Chapter One Hundred and Twenty Two
...
"Hey, Larry. Why're you sitting there? I thought we were going to read the new Jetstream and the Commander vs. alien octopus comic over lunch?" Will prompted, frowning when he saw Larry sitting at a different table.
Larry flushed red, playing with his water bottle lid. "I, uh, can't. I've got things to do at lunch. Y'know, studying and stuff."
"Oh. Okay. Tomorrow, then?"
"Maybe," Larry said, turning his attention to the others at his table, his neck as red as his hair in embarrassment.
Will frowned and went over to his usual table, surprised to see it clear of people, only Magenta sitting there. Usually it was full of sidekicks pestering them about the Death Row and Getim fight, or people asking a hundred questions about his parents, or anyone who thought he was vaguely popular and trying to get that status for themselves.
"What's going on?" Will asked Magenta as he sat down beside her, setting his tray down.
"Beats me. No one will talk to me and hardly anyone will look at me, either. I even checked that I put deodorant on."
Discreetly sniffing, Will determined that wasn't his problem, either. "Did we turn invisible or is this a dream?"
"I don't think we'd both be dreaming the same dream. And I'm pretty sure I'm not invisible, or you wouldn't be able to see me. It's weird, and even weirder is that I miss the noise and questions," Magenta said with a wry smile.
Some part of her mind asked if she really missed the noise or if she missed the popularity. Magenta didn't dare reply.
They were both silent for a long time, the conversation fizzling to an awkward silence. Magenta ate her lunch, wondering if she should comment on the Hero sandwich just so they could talk about something.
"Do you think it could be the news?" Will asked, and Magenta almost sighed in relief.
"What news?" Magenta asked, frowning as she took another bite of her sandwich.
"Y'know, on TV. A video was released from the barbecue on the weekend."
Magenta choked on her food. Will hurried to pat her back, hoping he wasn't bruising her or cracking a rib with his super strength.
"What?!" she asked, gasping for breath after she swallowed a gulp of water, painfully dislodging the lump in her throat.
"Y'know, where I revealed my identity. It's why I'm grounded. Well, technically, I'm under house arrest so no one will find me. Didn't you watch the news?"
Magenta vaguely remembered her mother mentioning seeing the video on "the tube" but she hadn't connected the dots at the time. Now, she felt silly for not realising it sooner, and Will's tone certainly didn't help. "No, Will. I haven't watched the news in months, just like your parents said," she said, close to snapping, her cheeks bright.
"Yeah, but they only meant for our fights with villains. Not the news-news," Will said. "You asked Malik about the news last week."
"Yeah, because I hadn't watched it and wanted to know if he'd seen it," Magenta said. "Who reported it... never mind, they all did," she said, looking at her phone.
Magenta watched the video clip with subtitles on, wincing at the comments that some people had added to the Channel Five News site.
"Uh, hi, guys," Will said, drawing Magenta's attention away from her phone to see that four heroes had joined them at their table.
"Stronghold. Mind if we join you?" Chad asked, even as they all sat down.
"Uh, yeah, sure. Go ahead," Will said, floundering at the idea of confronting them or asking them to leave.
They were popular kids, but not the kind of popular that Gwen Grayson would have befriended. They were the kind of kids Will's grandfather would have approved of, with their old money, family names, and everything else that the stereotypical rich and white entitlement entailed.
"Why are you sitting with us?" Magenta blurted, just as surprised as their presence as she was by the lack of the rest of the school population.
"We saw the video on the weekend - " Chad said.
"Who didn't?" Tad added with a laugh that was more like a sneer.
Chad glared at his friend, then turned back to Will and Magenta, smiling with the boyish good looks of someone who had a professional stylist. "As I was saying, we saw the video on the weekend and thought you might need friends. Especially friends who agree with your... specific views."
Will had watched the video once and felt like it was ingrained in his brain, yet he still didn't know what those "specific views" referred to.
"You know, those people adopting," Chad said, his voice low but that smile still plastered on his face.
Will winced, remembering the slurs he'd screamed right before he'd punched the deck. He had been so angry though, and he obviously wasn't in the right frame of mind after fighting all of those villains for three days straight and losing sleep on top of it all. He never would have said those things if Ry hadn't ignored him and rejected him in front of everyone.
