Shaun raises a skeptical eyebrow at the spandex, then at the retreating back of Salvatori. ”For the sake of self-respect,” Slimeball, I’m about to make your golden goose cry like a canary...
But for right now, we act the part. With only slightly forced enthusiasm, he grips Bobby’s hand in a firm handshake. ”Nice ta’ meet ya’ Bobby-boy. Name’s Shaun. Or uh, ‘Gremlin’ I guess! Heh!”
As Shaun grabs a bench and starts slipping into the absurdly orange costume, he looks up at his impromptu polished trainer. ”A’ight, I know just ‘bout every wrestlin’ move under ta’ sun, but I admit I’ve never pulled punches before. I’d ‘preciate some tips on that. Don’t wanna dent ta’ golden boy, y’know?
”Actually, speakin’ of the main attraction, what’s his story anyway? Last I heard, the Kilt was a up-n’-comin’ hero. Then all of a sudden, he’s in the ring? ‘Mean, don’t get me wrong, good fight’s a good fight. Just curious what ta’ story is there.”
"Okay, sorry kid, but you're not the Gremlin," Bobby Brass strictly points out to him. His skin does feel like metal and cool to the touch, though with the strange softness of skin as well. "Code of honor in wrestling is that you don't steal another wrestler's name unless they give you express permission for it. Hell, we wouldn't be headlining the Kilt if he hadn't gotten permission from the genuine article to play the part," He tells him, before suddenly putting Shaun in a headlock. "Let's go through the motions, we got a lot of ground to cover."
There was no more time or room for questions as Bobby gave Shaun as much of a crash course as possible, showing him the lock up positions and the holds that he could use, how to swing a punch to the head that didn't actually connect, and making use of his physique, showed him how to do a fireman's carry and from there, do a Samoan Drop that would at least show some offense.
Soon he was shuffled backstage in the wrestling gear, mask on concealing his identity. "Gremlin is taken, but we'll get you a different name. I'll talk to the announcers and set something up," Brass told him, leaving him backstage - where Shaun saw two svelte female wrestlers and two of his teammates, Cassie and Bronwyn, wearing Kilt inspired fan gear.
The crowd settled outside suddenly, as the announcer spoke through the microphone. "Ladies and Gentlemen, our main event for the evening has an unfortunate loss - Gremlin is unable to make it to the ring," He said, to a chorus of boos from the audience. "It is my pleasure to instead to introduce to you in his debut match..." He glanced at a slip of paper, as Bobby came up behind Shaun and ushered him to the curtains heading to the ring.
As Shaun headed out, dozens of people were watching him in his mask. There's a pregnant pause as people stare at him, not knowing who he was or what to think of him. What does he do?
As soon as Slaugh goes out of the curtains, the much taller Kilt finally appears, with the Sineater next to him. This Kilt seems to be simmering with something, clenching his fists around a wooden club in one hand, a low growl coming from his throat. "Just make sure to put on a good show," He whispers, patting his arm, before glancing at Cassie and bronwyn. He gives a wry smile, before placing a finger to his lips and gesturing around them - at the many stagehands and civilians. Starting a fight here would put many people into danger. What do they do?
Some beeping can be heard followed by the familiar sound of a microwave as she started heating the fudge, putting the unnecessary toppings away as she started to spoon out the ice cream. "Isn't that little like saying, 'I'm not sure where the output from my visual cortex ends and my interpretation of the visual data begins'? I mean, our brains are hardly foolproof to begin with. Our brain takes all these shortcuts. It's why optical illusions work or why people see shapes in the clouds where realistically none exist. It would be useful for you to understand your abilities more, but maybe you should stop thinking of them as their own entity. I mean, they call psychic powers a sixth sense for a reason, right? Why should it be any different from sight or smell? Do you think Wingblade stops to think 'Is this really what my Super Sniffer smells? Or is it merely my interpretation of its output?'"
A moment later Kaoru comes back with two bowls of ice cream. Alexandra's has a healthy dollop of hot fudge followed by a small pyramid of whip cream with more hot fudge artfully drizzled on top. Kaoru's has less hot fudge but five maraschino cherries peppered about. She hands Alexandra's over as she plops next to her to eat her own.
Between the “intense” drilling (I go harder than this on my light days!), Shaun ponders the clues Brass has unintentionally given to him. So they got permission from the Kilt? Well it sure as f%%$ wasn’t me! So that means there’s two possibilities: either I have another copycat out there, or Golden Goose is lying his ass off. Problem is, if it is his fault I wanna beat his ass. If it isn’t, then...do I just take that fall? I mean, it’s not his fault he got tricked. And nobody would know it was me losing...hm...
His thoughts are promptly derailed as he catches sight of Bronwyn and Cassie in-! ”MERCH!? This f+~!er has merch!? Okay, beating his ass till proven otherwise. That’s gotta be rights to sue right? Using me to sell...god, are those supposed to be kilts? Yikes. Grandad would pop a blood vessel over those. Strangely though, the sight of Cassie in (technically) his merch was...somehow comforting. Wish me luck beautiful...
The crowd settled outside suddenly, as the announcer spoke through the microphone. "Ladies and Gentlemen, our main event for the evening has an unfortunate loss - Gremlin is unable to make it to the ring," He said, to a chorus of boos from the audience. "It is my pleasure to instead to introduce to you in his debut match..." He glanced at a slip of paper, as Bobby came up behind Shaun and ushered him to the curtains heading to the ring.
"...The Wild Hunter, Sluagh!"
There is a split second while the announcer is talking that Shaun could catch the girls’ attentions. Maybe he could get them to investigate Salvitori while he was in the ring. They could at the very least cheer him on or, if really needed, cheat the match for him. Cassie was a mage after all.
