This chapter also doesn't technically overlap with any Monster chapters.

Charming Desolation.

To truly know someone, you should study their enemies.

That's a saying, right? I'm pretty sure that's a saying. Whatever, it is now.

So one of Killer's enemies at school is, it turns out, also a cape. Makes me wonder if they're bitter rivals in capehood or what. I wasn't paying overly close attention to Killer's botherers as individuals, but this clearly merits closer study.

Amusingly, this person is actually fairly similar to Killer. A tight ball of restrained anger, waiting to lash out. Less restrained than Killer, though. Anger is older, harder, too. Hm. What to call this one? I think I'll go with Fury. Oh, and it's so amusing how Fury and Killer both roof-hop. The details are different -Fury is slower, but doesn't hesitate or second-guess him or herself when making these jumps- but it's a similar sort of pattern. Fury is looking for something too.

Ah, but Fury finds something fairly quickly.

Hm. Doesn't jump on it right away, though. Seems to be... checking out the area? Concerned about something, flinty anger behind the concern. I think Fury is mad that they have to take whatever precaution they're taking. Hm. Wonder what that means? Oh, there we go, Fury has jumped someone, excuse me, multiple someones. A fistfight, seems like. It doesn't take me long to connect Fury's moments of satisfaction to their targets' suffering -Fury is enjoying hurting these people. Seems to be a bit of catharsis to it, but not just catharsis. And... Fury's signature overlaps with the other combatants, sometimes? That's a little creep-

Oh hey, what're you up to, Jean-Paul? Is he meeting with his underpals, the Undersiders? That's three people... so if they are, Tattletale isn't invisible to me. Hm. Wish I could properly confirm this without entering Jean-Paul's reach. Well, the three people are:

Scared And Resentful. Hm. Is that Bitch? She's supposed to be a runaway. Maybe she's only in the group because she needs their protection? Wait, that doesn't fit. She's the one with the muscle, not them. Unless maybe Jean-Paul is controlling her?... I'll need to see if she stays in his radius after they break up. Scared And Resentful is putting up a pretty good façade of calm confidence, though, enough for the sympathetic real reaction to be less weak than usual. Fake It 'Til You Make It? Or just a good actor?

Crouching Confidence Hidden Anger. Hmm. I don't know enough about Grue and Tattletale to guess properly. Whoever they are, I'm not sure they realize how angry they are, that's how hidden the anger is. They seem to have successfully Faked It 'Til They Maked It on the confidence. Or maybe it's real confidence, and the only fakery is hiding the anger? That'd make more sense if they don't realize how repressed they are. The group seems to defer to CCHA, sort of. Jean-Paul is doing his usual pretension of apatheticness, and Scared And Resentful seems to be playing along more than actually submitting, but CCHA seems to be making the decisions in practice, as only-

-Angry And Suspicious And Lonely And Angry seems to be chomping at the bit for leadership. Hm. Maybe Tattletale is team leader, and Grue wants to be team leader? Thinker leadership and all, elitism, blah blah. Not sure. Anyway, they've got anger problems. Thinking trust problems, too, but trust isn't something I can read directly. Honestly, feels like they're ready to break from the group on a moment's notice, but are too lonely to just do it without a specific cause. There's a history there, and more importantly I might be able to peel away maybe-Grue by providing that excuse, minimal interference and no chance of Jean-Paul realizing it's me. One less protector for the boy.

Jean-Paul is, of course, Jean-Paul. He's got his feelings buried deep, barely knows they're there. Same ol' same ol'. He seems fond enough of his teammates. Fonder than he was of the fam.

Fonder than he is of me.

Whoa Cherie, deep breaths. Calm. Out with the anger, in with the thinking.

Aaaanyway. Right. There's definitely a hierarchy there. Maybe-Grue he can take or leave, overall, but finds amusing to watch. Also scared of them, but not enough for him to notice he's scared of them, not nearly as strong as the amusement. Maybe-Tattletale he views with a kind of weary fondness. Doesn't like doing things their way, but can't argue with it? Something like that, I think. Maybe-Bitch is amusing to him. And annoying. But mostly amusing. Hm. If that is Bitch, he's not worried she's going to kill him. Did he befriend the girl? Or it could be support for the 'controlling her against her will' theory.

Back to Fury.

Fury's finished up, exulting in victory. Took a couple of hits, but isn't worried about them. Then... catches himself, flees the scene. Doesn't want to be caught by someone? The PRT? Anyway, Fury's more relaxed now. The violence helped him calm down. Possible insight into why he or she torments Killer? (Fuckit, referring to Fury as 'he'. Simpler) Can't relax without a fight? Capes are weird, that's plausible. Point of contrast with Killer, probably. Okay, maybe. Killer's hit on Daddy was... I'm still not sure what happened there. Can't actually assume her failure to exult in victory was representative, and I wasn't awake for the actual hit so I don't know how she felt during it.