Brad watched him in a way that made Will feel like an ant being analysed by a kid with a magnifying glass on a sunny day. Then Brad smiled, their mouth and teeth different to Chad, but somehow smiling in exactly the same way. "We can leave you to eat your lunch in peace, if you like?"
"No!" Will and Magenta both said quickly.
Some friends were better than none, even friends like these, and they'd at least bring some conversation to the table.
Chad smiled as though he knew exactly what they were thinking. "Great! My folks are going out of town tonight, you should drop by."
"Really?" Magenta squeaked.
Being invited to Chad's house was like winning the social lottery!
"Of course. We'll have our friends from college coming, too, so you'll get to party with the big boys," Chad said, grinning at Will.
Remembering that he was under house arrest, Will shook his head. "I can't. I'm super grounded."
Chad looked disappointed, though not entirely sincere about it.
"Do you have super fast flight or what? You'd be in and out before anyone noticed a thing. It's just a party," Tad added, rolling his eyes.
"Please, Will? It would be so much fun," Magenta said, smiling at him brightly.
Will found himself nodding. "Yeah, you're right. No one will notice a thing."
"Great. I'll send you my deets," Chad said, already typing on his phone.
Magenta looked over to Pad and smiled briefly. "I don't think we've been introduced; I'm Magenta."
"Don't bother with him. Pad doesn't talk. Tragic accident," Chad said, not looking up from his phone.
Tad snickered, and Brad looked disinterested, but Pad looked angry at Chad's words. Chad ignored him and Pad grabbed his phone, putting earbuds in and ignoring the rest of the table.
"There, all sent. Now, let's talk Save the Citizen," Chad said with a broad smile.
Magenta looked away from Pad and tried to join the conversation. Will, Chad and Tad dominated the discussion, and while Brad often had useful insights, Magenta was mostly overlooked. She looked around the table for sympathy, but Chad and Tad were talking about strategies and tactics, and Brad was looking at Will like he wanted to dissect him. Pad still wasn't paying anyone attention, tapping on his phone and rarely looking up.
When he finally looked up and caught Magenta's eye, she smiled and signed 'hello' like Layla had taught her. Pad frowned, then rolled his eyes, and looked back to his phone.
Sighing, Magenta started to play on her own phone. She managed to watch the barbecue video again, capturing screenshots of Malik and trying not to feel guilty. She was just looking, and if she had already imagined their lives together - travelling the world with cute bilingual babies with her complexion and Malik's strong features - then no one had to know but her.
Across the cafeteria, Donny shuddered.
At his table, Larry felt his jaw drop on seeing exactly who had joined Will and Magenta for lunch. He hadn't thought it was possible to get near Chad unless he suddenly became richer than his whole extended family combined. Now Will was talking to Chad like it was nothing! Even the Strongholds weren't as rich as Chad's family.
Thinking of what he could do to be included, Larry remembered Will's invitation to read the comic book together. He couldn't do it now, but tomorrow would work. If he got to the table early, they couldn't make him leave, he determined, returning his attention to the others around him.
...
"Who are they and what are they doing at Will and Magenta's table?" Layla asked as she sat down, placing her salad in front of her.
"Chad Walton, Tad Dalton, Brad Colton, and Pad Morton."
"They're making friends with them, in their own racist and homophobic way. I actually feel nauseous," Donny said, pushing his tray away and resting his head on the table.
"They could ruin my plans," Layla muttered, eyes flashing green as she took a bite of her salad, thinking and losing focus on the conversation around her.
"Want me to zap 'em?" Craig offered, chewing around a mouthful of tater tots.
"No, it's getting suspicious. Tomorrow, maybe," Donny amended as a particularly forceful thought intruded. "Ugh, they're projecting so loud I can practically pinpoint their parental issues. Remind me to bring a cuff in tomorrow, Wendy?"
"Sure thing. Give me the word and I'll get a downpour on them," she said, offering a bag for his Hero sandwich. "You'll get hangry later, just take it."
"I only get hangry 'cause people are stupid."
"And because you're hungry," Wendy said pointedly.
Donny took the offered bag and put his Hero sandwich in it, tucking it into his jacket to eat later. "Thanks."
"No problem. Now, why are they going to Stronghold's table now? Why not all that time ago after his interview about his parents?" Wendy asked curiously.
