Angel: Hello everyone! Found out something interesting about Stu's voice actor, Timothy Simons. He is also on Rise of TMNT as Huginn! Which is another story I'm currently writing, though I think it won't return from their hiatus until after Sonic the Hedgehog comes out…
Small world, huh?
Hana is sitting in front of Basemax, who has a four column chart spread out on her. The others are sitting behind her in their hover chairs. "Okay, so Basemax and I have complied this villain chart to determine who's behind the recent events. We separated it by means, motive, and opportunity. I also made a list of who couldn't have done it for obvious reasons."
"You should put the Moles on there!" Fred points up at Basemax.
"Why would they do it?" Hana raises a brow at him.
"Because they're evil!"
She rolls her eyes. "I have been instructed to not include Richardson and Robertson Mole."
"But...evil!" Fred insists to Basemax and Hana.
"Freddy, they can't make trackers..." Honey Lemon chimes in. "Well, maybe not Richardson."
"Besides, they haven't met Mikey anyway. Just because they're your enemies doesn't mean they're supervillains," Hiro shakes his head slowly.
"So Obake, Callaghan, Globby...Di...Momakase, Steamer, Yama, Mr. Ludd, Orso Knox, Sirque, Supersonic Sue, and High Voltage couldn't have done it," GoGo crosses her arms as she looks at the X marks over their pictures. "They're either in jail, or reformed, or don't have a grudge against Hana, or...well..."
There's a brief silence before Honey Lemon speaks up. "Well...let's start with the means: who could've done the crime."
They look up at Basemax as she moves away the 'Didn't Do It' column. "The reason why I put Steamer in the innocent column is because he doesn't use the technology necessary for a tracker or for a photo. Anyone else is fair game."
"What about Mr. Sparkles? He could have planted that tracker and gotten the photo," Hiro looks at the screen as his picture pops up.
"Maybe, but that's not his style," Wasabi points out. "He would've revealed himself by now if he did. He doesn't hide his plans."
"And he'd need someone to build the tracker for him too..."
"Next," Hana waves it off.
"Noodle Burger Boy's planted trackers before!" Fred exclaims, pointing a finger. "Trina could have asked him to!"
"The point of the photo was to warn not only Hana, but Cruz too to get Mikey away," GoGo glances away. "If both of them are supposed to be connected, why would Trina or Noodle Burger Boy even bother with him?"
"They haven't met him either," Honey Lemon frowns a little. "So it'd be weird for her to try and separate them..."
"Not unless Noodle Burger Boy had been tracking her for a while now with it," Hiro holds up the tracker.
"Nope," They turn to Hana, who shakes her head. "Baymax confirmed that the tracker wasn't there until I brought my suit home for dry cleaning."
"The device was not implemented until before Hana read Fred's message," Baymax shows an animation of the tracker being planted.
"And they don't know where the Lucky Cat is...but what if a drone was involved to come in through the Lucky Cat without being detected?" Hiro turns to look at her. "That seems like something either of them would do."
"Them and any other possible suspects!" Hana exclaims at him.
"We've got a lot of sorting to do, then..."
"I'll go make a Noodle Burger run!" Fred sits up and grabs his suit.
Hana sighs slowly at her phone. She took a picture of their chart.
Means: Trina, Noodle Burger Boy, Mel Meyer, Hardlight, and Mad Jacks
Motive: Trina, Noodle Burger Boy, and Hardlight
"We're almost there," Honey Lemon places a hand on her shoulder.
"Thanks. I'm gonna take it apart and see if I can find any more clues," Hana holds up the tracker, eyeing it.
A fast moving ball of something breaks a billboard, rolling along the rooftops of San Fransokyo. It lands on a car and then heads for the forest. It finally reaches the destination: a maximum security prison. The ball is actually a person with armor similar to that of Supersonic Sue, and he has blonde hair.
"Okay. You're a sharp dresser," He adjusts his belt. He puts on breath spray. "You smell great. Everyone says you're as smart as a bag of hammers! You've got this."
He rubs his knuckles together, speeding up his skates. He flips and then super spins to break all of the doors and into a wall, but only his head gets in. "Oh! Oh, man..." He looks to his left and sees a rat staring at him from on top of the toilet. "Nana! Come on!"
"Over here, Stu~!" She sings from his right. Supersonic Sue is laying down on her bed in her prison uniform.
"Oh! Okay, yeah, sorry Nana," He breaks through the wall, dusting himself off. "I think I'm still a little wonky from the...smash and the hit, and I thought you were-"
"Aww," She pinches his cheek. "Such a sweet boy, busting through walls for your grandma!"
"I wish we came up with a safer way for me to stop."
"Grandma will make a mental note," She points to her head as he smiles at her adoringly. "Did you bring my gear, sweet pea?"
He places down a bag, opening it up to reveal her skates. "100." He tosses them to her, but misses as It hits the wall instead. "Oh, my bad, Nana. What happened was I completely misjudged the distance between us."
"Aw, you tried your best, pumpkin," She clasps her hands. She was just glad to be busting out.
"Oh thank you! I did try my best!"
She puts on all of her gear. "Time to meet your skater, sugar plum!" She winks and together, they bust out the wall. Supersonic Stu falls onto the ground as the Buddy Guards turn visible, surrounding them.
"Supersonic Stu me, Nana! Like when I was little!" He smiles at his grandma hopefully.
"I thought you'd never ask, pookie!" She grabs a hold of his leg, swinging him around. When she releases him, he gets into a ball and takes out some Buddy Guards. "Supersonic Sue me, why don't ya?" She speeds to several, punching them. Soon, all of them but one remain. The lone Buddy Guard looks between them, not wanting to be destroyed. Sue grabs her grandson's leg and the Buddy Guard waves a white flag in surrender.
Within a matter of seconds, they destroy the robot, leaving only his head and the flag.
Fred is flipping through a magazine, pushing himself backwards. He flies past GoGo and Wasabi, landing next to the twins. Hiro is on his laptop trying to figure out where the tracker originated from while Hana is taking a lunch break, eating a chicken salad with cucumbers, tomatoes, cheese, and spinach. She takes a bite as Fred takes Hiro's drink, moving away from them.
Hiro moves to grab it, and then notices that it's gone. He looks towards Fred. Baymax suddenly beeps, interrupting everyone.
"It is time for a standing break. Sitting less than 3 hours a day can increase life expectancy by two years."
Everyone gets up to stretch, minus Hiro as he's still holding the computer. Hana notices this and takes the laptop out of his hands.
"Hey!" He tries to take it, but she puts it down.
"As much as I wanna know the truth, you need to take breaks," She places her hands on her hips. "Just stretch it out, for me?" She blinks, putting on slight doe eyes, causing him to laugh.
"Okay then."
"Oh!" Fred slides over to Baymax. "Does that mean if I never sit again, I'll live forever?"
"No..."
"Aw man," Fred sits back down dejectedly. A call comes in and once it's answered, it's Granville on the screen.
"Wasabi. The teaching assistant for first-year quantum optics had a family emergency. I'd like you to fill in."
"Me?!" Wasabi screeches, coughing a little bit. "Me? Teach a class?"
"Optics is your specialty," She smiles a little.
"Uh, as much as I'd love to, I just don't have the time to prepare. Sorry, gotta go," He turns around, yelping as Granville is now standing right behind him with books. Hana goes back to eating her salad.
