Disclaimer: I do not own Static Shock or The Incredibles

Chapter Twenty-One: Loose Ends

"I swear, I'm fine." Francis protested, kicking irritably at the covers.

Helen looked up from where she was sorting Francis' laundry and offered the teen a practiced patient look, like a mother dealing with a three year old's temper tantrum, before returning to folding t-shirts. "Doc said to keep you in bed until the end of the week. You're not going anywhere mister."

Francis flopped back against the pillows and banged the back of his head on the headboard. Francis groaned and rolled over onto his side, cradling his head and muttering curse words under his breath.

"What was that?" Helen asked sharply.

"Nothin'." Francis grumbled.

The pyro was going on his second week of being confined to his bedroom. After suffering through a very intense, invasive virus, Francis had been ordered to remain in bed for a few more days to make sure the virus was gone from his system and his strength had returned.

Francis, however, had the attention span of a housefly and was rapidly becoming both bored and a nuisance to Helen and Bob, who had had to reprimand the teen several times a day since his fever had broken about staying in bed.

Helen tucked the laundry basket under one arm and turned to look at Francis. He tried look at pathetic as possible and Helen sighed. "Okay, okay. You can go lie on the couch and watch TV until the kids get home."

A grin leapt onto Francis' face and he flung the covers away from himself.

"But…" Helen stopped him. Francis' face fell. "You need to stay on the couch, under a blanket, and drink all of the orange juice I bring you without whining. Clear?"

"Yes ma'am." Francis agreed readily, desperate to get out of his room at any cost. It still smelled like the heavy disinfectant Bob and Helen had used to make the room sterile.

Francis hurried to the living room before Helen could change her mind. Bob leaned out of his office when Francis walked past but the teen just smirked at him. He had permission to be up and about, after all.

Francis launched himself onto the couch and got comfortable before turning the TV on. Francis frowned at the screen and flipped through the channels. Midday entertainment was pretty lame. Nothing but talk shows and soap operas. Francis landed on an old black and white movie. Some guy in a fedora was twirling an umbrella and frolicking through the rain while singing. Francis scowled; being sick could be so boring. He hated it.

Francis hated feeling so weak and vulnerable. He hated that the walk from his bedroom to the couch had left him a little shaky. He appreciated how the Parrs and Lucius were looking after him but he hated those sympathetic looks and answering the same questions over and over. Yes, he was feeling fine. No, he wasn't cold. Yes, he'd taken his medicine. No, he wasn't hungry.

Francis had gotten so dangerously sick only once before, when he was ten. He'd been living at a government center for Supers when he'd fallen ill. Having grown up in as sterile an environment there could be, Francis' immune system was weak and unprepared for the virus. It had hit him hard. He'd been confined to the government hospital for nearly a month and he was too weak to do anything but sit and read for a while afterwards. The center's doctors had put Francis on a strict regimen of vitamins that were supposed to boost his immune system and prevent another bout of illness.

After Francis had run away from the center, he'd stopped taking the medicine the doctors had prescribed. He knew it was only a matter of time before some disease got hold of him again. Francis was just thankful the illness hadn't been too bad and he'd been with people who had taken care of him.

Once Helen had found out Francis had neglected his medication all these years, she was furious with him. She didn't understand why he would take the risk. It was simple, but Francis didn't want to explain it to the Parrs. He just put on his best guilty face and took the pills Helen got Doc Sunbright to prescribe him again.

The reason Francis hadn't continued taking the pills after he ran away, despite knowing the risks, was that prescriptions could be traced. He was a fugitive, and Francis valued his freedom more than his health. In his mind, it was worth the risk. Of course, now Francis didn't have to worry about being tracked down by the NSA and would gladly take the medicine.

The house phone rang, startling Francis. He arched his neck to look over the back of the couch and watched has Helen answered the call in the kitchen.

Francis slid back down and leaned his head against the armrest. Something nagged at the back of his mind, something he had forgotten.

