Disclaimer - Don't own it.
Screams came from the bus as it teetered over the cliff. Jesse felt her power humming through her as she saw the tendrils of her whispers emerge around her, immediately delving into the ground beneath her. Vines burst up through the dry ground, answering her call. She began wrapping them around the bus when it was suddenly lifted off the cliff in its entirety, only to be set down completely on the ground well away from the edge. Jesse powered down, the vines all but melting back into the ground, and made her way over to the perpetrator of the lifting. Once again, she saw The Captain floating in midair, waving to the cheering bus-riders. As he made his way over to where she was, Jesse scowled.
"What do you think you're doing, Captain?" Jesse said. "This is my territory."
"I know, I know," he said sheepishly. "I just saw the trouble and thought I'd offer a helping hand.
"I had it under control," Jesse said. She adjusted the brown mask she wore over her eyes and deepened her scowl as the two set off towards the flashing cameras.
"Captain, Captain!" one of the reporters shouted, causing the whole group to begin thrusting mikes in his face. "This is the third time you've been in Centropolis this week. Are you planning on making it a habit?"
"I'm only here on vacation," he said, smile plastered on his lips and hands on his hips. "I heard a cry for help and, couldn't stay away."
"Outlaw," said another reporter, causing the mikes to turn towards Jesse, "how do you feel about this breach of territory?"
Jesse made certain to keep the scowl on her carefully painted lips, though she turned her face so as to make her wide-brimmed hat cast a shadow over her face. "You all know I'm never one to turn down a helping hand, especially when it comes to the safety of the citizens of our beautiful city. Why, just a few weeks ago The Commander and Jetstream stopped by to help me land Tidal behind bars," she growled.
The reporters were still taking down notes as Jesse and The Captain walked away. They made their way into the front of a non-descript van before dropping the façade altogether.
"Seriously, Stronghold," Jesse said from the passenger seat, pulling off her hat and neckerchief. "What are you doing all the way out here?"
"Just what I said," he replied from the driver's seat. "I've been here on vacation." He pulled the van out of the deserted parking lot and lifted off and they made their way back to the city. Luckily, the simple cloaking device kept out prying eyes.
"So, if you're here, I can assume the others are watching over Maxville?" Jesse asked, pulling off the facemask. Will nodded.
"Warren, Layla and Ethan forced me into this vacation," he said, frowning. Jesse wiped the sweat from her brow as they made their way to the building she owned. They opened the hatch in the roof and used the vertical thrusters to make the landing. "They said I needed a break from the stress."
"So you decided to come here and encroach on my territory behind their backs?" Jesse said as they hopped out of the van. She pulled the band from her jet-black hair, allowing it to cascade down her back.
"Maybe," Will said sheepishly. He stepped behind a screen and quick-changed back into his normal clothes. Jesse laughed at his word.
"Like they're not going to find out eventually," Jesse said. Her laughter stopped. "How are they, anyway?"
"You mean since you left?" Will asked as Jesse quick-changed out of the brown leather poncho and chaps and simple white shirt that made up her costume. She gave him a serious look as she stepped out from behind the screen wearing jeans and a tank top. "You were missed at the wedding, you know."
"Brent and I were on a distress call," she said in her defense. "Ethan and Magenta didn't mind, did they?"
"Nah," Will said as they made their way to her apartment on the ground floor. "How is old Kinetico these days?"
"He was the reason for the distress call. Now he's serving time down at Centropolis Penitentiary," Jesse said with a nonchalance that defied the not so old hurt in her.
"What?!" Will exclaimed in astonishment. "But he was your partner!"
"Believe me, I know," Jesse said. By this time, they were in the living room of her apartment. Jesse collapsed on the couch as Will made himself comfortable on the recliner.
"So what happened?" Will asked.
"The usual," Jesse said. "Decided Hero work didn't pay enough and held the city ransom. I had to take him out." Jesse shuddered.
"I'm so sorry," Well said, leaning forward in his seat. "You could've called us. We would've helped."
"I managed on my own," Jesse said defensively. "Besides, I wasn't going to interrupt Magenta's wedding unless I really needed your help."
"Have they assigned you a new partner yet?" Will asked. Jesse let out a bark of laughter, totally catching Will off guard.
"After all that I've done for the people of this city in the two years that I've been here, they had the nerve to tell me that they wanted a new team in here, which meant I had to leave." Will's eyebrows raised in shock.
"But that was three months ago!" he said. "You're still here, so what happened?"
"Oh," Jesse said, "my usual stubbornness. I refused to leave, so they just have us working together when the situation demands it."
