Staring at the screen, Alex wanted nothing more than to break it. But he was sure the school's librarians wouldn't appreciate it. Why did laws have to be so complicated? He had seen biology books at the college level that made more sense than this. Then there was the news surrounding his up coming trial. This was really the only source of information he had on what people were saying about him.

A lot of it wasn't good. The anti-mutant brigade was in full swing on some of the news sites. Though at least there were some that defended him. But if he had to put it into numbers it was seventy-thirty split, with the seventy being on the against side. It didn't make him feel very confident. However if he had read the information right the jurors would be interviewed beforehand, to root out any bias. Hopefully that would make his chances a little better.

Though, no matter what the law said, anyone in jury would not be his peer. He doubted all of them would be mutants in similar enough status in life. Nor were they going to be his own age. Likely they would be over twenty, given that any students would be able to call off jury duty and-oh god there was just too much going on. He just wanted it to be over. This whole thing made his head hurt. Why couldn't it just be quick? Why did they have to wait so long?

He groaned, head thumping against the desk. It was futile to work himself up over it. There was nothing he could do. Everything was out of his hands, he had to trust the lawyers to know what they were doing. Yet...god, he wanted out. He wanted to leave, put the danger of this city behind him. He would take treacherous mountains and wild animals over this place.

Still, he promised Hades he would stay till they end. He just had to wait it out, grit his teeth and bare it. He just didn't want to. He didn't want to do it, he didn't want to stay. Every molecule in him burned to run.

He cover his head, eyes closed, taking a moment to rest his eyes and let the frustration wear off. At least a little bit.

Lewis, or Wodehouse? Margo, with both Tuesday night reads tucked under her arm, had just been on her way to check the books out when she saw the boy with his head in his arms, and her heart nearly stopped.

Alex.

An onslaught of memories surged at the sight of him, from window seats and aisle seats to an eavesdropper with an itchy trigger finger. If only it could have stopped there, because Margo knew- how could she not, between the video of the act itself and the interviews and the talk of the trial on every online forum and street corner, enough to drive anyone insane?

The computer in front of him had gone dim, but somehow Margo knew exactly what he had been looking at. ...This would be the worst time to tell how little hope she had in a happy ending for Alex now, not that it mattered. She'd already done so, and it was too late now for anything except a silent prayer that he didn't remember.

Perching herself on the back of a nearby armchair, the girl cleared her throat. "Is this a good time to talk? I'll go away if it's not."

"Is this a good time to talk? I'll go away if it's not."

The voice jerked him out of his dozing, he had been half way to napping right there at the desk. Blinking up at the speaker he realized it was someone he hadn't talked to in a while. Margo, geeze how long had it been? It seemed once school started up they both got caught up in it. Now they were meeting again, around the same time they had met even.

He rubbed at spot where his forehead had connected with the desk earlier, wondering if it was red or not. "Oh, um, no...What's up Margo? It's been a while." He was sure she knew, hell he could see it on her face. She was worried about him, pitied him. He didn't want that. It only made things feel more hopeless.

Still he didn't want to take his frustration out on her, tried to pretend he wasn't even bothered. It wasn't her fault and there was nothing either of them could do about the situation. Not a whole lot at least. So he smiled, wanting to put her at ease, nothing was wrong, everything was fine.

His smile was obviously forced, and it was enough to make Margo feel guilty for being all hopeless. That was like, the dumbest way to react when your friend was on trial for murder- for being a targeted mutant, more accurately, but of course nobody would mention that. Alex...he would hate the fact that she pitied him and so she should probably act like nothing was wrong, except how in the world could she do that?

She slid her books onto the desk beside her and settled herself more comfortably on the back of the armchair (supposedly librarians hated this, but it wasn't like this place hadn't seen worse times), her own smile coming mostly naturally. "No kidding, right? Sorry if I interrupted your nap time or whatever. Gosh, you know how it is? It's like classes are a giant temporal black hole that leaves nothing for sleep or"

(friends which was probably the reason she hadn't talked to Alex in a year, how had that even happened she was such a bad friend)

"-life in general."

He relaxed a little at her own relaxed and friendly posture. She probably felt some sort of backtracking on her pity and he wouldn't reprimand her on that. He was grateful that she had the forethought to try and be calm around him. Possibly because their last encounter showed just how well he could handle stress. IE not too great.

"No kidding, right? Sorry if I interrupted your nap time or whatever. Gosh, you know how it is? It's like classes are a giant temporal black hole that leaves nothing for sleep or...life in general."

She seemed to have trouble coming up with the right words. Didn't blame her they both got caught up in things. He was just as equally at fault for not seeking her out to hang out again. But he was glad to see they were still friends after everything that's happened to him.

"Yeah, things have been crazy...." More crazy then he would have preferred but that wasn't here nor there. "So what have you been up to? School caught us both in it's black hole but you seem to be doing well." He made no attempt to mention his trial. He needed a break from thinking about it. He momentarily thought about Margo's power. If he remembered correctly, maybe she could help relieve some of the stress.