I think Fury is heading home now? Kind of casual -hold up. He's syncing up, emotional shifting-wise, with one of Killer's other tormentors. Cell phone call, probably. Aaaand... Fury's phone buddy has a kind of tense anticipation while Fury is feeling some pride and a more cheerful sort of anticipation. Hm. I initially thought Fury was just going back to pretending to be normal, but now I'm thinking his phone buddy knows Fury is a cape, Fury is reveling in retelling his battle just now, something like that. Phone buddy is trying to act calm, probably succeeding okay-ish -either that or Fury knows and doesn't care that it's fake- but feels sick to their gut.

Hm. My impulse is to think phone buddy is a non-cape, or maybe a really shitty cape? Like, they have a power but it's nearly worthless in practice and so they don't want to really hit the cape scene. Hell, with Lung as part of the landscape even a pretty kickass power would be risky to lean on. Not sure which: better pay attention to phone buddy and see if they do anything obviously cape-y.

Fury is... stopping off somewhere. Just had a casual interaction with someone, either a relative or a friend, because they've clearly done much the same many times before. Or I guess it could be a neighbor they pass by routinely, but there's enough mutual fondness that I doubt it's that superficial.

Aaaand Fury is in and out in less than five minutes, moving with purpose. There's resentment building, it's affecting the cell phone conversation but doesn't seem to be rooted in it -ah, I think they just cut the call. Fury is being moody, I'm guessing he's contemplating his near future and doesn't like it. Phone buddy is relieved to be done and... I'm thinking recriminating theirself over said relief?

Ah, meanwhile Jean-Paul and pals are done with their little powwow and going their separate ways. Jean-Paul is... probably settling into more video games. Maybe-Bitch is having an anxiety spike-

...?

Why is Maybe-Bitch talking to someone via cell phone who is... is that an underground building? I was sort of ignoring it before, but there's a cluster of people noticeably lower than anybody else in the surrounding area. Huh. Should check that out at some point.

More importantly, this means either my guess is wrong or I've been misled as to the kind of person Bitch is. The dynamic is... Probably-Not-Bitch is nervous, playing at playfulness, while the underground dude is calm and... is he being deliberately threatening over a cell phone? Am I reading that right? That doesn't seem terribly plausible, but I don't think I'm misunderstanding what I'm reading. Blackmail? Cave-dude has to have some kind of hold over them, realistically, but I'm not sure what kind of hold it might be.

Hm. Food for thought for later.

The spiky angry one... oh, I'm dumb. It's Bitch, with three dogs with her. Duh. Okay, Nervous Nelly thus has to be either Grue or Tattletale, then. Not sure which is more plausible, too little information. Huh. Wouldn't have pegged Bitch as a lonely person. She's got her dogs, after all... and paying closer attention, she's got a good relationship with all three, lots of respect and so on all around. But she's still lonely?

... weird.

Lastly, ConfidenceMcAngry. They're... exercising? Very focused on it, whatever it is, and it's something they have long practice in, something they're comfortable with and soothed by... but also has some kind of unpleasant association. Hm. That could be practically anything. Hell, they could be looking at porn. Not getting much out of them.

Ah, and now Fury is entering a building, I think. Not the school. Hm. People recognize him, deliberately control their reactions. Wonder why. Wonder what he's doing there.

... I want to get up and look at this building but I also want to keep luxuriating in this soft bed.

Compromise: can I see it from my window and make sense of it?

Answer: sooort of? I'm pretty sure I can see the building, but nothing about it leaps out at me.

I flop back into the bed, disappointed.

Okay, Fury is... not sure what. Focused on something that doesn't make him angry, holds him in one place. Seriously wish I could figure out what I'm 'seeing'. Okay, he's moving again?...

... ah, Nervous Nelly is done talking to Cavedude. Cavedude is... now going out for a walk... and... being pretty strongly reacted to by everyone else in his cave?... respect, some fear, some awe. The fuck is up with Cavedude? Anyway, Nervous Nelly isn't experiencing any relief. I'm reminded, actually, of people who have proceeded to bury themselves in booze to dull the pain. Nervous Nelly... sits down and starts doing something to unwind. Pattern doesn't fit reading a book or watching television. Could be on the phone with someone out of town, or playing video games. Probably other possibilities I'm overlooking.

Ah! Fury is... going upstairs with one person. Fury has contempt for this person. The person dislikes Fury, but isn't terribly invested in the dislike. Ah? Fury just roof-hopped! And-

...

