It was December, which meant Emma was feeling the Christmas spirit big time. She'd gone on a shopping trip, picking up some decorations for her house.

She'd put up some candy cane lights to line the path to her porch and figured some colored lights might look nice on the bushes. Emma didn't want to over do it though, which would be why she was currently standing a few feet away from her porch staring at the lights.

She had a few more, but she wondered if she should put them up. Hmm.

[OOC: Open!]

So, I'll be gone Saturday and possibly Sunday of this upcoming weekend.

My dad is running in the Philadelphia marathon, which I'm still all holy crap about, and I'm not sure if I'll have internet access where I'm staying. I might, which would be nice, but I might not.

I think I'll bring my laptop and we'll see what happens. I also might be going to the shore house in Wildwood Crest on Sunday -- it's still up in the air, which is why I'm not sure if I'll be back or not. If I find out definite plans, I will let you all know.

I'll be around Friday, for Visitation Weekend, and then I'll definitely be around sometime Monday. Saturday's out and Sunday's iffy.

Figured I'd let you all know! ♥!

Emma hadn't slept well in the past few night, what with the strange dreams she'd been having lately. She wondered what might be the cause of those dreams -- though Emma knew she was vulnerable at night, when her barriers went down, she was more susceptible to peoples' memories and dreams.

Taking a seat on her front porch, Emma wondered if Adam might have any insight into what was going on. She decided to send him an e-mail; if anyone had answers, it would be Adam Kane.

[OOC: Open!]

Emma had come to the decision that she needed a job. Sure, running study hall had been fun (she'd need to see if Veronica needed someone to cover again), but she was looking for something a bit more permanent.

She'd made herself some tea and relocated to the porch, laptop in hand. Emma browsed the web and wondered if one of the places in town was hiring.

[OOC: Very much open!]

"Hey, it's Emma. Leave a message."

Emma had been hit hard by Ray's death. Everyone could see that.

It had been days since she'd helped him to move on, but Emma couldn't stop thinking about Ray. The memories and emotions she'd experienced had been his, not hers. A victim taking possession of her mind had never happened before. She was supposed to be a powerful mutant; she still didn't understand how that had happened. Adam had said it was because her powers were growing; but if she was vulnerable, how could she be certain she could protect people? Her friends, her teammates?

The more she thought about it, the more it made sense. Emma was leaving Mutant X. She needed to get away; sort through this mess. Maybe being away for a bit would help. Perhaps she'd make it through the next stage of her powers; only then would she return, knowing she could effectively control them. Sure, she might be one of, if not the most powerful mutant on the team. But that didn't mean there weren't risks involved. What if she ended up like Gabriel Ashlocke? There was no way Emma was going to let that happen. Either she would learn to control her powers in this new stage, or she would take herself out of the picture, ensuring the safety of everyone around her.

Emma knew her teammates wouldn't be happy with her decision. She knew they would try and make her listen to reason. There were only so many excuses they could come up with. Emma knew the Genetic Security Agency would be one of them. Even so, she would take that chance. If it came down to it, Emma would gladly face Eckhart and the GSA, if it meant her teammates were okay. Leaving was the only way to ensure their safety. She knew they'd see reason. And if they didn't? Well, perhaps a little persuasion would help. At least that extension of her powers was easy to control. Hopefully, the rest would follow.