"I outlined your lesson plans for the rest of the week," She hands him three books. "Along with bios of all your students," She gives him a bigger stack, dropping it into his hands.
"This is very prepared..." If he wasn't nervous, he'd be impressed. "Just out of curiosity, how many students are we talking about?"
"It's a small class of 15."
Wasabi gasps sharply, eyes widening. "That's 30 eyeballs...!"
"True...an odd thing to note, but true. Good luck."
"Oh! Hana will help me! What if she entertained the students for me?" Wasabi calls out after her.
She chokes on her food, dropping her fork. "Choking can be hazardous. Please stand back," Baymax stands behind the girl, giving her the Heimlich maneuver. She spits up her bite a few seconds later, the robot putting her down.
"Excellent idea! Ms. Hamada, I trust that you'll put the students at ease for your friend," And with that, Granville walks away.
"...What?!" Hana exclaims at Wasabi after she's caught her breath.
"You okay?" Hiro eyes her.
"I am not okay! Why would you tell her that?! Why'd you suggest me for?" She gestures to herself in disbelief.
"I can't do this on my own! I need someone to soften the crowd a little," He pinches his fingers together.
"You-rrgh!" She growls in frustration, taking a deep breath and crossing her arms. She closes her eyes as she speaks up. "Wasabi...I expected this kind of thing from Fred, heck even Hiro-"
"Hey!" Hiro protests, interrupting her.
"We don't do that!" Fred crosses her arms.
She gives them a knowing look, raising a brow.
"...Touche..." Hiro slowly agrees with her.
"You win this round, Hana Banana..." Fred looks away with a pout.
"But you honestly expect me to come up with something for that class? No way! I don't wanna go up there in front of all those people!" Hana argues back.
"You could sing!" Honey Lemon suggests with a smile.
"I've heard you in the shower," Hiro crosses his arms in thought. "It could work."
"Stop denying it, woman up," GoGo interjects to Hana's slight ire.
"Besides, it'll be great for your civilian backstory," Fred wraps an arm around her. "Hana, the stereotypical popular genius, can also wow a crowd with her powerful singing voice...!"
"I don't know..." She looks away skeptically. After all, she still had her priorities with trying to deduce the past two incidents with her superhero life.
"Um, I-if I may..."
They turn around at the new voice to see Ian waving nervously. Hana stares at him in surprise, wondering how long he was standing there.
"Ian? What are you doing here?"
"Oh, just...going back down memory lane!" He rubs the back of his neck as he approaches her. "I used to go here..."
"You did?" Hiro stares at him, tilting his head. "Let me guess, engineering design major?"
"Yup. I couldn't help but overhear...your friend really needs it, Hana," He gestures to Wasabi. "And it'd be rude not to help him. Just look at the guy."
"The stranger makes a good point and oh please help me!" Wasabi begs her, clasping her hand. "I need you!"
Hana sighs slowly, glancing at Wasabi and seeing his pleading look. She couldn't exactly leave him to fend for himself, that wasn't her style unless it was her brother just to get a laugh. "...Fine...I'll do it...but I have some ground rules."
"Absolutely!" Wasabi nods vigorously. He didn't care as long as she was doing it.
"One, you don't ask me to do this ever again," She holds up a finger. "Two, you don't tell anyone except for the class," She holds up a second one. "Three, I don't want anyone except you seeing me do it. And four, you buy me some gummy bears before I even do anything."
"How about you just let everyone else see, because we obviously want to, and I'll just slap ya a 20?" Fred holds up a 20 dollar bill.
"Mm," She glances away, sighing again. "Deal. Hopefully you can handle 15 students."
"Mm-mm. No," He drops the books, slowly sinking towards the ground. "No...uh-uh, no, no..." He gets into a fetal position, concerning Hana.
"Was it something I said?"
"Um, I'm just gonna go. See you later at Krei Tech, Hana," Ian waves sheepishly and she waves back as he leaves the room.
Honey Lemon, the twins, and GoGo look over him. "Wasabi's gone into ball mode."
"What's wrong, Wasabi? You're gonna be a great teacher!" Honey Lemon smiles encouragingly.
"Yeah, you're a quantum optics expert, and Hana's just about on the same level as you are. With her help, you should be fine," Hiro states, glancing to his sister.
"Yeah! Basic stuff. Didn't do Solar Space without it," She waves it off. "And the compliment did make me feel a bit better about being roped into this."
"That was the point," He grins a little.
"But when I see all those eyes staring back at me, I start to sweat, my mouth dries up, I feel nauseous, my heart races...and I freeze up..."
"Those symptoms are consistent with glossophobia: a fear of public speaking," Baymax recites to them.
"Ohh," Hana says in understanding. "Oh," She suddenly cringes at his reaction.
"Is there anything I can do?" Wasabi asks from the floor.
"One way to manage fear is with relaxation techniques, such as yoga."
"Of course!" Wasabi sits up with a smile. "I love yoga! Good call, Baymax."
"Deep breath," Baymax instructs him and he takes a few deep breathes. "Now, imagine you are in front of a large group of people."
Wasabi screams just at the mention of it. "Just...try and sit still," Hiro tells him as Wasabi's right leg is resting near his covered face.
"Imagine you are in front of a smaller group of people," The robot corrects himself.
"Um, maybe don't try that approach," Hana giggles at him while Fred is recording Wasabi.
"Are you filming this?!" Wasabi screeches at his friend.
"No, I'm streaming it."
"But I mean it about telling no one else. Not even Aunt Cass," Hana warns Fred.
"Of course," Fred keeps a normal face.
She regrets taking the deal 20 minutes later...the reason?
Because she's being chased by SFIT students, asking if they can hear her sing.
"FRED, I HATE YOU SO MUCH!" She shouts at the top of her lungs.
Fred's phone beeps and he gasps. "Guys, Supersonic Sue just broke out of prison!"
Honey Lemon and Hiro drop Wasabi as GoGo lifts up her welding mask.
The Buddy Guards are badly damaged as Officer Cruz, Chief Marquez, and Krei are at the scene. "I purchased these Buddy Guards from you to prevent break-outs!"
"You see this is failure; I see this is opportunity!" Krei gestures to himself, the two glancing at each other.
"How?"
"I give you my word that I will have my team come up with something bigger, better, and obscenely expensive," He says the last two words to himself, but they still hear it, chuckling.
"I don't know about the expensive part," Officer Cruz replies skeptically, arms crossed.
"Now I see why Cass warned me about him..." Chief Marquez murmurs to herself.
"Oh. You heard that? Wait! You said Cass? What did she say?"
"Oh, that you're a greedy, no-good businessman that she regrets dating," She shrugs a little. Officer Cruz looks between the two, clearing his throat.
"Y-You two dated?"
"Oh! One date with a guy who was after me, and suddenly I'm the bad guy!" Krei looks away, crossing his arms.
The girl sighs as she crosses her arms, leaning against Ian's desk. "Well...guess I'm singing after all...even though I don't want to."
"You could...take your mind off it," He smiles a little and she raises a brow. He lets out a small whistle and a Maltese puppy comes in. Hana gasps sharply at it.
"Oh my god! Ian, I didn't know you liked animals too," She bends down and takes it into her hands. The puppy barks, licking at her face. "He's so adorable!"
