as a teaching assistant. With the amulet youâll be able to see where the warp has been woven into the weft. And your tattooed iconography should insulate you from the influence. Youâd honestly be the safest person from its effects on campus. But itâs still a risk. Lexi,â he leaned in. âIâve seen you go from the brink of existential collapse to thriving again. Itâs ⊠reassuring for me. I owe you a debt.â
âHeh, I think thatâs my line,â she said, using humor as a way to deflect some of the stress this revelation was raising. She didnât every ill in the world was dealt with, even with Foundation, but sheâd started to believe her part in it all was over. That she was going to have a relatively normal existence from here on out.
âNo, Iâm serious,â Devon Kingston insisted, his rich brown face a monument to solemnity in that moment. âYou wonât understand why, but just trust that I am. So believe me when I say youâve already earned your happy, safe life here and I donât want to take that away from you. Ever.â The hardness in his face softened a little as he turned back to the subject of the request. âSo you absolutely donât have to do this. We have other ways of getting the information. Theyâre just⊠less certain. And I want to warn you upfront; Firmament wonât be backing you on this if you decide to take it on. Youâll have Jay and myself and our resources, but thatâs it.â
âDr. Hutchins?â Lexi asked, confused. Didnât he work for Firmament?
âHeâd be your handler for the duration, and he can be your back-up in a pinch,â he said. Lexi remembered well how the grizzled doctor suddenly appeared in her apartment and ⊠dispatched the thing that was keeping dominion over her at the time. And she remembered the role he played in her therapies during the aftermath, slowly restoring measures of her self-possession against the insidious conditioning. âBut,â Mr. Kingston interrupted her recall, âI want to drive the point home; this is not a safe mission. There is every chance it could end badly. And worse than that,â he said, leaving the âworseâ implications unspoken but understood.
âYou wouldnât be asking if you didnât thinkâŠ. didnât know that sending me in would give us the best chance,â Lexi pointed out, looking at her fingers on the keys. They were pressing down hard, the tone theyâd hammered long ago faded to silence. The elder Kingstonâs silence was reply enough to confirm it. He was a scholar, among other things. Heâd already weighed all the possibilities. If he really believed other methods would suffice, he wouldnât have approached her. âItâs not just my past. Itâs not just that my dreams are⊠a reaction. You think thereâs a psychic link that could be useful. What are you going to do to keep the link from going wrong?â she asked, voice breaking during the last question. Such a possibility was one she didnât want to admit here, in the safety of the grounds that had shrunk to become her entire world while she recovered. She thought it was safe, that the Kingston groundsâ defenses were adequate. But if something was knocking on her mindâs back door even here, with every precaution taken, it was likely whatever broke out of the ruined mall would try to use her to its advantage sooner or later. Even here.
âWell, regardless of whether or not you want to go through this with, I was going to recommend another round of reinforcement therapies,â Kingston said, regarding her carefully. âIf you stay here, then combined with the other measures in place they may be enough to keep you cut off completely. If you go into the thick of it, they might only be a flimsy shell, but theyâd be better than nothing.â Lexi lifted her white-knuckled fingers from the keyboard and folded them onto her lap. âReinforcement therapiesâ meant conditioning. Sure, it was âthe good kindâ of conditioning, but it still meant implanting some sort of externally-constructed mental scaffolding into her brain. She hadnât had any of that since the second year of recovery, and was just getting used to the idea that her rebuilt self was enough as-is. âEither way, some defensive reinforcements are, I think, warranted. If you take this risk, youâll also receive some conditioning relevant to your role. No offense, but itâs unlikely youâd be able to pull off a convincing TA cover with old-fashioned rehearsals.â
Yeah, hypnosis is way faster for that, she thought, and has the advantage of making it harder to break character. She knew from experience. âOkay,â she said after a moment.
âFor the extra therapy?â Mr. Kingston asked.
âFor the mission,â she corrected him. âIâll do it. You said I would be the safest choice and I trust you.â
âI am⊠not going to dissuade you, Lexi,â he said. âJust understand that this is strictly voluntary. You donât owe this to anyone, least of all me.â
âI get it,â she said, brushing another stray lock of rainbow mane out of her eyes. âCan I have a day, first? Before the conditioning, or therapy, or whatever you want to call it. Just a day?â
âWe can spare you that, absolutely,â the elder Kingston said. âI imagine youâll want to break the news yourself, anyway.â
âYeah,â Lexi agreed. Break the news, and some other things. Itâd been a long week of self-isolation here, in the grounds, where she could walk to the main house any time she wanted. If she was going to be out of the grounds and virtually cut off for a few days, or longer, she wanted to spend a lot of time with Selene and Darius first. No scaffolding getting between them.
âI⊠hate to feel like Iâm talking you into doing this,â he said, breaking eye contact with her for the first time as he turned to leave. A slender hand grabbed his, holding him in place. Lexi rose to her full height, looked him in the eyes, and pulled him into a reluctant embrace. A fuzzy ear twitched as it brushed against his horseshoe of short, curly, greying hair.
âYouâve been more of a father to me these last few years than my real dad was for my entire life,â she whispered. âEven though you knew what I was. Thank you Mr. Kingston.â
Awkwardly and out of practice, caught off guard by this outpouring of intense gratitude and affection, his large hand found the back of her shoulder and gave it a reassuring rub. âYou can call me Pops.â Something warm dripped onto his shirt collar.