Francis sat up again. His cell phone! Where was it? He hadn't seen it since he'd gotten sick. Francs peered back over the couch and saw Helen thoroughly engaged in her phone call. Bob was working in his office. Jack Jack was down for his nap and everybody else was at school or work. Francis discreetly rolled off the couch and crawled on his hands and knees to the hallway.

So far so good, no nagging adults in sight. Francis got to his feet and tiptoed back to his room.

He looked around his room but didn't see the phone. Where had he left it? Francis thought back over the last two weeks. The afternoon before he had gotten so sick he wouldn't wake up, he'd gotten home from school feeling awful. Francis had done his homework and his Super homework before kicking off his clothes and crawling into bed, trying to will his raging headache away.

His pants. Francis looked for the pair of jeans he had been wearing that day. The cell phone had been in the pocket.

Francis' room was clean. Cleaner than it had ever been, thanks to the sterilization. There were no clothes on the floor.

"Laundry room." Francis muttered to himself. Helen had done his laundry.

Francis crept out of his room and headed for the laundry room. He passed Jack Jack's open door and a happy gurgle caught his attention.

Jack Jack was standing up in his crib, looking at Francis, arms extended towards the teen expectantly. The baby let loose a string of nonsensical sounds. Ever since he had uttered his first word, Jack Jack had become increasingly verbal.

"Sorry bud, I'm on a stealth mission." Francis whispered. He held a finger to his lips. "Shhh."

Jack Jack mirrored Francis' actions and held one pudgy finger to his own mouth.

Francis grinned. "You know, you're my favorite."

Jack Jack bounced up and down on his mattress and giggled happily.

Francis moved on before the baby made too much noise and brought Helen this way.

The pyro entered the laundry room and there, on top of the washer, was his cell phone. Helen must have found it in his pants pocket while doing the laundry and left it there.

Francis grabbed the phone and turned it on.

"Just what do you think you're doing?"

Francis froze and turned his head to the doorway.

Helen was standing there, a smiling Jack Jack on her hip.

"Um, laundry?" Francis smiled in what he hoped was a charming manner. Helen didn't buy it.

"I gave you some very specific rules. Doc said not to overexert yourself. Look at you." Helen gestured with her free hand.

Francis frowned. He was breathing a little deeply but its not like he was about to collapse. "I was just getting my phone."

"Back to your room." Helen pointed down the hallway, her face stern.

"But…" Francis whined.

"No buts mister. Go."

Francis grumbled as he walked past Helen but another stern look sent him back to his room in silence. He flopped onto his bed and looked at the phone.

27 missed calls. 13 voicemails. 45 unread texts. Francis' eyes widened. "Whoa." He checked the calls first, over half were from Frieda. He dialed his voicemail. Most of those were from Frieda too. Francis winced. All of her messages had a sweet and concerned tone, wishing him well, wanting to know how he was doing, when was he going to be back at school, would he please call her when he got the chance?

Francis had no idea what he was going to say to her.

Come Friday afternoon, Francis had still not thought of what to say to Frieda and he was feeling like the world's worst boyfriend. Since he had the ok to go back to school on Monday, he was giving himself the weekend to think it over.

Dash's birthday was on Saturday and Helen had planned a party for the little speedster at an indoor playground with all of Dash's friends from school. The teenagers of the Sanctum had been roped into chaperone duty.

"Oh god, it's like a war zone in here." Francis stared in wide-eyed horror at the running, screaming masses of children as they stood in the doorway to the playground.

"Pops, I'm scared." Virgil backed up against Lucius.

"Stop whining and get in there." Lucius nudged the teens ahead to the group of tables in the back of the room where Helen and Bob were hanging decorations. Bob's face was red from blowing balloons.

"Oh, there you are." Helen looked up as the group approached. "You remembered to pick up the cake didn't you?"

Violet lifted the cake box as an affirmation. "Yup. You guys all set?"

