EMPTY HEART

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Of course, Brianna had predicted it would be anyway, but she was still shocked at how much trouble she had practicing combat in front of her peers. She seemed to freeze up and it took a greater amount of time to summon the blue into her fingers than it had been when she was fighting in Cairo.

It was frustrating.

Everyone else seemed to get the swing of it, fighting with everything they had, despite the many pairs of eyes on them, but it was different for Brianna. She attempted to strike the giant robot with a jolt of blue power, only to find herself unable to summon it in time. She almost got seriously injured, had it not been for Peter swooping in and saving her.

She felt embarrassed and quite ashamed, but she also knew that feeling this way would do her no good. She needed to find a strategy or something to help her with this.

Charles was thrilled to see his daughter finally showing up to class and participating. Her hand would shoot up in the air when she knew the answer to something, and the Professor beamed proudly at his daughter when she gave him the right answer.

Brianna has realized her mistake in judging Jean before, because now, she finds herself striking up an interesting conversation with the redhead whenever they bump into each other in the hallway or library or when they have free time at the end of class.

Despite doing good with her assignments and making a new friend, it seems a piece of her heart is missing, one that used to belong to Alex Summers. She misses him dearly, and realizes that she hasn't exactly come to terms with his death. Well, she hasn't had time to, given that right after she was occupied with saving her father and friends, and now she is busy with training and assignments.

When his death finally hits Brianna, it hits her hard. She is sitting against a bookshelf in the isolated library, a book opened in her lap and her homework assignment and pencil to her right.

She realizes how alone she is without him, without having someone to share her secrets with and spend time with.

After the first tear falls down her cheek, the rest come easy. She bookmarks her page and lets the tears fall silently, holding her face in her hands.

Bree does not hear the library door open and close, or the sound of slow, quiet footsteps thudding across the carpet towards her before stopping a few feet in front of her.

"Bree?"

She tenses and draws her hands away, wiping her face and looking at the person standing to her left. Her jaw clenches as she sees Peter standing there, looking down at her with concern and worry pasted across his face. "You okay?"

She clears her throat and nods, grabbing her book and paper from the floor before standing up, wiping any evidence of tears from her face.

But Peter still sees it. Her eyes are glassy and sad and her cheeks are red, proving that she was definitely crying.

"I'm fine," she replies. The silver haired boy raises a disbelieving eyebrow, but she ignores it. "Just catching up on some homework." He still doesn't believe it, but pushes the topic aside for now, given that Bree doesn't seem in a mood to share right now.

"Riiiight," he says, "anyways, it's time for training."

Brianna internally groans, knowing she is just going to make a fool out of herself once again.

The next morning, Charles glances around his classroom in confusion, wondering why his daughter did not show up this time. She was doing rather well, and he didn't expect her to give up already.

Hank McCoy is even more confused when Bree does not show up for training later that day. He knows that she is struggling more than the other students, but he didn't expect her to completely skip it.

After the kids in training had completed the session for the day, he couldn't help but wander around looking for her, aiming to ask if everything was okay.

He went up stairs and passed the rooms, then knocked at Bree's door. "Brianna? It's Hank." When no reply comes, he turns the knob and steps inside, finding the room dark and isolated. He flicks the light switch on, eyes falling upon the perfectly made, empty bed. His curiosity turns to worry and he leaves the room, aiming to search every square inch of the school if he has to. He needs to make sure that the Professor's daughter is okay.

Hank's shoes thud against the wood floors as he makes his way back down the stairs and through the hall, towards the one other place where the teenage girl usually spends her time.

The library is dead quiet, though. His eyebrows furrow in suspicion when he sees it empty, but does a quick sweep just to make sure she isn't hiding somewhere.

Then, he sees her, propped up against a book shelf in an isolated corner, dark hair falling over her shoulders, eyes closed, surrounded by scattered, open books.

"Brianna?" Hank says softly, pausing in his steps as if waiting for an answer, but she remains still, breathing silently, unmoving. Hank takes a reluctant step forward, then nudges her shoulder gently. "Hey— Bree?" He asks, sinking to her level. She stirs, humming in response. "Hey, wake up," he presses.

"Mmm?" She inhales sharply, head turning to him and eyes fluttering open. Hank furrows his eyebrows as she attempts to recompose herself.

Something has been off about her since they came back from Cairo, Hank has noticed. That spark inside her, the one that everyone learned to love and cherish, it was fading. She was lost and unsure that she would ever find her way home again.

"Oh, bloody hell--" she mutters, dropping her book from her lap. It falls to the floor with a thud and closes, and Brianna curse again as she struggles to remember what page she was on.

"You haven't attended any classes today, have you?" says Hank, but it comes out more like a statement than a question. Bree isn't listening, though. Her hands move clumsily as she tries to hurriedly gather her things. "Bree," he says, louder and more demanding, determined to get her attention and some answers.

"Wha--" her eyes snap up to his. She tries to blink the sleepiness from her eyes, but the fatigue that she has been feeling since the battle in Cairo seems to want to stay. "Sorry. Didn't see you there, Mr. McCoy," she murmurs, gathering her things in her arms and standing abruptly. "Well, too much work, so little time is what I always say. You have a good night, Mr. McCoy!"

And she is pushing her way out the double doors before he can get a word in. He remains still, perplexed. Brianna has always been on a first name basis with most of her teachers, Hank included. And now, she has called him 'Mr. McCoy' twice, as if they are not good friends, but just teacher and pupil.

Yes, she is a tough mystery to solve, even for someone with as much smart as Hank McCoy.

Finally an update! Sorry for the long wait! I should have the next one up by Friday :)