... the fuck was that? Fury's companion did something, and it's giving me a headache trying to parse what my power is telling me and- agh! They did it again! They... teleported?... no. Duplicated? Stretched? Uuuugh this feels wrong what the fuck are they doing.

No, stop getting distracted. Fury is openly caping, in front of someone else who is a cape. They both came from the same building, too, and didn't seem to be trying to hide as they went out. So either Fury is a gang member and the gang is pretty goddamn powerful or he's a Ward. Call it fifty-fifty whether he's Empire Eighty-Eight or a Ward. Pretty sure he's not one of Lung's, and the other gangs are small potatoes.

If he's a Ward, that was Protectorate HQ. I can confirm that... ugh, whenever I feel up to leaving my room. Probably tomorrow, really. (Wait, no, Protectorate HQ is that dumb oil rig. I'm missing something)

I catch myself nodding off. Still wonky. Also need to make sure I pay for another... let's pay for three more nights. In the morning.

I actually wake up at like 3 in the morning. Killer is still stalking arou- no, Killer just jumped someone! Said someone... hit the ground, in pain, not yet panicking. More angry than scared. Ah, but then they get to their feet, and then they get scared. Layering bravado over it, but they're not scared. Hm. I think they... just swung a baseball bat or a crowbar or something of the sort at Killer. Didn't connect, though. Killer got behind them and hit them again. Scared is pushing out anger. Killer is more annoyed than anything else. A little hopeful for some reason.

This basic pattern plays out for call it two more minutes before Killer loses her patience, does something to scare the bejeezus out of her foe, and violence ensues. She doesn't kill him, though. Just knocks him down again, gets angry. Low-grade anger, not any of the murder-rage I've come to associate with her signature. Ah, the fella is resigned now, giving in. Metaphorically showing their belly or baring their throat. Whatever it is, it satisfies Killer but leaves her disappointed. Hm. Got what she wanted, but it wasn't what she expected? Not sure.

Lesse... Fury is asleep, over where I thought their home was, so that was probably accurate. Seems to be living with three other people, but given Fury is a schoolmate of Killer's that's not surprising. Bitch is asleep too, and she's surrounded by dogs. They stay in a boundary, though, the ones that are awake and bouncing about. Some kind of building? Fencing? It would have to somehow be subtle for her to not have been run down. She doesn't even have a secret identity. Hm. Food for thought, maybe a place to check out later. Jean-Paul is asleep. Nervous Nelly is not asleep, but is sitting in one place. Too active to just be watching TV, I'm pretty sure. On a computer? Hm. Nervous Nelly is tired, anyway. And alone, I'm pretty sure. What's with the Jean-Pals? Are they all teens living alone? Whatever. ConfidenceMcAngry is asleep, probably, and I'm guessing having a nightmare. Killer's probably-a-parent is asleep. Fury's phone pal is crying in their sleep, at a guess. Oni Lee is awake, unmoving. I... really hope he actually needs sleep. He's creepy enough as-is, he doesn't need to be creepier. Probably-Lung is skulking around somewhere -and it is skulking if his feelings are anything to go by, some wounded pride in there too, makes me think I've got it right- along with a few nervous-but-bored-but-ready-for-a-fight people who I'm guessing are Lung minions.

Fury's roof-pal is asleep. Pretty sure they're sharing a home with some people.

I rub at my face, still feeling tired, but not able to sleep. Should I go out, find something to do? Maybe find someone to do, relax a little. Ah, but that's riskier now, and I don't need to play for Daddy.

... how do I relax, if not that?

I chew on my lip and lean back against the headboard, thinking. I almost completely stopped watching television after I triggered. Electronic games were better, so long as I was careful to vet for overly human-focused games, but I never got into them the way some of the fam did. (Say, Jean-Paul) Board games were right out, bar the occasional visit with someone who wasn't fam and who offered, for whatever reason, and they never grabbed me. I read a lot of books -an ironic amount of psychology and sociology, thanks Aunt Pam- but really it was comics that I actually liked. I could look at fake people and not feel sick, but I don't think it was just that. And I could just pick them up and read them when I had a few moments peace, not like a 'real' book, where I had to commit a lot of time I didn't have much of and be willing to stop in the middle and sometimes (Oftentimes) accept that I was going to end up reading Book 4, then Book 1, then Book 7, and never have anything but the faintest idea what happened in between.

... put like that, it might have been mostly circumstantial.

Damn. Drat and damn and drat again.

