Who: Alice & Zoe When: New Years Where: Street & Home Rating: Adult - Violence & mild sexual content
No, she didn’t want to go to any of the parties, but some of the people she worked with had insisted so she at least decided to make an appearance. Then, someone offered her a drink and she wanted to refuse, but at the same time it was a moment she could test the effects of alcohol with her powers- granted not the perfect setting but even the super smart were sensitive to the occasional effects of peer pressure. And for a moment Zoe felt like she did back in college. Granted she didn’t drink a lot, but her mind did seem to slow down, and she ended the night with a slight buzz. It wasn’t quite the new year, but she felt a little off and decided to call it early- no on really seemed to notice her leaving.
Zoe made her way down the street, feeling quite happy. She knew her sister had stayed in and was hoping to get home before midnight to ring in the new year with one of her favorite people- since their brother was off somewhere and her mother was keeping their father company as he’d volunteered to work the night shift at the hospital. She saw the two guards coming down the street, they were way more intoxicated than she was. Still Zoe checked to make sure her ID was visible as she casually redirected her angle to avoid a direct confrontation. Unfortunately that’s not what was meant to be. The guards spied her and changed their direction to meet her, they actually seemed to speed up. “Hey! You’re the new girl who works in training yea?” One said, getting closer. Zoe looked and was feet away from the door to her building.
The next day in replay the scene would play out clear and crisp and down to the minute in her head. The first guard approached and backed her against the wall of the apartment building. His breath smelled of cheap beer and so did his clothing. His voice slurred and ran together as he tried to come onto her. “What’sa preddy lil thing like you doin out ear alone?” The second guard came up on her other side and they had her cornered. He smelled just as bad. “You been partyin? Your goin home too erly, is not even midnight yet.” The first guard reached out and put his hand on her arm, his grasp a little tighter than needed. “Come on, we can ring in the new year right.” The second guard laughed and agreed as he took her other arm. The first guards hand moved to her blouse and put his hand on her chest. Zoe tried to resist, but the two guards were much stronger than her. “Let me go!” They each took a hold of her blouse and pulled, tearing the buttons and exposing her bare stomach and nude bra. “Nice.” The second guard said as his hand moved over her pants. The first guard appeared to be getting aroused, as his hands moved to his belt.
Zoe was still a bit tipsy, which did make her brain work slower, but she tried as quick as she could to scan through any relevant data she might have to get her out of the situation. Finally she found it. As her mind replayed a cheesy video her brother had found and shown her online: ‘intro to self defence’. It may have been cheesy but it was still legit. Her hands were bound but she still had her legs, and head. Using her reflexes to copy the video she headbutted the second guard and kneed the other in the groin. They were each stuned enough to release her. Zoe then braced herself as she slammed a shoulder into the second guard, sending him to the ground- thankfully the alcohol helped to impair his balance as she did not have the strength to accomplish the move normally. The first guard lunged at her but she deflected and redirected his momentum into the wall. As they both lay on the ground Zoe broke into a run- she knew they could be up any moment. As she reached the door to her home she fumbled and dropped her keys. “Alice?” She called, a bit frantic. “Fuck Alice open the door.” She yelled as she bent down to get her keys.
--
Alice Keene had considered going out to party and ring in the New Year with a celebration, yet the invite her brother showed her was clearly meant for mutants and the fact that she had powers was still very much a secret. Heck only Zoe knew that Alice possessed abilities, and that was as far is it went. So instead of going out the young woman settled in for a night at home, made all the more sad by the fact that her parents had left to go join some of the hospital staff at a different party. Left to her own devices though the blonde filled her time with lounging about and watching her favorite film Groundhog Day. From her seat on the couch; curled up beneath a warm comfy blanket, she munched away at freshly popped popcorn, and started to drift off to sleep.
However when she heard Zoe’s cry, from just outside the front door, Keene yawned and slipped away from the warmth of the comforter. In truth the little sister simply thought that her elder sibling had gotten too drunk to unlock the door, yet when she opened it for Zoe a look of shock and panic quickly took hold. The sight of her big sister’s ripped shirt, and frightened state, had Alice’s heart hammering away. But before she could ask any of the thousand questions raising through her mind the younger woman spotted the two men shambling towards them...both looking pissed off and more than a little drunk. Memories of Ronnie came flashing back; her drunk ex screaming at her and clawing at her clothing...coupling with a desperate need to keep her big sister safe….pure primal instinct took hold of the blonde.