Right, so he didn't want to talk about the trial. That was understandable enough and fine with Margo; she'd hear it all sooner or later and it wasn't like he had any obligation to delve into such a painful (she imagined) topic until then. She was here to listen if he wanted to vent, that was all.

Talk about an elephant in the room. Or rather, don't.

"Yeah, things have been crazy... So what have you been up to? School caught us both in its black hole but you seem to be doing well."

"Eh, you too." The noncommittal sound she made seemed somewhat hypocritical- she hated school but it was the sort of thing that had always come easily to her, although she couldn't imagine the same for Alex with all his catching up to do. "Uh, I got a job. An itty-bitty job at a coffee shop, but you know. I have a blog now too, which is how I heard about Audubon X and their little club. Also I'm doing an ice cream taste test."

With a grin, because it totally sounded like she was asking him out, "We should so go together sometime. New York has way too many good places for olive oil and goat cheese gelato, and doesn't that just sound like an overload of calories?"

The sound she made was enough to tell him she wasn't a big fan of school. Personally he was fine with it. The longer it went on the less excitement he felt for doing something normal. But at the same time he liked it. Plus it was a good distraction from the trial as well. Even if things have been a little awkward in class lately.

"Uh, I got a job. An itty-bitty job at a coffee shop, but you know. I have a blog now too, which is how I heard about Audubon X and their little club. Also I'm doing an ice cream taste test."

"Audubon X? Oh you mean those guys who take pictures of mutants? What are they like? I've only ever talked to them through the internet." Which she probably saw, given the video of him talking to the chat room got pretty popular. He had no idea why but it did. People like it.

"We should so go together sometime. New York has way too many good places for olive oil and goat cheese gelato, and doesn't that just sound like an overload of calories?"

He made a face at the mixture mentioned, "Olive oil and goat cheese? I don't know if that sounds any good. Though I don't doubt the calories." And he was always up for something heavy in calories, given what his mutation does to his caloric intake and all.

Now that was a question. Margo exhaled through her nose in half of a laugh in reply, "Hardcore mutant fans, as you should know. They're insane, but at least they don't ask as many stupid questions in real life. Well, maybe they would've? I, uh, didn't tell them about me."

She twisted a stray lock of her hair, which she hadn't bothered to trim for too long and probably should soon, thoughtfully in her fingers. The visit with the bird watchers hadn't been bad at all, just mostly awkward. A thousand times more awkward then the current situation, and that was saying something.

"I thought you'd enjoy it for the calories, but I hear it's an acquired taste." That was what she'd called it on the blog- an acquired taste that she would not even try to acquire. "If that doesn't suit you there's always chocolate for about half the health risks, but you know."

She grinned at the thought of a gelato date- take that, big brother with your expectations of me having a boyfriend! A friend that happened to be a boy was more like it.

"Hardcore mutant fans, as you should know. They're insane, but at least they don't ask as many stupid questions in real life. Well, maybe they would've? I, uh, didn't tell them about me."

He chuckled and nodded in agreement, "I don't blame you. I wouldn't have either. Except now I really don't have a choice if they recognize me or not." He forgot for a moment to keep his tone light. A touch of fear tinging his words. He had never been confronted with the idea of being very known. He was used to being in the background, unnoticed, easily forgotten. This situation was an uncomfortable unknown to him.

He mind was drawn back to the more positive part of the conversation, namely gelato. Because it was fancy ice cream and fancy ice cream was always awesome.

"I thought you'd enjoy it for the calories, but I hear it's an acquired taste. If that doesn't suit you there's always chocolate for about half the health risks, but you know."

"I could give it a try. It still sounds super weird but why not. Plus it'd be nice to try something new." Besides he just need to get out of his comfort zone at some point. It was slow going right now, he was getting used to everything around him, becoming more integrated into society. Just like he had wanted at first. But it was a lot harder than he had originally expected. He need to get involved in being with other people. Margo was a good option for that. He just hoped that he'd have the chance to hang out with her.

Margo saw where this was going. She saw where it was going somewhere in between his chuckle and his "except", and suddenly the six feet of space seemed too much between two teens trying to avoid thinking about it, and completely and utterly failing.

"Scopophobia? That would be fear of being seen or stared at or known," she helpfully supplied, trying to make light of the situation. All it did was end up sounding stupid and uncaring, though, and she gave mentally gave herself a high five. In the face. "No, but seriously...don't we all have it? Just some of us are more used to the attention than others, and some use it better too. It can be good or bad depending upon the person, and I'm just going to say you're doing a magnificent job of dealing with it so far."

A pause. The strand of hair she'd been playing with had tied itself in a knot- a figure eight, to be exact. Margo gave it a blank stare and let it drop. Well, she'd have to either find some way to untangle that or snip it off, later tonight. A metaphor, or was it literally how brilliant she was? It wasn't like gelato cared.

"After all this is over," said the girl in way of a promise. This time she would, they would. Who knew, maybe she'd even give the acquired taste another try? YOLO, unless you were a firebird who liked to ditch people. In which case your opinion didn't matter anyway.

