The sun dipped low behind the trees, casting golden light across the park trail. Birds chirped in the distance while leaves rustled under Wally's shoes as he walked ahead, animatedly gesturing with his hands.
Wally: You ever think about, like… what we're gonna be doing five years from now? I mean, you and me our future? Maybe a place of our own? I could slow down, y'know… maybe.
Behind him, Emma Frost walked silently, her arms crossed. Her heels clicked softly against the pavement. Her usually cool expression was unreadable, but her eyes were shadowed dark.
Emma's thoughts: He's so annoying. Why did I even date him in the first place? This… this isn't what I want.
Wally turned around, walking backward now, still smiling.
Wally: Maybe we could even get a dog. You don't like dogs? That's fine we'll get a cat. Or a fox! People keep foxes now, right?
Emma suddenly stopped walking.
Emma: Wally… can we talk? This is urgent.
Wally paused mid-step, blinking as the smile slowly faded from his face. He turned around fully, his hands slipping into his jacket pockets.
Wally: Sure. What do you wanna talk about?
Emma didn't respond immediately. She just stood there, eyes fixed on him like she was about to tear open a secret she'd kept buried too long.
Emma: (Softy) Wally… will you still love me if I was a mutant?
Wally blinked. His expression twisted with surprise, a puzzled smile creeping across his face as if he wasn't sure if he heard her right.
Wally: What…?
Emma looked down for a moment, then back up no more masks, no more pretenses. Her voice shook slightly, but her eyes were sharp and unflinching.
Emma: I'm serious. If I wasn't who you thought I was… if I had powers if I wasn't normal would you still love me?
Wally's mouth opened slightly, but no words came out. He searched her face, the tension in her jaw, the shadow in her eyes. Slowly, his smile faded, and the air between them grew heavy.
Wally: (quietly) Em… are you telling me you are a mutant?
Emma stared at Wally in silence. The park no longer felt warm. The golden light had turned cold. Her lips were pressed into a line, her eyes unreadable haunted.
Wally took a step forward, his voice trembling, cracking with each syllable.
Wally (quietly): Are you… are you really a mutant, Emma?
Still, she said nothing. Her eyes dropped to the ground. The wind rustled through the trees like a whisper of ghosts.
Wally (louder): Tell me!
His voice echoed through the trees. Then another voice cut in. Smooth. Cruel.
Sebastian Shaw: Did you accept my offer, Frost?
Wally spun around to see Sebastian Shaw, dressed immaculately in black, standing behind them with a faint smirk playing on his lips. The weight of his presence made the air feel heavier.
Wally: (confused, angry)Wh-what offer?Emma… what did this idiot mean an offer?
Emma took a slow breath, her voice hollow.
Emma: Sebastian and I… we were close. We danced, we drank, we were the best of friends. Then one night, he made me an offer an invitation to power.
She looked at Wally, her voice colder now.
Emma: He offered me the title of Queen. But there was a price. One of the two girls present had to die.
Wally took a shaky step back, his face pale.
Emma: (without flinching) I'II told him I didn't care which one. And I watched… as he killed both.
Wally's face twisted in horror. He reached out toward her.
Wally: Emma what the hell is wrong with you!?
But before he could touch her, Shaw was suddenly there, grabbing Wally's arm in a vice grip. With a brutal twist, he slammed Wally to the ground. A sickening crack echoed through the park.
Wally: (screaming)AGH! AAAHHH!!
Shaw: (calmly)You should really learn not to interrupt royalty when they speak.
Wally writhed on the ground, clutching his twisted arm, pain surging through his body. He looked up with tears in his eyes, breath shaky and uneven.
Wally (pleading): Please… stop…
Sebastian Shaw stepped over him without a glance, his polished shoes crunching softly against the gravel path. Reaching Emma, he cupped her face with one gloved hand and kissed her slowly, confidently, like he already owned her.
Wally's eyes widened in disbelief.
Wally (choked): Emma… please… don't do this…
Sebastian Shaw pulled away, his voice calm but laced with cruelty.
Sebastian Shaw: So, Emma… who would you rather be with? Him some injured fool clinging to ideals... or me power, security, purpose?
He extended his hand toward her.
Sebastian Shaw: It's time to choose.
Wally stared up at her, pain and heartbreak etched across his face.
Wally: (whispers)Emma… choose me. I love you...
Emma stood frozen for a moment. Her eyes flicked to Wally then back to Sebastian Shaw. Her hand rose slowly… and clasped Sebastian Shaw's.
Emma: I go with you.
Wally lay on the cold ground, tears mixing with dirt and pain, clutching his twisted arm as Emma slowly knelt beside him. Her eyes, once filled with affection, now held only sorrow and resolve.
Wally: (hoarse) Why… why are you doing this, Emma?
Emma reached out and gently brushed his hair back, her fingers soft against his skin.
Emma: (quietly) Because they fear what they do not understand, Wally. They hate us… because we're different. Because we have power. Because their world is small, and ours threatens to outgrow it.
She paused, her voice becoming distant.
Emma: Bigotry. Xenophobia. They burn us, cage us, label us monsters... and I refuse to live like that anymore.
Wally's lips trembled as he whispered.
Wally: Emma… please don't…
She cupped the side of his face tenderly.
Emma: I'm going to alter your memories, Wally. You and I… we'll be strangers. We'll walk past each other like we never meant a thing.
Her thumb rested gently against his temple, and a faint psychic glow shimmered at her fingertips.
Emma: (softly) You won't remember our past… Our friendship… Our future…
Wally: (whispering) Stop…
But it was too late. Her eyes glowed, and a wave of psychic energy pulsed into Wally's mind. He screamed not in pain, but in heartbreak as the memories began to blur, distort, and vanish.
-CURRENT-
Emma Frost sat bolt upright in her bed, cold sweat on her skin, her breath shaky and uneven. The room was quiet luxurious, cold, and empty.
She touched her chest, feeling her heartbeat pound like a drum.
Emma: (softly) What… a bad dream…
She looked out the window into the night sky, the name Wally echoing faintly in her mind… though she couldn't remember why.