I never really cared to talk with people. Even before I triggered conversation was a means to an end, not... not social grooming. After I triggered? Not much point. If I want to convince someone of something, I can. I don't need to know what I'm talking about or speak in a persuasive way or anything, I can just claim it and shove around their feelings until they think they decided they agree with what I said for their own reasons, so it's not like debate has any appeal. Not much point in convincing people to believe specific things, either. I don't need to tell Johnny things that help him think blondes with a red stripe in their hair are especially hot so he'll make out with me. I can just hit him with lust until he can't think of anything else. Have to do it carefully if I want to have plausible deniability, yeah, but I don't need conversational skills. Not much point to honing them.

I certainly don't see any point in talking out feelings. Running through my own head, yeah, definitely, can't just point my power at myself and see the strings pulling on my mind, but I don't need catharsis and I don't need to listen to other people. A sounding board isn't much use.

Maybe I should exercise? It makes you feel good all by itself, it doesn't involve other people... not exactly stimulating, not of my mind, but there's an appeal there. I've never really exercised before, not unless you count some of the mad panicked runs after Pauline killed a burglar or whatever. It's not got any connotations of my old life, not really, and I don't need any tools or people. It might help me actually sleep, too.

Pushups aren't hard, right?

Pushups are hard.

Chin-ups -when I think to use the bar meant for clothes for such- are even harder, but pushups are harder than I'd have expected. Gives me something to do while I 'listen in' to the city, though. I note with some amusement when the Brocktonite Loons wake up, and quite obviously get into a lively multi-directional conversation between the five of them. I also note when Killer comes back from stalking rooftops. I think she's pretending to be asleep for the probably-parent, lying still. More evidence the other person doesn't know about Killer's nightlife.

Uuuugh exercising is hard. Didn't I hear something about there being a correct way of doing pushups? I should make sure to look that up, later.

Fury wakes up, still tired. Sleep doesn't seem to have given them any relief of any kind, really. I've never gotten good at reading sleeping people -I never saw much point, especially since I'd need to get people to tell me their dreams to have any chance of refining the skill to real accuracy- so I'm not sure if it's some consequence of their power or if they just had bad dreams or if they're behind on sleep or what. Jean-Paul is still asleep, but his teammates are up and about. Bitch is interacting with the ridiculous number of dogs she's got clustered around her, probably getting them fed or something. The other two Jean-pals are going through what's probably their morning routine -something they enjoy but find routine, anyway- but there's little of interest there.

Lung seems to have gone to sleep. I'm sort of surprised he needs sleep, really. The goobers he was interacting with have scattered pretty widely. Hm. Maybe they were his lieutenants, and now they're enacting his will? I'd sort of assumed they were planning on doing something right then and there, but clearly not. Lieutenants makes more sense.

I collapse, panting after a disappointingly small number of pushups. I'm a big enough girl to admit that the sound I produce in response to this is a whine, though I'll never admit it to anyone else. Ever.

Okay, fine. I give myself a few minutes to cool off, and then I get myself some computer time to look into the mysterious art of the exercise.

Yes, there is a 'proper' way to do pushups. It supposedly is actually easier on the body and develops muscle tone faster. I dunno if I care that much about the latter, but the former is reason enough to try. Also, apparently I should've continued with light exercise once I'd pushed myself too far, rather than simply stopping. I don't really follow the explanation, but basically there's bodily toxins or something and winding-down exercise helps move it. Or something. Whatever. I'll give it a shot.

I note with a tinge of amusement that 'results' shouldn't really be expected for months. It's a damn good thing I'm just trying to find a way to pass downtime, then. Results are a bonus, not the goal. I'm remembering, from Before, how losing weight and so on was all over the commercials etc etc, so there's some schadenfreude there just imagining how many people must find that to be a crushing disappointment to learn.

Heh.

Then I lose interest and cede the computer to someone who's been waiting for like two minutes and is already glaring at his watch. Dude pretty obviously thinks I'm giving in to his peer pressure, self-satisfied as fuck, so I very deliberately make eye contact, raise an eyebrow, and hit him with a stab of fear on my way out.

I fight down the temptation to stick around and watch him as he tries to figure out why a slip of a girl could scare him so on eye contact alone. It'd be funny to watch the expressions he makes, but if I really care I can just try to parse his feelings in the background while I'm focused on other stuff. And really, I don't care. It's the principle of the thing. I'm the big dog. You are some pansy unpowered person. Fear me.

It's like respect, but easy.

The smell of food reminds me that oh yeah, hotel breakfasts and I go to do that. Wasn't sure what to do next anyway, that works.

