Chapter 26: Promises and Fulfillment

"ABSOLUTELY NOT! ARE YOU INSANE?"

"Why not?!"

Tricia stared at Joey incredulously. "Are you listening to yourself? You really want to go to Purgatory and talk to Psi-Clone?"

"Yes! I do!"

"You just want to kill yourself? You just want to walk up to a psychotic supervillain and get within his reach?"

"I'm not afraid of him! And I'm not going to go fight him or anything. I just want to ask him a question."

It was Saturday morning, and Joey, Tricia, and Annie were all getting ready for the day when he told them about his plan, about Lynne's father, and of her concern about what Psi-Clone could have done to her mother. Joey had kept his promise and only told them what little Lynne would agree to, but he didn't mention her mind-link with her brother.

"No," Tricia decided. "I'm sorry that she has this issue with her parents. I'm sorry she has doubts about her life, but this is out of the question! This is just too dangerous!"

"It's not going to be dangerous," Joey argued. "I'll be safe. And as long as I've got the black field up, he can't touch me. His powers won't affect me. He won't be able to read my mind, or do anything to me. And the guards will be there. They should know how to handle him."

"And what if you drop it accidentally? What if he distracts you, and you lose your concentration? Do you have any idea what he will want to do to the son of the man who put him in there"

"Hey! I'm the one with the anger management issues! I'm the one who has a hard time keeping my temper under control. You've told me that enough times. Well this time it works in my favor. I'm not dropping the field around him. I'm not stupid. And I'm not going to get in a fight with him. I just want to talk to him."

Tricia folded her arms across her chest and stood defiantly. "No," she said adamantly. "Absolutely not. It's too dangerous. End of discussion."

Joey groaned. "Annie! Help me out here."

Annie, who had been sitting there listening to this entire conversation in absolute horror and trying to stay out of it, startled at her sudden involvement. "What do you want from me?"

"You know what I'm trying to do here," he pleaded.

She faltered, and tried several times to say something. "I understand," she finally said. "But she's right. It's too dangerous. I don't want you going to Purgatory to face that man. And if Lynne really needs to deal with this issue, maybe she should talk with a therapist?"

Joey moaned and paced the room. "That won't help her! A therapist will only try to help her live with the question. She needs an answer." He rubbed his face in frustration, and found himself standing next to Annie's chair. She was watching him with a fearful face, and he dropped to his knees next to her. "Annie, please! Help me here!" he said, taking her hand in his. He squeezed her hand, pleading with her, trying to draw strength from her, or give her strength. He could see her gasp and her eyes dilate as he took her hand. "She's my..." He hesitated, trying to figure out how best to describe her, and Annie shuddered as she came up with her own ending to that sentence. "She's my friend, and I'm trying to help her. You taught me this. We help people. Look at what you do for Snow Angel, and what Tricia does for the homeless. Well, Lynne needs help, and I can help her. I want to do this for her."

Annie stared at their clasped hands, and there was a catch to her breath. Her face flushed as she squeezed his hand, and she looked into his pleading eyes. She thought for a moment, trembled, bit her lip, and turned her eyes towards Tricia. "Maybe we should look into this. At least see if there's a safe way to..."

"I don't believe what I'm hearing," said Tricia. "You are seriously considering this?"

"I'm just saying we should look into it. Maybe there is something we can do."

"Joey, Annie ... This is insane. We're not doing this. We're not going. We're not even going to look into it. And here is the reason why; Psi-Clone is a monster. He's not human. You cannot trust him, you cannot reason with him, and you cannot expect anything useful or good out of him. If you go down there to talk to him, the only thing that will be on his mind is how he can use you to get out, or how to kill you. That's it! And I am not letting you walk into that."

Joey glared at his foster mother, and he stood up, dropping Annie's hand. She whimpered quietly at the loss of contact. "Just who the hell do you think you are, huh?" he said to Tricia.

"Excuse me?" Tricia said, popping her hip into an attitude pose.

"Because I'd like it if you made up your mind!"

"I HAVE made up my mind!" Tricia said sternly.

