I woke up to the taste of bile at the back of my throat. Wiping the tears from my eyes, I try to cling onto and remember the last fragments of an already quickly fading dream. There had been something there. A memory of an imagination. I push myself up and stumble out of bed and into the bathroom, ignoring the sudden sense of vertigo.

What a way to start my first day at Arcadia.

A quick shower and breakfast later and I find myself waiting at the bus stop in a set of baggy jeans and a hoodie. I guess I'd have to either get up earlier if I wanted to keep up with my exercise routine or start going after school instead. A few other kids shuffle into the area, but there's a lot less kids getting picked up for Arcadia than there were for Winslow in this part of the city. When the bus comes, there's plenty of space to find a seat, and I end up sequestering myself in the back.

I stared idly out the window, watching the scenery go by. Something about my sleep still nagged at me, though I couldn't remember what. A dream, which was not all a dream. The bright sun was extinguished and stars did wander darkling in the eternal space. I snort softly and shake my head. I was probably just overthinking things.

The bus comes to a stop and I get up, forcing a smile onto my face. Time to face the new school. This time, I was sure, things would be different. I could simply move past Emma. I could make new friends.

·:·:·:·:·:·:·:·:·:·

I picked at my food in the corner of the cafeteria. I hadn't made any new friends. A transfer student was barely even a novelty at Arcadia. I'd had a few curious questions, but my transfer hadn't coincided with any rumors about a new Ward, so interest was muted at best.

It's not that anyone was hostile or even cold, it's just that… Well, after the initial curiosity passed, everyone already had their cliques.

I caught movement out of the corner of my eye and looked up and - One of the most beautiful girls I'd ever seen walked past. A bombshell of a blonde, who would have given even Emma a run for her money, settled at a table, a group of girls following her like planets orbiting the Sun.

I found myself standing up, trying to swallow against a suddenly dry throat. I should go talk to her. Introduce myself. Maybe I could do something to impress her. I didn't have a lot in the way of showy talents, but I could maybe levitate something...

I flinch back. What I was I thinking? I didn't want to out myself just to make friends. But without any sort of trick, why would someone as perfect as that want to be friends with someone like me? I settle back into my chair, wiping my sweaty palms against my jeans, trying to still the shivers running through my body. My breath came in short little gasps. No matter how quickly I breathed, I couldn't seem to get enough air in.

I had to get out of here.

I fled the cafeteria, only stopping once I was sequestered in a girls' bathroom two hallways down. What was wrong with me? None of my tormentors were here. No one had spoken so much as a cross word to me all day. Yet here I was, breaking down in the bathroom.

I slammed a fist into the bathroom stall and felt a shudder run through me. How pathetic was I, that I'd been ready to give up my identity as a cape just to impress some girl I didn't even know? Why had I even? Because she had been popular and pretty? Because she had reminded me of Emma?

Maybe everything Emma had said the past two years had been true. Maybe I really was just a loser in the end. A failure. I wouldn't ever really amount to anything. I - took a deep breath and felt the wonder of the Universe around me. If I was unhappy with my current state, then I simply had to improve myself. Power alone is not enough. It is through passion, not mere emotion, but the drive to change things, that my chains would be broken.

I blinked and stumbled out of the bathroom stall, feeling calm again. No, that wasn't right. That entire ball of ugly emotion still sat in my chest, but instead of being immersed in it, I felt strangely detached, like an outsider looking in, able to pick up and examine each emotion without being invested in them.

It made it easier, I found, to see just how strange my reaction had been. I turned the tap on a bathroom sink, washing my face as I contemplated what had happened. Why had I been so eager to impress someone I hadn't ever met before? I chewed on the inside of my cheek, staring into the mirror. My face stared back, wan and pale, but there wasn't much I could do for that at the moment.

I had class to get to.

·:·:·:·:·:·:·:·:·:·

The rest of the day went by in something of a blur. I'd been just as ignored as I had been during my morning classes. When the final bell rang, dismissing my English class, I happily started stuffing my books into my backpack, ready to get home. I needed some time to myself - to vent, to figure myself out, to figure out what I wanted to do.

Suffice it to say, I was rather annoyed when the teacher spoke up and interrupted my plans. "Taylor, could you stay behind for a bit?"

I kept myself from sighing and instead forced a smile onto my face. "Sure, Mr. Harrison. What do you need?"

"Well, a couple of things, I suppose. How was your first day here at Arcadia?"

