Cut Yourself Free

Alchemist

Let's keep this between you and I, alright?

Max grumbled at Kennedy's comment as she exited the Hackerspace, lying to her friends that she had a doctor's appointment, of all the excuses in the world. It wasn't a horrible excuse or anything. The place that she was meeting Kennedy at was right above a gynecologist's office. She just hated not telling them about what Prime_Eight was planning, but Kennedy told her that everything needed to be kept secret if they were going to stop this. If she told them, there'd be a chance that Prime_Eight would launch their attack early.

She stood at the entrance of the apartment building above the gynecologist's office, looking through before seeing the name Emmerich on one of the mailbox's. There wasn't the name Moss or Kennedy, so she assumed that he went by the name Hal Emmerich, Otacon's real name. She clicked the doorbell on the mailbox, which made the front door buzz and open. She entered and went up to the third floor, where the name Emmerich was plastered next to the door. Before she even reached to open the door, it swung open. Kennedy adjusted his glasses and smiled at her, letting her enter without even saying a greeting.

Courtney and Aiden were already there chatting with each other. Courtney was wearing normal civilian attire, which was rare for her. She looked over at her daughter and smiled sweetly, walking over to her and hugging her tightly. Her Mom hasn't seen her since prior to her transition. 

"Hi... Mom..." she mumbled nervously. Courtney pulled away and investigated Max, her smile never faltering once. 

"Hello, Max." The two stared at each other curiously. Max never considered how her Mom would feel about the transition, but so far she was taking it well. Neither of them said anything else to each other, and maybe it was for the best. Max turned her attention to Aiden, who gave her a pat on the shoulder. After the introductions, the four of them huddled around and finally began discussing the plan...

-----

The plan was set to happen at 8 pm. All of them would meet up at an undisclosed location near the main Prime_Eight base, which Courtney was easily able to find despite their base being the most secretive out of all the hideouts they had. There, they'd split into two teams and gather more evidence on Prime_Eights plans before turning it over to the FBI. Hopefully, the base would be raided and the members would get arrested. Simple enough.

It was only 2 pm. Max was at her apartment, sitting on the couch and blankly staring at the TV, which was off. She was in deep thought about the plan, and especially those who'd be affected by it. Her mind kept focusing on Josh, and the thought of him getting hurt gave her anxiety. Their lives as hackers was starting to become more and more dangerous. What became a casual hobby was soon turning into a deadly game.

She tilted her head back and began staring at the ceiling. What if it was her last day with Josh? She didn't want her last few hours to be wasted pondering on whether or not one of them would die tonight. She pulled out her phone from her pocket and texted Josh.

Hey, can you come over?<

>Yes. Is something wrong?

No, I just want to see you<

>Okay. I'll be over in ten.

It's great that he didn't question much. She looked back up at the TV, seeing her worried expression staring right back at her. Sometimes she found it hard to believe that what she saw was really her.

Who am I?

She placed a hand on her cheek, pinching it and letting out a small grunt. She leaned back on the couch, a dark look in her eyes as she bit her lip, contemplating her previous question.