A/N: So, here's the first of four chapters that will show Cameron bonding with one of the other ice villains, because why not? These will be happening in chronological order, just so you know. Cameron will still be young for this first chapter, only about seven years old and just learning how to use his powers.
Disclaimer; Do I look like I own any of these characters? Yeah, I didn't think so.
Crystal Frost sighed in boredom as she lounged on her bed. Not knowing what else to do with herself Crystal waved her hand and effortlessly created an ice crystal. It was cold, beautiful, and deadly all rolled up into one. Just like she was. Crystal shattered the ice in her hand and blasted the shards at the wall, adding to the ever building ice formation she had there.
The wall was eternally covered with ice. Before one layer could fully melt Crystal would blast another two right on top of it. She did this whenever she just needed a way to get all of her frustration or boredom out. It rarely did the trick though. What Crystal really needed was to get out, have some fun and raise some hell.
There had to be a couple of obnoxious, self-righteous people out there that Crystal could play around with. They probably wouldn't even be that hard to find. But Crystal couldn't go out at the moment because she was expecting company.
They had better arrive soon though, because if they didn't Crystal would be forced to continue to take her irritation out on the poor wall. With each layer of ice she would add, the colder the room as a whole would become, and the colder the temperature was the less effective her powers were.
It may seem a little backwards, but Crystal needed heat to use her ice. It sucked sometimes, but certainly came in handy whenever she came face to face with a hothead who thought that he could easily thaw her powers, when in reality, he was just adding to it.
It was always fun to see their faces when she just absorbed their fire and turned that heat into her cold. Their expressions were priceless, and always worth the battle. Even when she wasn't facing a pyro the battle was still worth it.
Like many other villains that she knew, Crystal found a thrill in fighting with the goody-goody masked idiots. She was even happy just ice blasting innocent bystanders who just happened to be in her way. Crystal reveled in the use of her powers, and absolutely loved showing them off.
She supposed it was because of this that she had gotten stuck in this situation in the first place. Instead of getting out and wreaking havoc over the city Crystal was stuck sitting around her house, waiting for her 'guests' to finally show up.
And all because she owed Joar Mahkent a favor.
Crystal wasn't a team player and often avoided partnering up with other people, especially men. There were a few exceptions to that rule though, a handful of men that she tolerated more than others. They were the other ice users. Unlike her though, the three men who favored the cold element had to use pathetic guns and other useless toys. They didn't have powers. Not like she did.
The only person that Crystal was aware of that had powers like hers was little Icicle Junior.
By same crazy sciency miracle Joar Mahkent, a man who had no powers, somehow had a son who did. Crystal didn't really understand how exactly it had happened, and she didn't really care. All that mattered was that the kid had his own powers, and damn it all if Crystal wasn't going to show him how to use them properly.
That was actually why Icicle was bringing his brat over, because he wanted her to teach the kid how to harness and use his powers. They knew that he had cryokinetic abilities, but no matter what Icicle tried he couldn't get the kid to willingly produce ice. So he had called in a favor and now Crystal was stuck with the responsibility of teaching the kid just how powerful he was.
Before she could do any of that though, she first had to get him to purposefully use his powers, even just once. After that it would only become easier and more natural for him to use them.
Crystal wasn't much of a teacher, but she actually had an idea of how to get the kid to use his powers. So far, from what Icicle had told her, he had only demonstrated them accidentally when he was upset. If the boy tapped into his powers through his emotions, than it would be through his emotions that he would first be able to use them.
All she had to do was get him to focus on a specific feeling and let his instincts take over from there. Crystal believed that the best emotion to 'activate' his powers was anger. Unfortunately that was not something that the kid felt very often. That was alright though. Crystal was an adapter, and she knew how to improvise.
She could figure out a way to get the kid angry...just as soon as he got here.
Crystal scowled impatiently and aggressively threw another ice blast at the wall. Icicle was supposed to have been here an hour ago with the brat. What was taking them so long? What was with men and always being late to everything? Icicle should be grateful to her for taking the time out of her personal life to teach his kid how to control his powers. And how did Icicle show that gratitude? By being late.
Finally Crystal heard the pounding at her door that indicated that Icicle had finally bothered to show up. Grumbling to herself Crystal went to the front door and threw it open. She glared harshly at Icicle, who was scowling right back at her. And then there was Icicle Junior who was frowning and standing behind his father.
"What took you so long?" Crystal crossed her arms, making her irritation clear.