Over the course of breakfast, Killer is visited by their live-in person and there's some complicated dance of guilt, shame, and fear that goes on in Killer's housemate. Killer is frustrated, bored, and deliberately fighting down anger when it bubbles up. Hm. Now I wish I'd paid closer attention to their earlier interactions. The heck kind of relationship is that? It's like watching one of the fam screwing up the courage to talk to Pauline, but that's ridiculous. If Killer is hiding her powers and nightlife from the dude, then it makes no sense for the dude to be scared of her.

Hm. Maybe he's not scared of her. There's been boys and girls who were scared to talk to me not because they were scared of me -more fool them, heh- but because they were scared of being rejected by me, or mocked by me, or in some of the girls' cases outed by me -hehehehe- or whatever. So maybe Killer's housedude is afraid of... I dunno, screwing up in talking with her? Not sure. Gotta be missing something. Need to see them in action, in person, hear the words and watch the body language. Hm. Does Killer have friends? The school is damn hostile, but maybe she has a friend outside of school. That hasn't visited her in the entire time I've been here. Or called her by cell phone the entire ti- no actually it is possible she has a phone-friend who's outside the city. I wouldn't necessarily have noticed the difference between, say, reading an engaging book and talking with someone in France.

Still. I'm skeptical she's got friends, and anyway I can't try to get one of her friends wrapped around my finger as an in for visiting them in person regardless of whether it's because she has none or because they live in Antarctica.

Damn. There goes that option.

Okay, back to Fury. Having breakfast with their family, I'm thinking. Best guess. It's not a great family, if I'm honest. Not a chance in hell of competing with my family for awfulness, of course, but it's pretty clear there's a lot of resentment all-around. (Huh. Looks like the companionable interaction last night was a neighbor or something) There's like one pair of people who seem to get along basically okay, if I'm reading this interaction right, and the pair doesn't include Fury his or herself. If I had to come up with a theory on the spot or be shot in the head, I'd guess the parents weren't ready to have kids and resent the kids and the kids resent them back for being shit parents. 'course, there's plenty of other possibilities, but they remind me of the cases I know were exactly that. Not terribly important overall, because I'm not interested in Fury except inasmuch as they connect to Killer and possibly are a Ward, so I'm fine with not working out a solid theory. I can just poke them with it if I meet them and need to improvise, anyway.

Bitch is... walking three dogs now? Well, walking with three dogs anyway. Same three as last night, I note. She doesn't feel all that purposeful to me, and she's not heading to Jean-Paul's location, which is where the bunch of them all met up before so I'm guessing he's sleeping in a hideout or something. Which makes sense, because he'd have a harder time than me trying to get legitimate housing without being found by the PRT. Then again, how have they not found him already aaaaargh.

Okay no calm. Calm.

I down my orange juice like it's a shot glass. It isn't, but it tricks the dumb piece of meat in my skull into thinking I'm relaxing at a bar so it helps some anyway. Associative manipulation! God, this would be easier if I could just point my power at myself. Oh well. At least I'm relatively stable. I mean, for someone who comes from such an awful, awful home situation, I'm pretty damn fine. So it's not that big a deal. Disappointing, but not that big a deal.

Jean-Paul's other associates are still being boring. Good to know. Not.

Oh right Cavedude. I'd forgotten about him. He's actually not in his cave right now. Hell, he's not that far from Killer. Significant? Eh, probably not, but something to keep in mind. Still not sure what to make of him. I make a mental note to keep an eye on him in the back of my skull. Something weird is going on there.

Fury's last-night-buddy has... just been woken up. Hm. It really is that someone woke them up. Another Ward, then? Though I didn't pay attention to how many of the fucking Nazis were kids so. Yeah. They're a kid anyway, which is slightly suggestive about the possibility that Fury is a Ward. Interesting, very interesting. Hm. Now that I think about it, Killer's not exactly a girl 'of color', so Fury tormenting her while being an E88 thug is... not impossible or necessarily all that implausible -'race traitor' etc etc- but it would be a little odd. Then again, a Ward who is failing at being an upstanding member of socie-

Pfffff. Can't keep a straight face.

So okay let's tentatively go with Fury and his or her buddy are Wards. Can I use that? Maybe pin down who Fury is, which Ward they are, bring the info to Killer, leverage that into I feel so much gratitude to you, Mistress Cherie -no wait I need a name uuuuh let's go with Cherish I like the sound of that- Mistress Cherish, I am eager to be pointed at whatever foul nemesis you want dead. And then let's make out sitting on Jean-Paul's corpse, if that pleases you.

Yeah, that sounds like it has all the makings of a good plan I can get behind.

