Fifth Avenue - The Replacements
Chapter Five

Everyone was in the training room and paired off into partners, Flicker and Flutter, Trix and Whisper and Hartley and Doc, with a blow of a whistle everyone began.

“Okay Hartley, are you ready?” Doc asks carefully, she rolls her eyes and slams her closed fist into his stomach quickly bringing her leg over and shoving him back with it.

She smiles at him and brings her hand forward ushering him to bring it, Doc chuckles and steps forward pressing his hand into his stomach healing the growing bruise she had given him.

He charged and kicked her leg back making her stumble slightly but she turns elbowing him in the gut “So we can use powers then” she asks tiredly, Hartley swings herself and lands on Doc’s back. She presses her hand onto his neck and allows her anger to get through making her hand singe his neck slightly.

Doc hisses and slams himself back making Hartley groan in pain. Unknowing to them they now had an audience, quickly Hartley brought herself up as she does she kicks Doc in the face.

He spits out the blood in his mouth smirking afterwards, they charge each other and Hartley ducks under his punch “Pretty good for an old man with one arm” she taunts slightly.

Hartley punches his spine making him fall to his knees, he goes to get up but Hartley moves herself in front of him holding her burning hand to his unburnt side of his face. “Move and you melt” she says with slight pride; her hair was a dark red and her eyes seemed to be glowing the same colour.

“Mercy” Doc says and Hartley blinks the red disappearing from her eyes, as she helps him stand back up her hair returns to blue. Doc places his hand onto his neck ridding it of the fresh burn. “You’ve gotten more control” he compliments and Hartley nods.

“I’ve had to do some serious emotional control over the past two years” Hartley jokes, Doc pulls her from the team ordering them to continue training.

Once out of ear shot Doc speaks “Okay so you’ve definitely improved with your power control so I feel more comfortable asking you about what you did to Candii two years ago, when you transferred your pain, do you think you could ever do that again?” Hartley frowns.

“I’ve only ever done that twice” she says “I don’t know if I could do it on command”

Doc nods and grabs her hand, placing it on his head “Just try” he says calmly.

Hartley breaths and closes her eyes but within a minute she opened them again huffing angrily. “I can’t do it, I don’t know how to” Doc looks to her sympathetically he places his hand over hers lightly and Hartley could see how much he had aged since she had left.

“I need you to try and remember how you felt when you did it, try and mimic those feelings” he explains slowly. Hartley closes her eyes again this time she focused on her emotions more strongly.

A flash of Reaper cutting into her skin with his knife, Candii laughing as she helps him, the pain her body experienced, the feeling of betrayal she felt for Justin.

Unknowing to Hartley she was not shaking as tears poured from her eyes, she lets out a small groan in aguish before she feels power surging through her and into Doc, she opens her eyes and looks into Docs.

His eyes were wide, his mouth opened as she continued to give him the pain she had suffered “Hartley that’s enough” he said weakly as he went dropped to his knees which brought her back to the present.

“Oh, my god Doc” Hartley gasps leaning down to console him, his entire body was shaking and he continued to stare in front of him “I’m sorry, I just did what you asked me to do” she looks around “Help” she screams.

The Replacements tear around the corner and circle Doc “What did you do to him?” Flicker asks worriedly waving his hand in front of his boss’s face.

“I-I-I” Hartley stutters

Trix loudly gasps and jumps in front of Doc grabbing his face in her hands “Are you okay?” she asks worriedly.

Slowly Doc begins to come back, when he was well enough to walk Trix leads him to his room so he could lie down but she doesn’t forget to glare at Hartley on her way out “Good one” Flicker laughs “I think you have just made an enemy for life” Flutter pats Hartley on the back before following Trix out.

When night finally came by Hartley snuck into Docs room only to replace him sitting up on his bed reading a book “Oh hey” she says and he looks up smiling at her. “Are you okay?” she asks “I’m so sorry I just, I did what you told me to do” Hartley quickly rambles before Doc could answer.

“I know and I’m proud” he says shocking her “Hartley I know you don’t want to be here right now and I’m sorry for dragging you back” she smiles walking over and hugging Doc tightly.

With slight hesitation, he wraps his arm around her “You’re right” she sighs “I don’t want to be here but this is my fight and my fault so I have to finish it” Hartley’s face hardens and she squeezes her eyes shut.