When mother and daughter cross Paths(Emma)

A mall wasn't a place one would ever expect to run across Emma Frost. She was too classy to buy in places where tacky things such as price tags were used. However, the mall was next to the hospital and that's where she had been until about two hours ago. The doctor who had run the tests for her annual check up had announced the MRI had found a lump in one of her lungs about a week earlier and she was required to go back to the hospital to undergo more tests. Hospitals always irritated Emma, but getting tested with the possibility that it came back positive for cancer made the White Queen completely freak out. Of course, no one would have noticed that she was scared. If anything, she looked irritated, angrier than she usually appeared when something happened to her and that would ring an alarm bell for anyone who knew her well enough to know her being in a mall was a bad sign in and on itself.

Emma didn't want to go back to the mansion right after the tests and felt she needed some time to calm down. Shopping didn't seem enough to calm her nerves. Neither did her favorite spa or the idea of planning a weekend trip somewhere. She just wandered off the building and then somehow found herself walking down the mall, looking at the items for sale there without really seeing them.

In an attempt to get her fears out of her head, the telepath decided to get into a store and remind herself why she didn't wear anything but exclusive brands and couture. She picked a clothes store randomly and walked in. There was no contempt in her paler than usual face when she looked at the racks full of dresses she wouldn't even try on, but she went through the motions of browsing anyway. Her mind seemed a hundred miles away and she couldn't have noticed her own sister if she were standing right in front of her.

Usually, Emma would have noticed right away that there was something off about that other woman. Having lived in the streets for a while herself, the blond had learned to read people quite well without even using her telepathy. That day, her mind was too busy pondering more important problems, so Emma's own behavior was odd, as she too was browsing without interest and didn't seem inclined to buy anything. The rest of her facial and body language was closer to irritation and contempt than the kind of anger that usually came with a robbery. In fact, any empath near her would probably be picking a certain worry, fear or despair along with the emotions she was showing physically. Knowing Jean Grey was back at the mansion, the Ice Queen saw no reason to be concealing her every feeling to the detail.

With all that in her plate, Emma only realized what was going on when she heard the other woman order the cashiers to empty the registers. Surprise washed over her face for a fraction of a second. Great. The one day I decide to mingle with the populace and I had to get the full experience, she thought bitterly. Emma had hoped to find some privacy in a huge crowd and now it was back to working overtime for free. However, before she could intervene, a girl with purple hair did. The curious woman that she was, Ms.Frost waited to see the situation unfurl before deciding to get involved. The girl seemed calm and in control of the situation, so she was either suicidal or had a good reason not to be afraid. If there was a need for her to intervene, she would, Emma decided.

So far, the justice seeker seemed to be handling the situation exceptionally well. A pang of pain echoed deep inside the White Queen as she thought of Esme. This young woman with purple hair vaguely reminded her of her favorite daughter... so to speak. Emma was impressed to see the bullet deflected and got interested in that mutant. It had to be a mutant. A psychic to be more precise.

That was plenty interesting. Especially since Ms.Frost had been sure she knew every telepath worth noting in the city. And anyone capable of deflecting bullets and disassembling a gun like the young mutant had just done was definitely worth noting. The impulse of poking through the other woman's mind died when Emma figured out she was psychic. There was no use in engaging her in a mental battle when there were other ways to get information without losing a valuable prospect due to an unnecessary confrontation. Still, Emma's icy blue eyes were fixed on the slender body that turned into something almost inhuman in a second. She knew that kind of mutation all too well and she bit her lip angrily.

How many other blood-related lab experiments on the loose did she have running around unnoticed? Because there was no doubt in Emma that at least a part of her DNA was in that girl's genetic code. The resentment towards the man who had taken her eggs when she was in a comma, flared up again as she looked at her relative with her arms crossed over her chest. It probably wasn't the girl's fault. Emma knew that much, but the one responsible wasn't available at the moment.

"That's an interesting gift-set." Emma observed, standing right in the path the robber had used to escape. She didn't want this other woman to follow and miss the opportunity to satisfy her curiosity when the mall's security could probably handle a common woman. "Didn't your mother teach you not to break the masquerade?" Emma added because all the other customers in the store were staring at Violet and she knew well just how quickly a sumptuous public display of mutant powers could turn into an angry mob, even if the mutant had just saved said crowd. "You're gonna get yourself hung in the Central Park one of these days."

