Shaun, still a little woozy from the elevator, leans against the wall. ”Uh, so what? Ta’ people they were drvin’ off ta’ road were acceptable losses? I don’t think so! If we hadn’t stopped them they coulda really hurt someone!”
The mention of videos got him a touch nervous. Oh great. A full presentation of me being a rag-doll. Lovely...
For the second time that day, Kaoru was very glad she hadn't eaten any snacks at the movie theatre. The elevator was basically just a hazing ritual where the powered members of the group could mock the normals. Her jaw clenched at it. Inside the apartment wasn't really all that much better. Seriously, how much money did Wingblade have? She did realize that actually donating money to the poor would probably do a hell of a lot more good than running around fighting supervillains, right?
The medical and chem labs were cool, if you were actually into that stuff. And when/if she got a chance, she was definitely going to check out that supercomputer. But the voice activation made her cringe. God I hope that thing's not connected to any kind of network. She *does* realize what a huge security flaw it is to have something *constantly* listening in to everything you had to say that could be hacked into, right? Though it did give her solid motivation to pay more attention in Chinese class. If she's smart, it's locked to her specific voice print. It'd be pretty easy to make a synthesizer that would fool any human, but making one to trick a computer would require more effort. Maybe some voice samples. I should get a mic and see if I can't get some later.
Then she noticed the pool. She took a few steps towards it before stopping short and purposefully looking away. Idiot. What the hell are you going to do? Put on a swimsuit and jump in? She turned her back to it and instead focused on the rest of the apartment. Was she...still supposed to offer to help pay for the limo and movie? Clearly, Wingblade literally had cash to burn. But man, she hated the idea of being in debt to her. Even if she hadn't exactly been given a say in either their transport or the movie circumstances. I'll offer. And if she declines, then whatever. I'll just make sure not to take any more of her money.
She was admittedly surprised by the briefing. She really hadn't expected Wingblade to basically agree with her line of thinking. Even if her motivations were a little different. Except Alexandra had been the one to start the fight. If she agreed with Wingblade, did that make her disloyal? It made her insides squirm unpleasantly. But not having anything to add, she remained silent.
"Well Shaun, you're right. Even before we intervened the Club-tailed one had already smashed in part of our limo. They were pretty clearly not the low-collateral type of thieves. But we definitely didn't start by trying to minimize damage, and we certainly didn't stop to think if engaging them was the right choice, or if some of our faster members could have gone ahead to shield any bystanders.
"That might actually be a good thing about working with the SCA every so often. They could do things like close roads and try to establish a safer area for you to take them down."
While I agree maybe we could have been smarter about ti... I dunno wing. they were pretty bumbling. and their plan involved high-speed larceny. all it took was one screw up, and it's a 25 car pile up. and if it's known that supers were involved, the SCA shows, and suddenly, it's the highway fight all over again, but with the villains at advantage. Alexandra's body language is tense, like a coiled spring
I'm not saying we did it perfectly, But I think I made the right call in going to stop their car.
Yeah, except... y'know, that's BS and you know it. should have hit them with a tracker, and tagged them at their lair. Why is wingblade smarter than you... you're supposed to be the smartest int he room. that's what you're good for!
Shaun, I will say one sentence of your choice if you have whiskey you'll share with me.
"No," Alexis said suddenly. She'd been quiet in the theater about it, but this was something that drew her back to the drunken whispers of older men trying to crawl into her tent. The smell was bad enough when Shaun had done it, but Shayera hadn't tried to kick him out then, so she didn't say anything. But Alexandra blatantly asking for a drink made her extremely uncomfortable.
"...We shouldn't drink. Not when we're working," She said to Alexandra. "...people do bad things when they drink. They don't hear you when you say no. I want you to be able to hear me when I need you. And I want to hear you when you need help. Friends help each other."
Kaoru gave Alexandra a concerned look. She could hear the tension in her friend's voice, but she wasn't sure what to do about it. She couldn't really say anything to her with so many other people around. Or at least, she couldn't really ask about it. But maybe she doesn't want me to ask about it? Maybe she just wants to be distracted?
She covertly pulled out her phone. It still had the unsent text to Bronwyn pulled up, but she could send that later. Instead, she pulled up the number Alexandra had given her at the museum.
