Hal and the others had gathered around Dani, who looked like she was about to shrink under the weight of their stares. Skepticism, confusion, and curiosity hung in the air, especially from Roberto, who seemed deep in thought, piecing together what Dani had just told them.
"So let me get this straight," Roberto said slowly. "A girl spoke to you... in your mind? Didn't say her name, didn't say much of anything, just asked if she was like us? And said she'll come when she's ready?"
"For the millionth time — yes!" Dani insisted, throwing up her hands. "I just wanted some fresh air — because let's be real, this dome of ours is going to poison us if we keep it up all night — and out of nowhere, a voice just popped into my head. Clear as day."
"Are ye sure it wasn't just someone whisperin' nearby?" Rahne asked.
"Or maybe the gal's invisible?" Sam added.
"No!" Dani's voice sharpened. "It wasn't a whisper. It wasn't someone hiding. She spoke right inside my mind. I swear!"
"It's a telepath," Hal said calmly.
Everyone turned to look at him. "A what?"
"You guys never read comic books?" Hal asked, raising a brow. "Or checked out the Avengers profiles?"
"Well, a little bit," Roberto admitted with a shrug. "Like... Wanda Maximoff, right? She can read minds. Manipulate 'em too."
"What he said," Hal added, then turned toward Roberto. "You said you knew a couple of families who could afford land like this. Any idea whose estate this is? Whose family she belong to?"
"No clue," Roberto said, shaking his head. "Unless we explore the entire place, I can't tell."
"But you do have a clue," Dani said suddenly.
"What?" Roberto asked.
"The girl," Dani pointed out. "Whoever owns this land... has a daughter. That narrows it down."
"Yeah, genius, and so does every other family around here," Roberto scoffed. "Unless I find something—"
Suddenly, the entire group fell silent.
Hal frowned. He didn't know why — he hadn't noticed anything. But everyone else was tense, still, as if they'd sensed something he hadn't.
"What?" Hal asked, glancing around. "What's wrong?"
"You didn't hear it?" Dani said urgently. "It's the girl!"
"I didn't hear anything." Hal crossed his arms. "Mind letting me in on what she said?"
"She said her name is Emma Frost," Roberto muttered, his expression troubled. "And she's coming here. Right now."
"You don't look thrilled about it," Dani commented. "It's another girl. Thought you'd be jumping for joy — someone else to flirt with."
"Yeah, well, she can read my mind," Roberto grumbled. "And talk right into it. Kinda kills the mood."
Dani scoffed. "You're scared of a little telepathy?"
"You should be too," Roberto said, his tone serious.
"Alright, enough," Hal cut in with a low hum. "Let's just see what she wants."
"Help. Obviously," Dani muttered, giving him a look.
Hal shrugged, but then stiffened, sensing someone approaching. "Speaking of which…"
He turned toward the woods — and saw her. The girl. She wasn't what he expected. Her posture was unsure, almost timid. Her brown hair hung loose around a freckled face, and she looked... plain. Ordinary. Nothing like the Emma Frost he had heard about — the femme fatale, the icy blonde telepath.
Is this really her? he thought.
"If you don't want me here, I'll just go," she said quietly, her voice tight. "I won't tell anyone. But you should leave too. If they're still hunting you. I don't want them hunting me too."
"You read our minds," Hal said flatly. "Our memories."
"Not yours," Emma replied, glancing away. "I can't. For some reason. But everyone else..."
"Still," Hal said, his tone firm, "that's rude."
"I know. I'm sorry," she muttered, wringing her hands. "I just... I got curious. And when I saw that you all might be like me, I got a little too excited and looked deeper."
"What did you see?" Roberto asked, frowning.
"Just... memories," Emma murmured. "Only a couple weeks' worth. I couldn't dig deeper."
Roberto let out a quiet breath, almost a sigh of relief. Dani, meanwhile, approached Emma with a bright smile, practically bouncing with energy.
"Come on, sit with us," she said, grabbing Emma's arm and tugging her gently toward the group.
"I mean... is it okay?" Emma asked timidly, glancing around.
Dani shot the others a hard look — the kind that dared them to say no.
Hal sighed. "You're welcome to join us. But... we don't have much to offer compared to you."
"No, I just... I just want to talk," Emma said quickly. "About our powers."
Hal gave a thoughtful hum. "Alright. Just... try not to read our minds."
"Well..." Emma fidgeted with her sleeves. "Sometimes I can't help it. Especially surface thoughts. But I'll try not to dig in too much."
Hal nodded, then turned to the others. "Everyone good with that?"
A round of nods followed — everyone except Roberto.
"Roberto?" Hal called him out.
Roberto blinked like he'd been pulled out of a trance. "Yeah. Yeah, alright. Whatever."