Kind of sucked. "Fine I guess? Better than Winslow ever was, at least."

"That's good to hear. I'm sure any rough edges will smooth out as you adjust as well."

"I guess."

"By the way, were you in any clubs at Winslow?"

"Erm, no. Not really." No one would have let me join even if I had been interested. The Trio would have found a way to ruin things for them if they did. "Why're you asking?"

"Well, we try to encourage all of our students here to engage in extracurriculars. With your transfer, you kind of missed out on a lot of the various club promotions at the start of the year, so I asked one of our student ambassadors to swing by and show you around the different clubs."

"I, uh," I stared at him for a moment. He had to have gone out of his way to arrange this. It was the first day, and he'd already shown more care about my well-being than any of the teachers at Winslow had in the two years I'd gone there. If only it weren't so personally inconvenient this time. Any sort of after-school club would cut into my plans to be a hero. I tentatively asked, "I have to catch the bus though?"

"It'll be fine. We have buses that run later for students in clubs and I already called your Dad and got permission for you to stay late today."

I licked at my lips, trying to come up with another excuse, when a handsome, sandy-haired boy rapped his knuckles against the open door and poked his head into the classroom. "Hey there, hope I'm not too late."

"Not at all. Taylor, this is Dean Stansfield. He'll be showing you around today."

I looked from Dean, to Mr. Harrison, and then back to Dean. Dean simply shot a sunny smile in my direction. I sighed and resigned myself to my fate. "Alright. Good to meet you, I suppose."

"You too, Taylor. I'll do my best to keep this as painless as possible."

Mr. Harrison makes little shooing motions with his hands and I roll my eyes before following Dean out into the hallway. "I like how you don't deny that there will be pain involved with the experience."

"Taylor, I won't lie to you." Dean stared at me straight faced and didn't add anything to the sentence. After a moment, a snort escaped me, a small smile crossing my face. Dean immediately brightened at the sight of it. "But we should probably get started, it's a big school with a lot of ground to cover. Were there any clubs or hobbies that you were interested in?"

"Um. I'm not really sure what all is available, so maybe a quick run down? What club are you in?

"I'm actually in a Work Release program, so I'm probably not the best person to use as a reference unless you're planning on getting a job."

Huh, that wasn't really a terrible idea really. Between the hospital bills and the lawsuit, we were kind of strapped for cash at the moment, so getting school credit and some spending money at the same time would help a lot. Of course, even a part time job would still be a serious time commitment. I wouldn't be able to go out and do Hero stuff nearly as often.

"Anyways, there's the various sports teams," Dean continued, "Though you'd need to try out for a position with them. There's an Art club. Band, Orchestra, and Choir if you're more musically minded. There's a Literature club if you enjoy reading. There's an Engineering club - they're gearing up for their robot battle tournament at the end of the year. There's also a Computing club, but I think most of the members just end up playing games together. Drama, if you want to act; Debate, if you want to argue. And if you want to spend your time studying, there's always the Academic Decathalon."

I blink at the wave of information. "Is that, uh. Is that all of them? What the heck is an Academic Decathlon?"

"Nah, just the big ones, really; and AcDec is for the sort of people who really enjoy standardized testing." He grinned at my sudden recoil. "Probably not for you then, huh?"

"Yeah, I think I'll pass on that one."

Dean let out a rich, full laugh, and I let myself smile in response. Even knowing that he was only doing this because I was his responsibility, that he probably wouldn't give me the time of day otherwise, it was still nice talking with him. That he was handsome and a bit charming didn't hurt things. Then, a familiar blonde flew around the corner and I felt my mood sour.

Literally, flew, her feet weren't touching the ground. She was beautiful and perfect, and more than anything I wanted to be her friend. Instead, I grit my teeth and strangled that desire. I knew who she was now.

"Dean!" Victoria Dallon, Glory Girl, shouted down the hallway, before barrelling into him and wrapping him in a hug that lifted him off the ground. "I've been looking everywhere for you!"

Dean wasn't startled; he seemed more bemused than anything by the sudden embrace by a known cape. I'm sure the quick kiss that followed it would have ended any complaints that he would have had anyways, of course. Still held up in the air, he tilted his head after a moment and asked, "What's up, Vicky?"

"I was planning to take Amy shopping and thought I'd see if you wanted to come with. Maybe grab dinner together afterwards?"