Then he thinks over the past few days, where he’d been hero-ing his ass off without the others so much as offering to help. Over the Waterfront Park mission, with his utter uselessness. Over his lingering sourness at being the weakest, most useless member of the team.
And, of course, the thoughts that came burrowing up every birthday. Thoughts of his failures, his losses, and what others had given up for him. Meager, useless, him.
...no. I’m not useless. And I’m gonna prove it.
Blood already staring to boil, he turns away from the girls and marches towards the ring.
Catching the name Sluagh (Ha! Fitting.) over the speakers, Shaun assumes a cocky posture and a malicious grin as he swaggers to the ring, stealthy double-checking that his saltire bandana was securely tucked into his boot with the inside of his leg. If this guy knows the Kilt, he’ll know my bandana...hopefully anyway...
"Cassie... just in case Shaun does something stupid, or the big guy gets a little extra... wrathful. How quickly could you magic me up a costume? With a Mask? We might need the really stupid kind of distraction..."
Cassie gives Bron a sideways glance. "Shouldn't take long." she says, "If I've got something made of the same fabric you want.... Who would it be for. You or your friend?"
"Even in a different costume between his size and his talking, my Buddy's probably too... Distinctive. This is just a way to get Shaun a little help without going full Defenders on anyone."
The crowd seems to still not entirely feel what Shaun is trying to sell them, though he does get a few half-hearted boos thrown at him. No one throws anything at him, so perhaps he can count that as a win for his character as he steps into the ring.
"And his competitor," The ring announcer spoke, getting the crowd to start cheering again. A thrum of energy goes through them. "Straight from his estate at Loch Làidir, weighing in at two hundred and eighty pounds..."
Shaun's opponent steps out from the curtains, a scottish dirge playing as part of his music. He holds up a thick club, polished to a shine, before with his bulging arms he snaps the club in half like it was made of styrofoam. He shouts loudly as he stomps towards the ring, the crowd clearly on his side as he enters, facing Shaun - and it's completely apparent to him now that his opponent is over a foot taller than he is, with far more muscle and a burning stare as he gets into his face.
He whispers so only Shaun can hear him. "Your job is to make me look good. Lock up, get shoved in a corner, and I'll give you a chance to get in an offense after you take your dues, got it?" He says before backing up, as the ref signals and the bell is rung, and Kilt goes for the lock up.
"You two want some masks?" Elize asks from behind them, overhearing just part of the conversation. "Zoe! Can I give them some souvenirs?"
Her sister, peering over the monitor bank, turns and nods to her sister. Elize smiles and turns to the girls. "Be right back," She tells them, heading off to the locker room.
Meanwhile, Sineater saunters over next to them. "Well now, I think you spoiled some of my fun the other day," He says to Cassie. "I don't recognize your friend, but I'll assume she knows a little bit. Fear not, I'm not here for my usual purposes. I'm doing someone a favor," He smirks, being purposefully enigmatic. He walks away, heading towards Zoe and starts up a conversation.
Elize returns, carrying two lucha masks for the girls - one designed to be like a ferocious but cuddly rabbit, the other being a fearsome but adorable fox. "Which one do each of you want?"
Cassie frowns at the Sineater as he walks away. He's up to something. But what? What the hell's he talking about - a favour? For who?
When Elize returns, she smiles as warmly as she's able to, trying to maintain her fangirl persona. "Masks? Really? Wow!" she says, excitedly as she reaches for the fox mask. "Thanks so much! You're just the best! These are awesome!"
Mask in hand, she turns to see what's going on in the ring clapping with the rest of the crowd as The (other) Kilt is introduced. "Oh wow! This is going to be great!"
Shaun's cocky veneer doesn't so much as twitch as 'Kilt' glares at him. The height was a fair bit unsettling (I'm getting really f#&!ing sick of people being taller than me...), but the guy was too jacked for his own good. His flexibility has to have tanked with that much bulk. If I can get behind him, I can trip him up easy.
Chuckling under his breath, 'Sluagh' whispers a reply in turn: "Duilich, ach cha bhith mi a ’gabhail òrdughan bho fhir a bhios a’ goid ainmean." Shaun watches the titan's reaction carefully, trying to discern if he could understand the Gaelic.
As the bell sounds, Shaun engages the lock up and waits. He knew that 'Kilt' intended to shove him away. With some clever footwork, he could use that...
Shaun immediately catches the shift in the big guy's weight as he moves for the push towards the corner. In one swift motion he falls backwards and curls into himself, letting the heavier fighter stumble and tumble over him and go crashing into the target corner. 'Sluagh' hops to his feet and spreads his hands in a mocking shrug.
As Shaun speaks to him in Gaelic, his opponent doesn't react at all to the strange tongue he's spoken.
The lock up goes well, despite the size advantage of his opponent, Shaun is able to shift the momentum of the match into his favor as he pushes him towards the corner. Despite his intentions, 'Kilt' doesn't stumble but hits the corner turnbuckles and turns around. The crowd seems to be enjoying the match so far that Shaun can see.
As he taunts his opponent, Shaun finds Kilt circling him from behind, before going after him. Shaun ducks the lariat, but Kilt flies into the ropes and runs back, grabbing Shaun around the waist and lifting him up, before slamming him down into the center of the ring in a spinebuster!
Rolling on top for the cover, Kilt whispers just loud enough for Shaun to hear. "Turnbuckle, then dropkick, near fall. Got it?" He says before lifting up before the three count, grabbing Kilt and pulling him towards the corner.
Bronwyn finds herself the new owner of a rabbit themed lucha mask, which will come in handy if it comes to needing to disguise herself. Though Elize and Zoe would certainly know it was them.
Sineater is having a private conversation with Zoe away from the rest of the crew, too far for them to make out without getting closer. Cassie can see that Zoe at least has a thoughtful expression on her face as he makes whatever case he's making.