... so yeah I need to establish beyond a shadow of a doubt that Fury is a Ward. Maybe get picture proof? That'd be tricky. And also hinges on me being right, let's not get ahead of ourselves girl. And also it'd be dangerous, especially depending on what Fury can actually do. Fury's willing to vent their frustrations on the citizens of Brockton Bay -gang members, maybe?- and now that I think about it the shifty attitude would make sense if Fury is trying to hide their less-than-noble activities from their goody-two-shoes bosses. So... Fury may well be willing to kill me to keep their secrets. Definitely need to be careful of any plan involving risking Fury's fury.

So: itinerary for the day. Get line of sight on Fury at the school. Then work out which Ward Fury is. Uh. Maybe I should actually look that up? Eeeeh. I can spot Fury and then do research.

I consider trying to turn this go-round into a jogging trip, both because exercise why not and because it would actually be a damn good cover story in its own right, but then I realize I have like absolutely nothing appropriate for jogging. Huh. Something to think on. Is that a commentary on me, or is it a commentary on how Daddy shaped me? 'cause if it's the latter, fuck yeah let's exercise the hell out of spiting Daddy. Impulse is to think it's the latter and shudder, because so far even though exercise is hard I'm not actually disliking it. Kind of suggests my failure to get into that scene isn't so much me-me. But let's not jump to conclusions! Instead, we shall study our own behavior in future, and also use royal pronouns at random because fuck yeah I deserve it. Damn. Broke the streak.

Oh well.

I do decide to just walk the distance instead of catching a bus, 'cause walking is apparently not anything you need particular clothes for unless the weather is bad somehow, and it's not like I'm in that much of a hurry or anything. I mean, I want Jean-Paul dead and screaming in agony yesterday, but my current plan has no chance of bearing fruit before the end of the day regardless. Might as well get the walking in.

As it happens I'm able to cope with the walk well enough. My time in the fam was walk-friendly for various reasons, so I guess that makes sense, but somehow I was expecting to be attractively sweaty and sexily panting by the time I got to the school. Nah, my armpits smell some is all. Totally disappointing. The media has lied to me. Lied, I say!

God, I think I'm a bit unhinged. Need to watch that. Not sure how to address it, but I really don't need to get into a bad headspace and then start making decisions in it. I can at least pay attention and just pass time not getting myself into trouble if I get bad enough. So far I'm just drifting into goofiness periodically, and that's not particularly bad, but if it gets worse...

Anyway.

The school. I debate actually stalking the halls to spot Fury that way, but that's way too risky. I also got here too late to catch them getting off the bus -though it would've been risky anyway as Fury and Killer were on the same bus- so that plan is out. Hm. Getting some binoculars and spying on Fury that way seems likely to be a bit too attention-grabbing.

Hmmm.

Ugh.

I end up hanging out in the general vicinity of the school for a while with no particular plan, dithering, and leaving the area around noon to make myself eat lunch at a fast-food place. Killer pops up onto the rooftop, which I didn't realize was what she was doing but is totally what she was doing the previous lunches. Seems odd to me. She's hiding from these people instead of striking them down and laughing maniacally, but she's doing so in a way that's a big hint to the fact that she's a parahuman if anybody notices her. Seems inconsistent to me. Is she one of those people who deliberately is setting themselves up for failure? Something to keep in mind.

Eventually luck goes my way -Fury and Killer go out to do sports-y shit. Jogging or something I dunno. Gives me a convenient excuse to walk nearby and be able to see them without looking suspicious at all. So I do so.

Thought the first: if she's an E88 thug, I will buy a hat so I can eat it.

Yeah, that Ward theory is looking waaaaay more likely now. I mean it's possible her power lets her hide her skin color and she's, I dunno, got tons of self-loathing going on or gets off on non-poetic irony or something, but it's a pretty outlandish scenario. Ward makes a lot more sense.

Speaking of, her buddy from last night is in a very different part of town surrounded by people who are much less unhappy. Not sure what to make of that. Should maybe look into that. Probably another school. Wouldn't it make more sense to keep all the Wards in one defensible school, though? Then again, this whole thing of sending the Wards to regular school rather than conscripting them completely as child soldiers reeks of impractical decision making anyway so I guess I shouldn't really be surprised. Hm. Wasn't there a... Young Protectors? Eh. Close enough. Pretty sure there's an organization that's supposed to protect the Wards from the Big Bad Scary Government.

Ah, the wonders of bureaucracy. Where the right hand wants to make a goddamn sandwich and the left hand proceeds to stab it in its goddamn palm because you can't just make a sandwich, you've gotta fill out paperwork first and do it according to federal guidelines and if you mess up at any point you've gotta start over from the beginning. And then get stabbed again because you didn't ask for permission to start over before starting over.

(Seriously Daddy, people would've thanked you for removing the stupidity from their lives, why couldn't you have had just a tiny smidge of ambition?)