Helen looked around the party area, running down a mental checklist. "Cake, pizza, gift bags, kids, balloons. Yeah, I think we're good." She paused to take a breath. She had faced down numerous super villains, piloted an airplane dropping from the sky, and raised three relatively normal and happy children. Helen Parr would not be undone by a twelve year old's birthday party. "Assignments." Helen announced. The adults and teenagers fell in around the table with stony expressions like they were receiving classified missions.

"Bob, you're supervising the hockey room. There may be padding in there but I don't trust these kids not to hurt themselves or each other." Her husband nodded.

Helen continued, moving onto the other members of the group. "Lucius, you're watching the arcade. Make sure none of the kids break any of the machines or steal each other's tickets. Violet, Virgil, you're manning the play area. Make sure no one gets stuck. No running and no shoes allowed inside."

"What about me?" Francis asked.

Helen swept Jack Jack out of his booster seat and plopped the baby into Francis' arms. "You're babysitting."

Francis' face fell. "Aww."

"You're not up to chasing a dozen preteens around sweetie." Helen explained gently. "Just make sure Jack Jack doesn't explode or anything like that."

Francis frowned but didn't argue. He'd had to fight to be allowed out of the house and to the party in the first place. He wasn't going to complain if all he had to do all day was watch Jack Jack and eat cake.

"Okay people, let's do this!" Helen clapped her hands together like a coach trying to psych up their team.

Virgil and Violet exchanged grins and walked away before they burst into laughter, heading for the indoor playground that was crawling with children.

Bob and Lucius headed off to their own areas to make sure the party ran smoothly. Francis sank into a chair at the table designated to the Parr party and sat Jack Jack on his knee, idly bouncing the baby up and down. Jack Jack clapped his hands and waved his arms about, enjoying the ride.

Dash came running over, at a normal speed, and latched onto Francis' arm. "Did you see all my presents!" Dash exclaimed. His cheeks were red from running around and he was talking faster than normal from all the sugar.

Francis glanced over at the adjacent table, overflowing with gift-wrapped boxes. "Looks like a good haul Shorty."

Dash nodded. "Did you get me a present?"

Francis hadn't had time to go shopping, being bedridden, but he'd had Violet pick something up for him at the mall to give Dash. "Sure did." Francis pulled an envelope out of his pocket and handed it over. Dash flipped the envelope over, trying to guess what was inside. It felt like a slim piece of cardboard was inside. Dash tried not to look disappointed and slit the envelope open with his finger.

Dash slid out the piece of cardboard and his eyes went wide. He looked from the envelope, to Francis, and back to the envelope. "What…?"

Francis smothered a laugh and just grinned. "You like it?"

Inside the envelope was an autographed Gerard Hamilton football card. What's more, it was a personalized autograph. 'To Dash, Happy Birthday speedster. Gerard Hamilton.'

"Like it? It's the best thing anyone's ever got for me!" Dash was nearly vibrating in excitement. "How did you do this?"

"I heard Hamilton was doing an autograph signing at the mall. I had Violet go get it." Francis explained.

"You are the best." Dash's grin almost split his face in two. A shout from across the arcade got the birthday boy's attention. "Oh, I have to go. Me and Tyler are going to beat the high score on the Skeeball machine." He thrust the card at Francis. "Will you hold onto this so I don't bend it or something?"

Francis took the card. "Okay."

"You're awesome." Dash waved over his shoulder and darted away into the sea of kids.

Francis chuckled to himself and yanked the valuable card out of Jack Jack's reach when the baby made a grab for it. "Keep your sticky little hands off the merchandise kid."

Jack Jack tilted his head to the side like he understood what Francis said before reaching out again and grabbing a fistful of red hair, yanking Francis' head towards him. "Ow…ok, ok. Lay off." Francis groped around the table with his free hand and comes up with a forkful of cake. He maneuvered the food into Jack Jack's mouth and the baby released his death grip on Francis' hair to eat.

Francis pulled back and rubbed the abused spot on his head. "Strong grip."