Elize prods Bronwyn, smiling behind her mask. "¿Quieres aprender a luchar? Trabajamos como entrenadores. Mi amante también entrena a las personas. ¿Tu novia podría unirse a nosotros?"
With a smile on her face, but a note of exasperation in her eyes Bronwyn replied, "¡Ay! ¡Te lo dije, solo somos amigas! Ella es buga de todos modos. But umm... Who is that guy talking to Zoe? He's not a trainer or anything, is he? He's really skeeving me out, you know?"
This is bad. This is bad. This is bad -- crap, no worrying. Just follow the plan."
Wingblade put all her speed towards getting home, though she split her attention just enough to ask Abacus for a head count of the people in her apartment. It was surprisingly empty, with only Alexis there and thankfully no Whippoorwill. She shoots in, weaving through the apartment without landing until she reaches her bedroom door. From there, she slips inside, grabs a dry cleaning bag from the closet, then races back out into the night air.
It wasn't too late, she hoped, checking the time. Besides, college students typically stayed up late, right? Even on Sundays? She couldn't fly as fast with the bag of clothes trailing behind her, but she did her best to get to the university quickly.
Halcyon University had a lovely campus, nestled on the east side of the city in between a couple of hills. Abacus highlights the apartment building she was looking for, and she banks towards it. She lands in a patch of shadow created by a small ring of trees nearby, activates her pendant to hide her wings, steps out and hustles up to the front door.
Shayera gets a lucky break when someone sees her with a dry cleaning bag and holds the door open, so she darts in with an out of breath "thank you."
She moves through the college apartment with purpose to not look out of place, and manages to avoid too many curious looks. She finds the room number she had looked up earlier and hits the doorbell of Gabriela "Gabby" Pascal's apartment.
Behind the door Shayera could hear a lot of sudden movement and rustling, and at the edges of her hearing a muttered, "It's probably my parents, Tom. I mean who else would come over without texting?"
A few seconds later a very pretty girl opened the door. She was still in her evening's makeup, but was only dressed in a shortish nightie with a light coat thrown over it. Gabby was paler than Bronwyn, still visibly latina, but she clearly didn't spend all of Bronwyn's hours in the sun. She was a good bit shorter too; in her bare feet she wasn't much taller than Shayera. She was clearly fit as well, but where Bronwyn's build was a blend between the lean ropiness of a runner and the denser musculature of a hurler and a sprinter that she'd been packing on in the last couple of years, Gabby was more... trim. Her arms were covered, but the definition in her calves, and since they were mostly visible, her thighs, made it clear that she too was no stranger to a real regimen of fitness.
The first smell that emerged alongside her was a recent spritz of some Mountain Pine air freshener, with strong undercurrents of bubblegum, weed, and frustration beneath them.
Her face was tight with exasperation as the door opened, but it quickly melted into confusion as she looked blankly at Shayera for a moment. "I'm sorry, who are you?" She challenged, before her eyes widened in recognition and she spat out, "Wait! You're that b%&+& who- You're Bronwyn's friend with the wings! What are you here to steal another dress?!"
Shayera stands surprised at the immediately hostile reaction. She had expected a cold shoulder, or an amount of distrust, or even fear. Somehow, she didn't think that Bronwyn's family would actively get mad.
It threw her off briefly. She slowly turns her head to look at the dress in the garment bag, then back to Gabriela. "No." Her senses tell the story of what was probably going on before she knocked. It's definitely too late. Or, maybe too soon? Dammit, no backing out now.
She moves the bag slowly, unthreateningly, holding it up. A sudden realization hits her. Bronwyn never got to tell our side of the story, had she? "I brought it back," she says softly. "Dry cleaned and everything. And as a thank you," she pauses as she unzips the bag, showing a second dress in front of the one she took, "I got you another." It's very similar to the one she took, but with an updated style and clearly of a better -- and more expensive -- design.
"I used the same measurements, but if there's any adjustment needed, there's a card for an alteration shop in the bag. Take it there; they'll send me the bill."
She pushes the dresses towards Gabriela. "Here. I'd like to explain, but I see I caught you at a bad time. So if you want me gone..."
Gabby's eyes were still a little glassy as they flicked to the new dress in a quick merciless assessment. She didn't take either of them. "A thank you? Uh uh. A thank you is what you offer after you ask to borrow something. Now, if you brought back my dress and the other one is here as part of an apology, I'll hear it." Her eyes darted back to the dress again, the strangeness of this encounter already visibly sharpening them. "I'll also hear whatever you're really here to talk about. A $300 dress plus alterations isn't remotely reasonable as an apology, and I'm not, like, stupid. So what, is Bronwyn still grounded for letting a friend break in, and you want me to get my parents to lay off?"
Tom sleepily asked what was going on, and she rolled her eyes. "Look, ummm... Wing Blade. Is there something less stu- Is there something else I can call you by the way?
"Anyways. Hang here for a second while I throw some pants on everyone and you can come in. If you bring both apologies in with you that is, dress and words."
People in this God-forsaken town need to STOP throwing me around...also ow...! More than a little dazed, Shaun staggers to his feet as 'Kilt' hauls him to the corner and winds up for the flying kick. His head still swimming a bit, Shaun manages to process that he isn't going to be able to dodge this one either. This is going south fast...think damnit...!
"Uh, you can call me Shayera," she says as she stands in the threshold. "And yes. I'm sorry."
She waits as Gabriela gets dressed, wondering how much the smell of burnt cannabis will linger in her clothes and hair. She wasn't planning on returning to her apartment that evening to change clothes.
She takes a deep breath when Gabriela returns. "Here's what happened: A girl at school had an accident, spilled food all over her clothes. And she's, like, on the spectrum? It was really hard on her. Especially since it was her first day out with some of the new clothes I had got her, and she started off that day feeling really special... And I'm rambling.