The two of them were looking into each other's eyes, lost to their own little world, so I wasn't too surprised when Dean murmured, "Sure. I'd love to go. I'm sure you'll need someone to carry the bags, if nothing else." And then he started, as he seemed to remember that he'd been escorting someone when Victoria had shown up. He glanced over at me guiltily, only for his eyes to widen as he took in my clenched jaw and shaking fists. His head snapped back to looked at Victoria and he hissed out, "Vicky! Aura!"

"What?" Victoria looked confused for a moment, and then looked at me as though noticing me for the first time. A sudden flush of red invaded her cheeks and the urge to worship her slowly receded. "Oh God." Dropping Dean, she rushed over to me. "Sorry! Sorry. Most people don't get the Fear reaction to my aura."

"It wasn't fear."

"What?"

"It wasn't fear," I maintained, looking her in the eye.

She looked confused, but fortunately Dean decided to intervene. "It's fine, Vicky. Anyways, this is Taylor, she's a new transfer I was showing around. Taylor, this is Vicky, my girlfriend."

Yeah, I wasn't that oblivious. The two were pretty obviously involved. Still, I offered Victoria, a brittle smile. "Good to meet you." Then, turning my attention back to Dean, I asked, "I guess we'll do the tour of the clubs another time?"

"Oh, uh-" He shot a guilty look towards Victoria.

"I didn't realize I was interrupting things, I could always come back and grab Dean later…"

"Don't worry about it," I cut in. "It's not like there's a rush, right?"

Victoria slowly nodded. "If you're sure?"

"Yeah, go ahead. Have fun, you two."

She stares at me a moment longer, and then suddenly I'm the one wrapped up in a hug, floating off the ground. I'm pretty sure my eyes came close to falling out of my head, I was so surprised. I fought to keep my revulsion from showing. Not with Victoria; she had been perfectly kind and the hug felt nice, a gentle squeeze. No, it was with myself; the girl so pathetic that even a simple hug was enough to give me this sort of contentment. But then Victoria smiled up at me and said, "Alright. But I'm helping Dean give the actual tour next time," and I couldn't find it in me to do anything but nod.

Dean gave me a concerned look as Victoria set me down. "We'll talk soon, alright?"

"Sure," I shrug. He give me another look, but turns away after a moment and I watch him and Victoria leave. I guess I'd have to give some thought to the whole Club thing between now and then. For now, I walked downstairs and out of the school building, only to let out an exasperated sigh.

I'd missed my bus.

·:·:·:·:·:·:·:·:·:·

"Hey there."

"Hey yourself." Vista plopped down next to me on the edge of the roof (It had been a lot easier to climb up to than I had expected) and I gave her a small smile. She didn't return it though. "You know this is a terrible idea, right?"

"Uh. What do you mean?"

"I mean, it's one thing being internet friends, but I'm not exactly comfortable unmasking to you. That means any real-life hanging out we do would have to be with me in costume. Can't exactly go to the movies or just grab a meal like that. And that's without getting into the problems of being publicly known as a friend of a hero and how that can bite you."

"Oh. I hadn't really given it that much thought. I just… wanted to hang out, y'know?"

"I know. And I figured you probably needed to talk to someone or I wouldn't have agreed in the first place. But try to keep it in mind, Taylor."

I ignored the flush that stained my cheeks and simply nodded, before drawing my knees up to hug them to my chest. "I guess... I don't know, things have just been a bit overwhelming for me lately. Between the lawsuit and the new school and everything else." And powers, I didn't add.

"Yeah, I hear you. I was pretty withdrawn for months after I joined the Wards. Even though everyone was nice enough at the time, and I looked up to them all, it was still a lot of new people and I wasn't really able to hang out with my old friends as much any more."

"Yeah... " I went silent for a moment, staring out down the street. "...Have you ever had a friend who did something that really hurt you?"

"Um. Not really no. I mean, sometimes the other Wards will piss me off, and I wouldn't say Shadow Stalker was ever my friend, but no one really hurt me."

"Oh. I uh… She came and apologized to me recently. And part of me just wants to forgive her, to let things go back to how they used to be. But I'm not really sure that I can."

Vista shifted uncomfortably, and after a moment, just set a hand on my shoulder and squeezed slightly. "I guess that's up to you, Taylor. Sometimes, it's better to just move on and let old things fade."

"I suppose." I let my attention wander for a moment, turning the issue with Emma over in my head before finally setting it down again. "Thanks for being here, Vista. It means a lot to me, and I know you didn't have to be."

She smiled in return. "Hey, what are friends for?"

