A/N: Now that that embarrassment's out of the way, let's move on to other embarrassments! …Why does Miss Militia have to be sane? I thought Worm was about people fundamentally incapable of facing their own problems…wait, we meet Shadow Stalker later this arc. Nevermind.
Usurper 1.3
What struck me most about Miss Militia-or should I say Hannah?-was how…not intimidating she was up close.
I guessed that was the reason she was sent to recruit new Wards. The other therapist I had, between the two weeks of Yamada's visits, was more than a bit unsure of what to do with me, as his specialty was depression rather than capes, but he had a refreshing amount of common sense regarding parahumans. I knew enough about Armsmaster through research he advised to know that the erstwhile leader of Brockton Bay's capes was the kind of person you consulted if you wanted to make the Protectorate seem very unappealing. Dragon, besides being Canadian, was an agoraphobic who communicated with the world through her remote suits; warm and charismatic, but definitely not with the human touch through her viewscreens and armor. Beyond that, there weren't that many recognizable sponsored capes around Brockton Bay (to wit, I learned one called himself Chubster, and I think that would have stuck in my mind if there was a big news report on him).
On the other hand, you would expect the woman whose entire power was to create guns would be…more aggressive, maybe? More like her power?
Not that I minded, but still.
"No bull, please," I cut off a particularly friendly remark. "I know you're trying to be nice, but I really don't need the snakes' running commentary."
She looked utterly taken aback. "But I was saying-"
"That I'd be able to live as close to a normal life as possible?" I gave a rather caustic laugh. "Sorry, but I don't need hypersensitive snake hairs-slash-detective tools to tell me that you don't honestly think I'll be able to have a life outside being a hero, or even get a resemblance to the old one." I tapped a brown, unmuzzled head for emphasis, having taken off the tape at Hannah's asking as a gesture of her openness. "As it is, you're just distracting with the smell of you trying to be polite. No offense."
She paused for a moment, as I realized that this kind of thing probably wouldn't happen if I was honest about my powers beforehand and oh look at the pretty monarch pin.
"Speaking of which…you say you think those…"
"Medusas. I call them Medusas."
"Makes sense. Those Medusas smell sins? Why do they detect people being polite? I mean you consciously control them, right?"
"You saw the CAT scans?"
"Yes, I did."
"Well, you know the Medusas have their own nervous system and brains?" I pulled one out, a surprisingly long distance. Pity they weren't poisonous, though I could probably use them as part of a grapple. "The theory is that, when the CAT scans are fully examined, they're going to find more than just a lizard brain up there. Dr. Adler did some tests a couple days ago, and she says they show self-awareness and the ability to coordinate themselves, like dogs. One tried to clean off a dot an orderly painted on its nose, and when that didn't work another came over to help." I let it crawl back in. "Dr. Adler told me about the Corona, and they think the snakes are my version. Since it seems that personality influences power, I think it might be because they're stuck in the state I was during my...event," I finished lamely, trying to avoid the memories.
Hannah followed along. "And they're paranoid and easily upset."
"And they seem to work off the idea I judge everything I wouldn't like on general principle, no matter the reason," I said as I sighed and looked at my uncovered talons. "Don't know why I turned into a Case 53 though-"
"You didn't."
"Eh?"
"Case 53s are actually a lot worse off than you. The only personal memories they have is their name, if that. You, on the other hand, have a very loving and supportive father who put you in infrastructure designed to support you when the mutation became overwhelming."
...So I was still massively screwed over by my power, but at least I was luckier than the other guys? I didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
"And in any case," she said as she adjusted her scarf, "the Wards don't discriminate. The Boston team is led by a Case 53, and as mentioned, you aren't one."
"…What does he look like?"
"I refuse to answer that question on the basis that your Medusas may incriminate me."
I chuckled despite myself. "In any case, I don't miss my old life very much. About the closest thing I had to a friend betrayed me to befriend this girl with this crap law-of-the-jungle philosophy. Then, just when I get back to school, she acts like it was no big deal, I'm a predator too, let's be friends. Then my snakes activate, and I accidentally bring up her mother's boyfriend, and-"
"Um, pardon my asking, but who is this student?"
I looked up at a suddenly very concerned Miss Militia.
"Sophia Hess? The track team and swimming ur-bitch?"
Now she looked utterly mortified. "You...wouldn't happen to have gone to Winslow, would you?"
It was my time to be alarmed. "Yes?"
She opened her mouth, then closed it again before looking away.