"Really?" Joey said, striding up to her. "Because it seems to me that you just changed it! Who was the one who was chewing off my ass last week for declaring someone to be inhuman, huh? Weren't you the one telling me to give people a chance? To teach reason? That no one is so simple that you can't just write them off? That there are no simple comic-book villains, and that everyone has issues, and that everyone deserves empathy and understanding?"

Tricia's jaw dropped open as he spoke, and Joey paused to let his words sink in. He continued. "If Psi-Clone is simply a monster, then so were Clyde, Brandon, and Neal, and I didn't deserve any of the shit you put me through for beating them up. They were nothing but bullies, and I deserve a medal for taking them down and an apology from you. But if you were right about them, then maybe you can be wrong about Psi-Clone."

She shook her head. "There is a HUGE difference between him and those boys!"

"Yeah. He's older, and he's got less people who care about him."

"He's a MURDERER! A RAPIST! A psychotic KILLER!"

"He's HUMAN!"

"He's done nothing good with his life!"

"He fathered Lynne! I think that counts for something, unless you think she's nothing good."

She stopped, dazed by his argument, and Joey sighed, calming himself down. He stepped up to her and carefully took her hand in his. "Tricia, I'm not saying I want to go and forgive him for what he's done. I'm glad he's in prison, and I hope he stays there. I just want to ask him one question, to do to him what you taught me, to give him one opportunity to be treated like a human being and have a simple conversation. I want to do this for her, to help her understand her mother." He caressed her hand gently. "You, of all people, should know what it's like to not know if your own parent likes you. I'm sure you've got questions about your father. Well, she has questions too."

Tricia was silent for several seconds, and Joey just held her hand in his and whispered to her. "Please ... I'm begging you ... Please let me do this." Her eyes dropped, her breath caught in her throat, and her hand trembled in his. He could see her breaking slightly.

"Call Sandy," she whispered back. "If it's okay with her..."

"Thank you!" Joey dove into Tricia, grabbing her body and giving her a big hug, and then he ran off to get his cell phone. Tricia, still trembling, stumbled back and collapsed on a kitchen chair while Annie rolled over to her.

"You're letting him do this?" Annie asked.

"I..." Tricia was at a loss for words, and she gave Annie a confused look. "You're changing your mind again now? Where were you when I needed you to back me up?"

"I..." Annie started, but couldn't answer.

They sat together in the kitchen listening in to Joey's side of his conversation with Sandy, both of them wishing and praying that Quantum Knight would do the right thing, that she wouldn't let him go. They heard him tell her the whole story, everything about Lynne, and about her mother and father, and what he wanted to do for her.

They heard him ask.

Then they heard him beg. Then they heard him plead. Then they heard him offer favors and promises, arguments and reasons, and they held each other's hands and squeezed them together, holding on to each other, pulling and giving each other strength.

They heard him curse, and they heard him hang up. They both let out sighs of relief. Joey slumped into the kitchen and leaned his head against the wall in resignation. "Well?" Tricia asked.

"She doesn't think I can control my abilities enough to make it safe," he said. "She doesn't want me risking my life for her. She won't allow it."

There were several seconds of silence as all three dealt with their feelings. Joey, dejected and depressed, rubbed his forehead against the wall while he squeezed the cell phone in his hand, trying to crush it. Tricia and Annie trembled in a wash of silent relief.

"We're going to be late," Joey finally said to Tricia, and he slumped off.

They finished getting ready to leave, kissed her goodbye, and left for the shelter, leaving Annie alone in the apartment with the dog. She gave herself some credit, having put up a good performance, not letting them see exactly how hurt she was, and how frightened she was. But now that she was alone, she teared up and started shaking in terror over a single thought.

He was now willing to risk his life for Lynne.

She tried to calm herself down, to remind herself that this is what Joey is like with everyone he cares about. He's willing to dive into danger for others. She remembered the troll demon coming after her back in Desdemona's caverns, and how Joey without any hesitation or concern about his own safety dove under its legs to push flight into her. But this thought did little to help her. Psi-Clone was not just some mindless monster, some immediate threat, or some beast that could be easily outsmarted. He was smart, cunning, powerful, and ruthless. And Joey wanted to walk up to him and put himself with his reach, within his sphere of influence, all for this girl for whom he liked.

Her hands shook. Her breathing became ragged, and cold chills washed over her.

