Recoil soared out over the city, admiring the view. His admiration didn't last long, though, because several seconds after he'd jumped off Titans' tower, the mission impossible theme started playing in his pocket. He withdrew a slim black communicator and flipped it open. The screen blinked on, showing a girl's face glaring back at him.

"Hello, Flashback," she said in a fluttery voice. He shuddered.

"Hey there Maria," he mumbled into the communicator. "How's it going?"

"What did you just call me?"

"Uh…"

"LISTEN UP, PUNK!" she screeched, "YOU CALL ME SERAPHIC, GOT IT!?"

"Oh, don't they still call you 'Shellshock'?"

"I'm warning you…"

"Oh, I feel warned." Recoil's confidence always returned when he remembered that Seraphic was far away. When she was around, he usually let her get away with calling him his old name from the academy. Just then, a slash of red energy split the sky, impaled his left wing with a dull thud.

"Feel warned, kid." The communicator growled. Recoil groaned. She must be somewhere in the city. There was a red light coming up toward him now. Why does she always materialize bat wings?

Snapping shut her communicator, Seraphic gained altitude, fast. When she was level with him, she stared the newbie in the eye until he looked away. He knew better than to break the silence.

"Nice wings." She smirked.

"Thank you so very much for that wonderful complement!"

"I swear, someday…"

"Can this conversation end on the ground?"

Seraphic's eyes widened in surprise, and she blinked her left eye into another spectrum. "You really overdid it, didn't you? You know, you could have beaten him without using it. Maybe."

"Coming from you, that means a lot. I'm going to land now."

"Get down." She ordered him unnecessarily. She knew it bugged him, taking orders. Two sets of energy wings shattered and the pieces melted into their owners' backs. The two teens angled straight down, standing peacefully on the invisible platform of wind resistance. Seraphic's feet made a sizeable dent in the concrete of the dock. Recoil's didn't leave a scratch; it just wasn't his style.

"So, it's been awhile, and I know you're dying to go eat somewhere with me. There's a pizza place downtown."

"Wow, I'd completely forgotten about it. Good thing you reminded me, or I might've gotten away before you asked."

"Well, I know you, don't I? I'm your friend, and friends look after each other."

"I'm humbled by your selflessness."

"You should be."

"If you're my friend, how come you won't let me make my own decisions?"

"Friends don't let friends make mistakes and get hurt."

"I don't make mistakes, remember? Let's go!"

"..."

Help, help, I'm being detained against my will!

"I heard that."

Conversations with Seraphic usually went like this. Recoil hadn't seen her for almost a year, but he found the conversation fell perfectly into their old routine. Good times… sort of.

Seraphic reached out and pressed her hand to his chest. He stiffened for an instant, remembering what had happened the first time she'd done it. He relaxed as soon as the memory passed, but she'd caught his moment of hesitation.

"Still don't trust me? Good. Now, 3-2-1-hit!" She always counted so fast! Recoil opened his eyes and took in the view around him. The pizza parlor stood in front, shaped like a slice of pizza. Many of the surrounding buildings were skyscrapers. This was downtown Jump City, the nexus of a thriving economy. They were only about a quarter mile away, so it hadn't really been necessary for her to do that. As he looked around, Seraphic strode towards the restaurant. At the back of his mind, he knew something wasn't right. There was something in her voice that he'd never heard there before, something almost sad. When she said, "Still don't trust me" He mulled it over for a moment, made his decision. Here goes nothing.

A few seconds later, he came through the front door. Seraphic considered him for a second, her head cocked slightly to the side. She winked her left eye, and he grimaced.

"You used it again just now, didn't you?" she demanded.

"Used what?"

She felt the anger rising, combined with something else…but she didn't bother to study it. Calm down. He is not a cockroach and you will not squish him! For some reason, that mantra always worked best when she needed to fight back her anger. It worked now. She blinked, and her eyes were both the same shade of brown again. Recoil noticed the change and nodded. Off the hook! Still, I didn't even get much that time. She's…acting weird.

---

"Recoil."

"Yeah?" he answered cheerfully. A massive pizza lay on the table between them, engrossed in the act of being devoured. He silently saluted her pizza-ordering skills. I hope the cashier doesn't develop emotional issues.

"I…need to ask you something." This was definitely not Seraphic talking to him.

"Uh, yeah?" he answered blankly.

"Can I…" "…May I…" "…uh…"

He waited patiently, but she returned to her slice of pizza.

"Yes, Maria?"

"JUST KEEP USING THAT NAME, SEE WHAT--" she caught herself. "I mean, Dear 'Recoil,' please don't call me that all the time." All the freaking time…

'Dear Recoil'? he wondered. This was embarrassing. She felt it too.