"Yeah, I'm watching him for a friend," He ruffles the top of the dog's head. "His name is Rocco. Do any of your friends like animals?"
"Well...they all love Mochi, our cat," She thinks about it for a second. "Karmi doesn't hate him, but she stays clear whenever he's causing trouble. Megan likes him, and...actually, I don't know if Mikey likes animals."
"He probably hates them," Ian shrugs, the girl staring at him, blinking. "If he has no reaction to any particular animal, then he most likely stays clear of them, unlike you."
"He's typically taking photos rather than stop and pet an animal..." She says slowly. "Not that I'm biased against people who don't react to pets like I do."
"Mm...well, if you were ever looking for love again, you'd want to consider someone who loves animals too, right?"
"Umm..." She sweats, looking away. "I-I guess it'd a dealbreaker if I met someone who hates them...?" She really didn't know why he was asking her that. It was kind of weird...
"Hey, y-you wanna walk him after classes tomorrow? I know this great pet park."
"Really?" She grins happily, her doubts going away. And then she drops it. "Oh…tomorrow after classes I have swimming."
"You can drop it for one day… and besides, he seems to like you."
Rocco barks in agreement, licking at her face. She smiles softly. She couldn't really say no to that…
"Then I'd love to walk this little cutie," She holds the dog's cheeks, cooing at it. She fails to notice Ian's big smile.
"Basemax," Hiro speaks up once they've arrived at their HQ. "Scan for Supersonic Sue."
"Scanning," Sue's headshot appears on the screen, and Roddy suddenly comes in from the ceiling.
"Hey folks, which of these do you like better for the vehicle hangar?" He shows them one blueprint. "You can't go wrong with classic metallic. But they're having a really good deal on giant crystals right now."
"Classic metallic," The twins and girls say in unison.
"Crystal!" Fred points to the other one.
"Classic metallic it is," Roddy rolls up the blueprints.
"Aw man!" Fred complains at this, sagging his shoulders. Hana pats his back in sympathy. Roddy goes back to where he was.
"Supersonic Sue located. She appears to be traveling with an accomplice."
"Who would team up with Sue?" Honey Lemon asks curiously.
"Definitely not Steamer again," Hana shakes her head. "He's still in prison."
"Weren't you supposed to meet Wasabi in that quantum optics class?" Hiro stares at her.
"He said I could meet him later. He has to do his yoga before he can consider even stepping inside the classroom," She slightly rolls her eyes.
Supersonic Stu rolls onto the streets, with his grandmother speeding next to him. "Come on, my headquarters is right around this...corner?" She stares in shock as Stu falls face-plant onto the concrete.
"Your headquarters is a Noodle Burger? That's amazing!" Right where her old lair used to be is Noodle Burger, which was built around the time she was still in prison. She shushes Stu, hugging him and stroking his head. She kisses his cheek.
im"Leave the thinking to Nana, baby beluga."
"But Nana-"
"And the talking." She pushes his lips together with her fingers. "You can't be a true criminal without a headquarters!"
"We can use Villain BMV!" He pulls out his phone to use the app. "Oh, Steamer's place is available. Oh, that's account of him being in jail, that's too bad. Oh, it has a steam room!"
"Everyone knows where Steamer's lair is, and what did Nana just say?"
He lifts up his helmet a little bit, holding his head. "Mmm...I can't remember?"
"Oh, I love these cheeks," She pinches his cheeks again. "We need a hideout where we can actually hide."
"I know where you can hide!" Hiro suddenly says as the team lands in front of the duo. "In jail!"
"Oh, really? Wait, what kind of rent are we talking?" His eyes behind his hair widen at the sight of Hana. "Wooow...your hair's really pretty. Who styled it? Do you have powers? Can you do anything like Nana does?"
"Wow," She mouths at this. "Not the sharpest tool in the kit, are you?"
"Angel, bunny, have a cookie while Nana talks to the heroes," She hands him a chocolate chip cookie, which he puts into his mouth.
"Who's your..." Honey Lemon glances away for a second. "Friend?"
"My adorable grandson, Supersonic Stu!" She gestures to him. Hana blinks twice, looking between the two.
"This guy is your grandson? You had a child? That gave birth to him?" She questions in shock.
"Didn't anyone tell you that supervillains can have families too?" Sue retorts back to the girl, who holds up her hands slowly.
"Alright...that's fair."
"What does he do?" Fred tilts his head at the man.
Stu finishes licking his lips. "He can do this!" Sue spins him around and throws him towards the group. Everyone dodges it by jumping away. Honey Lemon lands on the roof of Noodle Burger, firing her bunny bazooka.
"Freeze, punk!"
He leaps away as icicles form from her blue chem balls. He rolls away and Sue suddenly kicks her down.
"Check and mate!" She speeds back onto the streets. Fred opens the mouth to fire flames at her, but she just absorbs them with her skates. She goes back to in front of the alleyway, her grandson landing at the window behind her. She grabs his leg and tosses him to Fred. Before he can do anything, Stu knocks him above the logo. He lands on top of Honey Lemon, Stu standing in front of them.
"Ha! Stu in your own juices!"
"Yup, they're definitely related," Hana deadpans at his catchphrase as she flies above the two, Hiro and Baymax on the other side.
"Baymax, rocket fist!" Hiro orders as Hana plays a note from her violin. She hits Stu first with a bull made of electricity, knocking him into the air, allowing the rocket fist to knock him into the restaurant. Sue hits her elbows, activating her own power. She speeds around Baymax and Hiro, striking him in the arm.
"Whoopsie daisy!"
Hana looks in all directions that she's moving, trying to figure how to get a good hit. Sue hits them from behind.
"How's about an elbow sandwich?" She hits the road with her knees, shocking all five of them. GoGo speeds up, throwing a disc. Sue just laughs as she moves her head, avoiding it. She skates up to the woman, who tosses her discs again. Sue dodges left to right, leaping into the air. She slams her elbows again, but GoGo jumps over it using her hover disc.
"You missed me," She smirks a little.
"Give it up, training wheels!"
She chases after GoGo, both of them striking each other. Stu steps out of Noodle Burger, eating some food as he watches them. Sue grabs his hand and throws him into GoGo, causing her to lose her balance for a second. She throws him three times more.
"What, so you just throw this guy at people? Lame," GoGo comments at this.
"Not everything has to be rocket science, skater tot!" She's about to throw her grandson again when police sirens are heard. She drops him out of fear. "Hide! It's the fuzz."
"Oh, I'm way more worried about the police."
"We've gotta go," Hiro narrows his eyes slightly. "We'll deal with the Supersonics later."
"Yeah, I've got a 3 o'clock with Roddy to go over my snack room ideas," Fred states as Baymax flies into the air, followed by Hana. The Supersonics speed away just as the police cars arrive on the scene. They hide in an alley, one of them speeding right past their hiding spot.
"...They can only be talking about Roddy Blair," She narrows her eyes. "King of lairs. He's the best!" Sue looks at a picture of the man on Headquarters Digest. "And he's going to work for us, whether he wants to or not!"
She laughs evilly, Stu rubbing his hands together.
Later at SFIT, Hana peeks into the classroom, starting to panic a little. She steps back at least 100 feet. "Ohh my goodness, the whole school showed up."
"Guess people really wanna hear you sing," Hiro rubs the back of his neck.