"No," she decided. "I'm not losing him to her." And she knew what she had to do.

Grabbing her purse along the way, she rolled to the front door, opened it, and left, leaving the dog alone in the apartment. Scrappy, still sitting on the floor chewing on a shoe, watched her as she left. He cocked his head at the door, and then strolled over to the kitchen and checked his water bowl. It was empty, and he whined in frustration.

The shelter always drew a crowd first thing in the morning, which was always a mixed blessing. On the one hand it was always encouraging to Joey to see so many familiar faces and so many people who were pleased to see him, but on the other hand it was always a constant reminder of how many people the system would forget, and how many people fell through the cracks. On the ride over, he contemplated calling Lynne to tell her the bad news, but as it was so early in the morning and he didn't know her, or his, or whatever's sleep schedule, he decided to just send a text message explaining how he couldn't get permission to visit Purgatory.

He busied himself immediately, burying his disappointment with simple tasks of preparing and distributing food and dishes and whatever else people needed. Menial work was satisfying and immediately rewarding. Even simple tasks like cleaning up spills and sweeping up messes gave him a sense of purpose and value and validation, but not enough to sooth all of his frustrations. He pondered over how to convince Sandy that he had changed, that he could control his temper, but then wondered if he really could control it. It was just last night that he had nearly killed his date with his lack of control, and it had scared the crap out of him.

He was just returning from taking a load of trash out to the dumpster when Tricia approached him. "You have visitors," she said simply, and pointed him to the main room. Curious, he entered the main room which was busy with people, and he startled as he saw her. Lynne and Jeff were there.

"Hi," he said, a little bewildered. "What brings you here?"

They shrugged. Jeff was carrying two guitar cases, and was wearing a backpack, and Lynne stepped up to Joey. "I wanted to see the place." She glanced about the room, taking in the various families and individuals. "So this is where you spend your time?"

He nodded. "Yeah. I'm here a lot."

She nodded too. "I got your message."

Joey sighed. "I'm sorry. I tried."

"It's okay," she said, shrugging.

"I really tried. I got halfway there, but I couldn't convince..." He trailed off.

"It's okay," she said again. "That was a huge favor."

There was an awkward pause, and Joey glanced at Jeff and the two guitars he carried. "So, what do you normally do Saturdays?"

"I usually find a spot on the Mall and play for the tourists," she said as she glanced around at the room and settled her eyes on the far corner. "But I was thinking of setting up here, if that's okay?"

"Here?"

"It's not a problem, is it? I'd like to help out."

"Well, I don't think it's a problem. I'll ask Tricia, but if you want to help out here, she probably has other stuff for you to do."

Jeff bit his lip. "Something like Jeff taking out garbage while Lynne does dishes?" he asked quietly.

Joey thought about it. "Is that an issue?"

They nodded. "Two different tasks simultaneously? Yeah. Plus separation and people talking to both sides? It can get a confusing. I'm not at my best."

"Oh."

"It's why I can't get a job at McDonald's or..." Lynne shrugged. " ... well, anywhere, really. Can you imagine me trying to flip burgers AND run register? Or being put on two different shifts?" She shook her head. "Performing is all I've got."

Joey nodded. "Go ahead," he said, indicating the far corner. "Go set up. I'll tell Tricia I said it was okay."

"Thanks." She didn't move, but Jeff did. He took the instruments to the corner of the room and started unpacking them.

Joey watched him for a moment. "Um, you do know," he said to Lynne. "They really can't pay you anything."

"I know," she said. "I may lose a day's income, but if there is a friend who willing to buy me a couple lunches, I'll break even."

"That can be arranged," he said, coaxing a smile out of her. "You may still want to put the hat out. I'll make sure something falls into it."

"Really?" she asked, encouraged.

"Yeah. I may have to hit the ATM first. I kind of got cleaned out last night." He gave her a grin.

Lynne chuckled and swayed on her hips. "I want to thank you. Despite all the bad things that happened, the fight, and me passing out and throwing up ... I really had a good time last night."

"Me too."

"And I want to thank you for what you tried to do for me today. I mean, I'm disappointed that it didn't work out, but on the other hand I'm kind of relieved, you know? I mean, I'd be too scared."