"Look, I was thinking while you were away, and I just figured the next time I saw you, I'd, um, ask you for something."

"Yeeeeessss…?" he prompted. She'd probably feel more comfortable if he acted sarcastic, he figured. Stupid, yes, but luckily she wasn't really listening to him.

I can't believe how hard this is. Stupid kid. Only, she didn't actually think of him as a kid anymore. She'd called him that for years, but he was actually two years older than her. Apparently, nobody had realized that letting him use his unique ability a lot when he was young would slow down his growth. As a result, he'd been forced to enter the academy with a class that was three years younger than himself, and one year behind her and most of the agents they worked with. He must have barely used it this past year, to have caught up so much. Now he was about 2.471 inches taller than she was, she'd estimated earlier, with her left eye. Should I start hovering two or three inches off the ground, or just let him be taller than me? she wondered, seriously considering both options. Her thoughts were broken before she could decide.

"Soooo, is your sudden retreat into introspection an unconscious attempt to escape a situation where you feel uncomfortable?" Recoil asked.

"No."

"I knew it. So what's up? What is it that you want to ask me for?"

She sighed. "I wanted to ask you…if I can have your seal." There, I said it. Simple.

Recoil froze, uncomfortable. There's no way she means marriage, so it must be… He knew what she was talking about, and it left him a little shaken. Allowing seriousness to take over, he leaned forward and looked her in the eye.

"You do know what that means, right?"

She looked down but said nothing. Was she blushing? Seraphic? Seraphic, blushing? No way.

"Look, the only person I've ever given it to was my captain, who then gave his to 'Jack'."

"…"

"Our fearless leader is always talking about how he can't stand it, but he's under orders to have it on!"

"…"

"Like today, do you realize how annoyed he'll be next time I see him? I had to use it at least a dozen times in that fight back there. Anyone wearing the seal would've been tearing their hair out with frustration."

"…"

"And… And… Well… Uh, that's all, I guess. Nobody's ever asked for my seal, just…because, you know?"

"It would mean you could never use your stupid trick on me again."

"Uh, yeah, there's that…"

"So will you make me one?"

Recoil felt a little trapped. Seraphic was acting a lot scarier than usual, even though she wasn't threatening to tear him limb from limb. He noticed her almost waist-length black hair was lying perfectly flat. Normally he didn't pay much attention to it, but he always felt accomplished when the tips of her hair began to spike upward. That meant he or another agent had made her mad, a worthy goal, it had always seemed. The effect of it lying perfectly straight was kind of eerie, but somehow it made her look more attractive than he remembered her being before. Still, there was no way he was going to make a seal for her. And why would she ask, after all this time? When it came down to it, he realized he wasn't nearly as comfortable with her knowing when he used his power as he'd thought. But she was acting so… sincere!

Seraphic suddenly leaned forward. "You're using it right now!" she accused.

He felt a pang of guilt. She was wrong; he hadn't used it on her yet, but he'd been about to. There has to be a way to get out of this. I just have to find it. Sorry, Seraphic.

"Yes," he answered. "No point hiding it now."

Her mind raced. Okay, I have to beat him. I have to be willing to do it, no matter what. He' won't actually let it happen, but if he thinks he can change my mind, he'll do it.

Recoil hesitated for a moment. She was planning something. What a relief! I'd much rather face her in a battle of wills than deal with all that emotional…stuff.

"So, I've asked you, haven't I?" her voice was shrill, bordering a powerful rage that he didn't think was really there.

"Yes, and I said no." his voice wavered, but she knew that when he used his ability, he never felt nervous.

"Well then, I'll just subject you to a lot of pain until you say yes."

"I know you won't do that."

"You can say that, and I can choose whether to believe you or not."

"You can pretend, but what's the point?"

"So what'll you do? Leave?"

"Yeah, probably."

"And if I don't let you?"

"I could get away."

"No, you couldn't. Trust me."

"I can make you let me go." He hit a nerve with that one, because it was probably true.

"That's all there is to it, eh?"

"What do you mean?" She'd actually said something he didn't expect.

"That's how you see people, isn't it?" her voice grew slightly panicked.

"No, I don't."

"Listen to yourself! 'I can make people to do anything!' what, you think you should be in control of everybody else?"

"Stop. That's enough." This wasn't fun anymore. Seraphic's voice sounded more hurt than angry now. Her hair had been pointy for a minute there but now it lay down again.

"'Stop, That's enough'!" she mimicked. "You want to make me, right? Is that how you see me as well?" Was she really faking that pained edge in her voice?