"Anyway, I'm fastest, since, you know, wings. I asked Bronwyn if she'd be okay with borrowing a dress of hers, and she said okay. Then, well, since she's so tall she said I should grab something out of your closet. And I just went along with it."
She throws up her hands. "I'm sorry. I panicked. I took off; I shouldn't have. Maybe if I'd have stayed to explain then, it would have been better. I don't know. But I also didn't have a lot of time, either. The next period was about to start, and... anyway, that's pretty much it. I'm sorry for taking your dress without asking."
"'Shayera'? Really? If you're going to just make up a name for when you talk to people who don't know you, you could at least like, pretend you're trusting them with something real. Help build a rapport, you know? Or is your real name, like Shiloh or something and you just realized that Bronwyn never told me?"
She listens to Shayera's story while Tom shuffles over to the kitchen and and back to their bedroom, both of them now in matching christmas-sweater-level ugly pajama bottoms, and with her coat zipped up over most of the rest of her nighty.
"Still not great the you just broke in. And yes, broke in, 'cause I know that door was still locked when I came home to find you. Sorry about your friend though. I'm glad the dress helped. It really sucked that you just flew out of there though. I had no idea what the f&~$ you were, and you really scared the hell out of me. Like, you were shouting something but I could barely hear you over the, like, blood pumping in my ears, and then you were just - gone!"
She shifted, not quite embarrassed by her story, but not comfortable in telling it either.
"And don't think I didn't notice that you still haven't told me the real reason you're here. Come on 'Shayera.' Spit it out."
Wingblade speaks to her pendant and her wings reappear, folded up compactly but still very visible. She looks away as she hugs her shoulders. "Okay, yeah. I made Shayera up. I didn't have a name at the lab. I was just 'Subject.' That's all. 'Project Wingblade.' The thing that the scientists made."
She shrugs her shoulders, still not able to meet her eyes. "It didn't feel right taking a name that was someone else's. I couldn't be a 'Jessica' or a 'Katherine.' So, yeah."
She glances back, a flash of defiance in her eyes when Gabriela mentions the door being locked. "I used Bronwyn's window. But that's not an issue anymore, since her-- your parents put up bars over them."
She gestures to the dresses. "That was it. I mean it. I had to bring them back to you."
Tom's eyes turn wide as dinner plates, bright red dinner plates, and Gabby visibly tenses up when Shayera brings up her wings, but with an effort, smooths her face and posture back out and continues.
"Hey I'm sorry; that sucks. It's a nice name though. It's distinctive and stuff. Pretty good for a first try too." She makes a face. "Could be worse; you could be named Gabriela and have a twin named Gabriel because your parents ran out of f~$@s to give after the first three kids and-"
"Wait, no s$+!?!" She leaned forward in surprise, an almost awed smile creeping over her face, "They really put the bars up this time?! I got that speech so many times but- I mean how often were you sneaking into our house?"
"Thanks," she says, smiling for the first time since arriving.
Wingblade thinks, counting mentally the number of times she'd come over. "Um, not that often. Three, four times I think? Slept over once, after I came back to life. But I've got some gaps. So it might have been more often than that.
"So that's a thing they said they were going to do? I was kind of surprised they got them up so quick."
"Oh sure. They had a whole list of ideas they never got around to. The key was not to piss them off too often, so they'd lose steam. The alarm system that goes off downstairs past curfew though? That one was me. And Gabe too. The bars were a kinda logical next step I guess? If they realized how often we just hopped out I mean. Ugh, I can't believe little miss track star would even risk her precious ankles by jumping out there. Or are you like super strong and flew her around as like, the world's butchest princess or something?
"But no, seriously, only four times?! Did you get caught with weed every time or something? I can't believe they dropped a grounding and actually coughed up for-real money to do up the house just 'cause you stole a dress!
"Seriously, what in the hell did Bronwyn do to piss them off so much anyways?! I don't know if you have sisters, Shay, but let me tell you there's nothing worse than one that walks on water, and still gets treated like the precious baby anyways. So like, when you stole the dress, did you also, like, set the house on fire?
"Or umm..." The same faraway look of concentration that came over Bronwyn's face when Shayera spoke to her 'father' or sisters in Mandarin, appeared like magic as Gaby did the math. "Wait, shiiiit. Back when that law was passed. Did you really die? 'Cause over Thanksgiving last year Bronwyn had cut off like all her hair and pissed off mom, and she wasn't talking to anyone, and she looked like a huge wreck... S%+&. When you 'came back,' I just figured it was one of those 'The explosion was so big it didn't even leave a body' things, and you'd just been kidnapped by some evil f!+*ers. But you really died? And Papi and Mami knew that?
"S*~*. So... you just weren't supposed to come over anymore at all, huh? 'Cause I mean, I only caught the edges of it, but like, they were at ground zero, and she was just... just destroyed. She wouldn't talk to anyone but the priest for weeks; Gabe and Tom and I were joking that her little boyfriend Marcito Perfecto must've dumped her for someone who'd put out, or someone told her Santa wasn't real, or she'd found out that running isn't the same thing as having a life, or..." she trailed off, "...S@+@."
"But her friend f#@@ing died? For real? Is it even safe-?" She'd shaken her head so much in surprise and disbelief that her hair was getting in her face, so she grabbed a hair-thing and pulled it back into a loose ponytail.
"No. I call b+#$@!&$. A $300 dollar dress isn't an apology; you didn't come over here to drop off dry cleaning; and you aren't telling me what's really going on. You ready to be honest? And don't give me any b#@%#@$! about not lying, 'cause there's a lot of truth you aren't telling!"
Wingblade's whole body trembles as she fights with every fiber of her body to hold back the tears. She hadn't seen firsthand how her death had wrecked Bronwyn. She hadn't really heard it secondhand, at least in any way describing it as more than regular grief. She loved me... back then, when I didn't know. I didn't know it hurt her so much.