—
The mood around the group stayed awkward. Hal kept his distance, quietly worrying about more than one thing. Emma's sudden appearance unsettled him — and so did the fact that Illyana still hadn't returned from Limbo.
Meanwhile, Dani and Rahne seemed to have already warmed up to Emma, chatting and laughing easily. Sam sat stiffly among them, clearly unsure how to join in without making things even more awkward.
Their conversation drifted toward everyday life — safer ground. Emma told them she was about to graduate high school, looking for colleges, trying to figure out her future. She talked quickly, almost happily, like she was just relieved to finally speak to someone without fear.
Hal stayed back, quietly observing. He could tell Emma wasn't fully comfortable yet. Not with everyone. Especially not with Roberto — who stood right next to him, arms crossed and eyes narrowed.
"Frost," Hal whispered. "That name ring a bell?"
Roberto hummed, leaning back against a tree. "Frost Internationals. Her dad's company mostly builds transportation — airplanes, ships, stuff like that. Last I heard, they moved into electronics and weapons manufacturing too. That's about all I know... before my parents dumped me in Milbury."
Hal gave him a soft look but didn't comment.
"Listen," Roberto said, lowering his voice, "are we actually taking her with us?"
Hal shrugged. "That's up to her."
"You realize her dad's gonna come after us if we do, right?"
"I know," Hal said with a small hum. "But it's not like we can turn her away."
"Why not?"
Hal chuckled, finally turning to face him. "Because she's like us. A mutant. If she asks for help, we give it. Period. Besides..." He glanced at Emma again. "I think she'll fit in just fine."
Roberto raised a skeptical brow. "Meaning?"
Hal didn't answer right away. His gaze lingered on Emma — she caught him looking and immediately flushed, nervously tucking her hair behind her ear. But there was more beneath the surface. Even from across the clearing, Hal could feel it: the heavy weight she carried, the layers of anger, sadness, and loneliness packed tight inside her.
"She's carrying a lot," Hal finally said. "Maybe even more than you."
Roberto scoffed under his breath. "What do you know about me?"
"Nothing," Hal replied with an easy shrug. "Just like I don't know everything about any of us. But I know what it looks like when someone's hiding a lot of emotions."
Roberto fell silent, staring at the ground, his expression tightening into something heavier, more guarded.
At that moment, Dani waved Hal over, motioning for him to join the group. Hal smiled faintly, pushing himself off the tree and walking toward them, settling down across from Emma and the others.
"What's up?" Hal called out.
"We were wondering," Dani said, "you're probably the most adept with your powers, right?"
"Debatable," Hal sighed. "I still don't even know half of what I can do yet. Don't you remember? Just a few weeks ago I was the one asking you guys for tips."
"Right..." Dani muttered. "But your powers connect to emotions, yeah? Kinda like mind reading... a little?"
Hal chuckled. "That's a bit of a stretch, Dani. Just get to the point."
"Emma wants someone to help her train with her powers," Dani said, nudging the girl gently forward. "We thought... maybe you could do it?"
"I can't read minds," Hal pointed out, raising a brow.
"But you do read comic books," Dani shrugged, grinning. "And like you said — you've read the Avengers profiles. It's only temporary anyway. Once we get to the Avengers compound, she can get real training."
Hal ignored Dani's casual assumption that Emma would be coming with them, and turned to Emma herself.
"You want that?" he asked.
"If you're willing," she said with a small smile.
Hal sighed. "Fine. But don't expect anything groundbreaking."
"So we're staying here a few more days?" Sam asked, curious.
"I don't know yet," Hal said. "If it's safe, we'll move. If not, we sit tight."
"How do we know if it's safe?" Sam pressed.
"Maybe a week," Hal shrugged. "Give whoever's hunting us time to cool off."
"A week?" Sam repeated. "Our supplies probably won't last that long."
"Boston's not far from here," Emma said quietly. "You can get some from the refugee center. I can sneak some food out if you'd like."
"That's not a good idea." Hal shook his head. "What if your family noticed something's off?"
"Then let's just go tomorrow," Sam insisted.
"They're probably waiting for us there," Hal said calmly. "Better to make them think we're going somewhere else. Give it time."
Sam hummed thoughtfully. He still looked like he disagreed but decided not to press it any further.
Hal leaned in toward Emma. "What about your family?"
Emma's smile faltered. "What about them?"
"I'd prefer if they didn't see us," Hal said with a casual shrug.
"Oh," Emma replied simply. "Don't worry. I'll make sure no one notices. Not even the servants."
"Cool. Thanks, I guess." Hal gave her a nod, then lowered his voice a little. "But listen... aside from training your powers..." He leaned a little closer. "What do you really want from us?"
