This is a work of fan fiction using characters from the Worm universe, which is created and owned by Wildbow, as are Clockblocker and any of the other characters mentioned here and I do not claim any ownership over any of it. The original characters and their powers are mine though. The story I tell here is not canon and I'm not profiting financially from it. I am grateful to Wildbow for the hours untold of delight, awe, and fascination his work has provided me.

To Alehhandro: Thank you so much for your review! You're right, I didn't explain what she did well enough. I really appreciate you taking the time to point it out, and if anyone else notices me skimping on important details please let me know! I stuck an explanation in here, hopefully that helps.

And Sebine: Still giggling at your comment.

And big BIG thank you to JanessaVR and the Guest who pointed out the previous chapter wasn't properly uploaded. I'm really sorry about that and thank you to anyone who's come back to give this another chance.

October 19th (Wednesday) continued

Clockblocker's summer sky gaze was slow and piercing. Weaver wasn't expecting him to take it so seriously but decided to go with it. She took off her mask and withdrew her aura of impenetrable calm. Her face felt vulnerable, but she allowed the discomfort for the moment.

"Why me? Why now?" he asked, echoing Vista's query from the locker room.

"Maybe I've been reading too much into it but… what you did for me in New York and here today, it feels like you're willing to work with me, give me a chance. I think the Chicago team did too, but I handled it wrong, burned them out or maybe our relationship was doomed from the beginning. And right now, I am hesitant to second-guess myself as thoroughly as I perhaps need to because I'm scared that doubt could be crippling. That's where you come in, back in Brockton Bay, when Vista was kidnapped, you unsettled me, got me rethinking conclusions I'd taken for granted. You pay attention, and your perspective's just different enough that you might catch things that I'd miss." Taylor met his eyes and Dennis swallowed; his stomach was doing those flips again. The responsible thing to do would be to say yes, but then he'd be tied to whatever Weaver-induced insanity followed. He did want to get out of Brockton Bay, but the Chicago dynamic seemed tense and unstable.

"If it's not urgent, I'd like to think it over. You can trust me but being taken into your confidence is something else."

"Sure." Although the situations were completely different, an echo of that first rejection from Brian haunted Taylor. Guilty, Clockblocker busied himself with his helmet to keep from agreeing just to cheer her up.

"I, uh… liked what you did with my power back there. Stupidly dangerous though, that many strands of frozen silk would have been impossible to avoid if any of the hostages or terrorists got free." He looks up from his hands.

"Not so dangerous for me, my power lets me know exactly where my bugs are." She trailed a finger through the thick dust around them and added a few dots and stick men. "A couple of bugs on the silk before and after it's frozen lets me know where the lines are and when they unfreeze. If the silk is wrapped tightly enough… your power can't tell the difference between the thread and their clothing. Their clothes hold them in place and then they've only got a fraction of a second before they're back on pause. That is until I cuff them and then they're back on pause again except now with cuffs on." Without her usual emotional disconnection there was something somewhat geeky about her explanation. A delight in the loophole their synergy created.

""How the hell did you come up with that so fast?" Bemused admiration quirked up the corner of his mouth.

""It's amazing what you can accomplish without leisure or a social life." She rolled her eyes ruefully, as if she expected he'd experienced similar.

"I count hanging out with my team as socialising." He narrowed his eyes, suspicion forming when he recalled the way her team reacted to her request they take this mission.

"Weaver, Clockblocker! Hostiles coming your way! Master-Changer- Stranger protocols in place. Come in Weaver, Clockblocker!" Weaver's brow furrowed slightly at Tecton's voice and her calmness slammed back in place.

"Clockblocker here, preparing to engage."

"Weaver here, I'm sending Clockblocker to iSpy, I'll engage the mercs. Hit the other cape with containment foam. In fact, hit him and possibly everyone in his vicinity." Weaver put her mask back on and used the arms in her flight pack to undo its own straps. In the limited room in the roof space she had to get inside Clockblocker's personal space to secure it on his back.

"iSpy can make people look like anyone else in view of the eyes in his range. I doubt we're dealing with a Changer situation. Clockblocker will put iSpy on pause and we should be able to see what we're actually dealing with." Weaver spoke on the public broadcast channel. "Golem, Tecton, Annex and Wanton. Slow or capture the ones that are running. "Cuff and Grace, back up the PRT in containing the unidentified cape in the red hockey mask."

"Weaver, Devon here. The mercs were in a police van when the officer securing them recognised one of them as having his brother's face. Then they all just fled, including the ones already in cuffs, taking considerable damage to their wrists and hands to do so. Several hostages joined them too."

"Weaver! Hockey Mask just melted his cuffs with this blob of orange light. He's going after the escapees...no, ha! The foam team nailed him, further spraying not required. Burning leather smells terrible. Want us to go help with the escapees?" Grace sounded like she was already giving chase before Weaver had a chance to reply.

"Weaver, I don't know how your wings work."

"Yes, Grace, Cuff, hang back and assist Police with processing the other hostages. Clockblocker don't touch anything, I'll drop you within striking distance of iSpy."

When the hostage cuffed to iSpy saw Clockblocker hit the ground running she pulled her hand out. No damage, Clockblocker noted, she's one of them.

"Wait! There's something I need to explain. If you'll just give me a moment." iSpy looked scared and pleading. Clockblocker charged forward only to slam his whole body into a large muscular force. Instinctively his power cut his attacker off from the flow of time. Then he tried to move and realised his mistake; the woman had stretched and wrapped herself twice around him on the attack. He was locked in place.

"Well sir, looks like you've got your moment. Explain away."