She turns away, biting a knuckle as she sinks into a chair. She can't bring herself to look at Gabriela so she stares out the few spaces in the blinds hanging in front of the window. "Yes. I died. Really, really died. My memories got put into another body. This one. So it feels like I'm me... I think my soul's here in this body. But I don't know for sure."
She pulls her legs under her as she turns back to Gabriela. Was there more? Sure. Why hadn't she asked about Bronwyn being gay? She had to have brought it up... unless no one told her. That seems wrong, especially since Bronwyn always seemed to think that the moment they kissed in public the news would be everywhere. But Gabriela must not know yet. Should she tell her? This was Bronwyn's sister, after all. She'd find out... eventually.
She points to the bedroom door. "You might want another joint for this one."
She gives Gabriela time to intoxicate herself further if she desires. Then she takes a deep, tremulous breath. "I had to bring the clothes to you, here, rather than just dropping them off at your parents. Because Bron's... Bronwyn moved out. After the bars on the windows. I'd introduced myself to your parents, and they tried to get me to stay away from her, and I refused, and it was just kind of... bad. Not, like, shouting, or anything. They just didn't approve of me, or my life, or -- heh -- my death. Any of it. I thought I-- well, I probably didn't help, because I certainly wasn't going to decide for Bronwyn that we shouldn't see each other -- I mean, you know. Hang out. Be friends."
She scrunches up her face to make a show of thinking and to hide the slight coloring in her cheeks. "I think that was the day before? Or two days? Before me grabbing your dress."
Shayera wrings her hands. "So, yeah. Bars went up, Bron moved out. That was when she told them she's gay."
Kaoru lay awake in bed, staring blankly at her ceiling. It was unusual for her; normally sleep came quickly. But tonight her head was just too full of thoughts. The easier thoughts were about how her first team meeting as leader would go, combined with trying to plan out all the remaining preparation steps she'd need to take the next day between when school ended and when track practice ended. She was pretty confident she had enough time to set up everything, and she had already gotten permission from "Rob" the shop instructor (It's always weird when adults insisted you address them by their first name) to use the backroom. That didn't stop her brain from repeatedly looping over a mental checklist of things she hadn't been able to do earlier. It was probably better than the alternative.
She sighed. She didn't really want to think about how she felt about this latest development with Alexandra. Feelings were annoyingly complicated and she really just wanted them to go away. How had things managed to be so much easier before? Maybe it was the lack of dumb superpowers every where. Not that it was bad for people to have powers. She had meant everything she had said to Alexandra. The girl she knew hadn't changed at all. Only their knowledge of her. It's not like she hadn't seen all that stuff before she knew she was psychic. Though saying it out loud had been...uncomfortable.
She still had questions about Alexandra's abilities, but they were mostly on the back burner. The important question of if the girl could read her mind had been answered. She was pretty sure that would have made her uncomfortable, and she wasn't really sure of a way around that. But the other stuff seemed...ok. She ideally would have liked to know what exactly the privacy settings of her brain were, so she could figure out what was public knowledge. But it's not like she thought Alexandra was going to do anything bad with what she found out. And it's not like she was really trying to hide anything from her anyway; she had already figured out she was a girl and didn't seem particularly inclined to out her. So things were all good on that front.
So then why did she still have a vague sense of unease? She had just determined that this information didn't really affect her. Sure, it had bothered her to see Alexandra...upset? Distressed? Uncertain? She wasn't really sure what the correct word here was, but she did not seem to have been in the best state of mind. Which of course, naturally she'd be upset by. Alexandra made her feel safe. But also like a badass. So of course she wanted to reciprocate and make sure Alexandra felt likewise at ease and wanted to spend time with her.
She does...still want to spend time with me though, right? I mean, it's not like you find out you have superpowers and that makes you want to ditch all your mundane friend, right?
Alexis still seemed to want to be friends despite his powers. Of course, Alexis was also constantly looking down on her as a result of them. She knew it was well-intentioned, but that didn't mean it pissed her off any less. Wingblade was at least socially competent enough to not constantly rub her inadequacies in her face. Which probably had something to do with not being a helicopter mom. Which might feel better in the moment, but was it really? Wingblade's opinion of her probably wasn't any higher than Alexis', so "help the poor baseline" was probably more of an after thought than the dominant "make sure the baseline doesn't get hurt because clearly the tiniest scratch will kill them" refrain that seemed to run through Alexis' head. That still wasn't great though.
But Alexandra wasn't like that. She actually thought Kaoru has something of value to offer. She had still wanted her around after her SCA mess-ups. And no one could really argue with her performance this past mission. Not to mention there were all those nice things Alexandra had said just the day before about her possibly becoming a better hero than all the rest of them combined. About how she might even become a better leader than Wingblade (though Kaoru wasn't entirely sure how high that bar was in the grand scheme of things).
Possibly. Might.
But those made sense. She hadn't done anything yet. She could still just toss in the towel and flip off the entire hero scene. So of course there were qualifiers. But that was also before. Just talk from one baseline to another as they tried to keep up with the powered. Except one of those baselines was a powered now. But that wouldn't change anything, right? Literally the only difference was a tiny bit of self-knowledge. Tiny. Minuscule really. That wouldn't change anything. Alexandra would still want to hang out and go on adventures. She wouldn't suddenly start thinking less of Kaoru because she was just a nobody.
No, not *suddenly*.
But she also wasn't a nobody! She had put a guy on the freaking terrorist watch list like it was nothing! She was a grade-A badass hacker, and not many people could make that claim. Except...she was constantly being out maneuvered by Delphi. She was basically just waiting for Pinky to find their way around them and come find her in her little tower. Rescue her from the mean, old witch. And now some new a~+%+*~ was mocking her with some dumb dog, and she couldn't find where the fk they were hiding. And she did have a tendency to screw up under time pressure...
