magnetic ◊ criminal minds

xxi.

xxi. the big wheel
( season four, episode twenty-two )

"I can drive myself," Lyra signed, trying to discourage her half-sister, Lorna Dane, from driving her to work. The pair had hung out the night before (Lorna, somehow, had found out about the explosion and came to check on her) but it was now time for Lyra to get to Quantico. Lyra's healing factor was faster than that of a human's, but most of her injuries still remained. And because her coworkers knew of the injury, she could not heal it herself. Some burns and a fractured wrist was not going to stop her from working. This meant that Lorna was more concerned for her safety.

"But it's safer if I do," Lorna insisted, hand on her hip. She was blocking the door so that Lyra could not leave unless she allowed her to. "You could make your wrist worse."

"I'll shoot you," Lyra threatened.

"I'll stop the bullets," Lorna countered, eyebrow raised.

"You wouldn't be fast enough."

"Don't make me rip out your piercing."

Lyra put a hand on her eyebrow piercing protectively. "You control magnetism, not metal. That's dad's thing."

"It's close enough."

"Fine, drive me," Lyra signed, giving in. Otherwise their bickering, though friendly, would go on forever. And Lyra did not have forever. She had work. Killers would not just turn themselves in, unfortunately. Lorna grinned in victory, taking her keys out of her pocket to dangle them tauntingly in front of Lyra.

Lorna drove Lyra to work, the entire time talking about how things were going with the team she was a part of, the X-Factor. A group of mutants who essentially did what the X-Men did, but instead of being public about being mutants, they posed as humans to bring in 'dangerous mutants' when in reality, they rescued them and trained them. Both groups were similar but had different methods. And while humans knew of mutant existence, of people like Magneto, no one really knew who the X-Men were, just of them. No one knew Magneto's true identity. They were a mystery, known but hidden from the general public.

They pulled up outside Quantico, where Lorna started insisting to walk her up and meet the team. Lyra tried to tell her not to, but she did not listen.

"Your wrist is hurt, what if you can't click the elevator buttons?" Lorna said.

Lyra stared at her blankly, throwing up her not injured hand. "Legs work, stairs exist. I have two hands," she signed. Lorna did not listen, instead following Lyra inside the building. This meant Lyra had to wave off anyone who tried to stop her, trying to convey that Lorna was with her. Then it was the two of them in the elevator. "I'll have a case, you know," Lyra signed.

Lorna shrugged. "And I'll leave when that time comes," she said. Lyra sighed. She was not getting out of this.

The moment the elevator doors opened, Lyra ran into Morgan. He raised an eyebrow. "Morning, Lehnsherr. Who's this?"

Lorna put a hand out to shake. "Lorna, Lyra's sister," she introduced.

Morgan leaned back, an amused glint in his eyes to accompany his smirk. "Derek Morgan," he introduced. "I didn't know you had a sister," he said to Lyra. "Especially one so pretty."

Lyra slapped his shoulder. "She has a boyfriend," she signed.

Morgan put the hand that was not holding coffee up in surrender. "My bad, my bad. Nice to meet you," he said to Lorna.