"Okay, I can totally do this. As long as I don't look up..." Wasabi looks towards the ground.
"Yeah, that's not gonna help," GoGo tells him bluntly.
The door suddenly opens.
"Wonderful! You're here!" Granville approaches the girl, giving her a microphone. "Come, we've been expecting you," She starts pushing Hana and Wasabi inside, the girl sweating. She looks over her shoulder and mouths 'help.'
They just smile sheepishly, following them inside. The whole class claps as they see the girl enter, and she waves nervously to the crowd. Wasabi sighs in relief at her appearance, moving away from the front. Applause turns into silence as she fiddles with her microphone. She looks at her friends, who gesture for her to say something. Wasabi is adjusting the amp.
"You'll be great!" He waves it off. "Just...take your time, will ya?"
She gives him a deadpan look and he recoils back a bit, shrugging. "Worth a shot."
"Um...hi-"
Suddenly static occurs as the amp turns on, causing Hana to recoil back a bit. She blinks rapidly as her hearing adjusts.
"Sorry," He smiles in embarrassment.
"Er...as you all know, I'm...Hana Hamada...and I'm here to sing for you all at...my friend's request."
She really doesn't want to, as she's never done it in public...but if she didn't, she'd be letting down Wasabi and the class as well. She takes a deep breath as she adjusts her skirt, clearing her throat. Honey Lemon presses play on the music that Hana picked out. She closes her eyes.
Uh oh...
Uh ohhh, oh
She snaps her fingers as the beat starts.
What does perfect even mean?
Is there even such a thing? Ooh, ohh
The crowd claps along with the beat to the young girl's singing, an upbeat song by a voice that actually sounds beautiful. Hiro smiles at his sister as they all look in her direction.
Can we switch up all the rules?
She twirls her finger into the air.
And imagine a utopia
Darling, I'm just so fed up with
Hana opens up her eyes, slowly walking up to the crowd. She spins her head around.
These expectations, they keep weighing me down
The girl does a little spin.
My heart is beggin' me to get the hell out of my head
I'm gonna live inside the upside down
Her hand flips her pigtail in the air.
For a minute and pretend
Honey, I'm a perfect ten
She smiles as she walks towards her friends.
Woahhh, woahhh
Honey, I'm a perfect ten
Woahhh, woahh
She puts an arm around Hiro, grinning.
And if I say it enough
It gets ingrained in my head
And I start to see...
Hana points to her eyes, pointing towards the crowd.
Honey I'm a perfect ten
The mood gets more upbeat. Her friends and brother clap along with the music. The crowd is all smiling as they can see that she's having fun. Hana is smiling too as she walks back up to the front.
Honey I'm a perfect ten
Woahh
Honey, I'm a perfect ten
Honey, I'm a yeah
"Hana Banana is killing it!" Fred cheers, pumping his fists.
Ohh
She places a hand on her hip, shaking her body side-to-side as she sings the note.
Wah-ohhh
Wah-oh
Honey I'm a perfect ten
Wah-ohhh
Wah-oh
The music stops and she smiles bashfully, brushing a stray hair behind her ear. She bows to the crowd as they even stand up. "Oh my god," Hana puts a hand to her heart, trying not to cry. She thought that they'd laugh, but she didn't think she was that good...
Hana smiles as her friends approach, surrounding her and congratulating her. "You were amazing!" Honey Lemon gives her a bear hug.
"I didn't know you could sing like that! What a surprise. And, uh...sorry for roping you into it," Wasabi coughs a bit.
"Ah, that's okay. At least now I have something to show for it," She winks, holding up at least 5 packs of gummy bears in her hands. "GUMMY BEARS MAKE HANA HAPPY!"
"You did good, Hana," GoGo smirks a little.
"That was awesome!" Hiro hugs her. "...You're gonna share those gummy bears, right?"
"Nope!"
"SINGING, YEAH!" Fred shouts at the top of his lungs.
"Hana, you were so great!" Megan, Mikey, and Karmi surround her.
"You guys came too?!" Hana's eyes pop out of her head.
"Of course we did!"
"Um..."
Her eyes widen as she turns around to see Ian. "Ian! You came!"
"Well, I...wanted to hear just how good you were."
She beams, Hiro and Mikey glancing at each other. They didn't know why, but something about Ian was suddenly off...how did he know to come to SFIT in the first place? They need to keep a close eye on him from now on...
"You were extraordinary, Ms. Hamada," Granville approaches her with a fond smile. "It seems as if you were hiding another talent."
"Is there anything you can't do?" Mikey wonders to her.
"Teach Baymax to play violin. Teach Fred how to not mess up his suits. Biotech," She says plainly, to which she, Hiro, and Karmi laugh at.
"We've gotta go, but good luck!" Hiro waves to them as he, their friends, Granville, and most of the school students leave, with only the 15 left. They clap for Hana and she smiles bashfully.
"Bye Wasabi," She waves, about to walk up the stairs when he grips her skirt.
"No! Please stay!"
"I'm sorry, but I promised Ian that I'd walk Rocco right after," She whispers to him, waving to the man waiting for her outside the door. "You can handle them without me, I've already done my part..."
Hana bites her lip as she walks up the stairs, mouthing 'sorry' to Wasabi as she leaves.
"No eye contact, no eye contact, no eye contact," Wasabi recites to himself as he walks up to the front. "Um, I'm your new Wasabi, I mean, heh, teaching assistant. My name is Wasabi."
A student raises a hand. "Why are you looking down? And do you really know Hana Hamada?"
He looks up and his eyes widen. His whole world comes crashing down as all of them are staring, waiting for him to speak. "Sweating, check...dry mouth, check...nausea and racing heart, check and check. And now I'm freezing up! I wish I could just disappear..."
Once he opens his eyes, he notices that the whole room is dark, with no students inside, but there is someone standing at the doorway.
"Professor Granville! Hana!" He shouts once he lays eyes on them. "...How long have I been standing here?"
"Well the class ended 6 hours ago," She explains to him.
"Really?"
"I've got texts from the others a few minutes ago asking whether or not you were finished," Hana holds up her phone. "I came back and saw you, and then I went to go get Granville."
"It's not uncommon for first-time teachers to be debilitated by stage fright. I'm sure Ms. Hamada had the same experience before she had announced the start of her cause with Ms. Liv Amara."
"Really?" He stares at both of them.
"Oh man, I was so scared," She breathes slowly at the memory. "But I eventually calmed down and...just did it. Like I did with my performance today."
"I trust that wasn't a problem for you," The dean raises a brow at him.
"Not...really..." He cringes a little, silently telling Hana that he did not do so well.
Later that night, they're all in their training room at the HQ.
"We need to work on our reaction time," Hiro presses on Night Market Square. "Alright Basemax, Supersonic Sue me."
"There needs to be a better code-name for that," Hana shakes her head. Night Market Square forms around them as the two robots turn into Sue and Stu, with the robot on the right extending its body and arms to account for Stu's muscular build. They land and she grabs him, spinning around and throwing him. Baymax and Hana leap into the air, with the robot catching Stu. He's still spinning as he's tossed into Sue.
Honey Lemon skates on ice with her boots as they speed around, Fred jumping. "Come on, slow down!" He breathes fire at Sue, who grabs Stu and flings him at Honey Lemon. Before she could fire her bazooka, she's knocked onto the ground.
