Two months ago

The wail of police sirens sent Winona into a frenzy. She was running as fast as she could but it seemed as though the vehicles were catching up. Running beside her were three other people whom she hadn't known for long.

Cyrus, a young man with long, sandy blond hair was laughing hysterically. He quickly turned and hurled a ball of fire at the police car. It screeched to a stop. Cyrus continued to laugh. "Shut up!" Iliana, a beautiful Hispanic girl, gasped.

Cyrus continued laughing. "Dude, cut it out!" That was Andre, a tall black man that looked nicer than he actual was. The four mutants slid to a stop as they reached the getaway car. Andre quickly threw the duffle bag into the car's trunk whilst the others entered the vehicle.

Andre rounded to the passenger side and once he was in the car, Cyrus took off driving. He sped down the deserted road with ease. "Whoo hoo!" He exclaimed. "What a rush," Iliana said. "Slow down," Andre commanded. Cyrus rolled his eyes but complied. "I cannot believe we just did that. Again," Winona muttered.

"Well believe it, chica," Iliana said, leaning back in her seat. Winona sent her a glare. "You guys didn't say that we'd be doing illegal stuff when you agreed to help me," Winona snapped. "You didn't ask," Cyrus stated simply. Winona's glare turned to him. "We told you there was a price," Andre pointed out.

"Well you should've told me that this was the price! And you said that the last job was the last time we were gonna do this shit!" She exclaimed. "We lied. It's what we do. And we didn't think you'd care anyway. You're the one that said you'd do anything to find your sister," Cyrus shrugged. "Except this! I'm already wanted by the freaking government! We could get caught!" Winona said.

"But we didn't. Plus we were wearing masks and Andre took the cameras out, nobody knows who it was. And it's not like we robbed a bank," Iliana said. "We wouldn't have gotten away with robbing a bank," Winona replied to which Iliana shrugged. "All right, first part is done, now we gotta talk about the next job," Cyrus said.

Winona's eyes widened. "No. No way. I'm done. I am not doing this again. Ever," she said. "Hey, you want us to help you find your sister or not?" Cyrus questioned. Winona didn't hesitate to reply. "I am not doing this again," she stated firmly. Cyrus pulled the vehicle to a stop. "That's your choice, best of luck to you," he said, putting the car in park. Winona knew what was happening so she took off her seatbelt.

Andre stepped out of the car and Winona did the same. He quickly went to the trunk and opened it up. He unzipped the duffle bag and pulled out some money and held it out to her. "I hope you find your sister," Andre said. Winona took the money from his grasp and turned to walk away.

The man quickly reentered the car before it sped off into the night. Winona sighed and briskly walked down the deserted road. She now had to figure out what she was going to do next.

····

Winona stood solemnly as Lorna spoke.  The Underground was holding a funeral for Sonya. In her tight grip was a bundle of flowers. On one side of Winona was Elaine, who stood with her arms crossed. On the other side of Winona was Renee. When Winona and the others were taken, Marcos got ahold of Winona's phone and called Renee. He figured that she would be willing to help. He was right.

She along with Edward and Dominic came to Atlanta rather quickly with the help of one of Dominic's friends. The three aided in the rescue plan that went to hell. Edward was stood on the other side of Renee. Dominic was stood next to Clarice. Winona wasn't exactly sure why. To say Winona was shocked to see them would be an understatement. In all honesty, she never thought that she would see any of them ever again.

Nonetheless, Winona was happy that they were there. "Everything Dreamer did, she did for everyone here, up until the very end. She could've disguised herself as a human forever, but she chose to live here with us, her true family," Lorna said. Winona looked down at the flowers in her hand.

When Lorna had finished speaking, she placed her own bundle of flowers down on a little table that was set up. They couldn't give Sonya a proper burial seeing as they didn't have her body. This fact angered Winona to no end.

Marcos was the next to speak. "It's days like today that remind us we're up against people that don't think of us as human. And they will point to our differences. But the simple fact is this: we love like they do. We die like they do. We grieve like they do. We share that today. Sonya will not be forgotten. And I promise we will find justice for her," he said. Winona found herself softly nodding along to his words.