"He sounded like he was rejecting their ideas then. Now, he's shown that he's just like them," Ethan supplied, looking pleased when Donny pointed at him.
"Correctamundo. Like begets like and all that shit."
"Like begets like, sure, but being around that bullshit constantly means he's going to act like them to keep them as friends, won't he?" Zach asked.
"You mean he's going to get worse?" Ry asked, feeling put off his food as well.
"Probably. Sorry, Ry."
Craig patted his friend's hand, then grinned and shifted. "Wanna fuck with him?" Ry!Craig asked.
Ry snorted so hard his nose hurt. "Oh, fuck yes."
Across the table, Donny shuddered at Magenta's thoughts.
...
"Are we ruining their party or killing them? Trust me, society will only benefit from their deaths," Donny said as they headed home on the bus.
"We promised we'd stop killing people," Layla said with a disappointed and exaggerated sigh.
"Besides, it's not really that fun. You get your revenge and then nothing," Warren said, shrugging.
"How honourable," Ethan said, rolling his eyes.
"I could still change my mind," Layla said, Ethan holding his hands up in a gesture of peace. "Ruining the party will have to do for now. Wendy, can you work on a storm and precision lightning bolts?"
"Sure thing. There's meant to be a summer storm tonight so I'll work on moving it to the right place," Wendy said, already focusing on the sky around them.
Donny sighed in relief as his girlfriend's thoughts encompassed his mind, scrubbing out the mess and turmoil from the day.
"What else?" Zach asked. "I can do something, too, right?"
"Sure. They're bound to use torches or phone lights when the power goes out, you can have fun with that."
"I can drain their phone batteries, if you just want torches, man," Adam offered, he and Zach talking quietly as the others continued to discuss their roles.
"I can reduce the water pressure at their house," Ethan offered.
"Why?" Craig asked, curious and confused.
"People usually fill water jugs and kettles during a storm, in case there's an issue with the pipes. You can't tell me that none of you do that?" Ethan asked in surprise at their expressions.
"We do. Back before I was born, Mum had to deal with a burst pipe and they didn't have clean water for three days. It's automatic to fill everything with clean water while I can," Warren said, shrugging.
"What else?" Layla asked.
"I can melt their ice. I doubt anyone would want to stay at a party with warm beer or soft drink."
"They could be English," Ethan pointed out.
"What? That doesn't make any sense. Who likes warm soft drinks?" Craig asked, wrinkling his nose.
"Stereotypically, the English. Though it is beer, rather than soft drinks. I don't know if warm soft drink is a thing."
"Focus, people. We've got the storm, water, lights and phone batteries. Anything else?" Layla asked.
"I think that's more than enough. We're only planning on scaring them, right?" Ethan asked.
"If they make Will worse than he already is, then a little bit of maiming couldn't hurt," Ry muttered.
Ethan shook his head and sighed. "No maiming. Didn't you see the news with that citizen being shot?"
"What?" Warren asked, frowning.
"A citizen got shot in the leg, a warning shot from a gang member or something, but they hit a major artery and he bled out," Zach supplied helpfully.
"So maiming people at random means you don't know where you're attacking and could potentially kill someone instead. I'd prefer to reach adulthood without someone's death on my hands."
"Too late for that for some of us," Craig said, sounding far too pleased.
Ethan muttered under his breath and started tapping on his phone.
"Whatcha doing?" Craig asked, looking over the back of his seat to try to see Ethan's phone.
"Texting Honey to ask if we've got a therapist yet."
"I don't need a therapist!"
Adam snorted and tugged Craig back down onto the seat beside him. "Good idea, Eth. And yeah, dude, you totally need one. Now shut up and meditate with Ry."
Craig spent a minute exaggerating his inhales and exhales as Ry guided him through meditating, but soon settled down. Adam and Zach joined in, the others following and the bus quiet except for the noise of the exhausts. By the time the bus had reached the drop off point, they were all calmer.
Honey greeted them with a grin and a wave, watching as they all piled into her minivan. "So, you guys want a therapist? I have a few to choose from."
Wendy rolled her eyes. "Of course you do."
"You're welcome."
...
Will left English for Heroes, scanning the hallway for Ry.