Frosting was smeared on Jack Jack's face and the baby reached for more cake. Francis held the baby just out of reach and then distracted Jack Jack from the sugary treat by walking over to the ball pit and jumping in, holding Jack Jack to his chest. The cake was immediately forgotten and Jack Jack squealed in delight, squirming to play in the brightly colored plastic balls.

Francis laughed and dunked the baby before tossing him into the air and catching him again. Jack Jack let loose a peal of high-pitched giggles, nearly delirious with joy. Francis smirked. Best babysitter ever.

As the party was starting to wind down Helen walked over to Francis. Jack Jack was starting to nod off, exhausted from hours of play, and Francis was pretty tired himself. "Hey, I left some of the gift bags in the car. Would you go get them for me?"

Francis nodded, traded the sleepy baby for the car keys, and headed out to the parking lot. The Parr mini van was easy enough to spot. Francis walked over, unlocked the car, and pulled the trunk open. A cardboard box stuffed with plastic bags overflowing with candy was sitting there. Francis picked up the box and set it down on the pavement before reaching up to shut the trunk door.

The quiet sound of sneakers scuffing against pavement made the hairs on the back of Francis' neck stand up. There was muted laughter and conversation coming from a few cars away, and it was getting louder. Francis frowned and wondered why that bothered him. A loud cackling laugh suddenly broke through the chatter. Francis' eyes widened. He knew that laugh. He snuck a glance over his shoulder and noted a group of guys walking through the parking lot. They were obviously cutting through, trying to get to the pool hall a few buildings down.

All the teens were wearing loose, baggy clothing, and had white bandanas wrapped around their biceps or tied around their ankles. Francis turned back to the van, glanced down at the box of gift bags at his feet, and flushed a bright red. "Don't notice me. I'm not here." Francis muttered under his breath, watching in the reflection of the van's window as they group approached. They hadn't noticed him.

The group passed and Francis let out a breath he didn't know he had been holding.

"Yo, F!"

Francis cringed and looked up.

One of the teens in the group had turned around and was looking at him. "Hey, F-Stop, where the hell you been?"

The group turned almost in unison and walked back over to where Francis was standing. For the first time in months, Francis was face to face with his old crew.

Francis smirked. "Hey fellas. What's up?"

"Nothin' much man. Wonderin' where your sorry ass got to." A larger teen, Danny, shouldered his way to the front of the group. He was a couple inches taller than Francis and had a lit cigarette dangling from his lips. His dark brown hair was shaved into a mohawk and he had his hands shoved into the pockets of his sweatpants. "Where you been?"

"Nowhere." Francis kept his tone casual. "Somethin' came up." He could feel himself lapsing back into the old familiar grammar.

"Somethin' came up." Danny repeated.

Another teen, Roddy, spoke up. "We thought you were dead man. But you're not. What are you doin' here?" Roddy looked around, noted the car keys in Francis' hand and looked back at the mini van, then at the box of gift bags. "The hell? Are you playin' suburban housewife these days?"

The group laughed, it was a mean laugh. Francis scowled but didn't move, didn't react.

"It's hard to explain." Francis started.

"Not that hard man." Danny spoke again. "We haven't seen you in months, we think you're dead, you leave us in the middle of a turf war with Carlos and his crew, and now we find you just chillin' with some rich folk? That's not right man. You better have somethin' more to say."

Francis' jaw tightened with the effort not to start cussing and throwing punches. These guys had been his friends; they'd had each other's backs for years. Francis hadn't abandoned them. He'd been forced to stop seeing them. Now they were condemning him without letting him explain.

"I didn't want to go. They made me." Francis tried again.

"Who?" Roddy asked.

"That's not important. I didn't want to leave; it wasn't somethin' I could control. I didn't have any say in it." Francis tried to be as vague as possible. He was skirting around some classified information that he couldn't, by law, reveal.

"Sounds like bullshit to me." Danny said gruffly. His expression darkened.

"It's the truth." Francis said.

