Well, this silly computer illiterate girl can't figure out the silly comments, but I'm getting them on my e-mail, so please dont' stop! Thanks again for reading!

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"Mom," Virgil asked after the dishes had been done.

"Yes, Virgil?" she asked.

"I have an hour 'till curfew, do you mind if I go flying for a while?" She stared at him, and he quickly added, "I'll be careful, I promise. I won't fall off, I never do." She bit her lip.

"I don't know, Virgil," she said slowly.

"Normally, when I'm upset or have a lot to think about, I go on patrol, and it helps a lot. Since I can't really do that here," he looked down, "I figured I could just fly around for a while, and see if that helps." She looked at him, not saying anything for several moments.

"If you promise me you'll stay out of trouble," she said. "The police will be looking for a reason to arrest you again. Very few people are comfortable around metahumans." Virgil nodded, and walked forward.

"Thanks, moms," he said, and kissed her cheek. He still couldn't believe she was actually there, she could tell. He took every chance and every excuse to touch her hand, or give her a hug, or just be around her.

"If you're not back by 10," she said as he walked out of the kitchen, "I won't have a choice, and I'll have to call police." He nodded.

"I understand, moms," he said, and the door shut behind him. A few minutes later, she watched a glowing disk fly away from the house. She shook her head, still not sure wether to believe him or not. Bang Babies were known for their lack of mental stability. She sighed, and walked over to a picture of Robert Hawkins. She picked it up.

"Watch over him," she whispered, "Even if his story is true, he is still our son, and he'll need all the help you, or anyone, can give him." She kissed the picture, and held it a moment, before placing it back on the bureau and walking into the front room to catch the 9:00 news.

The flying did help, a little, but the fact that he wasn't in costume just felt strange. He shook his head and started looking around, out of habit. The next morning, he had to find a tutor for school. What he really needed to do was get outta this dimension, and back to his. But, that would mean he would have to leave his mother again. Could she handle that? Could He? He didn't know. The thought of losing her filled him with a deep, heart-wrenching ache.

A dark figure slipping into a jewelry store brought him out of his thoughts. His mind immediately snapped into Super-hero mode, and before he knew what he was doing, he'd landed a few buildings down, walking silently up to the store. The window had been broken, but no alarm had gone off...unless it was a silent alarm.

He landed a few feet away, and approached cautiously, having no idea as to what would happen. He walked closer to the window, and peered inside. The lights were out, and the cameras seemed to be as well.

"I'll need to tape this," he said to himself, "Just in case they think I did this." He pointed to the cameras, and they flashed on, just as a figure came leaping out at him.

"Aaarrrrg!" He yelped, and threw his opponent back. The figure landed gracefully, and turned around to face him.

"If you want to cut in on the goods," a familiar voice growled, "You'll have to wait your turn."

"Shebang?"

"Who?" Shanice walked out of the shadows, and into the moonlight. "Are you trying to be funny?" she glared at him. "It's Contortiana, hello!" He almost laughed.
"What kind of a name is that?" he asked. "Shebang sounds much better."

"Do I care?" she asked, turned up her nose, and walked back towards the store.

"Uh, Shanice," he said.

"DON'T CALL ME THAT!" she turned on him.

"Fine," he raised his hands, "Contortiana," he shook his head, "I can't let you go back in there."

"Why not?" she asked.

"Because you're taking things that don't belong to you."

"Oh, and you're one to talk, Viper?" she took a threatening step towards him.

"Um...look," he put his hands behind his back, and started building a nova burst, "first, call me Virgil." She shook her head in confusion, and didn't say anything, but tapped her foot impatiently.

"Second," he sighed, "I'm really, really sorry."

"For what?" she asked.

"Behind you!" he yelled. Immediately, she turned around, ready to pummel whoever was there, but she didn't get a chance. Virgil threw his nova burst at her, hitting her squarely in the back. She yelped in pain, and he had to rush forward to catch her before she fell to the ground.

"I hope she's alright," he said, holding her out. He glanced at his watch, and went pale. 12 minutes until he had to be back.

"No honor among thieves," a new voice asked from behind him. He turned around, and took a step back.

"Ebon," he hissed.

"Huh?" the shadow form stood, looking at him for a few seconds.

"Uh...Cloak, right?" he asked.

"I knew you couldn't keep your parol," Ebon/Cloak replied, ignoring the question.

"I'm trying," he said. "Shanice isn't on the list of people I can't contact," he looked at the limp figure in his hands. "Besides, I stopped her, didn't I?"

"I don't know what kind of game you're playing, Viper, but--"

"Look," Virgil levitated the unconscious Shanice to cloak. "I gotta be home in 10 minutes. If you don't believe that I had nothing to do with it," he pointed at the video camera,"Watch it. You know where I'll be if you need me," he said and hopped on his disk. Cloak lunged for him, but missed, barely.

"I will get you, Viper!" Cloak yelled.

"The name's VIRGIL!" Virgil called back, and flew towards his home neighborhood.