She felt determined to make Dr. Campbell pay for what he had done. Not just to Sonya, but also to the countless other mutants that he had turned into Hounds or killed. When Marcos concluded his speech, he set his flowers onto the table. He then made his way back over to Lorna and pulled her into him. More people began setting down their flowers.

Winona's eyes continuously moved to John. She was assessing him, trying to see if he were okay. He made himself look strong, as though he were fine. Winona knew it was an act. It didn't take a genius to figure that out. Elaine noticed Winona's constant wandering eyes and followed her gaze.

She looked between John and Winona before pursing her lips in thought. The Struckers walked forward and set their flowers down. Renee and Edward went to do the same. They obviously didn't know Sonya, neither did Elaine and Dominic, but they paid their respects nonetheless. Elaine and Winona walked forward and the older girl placed her flowers down before beginning to follow the others back to headquarters.

Winona stood in front of the table and didn't move. Her grip on the flowers tightened significantly and she sighed. She looked down at the table full of a variety of flowers before placing her own onto it. "I'm sorry," she whispered before turning to follow the others. Elaine was waiting a few feet away. The Asian wrapped an arm around Winona's shoulders and pulled her into her side.

When they got back to the Underground, Elaine went inside. Winona remained outside, staring at the trees around her. There was a slight breeze that felt nice. It was oddly calming.

John was the last to arrive back to the Underground. He stopped at the bottom of the steps and turned so that his back was facing her. His head was down and Winona's eyes squinted as she watched him. When his body began to shake, she assumed that he was crying. It was when he thought no one would see him in a moment of weakness that he let down his façade.

Winona felt as though her heart was breaking. She had never seen him cry or show much of any form of emotion. Even then, she wasn't even sure that he was crying. When it seemed as though John had pulled himself together, Winona decided to approach him. She took timid steps down the steps and froze when John turned to walk up the steps.

He briefly halted his movements before continuing up the steps, stopping in front of her. "Are you okay?" She asked quietly. John cleared his throat. "I'm all right," he replied, his voice strained. Winona nodded her head, knowing that he was lying though she didn't speak on it. "I'm not sure what to say in these kinds of situations. I know your relationship with Sonya was, complicated. I can tell that you really cared about her. And she really loved you. And I'm just sorry. I wish I could've helped her," Winona said.

John looked away and nodded. "If you need anything. Someone to talk to or help around HQ, anything at all. Please just let me know," she said when he didn't speak. John released a breath before looking over at her. "Things are so confused in there. This whole business with Esme and her sisters, nobody can agree whether what they did was a disaster or a miracle," he said.

He went to walk past her but she stopped him, a hand wrapping around his arm. He sighed again. "So what do we do?" She asked. "Stay focused. We take down the Hound program," he replied. Winona nodded her head, "Do we have a plan on how to do that?"

"Not yet. All I know is I can't lose any more friends," John said before walking the rest of the way up the steps. Winona sighed and looked up at the sky. She remained outside for a few more minutes before entering the building.

····

Elaine was staring intensely at the side of Winona's head. Her eyes were squinted as though she were concentrating on something. Winona kept her eyes trained on the book in her hands, ignoring the older girl's eyes on her form. Elaine released a dramatic sigh and Winona rolled her eyes.

When the staring became too much, Winona closed the book and turned to look at her sister in annoyance. "Do you need something?" Winona asked her. "Why are you acting like everything's okay?" Elaine questioned, ignoring Winona's words. "What are you talking about?" Came Winona's confused reply. Elaine sighed and scooted forward in her seat.

"I'm talking about the fact that you watched one of your friend's die and you're acting like it never happened," Elaine replied. Winona's eyes narrowed, "Well excuse me if I don't want relive the traumatic experience of watching my friend being shot to death right in front of my face." Elaine looked down.

"And you're one to talk. You haven't exactly talked to me about what you went through for this whole year and a half. Care to share?" She continued. Elaine sighed again. "Don't change the subject. Look, I know that this isn't easy for you. But you're just acting so calm and serious. You didn't even cry at the funeral," Elaine said. "That's because I'm done crying, Elaine. And you're also acting like nothing even happened to you when I know that something has," Winona snapped before sighing.