She then looked back, looking very sympathetic. The kind of sympathy that one has for someone you just realized is the kicked dog of fate.
"Even if you couldn't tell if I was lying, I wouldn't. You may also want to sit down, because you aren't going to like this."
I did so, willing the monarch pin to become larger and larger in my mind's eye.
"Shoot away, no pun intended."
She told me.
The monarch pin became more of an inferno pin.
Both Hannah and I agreed that I probably needed a few minutes to calm down from "hovering through the power of pure rage while screeching a long stream of profanity that could be heard by the Simurgh" mode.
Still breathing heavily, I exited the interview room, trying very hard to think of swallowtails again. In the theater of my mind, they all shoved their way down Sophia's throat, causing her to suffocate to death despite going immaterial. Probably not what Yamada had intended, but definitely satisfying.
Speaking of Yamada, she and Dad were rushing over, having heard (and possibly be rendered partially deaf) by my tirade.
"What happened, honey?"
"Miss Militia just told me who Shadow Stalker is."
"And?"
I collapsed on a chair. "Her real name is Sophia Hess."
It took all of two seconds for Yamada to put the pieces together from my interviews, before giving me a sympathetic hug, gingerly avoiding the acid tears. "Oh God. I'm so sorry."
"Wait, who's Sophia Hess?" Dad looked utterly befuddled.
"The worst bully in school," I said dully.
It took all of five seconds for him to connect the dots himself. If I didn't know any better, I would say he spontaneously triggered with the ability to turn purple. "Taylor, please forgive me," he said as he calmly (too calmly) walked to the door of Hannah's temporary office, and gingerly closed the door. A minute later, you could tell where I got it from.
I tried to return the hug, but mine was more of a touch. I was still too spent from raging at a cruel and spiteful God and His legion of snickering angels.
She eventually broke the ice. "Taylor, nobody will blame you if you don't want to work with her-"
"That's the thing though, isn't it!?" My energy returned. "Here I am, wanting to fulfill my promise to Mom, and do something actually good for a change instead of rot on the exact freaking bottom of the school hierarchy, all ready to join a team and be happy and have friends for once in my life, and guess who's in the Legion of Superfriends? Sophia FUCKING Hess!" I broke free of her embrace and punched a wall to avoid hitting Yamada instead. The talon-scale absorbed the hit, and actually made a scratch in the tile. If I weren't ready to become a multiple murderer yet, I would have probably noted that more consciously. "I wanted to become a Ward to escape her and all of her bullshit, but nooo, it turns out she's our anti-Endbringer cape! Who's to say the rest of the Wards aren't like her, huh!? Who's to say they won't join fun activities of shitting on the snake-haired, bat-winged…bird-taloned…acid-crying…"
No, no, no, don't cry, don't cry, and now I was crying. Damn it.
"…Freak…."
I sank to the floor, ignoring the sizzling as real tears washed out my acid ones onto the floor.
It wasn't fair. It wasn't fair.
I felt a hand on the back of my back. Not Yamada's. Dimly, I registered the owner's screaming had stopped.
"Hey Dad," I said quietly.
"Hey Taylor," he said hoarsely. Apparently he was even louder than I thought.
"If I may intrude…" I heard Yamada's heels come up, then my Dad's hand move over slightly to let Yamada's in.
Slowly, I felt myself stop shuddering, then rise to my feet. I took out the monarch pin again and begin to rub it, letting the one in my mind flit about imaginary flowers to calm myself down.
When I felt safe, I let myself put the scenario together. First, I remembered just how much the Wards seemed to despise Sophia as much as I did. That cleared up one paranoid objection to the idea of joining.
Second, I thought back to her words that day. I remembered what she said about good predators protecting their herds. I still thought it was a loathsome philosophy from an even more loathsome person, but my Medusas were working at that stage, and I didn't get the sense she was lying. So she did honestly think of herself as a hero, albeit one with the most fitting "anti-"prefix imaginable.
Thirdly, I still felt terrible about bringing up her stepdad (in-all-but-name). I had learned long ago about trigger events (thank you, Yamada), and I had a sneaking suspicion that I brought up the worst moment of her life. So I really wasn't that differahahahaha I couldn't think that with a straight face.
But still, she may have been a bitch, she was still a heroine, just a brutal one. I could swallow my distaste for her and not cost the Wards a much-needed member or two. Besides, it wasn't like she locked me in a locker and left me to die or anything, right?