"They're so powerful together!"
GoGo speeds past her, followed by Stu.
"So we'll get more powerful," She holds her disc in front of her, sending Stu into the wall. Hana plays her violin weapon, emitting the electric Phoenix at Sue, knocking her onto the ground. GoGo comes to a stop next to Wasabi, who hasn't moved as they watch the others.
"GoGo, where do you get all your confidence?" He asks curiously.
"I don't overthink things," She states, placing a hand on her hip. "Just do you, and you can face anything."
"Me doing me means freezing for 6 hours. 6 hours! Hana said she just stopped thinking and just did it!"
"She's got the right idea. Instead of thinking you're afraid of speaking in public, try thinking you like it. I dunno, maybe you will," She shrugs a little.
"Reverse-psychology? Does that even work?" He wonders skeptically.
"You know what, don't try it. It's probably not for you."
"No, no, no, I'll give it a shot." She smirks at his statement and he realizes what just happened. "Ohhh...very clever."
"Wasabi, watch out!" Hana shouts as the fake Stu is knocked into him, turning back into the robot.
"We probably shouldn't have casual conversations in the training room," He says in pain.
"Nope," GoGo agrees with him.
"Sorry!" Hana calls out sheepishly. "I did warn you..."
"Okay, reverse-psychology time," Wasabi recites as he and Hana walk up to the door. "I love public speaking. I am great at it! People are inspired by my words!" A student walks by, staring at him, but then smiles at Hana.
"Hana Hamada! Can I get a quick autograph?"
"Umm...sure," She takes a pen and signs his sleeve.
Wasabi opens the door, and when everyone looks up, they clap for Hana, smiling. "Heh," Wasabi chuckles nervously as he walks down the steps, still looking down. Hana stands next to him, violin ready. She notices his silence and sighs.
"While my friend composes himself, I'll be playing a new piece I just wrote."
She starts playing some inspirational music as Wasabi looks up. "Why am I standing up here?" He snaps his fingers, the lesson plan appearing behind him. "Because I'm the kind of inspirational leader you look up to!"
Hana opens her mouth as she starts to sing.
We were a class without a teacher
They all start clapping as they smile.
They called, but couldn't reach her
He's there for them during volcano projects, meltdowns, and also helps them outside of class.
To our rescue, you came
They laugh at his statements, Hana looking on happily.
Our world would never be the same
A student scratches the back of his head, with Wasabi writing in the last answer for him, smiling.
Though you were not meant to stay
A female student is outside in the rain, picking up her wet papers.
Since you're paid by the day
A shadow looms over her and she wipes a tear, looking up in relief to see Wasabi, who winks.
Look who's best in class
Why can't this temp gig last?
They throw their hats up into the air once the class has graduated with his help, and then he's granted a best professor award. He holds up the golden apple trophy proudly, flipping through pages years later from the yearbook.
All my admiration
A sincere dedication
He places down his glasses as he has grey hair and a beard, walking away outside with a cane, where he sees a statue of himself.
To you, sir, we salute
He wipes away a tear proudly...
There is no substitute for you!
But it was all just a dream as he stands in the dark, again. Hana is standing by the door as she sighs, holding her violin case. He walks up to her, frowning as Granville walks past.
"6 hours?"
"Yes," The two confirm.
"Okay," He frowns, walking away.
"This is harder than I thought..." Hana pinches her nose.
He sighs as he walks into the room, hanging up his coat and bag. Baymax stares at him. "Wasabi, your body language indicates you are feeling sad."
"You're right, Baymax..." Wasabi frowns as Hana arrives in the room. "Guess who froze up in class again?"
"You!" Fred points at him. "Live-streamed it! Ha ha!"
"You didn't," Wasabi looks at him accusingly.
"Don't worry, not many people stuck around for the whole 6 hours," Fred zooms in on Wasabi's terrified eyes.
"Fred," Hana warns him and he puts away the phone. "Anyway, my singing did nothing to reassure him. I could use some help."
"Don't worry, Wasabi, we'll help you conquer your fear," Honey Lemon places a hand on his shoulder.
"Conquering fear typically takes considerable time and effort," Baymax holds up a finger. Fred and Honey Lemon hug him.
"Which we will do!"
Wasabi smiles in relief at his friends.
He and Baymax use Fred's room as Baymax is acting as a therapist. "Visualizing a serene location, like a beach, can help relieve anxiety," He states while holding a clipboard. Wasabi takes a deep breath, closing his eyes.
"Okay. Hey, this is working! Wait...a ship is pulling up to the shore."
"I suggest focusing to the gentle rhythm of the waves," Baymax pulls up an animation of waves and music.
"I can't! A conga line of people are coming off the ship! They're looking at me! They're all expecting me to lead the conga line! They want me to lead the conga line!" Wasabi shouts, hugging himself with wide eyes.
"Your delusions are vivid and...detailed," Baymax blinks as the man is hugging his arm, lifted above the couch. "I have concerns."
Then he's standing somewhere, blindfolded. "Fred, where are we? And why is it so breezy?"
"I was gonna read about how to deal with fears, but instead, I followed my gut!" Fred lifts up his shirt, slapping his belly.
"I do not like the sound of that!" Wasabi hugs himself in fear.
"And my gut told me the only way to deal with one fear is to make it seem not so bad by...overshadowing it with a worse fear!" He removes the blindfold, revealing that they're on the roof of a very tall building. They're so high up they can see the turbines in the distance.
Wasabi lets out a scream. "YOU KNOW HOW I FEEL ABOUT HEIGHTS!" He touches the ground, holding his head.
"Public speaking doesn't seem so bad anymore, does it?" Fred leans in with a small smile.
"They're both terrible!" He shouts, covering his eyes with his hands.
"Gut, you told me that it would work!" Fred points to his gut angrily.
"Hm," The teenage girl rubs her chin once the boys return, snapping her fingers. "Maybe Dr. Sopher can help!" Hana suggests with a smile as she pulls out her phone.
"NO! No more conga lines!" Wasabi dives behind the couch, confusing her.
The twins are in the training room with Honey Lemon. "The only way to face your fear is head on," Hiro finishes the simulation, which turns into the classroom.
"So we've simulated your classroom based on Hana's description!" Honey Lemon gestures to the furniture. The students appear along with it, but they bug out and turn into only eyes instead. "That was not supposed to happen!"
Wasabi goes for the desk. "W-We can fix that!" Hiro stammers as he's pressing buttons. Hana looks over her shoulders, trying to figure out what went wrong. "Don't look, don't look! Working on it!"
"Wasabi, they're not real!" Hana calls out, but he screams in fear anyway as the eyes float towards him.
"Make it stop, make it stop! AHHHH!"
After they've gotten out of that disaster, he's making origami cranes, placing them to his pyramid. He does it sometimes when he's really afraid.
"Sorry, Wasabi..." Hiro glances to Hana, who bites her lip. Wasabi just pulls her over, untying her hair. She stares at the others in confusion and they just silently tell her to go along with it. "Hana and I feel like we just made things worse?"
"Much worse," Fred adds in.
"Failure is a wondrous teacher," Baymax shows an animation of someone jumping over a hurdle and then overcoming it.
"It's okay, guys," Wasabi looks up as he's tying Hana's hair into a braided ponytail. "The truth is, I have to figure out what works for me. It helps a lot knowing I have your support." All of them except Baymax of course smile at him.