Emma recognized that quick shift from work mode to her normal self as something she, too was able to do that left other people in awe. Apparently, it took them a lot more time to recover from unsavory incidents and resume whatever it was they were doing. The coincidences were too many for it to be just that and it wasn't unprecedented to have someone playing with her DNA without her consent, Emma thought. Her defenses were up this time around. She had gotten really close to her clones, the Stepford Cuckoos, and ended up regretting preferring them over her other students. Had she remained completely objective, the death of Esme Stepford, her favorite, wouldn't have hurt so much... not that she would ever admit it, of course. She was a Frost and they were proud to a fault, and beyond. Maybe if her previous experience had been better, she would have taken pride in those similarities, like the way they stood and their looks, but right now, it was a slap across her face. And she didn't know it would get worse! That being the main reason Emma chose to face the girl now that she had come across her, for she had no intention of looking for her later and get all chatty and familiar. If she had the fortune or misfortune of running into her half-clone or whatever that day, it must have been for a reason and it was a take-it-or-leave-it opportunity, the way she saw it, at least. There was no way she'd get attached again... and what was with the purple hair anyway? It reminded her of her younger sister Cordelia, whose hair had gone through a whole rainbow of colors.

Emma thought that the girl was taking it easy at first, but she soon discovered another of the family traits on her: the brutal honesty the Frosts were so well known and despised for. She didn't expect the girl to be a member of any organization, let alone the Future Foundation, but what really surprised her was the fact that purple hair knew her name. One perfect eyebrow rose at the sound of it, but the rest of Emma's face remained set in a defiant expression, her arms still crossed over her chest in a somewhat defensive position. So, the girl knew who she was and thought she was very important for it. Let her keep acting all superior and see how far that takes the little brat, Emma thought. That was an attitude she hated in everyone but herself.

Despite what people usually thought, Emma had eventually learned to respect other people's mental privacy... whenever it suited her. The brat had been right about her not wanting to deal with a confrontation, mainly, because Emma had some important information in her mind that day she wanted to keep a secret for as long as possible and wouldn't risk someone else learning the reason she had just spent two hours in a hospital and then wandered into a mall of all places! Like a lost animal. All thoughts of recruiting or even contacting that girl again were long forgotten by then as she felt like a threat to Emma and she didn't like threats. Usually, she just eliminated them ruthlessly, but considering this was her own DNA of sorts... well, let's say that Magneto wasn't the only one who was probably getting softer with age. But that didn't mean she wanted her around.

As the young mutant talked about her powers and how the two of them were related, Emma stared at her as irritated as before, when she was browsing through low quality clothes. "So, you're not a telepath and yet you just 'know' what I'm thinking, huh?" Emma mocked her. "Believe it or not, I don't just get into everyone's head just because." Emma lied with a straight face. "You have some nerve to talk to me in such a manner. I'll give you that." She observed taking a good look at the young woman in front of her as if to analyze her for details that might have escaped her earlier scrutiny. "I think I'm starting to understand why people say I'm insufferable and full of myself." The blond ironized in a defiant tone. One of her hands went to her hips. "Actually, I was wondering if you had a name or just went by purple head." She hadn't intended to be aggressive on purpose, but the girl's attitude was getting on her nerves as it used to happen with both her sisters.

That was something her actual clones, who shared all of her DNA didn't inspire in her. They could be irritating, yes, but not to the point where she wanted to slap some sense of respect into them. Perhaps it was something that all children did to their parents? Emma was clueless, but the young mutant had said daughter and not clone, which was all the more likely to be true considering their mutations were similar but not quite the same.

For the first time in her life, Emma understood how violated Jean Grey had felt when learning about all the times Mr.Sinister had played God with her DNA. Before that moment, the White Queen had just thought that the redhead was just an annoying whiner of a woman. Agreeing with Jean Gray made her sick, she thought disgusted by the whole concept. "I'll be more than pleased to teach you some manners if you keep up with the bratty attitude." Emma warned her. It was better to be irritated than disgusted.