"This isn't about me. Right now, it's about you. So stop deflecting," Elaine snapped back. "Look, I get that you're trying to help, but please just stop. If I want to talk to someone, then I'll talk to you, okay?" Winona said more calmly. Elaine nodded her head. "I'm sorry. But you know me, always prying into other people's lives," she said.

Winona rolled her eyes, "How could I forget?" Elaine laughed aloud as Renee and Edward approached. "You do know that people grieve in different ways, right?" Renee asked. Elaine's eyes narrowed at the woman now stood in front of her.

"Who are you again?" She asked. "I'm Renee and this is my husband Edward. We were helping Winona try to find you," Renee replied. "You didn't do a very good job at that," Elaine muttered. Renee's eyes narrowed and Winona rolled her eyes before turning to Edward. "Were you eavesdropping on our conversation?" She asked.

"We did it out of worry. You haven't talked much since you got back," Edward replied. Winona shrugged, "There's not much to talk about." She then looked around the Underground. "Where's Dominic?" She asked the two. Renee smirked and Edward was the one to reply. "He's with your friend, uh, Clarice?" He said. "He thinks she's pretty," Renee said, trying to contain her laughter.

"I think she's pretty too," Renee added as an afterthought. Winona chuckled as Edward raised his eyebrows. "What? A woman can't think another woman is pretty?" Renee asked. "It's not that. It's just, you never call me pretty," he joked. This sent the three women into a fit of laughter and Edward smiled proudly.

Marcos approached the four and Winona sent him a small smile. "Hey," he said. "Hey, man," Edward replied. Renee smiled and Elaine sent him a wave. "We didn't really get the chance to meet. I'm Marcos," he introduced. Elaine sent him a flirtatious smile. "Elaine," she said. Winona rolled her eyes. "Yeah I, I know. I was uh, helping Winona find you," Marcos said.

Elaine smiled, "That's so sweet of you." Renee glared at the woman. "I wanted to talk to you guys about your future here. At the Underground," Marcos said. Winona nodded for him to continue. "I figured that since you found your sister, you'd want to leave. I mean, you don't really have a reason to stay—"
Winona cut him off.

"Let me stop you right there. I have plenty of reasons to stay, Marcos. This place is like my home now. And everyone here is my family. I'm not going anywhere. Especially not after all of this mess," she said. Marcos nodded his head and smiled. "I was hoping you'd say something like that," he admitted. "You're not getting rid of me," she replied.

"Well, if Winnie's staying then so am I," Elaine said. "I want to stay too. And I'm sure Dominic does as well," Renee said. "What about work?" Edward questioned. Renee rolled her eyes, "Screw work. This is more important." Edward briefly pursed his lips before nodding. "I guess we could take a leave of absence for a little while. But we're gonna have to figure something else out," he said.

"We can worry about that later," Renee said, waving him off. "Everybody! Everybody, listen up! We got incoming," Shatter cried. All eyes went to him and Winona stood. Shatter was quickly descending the stairs and approached the now forming mob of people. Marcos moved closer to him. "Marcos, they're coming. They got past the perimeter guards," Shatter told him.

"Who did?" Marcos asked. As if on cue, the clicking of heels could be heard. Winona turned her attention back to the stairs. Her face turned into a scowl at the sight of Esme and the other two look alikes. The trio had smirks on their faces and anger bubbled up inside of Winona. She took a step forward only to be pulled back slightly by Dominic, who was now stood behind her. Clarice was behind him, her eyes focused on the triplets.

Winona yanked her arm out of his grasp. "What the hell do you want?" Marcos asked in exasperation. "Calm down," the blonde on the right said. "There's no need to get excited," the one on the left spoke up next. "We're just here to talk," the one in the middle said next. "Talk about what?" John asked them.

"We need your help."

°°°°

Hello all. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. This book is going to be coming to an end soon but don't worry, there are still quite a few chapters left. At the moment, I'm unsure if I'll be writing a second book for season two because I will be starting college in the Fall and I don't know if I'll have time. With that being said, please be sure to comment and vote. Have a nice day.

-N