"Of course! It's the least I could do after you helped me," Hana gestures to herself. "And besides, I wouldn't just leave you hanging."
"You did on the first day," He deadpans to her.
"Okay, then I wouldn't leave you hanging again. I did take you to Noodle Burger when you got stuck in traffic," She points out, holding up a finger.
Basemax opens her eyes behind them. "You have a pre-recorded message from Roddy Blair, King of Lairs, trademarked." She pulls up the recording. In the video, Roddy is eating a sandwich, sitting on top of the front steps from the candy factory.
"Oh, that's some good pumpernickel. Oh, hi! Uh..." He puts the sandwich in his overalls. "I'm recording this in case I ever get abducted, which happens sometimes in my line of work."
"Abducted?!" Honey Lemon asks in worry.
"It's in my standard contract, section 12, paragraph 2." He flips through the book, putting on glasses once he's found the page. "While working for superheroes, it's their legal responsibility to save me, if abducted on the job." He closes the book and pulls up a tracker. "I always carry this doohickey. It sends out a signal showing my exact location, so, you better get on the ball. Now back to my sandwich. What is it about chicken salad on pumpernickel?"
Basemax pulls up the tracker that's still activated, showing his location.
"Let's go!" Hiro and Hana declare in unison.
"I actually have to get to my class," Wasabi speaks up. "Hana, you don't have to come with me this time."
"Are you sure?" She asks in concern. "Maybe this time, it could work."
"I'm sure. I gotta figure this out on my own, but thanks for agreeing to stick with me."
"Don't worry, we can handle this," GoGo smiles a little.
"Yeah, good luck, Wasabi!" Honey Lemon tells him.
"Just remember, if you're still afraid..." She leans in and whispers in his ear. His eyes widen at what she says.
"Thanks, guys," He smiles gratefully.
Roddy is placed on the ground, tied up in a chair with rope. "So, here's the deal, Mr. King of Lairs," Sue stands in front of him. "You're gonna build us a new headquarters just like you did for Big Hero 7," She crosses her arms.
"...I do not know what you're talking about," He denies after a few seconds, to her annoyance.
"Oh come on!" Stu falls for the lie. "Nana, we grabbed the wrong guy. Sir, I am so sorry-"
Sue throws away a cookie and he chases after it like a dog with a stick. "Have you ever experienced the electric elbow, your highness?" She holds out her electrified elbow with a large grin on her face.
Wasabi takes a deep breath. "I have a plan. The plan will work. I can do this..."
He walks up to the class, who look up at him once he reaches the front. He holds up his bag to his face, waving nervously.
"Hello. My name is Wasabi, and yes, you may have noticed I have a slight fear of public speaking," He says in a strained voice, gulping. "Which is why I brought back-up." He opens up his bag, Mini-Max leaping out of it.
"It is I, Mini-Max!" He lands on the desk. "I am filling in for Ms. Hana Hamada! Listen to him and look at me!" He starts dancing, and it works as the students smile.
"Okay..." Wasabi says in relief. "Now, let's talk Fulton's. Open your textbooks to page 62."
Roddy moves his face away from the electric elbow. "Alright, alright! I built them a headquarters, but I don't work for villains anymore! Ever since Dark Volt stiffed me on his remodel."
"Oh, I think you'll make an exception for me," Sue activates the other elbow.
"Alright then, I'll do it! I'll build you a headquarters!" He really won't, but he's trying to stall for time so that his friends can come and rescue him. By now, they should've gotten his message about what happened.
"Yes!" Stu speeds around the man. "Nana coming in hot with the win!" The two do a victory dance in front of Roddy, who just gives them a deadpan look.
"Alright, so you guys have a location?"
"You're looking at it," Sue gestures to the tiny warehouse they're in.
"Ohh, you gotta be kidding me! You see, look at this over here," He scoots his chair to the left. "Look at that!" He scoots back to his regular spot. "I see some major structure instabilities in this dump!"
Stu gasps sharply at the insult. "Give me a break! Everyone knows you contractors exaggerate every little thing to raise the bid!" Sue places her hands on her hips, not buying it.
"But Nana, what if he's right? I can't sleep somewhere with major structural instabilities. I'll have nightmares!" Stu hugs himself.
"Aw, don't worry, sugar cube. We'll find another warehouse!" She pulls him into a hug, lifting him over his shoulder. He sucks his thumb and Roddy recoils back, weirded out at the display. "Mind your own beeswax!"
The next warehouse has leaks, which he notices immediately, whistling. "Major water damage. This roof could collapse like that! We should get out of here, pronto!"
Sue stares at him unamused.
"Pronto, Nana, pronto. I'm freaking out," Stu holds his head and gets into a ball, leaving the warehouse so quick, he makes a hole in the door.
"Excitable little guy, isn't he?" Roddy points out while she pinches her nose.
"Shut it! Moving on."
The next place they find, Roddy looks at the tracker in his hands. "Come on. What's taking 'em so long?"
"What about this place?" Sue looks over to him.
"Oh, no dice," He says while Stu is eating another cookie. "Hear that nibbling sound underneath the floor?" He makes the sound of a rat.
"Nibbly?!"
"Ooh, raccoon squatters, big ones!"
Stu gasps, speeding away in fear and Sue crosses her arms. It had to be one that he approved of, or else she'll have to deal with his tendencies for a while...
"Moving on."
Roddy measures the wall, or at least, pretends to. "That beam right there is sagging."
"Nonsense! You're stalling!" Sue accuses him.
"Hey, if you don't mind dry rot-"
"Oh, gross!" Stu exclaims, holding his head. "What's dry rot?"
"I don't know," Fred speaks as they've finally found him and the supervillain duo. "But I agree it sounds gross!"
"Honey Lemon?" Hiro looks to her.
"A sticky blurge will slow you down!" She stomps her foot, pink goo appearing on the floor. The two speed away from it, Roddy stepping back. "Sorry-" Sue knocks into her, and she goes flying into a pile of crates. She speeds around Fred, throwing him away. She hits Baymax multiple times, GoGo being chased by Stu. She flies up to the ceiling, and while he jumps, she moves away, causing him to hit crates. He comes to a stop, Hana spinning around and kicking him. This gives GoGo a chance to hit Stu with her discs. Hana does a kick-flip and he lands in the goop.
GoGo flies above Hana, giving her a fist-bump. She aims for Stu again, but Sue comes in and moves him away, while also pulling him off the goop. The six surround the duo, Sue looking around. She notices a creaky beam behind the girls that looks like it's about to fall apart.
She smiles evilly, spinning around her grandson. She knocks him into the beam, causing the ceiling to crumble, leaving them trapped underneath.
"Well played."
"Thanks, skater tot!" Sue says proudly as Stu lifts Roddy over his shoulder.
Wasabi cheers as he spins his jacket, arriving at the conference room. "Guys, I did it! I taught my class with a big assist from Mini-Max!"
Mini-Max lands on his hands. "My dancing saved the day!"
"Hana, while you did help, we needed a different appro-" He then realizes that no one else besides them is in the room. Basemax opens her eyes, blinking. "Basemax! Where is everyone?"
"They have not returned from their mission to save Roddy Blair, King of Lairs, trademarked. Their location has remained the same for the last thirty minutes." She shows all of their symbols, with Hana's symbol being orange-colored with a red electric bolt in the center spelling out her first name initial.