A short Hispanic teen stepped up. "I'm with Danny. You couldn't tell us anything? Not that you were goin' somewhere? That's weak."

"Herrero, I couldn't." Francis tried to make them understand. "I'm sorry."

"You're gonna be sorry." Danny advanced towards Francis, flanked by the other four teens.

Francis dropped one foot back and adopted the defensive position Bob had taught him. His green eyes narrowed as he swept his gaze over the gang. Five on one. And he wasn't in top form. This was going to be hard.

Danny swung first, he'd always been impulsive and short-tempered, and that's why he and Francis had gotten along so well. They'd been a lot alike. But while Danny had been throwing punches on street corners, Francis had been learning patience and how to fight smart.

Francis duck under the punch and side stepped a follow-up swing, skipping away from the van and the gang. He was light on his feet and Francis could use that to his advantage.

Herrero and Roddy leapt forward, trying to grab Francis and hold him still so Danny and the other two could wail on him.

Roddy got his arms around Francis' neck but the pyro slid out of his grip and tripped Roddy so he fell flailing into Herrero.

Danny and the other two formed a semi-circle around Francis and backed him up against an SUV. Francis clenched his fists and growled low in his throat. He'd broken the no fighting rule before, but Bob and Helen had made it very clear after his throw down with Wade that any more fighting outside of the uniform would be punished. Francis didn't know what to do. If he fought, he'd be in deep trouble. If he didn't, he was going to get his ass kicked. Francis wasn't sure what was worse. Lately, Helen's disappointed stare hurt a hell of a lot more than any punch.

Danny was frustrated, and when he got frustrated, he threw caution to the wind. Danny launched himself at Francis and caught the other teen by surprise; they both went tumbling to the pavement.

Francis brought his arms up to protect his face just as Danny sat up and started throwing punches. Francis was trapped under Danny's weight. He tried to bring his legs up and kick the larger teen away from him but Danny clamped his own legs around Francis' waist and held on tight. Herrero grabbed Francis' arms and pulled them up above the pyro's head. Herrero leaned both of his knees against the insides of Francis' elbows, keeping his arms pinned to the ground. Francis hissed in a breath when Herrero put his full weight against his arms.

Herrero and Danny exchanged a quick chuckle at Francis' discomfort and then Danny brought his right fist down onto Francis' face.

Francis' head smacked against the pavement and his vision dimmed for a second. Francis shook his head to clear his sight and frowned when black dots continued to dance along the periphery of his vision. Blood dripped from Francis' nose and slid down his cheek, forming a little puddle on the ground. Danny pulled his fist up again for a second strike.

Francis could hear the other three boys surrounding them, cheering on Danny. That's when it hit him. They were going to kill him. Francis sucked in a breath at the realization. They didn't want to just pay him back for abandoning them; it was way beyond that now. Light-headed or no, five against one or not, Francis wasn't going to just lie there and let them kill him.

Francis gritted his teeth and braced his feet against the ground. His arms were beginning to go numb but Francis pressed his elbows against the pavement to get as much purchase as possible and then with every ounce of strength he had, Francis flipped onto his side, dislodging both Danny and Herrero.

Danny fell onto his side and was frozen with shock for a second before he scrabbled to his feet. Herrero didn't get the chance to recover. Francis threw an elbow back and caught the Hispanic teen in the nose and he dropped to the ground, blood gushing over his chin.

Francis jumped to his feet and his head swam alarmingly. He shook again to try to clear his vision and brought his fists up. Roddy ran forward and tried to catch Francis in another tackle but Francis ducked his shoulder and let Roddy take the impact in his gut. Roddy stumbled back, gasping for breath and Francis let loose with a thunderous right-left combination and Roddy fell.

From behind him, Danny hit Francis in the back of the head. Francis' vision exploded into a blinding white and he stumbled forward, and dropping to his knees. He was breathing hard now but Francis struggled back to his feet and let his anger wash over him. He hadn't let himself lose control since moving in with the Parrs, but if he wanted to win this fight, Francis had to fight like the banger he used to be.

