It had been what…? 4 hours… maybe 5 since she had arrived back to New York City. And to the Mansion as well. The awkwardness wasn’t gone yet and apparently it wasn’t planning on disappearing any time soon. The room still felt strange although it had been the closest thing to home that she had for a long time. The abundance of sounds coming from the hallways and the surrounding rooms was so different from the peaceful silence she had dealt with back in her rented apartment in Romania.

The time difference between the two countries was killing her. Almost 9 PM in New York while in Bucharest it was only 2 PM. At this time of the day, she’d be doing her errands, consume her energy so by the time the night came, she’d fall asleep quickly. Something she wanted to do right now but even if she felt tired because of the long plane ride her body refused to even think of sleep.

But what to do? Clothes were unpacked. Room was cleaned. TV was boring. And if she took another shower, she feared she might start to scrub away her skin. Alexandra let out a sigh, shifting uncomfortably in the bed, eyeing the movie played on TV with a visible lack of interest. What activity would fit the purpose of consuming energy rapidly the best?

Oh… Oh.

Danger Room. How could she forget about the wondrous room the Mansion possessed? But. To reach the Danger Room involved seeing people. And other people seeing her. The arrival was quite easy. Her sneaking in and avoiding the mansion residents (not just one mansion resident in particular and anyone that could inform the said mansion resident of her return, thank you very much) was helped by a pair of large sunglasses. And the fact that she had a new hairstyle. And she wore more make up. And fancier clothes. Oh well, people from the TV considered she needed a make-over to talk about coexistence between humans and mutants.

Still. Sunglasses weren’t going to help her now. Make-up would start to run down her face if she abused the products for training in the Danger Room. Heels were probably not a very good idea. Fancy clothing… the same. Time to think it over. Wednesday. 9 PM. School day. Kids should be preparing to go to sleep. Adults: relaxing after another day of work. Right? So she should have a clear way to the Danger Room.

Mentally nodding and encouraging the thought, Alexandra hopped off of her bed, pacing silently toward her dresser where she picked up one of the suits she’d been using during yoga practice. Plain black pants, plain black tank top and a pair of white sneakers. Just perfect for what she had in mind. She stopped by the mirror to pull her hair in a loose bun glancing for a few moments at the reflections. Scars were gone too. They didn’t look good on TV, or so she’d been told. And she didn’t want to be reminded of the camps either. So when the Underground offered a healer to make her scars vanish she agreed without a second thought. There were a plethora of other things to bring back bad memories.

Enough.

And so, she left her room.

---

Duck. Hit. Hit. Duck.

Fail.

With a fierce look upon his face, her opponent managed to score a hit against the molecule manipulator. Air left Alexandra’s lungs quickly as she winced in pain. She stepped back, a hand on her stomach, in a lame attempt to diminish the pain. Blue eyes watched the man sharply from behind rebel wet locks of hair as a growl left her lips. It took her a second to catch her breath and another to extend her hand toward the opponent. Instincts took over.

The metal floor rippled under the effects of her powers. Molecules rushed toward the body of the opponent. And next thing Alexandra knew, she was starring at the fallen body of her opponent, two metal spikes embedded into his body. Into his head. Into his eyes. Blood started to trickle down the sides of the head of the man. And Alexandra simply stared in horror as in her mind, the image of her unknown attacker shifted.

In front of her, fallen to the ground, with two spikes coming out of his eyes and blood streaming down his face from the wounds stood Sam. Alexandra gasped, her body straightening as she stepped back. And blinked.

When blue eyes opened once again, the face was unfamiliar once again.

“End session.”

She spoke the command with her eyes still on the body laying on the ground. She watched it until it vanished in thin air and then she stared at the empty space left behind.

Perhaps it wasn’t a good idea to come back after all.

It was Jewel's first visit to the Danger Room since they arrived home from Romania. It took months to deal with everything that had happened, and something that had 'danger' in its name didn't feel all that welcoming to her. But things got better, and she did too, and one morning Lily woke up with the feeling that she was ready to train again. She still wanted to be an X-man. So she scheduled some training time first thing in the morning.
And when she returned in the evening, someone was already in there.
She waited till whoever was inside ended the session, then walked in, ready to find some kids who were not even authorized to go in there. To her surprise, it was only one person.
Looks like I am not the only one who needs to blow off some steam.
"I'm sorry, but I think I've had... ALEX?"
As soon as she saw the familiar face, Lily ran the rest of the way and pulled her friend into a hug. "You're back!" she smiled as she finally let her go "I missed you."