"They must be trapped!"
"I smell the foul odor of mischief!" Mini-Max deduces.
"Then it's up to us to save the day!" Wasabi declares in determination.
"Your inspiring words stir a fire in my metal tummy!" Mini-Max rubs his inflatable stomach. "We can do this!"
"You're darn right we can! If I can speak to a small group of students, I think I can handle a super powerful derby queen who throws her adult grandson into things."
"Let's suit up!" Mini-Man jumps onto his shoulder.
Soon, Wasabi arrives in his car, with Mini-Max flying up front. "Our fellow heroes are unharmed, but trapped under rubble," Mini-Max scans for them.
"We've got to get them out of there!"
"Let's collect more information using our optical sensors," Mini-Max zooms his eyes in and out.
"We can put the roller rink in here!" Sue gestures to the middle of the room.
"Was I not clear about the rot earlier?" Roddy calls out as Wasabi looks around the corner. GoGo lays eyes on him, gasping. Wasabi puts a finger to his lips.
"Sure, not until I do a full inspection. Which could take up to a month!" Roddy tells Sue sheepishly.
"A month?!"
"Uh, quick question, Mr. Blair?" Stu speaks up, "Do you check for ghosts in your inspection?"
"Not me, but I know a guy," Roddy shrugs nonchalantly.
"This dim-witted villainy must not be allowed to continue," Mini-Max declares, a bit insulted by the two.
"Yeah, we need a plan that works for us," Wasabi rubs his chin.
"Agreed! We must become righteous magicians, who make injustice disappear!"
"I'm not sure...wait...disappear...I got a plan!" He smiles a little. "But it's risky."
"I eat risk for brunch!" Mini-Max lands on his shoulder again. "Tell me your plan, fearful chump!"
Stu leans in towards Roddy. "Is it possible to...catch..." He gulps a bit. "Um...uh, you know what? From that beam?"
"Dry rot? Oh, sure! Seen it a million times. It ain't pretty."
"Oh no," Stu starts panicking. "Oh no, I think I feel it. I feel it! I feel the rot!" He hugs the man.
"Gross!"
They look up to see Wasabi standing in the doorway. "Are you contagious?"
"Somersault assault, Stu!" Sue declares, grabbing his leg.
"Wait!" He interrupts before they could do anything. "Please don't throw your adult grandson at me! I give up!"
Sue drops her grandson in surprise. "You do...?"
"Yeah! I'll take you to our headquarters! You can have it!"
"He has a plan, right?" Honey Lemon whispers to the girls.
"Let's hope..." GoGo tells her.
"We have to trust him," Hana whispers back.
"Hang on," Stu stands up, "Does this "headquarters" of yours have the...ugh...the rot?"
"No!" Wasabi says rapidly. "It's completely rot-free!"
"Oh, I like the sound of that," Stu sighs in relief.
"Okay...you got a deal." Sue agrees, Stu leading her away.
"You don't think he's playing us, do you?"
"This sad sack of phobias?" She jerks a thumb to Wasabi. She's known him well enough to know that he's not the type to trick them: because he's usually too afraid to. "He won't try any funny business."
They speed over to Wasabi and take him away. "Wait, was that Wasabi?" Fred asks, but he's so deep into the rubble, he couldn't see or hear clearly. "Wasabi's here! Yeah!"
Sue gasps sharply at an abandoned deli. "It's perfect!"
"Wait until you see the inside," He gestures to the place and they step up to the entrance. He follows after them and closes the door, where the place is completely dark. Suddenly, they're flashed with lights as the police are standing right across from them.
"Freeze! You are under arrest!" Officer Cruz orders, Chief Marquez clearing her throat next to him. "S-Sorry. Force of habit." Though he doesn't really mean it.
The Buddy Guards appear out of nowhere, firing bolos at all three of them. "Nana, he played us! He used the funny business, which you expressly forbid!"
"But why? You're wanted too!" Sue grits his teeth at him, and he visibly shakes. He looks at all of the officers waiting for an answer, especially Chief Marquez out of concern. "What's wrong with you? Say something!"
The lights turn off and they turn to a single spotlight. Mini-Max is standing on a table, with a rose taped to his mouth. "Listen to him, and look at me!" He claps his hands, landing on the floor and spinning around, sparkles following him. He lands on top of Wasabi, shaking his hips.
"Normally, I'm afraid of speaking in front of large crowds. But I'll say this," He suddenly puts on a smirk, winking at Chief Marquez. "Buh-bye."
Mini-Max pulls out a cloth from the rose, and then they disappear out of sight, surprising everyone except Chief Marquez, who smiles proudly. Officer Cruz looks between her and to where the two disappeared, narrowing his eyes. Something was not right about her reaction.
"He was a ghost?! How is he a ghost?!" Stu exclaims as the officers run past them to go outside.
"Go, go, go!"
"Ghost!" Stu gets into a ball, snuggling his grandma.
"Oh, great. It's gonna take hours to put him to bed tonight," She kisses the back of his head.
Wasabi pulls out Fred as he came back to help them get out. "So you sent Mini-Max back to get some flexible display cloth," Hiro deduces knowingly.
"So you could turn invisible," Honey Lemon finishes for him.
"Smart," GoGo comments in approval.
"Thanks for saving me, kid," Roddy says gratefully. "And they were pretty weak villains, but still."
"Wasabi, you also overcame your fear of public speaking," Baymax adds in.
"Hey, yeah!" Hana beams at him. "So you took my suggestion after all to use Mini-Max to fill in for me!"
"Yup, and it totally worked. Today was a good day," Wasabi crosses his arms with a smile.
Officer Cruz is standing outside the police station as the Supersonics are being escorted inside. Chief Marquez follows Sue and the officer, Officer Cruz standing in front of her. "Chief...I've been observing your reactions when it comes to Big Hero 7...you know, the team we're trying to apprehend?"
"You mean the team you're trying to apprehend behind my back?" She accuses, crossing her arms. "Just so you know, another stunt like that, and maybe One PP could straighten you out. Maybe take a job as a mall cop. But for now, we're leaving the team alone."
She walks up the steps and he stares after her. "You know who they are, don't you?"
"No, and if I did, that would be breaking expectation of privacy for all of them. There is no imminent need to apprehend them, like I've already ordered. Now stand down from Big Hero 7! I won't ask you again!"
He glares at her as she enters the building.
His phone rings and he answers it. "Yeah, Cruz here."
"Officer! My team just came up with something that I think you are going to love..." Krei sends him a photo and he sees the picture of upgraded Buddy Guards...
"It's time to take back my job," He declares, clenching a fist. He's tired of being an officer, and if they weren't going to give him his regular job...
He'll just take it by force. Along with Big Hero 7 to show for it.
Mikey, Megan, and Karmi approach the candy factory, about to open the door when Hana stops them by doing it herself. She looks around rapidly and quickly pulls them all inside.
"Whoa! What's the big deal?" Megan asks in confusion as Hana quickly closes the door.
"I'll explain inside."
The three glance at each other, wondering just what has her so cautious.
"No one followed you, did they?" Hana questions seriously as she steps into the conference.
"Uhh...I think we would've noticed someone following us to an abandoned candy factory," Karmi looks around. "Why?"