"Scopophobia? That would be fear of being seen or stared at or known,"

He blinked at the terminology thrown his way. It was interesting, something he'd want to research later. Seemed relevant enough, especially with how nervous he was getting with the upcoming trial. With each day that past, with more and more media talk...well, it was hard not to panic.

"No, but seriously...don't we all have it? Just some of us are more used to the attention than others, and some use it better too. It can be good or bad depending upon the person, and I'm just going to say you're doing a magnificent job of dealing with it so far."

He had to smile at her words, far to kind for what he was contemplating inwardly. "Yeah, outwardly I guess. More than once in the last couple of weeks I've wanted to run away all over again...Or scream. Screaming is definitely an option." The last bit was half joking, but really and truly in all this time all he could really do was run himself in circles. Screaming seemed like a totally logical option at this point.

"After all this is over," The promise didn't sound so upbeat. He didn't know if it was him or her that didn't believe things would go so well. Maybe it was both. While she played with her hair, he glanced at the computer screen and then back at her. "Margo, you can influence emotions right? Could you...I dunno, it's dumb, but could you numb panic or fear? I could really use it right about now."

"If you want to, why not?" That teasing in her eyes was there not because Margo didn't care- on the contrary, because she did and because her best attempt at a pep talk had just been shot down. Play was the next best thing, right? "I dare you to. Scream. I'll cover if anyone hears, because betcha scream like a girl."

All in all, it wasn't a bad idea; heaven knows she had done it often enough herself when she'd been younger and not regretted it. Thus Alex was given a moment to either do so or pass it off as the joke it was, while the girl tugged at the (literal) knot in her hair.

"Run away how? How could you think that would help?"

Because in her mind all she saw in that was the scared street kid who she'd only ever heard about, who she'd never learn to care for because he was stupid, who would never be Alex as she knew him. It was for Alex and not the kid that she let the subtle calmness wash over the area, not caring that this was what Lucy had hated or that she would hate herself later when the echoes came... because it was for Alex.

"If you want to, why not? I dare you to. Scream. I'll cover if anyone hears, because betcha scream like a girl."

He considered it, looking around the library for anybody that he might interrupt with the sudden sound. He opened his mouth to do it but stopped short. "Agh, I can't." He scrubbed his face in frustration, he was pent up but he couldn't let it out like that. It would draw too much attention. He didn't need any more of that. He'd find a way to do it later, probably into a pillow or something.

"Run away how? How could you think that would help?"

"Break the ankle bracelet that they tagged me with and head south for the winter. I dunno, it's just how I've always done things. If things get hard I make a run for it. No point in fighting battles I'm going to end up loosing." That's how things felt anyway. The past couple of weeks had been hell on his mind and the urge to pack up and go was deeply ingrained in him.

He took a breath and he felt calmness wash over him in waves, washing away the nervous panic that had taken up residence inside him. For a little while it felt like things were going to be alright, his body felt lighter, and smiling was a little bit easier. He smiled softly at her, grateful for her gift. "Thanks Margo, I really needed that."

Doing good was the best way to feel good. While Margo's powers might have told her the exact opposite sometimes, there was no question about how Alex's smile and the tension seeming to come off his shoulders made it all worth it. This was what she had this mutation for, period.

"Thank you, Alex." She smiled back, if a little embarrassed that he'd liked it. "Okay, first things first. Have you ever been to Disneyland? Disney world?" Because she was taking him out for gelato sometime but that was no good if he hadn't seen Disney, right? "I'm taking you there or some other theme park, and we're going on all the rides. So you can get all that screaming out."

Joking aside, though, there was a pause as the girl struggled to find a reply to that. "Just because you've always done it that way doesn't mean it's not completely stupid," she said finally. Case in point, just about anything you could think of. "Alex, you're not fighting a losing battle. You aren't going to lose, okay?"

"Thank you, Alex."

It was good to see that she was happy to use her powers. At least as far as it went when it came to helping people. He just hoped it lasted him for the day. One stress free 24 hours would be magical. If only because then sleep would be that much easier to obtain.

"Okay, first things first. Have you ever been to Disneyland? Disney world?"

He shook his head, of course not. Those places were way far away and way more expensive than he was used to. Way more expensive than he could ever afford. Besides that, he really never got the chance to go.

"I'm taking you there or some other theme park, and we're going on all the rides. So you can get all that screaming out."

"I dunno if that's a good idea." He couldn't imagine going on a ride to purposely make himself scream ending well. Was that what people did for entertainment? Induce screaming for stress relief? That can't be healthy. Though, he had been thinking about checking it out before. There would be no harm in just looking after all.

"Just because you've always done it that way doesn't mean it's not completely stupid. Alex, you're not fighting a losing battle. You aren't going to lose, okay?"

He sighed, attempting to push the tension back down again before it ruined Margo's work. "I know, it's just...It feels like a loosing battle. Like I'm going up against a bear with a stick and positive thinking. Even if I do win, things won't go back to the way they were before. I won't be able to retreat after this." Flight had always been his first option, being an unknown, an unseen person had always been his advantage. They were effectively clipping his wings and stripping him of his camouflage.