> Hey, I got a new book last night. Looks like it might be pretty funny. I was thinking about checking it out after the circus is done. You interested in joining me?
Shaun snaps his fingers and smiles at Alexandra. ”See? Even she agrees. An’ she’s ta’ smart one.”
He eyes Alexis warily as he leans in toward Alexandra to
whisper. ”In my kit. Silver flask. I’ll collect on ta’ scentence later.”
Wingblade takes a step back as everyone appears to gang up on her, defending their actions on the highway. "I didn't-- I just--" She sighs and pinches the bridge of her nose. "All right, I get it. The Saurians are a bunch of douchebags who deserved to be smacked down the instant they show their scaly faces in public." She looks up, exasperated. "But do you even see my point? It's not always, 'see villain: attack!' Can you at least agree with me on that?"
She throws up her hands. "And now you all want to get drunk. Just great."
The elevator ride was,.. intense, but when Cassie emerged through its doors a little unsteady, she looked around the apartment without any outward sign of being particularly impressed by anything except the view. A bit over the top,.. kind of showy compared to my,,... Circe's place. Med bay might come in useful though. The brownstone didn't have one of those. This place probably doesn't have a secret ritual room though, so it could be a lot worse!
When Shayera goes over the dino-fight she nodded. "Yeah. That probably would've been smarter. Shouldn't the whole team be here though? Maybe we should contact Bran?" she says, studiously avoiding looking at Bronwyn.
After Alexandra's had a gulp of the whiskey, Cassie reaches over and, without asking Shaun, wipes the top and has a swig herself. "I could do with some of that too." she says, though her expression suggests she's not altogether enamored of the taste. "Don't worry Alexis. Only bad people do bad things, even when they've had a drink, and we're all here to look after each other. Mostly it just helps get through the awkward 'getting to know you' thing."
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Alexandra deflates, mentally berating yourself Wingblade and Bronwyn on one side, Shaun on the other, and you're on his side... arguably more reckless? Jesus Christ girl, Maybe you should give the hat to Gill
She reaches covertly for the flask, and is in the process of quietly opening it, when she has a pang of conscience. Ah, f$!& it. She closes and tosses back the Flask Fine, Alexis. But I'd hope you'd trust me not to be like... That. She says making a vague gesture. I just... need a little... I don't f!@*ing Know what I need, but this f&$$ing day. She says, and then watches the other girl deflate as she complains about her very good day
Look, Alexis, I'll level with you, it's not... It's not that I dislike you guys. Two, maybe three people in this room I am genuinely quite fond of. She flips Shaun off before he makes a comment But... I come from a long line of people who did what I do, and I want to do better than them... and right now, i feel like I'm doing the opposite.
The Scotsman winces slightly as Alexandra chucks the flask. ”Easy w’that! It’s my gran’da’s!”
Shaun smiles too-sweetly and returns the finger. ”Love ya’ too Alex...”
He sighs at Shayera’s outburst. ”Wing...look I get it. Y’just got this “leader” gig forced on ya’. An’ye’ wanna impress Whippoorwill (trust me, I get that part). But we all kinda just got press-ganged into this gig. Now, I’m just happy ta’ have a team at all, but...” He searches for a word, then just gestures at everyone. ”Most of us have only know each-other a week or less! Maybe instead of an immediate debrief, we could all just shoot ta’ shit f’a sec? Try ta’ think through what ta’ f@$$ just happened?”
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Kaoru clenched her fists before finally speaking up softly, looking at Alexandra. "I think you're doing a good job. You took care of Kanga Ronnie before anyone, including me, got hurt. You helped me in the museum when I almost got tased for doing something stupid. You didn't...sic a bunch of robots on random people like I did. Then you fixed things when I screwed up on what should have been a simple task. And you were nice to me about all of it instead of being mad like you should have been. If you want to do better than your predecessors, I have every confidence that you will. And...if you want me to help with that, I'll do my best." Feeling awkward, she looked away, chewing on her lip.
Alexis isn't convinced by Cassie, but she seems glad at least that Alexandra has chosen to heed her words.
"If you want to do better than them, you need to do what they couldn't, right? You can't do that alone. You have to try. I'll help," Alexis comments, before taking the flask from Cassie.
