After a long drive back, which included a stop at the emergency room to check out Pam's head injury, Ralph, Pam and Aidan arrived at the Hinkley home. The couple decided that after everything Aidan had just gone through, it would be best she stayed there for the night instead of returning to her apartment. Aidan didn't mind too much either, as she didn't want to be left alone that night and wanted to ask questions about the suit. Pam entered the kitchen to fix the three hot chocolate so they could relax, and Aidan shifted the cape so she wouldn't sit on it and sat on the couch.
As he closed the door, Ralph turned and looked at Aidan, smiling a soft smile. Inside, he felt a little sad, knowing that, while he hated wearing it, he would miss his zany adventures and scenarios helping Bill in the jammies. The noise woke Aidan from her thoughts and she glanced up, noticing Ralph staring, and shrugged. "So, all this time you've been a superhero courtesy of a couple of outerspace aliens, and now it's me," she said still in disbelief. "Why did you keep this from me, well besides the fact it looks silly?"
Ralph sat down on the couch and looked into her eyes, knowing this would be a little tough to explain. "Ade, Pam and I didn't want you to ever get hurt in the crossfire of one of Bill's scenarios, so we decided that we'd never tell you. Of course, neither of us expected you to get shot or the suit to select you to continue."
"But why did it choose me, why not Kevin," she said. "I mean, he's your son. Only reason we're a family is because my parents died."
"Don't know, but it might have something to do with the fact we've been estranged all these years. Alicia, his mom, pretty much turned him against me when she won sole custody. Last time I heard from him was his college graduation, and you remember how that went," he said, choking up a bit as he thought about his son. Aidan nodded, remembering all too well.
"You, however, haven't been that way, and the green guys knew that. What they said the suit saw in you is true, you're like Ralph. You always try to help people through thick and thin, no matter the circumstances," said Pam as she came back with three mugs of cocoa.
"Speaking of circumstances, what I'd like to know is why you even left the building. You could've died you know," said Ralph.
"I almost did," Aidan said as she took a long sip from the mug. Noticing the look in Ralph and Pam's eyes she shrugged and looked at them with slightly distant look. "Even with the suit helping, I'm still sore from the CPR, Ralph. And judging from what the green guy said, I would've died if it weren't for both you and the suit. Anyway, I don't know why, but something said I should and ..."
Seeing Aidan try to hide a yawn, Ralph smiled slightly. "Ade, I think we can talk more about this tomorrow. You're tired. Why don't you get ready for bed? We're about to call it a night too."
Aidan nodded tiredly and headed to her room to change. As she closed the door she turned around and looked around, smiling softly. After she graduated college, Ralph and Pam made Aidan's room the guest bedroom, but left bits and pieces that were strictly Aidan's touches in it. Though it wasn't cluttered, there was a little bit of everything: hand-blown glass, metalsmith and jewelrymaking, pastels, photos, mixed media... even an elaborate dreamcatcher over her bed. She made the dreamcatcher especially for Pam and Ralph, and it was one of their favorite pieces in the room. It was also quite honestly one of her favorites too, as it fit her personality, always a dreamer.
Looking at it, she had a flashback of the day's events, which to her felt mostly like a dream. She remembered being shot, but most of the events afterward were vague except Bill putting on the tourniquet. Aidan winced when she remembered how tight it felt and smiled faintly at how Ralph was trying to ease the pain as best he could...
The next thing she remembered was waking up lying in some tiny dark room and panicking, realizing it wasn't a normal operating room. In fact, she thought she was in the morgue by mistake. Aidan then heard a soft voice speak to her, saying that she had been shot and they were going to help her. Before she could say or ask anything, a gentle mist wafted into the small room, making her drowsy. The last thing she remembered hearing before succumbing to the anesthetic's effects was the voice again saying she would survive and it would be the start of a new adventure. ...
Aidan's mind snapped back into the present time, and she took a closer look at the dreamcatcher. 'Some start, I think I may need this for real after tonight,' Aidan mused as she fingered the lizard conchos and beads entrapped in the webbing and the feathers at the bottom believed to filter the good dreams to her. 'Good thing the sun shines into my room first so the nightmares snagged in the web can evaporate, if they come.''