"I'm not scared of him."

Lynne nodded and took a deep breath. "There is one thing that kind of bothers me. You said last night you were going to do this because I was your friend." She stared at him deeply. "I was kind of hoping you were doing it because I was your girlfriend."

Joey hesitated. She stepped closer to him. He could feel her body heat on his cheeks and smell her essence, a fragrance that awakened parts of him. "Am I your girlfriend?" she asked quietly.

He paused, and he glanced over at her other self. Jeff stood in the far corner, holding a guitar and watching him just as expectantly as Lynne watched him. Joey was acutely aware that Jeff, that big manly guy over there, was asking him if he was his girlfriend, and Joey paused and tried to digest the idea once again. He understood it all intellectually, but still had problems dealing with the idea. Joey turned back to Lynne and looked into her deep and dark eyes.

"That depends," he started. "Define 'girl'."

Lynne's eyes fell ever so slightly, and her face shifted through a complex set of expressions. Insult? Worry? It was hard to tell, but she soon settled on a strange and amused determination. "Well, if you insist..." she said.

Joey at first thought that he had spontaneously decided to jump into her arms, but as she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him in, he remembered that she could telekinetically move him, and that was probably what really happened. And then Lynne Sullivan gave Joey Harper a huge kiss; a long, smoldering hot kiss, full of tongue and lips and breath and with hands pulling his head and big, fat breasts mashed into his chest and hot body rubbing up against his torso, all in front of about fifty to sixty homeless men, women, and children and various staff and volunteers. Whoops and whoahs and wolf-whistles erupted from the crowd as they kissed, and Joey, unable to extract himself, just surrendered to her and pulled his girlfriend in tight and kissed her hungrily in front of them all, not caring who watched them.

He could feel the pressure waves of invisible telekinetic force ripple over his body, squeezing his ass and pushing his thighs forward, and Lynne ground her lips into his, kissing him hungrily and passionately. And off in the distance, somewhere behind the whoops and cheers and awws, Joey heard a young child say to Jeff "Ew! He's kissing your GIRLFRIEND!" Joey could feel Lynne's intensity drop as she shifted her attention to another body for a moment.

"That's my sister," Jeff explained to the young boy, "and he's supposed to kiss her."

Lynne pulled off Joey's lips and stared into his eyes dreamily. "Am I enough of a girl for you?" she asked.

He swallowed. "Um ... yeah. You're good," he managed.

"Girlfriend?" she prompted.

"Yeah. You're my girlfriend."

Lynne beamed in happiness at him, and he wasn't quite sure when his hands had grabbed onto her ass, but now as they embraced in front of several dozen people, he was now very aware of the fact that he was holding her butt. She squirmed in his arms and rubbed her boobs against his chest. His cock had stirred for her and was awakening.

"Are you going to play music for us?" the boy asked Jeff.

"Yep," he answered. "Just as soon as he stops fondling my sister."

"My public awaits," Lynne whispered to Joey, and she pulled off him and with a skip in her step, she united with her brother, dropped her purse, and swung a guitar around her body.

Joey's lips were still warm and tingling as he watched them tune their instruments. His heart was beating strongly, and he felt flushed, excited, and a little dizzy. Tricia strolled up to him. "So, who said they could..."

"I did," he said, cutting her off.

"Well, if they want to help here," Tricia said with some attitude, "I've got stuff in the back that they can..." But she stopped because at that moment, without even a simple timing countdown to sync the two, Jeff and Lynne plucked out a quick and familiar three measure intro that commanded everyone's attention, and the two launched into a rocking fast version of "La Bamba" which quickly transformed the sullen homeless shelter into a celebration of life. Little kids jumped to their feet and danced to the music, shrieking and clapping as the beat grabbed them, and they sang along with the tune. Joey smiled with pride as he saw Tricia's eyebrows raise in surprise, and her hips rock slightly to the infectious performance.

"On the other hand," she said, her body shifting in time with the rhythm, "we could always use some live music." And stepping in time, she strutted off back to the kitchen.

Accelerator handle. Brake handle. Special parking.

Shift to wheelchair. Release wheel locks. Lower ramp extension. Roll out. Retract ramp. Automatic door close. Total time to exit the car: one hundred twenty seconds.