With a scream Alice raised her hands, blood dripping from her nose as she tapped into her power, and as the guards stepped onto a sheet of ice near the door both suddenly found themselves falling right through the ice...only to be dumped out at sea hundreds of miles away, having teleported the would be attackers to the reflection of the cold moonlit waters. The world grew so very blurry as the young woman found herself feeling lightheaded, and after taking a step back away from the door to let Zoe in Alice just fell to the carpet and whimpered softly to herself. The nosebleeds always sucked, but the headache of using her power without proper focus or concentration was just ten times worse. At last though she gazed up at her big sister, smiling softly to her as she managed to finally weakly speak up.
“It’s okay, Zoe...you’re safe now…” --
Trembling, as she kicked the door closed behind her, Zoe dropped to the floor next to Alice. “Alice.” She said in a soft whimper as she put her arm around her sister. “Thank you.” Her mind was still processing the events and she closed her eyes as she tried to fight the instant replay. “Thank you.”
After a few slow breaths Zoe looked at her sister. “Are you ok?” She asked, getting up to get Alice a tissue. “Here.”
--
Her own mind was a buzz with conflicting thoughts and feelings, yet as Zoe put an arm around her all of those seemed to slip away. Oh that headache was still right there, like a frozen ice pick just sticking into her brain, yet as long as she kept her eyes closed the brightness of the room didn’t hurt as much. Just hearing her big sister thank her mirrored the same words that had fallen from Keene’s lips the day Zoe had come to her rescue, and that little smile of hers grew brighter when she realized that that terrifying power of hers had actually helped keep someone she loved safe.
“I’m okay, Zoe...just...are you?” Real concern was heard in the young woman’s voice as she opened her eyes and gazed at her sibling again. Even when Zoe offered the tissue over the young woman ignored it and instead quickly sat up to pull her into a hug. “You’re okay now...I won’t let anyone hurt you, Zoe.” Tears streamed down her cheeks as she squeezed a little tighter; all those dark memories of the past creeping in once again, but being pushed away by the warmth of her sister in her arms. --
Zoe clung to her sister, her own cheeks damp with tears. There were some emotions even her superintelligence sideline too. “I’m ok. Nothing happened- I mean I was able to stop them before anything happened.” She said, her voice muffled slightly as her face hid in her sisters hair. “You saved me… us.” Because Zoe was certain that if the guards had come into their home Alice would have been harmed as well.
The two girls just clung to each other for a long time, outside Zoe could hear people counting down to midnight, but she didn’t care. Anyone walking in would have thought the scene a bit awkward and possibly amusing, but for the two sisters, they were holding on to any sense of composure they could find. As midnight hit Zoe took in a ragged breath and smiled, “Happy New Year.” She said softly. The moment’s absurdity finally kicking in, she chuckled slightly. All the hell that 2017 had brought, and there they were, two sisters clinging to each other going into 2018. She wasn’t sure if it was a good or bad sign for the new year.
--
Tears of joy, of relief, and of sorrow as well all streamed down the face of the youngest sibling. Zoe was safe now, and so was she, yet the realization of the situation dawned on her as well. In her need to save her big sister Alice had killed again...not directly this time; which was a small mercy, but in her fear fueled reaction she had sentenced two men to death. Leaving them to drown in the freezing waters far far from any land. It had been a gut reaction, an impulse to just send them far away, but still the end result was quite the same. Three. Three people were dead because of her...and as devastated as she had been when she accidentally killed her ex, well sadly and strangely Alice felt no real remorse for the lives she had just ended. Those men, if that is what people who drunkenly preyed on innocent young women could be called, had tried to harm her big sister...and in their eyes she had seen a darkness and desire to harm her as well.
Those tears fell, but the ones of sorrow were far fewer than the others. Clinging on to Zoe, holding her close, and just sobbing softly for a while, Alice forgot about the world beyond just the two of them. It wasn’t until she heard her big sister speak up that Keene realized it was a new year, and with a soft sigh she pulled back enough to offer a tiny peck onto Zoe’s cheek. “Happy New Year, Zoe…” Unsure of what else to do or say, head throbbing away like a pack of penguins in tap shoes were dancing on her brain, she winced a little at the brightness of the room and finally spoke up again. “Can we...can we kill the lights? And maybe steal some of No’s booze? My head is killing me, and drinking in the dark sounds really good right now.” --
Zoe nodded. “You get the lights, I’ll get the booze.” She gave her sister a kiss on the cheek before heading down the hall to their brothers room. It wasn’t hard to find his stash, some things never changed. Zoe made sure to stop in her room and change her shirt, putting on an old tee and a bandaid over the small cut on her forehead thanks to the headbutt, before returning to Alice. She made sure to hit the light in the hall as she passed.
“Whiskey and Rum.” Zoe said, placing the two bottles on the coffee table. “I think there’s some pop in the fridge.” She made sure to grab some glasses before returning to the living room. Maybe drinking more would delay the instant replay that kept wanting to kick off in her mind. She knew that it was all part of processing the incident, that logically replaying would allow her to take mental control of the memory and cope, but at that moment she wanted anything but to relive… “Here’s to sisters?” She said, handing Alice a drink.