Maybe...she wasn't as good as she thought she was. Maybe she really was beneath Alexandra's attention.
Rocked by the blow, Shaun feels...eeriely calm. He knows that he should be upset about Kilt stealing his name, but for some reason he no longer cares about it. Like his Pride has left him from the blow.
Kilt sets up the Sluagh onto the top turnbuckle, planting his feet on the rope and getting up. Seeing the daze in his eyes, he mimicks slapping him, muttering quickly. "Punch me until I fall off then jump on me!" He directs him, the ref in the corner giving warnings to get out of the corner soon.
Kilt gets frustrated, grabbing Shaun's wrist and pretending that he's actually giving him body blows, grunting and groaning from them, before falling back with a stumble, using the motion to disguise his gesture to Kilt to jump at him.
"Huh?" Elize looks back at her sister...and Bronwyn can practically see how her eyes simply glaze over when they're on the Sineater, coming back into focus when they look past him. "Zoe's just by herself. Unless she's with someone invisible," She jokes, needling Bronwyn with her elbow. "...you know, have we met before? I swear I've seen you, but not at one of these shows..."
Cassie, the Sineater finally walks away from Zoe, who looks thoughtful about whatever he's had to say to her. He seems to inhale something - no, you can see that something coming from the stage seems to flow through the curtains and into him, giving him strength.
"Bron moved out. That was when she told them she's gay."
Gabby snorted. She tried to say something and it broke into a full on fit of the giggles. Tears streaming down her face she finally managed to wheeze, "Okay okay. That was **whooo** that was a really good try. I mean I get it with the sports and the hair and the whole..." she waved vaguely in front of her face as she shook with suppressed laughter. "But this is Bronwyn. Even if- even if she's some kind of lesbian- I mean you really do know her, right? Can you even picture her telling mom and dad something like that? Can you even imagine her telling them that she'd... I don't know, gotten an A-? She'd have to... have to..."
She blinked at Shayera's reaction, "...Holy s#@!. You're telling the truth. So... wait are you her- I mean... Wait where the hell is she living?!"
***
"Umm... do you read the Halcyon Herald sports section? Like really carefully? Otherwise I'm not sure where you'd know my face from, and... Hey I'm sorry, I just thought of something I have to ask your sister. Un momento."
She grinned and ducked her head as she darted over to talk to Zoe. "Hey, umm, who was that guy you were talking to just now?"
Shayera kept an even, serious look while Gabriela got the disbelief out of her system. "She's staying with a friend. Not friend friend, but a friend. Mary-Beth?"
She takes another glance at the dresses draped over the arm of the couch. "So, yeah. I did have something else to ask you. I thought you'd have known about Bronwyn's situation by now... But I guess not. Anyway, she's running out of clothes. And she's got... this principle? I guess? I'm pretty loaded, so I tried to help out and get her some new clothes for school, but she went and donated them all to charity. And I hate seeing her going through the same five tops and tights over and over, so I was wondering, if she won't accept any new clothes from me, could you maybe grab a few more of her outfits from home and drop them off for her? I'd do it myself, except I'd really be breaking and entering if I tried. And your parents probably don't like me any more now that Bron's moved out."
"Oh, Mary-Beth's. Yeah, okay, that figures. . Jesus, Papi must have flipped out extra when he heard that part. Or are they okay now? I don't always keep tabs on all of Bronwyn's friend-drama."
"Whatever, the important thing is that she's not like on the street or something." Gabby gave Shayera a sharp sideways look, the one hit she'd taken off her vape now quite worn off, "Umm... Yeah. Sure. I guess I could get some new clothes? Is that really what- I mean, that's where you want help? With making sure she has clean pants?"
Shayera gives Gabriela a puzzled expression. "I never knew she and MB weren't okay. But they're good now, yeah."
She shakes her head. "No, I don't think you need to buy her new clothes, just get her some from her house. I figure you're still allowed in, right? I mean, she went to church in a men's suit! She needs clothes, and I hate seeing her in... I mean, she's not... um... well, she's holding it together all right, I think. But I want to help her and she's not letting me."
Her posture slumps. She looks defeated, turning her head and watching one wing rise and fall. "I know I'm just some crazy science experiment that makes everyone around me nervous, but Bronwyn didn't freak out when she found out. She stayed friends with me. Now I'm causing a rift between her and your parents, so I think I need to step back and stay out of the way for a little while. But I can't... just not do anything either.
"So I owed you for the dress anyway, so I'm here to make up for that. And to see if you'll help her. You're sisters, right? That's what you do for each other?"
Gabby rolled her eyes, "Not Mary-Beth and Bronwyn, Mary-Beth and Pap- no es importante. Of course I'm not going to buy her new clothes. And what, you thought I wasn't going to go talk to my parents about this? I just can't believe Bronwyn didn't call- Well... okay, she wouldn't have called me, but after she called Gabe he definitely would've."
She fished out her phone and began rapidly typing away, switching between a few different screens.
"So, look. I'm gonna go talk to them tomorrow, and yes, get the all important clothes while I'm there. You got your win. So... Is she just being proud? Why doesn't she want you helping? I know I've been giving the living knives that keep twitching at me a bunch of weird looks, but I'm guessing you two are past that stage. Also, I mean, speaking of being proud, maybe don't kid yourself about causing the rift between Bronwyn, Mami and Papi? Unless one of your super powers is turning people gay, this really isn't about you."
***
As she walked over towards Zoe, Bronwyn's phone buzzed. With a look of surprise and fear on her face, she quickly powered it off. Why is Papá calling? Doesn't he... Did he turn my phone back on? Does he know I've been cheating on that? Arrrgh! I'll have to ask Kaoru; maybe he can tell if my service is legitimate now. Why didn't I ask about that in the first place?!