The door opened.

Alexandra heard it.

And with the same shocked stare from before, she turned to look who was coming in. Please don’t let it be Sam. It wasn’t. Lily.

"I'm sorry, but I think I've had... ALEX?"

She was pulled into a hug. For a few seconds she stood paralyzed, arms hanging by her sides why Lily’s were wrapped around her frame. Then, as if someone had pushed a button, her arms moved, returning the hug. “Missed you too.” That, she did. For three months, she’d refused to keep in touch with anyone from the US. She had no idea if someone had tried to reach her. Her old phone numbers were lost. The e-mail address hadn’t been checked in months. But she missed them.

She wasn’t sure if she was ready to see any of them, although. Sam, she wasn’t, that much she knew. The others… she was confused about. Right now, however, Lily proved to be a welcomed distraction from what happened earlier. Placing a smile on her lips, she pulled away, looking at Lily not certain of what she should say.

She looked okay. Far better than the last time she’d seen her. And she had cut her hair. Well… at least she improved the ‘child playing with scissors’ haircut forced by the camps. “ You… did something to your hair.” Blink. Great way to start a conversation. Alexandra offered an apologetic smile accompanied by a tilted head. “Sorry. I sound awkward.” A sigh escaped her lips as she glanced up to the god room then at the door for a few seconds. Hoping that no one else was planning to come to the Danger Room. “It feels strange to be back.” She admitted, blue eyes traveling back to Lily.

“You… did something to your hair."
Lily chuckled "Yes, I did, but fortunately they could correct it."
"Sorry. I sound awkward. It feels strange to be back.”
"Don't worry about it" she shook her head with a smile "I know."
She did. Strange was an understatement; she had been home for three months, and it still didn't feel the same. Maybe it never will. And if Alex just arrived...
Lily sighed. "Do you want to be alone?" she asked. Sometimes it helped, she remembered that from the first few weeks "Or we could, you know, go out and talk." she added, with a smile, and looked around "You know, this is the first time I came down here since I got home... and with you gone, I didn't really have anyone to have a decent girl talk with."
It sounded silly, but she meant it. Whether Alex needed time alone, or someone to talk to, she was ready to help her find her way back to normal life. As much as it was possible. And sometimes silly things did help to take one's mind off serious matters.
Besides, their last night out ended quite well. All things considered...

That was a rather scary thought. Three months and Lily seemed like she hadn’t gotten used with being back either. That piece of information suddenly lowered her hopes of getting used with being at the Mansion. Sigh. The thought that she had left Romania too soon returned. Alexandra let her shoulders lower. Not like she could do anything now.

So she pondered the possibilities of this night.

1) Continue practice in the Danger Room.
But clearly, it was more populated than she liked it. If Lily came, others might come too. And holograms didn’t sound so good after what happened earlier either.

2) Go to her room.
And learn by heart every inch of the walls, ceiling and floor. Didn’t that sound thrilling?

3) Go out with Lily.
And talk.

Option number three sounded best after a few seconds of thinking. Talk, she could handle. And OUT sounded good. Out sounded like there were little chances to run into someone she knew. Lily could be asked to keep her presence in the mansion a secret. She couldn’t keep it a secret forever but at least for now. For a few days, maybe? Hopeful thinking.

Besides Lily was her friend. And last time they went out, she managed to get her mind off the more serious matters.

Alexandra smiled. “Out sounds good Lily. I missed having someone to talk to.” Well, she didn’t try very hard to find someone to talk to back in Romania. Work was everything she could see in front of her eyes back there. But she was back at the Mansion. Maybe she wasn’t ready to talk, that only the time would tell, but she could listen. Mentally, she nodded. Out was the best option.

“Lemme take a shower, get dressed and stuff.” And before she could leave… Her expression turned serious. “And Lily, don’t tell anyone else I’m back. Not yet.” Alexandra was fairly certain that Lily would understand her request.