Ramp to sidewalk. Search and eventual use of long winding ramp that bypasses the front steps. Skip revolving door and press button to open the automatic handicap access door.

Elevator. Use ball-point pen to reach the top button.

Her tough hands and strong arms pushed and pumped the wheels of her chair as she made her way down the hallway. Fear, anger, anguish, and determination shook her body. A light sheen of sweat chilled her skin as she approached the apartment. Her breathing was ragged and deep as she stopped in front of apartment number 1415.

"Enough. No more. This ends now." She clenched her fist and pounded on the door. BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM!

Annie trembled and waited, listening for sounds in the apartment. She didn't even check to see if she was home first, but was prepared to wait here all day if necessary. She didn't have to wait long. She heard some rustlings of activity from inside, and she gripped her wheels firmly. "Who is it?" she heard her say inside, and Annie just waited, breathing heavily with nervousness.

Snow Angel opened the door cautiously and hovered before her, wearing not much more than a long T-shirt ("Mile High Club Frequent Flyer") and a concerned expression. She could see the anguish and pain on Annie's face immediately. "Sunshine? What's wrong?"

"Please," she managed, her voice shaking. "Let me in."

She floated back, opening the door for her. "Come in." Annie pushed her wheels and rolled into the apartment, and just stopped in the front foyer. Snow Angel closed the door and drifted down to her much like a snowflake, softly and tenderly. "What's the matter?" The chill from her body gave Annie shivers.

Annie dropped her head down. "Joey's got a girlfriend."

Snow Angel processed this, taking in Annie's mood and voice, and then took Annie's face in her hands, lifting her gaze. "Oh, no, no, no, no! Don't do this to yourself!"

"He's found someone else!"

"It's okay. He's supposed to. He's young. He's just exploring."

"He doesn't want me anymore."

"Don't say that. Of course he still wants you."

"I can't compete with her."

"I'm sorry you feel that way, but I don't believe it." She touched Annie's chin and lifted her face. "Annie, you are so much more desirable than you realize." She cocked her head and gave her a sweet smile, trying to lift her spirits. "Here, why don't we go into the living room, and I'll make us some coffee, and we can talk? Tell me all about it."

Annie glared at her friend. The smile and encouraging words did nothing for her. "No. I'm not here for consolation and coffee." And she turned her chair and wheeled it towards a door. "Is this your bedroom?"

Snow Angel blinked in confusion. "Yes, but..." Annie just opened the door and wheeled in. "Annie? What are you doing?"

Annie gritted her teeth as she rolled to the bed. "I've given this a lot of thought, and I've come to a decision. I'm tired of this. I deserve better."

The superhero watched with a puzzled expression as Annie locked her wheels. "Tired of what? Us just being friends? You want to take this to the next level?"

"You can put it like that if you want," Annie said, and she hefted herself out of her chair and onto Snow Angel's bed, flopping down on her front. She grabbed the blanket and pulled and slid herself forward into the center of the bed.

"Well, I can't say I haven't thought about it," Snow Angel said, cocking her head at her. "But I never got the impression that you wanted to..." She stopped and squinted. "And I'm STILL not getting the impression. Annie, what is it that you want? Talk to me."

"Not here to talk," she said, straining as she pulled herself across the bed.

Snow Angel sighed. "Annie, what is it that you always say to me? 'If you don't talk about your problems, they control you.' It's good advice. You should follow it."

Annie stopped dragging herself and rolled slightly to look at her. "I want to level the playing field. I want this to be over."

She frowned. "What do you mean? You want to make Joey jealous by banging me? Is that it? I don't think that's going to work. He'll probably just find it hot."

Annie's face darkened. "Emily, don't play the dumb blond around me. It doesn't work. You know why I'm here." She pulled the bottom of her shirt up, lifting it halfway up her torso, exposing her back. "This girl Joey likes, she's got everything going for her. She's his age. She's pretty. She's healthy. She's talented, and she's got superpowers. And I..." Her voice broke.

"Okay, just stop it right there," Snow Angel said to her. "Annie, you're upset. I can see that, but let's not do anything rash. Talk to me."

