Giving Thanks

"This is so dumb," Vista muttered as she hurled a handful of assorted small candies into the crowd.

"I'm having fun," Cuddlebug whispered as she waved to the people on the sidewalks.

The two girls had been assigned to PRT's float in the local Thanksgiving Day parade. The rest of the wards were working security.

"You think that everything is fun," Vista quipped. "You know we're only here because we're the youngest and the cutest, right?"

"I don't mind," Cuddlebug replied as she tossed some candy towards a group of even littler kids clustered together.

"But seriously," Vista continued, "what does anyone in this city have to be thankful for?"

"I'm thankful for a lot of things," Cuddlebug said honestly. "A year ago I was an orphan laying on a cold metal table while people pulled out my blood to make illegal drugs from the chemicals in it." She tossed more candy into the crowd and gave a wave. "Now I've got a new big sister who loves me, I'm not sick all the time, I've got honest to god real life meat-space friends that I love, and I'm a superhero helping people, something I've always wanted to do. I don't even have to worry about people finding out I'm a mutant." She paused for a moment, and then added, "Yes Mister Snuggles, I love you too."

"I don't like talking to you about things like this," Vista said while waving to civilians. "Your genuine and cheerful optimism makes me reconsider my sarcastic cynicism. I don't like that."

This prompted Cuddlebug to giggle.

A few moments later, the sounds of th parade were cut off by someone blaring Ride of the Valkyries.

The two young heroes turned to see behind them that an obviously drunken Hookwolf riving an open roof jeep had swerved into the parade, Stormtiger sitting in the back, firing what were hopefully blanks from a machine gun into the air.

"You know," Vista said, "I think there's something I'm thankful for after all: That I get to beat up Nazis!"

"That is really fun," Cuddlebug admitted.

"Throw me at them," Vista said. "I wanna kick Hookwolf in the face."

"Yay! Fastball special!"