So okay Plan: bait Killer with Fury's identity is looking pretty damn solid.

As such, I bail and go to check out Cavedude's place, because if today goes like the previous days we're still two hours from school letting out and I am so goddamn bored.

I cannot find Cavedude's cave.

I mean, I know exactly where it is, but it's weird. The building above the magical cave of magicalness has no entry to the cave that I can tell -no one passes between the two places at all- and the building itself is just a high-rise office building with a big sign saying FORTRESS CONSTRUCTION. Sounds vaguely familiar, but it's not coming to me and I don't care. I'm not sure the people in the building have any idea what's directly underneath them, so it probably doesn't matter.

I circle around the area while trying to not look like I'm circling around the area, trying to see if I can find an obvious-to-me secret entrance to the cave, but nothing really leaps out at me. And there's certainly not any obvious This Is An Underground Thingy entryways of the non-secret sort. So I'm a bit stumped at what the hell is going on here. Apparently the place is meant to be secret, definitely. And is pretty damn competent at being secret, somehow. What is this, some kind of backup Protectorate HQ? Then why the secrecy?...

Cavedude, meanwhile, left the place at some earlier point. Since my emotion sensing doesn't actually let me see terrain directly, I have only a vague idea of the area he had to have passed through to do so. Right now he's somewhere else. Hm. Actually, is that the same area Fury and Fury's Buddy were in last night? Hmmm.

I decide to grab a bus, partly because one is like a minute away anyway and will cycle to near my destination in like twenty minutes, and partly because I want to see where Cavedude is before he leaves it. I wanna know. This suspicion is worth checking.

Thankfully, Cavedude doesn't move away from whatever boring task that demands he sit still he's doing. He pretty clearly has no particular fondness for said task, but he's also patient about it. He's not chomping at the bit, impatient to get away from it. I get the vibe that he's somehow getting something done he cares about at the same time he's doing whatever he's currently doing. An aspiring writer, working out plots for their book in their head while doing their day job? Doesn't explain what his cave is about...

I put that line of thought on hold while the bus drives me to nearby Cavedude's current location. Instead I focus back onto the other people I'm monitor- hey! What's Fury's buddy doing? They were at what was almost certainly another school, and now they're not... wait. Pretty much everyone is gone from what I'm almost certain is Fury's buddy's school. What? Fury's own school hasn't let out, I can tell. Okay, I know 'half-days' are a thing... maybe the buddy's school is just having one for some reason. Uh. Staff retraining, maybe? Is that a thing schools do? Not sure. I'll need to keep an eye on that, too.

... hm. Watching Fury's buddy, they might be on course to the same area I'm checking out. They're certainly not going to where they slept the night before. Interesting.

Jean-Paul finally fucking woke up a few minutes back. Jeez. Lazybones much? Bitch has been... walking around town. Isn't her identity public? Odd. We're well into normie hours, shouldn't that be risky as heck for her? Though. She does seem to be skulking around a pretty shitty part of town right now, going by the vibe of people in the area. She's on a mission, too. Not a clue what the mission is, but she's focused. And angry, but that hasn't been particularly unusual for her so far so whatever. The other two... I dunno. I think one of them might be grocery shopping. The other is having a lot of fun doing something that involves, I'm pretty sure, schadenfreude. I'm guessing trolling people via the internet, personally. Man. Jean-Paul's crew is so lame.

Ugh. Don't let their lameness make ya cocky, girl. Grue is still potentially scary, and I do need somebody to handle Jean-Paul for me. And being boring as fuck isn't the same thing as being pathetic in a fight. Not remotely. (See: Daddy)

Finally the bus arrives at my destination. Right at, it turns out, as the building has a pretty large lawn all to itself, which threw off my guesstimates. Very odd, why wouldthe friggin' PRT need a giant-ass lawn?

Now I'm a bit confused though. Aren't the Wards tiny Protectorate people? (My eyes drift to the Protectorate HQ out in the ocean. Brockton Bay's Protectorate HQ is a bit infamous, really) I shouldn't be seeing Wards at the PRT HQ, should I? I mean, yeah, they're both under the same umbrella... but that still doesn't seem right.

Oh, and Cavedude is somewhere in the PRT HQ. So I guess his cave is some official PRT thingy. A backup HQ, if the main one is compromised? The real HQ, with the building in front of me being a giant decoy? Oh! Maybe the cave is a secret supervillain prison they don't let anybody know about so nobody can break the villains out! Like the Birdcage, but for people who aren't quite hated enough that sending them to the Birdcage will be considered natural and acceptable.

Yeah, that makes sense. I guess Cavedude is the warden, then? And needs to look like a normal PRT goober who goes to his normal PRT job to draw suspicion away from the mini-Birdcage, or something.