Jared looked after him, frowning when he saw Will's determined gaze. The teenager flew off before Jared could call him back and give Ry a break.
"Is he gone?"
Jared looked over in surprise - he could have sworn the classroom was empty - and saw Ry brushing off his clothes and picking his things up off the floor.
"Craig's giving me some time. I just want to put my things away without being stared at, y'know?" Ry said, wrinkling his nose in disgust.
"I can change the classroom around, if you want?" Jared offered.
Ry shook his head. "I'm already on the other side of the room."
Jared wasn't entirely pleased with Ry's response, but it was his decision. "All right. Let me know if you change your mind. I can keep him back next class to give you more time, at least," he offered.
"Thanks, Mr. Bowie. Can you do it..." Ry trailed off, not knowing how to finish.
"You want me to be subtle about it?"
Ry nodded, looking relieved.
"I'll see what I can do. You'd better head off before he catches Craig."
"Right. Thanks, Mr. Bowie," Ry called over his shoulder, hurrying out of the classroom and to his locker.
...
Frieda fanned herself with her bed sheet, wondering if she would ever get used to the feeling of being so thoroughly loved. Or multiple orgasms, for that matter.
Babs looked over when she felt the breeze, grinning at the dazed expression on Frieda's face. "If you've still got enough energy to move that sheet around, then I haven't been thorough enough," she teased, kissing Frieda's cheek.
"Oh, god. No more. My heart can't handle... whatever number I'm up to. I lost count after the fourth," Frieda said with a laugh.
"Hmm. I suppose that will have to do. What are you thinking about so seriously?" Babs asked, fingers trailing patterns along Frieda's skin.
"Love."
"An important thought," Babs agreed.
"And orgasms."
Babs grinned. "That's just as important."
"Mm, I thought so. Now, you didn't answer me before when I asked how your day was," Frieda said, admonishing lightly and without heat.
"Sex was a better answer at the time," Babs said, unapologetic and kissing Frieda gently before lying back down. "My day overall was fine; I'm still trying to write a report on the super conference in New York and honestly hate it. The Commander and Jetstream contradicted each other at separate panels, then when they were together, Jetstream did all of the talking. The Commander managed to get in a few words here and there, but he always looked to Jetstream for confirmation. Trying to hear everything that wasn't being said was just as important as what was said. It's exhausting to remember, let alone write a report on.
"Not to mention, the country representatives are being hired and making their way to the Super UN headquarters, so I'm trying to meet them all and get them settled in while waiting for the other hundred to arrive."
"That all sounds exhausting. I'm surprised you had any energy left for me, for this," Frieda said, waving to their bodies in general.
Babs caught Frieda's hand and kissed the back of it, a smile curving her lips. "Frieda, love, I will always have energy for you. Though, if I fall asleep halfway through, please don't take it personally."
Frieda laughed and shook her head. "Halfway? Your idea of halfway is three orgasms and a whole lot of blasphemy. That's three orgasms more than I ever had with Henry, so trust me, you wouldn't disappoint me with doing anything halfway."
Babs grinned and moved to kiss Frieda fully, hands sliding and touching and teasing. "Well, let's see if I can do better than halfway now."
"Oh, god!" Frieda laughed, her laugh cut off beneath Babs' lips.
...
"How many of these did you buy?" Terrence asked, eyes wide at the box of Shifter action figures.
"About fifty. Don't worry, I left enough in each of the stores for kids to buy them. They are a good representation of female Hero Support, after all. Though they won't sell as much as Magenta would like. Oh, that reminds me: Adam, can you take a percent off her total income?"
"Sure. Just one?"
Honey considered it for a moment, flicking through threads before nodding. "Just one. Any more and she'll notice and start asking questions."
"Wouldn't want that," Layla muttered, grabbing one of the Shifter dolls and twisting the limbs in a way that a contortionist would envy.
"Terrence, do you still have that expanding ray?" Warren asked suddenly, grinning at the idea and his girlfriend's viciousness.
"Are you doing what I think you're doing?" Robin asked, grinning. "I want one," they added when Warren nodded.
"I don't know what you're thinking of doing. And yes, I still have the expanding ray."
"Can we make these action figures closer to life size? I'm sure Layla can use the practice with her flames," Warren said with a grin.