"No drinking until after we finish Shayera's meeting. I want to learn to be a better hero. She has more knowledge than us on that. We should give her attention and respect. And...I wish we'd avoided the dinosaurs. They almost ruined the hang out. But I think it would have been better to go after them when they left the highway." She pitches in her two cents to keep everything on track.
"...So, um, what does everyone think they did that they could have done better?" Alexis asks the group. A team exercise to admit your flaws so that you could be given constructive criticism. "I should have protected the limo better from the clubby dinosaur. I had the strength to push her off. I got distracted because I was upset. I'm sorry. I'll do better next time."
She looks up, anticipating participation in the exercise.
Looking like she's floundering, Shayera moves over to a chair and sits down, putting her face in her hands. At Shaun's suggestion, she leans back and stretches her back. "Okay, sure. Forget the debrief. Umm, shoot the shit. Whatever. Sounds good. So, uh, who liked the movie?"
God, I'm so bad at this.
Alexis jumped in and actually supported her debrief. Shayera blinks at that, plus the willingness to talk about how it could have gone better.
"Yeah, um, I think part of it was that there wasn't any coordination. Someone needs to assess the situation and start giving out assignments. Silver Shadow, you should have the knack for that, and I've seen a lot. But that shouldn't stop anyone else from shouting out something they observe or know.
"As for me, I just went into battle mode. That's not what I can allow myself to do if I'm the field leader."
Shaun blinks, then turns to look directly at Kaoru. ”OH. So, when SHE points out how much of a dumbass ye’ were in there, it’s just fine n’ dandy! No insults f’her!” He crosses his arms, intentionally putting a bit of angry flexing into them. ”Does that mean ye’re an a@&+!@~ ta’ just me, or are ye’ just more impressed with her appearance than Lex’s?”
His gaze shifts over to Alexis, and he sighs and looks at Wingblade. ”I...jumped in too quick. I coulda...shoulda done a sit-check before even gettin’ changed. I still stand by that we were right to taken ‘em down there, but we coulda done it smarter.”
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"Maybe we should contact Bran?"
Bronwyn winced. "I'll fill him in later. Getting him places safely and discretely isn't always the simplest. He was really only there to catch the end too, right?"
Trying very hard to not focus on Kaoru and make him the focus of attention he'd never want, she gave Shaun a small smile while he processed Shayera's message. "That's really all we need to do. We need to get used to getting things done smart."
I think that was literally the longest nice thing I've heard Kaoru say out loud. And to Alexandra!
Mm. It might be a good idea to sit down Alexis for a talk about if a boy likes someone else. Okay, briefing first.
"Okay, communication, clear decisions about objectives, what else Shayera?"
Cassie looks over at Bron. "But he should be here to talk about the team name and uniform! He should have a say, don't you think?"
Shayera folds her arms, trying to keep some measure of control, if not of the meeting than of herself.
To Cassie, she says, "I've worked with Bran plenty, and I'm sure he won't feel hurt if we pick a team name without his input. He's an ancient Welsh warrior; I don't know if he'd have much to add anyway. And I don't know if we're going to be together long enough for us to worry about a uniform. Whip gave us what, one month together?"
She glares at the sniping between Alexandra, Kaoru and Shaun. She interrupts their bickering. "Excuse me? You know, once a teammate and I were handcuffed together and sent to India because we couldn't get along. Maybe you should, I dunno, cool it before something like that happens? Whip's not the only Defender we'll have to keep happy. She's just the one who stuck her neck out for us."
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Alexandra is... A little stunned by Kaoru's statement. She embraces him, and releases quickly, but keeps his hand in hers Goddamnit, are you gonna keep beating yourself up over the break-in? Because you couldn't hack a system designed to keep technopaths and rogue AI's out? I... you were brilliant... that's most of why.... what happened after. She says, realizing how public they were.
Fine. I probably should have been a little less excessive with the explosives. She frowns, Kaoru's hand still clutched in hers. ANd I shouldn't have risen to their jibes so easily. And I should have stepped up, and been calling stuff. should have focused on making us all more effective.
As Wingblade threatens them, she snorts a little Knew you'd be into handcuffs.
”Aw c’mon Wing! Have a little faith in us. Who knows? Maybe after that month has past n’ Kaoru gets ta’ piss off we might work well together.”