Interesting. I'll need to pay closer attention to the cave. It didn't read like a prison to me, but I've not paid that close attention to prisons that have been in my radius before, so maybe I'm just ignorant. Or it could be weird because it's a weird prison. Or both!

... though this raises questions about Cavedude's relationship to Grue or Tattletale. Hm. Maybe the Undersiders are a catspaw for the PRT? Or maybe Cavedude is just corrupt. Merits further investigation.

A tour bus pulls up while I'm waiting, and a bunch of hideously-dressed people pile out and make their way directly to the PRT building. Uh. The paramilitary organization for fighting superhumanly powerful criminals, said paramilitary organization's top agents being, themselves, secretive as fuck... does tour groups?

I give myself thirty seconds to reboot.

...

Okay, done. I mean, what the fuck, but moving on.

On impulse, I insinuate myself into the back of the group. I'm sort of vaguely disappointed when I'm given a 'tour pass' at the door with absolutely no emotional massaging necessary, just like all the idiots in front of me, rather than being ejected as not part of the pre-screened group, but I guess that's not really surprising. If you're doing fucking tour groups, how highly can you be valuing security, am I right?

I absentmindedly make mental notes of the emotional signatures of all the PRT employees I see as we go along, ignoring the tour guide's idiotic jabber. Wait. Yes, Fury's buddy has entered the building, from some other entrance. Not the main entrance. Confirmation that Fury's buddy is an employee? Hm. Now that I think about it, maybe I've been coming at this from completely the wrong direction. Maybe Fury and Braintwister -because mother of god does it do horrible things to my head when Braintwister does their thing- are actually outside agents trying to, I dunno, steal from the PRT? Worth considering.

Yadda yadda etc etc bored bored so fucking bore-

Wait, did the tour guide just say we'll get to see the Wards? Yes, yes she did just say that. Ooookay. I could've sworn the Wards were attached to the Protectorate directly. Puzzling. Takes me back to Fury and Braintwister probably being Wards, though. Not that it's damning or anything, but it does undermine the thing that had me doubting the Ward theory in the first place. So yeah. Little more interested. Impatient, though, because I do not give a fuck about how Armsmaster used to have a fancy-pants gear as his symbol or any of the other fucking bullshit she's jabbering about, and I'm apparently going to sit through like twenty more minutes of this shit before we get to see the Wards. And I'm not willing to twist anyone under these conditions. I mean, this is really a moderate risk as-is, if the Canadian PRT ever IDed me without me realizing it, which is totally possible. I don't need to add more dumb risk to an already-risky decision.

OH GOD THIS IS SO FUCKING BORING HOW HAVE THESE LOSERS NOT COLLECTIV- oh right they're thrilled to be here. Thanks power. Thanks for bursting my self-righteous indignation.

sigh

Finally finally finally we get to see the Wards. Through some kind of glass that I would bet money is super-bulletproof, naturally. There's like three kids there right now, and they wave politely at us. The guide informs us that they are Aegis (Okay, now I've got a costume to go with that name), Clockblocker (snrk), and Vista. Vista is Braintwister, which means it's already time for me to retire that nickname. . Goodnight sweet prince, we hardly knew ye.

Anyway.

Confirmation that Fury's buddy was a Ward. Pretty damn close to confirmation that Fury is a Ward.

The guide indicates that people can toss out questions and she can ask the Wards them. Uuuh. Okay. I immediately discard the possibility of asking a question myself. Don't be memorable. Asking questions makes you memorable, even if it's expected. I make a point of listening in to the other questions...

... until after I've heard the first four.

Goddammit. These are such inane, stupid questions. I thought people would be asking about, like, power details, or 'scariest moments' -which would let me learn something about local capes- or something. No, people are asking shit like, "What's your favorite food, Aegis." (Admittedly, it's mildly informative that he can apparently eat basically anything, but it's not like I was considering poisoning him or something anyway) LAME. SO LAME.

Still. I've learned some important, interesting stuff on this trip. Now I just need to get the dirt on Fury such that Killer will believe me with minimal manipulation, and then leverage that gratitude into murdering Jean-Paul, and then...

... hm. Uh. God, I dunno.

Well, whatever. It's okay I don't have a big plan (just like Daddy SHUT UP SHUT UP) for the moment. (SEE IT'S DIFFERENT)

... okay maybe it isn't that okay.

Fuck.

I go to my hotel room, tired and moody. I remember I haven't had dinner, then decide fuckit I'm too tired and I don't want to pay and I don't want to fuck up a shenanigans order so I'm just going to bed. I'll sort out a plan in the morning.

... hopefully.