·:·:·:·:·:·:·:·:·:·

I quietly stepped into my house. There's the sound of TV coming from the living room to my left, so I guess Dad was already home. I take a deep breath, before stepping that way. "Hey, I'm home."

"Taylor!" Dad's head immediately snapped up at the sound of my voice. "I was starting to get worried. When they said they were going to ask you to stay after school, I didn't expect it to run this late."

"Oh, uh. No, that whole club thing sort of got interrupted. I was actually hanging out with a new friend of mine." Even after my emotional outpouring over Emma, Vista had hung around and chatted for awhile, and we'd eventually moved onto lighter topics. Vista had seemed especially curious about Dean showing me around the school earlier, but I guess she was at the age to want to know more about handsome boys.

In any case, she wasn't really the sort of friend I could show off to Dad, not without some awkward questions about how we met. Still, he brightened up after hearing about her. "That's great, Taylor. Everything go well?"

"Yeah, I think so." I stared at him, for another moment after that, a more important topic on my mind. I had been agonizing over whether to tell my Dad about my powers, but each time, Vista's story held me back. Even if he didn't sell me out to the PRT… Dad looked so tired these days. How would he deal with having a daughter who was putting herself in danger every day, on top of everything else? I opened my mouth - and felt the words die on the tip of my tongue, as they always did. "Anyways, how was your day?"

"Oh, uh, it went pretty good, I guess. I did invite Alan and his family over for dinner on Saturday though. I'm sure you'll enjoy that. It'll be just like old times, right?"

I went still, feeling like ice water had run down my back. "Yeah."

"Just like old times."

I idly twirled my pencil between my fingers, trying my best to listen to the teacher, while keeping an eye on the ticking clock. It was easier than I expected, really. Mrs. Miller wasn't the most thrilling of teachers, but she was still more engaged than anyone at Winslow had ever been, and I didn't have to spend the entire class watching out for spitballs in my hair or girls dumping pencil shavings across my desk.

Honestly, it was even easier than when I'd been self-studying for Arcadia's placement tests. I wasn't really sure why exactly. The actual material was more difficult than what I'd been studying, and having a teacher on hand to explain it didn't actually do that much for me - I was pretty used to having to reference a textbook to get anything out of class at this point.

My mind immediately leapt to my powers, but it wasn't as though I suddenly had an eidetic memory. No, I just seemed to… learn and absorb the information better than I used to. Maybe it was just a side effect of the sort of concentration I had to put into using my powers; making my brain stronger by regularly exercising my mind.

Well, it's not like I had proof either way, and it wasn't like I was about to complain if it were the case. It just would be nice if I knew a bit more about what I could actually do. I instinctively knew that there was more to my powers than just a bit of weak telekinesis and… Well, it had to be a precog ability that had saved me from that car, right? But I hadn't really had anything like that since then, so maybe it was limited to just sensing stuff that would be dangerous to me. Even if I knew that there was more than those two abilities though, it's not like I knew what else I could manage beyond that.

I wonder if any other capes had this much trouble getting used to their powers. Maybe not someone like Glory Girl, but surely a tinker like Armsmaster had to spend the time to figure out how to make things and didn't just have everything in his head after triggering? I could only imagine how much trouble Eidolon had with his constantly changing set of powers.

On the other hand, it would be entirely typical if everyone got a handbook to go with their powers except me.

I let out a quiet sigh and glanced up at the clock again. A minute until the end of class. I started shuffling materials into my backpack.

When the bell rang, I was ready, and out the door before the rest of the class. This had been my habit for the past week - getting down to the bus stop before anyone could intercept me.

I didn't particularly like doing it. It reminded me of Winslow, of dashing out of the class so I could hide from my bullies during lunch time without being tracked down. It wasn't to avoid bullies however, no matter how much it made me think of Winslow. It was to avoid Vicky and Dean.

They had both tried to talk to me during lunch the day after Vicky had pulled Dean away for their date. They had invited me to sit with them, and instead, I gave them the cold shoulder. Since then, I'd seen them looking for me a few times, but I'd done my best to avoid their notice.

I wasn't even entirely sure why. It's not like I disliked them. It wasn't even that I was afraid of being in Glory Girl's aura. No, that wasn't true. I knew exactly why I was avoiding them. On some level, I was afraid of making friends again. That somehow, I would screw things up and everything would go the same way it had in the past.