Shaun shoots Kaoru one last sneer as Wingblade threatens the three of them. ”What’s wrong with India? They got good food over there, cool animals too.” He turns around to fully face Shayera. ”Y’do have a point about ta’ Defenders though. Whip’s ta’ BIG BOSS, so anybody she’s taken a likin’ta’ is gonna be under ta’ spotlights proper. Which is why the team name (n’ uniforms maybe) are important.” He claps his hands together and looks eagerly at the assembled group. ”SO! Any name suggestions? I was thinkin’ something classic, like ta’ Sensational Seven r’somethin’ like that.”
"Whippoorwill didn't give us a month, she asked us for a month. After that, I'd hope the team will keep going. But don't worry, Cassie, this kind of meeting is one of the things I do for Bran. I hold his vote, but I promise, if I'm not sure, but it's something that would be really important to him, I'll get Bran. Okay?"
Bronwyn couldn't help but scowl as Alexandra shot back at Shayera with the handcuffs quip, but she didn't rise to the bait. She's just deflecting from admitting she was wrong, and that she cares about Kaoru. Just let it be a joke.
Kaoru was about to deliver a scathing response to Shaun when Alexandra hugged her and then said a bunch of really nice things. And then she just...didn't really care what Shaun thought anymore. Even she was pretty sure she had done better than him in that last fight. Alexandra thought she was 'brilliant'. So really, who gave a fk about what some idiot hothead thought anyway?
Her eyes flicked briefly to Alexandra, a small smile tugging at the corners of her lips before she once again looked away. The warmth in her chest was drowning out the voice demanding that she reclaim her hand immediately. She just felt too good. She squeezed Alexandra's hand supportively as she started stating how she could have done better, lightly rubbing her thumb across the back of her hand once.
She reflected back to the fight earlier that day. She really only had two regrets about it, and she wasn't really sure how to frame one of them. 'I shouldn't have put myself in a position where Alexis felt like she needed to save me'? 'I shouldn't have been weak enough that Alexis probably did need to save me'? Oh, how about,
"I shouldn't have distracted Alexis, and I should've grabbed Bronwyn before she fell off the car."
She snorts a little at Shaun's name suggestion. For someone who wanted her off the team about as much as she did, he was actually including her in his team count? Though actually, pissing him off might be enough of a reason to stick around longer... Though he could forget about that 'spotlight' crap; dom-lady had said there would be a public announcement if everyone agreed. And she sure as hell wasn't agreeing to it, even without the added bonus of it screwing up the idiot's dreams.
Alexis stared at Kaoru and Alexandra. Kaoru let her hug him. And he let her hold his hand. And it made her stomach hurt for some reason.
"...Kaoru didn't distract me. A team supports each other when they are in danger. If I was in danger I would have liked you to save me." Was it that she didn't seem vulnerable? She was full of weaknesses.
"Um. I think that the name should reflect on our leader. So Wingblade's Talons? That seems all right," She said, suddenly not wanting to be in the room with Kaoru still holding onto Alexandra's hand. She turned to Bronwyn.
"You'll fix my armor, right? Can I show you it so you can see what you need?" She asked urgently, her arms crossed over and holding her elbows.
Bronwyn nodded to Alexis, "Of course." She gave Shayera a significant look. "We're gonna go take a look and assess what we'll need. I'll tell you know I'm voting hard against Sensational Seven though. Sounds like an over-large pop band."
Honestly, I don't think A team name is a great idea. If young teams were common, maybe we would want to set ourselves apart. But we aren't the Young Defenders II, we're just the junior team. She says, looking around, watching Alexis' face go uncomfortable, but being not quite willing to release Kaoru's hand.
She quietly checks her Texts, and smiles, texting back >Sound sliek a good time.
Also, my costume is kinda a classic, I think dad would have words with me if I changed it.
Wingblade gives Alexandra a death glare for the crack about handcuffs, but doesn't dignify it with a verbal response.
She listens a bit more and visibly blanches when Alexis suggests the team name.
Trying to reassert some direction over the discussion and distract Alexis from the PDA between Kaoru and Alexandra, Shayera clears her throat. "All right; good point. No on the matching uniforms. You've got your legacy, Alexandra; Alexis has her armor that's about to be fixed; Bran's got his; and Kilt's got his man-skirt. There's no way we can get a matching theme going."