“Out sounds good Lily. I missed having someone to talk to.”
Lily watched her friend as she considered the offer. She hoped she'd choose to talk. Talking was just... more healthy. At east in her point of view.
“Lemme take a shower, get dressed and stuff. And Lily, don’t tell anyone else I’m back. Not yet.”
"I won't" she nodded, just as serious. Then she smiled again. Plans for a girls' night out were already forming in her head "I'll meet you at your room in half an hour." she told Alex as she walked to the door "Dress to impress."
She said it in a tone that meant 'not to be argued with'. Because if there was something that could come close to cheering them up, it was being pretty.

True to her promise, Lily showed up at Alex's room half an hour later, wearing a dress and ready to go. She was holding her shoes in her hand since they would have made considerable noise, heels clacking down the corridor. It was past curfew. At least for the kids.

Alexandra nodded. Both as a confirmation that she’d be ready in half an hour and as a ‘thank you’ for the fact that Lily had agreed with not telling anyone that she was back. And for the ‘dress to impress’, said in that ‘do not argue with me’ tone. At that she also smiled.

She wasn’t really planning on impressing anyone. Just get out. But Lily had just agreed with not telling anyone she was back in the Mansion, so yeah, she could do the dress to impress thing for Lily. It had become more of a habit lately anyway.

---

When Alexandra opened the door, half an hour later, in a dress that hadn’t seen the outsides of her dresser more than once and with shoes and purse in one hand, she found Lily already there, waiting.

The hallway was silent and, thanks God, no one else besides Lily was there. She glanced at the closed doors, at Lily’s shoes and then at Lily herself. Alexandra chuckled. For some odd reason she felt like a kid trying to sneak out. “We call a cab or do we take my car?” Her precious car, her baby, which she didn’t have a chance to drive yet. She seriously hoped that Lily would choose the latter as her hands simply ached for holding the wheel of something that went faster than the rented car she'd been driving in Romania.

Alex seemed to have taken the 'dress to impress' thing seriously. Lily grinned when she saw her friends, carrying her shoes in her hand just like she did.
"I am impressed" she chuckled "Let's go."
Before we wake someone up.
“We call a cab or do we take my car?”
She considered the choice for a long moment. There was a glint in Alex's eyes that said she preferred the latter option; with a fancy dress went a fancy car, no doubt. Lily was not really interested in cars, but somehow she could tell what was going through Alex's head.
"Let's take the car." she nodded as she started walking towards the stairs.
We can always take a cab on the way back. Or walk.
"As for the where" she continued, once they were in the garage "Well, we could go to Evolution, but we might run into friends there, so I'd say..." she paused for a moment, then shrugged "Let's go find a bar."

Alexandra grinned. Simply grinned in response before going back to her room to retrieve the keys for her car. With the said item dangling from one of her fingers, Alexandra walked back into the hallway and closed and locked the door of the room.

She started to walk beside Lily, keeping her footsteps as silent as possible. And she didn’t talk either, at least not until they reached the garage. Drawing attention was the last thing they needed. The last thing she needed.

Beep, beep.

Her baby responded to the push of a button. Lights flashed, revealing its position among the multitude of cars and other vehicles from the garage.

A mischievous look appeared in Alexandra’s eyes. She hoped Lily didn’t mind going fast. But first. Shoes. She needed to put them on.

"As for the where… Well, we could go to Evolution, but we might run into friends there, so I'd say... Let's go find a bar.

“Let’s do that.” She answered as she finished strapping her shoes on. Well, she had no idea what Evolution was. However, the fact that they could run into friends was enough for her to make her find another place.

Click. Click. Stop. Click. Get in. Wait. Sigh contently.

"That is your car?" Lily's jaw dropped as she saw which vehicle Alex was walking over to. She shook her head with a grin "No kidding."
She put on her shoes too, although she quite enjoyed walking barefeet, she doubted that would go over well downtown.
She looked at Alex as she sat in the car. She looked more cheerful already. That was the same for her: all kinds of little details helped her find her way back to normal life. Being able to drive her own car again must have been the same for Alex. Especially with a car like this one.
"Ready, steady" she chuckled, closing the door "Let's go find a place to hide in plain sight."