"I WANT TO WALK!" she screamed.

Snow Angel sighed again, and drifted down to the bed, settling next to her crying friend. Annie just collapsed, sobbing into the bed. "I want this to be over," she cried. "It's not fair! I want to feel my body again, and I want to be normal again. I want to be able to ... to do ANYTHING without having to plan the entire day around it in advance. I want to be able to stand and walk. I want to be able to use a bathroom in less than five minutes. I want to be able to control myself. I don't want to worry about urinary tract infections or cuts or bed sores anymore. I want to run and dance, and wrap my legs around him and thrust. I want a fighting chance!"

The sorceress gently ran her chilled fingers across her friend's back, trying to comfort her. "I know, Annie, and I'm sorry you go through this. But you do so well, and you're such an inspiration..."

"I am TIRED of being an INSPIRATION!" Annie shrieked, pounding her fist into the mattress. "I'm TIRED of being called STRONG and BRAVE and PATIENT! I want this to be OVER! I'm tired of dealing with the problem. I want a SOLUTION!" She paused and cried for a bit. "This girl he likes, she doesn't know what it's like to be a special case, to be only half a ... Why should I?"

"Shhh-shhh-shhh ... Don't say that about yourself," Snow Angel consoled her, caressing her back. "You're not half a woman, but I understand the feeling. We all feel divided when we have huge responsibilities. I feel like half a woman a lot. I'm carrying another person around constantly. So please understand, I envy you sometimes. But we all have these burdens, and sometimes we can't get rid of them, so we need to share them."

Annie took a couple shaking breaths. "You can fix me."

"Don't go there," she said sternly.

"You can heal me."

"Please, don't ask me."

"You can make me walk again."

"Okay Annie, now just stop it!" she barked, using her best commanding superhero voice. Snow Angel sighed and caressed her back. "Look. It's not like I don't want to do this for you, and for every other person with a spinal cord injury, but you don't know my limits. This is not an easy thing for me. I'm good at simple things; bruises, cuts, burns, broken bones. But this..."

"You performed heart surgery on Joey. You can do this."

"Annie, please. I..." Snow Angel hesitated, sighed, and reluctantly slipped her hand down Annie's spine, down to her injured section. "Just hold for a moment." Annie quieted down as the sorceress touched her, and she could feel the coolness flow into her as she probed her. "Look, I can..." Snow Angel started. "I can remodel the bone. Pull some calcium from your ribs and rebuild this section. Pull those pins out, and reattach those tendons. I can restore the original structure. I can smooth out this scar. But Annie, that's not going to make you walk. The nerves are..."

"The nerves are just tissue, and you can heal them, right?"

"I..." She swallowed nervously and nodded. "Yes, but ... Annie, there are hundreds of nerves here, and you have to understand, none of them are labelled. This is not like repairing a computer cable. There are no colors to match. And if by some miracle I reconnect these, you have to understand, I cannot do it right. I will do it wrong. You are not walking out of here today."

Annie shook her head. "I don't care! My brain will just adapt to the new controls. I know it'll take time!"

"It's not the time I'm worried about; it's the pain. Annie, half of these nerves may be pain receptors, and I don't know which ones they are. If I reattach them, they WILL be connected to something wrong, and you will feel pain for no reason at all. And it won't be a simple dull ache that aspirin can handle; It will be EXCRUCIATING pain! You understand me? And I don't know if you will adjust to it or not. I do not want to put you through this."

They glared at each other. Annie's eyes were red and teary. "I know it's going to hurt," Annie said, "and I don't care. It may take me weeks for my brain to adjust to the new wiring, but at least I'll FEEL something! And how do you know it will be excruciating? Have you done this before?"

Snow Angel took a breath and braced herself. "Please don't, Annie. I'm begging you. I am telling you that this is not a good idea, and I am not going to do it. I am not going to put you through that torture. So drop it."

Annie stared at the superhero, glaring at her intensely. Snow Angel met her gaze and held it.

"You made me a promise," Annie whispered.

Snow Angel jolted as if something grabbed onto her spine. Horror spread over her face. "Annie, stop it!" she pleaded.

"You said you owe me."

"Please!" she said, backing away from the girl in terror. "Don't do this to me!"