She shifts uncomfortably in her seat. "Ah, okay, let's table the team name for the time being. Maybe in a day after everyone's had some time to think we could put it to a vote.
"I think something else we should talk about are our skill sets and abilities. Since most of us only saw what we could do either at the museum and on the highway, if we share what all we can do, we'll know what we can expect and who to rely on in various situations. I'll go first, since you all probably know since I've been in the game for a while. I can fly, my wings are weapons, I heal fast and I've got really good senses -- hearing, eyesight, smell, that sort of thing. Don't worry if you see me bleeding. It'll stop on its own."
She looks around. "Who wants to go next?"
"Yeah, I'm not a huge fan of uniforms either," Cassie says. "and I'm also a hard 'no' on 'The Sensational Seven'. That just sounds like we're total posers, like we're characters in some young-adult book from the 50s or something. Not big on 'Wingblade's Talons' or anything like that either." she looks over at Alexandra. "I do think we should call ourselves something though. The media will make something up if we don't. I think we need something that shows we're not a danger to anyone, that we're the good-guys, but not something that reminds people that we're younger than other groups... We need to think about what message the name gives people. The Defenders is a great name because it does all those things. We need something like that."
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Alexis stepped closer to Bronwyn, before Wingblade tried to tack onto her exercise by having everyone talk about what they could do. She didn't want to say it all. But she figured that everyone already knew from watching her.
"...I'm really strong. And I can be hurt and recover faster than anyone else. And I know lots of ways to hurt people." She said, sad to reveal it but wanting to support Shayera. "Um, we'll be right back," She said as she grabbed Bronwyn's wrist - she winced as something sharp bit into her palm, but kept pulling her along until they were in the room where her armor was laid out, cracked all over but still relatively intact.
The armor was matte black, molded for a unisex shape regardless of who wore it, and seemed to be two inches longer in the sleeves and leggings than Alexis had. The helmet was the only thing that had what amounted to style instead of pure function, as the view shield seemed to be shaped like an archaic helmet the likes you'd see in a museum. The material appeared to be dense composites that meant a person needed a lot of physical strength to move around in it.
"...I want to change it. So it looks different. It protects me...and...I don't get it. Why do I hate it when she holds his hand?" Alexis asked, tears brimming in her eyes. "I'm stupid, aren't I? I thought she was helping me get closer to Kaoru, but she...and he likes her. And I..."
Her fist balled up, pierced by the Gae Dearg charm, and punched her helmet so hard that the table underneath it cracked apart. The helmet on the other hand, stayed whole and intact. "Why can't I stop feeling this way?"
Kaoru felt her phone vibrate, but it was in the pocket by the hand that was currently otherwise occupied. So instead she glanced at her watch to check the notification. Except that just told her the text was from Alexandra, and if she actually wanted to open it, she'd have to unlock her watch. Which once again would require her currently occupied hand. So instead she resolved to check it later.
She didn't really care about a team name. Though she was glad the team uniform idea had been nixed. Depending on what they went with, that might have been awkward. So since she had nothing to contribute there, she answered Wingblade's other question. "I know my way around computers." It's not like it was actually revealing anything after all; that was literally why Wingblade had approached her in the first place.
Oblivious to the drama she was causing and despite the emotional rollercoaster of events, Kaoru thought the day was turning out to be not so terrible after all.
Cassie sat back, listening to the others. "Well you've seen some of what I can do. I'm learning the 'mystic arts'" she says, making air quotes with her fingers. "I'm just getting started, but so far I'm pretty good at levitating and a few other things. I need a lot more practice and training before I'll be able to do really impressive stuff though."
"Bran's big, strong, fast, sees magic, can sometimes tell when people are in trouble, and has a magic spear that absorbs magic and other stuff. I'm clearly pretty good at falling, and I have a quick armor-consult to take care of."
***
Bronwyn stepped forward to put her hand on top of Alexis's fist, giving her a comforting squeeze.
"Hey. Alexis. I know it sucks, but you can't just hit things when you're angry. You get that, right? Being strong means you have to be careful, even when you're hurt.
"I'm sorry about Kaoru. Do you want a hug?"
"...The armor's made to be strong enough that I can use my full strength and not break it. It only broke because I turned off the anti-shock mechanisms," Alexis admitted. "If I hadn't, I wouldn't have been able to escape."