"Who've they got stationed here?" Will asked.
"Frost Witch and Rock Beast," Jesse said. "They actually work quite well together, when there's something I don't have time to do."
"You know," he said, "you could come back to Maxville."
Before Jesse could retort, the phone rang. She ran into the kitchen and grabbed the portable phone off its base. She came back into the living room holding it to her shoulder. "It's for you," she said, extending it to him. He got out of his seat and took it from her.
"Hello?" he said, wondering who would think to ask for him here.
"What were you thinking?!" came Layla's shriek from the other end of the line. "You're supposed to be on vacation, not saving busses from cliffs! You know you could really get caught on those territorial statutes!"
"Calm down, Layla," he said. "I'm fine, and nothing's gonna happen about the statutes. The resident hero isn't one of those that really worries about those kind of rules." He could hear Layla's exasperated sigh.
"So not the point, Will," she said. She knew she would get nowhere, so she changed the subject. "Have you talked her into coming back yet?"
"What?" Will asked. "Oh, no, not yet. Why?"
"Well," Layla said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world, "we do need a new team member."
"I'll see what I can do," he said before hanging up the phone. He handed it back to Jesse.
"What was that all about?" Jesse asked, returning to her spot on the couch. A long furred tabby cat came out of nowhere and curled itself up on her lap. She absentmindedly scratched it behind the ears.
"Layla wants you back in Maxville," Will said. "Permanently. She says we need a new team member while she's out of commission."
"She's out of commission?" Jesse said, sitting up straighter. "What happened and why didn't anyone tell me sooner?"
"You've been a little incommunicado lately," Will said, looking pointedly at her as he returned to his seat. "Where've you been, anyway?" Jesse shook her head.
"Had a small family of villains that I had to infiltrate," she said.
"But that's impossible, unless you're already part of the family!" Will exclaimed.
"Yes, well, that's neither here nor there," Jesse said, bringing her legs up onto the couch next to her. A look of shock came over Will's face as the truth dawned on him.
"Your parents broke out again, right here under your nose?" he asked, his shock seeping into his voice.
"I handled it before it got too out of hand," Jesse said, her face a mask. "They're back in the Penitentiary."
"So how are you feeling about all of this?" Will asked. Jesse sighed, but was interrupted as a small girl with hair almost too bright for words came running into the room. Jesse felt as if her world was shattering around her as she stood up.
"Mommy mommy mommy!" the child said, hugging Jesse's knee. The girl saw Will and froze. "Who's that?" she said, pointing at him
"That's an old friend of Mommy's," Jesse said as Will's face remained covered in shock. Jesse's employee came in looking for the girl.
"Evangeline, you rascal," the elderly woman said as she walked into the room. "You know better than to run from me."
"Here you go, Anita," Jesse said, picking the child up and handing her to Anita.
"Bye-bye, Mommy," Evangeline said as the white-haired woman carried her out. "Bye-bye, Mr. Man." Evangeline waved to Will as the two left the room. He turned to Jesse once more.
"Is she… who I think she is?" Will asked. Jesse tried to inconspicuously study his shoes. "Jesse! Is she Zack's?"
"Evie is mine," she said, her eyes blazing as she looked up at him. "nobody is going to take her away from me." A look came over Will's face as something dawned on him.
"She's why you left, isn't she?" Will asked. Jesse nodded, looking down again. "Does Zack know?" She shook her head, still looking at the ground.
"What was I supposed to tell him, Will?" she said, still looking down. "We never even officially started dating, and then we got in that huge argument. I left Maxville and we haven't talked since." She looked up, but still couldn't meet Will's gaze. "When I found out I was pregnant, I had no idea what to do. For the obvious reasons, I couldn't go to my parents for advice, and I was still mad a Zack, so I couldn't ask any of your parents for help without word getting back to him, so I hired Anita and, after Evie was born, I petitioned the Council to start working here."
Will shook his head at her. "And did you ever stop to think that we all missed you? You were like a daughter to Mom and Dad and a sister to me. And, not a month went by that Zack had decided he was an idiot and you were right." Jesse finally met his gaze and sighed.
"I'm an imbecile," she said, the corners of her mouth turning up.
"Can I take that as an 'I guess I can move back to Maxville' statement?" Will asked, smiling back. Jesse sighed again.
"You're parents still got a couple of spare rooms until I can find an apartment?" Jesse asked, her smile turning into a full blast grin. Will scooped her up into a hug and spun them around. Jesse laughed and smacked his shoulder. "I'll take that as a yes," she said as Will set her down.