I stepped outside and saw Victoria waiting near the bus stop, floating just high enough that she'd likely be able to see over the crowd. She spotted me after a moment and waved. I bit down on my lip before waving back.

"Hey there," she said, drifting over, "You're a hard girl to catch. I was starting to wonder if you were avoiding me."

Her tone was casual, but I could still hear the implied question, the unstated hurt. I winced and looked down. "I - Sorry, I just… I didn't have a lot in the way of friends at Winslow, and I just wasn't sure-"

Vicky's face softened, and she interrupted me by wrapping me up in a hug. I forced myself not to stiffen. God, how fucked up was I that a hug was enough to make me start looking for an escape? Vicky thankfully only held it for a moment before letting it go and pulling back. "It's fine, Taylor. I know I probably didn't make the best first impression the other day."

"No, it's not that." I sighed and ran a hand up into my hair. "It's my own hangups. Really."

"It's not me, it's you?" Vicky grinned.

There was a teasing lilt to her words, but it wasn't cruel. I gave her a smile and shrugged, "Yeah, sorry to let you down before you could even ask for a date."

"What a shame. I suppose I shall just have to content myself with Dean instead."

"He's a pretty good consolation prize, I suppose."

"He is, isn't he?" Vicky giggled softly, her gaze wandering as she presumably distracted herself thinking about Dean. She quickly refocused however, and leaned in to take my hand. "Are you ready for your tour then?"

"Are you even qualified to give me a tour? I'd think with all the Cape stuff, you wouldn't have much time to spend around the clubs."

Vicky shrugged and the two of us started walking back into the building. "You'd be surprised. I'm probably the most active member of New Wave right now, and even then, I mostly patrol in the evenings and weekends. It leaves me time to occasionally drop in on a club - though, I wouldn't say I'm a dedicated member either. These days, I mostly hang around the Literature Club so that I have something to talk to Amy about. But! I also used to play basketball before I triggered, so I could probably answer any questions you have about the sports program here as well."

"I guess they don't let superpowered people play?"

"No, though given that most capes conceal their civilian identities… I suppose it's always possible that there's a parahuman or two hiding on the teams somewhere, but I didn't get that option."

"Huh. So Literature Club then? You said your sister was a member?"

"Oh, no, she isn't. Amy usually goes to the hospital after school. But she likes to read in her off-time, so I figured I could connect with her that way."

I tilted my head, studying Vicky's face from the side. Trying to find common hobbies to connect with someone usually meant that there was some distance in the relationship - or at least, maybe Vicky thought there was. On the other hand, maybe she was just trying to be a good sister. I didn't know her and wasn't nearly good enough at reading people to tell either way.

"Anyways," Vicky continued, "Were there any clubs you were particularly interested in checking out?"

There were. I'd briefly considered the Music and Art Clubs. Music represented a connection with Mom, a chance to learn to play the flute, like she used to. Art was a more… personal connection. I'd used to enjoy drawing back before Mom died, but hadn't really touched the hobby since everything happened with Emma.

In the end, practicality won out over nostalgia. There was the possibility that I might need to build myself the occasional tool for my career as a hero. Stealing junk from the Trainyard might work get me the supplies, but it was risky, especially when I could get probably get better stuff from the Engineering Club without anyone noticing that our stock was maybe a bit lower than it should be.

I chewed on my lip, considering. Was it really okay for me to join a club just to steal their supplies? I shook my head. I hadn't committed yet. I could at least check things out.

"Let's start with the Engineering Club and go from there. Everyone loves robots, right?"

·:·:·:·:·:·:·:·:·:·

I stepped off the bus, glancing up at the setting sun, before beginning the walk home.

The Engineering Club had been… disappointing from a purely social standpoint. It had been all boys and they'd spent almost the entire time we'd visited drooling over Vicky. Not that I could blame them too much - Vicky was definitely attractive - but it'd still been annoying, and I could easily foresee actually engaging with the club being an exercise in aggravation. Not that it mattered, I suppose, if I was just using the club to build things.

We'd visited the Art Club shortly after, but had mostly watched quietly as they worked on perspective drawing, before finally ending up at the Literature Club. Unlike the Engineering Club, the Literature Club had been almost entirely girls. Monica, Sayori, Natsuki, and Yuri had all been nice girls, and it was clear that Vicky knew them pretty well from how easily she meshed into their conversation.

If I was being honest, I would probably enjoy Literature more than Engineering, but… Well, Engineering would be more useful to me as a cape, wouldn't it? Even discounting the supplies I could use, it was an actual skill I could develop. Meanwhile my knowledge of Oscar Wilde wasn't likely to help me against any supervillains.