She pauses for a moment, before hugging Bronwyn with an iron grip. "I just want to be loved," She sniffled. "But I'm scary and dangerous and I can't fix things, I only break them, and I'm scared of ending up back in the barracks..."
She flinches a bit as she looks at the small prick wound from Bronwyn's charm. It was taking longer to heal than it should have. But eventually it closed up. "...And I'm irritated by Alexandra. And you. Because Kaoru likes you too."
Bronwyn took the mighty hug "I know, Alexis, I'm sorry. It'll be okay though. You know I'm not afraid of you, right? In fact I think it's really great that you're trying to change what you were raised to do.
"It reminds me a lot of Shayera. I promise you won't end up back in the barracks."
"Oh, and I wasn't worried about you hurting the helmet, Alexis. You broke the table beneath it. And that's fine! It's not like Shayera can't get a new table, but it's a bad habit to get into. You understand?"
She paused for a moment, trying to figure out how she could help without telling Alexis anything that would only hurt her later.
"I think it might be better if you give Kaoru some space. Inviting him to spend time with the group was a good idea. But getting to know him doesn't mean he's going to be attracted to you. You don't really get a choice in that. But Alexis, you will be loved."
"Now, do you know what this suit is made of? If it's something really exotic it'll be harder to patch it with the same stuff, but either way I need to know so I can make sure I know the best way to work with it."
...She smelled nice. A little like Shayera did too. Alexis buried her face into Bronwyn's shoulder and tried to calm herself down and not get weird. This wasn't the barracks or the middle of the night.
She was pretty sure Shayera wouldn't want her slipping into her bunk at night anyways.
"Um, well, actually..." She muttered as she flipped the armor over so that she could see the back. There was a panel that she lifted off of it, showing a rather odd and complicated circuit board design, though somehow using a type of crystalline compound. She pointed to a couple of circuits that were broken. "...it's designed to be like me. Self repairing. But I broke that with the anti-shock feature. If you fix this, it'll fix itself. They made me read a whole manual before they let me wear it," She told Bronwyn.
"I don't have the skills to fix it myself though. You need, um...quartz as a filler? They said it was Arestech..." She revealed, though the word apparently doesn't mean anything to Alexis.
Shaun notices Alexis' change in mood, and follows her eyeline to Kaoru and Alexandra...who were embracing each other. ...oh my God, you a*~$#&~. You are not doing that right now. As he watches Bronwyn escort the upset superhuman to a side room, he starts grinding his teeth. That's it. No more holding back.
He whips around and gets unformfortably close to Kaoru before speaking, his face stormy and furious. "No wonder ya' hurt your last girlfriend ya'f@~#in' bastard." His voice is cold and harsh. Clearly angry, but with very little hint of his usual "enthusiasm." It's a drastic, unnerving change. "Ye' just love puttin' people back behind ta' mess hall don'tcha? Make 'em feel just as insignificant as ye'. Well I got news f'ya'. Lex'll do more than just cry when ye' hurt her. She might hurt ya' back. In a bad way. An' if she doesn't..." In a flash he clamps a hand down hard on Kaoru's upper arm. "I will." His grip releases. "Stay ta' f@!$ away from her. She's too good f'ye'."
His death stare slides over to Alexandra. "I thought ye' were ta' smart one. But ye're stupid enough ta' stick by this piece of shit. Guess ye're not as good at spottin' flaws as ye' thought."
His gaze moves away. He blinks, takes a breath, and continues as if nothing happened. "It's a battle-kilt lass, not a skirt. As f'skills, I'm packin' plenty. I'm strong, not super-level but still pretty jacked. I'm good with knives n' swords, most-any kinds. I know lots of martial arts, how ta' build some simple stuff, handyman sort-of stuff, certified in first aid, an' about a half-dozen oddball skills. Bartendin', surveillance, leatherworkin', ecetera."
Kaoru quickly goes through a range of emotions. Sickness. She...*told* people about that? That was- She wasn't supposed to! Especially not to *him*. I only told her that so she would try to understand why I said no to the date in the first place! Fear. Oh sh*t...he's right. She's doesn't respect my decisions. She keeps going after what she wants. And...she definitely has the ability to *make* me go along with her. Anger. Who the fk does this a~@%+#~ think he is anyway? I was so fking clear that this wasn't a date. I said no specifically so as not to lead her on.