"I've got plenty of practice," Layla quipped, then grinned, slow and full of malice. "But I can always improve. You can too, yeah?"
"Yeah, but I bought the Airborne one. I still can't believe I paid actual money for this cheap piece of plastic," he muttered, holding the Airborne action figure like it was contagious.
Adam snorted. "You're lucky I've been blocking Facebook's ad services or you'd be seeing Airborne and Shifter merchandise for, like, months."
"We don't deserve you, Ace," Layla said, then grabbed a Shifter action figure from the box and handed it to him. "Here, you can go first."
"Aw, you love him," Craig crooned.
"Of course. How's the expansion ray going, Terrence?" Layla prompted.
"Oh, right. Here. Just don't make it too big or the plastic will stretch and lose all its shape. No one wants to see a fifty-foot doll when it's stretched out beyond recognition."
"Thanks for the nightmare fuel, dude," Ry said, shuddering.
"Maybe Ma's right about those dolls," Ethan muttered, Zach wincing beside him.
"Are people's fears contagious?" Zach asked.
Adam rolled his eyes and took the offered expansion ray gun from Terrence, setting the Shifter action figure on the ground and aiming.
"I don't know if it's contagious, but I'd say that's how mob mentality starts: one person afraid and others latching on to that fear. Though they'd probably argue its anger," Ethan mused.
"You think all anger is based in fear?" Robin asked curiously, everyone watching as the Shifter doll grew in size with Adam's careful precision.
"Maybe. Anger at a person could be construed as fear; perhaps fear of something else they might do or say. There's too many nuances in people's emotions and personalities; there's no one size fits all response. What might make one person sad could make another person happy," Ethan said, shrugging. "Emotions are difficult and different for every individual."
Adam returned the ray to Terrence, then powered up and flung a handful of acid at the Shifter dummy. It was a glob of bubbling plastic in a matter of seconds, Shifter's face unrecognisable under his attack.
"All right, enough philosophising; we've got action figures to destroy," Layla said, vines wrapping around Shifter and destroying the action figure in a second.
...
Josie stared at the letter of resignation in a mix of dismay and frustration. After everything she'd paid Malik, he was leaving them high and dry! Not to mention, he hadn't tempted Will like she thought he would have. Relieved in that sense at the very least, she tried to remember where she'd put Mandy's list of tutors after hiring Malik.
Having a vague recollection of asking Steve to file it away, Josie headed down to the office nook to check the filing cabinet. Not finding it - and trying not to be frustrated by Steve's haphazard way of filing - she headed to the Secret Sanctum to look at the filing cabinet there.
Steve returned from the store, putting on an act about how heavy the box of groceries were until he closed the door behind him. "I bought the chicken, dear. Did you get the pasta started?" he called, setting the grocery bag on the bench and frowning when he couldn't see Josie in the kitchen or dining area. "Dear?"
"In here, Steve," she called, her voice echoing from the Sanctum.
Sliding down his pole, Steve headed towards Josie, stopping short when he saw the papers surrounding his wife. "Are the IRA auditing us again?"
"No, dear. I'm trying to find the list of tutors that Mandy gave us."
Steve frowned. "I threw it away, like you said."
"You... you threw it away?" she echoed in disbelief.
"Well, yes. You said 'we have Malik now, so throw it away,'" Steve quoted.
Josie let out a groan and took her glasses off, pinching the bridge of her nose. "I said file it away, Steve."
Steve opened and closed his mouth, wondering if it was worth arguing about. "Sorry, dear."
"You always are, Steve. Just... go cook dinner, would you? Do it quietly; Will is in bed with a migraine. I need to file all of this. Properly," she added with a fierce glare.
Not entirely sure what else he'd done wrong, Steve just nodded and headed over to the hidden staircase to get out. Josie had added a length of tape to the correct stone, so Steve thankfully avoided her wrath in that manner. He almost ran up the stairs to the kitchen, deciding he could cook Josie's favourite meal to apologise. He just needed a few more ingredients from the store.
Josie didn't hear the door close behind her husband's exit, already focused on her task of refiling the paperwork.
Will, realising that his parents were both occupied and not watching him, opened his window quietly and flew out towards Magenta's house. They had a party to go to.
...
End of the hundred and twenty-second chapter.