The way the young mutant... her daughter was able to shut her up with a somewhat valid argument also seemed like a Frost trait, one she would have been proud of if she weren't so worried about other personal issues and her previous experiences with her unplanned, unauthorized genetic relatives had ended up on a better note. "Fair enough." Emma conceded, still not happy about it, but at least a tad less irritated. So, she wasn't making stuff up, she was picking it up. It made a big difference. A part of her wondered if Scott was waiting for her at the mansion to tell her another bomb, because Emma felt she couldn't take any more shocking news that day. They complain if I poke around their heads, they complain if I don't. It's impossible to keep people from complaining, Emma ironized to herself.

Whoa. An apology. Emma didn't see that one coming. Obviously, the girl got that from her genetic father as well. "You won't know unless you try, don't you think?" Emma asked with a half-smile. Her eyes seemed to dare her as a test to see what else they had in common... or not. She wasn't treating the kid as a test subject, or at least, not in any way she wouldn't have tested her own students. In her defense, Emma didn't have a close relationship with anyone besides Scott and even him she kept secrets from and mistreated more often than not. That was who she was and the world would have to deal with it as she would have to deal with whatever results came from her tests. If she really had cancer, then she'd deal with that on her own, without burdening Scott or anyone else with her problems.

Emma seemed surprised to hear that the hair and eyes were just another mutation instead of a sign of rebellion. "Mr.Sinister really lacks in the creativity department, doesn't he?" Emma observed, internally relieved to know the hair was a mutation. That made Violet look better in her eyes. She didn't have horrible taste after all, just an unfortunate gene. Emma knew Violet could have done something about it if she wanted, but not fixing her looks wasn't as bad as having an appalling breach of taste in and of her own. "I would have gone with Christa." Emma said casually, as if it didn't really mean anything to her, like she always did when something was exactly the opposite. A part of her still felt great sorrow about her brother Christopher and she had always been sure about two things: one, she didn't want to have any children and two, if she did, she'd probably name at least one of them after her beloved older brother.

Maybe she was being a bit too rough on the girl, but for what Violet said herself, it appeared her life had been plenty harsh and that was probably why she was now so strong and confident, fully able to handle situations like the one they had just witnessed, the same way her demanding family and sordid teenage years had molded her own personality into who she was today.

The comment about the Frost traits made her laugh. It wasn't a bell like laugh, but the snobish kind that agreed with the rest of her personality. "Rest assure, darling. You have plenty." This time, Emma sounded more pleased with Violet than before. "Though that apologizing thing is all your dad's... whoever he might be..." Emma didn't seem comfortable with the idea of her DNA being mixed up with that of a total stranger. It was a lot worse than being cloned, she felt outraged... but she'd take care of Mr.Sinister later.

Right then, Emma felt the commotion of the security guards a few shops down and got serious again. "The security guards are on their way and will probably want to interrogate you..." 'if they find you' were the words Emma didn't say but could be easily deduced by the gesture she did with her hand, inviting Violet to follow her out of there. If there was going to be a drama, Emma wanted to make sure she didn't get involved.

It was true that Emma Frost liked to have the last word in an argument, but she was also aware of the fact that it was her fault Violet had been able to pick up what she was leaking. Had she been focusing to hide her true emotions as she usually did, to prevent any other telepaths or empaths from picking up her mood and feelings, her genetic daughter would have never read her. It was a good way to remind herself to never let her guard down, not even for a second, not even in a place where Jean Grey wasn't going to pick up the fact that her world might be about to crumble down soon, depending on what the test results showed. Besides, she had to give the girl some credit. Other people would have been so terrified of her they wouldn't have even tried to pick anything up from the White Queen. Yes. There was definitely enough frost in that snarky young mutant.

She even knew how to pick her fights, Emma thought. All the better for her. She wouldn't have wanted to fight her own daughter if there was a way to help it. Not that the Frost bloodline was known by its sentimentalism or sense of family, but the blond telepath was known for being self-centered after all and very proud of her accomplishments. If a lost piece of her genetic material was doing well, then it was because she was a great woman to begin with and that pleased the White Queen a great deal... most days. However, now that she was in someone else's company, Emma was keeping her emotions extremely close.