She dropped Alexandra's hand to forcefully remove Shaun's arms from her. "What the fk do you know about this Shaun? She kept asking me out and wouldn't listen to me when I said no. And I kept saying no. I told her this wasn't a fking date! That's why I said to bring other people along. To make that absa-fking-lutely clear. Because you can't like someone like that when you don't know them, and we don't know each other. I have no idea where the fk she got the idea that she'd want to date me from, but that's why I said no. To avoid leading her on. So tell me Shaun, what the fk was I supposed to do? Just say 'yeah, I'll totally go out with you person I barely know and therefore can't possibly have feelings for'? Or just tell her that no, I dislike her enough that I'm not even willing to consider getting to know her? Because guess what? BOTH those choices would hurt her. So what, in your oh so ineffable wisdom was the g*ddamn correct choice?"
"SHE. IS. A. KID! She is thinkin' like a CHILD you INSUFFERABLE, STUCK-UP-YOUR-OWN-ASS RETARD! SHE WAS TRYIN' TA' PLAY PRETEND, TA' JUST FIT IN with people she likes! If ye' HAD just agreed t'the date, NOTHIN' WOULD HAVE HAPPENED! SHE DOESN'T THINK ABOUT IT LIKE THAT! But YOU got YOUR isssues involved n' MADE IT WORSE! YOU made it complicated! THE CORRECT F#+%IN' CHOICE WAS FOR YOU TO PLAY ALONG AND HELP HER UNDERSTAND WHAT DATIN' ACTAULLY MEANS, INSTEAD OF STABBIN' HER IN THE BACK!" By the time he finishes yelling, Shaun is millimeters from Kaoru's face and flushed cherry-red with anger.
The astute observer might have known what Alexandra was up to, the way her posture shifted, the way she made a few changes to how she was moving. How her boot came up a bit high at one point. But it was fast, and Shaun was fairly occupied. He likely didn't notice until the dart was in his side.
"Oh, so what? I'm supposed to coddle her? I'm supposed to disrespect her enough to assume I know better than her about what she wants? I'm supposed to go 'la dee da, it's a pretend date' and then hurt her even worse when she doesn't realize that? How the fk is that not leading her on? She was talking about kissing me. How the fk is that not a 'real' date? Or was I supposed to 'pretend' kiss her as well?"
"Well ya' sure as SHIT pretended to give a single f%!$ about what your actions would do ta' her! Oh, an' about coddlin', WHAT TA' F%~# DO YE' THINK BRON'S DOIN' RIGHT NOW TA' FIX YOUR F&@*-UP?!" He suddenly wheels to face Alexandra. "Come ta'f$&%in' think of it actually, YOUR dumb ass is just as if not MORE at fault here! If ye' had a lick of common-f%!*in'-sense in your over oversized head ye'd-!"
With a phenomenal thump, he crashes to the floor. Surprisingly, still conscious.
"Wha...f&*~ hit me...? Oh Jeezoos, why ev'thin' spinin'...?"
Kaoru scowled at the floor as the big, angry Scotsman suddenly collapsed. She could feel everybody else in the room staring at her. She hated being stared at. It felt like they were all dissecting her with their eyes. She wrapped her arms protectively around her midsection. Without looking up, she muttered, "I need some air" and retreated to the open air balcony, moving to the corner the furthest away from everyone to stare down the dizzying height to the ground far below.
A look of careful concentration settled over Bronwyn's face. "Okay... I definitely couldn't make this myself, but yeah, I should be able to repair it. I'll need my tools, but..." She leaned in and carefully disengaged the damaged circuit board from its housing. "Got it! This'll be a lot more subtle to fix up. I could probably even do this at home."
"Got any thoughts on the helmet by the way?"
What did she want the helmet to represent? What kind of a hero did she want to look like?
"...I want to be like Cesario. The armor shouldn't...you shouldn't be able to tell I'm a boy or a girl in it. But, it should be...um...like Shakespeare. I want to be fancy like that." She hoped that Bronwyn got that, as she wiped her eyes - and then she could hear the commotion happening in the common room, and she peeked out, only to see Kaoru storming out to the balcony and Shaun laying on the floor looking out of it.