…I didn't put it past her, but I was willing to give her the benefit of the doubt.
Thanking my father (and the woman I increasingly viewed as a mother-figure) I rose to my feet, and steeling myself, went back into Hannah's room.
"I'm still joining," I said bluntly.
Hannah, looking more than a bit frazzled after being treated to the infamous secret art of the Hebert Clan Rant twice over, looked up in surprise. "You're not angry about Shadow Stalker?"
"Actually, yes I am, but I'm a reasonable person," I said evenly through clenched teeth, speaking from the impromptu speech I had made for myself. "I recognize that she is a relatively effective Ward in her own right, complete lack of worth at being a human being notwithstanding, so I am willing to begrudge her continued existence. If the rumor on Parahumans Online is correct about her reason for recruitment, she may even help save our asses from, I don't know, Behemoth someday. However," I said as I leaned on her desk. "We're going to have to agree on some terms first."
"If you want her or you to be reassigned, I can arrange-"
"No, not that." I breathed in, wanting to get the whole thing out in one go. "Let me make this clear; I do not like Sophia Hess. I am not liked by Sophia Hess. Sophia Hess and I despise each other with the fury of a sun that has not slept for the past week. Ergo, I wish to see as little of Sophia Hess as possible, and she likewise."
"Therefore, I ask that if I join the Wards, that I be kept as far away from Sophia as possible. Apart from the introduction and inevitable blowout between us, I do not want to have scheduled training at the same time and/or room as Sophia, I do not want to be put on patrols where Sophia is one of the members of the team, and if possible be dispatched far ahead of or behind Sophia so we do not encounter each other on the job and possibly try to strangle each other. Am. I. Clear?"
The fact that this speech was from a fourteen-year old girl probably didn't make it sound as serious as I wanted it to be, so I let my Medusas fan out with that last punctuation, along with my wings. I felt my claws dig into the desk.
Much to my surprise, it seemed to work. "U-Understood. I'll send the application to Director Piggot. A bit premature, but welcome to the Wards."
"Okay, good." I let both snakes and wings drop, yanking out my talons as well. "Sorry about the 'irate demon' act, it's just that…I really don't like her."
"I…guessed. Just…don't do that again, please? You could get Iblis himself to shut up with that pose."
Iblis: The Islāmic Devil, and known for whispering ill suggestions into the hearts of man as that job.
Ouch. And…actually really impressive, come to think of it, especially from Hannah. Given the Medusas' abilities, I was bound for being an interrogator anyway, so I probably needed to augment my lie detector with the ability to play bad cop even better. Yes, and practice getting mad on command to drip acid to really make it effective, maybe tell a few invented stories of the last guy that pissed me off, and-
I caught a sudden sin-scent. Tasted like bullying. But Hannah hadn't….
Oh.
Oh God.
Think monarch, think monarch, think monarch…
As I calmed down from the potential guilty breakdown, I realized that actually wasn't a way my power screwed me over. If anything, it prevented me from turning into another Sophia. Good Medusa.
I hoped and prayed that I wouldn't wake up one day and find I gotten used to my scent, like I had with the minor stink I encountered every day.
"Are you sure about this?" my Dad asked me for the tenth time.
"See previous answers," I said, rolling my eyes. I had resolved that at least part of this was going to go badly, but at least I had plotted out the possible paths with how badly it was going to go and felt ready for most of them. "I'm as ready as I'll ever be."
"No really, are you sure? Because I'll go in if you-"
"No, no, this is something I have to do myself. I can't have a secret identity when the entire school knows I was found shivering in a bush with a snake growing out of my head, let alone all this." I gestured to my wings and arms. "You'll be granted housing in a PRT-patrolled neighborhood, I'll have plenty of time to unload whatever crap life throws me in there, thank you."
"O…kay," he said, obviously unconvinced. "But if you need anything, just call, right?"
"If I'm not too mad to speak, I will." I smiled ruefully. "See you later Dad. Love you."
'Love you too, Taylor."
I got out, in my "hunchback" disguise (depressingly, I found that caused people to avoid looking at me, if they at all noticed), and took a look at the PRT building, which was…a building. A heavily reinforced one, but it was a normal building otherwise.
I hoped this was worth it. But even if it wasn't-at least I tried.
A/N: Notice anything new about the formatting? Trying double spacing this time.
Also, the part I have dreaded is coming up-writing Emily Piggot, especially given how Taylor can taste her prejudices and reluctance to interact with an obviously monstrous cape. Any tips?