--
It took the young woman a moment to stir from her seat on the floor, mostly due to the dizziness she felt when she first tried to move. Yet after a few seconds Alice finally got up, and with a grunt she wiped away the blood on her nose and chin with the tissue left for her. The urge to vomit rose and fell away, until at last Keene made her way to kill the lights in the living room. Drinking to excess had never been her bag, but damn if a good buzz didn’t sound amazing just then. Adrenaline still coursed through her body, a natural reaction given all that had happened, yet even as her hands shook the blonde just sighed and slowly moved to crash on the couch. The sight of the two bottles was most welcome, and when Zoe mentioned pop her little sister just quietly chuckled and held up the two liter of root beer she already had beside the coffee table. “Finished half of it while watching the movie, but there’s plenty left for yummy rum.” When her big sister joined her at last, Alice accepted the glass with glee, and after pulling the blanket up over them both the young woman smiled a little more. “To sisters.” Down went the contents of her glass in one large gulp, and even as she carefully set the glass back down Alice moved to pour herself another. Oh the bottle of rum trembled thanks to her shaking hand, but when the glass was half full Keene set the rum down and repeated the process with the open container of root beer as well. “Totally up for watching Groundhog Day again, if you are?” As she waited for her sister’s response Alice grabbed her glass and drank it slowly this time; focusing instead on curling up beside Zoe and resting her head on her big sister’s shoulder. --
Zoe knocked back her drink, making a face. Yea, it had been a while since she’d had anything heavier than a malted beverage. Did alcohol always taste so bad? Following her sisters plan, she nursed her second glass. “Sounds like a plan, and who doesn’t like a classic?” She was happy her sister hadn’t asked what had actually happened. While she had kicked butt and prevented the men from going to far- it was still something she liked not having to relive- especially since that was what her mind did. Just like with movies, but thankfully she hadn’t seen Groundhog Day since her powers kicked in so she didn’t have to worry about a memory of the movie playing as she watched a movie.
Snuggling close to her sister, she felt some comfort. She could tell Alice was traumatized by what she’d done to the guards- not fully aware of where she’d sent them, just that she seemed shaken. But at the same time Zoe didn’t care what happened to them. They were predators- drunk or not- and they deserved to end up wherever she’d sent them. Zoe restarted the movie, and slipped her non-drinking hand around her sister’s shoulder, allowing her to lay on her more. “I love you, Tink.” She said softly.
--
Rum and root beer was a tasty combo as far as Alice was concerned, and while she was too young to legally be drinking...well with a big brother like No, the baby of the family never had had a problem getting drinks. Wine coolers, smirnoff twisted, and really anything fruity was good in her book, but rum was yum. Slowly sipping on the drink her gaze drifted up to her big sister. There was no need to ask, no desire to make Zoe put words to a horrific thing. Especially not when Keene had lived through something just like it before. Back then it was her power that kept Ronnie from...from hurting her even worse. Zoe mentioned being able to fight the men off, and that was enough for Alice. Still she rested her arm around her sister’s waist, offering a little squeeze and hug as a few more tears formed in the young woman’s eyes.
A single nod was her only real response to the question, since both knew that Alice could practically recite back every line of dialogue from the film. It was her dad’s favorite movie, and that love was shared with Alice as the two had a tradition of watching it together whenever one of them was stuck home sick. Those softly spoken words from her big sister, and the feeling on the arm resting around her, made the young woman feel safe once again. “I love you too, Zo...more than all the cookies in the world.” As the movie began the blonde closed her eyes, and slowly sipped her drink as she savored the taste. That headache of hers still hammered away within her skull, but already Alice could feel the slight tingling of the alcohol working it’s magic. --
Zoe smiled, even chuckled a little at that. “Well I don’t know about all the cookies.” She teased as her sister hushed her for the movie. The older sister didn’t last as long as her younger counterpart, and she found herself drifting off part way through the movie. Granted Alice didn’t last much longer, falling asleep during the following scene. Thankfully by this point their drinks were empty as Zoe’s glass slipped from her hand and fell to the carpet.
As the movie was wrapping up their parents returned home from The Facility to find both girls passed out, the blonde using the brunette as a pillow. They smiled to each other and shook their heads, not even upset about the alcohol- well maybe a little but nothing that would have any lasting effect. Together they turned of the TV and cleaned up the glasses and bottles. Their mother grabbed a second blanket and some pillows and with the help of their father gently maneuvered the girls so they were each lying comfortably- it was not the first time they’d done it. With that complete, they turned in, leaving their daughters sleeping peacefully- or as peaceful as they could after the night they’d had.