"...This team isn't as well organized as the team I was part of before. But I don't think anyone would like the punishments for disorder..." Alexis mentioned to Bronwyn, stepping back in and looking at her.
"...I'm going to try and give Kaoru space. But...um, I still want to try it. Dating. So. Um. Maybe someone who doesn't know I'm a hero." She glanced down at her dress, and got an idea. "Oh! Can I date your sister?"
Oh. Oh! I guess she's... Okay. That's fine.
"Oh. Umm. okay. Wait my sister? How'd you even- Right, that's Gabby's dress. So, that would be fine, but I don't think she'd be the right person for you. She doesn't really like sporty athletic things, prefers musicals to Shakespeare too, and she's a little old for you, and she's actually engaged to this guy Tom she goes to college with anyways, and... she doesn't date girls. Umm, most girls don't, actually. It would probably be easier to find you another boy to date, if that's what you want."
"...Why would it matter if it was a boy or a girl?" Alexis asks. "I wouldn't know if I want to date someone until I've met them. But if your sister is already in love with someone else then I understand. Maybe you can find someone else who will want to date me. Someone nice and kind and who likes to hug." She thinks it over for a couple moments, then talks about something else that was bothering her.
"It's harder than I thought it would be to try and be normal. It's lonely when I sleep here too. Shayera doesn't seem to want to be bunk buddies. It's okay, but still hard when I'm having trouble sleeping." She says, looking over her armor and poking the helmet with one finger. "Maybe if the rest of the team is sleeping here someone will want to be bunk buddies. Not Shaun, though. He always smells like the men in camp that have drank too much."
"Oh. Alexis, it is totally fine that you like boys and girls, but just so you know, most people only like boys or girls. It's usually whichever they're not, but like, even if I wasn't with Shayera, I wouldn't want to date a boy.
"I'm sorry you're finding it hard to be normal, but I think you're doing a really good job; you're just still learning. If you miss having someone to sleep with- to share your bed with when you sleep I mean, maybe... I don't know... Maybe like a big pillow? Or a stuffed animal? I don't think you're a little kid or anything, but having something else in your bed to help trap heat could maybe help. It is hard when you're feeling lonely though. Shayera and I have never really slept in the same bed, but there are a lot of nights when it feels like she's missing, like she's really supposed to be there.
"Is there anyone you miss from back at the barracks?"
"Mmm. But it's nicer when it's a person touching you. I guess it's easier to kick out a pillow than a person if you don't want it." Alexis sat down by the table, wondering if it was expensive.
"...I guess that of all of them, Hokori was the nicest to me. Only because we were the weakest. She got stronger though. And I was too weak for the team. Because I couldn't obey the order to kill. After that, Hokori wouldn't bunk with me anymore."
"You should bunk with Shayera if you like her. She'll like it better than if it was with me."
Wingblade stood and watched the shouting match and the team essentially implode before her eyes. Every fiber of her being desired to match the rage and emotions on display and try to assert control. But she'd tried that before when she was leader of the old team, and she made things worse. So she watched. She stayed calm.
An idea strikes her.
Shayera pushes between Shaun and Alexandra and stomps directly to her kitchen. There's the sound of rummaging around and a clink of glassware. Then she stomps back out holding a bottle of amber liquid and some glasses.
She sits on the floor cross-legged and sets the glasses in front of her. Then she holds out the bottle. Macallan 18 year single malt. I was going to give this to Reginald for his 82nd birthday next month. But now, it's a peace offering. Shaun, Alexandra, sit down together and share a glass. Then we're going to play a drinking game. Kaoru, Cassie, you're invited too."
Alexandra consider rushing after Kaoru, but decides to let him have his space. She quietly takes out her phone, and texts him as Shaun starts going a tad loopy. >Sorry about how this all went... If you still want to, I'll go with you when you're ready.
Then Wingblade storms past them, and Alexandra's mind starts racing, What was happening, was Wingblade about to hit her with something in retaliation, was she about to arrest them and turn them in because this team thing was obviously not working?
And she comes back with alcohol... This was a welcome change. Okay. I'll give Shaun the counter-agent... if he promises not to Yell at Me and Kaoru anymore tonight. otherwise, he stays in Lalaland She says, not moving to retrieve the counteragent from her person, knowing Wingblade was probably fast enough to do a pebble-snatch.
Whata re the rules for this drinking game?