Liliana had been staying with Julianna's kids for the past little while along with Pyro but she had something to do, first. "I need to go and find someone. Can you watch them?"
"Your mom?" Pyro guessed, reading it in her eyes and Liliana nodded. "Are you sure that you don't want me to come with you? I mean..."
"Pyro, this is really something that I... I just have to do on my own." She said and he was nodding, before she was looking at the four kids that were orphaned now. Julianna was dead and of course, Gus was gone too. She had been left the guardianship of these kids but she... She had no clue how to deal with it, none.
Liliana walked out of the apartment and Pyro shut the door behind her, locking it as she was walking down the hallway. Liliana was reaching up and brushing her fingertips over the ring that she wore around her neck and it was a college graduation ring, that she hadn't taken off in over two decades and quietly, she sighed.
"Come on, Reaper." She whispered very quietly to herself and she walked down the stairs, before she got into the car and she was driving off. "You've got this."
Liliana was pulling up the familiar driveway and even after all these years, it still looked the same. So... Ellen Strucker hadn't moved house after all, the kids had been right about that.
Liliana shut off the engine and she was staring at the house, wondering when her mother had time to fix all the damage that Liliana had done to it and she sighed.
Liliana got up and she was opening the door, steeling her nerves as she got out of the vehicle and she closed it behind her. She locked the car and then, she was walking up the steps and she stopped at the door.
Liliana lifted her hand to start knocking on the door, but she stopped and she sighed. At the realization that she wouldn't be able to drive herself back here again, she hit the doorbell before she could turn around and lose her nerve completely.
The door unlocked and Ellen Strucker opened the door, looking at her. "Hello, can I help you?" She asked and Liliana's breath caught in her throat briefly, before she was steadying herself.
"Ellen Strucker?" Liliana asked with a shaking tone in her voice and it dawned on her that Ellen looked exactly the same, just white hair and maybe a little bit shorter.
"Yes, that's me." Ellen said and she was tilting her head at her. "You look... I am sorry, but you look very familiar my dear, have we met before?" She asked and Liliana smiled briefly.
"Do you... Do you remember this?" Liliana reached into her shirt and carefully, she was pulling out the ring and she watched her mother's eyes widened. "Mom... Mom, do you remember me?" She asked and Ellen sobbed at the sight of her, before she was throwing her arms around her and Liliana was breaking down.
Liliana had promised herself that she wouldn't cry, but at the sight of her mom crying... Nothing was off-limits anymore.
"Oh. Oh, oh my sweet little girl!" Ellen gasped and Liliana returned the hug, as she was crying. "Your father, that bastard, he told me that you were dead!" Ellen said as Liliana sighed. "But.. where have you been? And, why the hell did he tell me that you were dead?" She asked and Liliana wiped her eyes quickly.
"Well, uh... This." Liliana said and slowly with a deep breath, she stepped back and her veins began to glow. Ellen gasped at the sight of the veins and Liliana shook her head. "Dad and Dr. Risman, they tried to give me the same thing, that suppressed Reed's X-Gene... The same thing that made him sick for so long but, it only works if the mutation hasn't manifested yet." She shook her head. "The day that they tried to give it to me, was the day I manifested my ability. I was terrified and thanks to what they were saying, I thought that even you would try to kill me." Liliana admitted and Ellen gasped.
"So... So, I ran." She whispered and Ellen shook her head. "I ran like hell was on my ass. I ran, I ran and I never came home. I am so sorry Mom, I am so sorry." Ellen was moving her arms around her and Liliana was crying her eyes out again and then they were going inside together.
After careful some deliberation and some very, very careful consideration, Julianna's four kids were moving in with Ellen.
Liliana was looking at them as they introduced themselves to her mom, who was all smiles at the sight of them and she was cradling August in her arms, as if she was her own toddler. "They will be safe here." She turned to look at Pyro, who reached over and grabbed her hand in his and she nodded. "And when they are old enough, they can join the fight." He said and she sighed.
"We have to get back to the others, don't we?" Liliana stated and Pyro nodded with a sigh, before they watched them and they all went inside. Liliana smiled briefly, before they were driving away again.
Taylor met them there and Liliana hugged her, before Taylor returned it. Liliana sighed as she walked into Julianna's old apartment that her and Pyro had taken over, finding everyone else in there as well and they all looked at her. "I know, I've been crying. I don't need a bunch of you people pointing it out to me." She said grumpily and she tossed herself down onto the couch. "Get out." She said and all of them were leaving.
Liliana smiled briefly at the sight of Taylor and John casually and openly holding hands with one another again, as they walked out of the apartment and quickly, the door shut behind them.
YOU ARE READING
¹ Roar || The Gifted: John Proudstar
Fiksi Penggemar"I never thought that I'd see the day, when we would ever hear you roar again." ~~~~~ It had been years since they had seen each other. One enlisted in the military, the other became a licensed therapist. When one fell into a dark hole that seemed t...