"W-what do you mean?" Emma stammered.
"Are you planning to come with us?" Hal asked. "Or did you just want to meet us?"
Emma looked away, fidgeting with her sleeves. "I... I don't know."
"What do you mean?" Dani asked, a little too sharply. "You're not coming? What happens if—"
"Dani," Hal cut her off firmly. "Let her talk."
Emma glanced back at Hal, gathering her words carefully. "This is the first time I've met anyone like me. Last night... I finally figured out what I am. I've been dealing with migraines for most of high school, and now suddenly I can hear what people really think of me." She shook her head. "It's... terrifying. Knowing what people actually believe about you — stuff they'd never say out loud. And you can't even call them out for it."
She lowered her gaze, her voice growing even softer.
"I just wanted to talk. To figure out if it's worth it... risking everything. Running away. With people I barely know."
The group stayed silent, letting her words hang heavy in the night air.
"Why?" Hal asked after a moment. His voice was calm, but there was a weight behind the question. "Why do you want to run?"
"What do you mean—" Dani started again, but Hal stopped her with a raised hand.
"You have a good life here," he continued, eyes never leaving Emma. "Your family's rich. You haven't been discovered yet. So why are you even thinking about leaving it all behind?"
Emma clenched her fists. "My father isn't exactly a kind man," she said quietly. "Especially to his own family. I was never anything special — not until my powers showed up, anyway. Before that, I was just... a disappointment. Not smart enough. Not talented enough. Nothing he could brag about."
She took a shaky breath, anger and frustration bubbling just beneath the surface.
"These last few months, because of my abilities, my grades shot up — for obvious reasons. I've done everything I could to make him acknowledge me. To make him proud." Her voice cracked a little. "But it's never enough. No matter what I do. The beatings, the lectures about class and power, about how people like us are supposed to be better than everyone else — I'm tired of it."
Emma hugged herself tightly, like she was trying to hold herself together. Hal didn't need to read minds to feel it — the anger, the sorrow, the fear she tried so hard to push down. It was then something swelled up in Hal's chest. Something warm. Something radiant. Something that made him connect with the person in front of him.
He sighed quietly and reached out, taking her hand in his. She flinched at first, but when she met his eyes, she saw no pity there — only understanding. Only compassion.
"Look," Hal said gently. "I'm not here to force you to run away with us. And I'm not going to tell you to stay either. That choice has to be yours."
He squeezed her hand a little, grounding her.
"You can talk to us all you like. But listen — we're already on the run. We've been registered as mutants by the government. The government itself is hunting us. Our lives probably won't be as peaceful as we'd like in the future. Always under threat of scrutiny. Some people won't see us as humans, but something to exploit, or something to… eradicate."
He paused, making sure Emma was really listening.
"You haven't been marked yet. With your powers, you could probably avoid detection longer than most of us. You could go back to being the daughter of a rich man — maybe even inherit his empire one day. But if you come with us... the second one of those agents gets a look at you, you'll be like us. Living with that constant fear. That constant threat."
"Are you... suggesting I stay with my dad?" Emma asked, her voice tight as she gripped Hal's hand harder. "Endure it?"
"No," Hal said, shaking his head. "God, no. I'm saying with your gift... you could turn the tables on him."
Emma stared at him, confused. "What are you talking about?"
Dani frowned. "Wait — are you saying she should, what, blackmail her own father?"
"I meant brainwash him," Hal said flatly. "Whatever you want to call it. She told us herself — he beats her. What the hell do you expect me to say, Dani? 'Tough it out'?"
Dani turned to Emma, looking unsettled. "Is that... even something you could do?"
Emma didn't answer. She just stood up, letting go of Hal's hand as if it burned her.
"I... I don't know," she muttered, stepping back. "I just— I need to think."
Without another word, Emma turned and walked away, vanishing into the trees as she made her way back toward the manor. Dani instinctively called after her, but Emma didn't even look back.
Dani rounded on Hal, her eyes flashing. "What the hell was that? You scared her off!"
"This isn't a game, Dani," Hal said, his tone hard. "This isn't a field trip. We're running for our lives. You can't just drag someone into our mess without making damn sure they know what it's going to cost."
Dani opened her mouth to argue — but then faltered. Her hands balled into fists at her sides.
"Do you really think it'll be like that?" she asked, voice small. "That it'll never go back to normal? That even after the Avengers help us, we won't be able to... go to school again? Graduate like a normal person? Get a job like a normal person?"
Hal didn't answer right away. He stared at the ground for a long moment, the weight of her questions sinking deep into him.
"I don't know," he said quietly.
Then he turned away from the group, stuffing his hands into his pockets as he walked off.
"I'll be back, I need to pee."