"Someone's been following her," Hiro tells them, looking towards Basemax.
"Whoa, as in stalking?" Mikey's eyes pop out of his head.
"That's crazy. There are tons of people in San Fransokyo. Why would anyone follow you?" Megan raises a brow.
"Because of these!" Hana holds up the tracker and the photo for them to see. "The only possible way this happened was if someone is tracking me."
"So then it has to be Trina or Di," Karmi looks towards everyone. "Right?"
"My gut says yes," GoGo pops her gum.
"We don't know that it's either of them," Wasabi glances at her. "It could've been Noodle Burger Boy."
"Sis?" Hiro looks towards her as she leans against the table, crossing her arms.
"...My instinct points towards them...but ultimately...I don't think Di or Trina did it. My gut is telling me it's someone else."
"Are you sure?" Honey Lemon asks her.
"Yeah...these two things didn't happen until after our little...get-together," She gives Mikey a look. "And Trina might be after me, but she's not that invested in my life to get Mikey involved like this. Di's been in prison for a while, so Chris could've done these things...but they're in maximum security. So unless they have super strength, they couldn't have done this. The way this is...it's personal."
"So then Noodle Burger Boy," Fred says while spinning around in his hover chair.
"Even if it is..." She stands up, looking at her friends. "We can't meet each other in public unless we're disguised. Whoever is tracking me could be after you to get to me, and I can't have that. So...for the time being, you use these," She hands them burner cell phones.
"Is it really that bad?" Megan asks as she stares at it.
"They could be tracing her calls and texts," Hiro speaks up from his spot.
"It's only temporary," Wasabi explains next.
"Chief Marquez gave them to us. They're only meant to contact us and no one else until we sort this out."
The trio look towards each other, slightly concerned. Whoever it was, they meant business if they're looking into them as well...
"Alright," Karmi nods slowly. "But this creep better be worth it."
"Who's that twisted to stalk you like this?" Megan wonders as Hana steps up to Basemax.
"That's what we need to find out," Hiro stands up as Hana considers all of the evidence in her head.
"You really think that he or she could come after us?" Mikey raises a brow.
"It's possible. We don't know why they would want to get her away from you," GoGo points to him.
"Wait, wait, wait...that's why they did all that?! To get her away from me? What'd I do?!"
Hana rubs her chin and slowly drops her hand in realization. She sighs, squeezing her eyes shut. "They saw us...at Joe's Diner."
They all turn around to her as she crosses her arms, joining the group. "Think about it. They had to have seen us by chance. Fred and I didn't get chased until after we were there, or the tracker getting onto my suit either. And I think I know why...to warn me to get away from having...relations with you. To keep me away for their own gain. And there's only one person who fits that description..."
She looks up towards Basemax.
"Robertson!" Fred points at the screen.
"No!" She sighs in exasperation as the picture is Hardlight, to their shock.
"Hardlight's true identity."
"I should've put it together sooner," Hana sighs as she fluffs her pillow back at home. "Why didn't I connect it earlier?"
"Well, there was a lot of suspects," Hiro tries to cheer her up. "But at least you have all those gummy bears."
"True..." She turns around to open up a bag, but sees that they're all emptied out. "...My gummy bears..." She gives a disappointed frown, hearing her brother chuckle.
"Ah..." He holds up a giant bowl of them. "I tried."
"Yay," The frown immediately turns into a beam as he holds out the bowl.
"You earned it," Hiro gives her a wink and she sits down on his bed.
"...No...doesn't feel right." She pulls his hand forward and puts some gummy bears into his palm.
"You're kidding," He chuckles in disbelief.
"I'm sorry, and just why is that funny?" She deadpans at him.
"Because you don't share gummy bears. You almost chopped my hand off when I asked you if I could have some with my ice cream sundae!"
"Yeah, but...you've stuck by me through a lot," The girl shrugs slowly. "Even when I didn't want you to be," She cringes at the memory of having that Obake nightmare and having locked herself in the bathroom. And the time that she wanted to deal with El Fuego on her own... "So...thanks for that."
He smiles, eating one before she changes her mind. "Can I have half the bowl?"
"..." She grunts in defeat. "Yes..."
"Huh. Hana Mae Hamada actually gave me half her gummy bears," Hiro eats another. "I should write this down."
"Do not do that," She warns him slowly.
"Baymax, can you get my phone?" Hiro asks with a smirk. "I think the others would wanna know too!"
"No!" Hana sits up and gets off the bed, but Baymax grabs it first. Hiro takes it into his hands.
"Thank you."
"Hiro, don't you dare!" She tries to take it, but he pushes her away.
"Too late, it's sent," He smiles in amusement, looking at his phone. "...Sorry, so is that picture of you and what the goat did to you when you were ten."
She snatches his phone and sees that there's nothing there. "I hate you," She rolls her eyes as she slowly leaves to the bathroom.
"Love you too, Hana."
His sister just blows a raspberry in response. Aunt Cass suddenly comes into the room. "Um, Hana? Diego is here. He wants to speak to you."
"Huh?" The twins both ask in confusion, looking towards each other. What would he want with her?
"So, uh..." Hana crosses her arms, wearing a grey over-sized cardigan over herself as she paces around in the living room. "Can I ask what this is about?"
"Do you remember an Officer Hawk?"
Her eyes widen slowly as she stops, whipping to Hiro, who's just as shocked as her. She hadn't heard from him ever since the seller was arrested...and after he assured her that everything would be fine. She didn't ever think that he'd ask about him.
She clears her throat. "Uh...n-no?"
"Are you sure?" He raises a brow, holding up a folder. He drops it onto the table to show the man's picture...
A mugshot.
Hana scratches the side of her head, fearing the worst. "Why are you asking about him?"
"I had a chance to look into your records after a tip was dropped to me," He clears his throat, leaning in a bit. "And I thought it was a mistake...that a decorated officer of 15 years would expunge a charge of the illegal purchase of cocaine by a teenage girl."
She bites her lip, sweating a little. By the look of his face, this was serious and that she couldn't get out of it. "...Okay, let me explain-"
"Oh, no, we're not putting a 14-year-old in prison," He waves his hands rapidly, eyes wide. "Especially not after your help with that...monster," He looks away in slight embarrassment. "I just thought I'd let you know that we've officially arrested Officer Hawk for fixing the case."
Hana opens her mouth in disbelief, clamping it shut. "Mr. Cruz...that man helped me out of a bad situation in which I was going through a bad time. You can't just arrest him for that!"
"I'm sorry," He closes his eyes. "But the DA isn't being lenient on the situation. It's out of my hands. In their eyes, he's a dirty cop."
"Diego..." Cass speaks up softly. "That man is going to prison for willingly helping my niece?"
"I understand why he did it...but we can't just let something like that slide."
"...Who dropped the tip?" Hiro asks slowly.
"You all know as well as I do that it's breaking confidentiality if I even say it. I'm already saying too much."
Hana frowns as she looks at her family, who look towards the ground. They could tell that Diego doesn't like it as much as they do.
"I have to go. The twins are waiting for me to come back home with dinner...I'll see you later," He looks to Cass, standing up and leaving the house.
"I just can't believe this..." Cass walks away towards her room and Hana narrows her eyes.
"...I think I know who did it."
Hiro seems to be thinking the same thing.
"Yeah...I do too. We have to unmask Hardlight...and stop him."