Unpredictable Overindulgent Reappearances

A Midnighters fanfic by Jillian Hall

Melissa, Jonathan, and Jessica return to Bixby after being on the road for four long years. Along with them come many 'NewMi's, suppressed emotion, as well as plenty of sarcasm.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters or setting as depicted in The Midnighters series by Scott Westerfeld. I own my words and nothing more.

Note: It's been a year since I completed the Midnighters series. I probably ought to reread it, so, forgive me if there are any minor plot inconsistensies. Notification would be much appreicated.

- - - - - - - - - - - - -

December 13, 9:47 AM

The phone rang but Dess didn't answer. She had been sleeping peacefully until the blasted telecommunications device pulled her from her pleasant dreams. It continued to ring and Dess threw the pillow over her ears, angrily yelling out the beginnings of all the infinite numbers of Pi.

"You've reached Dess' room. Leave a message because I probably don't want to talk to you. Just be happy this isn't in binary."

Beeeep.

"Dess? Hey it's Melissa. I couldn't get a hold of Rex, so-"

"Melissa?" Dess had sprung from her bed with the agility of an Olympic pole vaulter in order to snatch the phone from its cradle. Now, she lay sprawled on the hardwood floor, the sheets caught up all around her; she knew she was never meant to be a pole vaulter anyway.

"Am I dreaming?" the polymath asked, slightly woozy from her harrowing phone-grabbing action.

"No, Dess, it's me," the mindcaster responded, her voice devoid of all enthusiasm.

"Long time no hear from! What makes me worthy of a phone call from the bitch goddess?" Dess asked, hoping that a little sarcasm would awaken her.

"I need Rex's new number. I tried his house, Madeline's house, the phone book... No one knows anything about his whereabouts."

"So… I was your last resort?"

"Basically."

"I can live with that."

"Will you just give me his number?"

"I might…"

"Dess."

"Melissa."

"Will you give me the number or not?"

"What's the point slope formula?"

"How the hell am I supposed to know that?"

"It's simple algebra. I'm going easy on you here."

"a bc. Can I have the number now?"

"That's the Pythagorean Theorem, silly!" Dess began to think that maybe she should answer her 'early morning' calls more often. She was surprisingly witty in the 'wee hours' of the morning.

"Dess. I don't play games. I will come and take the number from you if you don't give it to me. So spill. Now."

"Alright, alright, you take the fun out of everything. He only recently got a cell phone because of his whole "I hate technology!" complex. His number is 555-9274 but you-" the dial tone rung out harmoniously as Dess sighed. Melissa had his number in her possession, but that really wouldn't do her much good.

- - - - - - - - - - - - -

December 13, 9:51 AM

He only got a cell phone because Dess had practically forced him.

"But what if you're in a car crash and are sprawled out on the highway and a mountain lion comes and starts to feast on you while some criminals steal your car and then break into your apartment and-"

"Fine, fine! I'll get a cell phone if that will stop you from harassing me!"

He remembered the ongoing battle as the polymath tried to spell out endless predicaments where a cell phone would save his ass.

He had given in, but chose a model at least ten years old he found at a junk shop. If he was going to be hauling around a piece of technology, it might as well be an old and crappy one.

He never had it turned on because it was usually in the backseat of his car, shoved somewhere between the lore books and the endless takeout wrappers. But for some reason today he decided to bring it into the library with him, placing it on his desk where he could keep a keen eye on it. And, for an even stranger reason, he had the urge to actually turn it on. He eyed it cautiously throughout the morning, making sure it hadn't moved in any of his absences, as if it were a strange and foreign sort of prey.

So, at 9:51 AM when it miraculously rang, he was ready to take the call. Surprised, yes, but ready as well.

"Hello?" he questioned, unsure if he was actually using it properly.

"Rex?" the voice asked with uncertainty, cracking with fear. Instantly Rex jammed the phone closer to ear, wishing he could melt into the receiver and float through the air to her.

"Melissa!" he cried, his heart jumping into action.

"Is it… really you?" he asked, sure that it must have been Dess impersonating her, trying to take advantage of his loneliness for her own pleasure.