"The boy was stalling." Icicle said as an excuse, which just irritated Crystal even more. Of course Icicle would end up blaming his seven year old kid. How like a man.
"Yeah, right. Come on, kid, backyard, now!" Crystal snapped. The boy pouted but with a not too gentle push from his father he followed her. Now that she actually had a real look at the kid Crystal noticed that he wasn't wearing the same kind of thing that he practically always wore.
Because of his powers and low core body temperature Junior was extremely sensitive to heat and got warm easily. Because of this he always wore sleeveless shirts and no shoes, so he wouldn't get too hot. And yet here he was wearing, of all things a sweatshirt, with the hoodie actually over his head, and honest to god shoes. Crystal was feeling hot just looking at him, and she knew that Cameron shouldn't be feeling very comfortable, so what was the deal?
Crystal took Cameron out to the backyard, which looked like her own personal ice garden. Just like any other time she tried to teach Cameron how to use his powers, it was going to be a one on one lesson, meaning that Icicle wasn't allowed. He was stuck with just waiting inside while Crystal worked with the small boy.
"Alright, first things first," Crystal glared at Cameron, who shifted uncomfortably under her gaze. "Get your shoes and hoodie off."
Cameron frowned and shoved his hands into his pockets. "Do I have to?" He whined, which just pissed Crystal off.
"Yes, you have to." She growled and formed a spiked ice ball on her hand. "If you don't get those things off right now, I will rip them off."
Cameron frowned but did as she ordered. It may seem trivial, but Crystal was having a hard enough time getting Cameron to use his powers at all. For all she knew he would have an even harder time using it when he felt warmer. So for right now if he was wearing something that people wore to get warm, it had to go.
Now that Cameron was barefooted and sleeveless, as he should be, Crystal could finally get to work. She took notice that the kid looked even more uncomfortable now and was crossing his arms and hunching, almost as if he was trying to hide from something. She took note of it, but continued on anyways. If Cameron was feeling uncomfortable, well boohoo for him. He just needed to buck up and deal with it.
Crystal formed a simple ice ball in her hands and tossed it to Cameron, who caught it clumsily. This was a regular test that Crystal gave to Cameron. She would give him an ice ball and just have him hold it for a few minutes. She made it with only semi-solid ice, and the goal was for him to solidify it further. He had yet to make any progress with it. Each time they had done this Cameron had, at best, made no changes to it, or, at worst, managed to turn it into a snowball made of powdery snow that fell apart in his hands.
It was a tedious exercise, but Crystal felt that it was a necessary one. Until Cameron could get solid ice down, he wasn't going to get anywhere with his powers. The first few times she had let Cameron focus solely on the task at hand and had stayed quiet. She quickly learned that this was just extremely boring for the both of them, and, if anything, Cameron's attempts were always worst when he tried to focus on it. Cameron didn't need to think about his powers, he needed to feel them.
So while Cameron tried in vain to get the ice ball to be firm and solid, Crystal would talk to him, or, even better, let him talk to her. She didn't exactly want to have friendly chats with a child, but it was better than the alternative.
"So, what was with the hoodie?" Crystal asked. Cameron frowned and became tense.
"N-nothing." He stammered and lowered his head. "I just wanted to wear it today."
"Why? We both know you don't need it." Crystal reminded him. "Why do you even have a hoodie in the first place?"
"I-I got it for school." Cameron said quietly. "Some of the other kids…" He trailed off, but she knew exactly what he was saying.
"Oh." She nodded in understanding. "They pick on you, huh?" She didn't even need an answer for that. "Why don't you just rough them up a bit and show them who's boss?"
"We're not supposed to fight in school." Cameron muttered.
"Yeah, and I'm guessing you guys are not supposed to bully each other either." Crystal pointed out. "If you really need to, just think of it as defending yourself."
"They're just saying mean things. That doesn't mean I get to hurt them." Cameron said almost automatically. Crystal rolled her eyes and reminded herself to talk to Icicle later about maybe taking Cameron out of school. All of their 'violence is never the answer' spiels were getting to Cameron's head.
"Yeah, well what about if they hurt you first?" Crystal gestured to Cameron's cheek where she could see a bruise that stood out against his pale skin. Some brat had dared to hit him, and Cameron still hadn't bothered to fight them back? Seriously, he had been brainwashed with the school's anti-violence beliefs.
Cameron's face went red and he refused to meet Crystal's eye. "That...that was somebody else." He muttered quietly.