I let out a frustrated sigh. Whatever my answer, I would have the weekend to ruminate on it. More concerning to me right now, was the fact that there was an extra car parked in our driveway.

I stepped carefully over the broken step and quietly slipped in, taking a moment to scan the house. Muffled voices were coming from the kitchen. Tilting my head curiously, I walked down the hall to peek and Alan were seated at the table, thick sheaves of papers spread out around them. Fuck. I'd forgotten this was happening today.

Dad was busy reading something, but Alan spotted me and smiled. "Hey there, Taylor."

"Uh. Hey. What's all this?"

Dad looked up, and even though he smiled, he looked bone weary. "Oh, just stuff with the lawsuit, Taylor. Nothing you need to worry about too much. Alan and I have things handled. Emma already went upstairs to wait for you in your room, why don't you go say hi to her?"

My heart clenched, but I was careful to keep it from my face. Emma, my once best friend. Emma, my tormenter. Emma, who knew my secret. I'd half-resolved to ignore her and hope she would stop trying to interact with me now that she knew I was a cape. Instead, she was here, in my room.

I forced a smile onto my face for Dad's sake. "Sure. I'll go do that."

The walk up to my room felt like it took longer than the entire trip from school had. I stopped in front of my door, taking a moment to just get my breathing under control. I wouldn't let Emma get under my skin. I opened the door.

Emma was there, near my desk, the light catching her red hair in a way that seemed to set it ablaze. She was holding the picture of me, her, Mom, and Anne, a strange sort of half-smile on her face. The door hit the wall with a quiet thump and Emma looked up, carefully setting the photo back on my desk. When she spoke, it was a quiet thing, a small utterance.

"Taylor."

I didn't dignify her with a response. Instead I simply closed the door behind me and set my backpack down, unloading my things while ignoring her entirely.

"Taylor. Talk to me, please. At least look at me. Don't-" Emma bit down on whatever she was about to say, grimacing slightly.

"Don't what?" I snapped, still not quite looking at her. "Go ahead and say what you were thinking, Emma."

Emma's lips puckered, as though she'd tasted something sour. After a moment of hesitation, her lips thinned down to a line and she said, "Don't be a coward, Taylor. Stop running away every time you're faced with something you don't want to deal with."

My nails bit into the palms of my hands and I spun to face her. "I am not running away from you!"

"Yes you were, Taylor. You do this every time - you retreat into your shell and hope that by ignoring the problem it'll just go away. You never do anything to change it, never try to fight back." I squeezed my eyes shut, as though by blocking off the sight of her, I could push away her words as well. "You're doing it now. You did it the entire time we were at Winslow. You did it… You did it when your Mom died. You just hid away and nothing I did ever seemed to get through to you or help you."

I forced myself to look at Emma. There were tears in her eyes. Did that mean anything? I'd seen her fake crying to a teacher before. Her make up was more messed up now than it had been then. Did that mean it was genuine? Or was she simply more committed to the role this time? I asked, my voice little more than a quiet rasp, "So what? The last two years were supposed to 'crack me out of my shell,' or something?"

"No! Maybe. I don't know, it didn't really start that way. I was angry and Sophia had some weird hang up with you. Later on...no, even if there were reasons, it's still not an excuse for what happened."

A part of me wanted to simply hit her. She wanted me to fight back, after all. I could do that. I could give into that violent impulse that I'd spent the last two years restraining.

I strangled that part of me.

Up until the locker, I'd never really been afraid of the Trio. What could a bunch of high school bullies do, after all? I'd hated them, but I'd never truly feared them. No, I'd always feared what I would do in response if I allowed myself to lash out. I'd feared what I would become.

"But I can try to make it up to you," Emma continued. "You're a cape now. I can help you. I can help get you equipment, provide an alibi so people don't wonder where you are…"

"Emma, I can't-"

"Please, Taylor." She lifted a hand, pressing her fingers gently against my cheek. They were warm, hot even, and I flinched back from the touch. There was something bright about Emma's eyes, a fervor so intense that I couldn't believe it to be feigned. "I know you can't trust me. Not yet. Maybe not ever, even. But let me at least try to help? To show that I'll do better for you?"

I stared at Emma for a long moment. Could I believe her? She stood there, staring into my eyes, waiting patiently for my answer.

I opened my mouth to reply.