"It is. …How are you?" Rex could barely breathe as Melissa struggled with small talk.

"I'm managing to get by. How are you? It's been so long… I thought…," the seer trailed breathlessly, forcing his heart to beat at a steadier pace.

"I know… I'm sorry… but it's been crazy. Every where we go there's new Midnighters yearning to be just like us. It's been nonstop teaching, informing, fighting… missing you." The last two words were barely whispered but Rex heard them nonetheless, defying his cheap cell phone provider by putting his super sensitive hearing to good use.

"Where are you?" Rex asked suddenly, not allowing himself to think over his questions.

"Well actually…," Melissa paused and asked a question of someone else who was with her. Rex, despite his improved hearing, could not make out the muffled and low spoken words.

"We're about an hour away from Bixby by car. We're coming home, Rex. For good."

- - - - - - - - - - - - -

December 13, 11:58

Rex sighed as a shiver of anticipation rippled through him. Melissa, Jonathan, Jessica, and a whole host of new Midnighters would be arriving within the next ten minutes.

Melissa had told him that Jonathan would be bringing her as well as Jessica by bounce, while new acrobats brought others and the other flamebringer they discovered would drive a car filled with everyone else.

Traveling by bounce, they could cross the hour's worth of land in minutes. Within in ten minutes he would be seeing Melissa.

Time crept by painfully slow as the familiar shudder of midnight silenced all of Bixby.

"You ready, Rex?" the seer glanced over at almost forgotten Dess. The polymath had tagged along, anxious to see her friends and meet any new polymaths.

"I guess… I just can't wait to see her." There was a slight layer of tension in the air as Dess looked down. He loved Melissa, she loved him. Jonathan loved Jessica, she loved him. With their return, Dess was, once again, the fifth wheel: unneeded, unnecessary, and unwanted.

"Yeah, I bet," Dess sighed, wistfully looking onto the horizon, hoping only for a male polymath to arrive with the bunch; a male polymath, who was, of course, very handsome.

Rex, on the other hand, was anxious, nervous, happy, and upset all at the same time. His mind buzzed with thoughts of her, his hands shaking with anticipation. He couldn't wait to show her how tame he had become – how he could handle his inner beast at all times. He wanted her to be proud of him.

The minutes inched by as Dess and Rex shared mindless banter, killing time with half hearted words. They played a few rounds of 'Count the Rocks' but Rex soon lost interest when Dess began to crunch the numbers, giving him rough estimates of how many rocks approximately lay in the western hemisphere based on her calculations. And, after what seemed like centuries, Rex spotted three bouncing dots on the horizon.

"Look Dess!" he shouted with more enthusiasm than he had had in years.

"I see, I see!" Dess shouted with sarcastic excitement, noticing Rex's growing anticipation.

"Keep in your pants, will ya?" she commented, earning only an angry glare from Rex.

Jonathan, with Melissa and Jessica in tow, bounded to the ground several moments later. Melissa immediately broke free from Jonathan's hold and ran towards Rex, as if to hug him. But she stopped only a foot short, breathing heavily and gazing up at him wistfully.

She was so close that he could feel her exhalations, her breath hot and wet on his chest.

"Hi," he said with a gulp, unsure what exactly she expected him to do.

"Hi." She said with a laugh, drawing him into a warm embrace.

"Hi…," she breathed, holding him tighter than ever. Rex grabbed her tightly as well, so glad to see her that he didn't even notice how happy and un-Melissa like she was acting.

"I missed you so much… God, I missed you!" she cried, pulling him so close that Rex thought it was entirely possible that they might fuse into one. And, if they had, he wouldn't have really minded.

"How cute…," Dess muttered jealously, turning to Jessica and Jonathan who, surprisingly, weren't all over each other.

"Isn't it?" Jessica squealed, obviously not realizing Dess was being sarcastic.

"So, when does the rest of the cavalry get here?" Dess asked, scanning the horizon for fast approached cars.

"Considering they'll be driving way over the speed limit, I'd say they'll here within the next twenty minutes." Jonathan said as Jessica clung to his arm. It was quite odd to see a 20-year-old Jonathan being clingy with a still 15-year-old Jess.