Alexandra patted the wheel of her car lovingly. “I didn’t even get a chance to drive this beauty until now.” Alexandra said, turning her head toward Lily. “It came right before I left to Romania.” Once again, she turned her head, this time toward the garage doors and blinked away the bad memories that threatened to come.

“Now. Where is that button?” Alexandra let her fingers to lightly touch some of the buttons before finally stopping on one of them. Push. The garage doors started to open. “There.” Smiling, she started the car, the engine coming to life. Once the doors were fully opened, the car moved forward too. Slow and gracefully, like a feline hunting its pray.

The garage doors started to close as soon as they were out, as a response to another push of the button. And that was just one of the useful stuff she had ordered to be installed on her baby. Alexandra picked a random radio station to provide some background sound as the car continued to slowly roll down the Mansion’s alley. That is, until they were past the Mansion’s gates. Cause that was where the real driving began.

The gentle purr of the engine turned into a roar as the car shot forward. “From 0 to 100 kilometers per hour in only 3.9 seconds. Isn’t this car marvelous?” She glanced at the speedometer that was now past 100 km/h. 147 km/h, to be more exact, and growing. Grinning, she turned her head to Lily. Mostly, to check the girl’s reaction.

“From 0 to 100 kilometers per hour in only 3.9 seconds. Isn’t this car marvelous?”
Lily gulped.
Oh dear.
As the car sped off into the night, heading downtown, Lily distracted herself by trying to convert km/h into mph. She failed, but she could guess it was somewhere in the range of WAAAY TOO FAST.
It was so much like Alex, being dressed like this, driving a car like this, driving like this. Lily loved her friend to the death, but she could feel the color leaving her cheeks. She wondered how long it would take for them to arrive to wherever they were headed.
At this speed, she concluded, probably mere minutes.
She tried to look calm, and focus on the music, or anything else but the speed. Maybe Alex always drove like this, not just when she had four months of steam to blow off. Maybe.

Alexandra chuckled at Lily. Poor girl was turning a little pale. The speedometer stopped somewhere around 161 km/h. Left. They passed by a car or two before Alexandra steered to the right again. As smooth as possible, that is.

“Only 100 miles per hour Lily. Don’t tell me Streak’s the ‘Driving Miss Daisy’ type of driver with the car he has.” She chuckled again, dividing her attention between driving and glancing at the surroundings looking for a bar that would fit the purpose of this night.

And glancing a few times at Lily too. Clearly, the girl wouldn’t have liked to be in the car if they were on the highway… where her baby could do so much more.

“Only 100 miles per hour Lily. Don’t tell me Streak’s the ‘Driving Miss Daisy’ type of driver with the car he has.”
Lily rolled her eyes. No, he was not. Cars like this - and the one Shawn owned - were designed for drivers like Alex and him. Lily had a licence, but didn't own a car; she never really understood why speed was such a big deal.
"No he is not" she grinned "But as for me, last time I drove like this he had a bullet in his stomach."
Thanks to the speed, they arrived downtown soon. They passed a few clubs and bars, and Lily finally spotted one that looked promising. She hadn't been out that much since she moved into New York, but she had an ear to things like which place people talked about.
"Let's park the car and walk" she suggested "We should be able to find a good place fairly easy around here."
New York City night life. Gotta love it.

Alexandra smiled in an understanding manner. Then, with a simple nod, she slowed down considerably, now keeping an eye out for a parking spot. “Driving takes my mind off things.” She said this with a shrug, glancing occasionally at the various names of bars, trying to decide which one sounded the best. “The faster I go, the less time I have to think about something else.” An empty parking lot appeared in her view and Alexandra directed the car that way.

“That would be one of the reasons I drive like this. ” Although she didn’t look at Lily while she had spoken, Alexandra turned her head to the other woman now, in the same time turning off the engine. She smiled slightly before retrieving the car keys. “Let’s see what we can find around here.” The faint smile turned into a grin before she opened the door and stepped out of her car. Absently glancing at the people, she closed the door behind her and waited for Lily to exit the car as well.