Emma made a face at Violet's second name of choice. Maybe the girl's temper was quite frosty, but her sense of taste was definitely flawed. She bought clothes at a mall and thought those were decent names. Emma wasn't extremely happy about the ones her parents had chosen for her, but at least, her middle name had grace, she thought. Pun intended. "It's better than Violet." She said with a half smile, testing the girl to see how she reacted. "And since neither is your real name you don't have to keep it. Tsk, with today's technology applied to ID forgery, you could even change your real name if you wanted." The older woman complained, mostly, because they've had a couple of troubles with that particular issue in Frost Enterprises lately.

The psychic hadn't thought three steps ahead of herself that time. Just had wanted to get out of the store before the security guards showed up and now wondered where to go. Home was the first thing that popped into her head, but she wanted a few more minutes with the girl, considering it was probably the last time they'd be seeing each other outside a battlefield. Still, the coffee shops at the mall were too vulgar a place for a woman like herself, so she just walked for a while, before it became too obvious that the disgust she felt for a mall full of people was too great to deal with. "How can you even think in a place this crowded?" She asked rhetorically.

Emma didn't relax. That place was tacky and full of common people. Not one of the exclusive boutiques she used to buy at and the atmosphere made her... not uneasy but at least cranky. Still, she walked down the corridors with Violet, without even thinking about where she was going, as she had not a fixed destination in mind. She hadn't been to a shopping mall in years. Literally.

A slight frown appeared on Emma's face for a moment when she heard Violet justify her choosing her last name. It had been a misunderstanding, as she had meant that neither Violet nor Christa had been her real names. After all the things her blood relatives had put her through, Emma didn't care if someone was masochistic enough to want to be a Frost. She was proud of it, make no mistakes, but at the same time it came at a high price, as Violet would eventually learn, most probably. Still, the White Queen thought it was not worth clarifying. "Being a Frost comes with a price, darling. You seem to have enough Frost in you to handle it, but I'd still make sure I was ready to pay the price before making any final decisions on that regard if I were you." It was a true enough statement. If her sister Cordelia found out about her, who knew what would happen to the girl... not that Emma cared, but she hadn't seen her younger sister in years and if she had turned out as bad as her older sister was, then it could mean trouble involving extortion, money embezzlement and possibly making Violet the escape goat putting her behind bars for life while yet another Frost family member got rich in the process.

"Well, believe me, you don't want to meet the family." Emma said bitterly, contempt written in all her face. Over two decades later, she still resented her father. A part of her still had daddy issues. She still wished all her effort had been enough for him, but the man had such high expectations nothing Emma ever did had been quite enough and it was unfair and that pissed her off. "You'd never be able to live up to the Frost expectations." An irritated half smile indicated she knew all about that, first hand and Violet's taste in clothes was the least she had to worry about if someone else from their family ever got to know who she really was related to. The very way the girl had come into existence would have been enough to mark her as a disgrace so nothing she ever did to compensate would actually matter. Maybe Emma was having a emotional day after going to the hospital for such an important and stressing procedure and that's why she was thinking about all that old crap she had forced herself to forget.

"As much as it flatters me that people think we have two thousand students under our roof, we don't and the proof is I still live there." She replied with an ironic half smile. The comment on her not having loads of money kind of pissed Emma. Actually, it disappointed her but she looked irritated. The White Queen didn't care for people who just felt sorry for themselves without working towards solving whatever problem they were nagging and wining about. "Want some motherly advice?" She asked in that dry, superior tone that was her normal way of speaking most of the time. "Don't work to get rich. That's just a myth we tell poor people so they keep working for us." There was a hint of a playful smile on Emma's lips for a second and then it was gone, back to seriousness. "Think of a good business system and have other people's time and money work for you." Emma explained matter-of-factly, as if she were talking to her ethics class. By that, she meant that Violet had to come up with a great business idea, register it, present it to investors and have them risk their money so other people could work on the project and she could charge them all a handsome fee for introducing the idea to them in the first place. To her, it was one of the best pieces of advice she could have given someone. After all, her father had taught her and her siblings those lessons when they were still very young and they had saved her from being a poor nobody so it was an important lesson if you were to be a Frost.