The Midnighters had all aged, with the exception of nearly-forever young Jess. Dess, although she looked like an adult, rarely acted her age. She had no job, slept in late every day, and still lived off of her gracious parents. She was forever inventing new toys, shipping them off to Midnighter warehouses that had been established across the country. These storehouses were created after Samhain, just in case the darklings ever came back. That way, if the darklings ever did show their faces again, humankind would be more than ready to take them down once more.

Rex, on the other hand, had taken up a management position at the library, making enough to afford his own apartment. He still cared for Madeleine and his father, but having his own his place had given him a place to relax where no one could bother him. He thought about Melissa way more than he admitted. So much so that his social life, although nearly nonexistent while Melissa was around, had become completely devoid of anything. He rarely saw anyone, with the exception of Madeleine and his father, and Dess only stopped by now and again to check up on him or show him a new metallic wonder. He was even a shell of himself; lost without the one person who could make him feel alive.

Melissa had become even more introverted since her departure as well. Rex was the only Midnighter she felt especially comfortable with, and when they were apart she felt totally isolated and alone. She took small pleasure in teaching new mindcasters of their abilities, but besides this distraction she dreamt only of going home. Her appearance had drastically changed as well, her hair now lengthy and dark. She was a woman now, mature, beauteously, and fully grown. However, Rex could wrap his arms around her even more than before, causing the seer to believe she was dangerously thin.

Jonathan was still tall, dark, handsome, and full of energy. The contrast between Jessica and him seemed even greater now; Jessica's pale, small self so different from the dark and powerful man. His appetite had not diminished at all either; even after only having landed a minute earlier, an apple had already been produced and it was half gone.

"How many are coming?" Dess asked as Jessica answered for her munching partner.

"Three acrobats with two passengers each and a car packed with nine. We met thousands more, but there were only a select few who wanted to come with us. They're just kids, Dess. Most of them younger than me, even. No one over 21 was willing to leave their lives, which is understandable. But they've got a lot to learn yet, we couldn't teach them everything." The redhead was still just a kid herself; living only an hour for every day the others had spent maturing and growing.

Dess shook her head and glanced over at Melissa and Rex, who were still lost in Couplesville. It was definitely going to be a long time before they could pry themselves apart.

"I never heard from you… all these years. I thought that you'd moved on. I thought maybe you'd met another mindcaster. I thought that…" Rex Greene was much more vulnerable than he thought. Here he was, spilling his feelings to the girl who had left him. She had admitted she loved him, she trusted him, she was his best friend, but just like his mother she left him. And here he was giving her exactly what she wanted to hear.

"I know… I tried. I dialed the first six numbers of your phone number so many times… but I couldn't do it. I'd think back to how you looked the day we drove off. I felt as if I'd crushed your heart…"

"You did." Rex gulped. He hoped he wasn't being too brutal. But no matter what he told himself on the inside, Melissa had killed his feelings for a very long time.

"Rex, I…" Melissa began but Rex brushed the stray strands of hair out of her eyes and said what he'd been dying to say for four years.

"But it's ok because you came back, like you promised. I love you… never leave me again." He silenced any reply her lips had been forming with a kiss, sending four years of lost passion into a kiss that exceeded every expectation the two had had for their reuniting. Melissa broke free for a moment, closing her eyes and pulling Rex tighter.

"I swear to you on my life, I'll never you again. Never."

"I trust you, Melissa… I trust you."

- - - - - - - - - - - - -

December 14, 12:48

Marty stretched his arms, hitting several other NewMi's in the process. It was late, he was tired, and they had been driving for 48 minutes too long. He wanted to get to this Bixby place and go to sleep. It was impossible to sleep in the car with 4 other NewMi's jammed up against him. Even imagining all the infinite numerals of Pi in his head did nothing.

He was a recent graduate of Yale University, graduating at only 19. He wasn't a true polymath - more like a genius. His tridecalogism skills were even more advanced than Dess's; he could create 13 or 39 letter sentences on a whim as well.

"When exactly are we all going to arrive, Meaghan?" He asked, using 39 letters exactly.