"You mean your dad?" Crystal asked, though she didn't really believe it. Sure, Icicle shoved his son around sometimes (All the time), but that was practically common knowledge. If Icicle had beat up on his kid than Crystal would see more evidence than just a small bruise.
"No, she…" Cameron's face grew even redder and Crystal realized what he was saying.
"She? A girl did this to you?" And here Crystal thought that all little girls around Cameron's age were weaklings. "What did you do to piss her off?" Crystal knew that even little kids didn't just attack somebody for no reason at all. Not unless they were little psychopaths in the making.
"I didn't do anything." Cameron said. His voice was quiet, but not in a whimpering, shy, embarrassed kind of way. Cameron's hands began shaking. "All I did was tell her that I thought she was pretty, and she...she-" Cameron yelled out, surprising Crystal slightly, and the ice ball he was holding in his hands shattered.
"I don't get it!" Cameron screamed. There were tears in his eyes, but he didn't look particularly sad to Crystal. "I've never done anything to hurt her. I try to be nice and she just hits me and says that I'm a...a freak. Why did she do that?"
"Because she's a bitch." Crystal said, her voice kinder than she usually allowed it to be. "Look, kid, I know you cared about this chick, but my advice to you is to get over your feelings for her. It'll be easier for you in the long run." Crystal knew a thing or two about unrequited love.
Crystal knelt down so she was closer to Cameron's level. "What you need to do is find somebody who likes you because you're different, not in spite of it."
"What?" Cameron's eyes shone with confusion and Crystal had to remind herself that she was just talking with a little kid.
"Well, all you really need in a girl is that she's somebody who sees the psycho that you are, and likes you anyways, get it?" Crystal rephrased her advice. Cameron giggled ever so slightly and nodded.
"You mean like Artemis?" He asked.
"Who?" It took Crystal a moment to remember the latest word amongst the villains, that Icicle had started partnering a lot with Sportsmaster recently. Artemis must be one of Sportsmaster's daughters that she had heard about.
"Sure, like Artemis." Crystal agreed. "Just as long as she's nothing like that other chick."
"...So I should forget about the girl at school?" Cameron sniffled.
"Oh hell no." Crystal scoffed. "You need to forget about your feelings for her and get revenge against this girl. It's one thing to not return somebody's feelings, and it's another to throw it in their face. You need to show this girl just what it means to be coldhearted."
"How do I do that?" Cameron asked unsurely.
Crystal smirked and knelt down to the ground where she picked up a piece of the shattered ice ball. She showed it to Cameron. "You do the same thing you did to this." Cameron stared in shock at the ice shard that Crystal was holding. None of his previous attempts at freezing the ice ball had actually worked. They usually just melted or fell apart, but never had they been solid enough to actually shatter like proper ice. Until now.
"It looks like you tapped into your hidden anger." Crystal commented. "Now it's only a matter of time until you're able to do the cool stuff."
It took a moment for Cameron's shock to fall away. Once it did his eyes gleamed with excitement and, Crystal was pleased to see, mischief. This kid was ready to learn how he too could raise some hell.
Crystal continued on with the lesson and showed Cameron some of the more basic ice moves. She also taught him how to tap into them, other than just through anger. Sure, anger was a good base, but if he built his entire skill level off of it than he would easily lose control and be defeated.
Nearly an hour later Cameron went home with his dad. Crystal knew that she wouldn't be seeing nearly as much of Cameron, especially as he got better with his powers. The more he improved the more he would be able to figure out on his own. He wouldn't need her for very long, and god knows that Icicle wouldn't be asking for her help with the boy for any longer than necessary.
Crystal had thought that she would absolutely despise working with Cameron, and she was surprised at just how much she enjoyed it. At his core Cameron was a sweet boy, but he had a fierceness inside that wouldn't be easily stopped. And Crystal was pleased that she was no longer the only 'true' ice villain. With his powers Crystal could easily see Cameron surpassing Freeze, Cold, and Icicle. It was only a matter of time.
And, the next day when Crystal got news from Icicle that Cameron had been suspended from school because he had frozen some girl to the playground Crystal realized that that day might come sooner than she had originally thought. And she couldn't be any prouder.
A/N: Is it kinda weird that I see the ice villains as a kind of villain family thing? Kinda like The Rogues, except not nearly as close. Well, even if it is weird, this is my story, so I will base it off of whatever headcanons I want.