Before one of the teens standing on the outskirts of the fight could react Francis had sunk his fist into his stomach and the boy lurched forward, coughing up blood. Francis drove his elbow into the back of the teen's head and he sank to the ground.

That left Danny and one other, a newbie named Carter. Francis lifted his head wearily to examine the two. Carter looked just about ready to pee his pants. Danny was visibly shaking with fury. Francis fell back into his defensive posture.

Danny reached behind him and pulled a small handgun from the waistband of his pants. Francis' eyes widened.

"Cheat."

Danny smirked. "We weren't playing by any rules, Francis." He lifted the gun and pointed it at Francis.

Francis looked around, nowhere to go, nowhere to hide.

Danny flicked the safety off and grinned.

Francis closed his eyes.

The gun went off.

Francis opened his eyes again, confused. He patted his body to check for any extra holes and didn't find any. He looked up.

Bob was standing beside Danny, one hand on Danny's wrist forcing the gun to point straight up, where the gun had gone off harmlessly.

Danny was looking up at Bob, shock on his face.

Carter took one look at Bob and turned and ran off as quickly as he could. He skid on a suddenly formed patch of ice and went flying into the bumper of a parked car. Lucius walked around from behind the car and grabbed Carter by the back of his shirt.

Bob wrenched the gun out of Danny's hand and then reached up and punched Danny once across the face. Danny slumped to the ground bonelessly.

Lucius dropped Carter beside Danny and then they both looked up at Francis.

Francis was breathing raggedly, sweat and blood dripping down his face. He looked at the two Supers and offered a weak grin. "Thanks."

Lucius went to Francis' side and pulled one of the teen's arms around his shoulders, supporting the pyro's weight. Francis coughed and flecks of blood dribbled down his chin. He laughed, but it sounded more like a gasp. "I'm not gonna get in trouble, am I?"

Bob cracked a grin. "No. I think we can make an exception."

Francis dropped his head onto Lucius' shoulder. "Good."

"Hey Frieda." Francis started hesitantly.

"Francis! Oh my god, are you okay? I haven't heard from you in forever!" Frieda sounded excited and anxious even over the phone.

"Yeah, I'm okay. Now, anyway." Francis grinned. "Sorry I didn't call you. I wasn't really up to it."

"I understand. Violet told me how sick you were. But you're okay now?"

Francis looked up from where he was sitting on the edge of his bed and caught his reflection in the mirror. He had a bright blue bruise blossoming over his left cheek and a split lip. He certainly didn't look fine. "Yeah, I feel fine. I'll be back in school on Monday. You want to hang out after school or something? Get coffee or…?" Francis trailed off.

Frieda continued for him. "Actually a new movie came out this weekend and I wanted to see it with you. Want to do that tomorrow afternoon? We can go to the megaplex at the mall."

"Sounds good." Francis fell back against his pillows. "Hey Frieda?"

"Yeah?"

"I missed you."

Francis could almost hear Frieda's smile. "I missed you too Francis."

Author's Note:

Oooh boy. This is soooo late. My apologies to anyone still reading this. My life has gotten so hectic. It's not even funny. I can't find time to sleep, let alone write fanfiction. But I made a promise to finish this story and I will finish it if it kills me. It's a good thing we're approaching the finish though. I'm planning on thirty chapters, so only a few more to go. I can't promise another chapter soon. I have finals, then I have to move home, then my internship starts. I will try though, I can promise that. Oh and btw, for Dash's birthday party, I was thinking of something Chuck E. Cheese-esque, just so you know.

Sidenote: My reviewers are all so much smarter than me. Yes, I should have hooked Francis up to an IV last chapter instead of the constant shots. That was stupid of me. I acknowledge my mistake. But hey, I'm no doctor. Let's suspend reality for a little while so I don't feel so dumb, okay?

PLEASE REVIEW!