When Gabriela starts texting, Shayera feels a tentative relief hoping that she's done a good thing for Bronwyn. "Well, her being gay was a huge surprise to me, so I'm pretty sure I have no powers along those lines. Just fly, heal, and stab, mostly."
She rises to her feet, feeling like it's time to get moving. "Maybe I'm not the cause, but probably the catalyst. They really didn't want me to stay friends with her. So, being all in their face about it probably won't help with the healing."
She takes a couple steps toward the door. "Thanks for listening. You could have run me off, but you didn't. That means a lot. I should give you my number. If you ever have any super villain problems, you can give me a call."
Gabby didn't look entirely thrown off the scent, but let Wingblade's "huge surprise" pass without comment.
"Super villain problems?! I know this is Halcyon, but jeez, God forfend, you know?"
She walked Shayera to the door, staying at least a pace behind the big sharp weapons on her back.
"Thanks for coming to me. You're a 'crazy science experiment,' so I'm guessing this was just luck, but you can always count on a sister to have your back. Well, against anyone but her!" Eyes the same brown as Bronwyn's that somehow managed to be piercing instead of warm, studied Shayera closely as she held the door open. "You're doing something dange- Well. You've died before, you know that already. Do you have someone like that though? Someone who'll help when you don't realize you should ask?"
"Yeah, I've got sisters now, which is nice. They've really helped put things in perspective. Way better than the other one I kind of have, though we haven't met yet. Which is probably for the best, since we'll most likely try to kill each other when we do."
She pauses at the threshold to activate her charm and cause her wings to fade from sight before she steps out into the hall. She considers Gabriela's last question before she goes. "I guess? I've got... people. Bronwyn, my sisters, my dad. Whippoorwill. But I don't need help right now. I'm taking care of everything."
As Shaun's funk finally passes, he finds him mind significantly more focused than it was moments ago. Somewhere in the back of his mind an bell of alarm sounds, but he doesn't care. Right now, he was here to put on a show and fight. Two things he knew how to do.
His jeering smirk breaking into a broad smile, Shaun pushes off the corner and drops onto 'Kilt' in what seems like a brutal knee to the chest.
Cassie straightened up as she saw the,.. .mist? flow from the stage towards the Sineater. "I f#%!ing knew it!" she said hold to herself and half to Bron. "He's up to something!"
Fishing in her pocket, she'd surreptitiously palmed a simple charm with an eye design inlaid in glass.
"I'll be back in a second." she said, turning and heading slowly towards the Sineater. Whispering under her breath, with her eyes fixed on him.
"Σας βλέπω και βλέποντας ότι παίρνετε τη δύναμή σας.
Ο καθαρός σας ξέρει. Θα προστατεύσει.
Θα προστατεύσω.
Δεν θα έχετε ισχύ εδώ."
By changing the momentum of the match, Shaun gets the crowds to waver slightly, before some people cheer him on from the crowd. "Sluagh-ter! Sluagh-ter!" They start to chant as Kilt kneels in front of Shaun, milking the blow as something that was more devastating than it really was.
"Kick me around, throw me into the turnbuckle, go for another high spot, then we'll flip," He mutters to him underneath his breath, as he sells every blow that Shaun gives him for the moment, crying out and wincing. People are getting into the main event match more now, people shouting encouragement to the Kilt being beaten down.
Eventually, Kilt sets up for the turnaround in momentum kneeling in the center of the ring on his hands and knees. He eyes Shaun, giving him a nod, ready to take him on.
Zoe looks at Bronwyn. "Think he's selling drugs or something. Says he can grant me power from Bayler. I don't know, I stay away from the steroi-"
"Suit girl!" Elize exclaims from behind Bronwyn. "You're the girl who was wearing a suit to Mass this morning! Oh, man, that's a heck of a coincidence!"
Cassie's magic cuts off the Sineater's meal, as he blinks before looking at the magician with mild annoyance. "That was a mistake," He told her, gesturing to the mistlike energy that was now trapped out in the audience. "Like gasoline fumes, it only requires a spark to set off and burn everyone with Pride," He told her. "It would be amusing to watch, but I'll leave you to clean up your mess," He tells her, turning to walk away, out of the backstage area.
Oh God. Balor.
I mean I knew he wasn't dead. That would've been way too easy... Okay, she doesn't know anything about what's really happening here so-
"What? Oh, umm, yeah. Suit-Girl. That's what they call me? Apparently?" She must be new to St. Ambrose. I feel like I'd definitely remember her if she was a regular attendee.
A horrible thought struck her as she looked out at where Kilt was fighting 'Kilt'.
"So Zoe, do you know if he said yes?"
Cassie smiled to herself at the Sineater's annoyance, satisfied that she'd disrupted whatever he'd been planning. The smile melted from her face, however, as he gestured at the audience and gave his warning. Shifting her eyes to the crowd, she grimaced, taking half a step forward towards the immaculately-dressed man, before shaking her head and turning to let him go - he was more than likely telling the truth. Emotions, could be a powerful and disruptive force when unrestrained, and there was no telling what the effect of so much unfiltered pride might have on the audience. Fortunately, in the casting of her ward, she'd sensed,... potential. If she could reverse the activity of the Mati charm, she was pretty sure that it could absorb the energy. If she was right, it'd be trapped in the crystal matrix of the charm itself.
Turning to the main stage, Cassie held the charm high. Subtlety wasn't going to work this time... the spell was much trickier and she hadn't tried anything like it before. As she began to speak, the the mist-like energy over the crowd began to flow towards her and the charm began to glow red.
"Η υπερηφάνεια είναι το γενεσιουργό δικαίωμα μου.
Είμαι η Cassiphone, κόρη του Cersei, που έκανε τον εαυτό της ως θεά.
Ελάτε στην υπερηφάνειά μου, έρχεστε στην κόρη σας.