"You know how it works: I don't control any-"

"Stop it! Just stop it, okay? I don't want you to manipulate me with words. Do you have any idea what that feels like?"

Recoil bit back his response, then realized he didn't have one.

"And then, when you actually do shut up, I still wonder, 'what if he's just doing that to manipulate me some more?' Why do you do this to me, Recoil?"

Recoil stood to leave. He hadn't left a conversation without finishing it in almost a year. The last time he'd been talking to Seraphic as well, but this time was much worse. Seraphic looked up at him, and he was sure he imagined a tear in her eye, not enough to escape and flow down her cheek, but there. He had to have imagined it.

"There're so many layers, I'm sick of it. Don't walk away and come back tomorrow when I'm feeling better, give me an answer now!"

He'd had enough. Recoil turned back around, translating his other emotions into anger as best he could. "Seraphic, don't you understand?" he shouted. "I'm nothing without this." She blinked in surprise.

"Do you even know where I get my energy? Do you?" he quivered slightly. "Our 'leader' gives it to me, okay? I don't trick him into it, I don't-, I don't steal it from him with some kind of word manipulation. He siphons it into seals and transfers them into my body. Do you know why?" She shook her head. Her eyes were wide open surprise, but dry.

"Because your body can produce more energy in five minutes than mine does in a week! I'm a Tracian, okay? Did you think I have more energy than every other Tracian? If I didn't have this one ability, I'd be someone's damsel in distress, and in case you haven't noticed, I'm a guy!"

That was the turning point: Seraphic burst out laughing. Her timing was somewhere between awful and perfect, and Recoil managed to give her the benefit of the doubt. The tension melted from both of them and evaporated as he started laughing along with her. No matter what else, she's still Seraphic. Recoil mused. She has that one trait I've never seen in another girl: she doesn't enjoy staying upset. Perfection in the form of a violent harpy…

Perfection? Why did I just think that?

"Okay, you win, kid." Seraphic stood up and smiled. "You have me beaten when it comes to pained, feminine emotions. Be proud in that knowledge."

"Ouch. Your words are sharper than your fingernails."

"Not likely."

"Oh, by the way, what are you doing here? I'm only supposed to meet Jack, and that's not for a week or two. Are you coming with us?"

Seraphic smirked. "You'd like that, wouldn't you? No, I'm actually on a tracking mission. I was sweeping the country as part of my first mission and I detected an unregistered nagori seal on someone, so I get to go undercover! As a high-school student! I can't wait!"

"…"

"What?"

"Don't hurt anyone."

"Okay, I'll try."

There was a moment of uncomfortable silence. A quick glance around showed Seraphic that people weren't watching anymore. Recoil hadn't even noticed…

"Hey, Seraphic?"

"Yeah, what?"

"After I pass my test, okay?"

"What?"

"I'll be using my ability a lot, to get Robin's mask. Once I get it, I'll make you a seal."

"How long will that take?"

"I'd give it a month."

"A month? No way, make it a week."

"I can't do it in a week!"

"Then two weeks."

"Three weeks, at least."

"Okay. I'll come find you in three weeks."

"Huh?"

"By then you'll have passed your test and you won't have any problem giving me a seal, right?"

"Sure, I guess." Her hair's all pointy! She isn't mad, is she?

"Unless you don't want to…" her hair flopped down, lifeless.

"No, I was just thinking that three weeks was a long time, you know? It's been months since I've seen you and all…Maybe we could hang out sometime sooner?"

"So just call me, idiot." With that, Seraphic stretched her scary-looking bat wings out of her back and leapt straight up. A handful of people on the street below pointed and shouted. Just before she flew behind a skyscraper, she winked out of sight.

Recoil sighed. The truth was, he'd used his power again, there at the end. He remembered how much he always used to do it at the academy, and before. I sure paid the price then, but nobody knows for sure what'll happen now that I'm older. I'm an unprecedented case. He strode over to the table and grabbed the last slice of pizza, stuffing a third of it in his mouth. He walked over, put his hands on the waist-high barrier of the pizza parlor's second level, hoisted himself up onto it. Now, how did he always do that? After thinking for a minute, he vaulted off the edge. Straightening his body, he flipped his legs over the rest of his body and spun. Feet from the ground, he realized he wouldn't be able to land it properly. He stopped inches off the ground, staring straight at it. Everyone was looking at him; it was quite embarrassing, but he didn't care. He sighed. Sorry Zephyr, I'm not leaving until I get it right.

…Three weeks…I guess that steps up my schedule, only a lot. Nothing to worry about…

Call her, eh?