"We'll be there in 5 minutes! Chill, Marty!" the only other flamebringer known to exist yelled, her small hands grasping the wheel even tighter. To her, being 13-years-old was hard enough, but it was even harder when you had to deal with freaks like Marty Benson. Meaghan could be described as even more daylight worthy than Jessica, probably meaning she was born at 12:00:59. That is, at least, what Marty had figured.

"Yeah, Marty. Cut it out. You're annoying." Jarrett chided playfully, chucking an apple core at the older boy's head.

"Cut it out pipsqueak. I was entering college at your age, punk," Marty rolled his eyes sarcastically, anxious to escape the realm of little children.

"Hey guys, we're here!" Meaghan shouted with joy as the car erupted with shouts and hollers. The doors flung open before the car had even completely stopped, kids literally throwing themselves from the vehicle.

"So… which one's the polymath?" Dess asked eagerly as Jessica threw a finger in Marty's direction.

"Damn it! He's a… nerd!" Dess pretended to vomit while gazing upon Marty's nerdy physique.

"Skinny as hell, pocket protector, glasses… are those suspenders?" Dess leaned forward, trying to take in the full view of the incredibly dorky Marty.

"Wait as minute… is that a T93A834K CALCULATOR? OH MY GOD!" Dess was gone in a flash, nearly flying to the boy who just produced a bulky calculator from his bag.

"Can I… touch it?" Her eyes glossed over with admiration, reaching for the shiny and powerful machine. The handheld device was quickly yanked from her grasp.

"I guess you're Dess. Jessica's description of you was much… less emo." Dess cringed in agony as this phrase was spoken. It was so… untrideca-y that it made her brain ache.

"You used 54 letters. You used 12 words. 52 is a multiple of 13. You little…" Dess's anger rose as she stared into her new rival's face. This wasn't the handsome, sweep you off your feet kind of polymath. This was the 'I hate you already,' kind of polymath. And in Dess's mind he was definitely going down.

"I knew that feeling would piss you off, Dess."

"35 letters… you're so very cruel."

"Get used to it, hun."

"14 letters… what's the point in even talking to you?" Dess scowled, gazing up and down his wimpy figure. His hair was even nerdily slicked to the side.

"I could beat your puny ass any day," she murmured under her breath, crossing her arms defiantly. This Marty guy was most definitely not the polymath she had ordered.

"Ugh, so everyone here is a freak? Why did I even bother coming?" Dess turned to face what would become the second most loathed person known to her, after Marty of course. Meaghan Jour stood with her frail arms crossed in an arrogant manner.

"Excuse me?" Dess questioned, walking up to the immensely small brat who had addressed those in her view, which included Dess, as freaks.

"Oh boy, the Goth One speaketh to me!" the poor excuse for a Midnighter said in mock fright, flailing her size 0 arms around in the air.

"Dess… this is Meaghan. She's a NewMi," Jessica began to explain.

"NewMi? What kind of a crap name is that?" Dess questioned as Jessica sighed, deciding that the moment was a decidedly bad time to begin to introduce the new Midnighters.

"I think it's best we all just head to the hotel, get some sleep, and tomorrow we can sort things out," Jonathan began, tired of all the bickering that had only just begun.

"Yeah whatever," Dess murmured, eyeing Marty up and down once more. He appeared even more disgusting than he had when he had first emerged out of the car. However, there was something slight that had stirred in Dess during their confrontation. Their fervent arguing, his use of decidedly unfriendly letter and word patterns, his general demeanor… Had she gotten turned on?

Dess scowled at the disgusting thought and turned to enter Rex's terribly feminine pink Cadillac. There was no way in hell she and Marty would ever get along. She would make sure of that.

"Dess?" the polymath was jerked from hr thoughts by a slightly aggravated voice?

"Yes, dearest Melissa?" Dess said with fake tenderness, gazing down lovingly at the mindcaster.

"Get off me."

"Ah, right, sorry Melissa." Dess, in her usual habit of sitting in the front seat, as well as her mind being focused on Marty, had accidentally taken a seat right on top of Melissa.

This, Dess was certain, was going to be a most, most wonderful time in her life.