It was simple enough for her to see what Cassie was doing, but also unfortunately easy to see that her charm wouldn't be enough. Before that energy could overload Cassie's prepared vessel, she stepped up next to her, pressing Gae-Dearg into her palm.
That should help.
Shaun, stripped of any reason for needing to win the fight, plays right along with 'Kilt's' directions. With the crowd chanting his name, he throws his head back in an exaggerated eye roll. He overtly winds up for a kick to 'Kilt's' head, bracing for the rebuttal.
Absentmindedly, he brushes the droplet of blood away from his eye.
- - -
Leaping was getting harder. So many lines drawn with cold iron. So many eyes keen to find a predator in the shadows. But she pressed on.
The bedding had been worth the risk. It had led here to a very, very strong trail. The Janus had traveled this, and recently. Many times even perhaps. This would lead to his new hiding place.
She halted, crouched low in the shadow of a broad wall that glowed with flameless light. She had found the source. A fortress of cold iron and glass that reached taller than the clouds. She could smell the stench of coin from here as men came and went. Why so many of them spent their ephemeral lives seeking personified nothingness eluded her.
Now was not the time for her musings. She was here. She was close.
The hunt was nigh.
Cassie's eyes shifted focus to Bron and she smiled gratefully as the other girl passed the amulet to her. As she touched it she felt a pulse of, somehow familiar, power emanating from it and she had a sudden flash of,...
A memory, but not her own. A different face, a different name... Creirwy .... of watching her mother defeat the man who'd tried to rescue her, the man she loved. The one who called himself Bendigeidfran lying twisted and broken as Ceridwen's gaze had shifted to her...
The memory faded as the mist of Pride shifted, redirected towards Gae-Dearg.
Gabriela doesn't say anything about the sister who may try to kill her, but when Shayera confirms she has people who will help her, she nods. "Good. Buy them dresses too. Except maybe not your father."
Shayera giggles as she leaves, making her way outside the apartment building and finding a private spot to reveal her wings. She then takes flight, soaring over the city's outskirts and enjoying the skyline.
She drifts over to the tall suspension towers of the Kubrick Bridge and alights on the one opposite the city. She's always thought that one afforded the better view. She watches the flickering lights for a while, then moves into the small alcove that protects the fuse box that controls all the lights of the bridge. Inside, rolled up in a corner, is a sleeping bag and a few bottles of root beer. The good kind, that Vick always liked. She grabs one then goes back out and sits on the ledge, watching the city.
As Hex diverts the raw emotion and Sin into her amulet, it seems almost too much to contain it for long. If not for Bronwyn suddenly appearing and using Gae Dearg, it surely would have erupted and saturated every backstage with that Pride. As they breath their sighs of relief, the amulet settles in Cassie's palm, charged but stable.
"Uh...what was that?" Both girls find Elize and Zoe standing behind them. Surprisingly, their irises have changed color to a smoky blue. "That was some magical stuff, right?" Zoe asked. "Who are you two, really?" Eliza inquires.
Without any Pride in his performance, it becomes obvious to the crowd that it's lackluster, scattered boos and jeers coming from the audience. Even Kilt is disturbed by the lack of effort that his opponent is giving. Finally, he puts Shaun for the count, only before the refree can get to three, he lifts him up, scowling and leaving him in the ring, gesturing for a microphone.
"This is the best that you can give me? This jobber isn't even worth pinning!" He sneers, drawing heat from the crowd. "I've wrestled kittens that put up more of a fight!"
The time to recover brings a small spark of his Pride back to Shaun, listening as Kilt insults him in the middle of the match. He has an opportunity to do something here - and pride he may be lacking, but his words are fanning the flames of Shaun's WRATH.
"That's not important" Cassie replied to the Eliza's question and then shifts her gaze to Zoe. "What's important is that we find the,.. man that you were talking to back there. He's dangerous and,..." she suddenly noticed the change in their eyes and leaned forward to examine them.
".. but I think maybe there's more to you two than you're letting on. Who're you?
How could I get you to help find the Sineater? Tell them who you are. They seem to respect heroes.
How could I gain influence over you? Drop the pretenses and explain why you really wanted to come backstage.
"Uh, we're professional wrestlers who are now wondering if it was a good idea to bring you two to the backstage area," Zoe tells her, a throaty growl rising from her. "If you're trying to fix this match to screw over Kilt-"
"What's this then?" Elize asks as she points at the amulet that Cassie is holding onto. "And why is it glowing with bad vibes?"
Cassie glanced at Bron and shrugged. There wasn't really any point in remaining incognito at this point, and the sisters seemed trustworthy enough.
"No. We're not here to screw over that guy who's calling himself 'Kilt'." she replied. "We're on a team - you know what I mean and we're friends with the real 'The Kilt' not that imposter who's, for some reason, stollen his name. We came here to see what was going on wiht him but then we ran into that guy you were talking to. He's,... Well I don't really know what he is but he's no good - Seems to get off on sucking the sins out've people. You know - Sloth, Lust, Gluttony, etc.? This," she says, holding up the charm, "is 'Kilt's' opponent's Pride, and if we hadn't captured it in here then it'd be making bad things happen to the crowd. We really need to find him and stop him doing whatever it is he's trying to do, so any help would be great. I get the feeling you might be a bit more than baseline wrestlers. If not, we gotta go and see what we can do by ourselves."
A face, familiar but subtly different looked at her him Bronwyn in anguish. His vision blurred as some life-eating curse carved away at his vitals. This wasn't herhis time, wasn't hisher doom, but Bronwyn still couldn't stand, couldn't fight, couldn't save-
"Look. Obviously there's more going on than is really going to be quick to explain, but she is giving you the basics. The real basics. We just want to make sure no one gets hurt. And she's got the juice to make sure that happens."