Looking at the far wall she chuckled softly at the abstract oil pastel on the wall, remembering the dare a friend had to make a project for an art exhibition. Got her interested in the media, though she always preferred working in 3D and wearable art over sketches and oils, and she became an art teacher. Aidan started wondering what would happen to that job now that she had the suit. It didn't seem to affect Ralph much, but then again, things were different for him. 'This is a new journey and job,' she thought. "Just hope it doesn't cause me to accidentally blow up the jewelry lab. ..."
Smiling softly, she looked around and saw a photo of her and her parents... her birth parents and her godparents. While Ralph and Pam loved Aidan to death, even they knew there were times that Aidan missed her birth parents and sometimes needed them. Losing them had been difficult for Aidan, but it only got worse after their memorial service. Her dad's family had always disapproved of him marrying her mom. They made it clear even when her parents were alive, treating Aidan as the black sheep, though she never caused trouble. When her dad's side found out Ralph and Pam were to take care of Aidan if her parents died, they disowned her. She'd tried to contact them over the next few years, but got nothing but returned letters and phones slammed in her ear.
After one too many phones slammed in her ear, she decided it was time to move on, as her dad's side had obviously done. She asked Ralph and Pam if they would officially adopt her so she could change her last name to Hinkley. The two loved hearing the request and wholeheartedly agreed, so Aidan got her wish. Aside from other relatives on her mom's side, it was pretty much the three of them now. 'Huh, wonder what my parents would've thought about me actually becoming a superhero, given I used to watch She-Ra and Superfriends...' she thought with a sad smile.
Taking the picture with her, Aidan sat down on the bed and started getting ready for bed. She leaned back on the bed, sighing at finally feeling comfortable after a rough day. For the first time, Aidan really understood what being alive truly was. She picked up the picture again and gazed at it once more before putting it on the night stand. Aidan closed her eyes and started to drift off, remembering the events of the day. 'It'll be a new start, since the green guys literally gave me one...'
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A couple of minutes after Aidan entered her bedroom, Pam turned to Ralph. "Hun, I don't know how she's going to deal with this. I mean, I know she seems to be taking it rather well, but she could still be in shock from everything that happened."
Ralph nodded, frowning. "Yeah, I'm worried about that too. I mean it's a lot to take in on a short notice, believe me," he said. "I think tonight one of us should be up to check on her from time to time just to be on the safe side. I'll call Bill later this morning to see if he and Tony will join us for a trip to the desert in the afternoon to try some of the powers. Besides, Tony's got to get used to dealing with Aidan more often."
"That's something else, hun. Judging from his comments, he didn't seem too keen on being paired up with her."
"Neither was Bill until I rescued him from Gabriel's Army," he said with a smile, and Pam chuckled.
"I remember that day. It wasn't the best way to say 'Hello, my name's Ralph and I've just gotten a magic suit,'" she said. "Wonder what will happen when Aidan lifts the bumper to test her strength. Just remember to bring something to wake up Tony with."
"All right, I deserve that, but since he hasn't seen what all the suit can do, I'll make sure Tony's sitting down just in case," Ralph said with a grin.
After a few more minutes, Pam and Ralph noticed that Aidan hadn't come out to say goodnight, so they peeked into her room. They smiled when they saw Aidan was lying on the bed, fast asleep. She was still wearing most of the suit, having taken off the boots and the cape was draped over a chair. Trying not to wake her, Ralph gently covered her with a blanket. "It'll take time, Pam, but I think they'll do well. Listen, I'll sit in the living room for a while and let you sleep. I'll wake you up in a couple of hours to switch out. 'Night hun." The two kissed, and after Pam entered the master bedroom, Ralph sat down on the couch in in the living room and put his feet on the armrest to relax. Grabbing the blanket lying on the back of the couch to get warmed up, he started thinking about some of his adventures in the suit and wondered what was in store for Aidan.
