Chapter 2: Good Vibes Through Bad Times
I hated it when I got trapped in dark thoughts. If I spent too long wallowing in the mire, I would go out and do something fun or productive. It didn't matter what I channelled my energy into as long as I did something that made me happy.
It was far too easy to just let go and do nothing, or let my mistakes get to me. I could spend all day thinking of examples if I wanted to, but I didn't. I couldn't do that to myself. I knew what would happen to me if I did.
Fortunately for everyone, it didn't take too long for a police officer to arrive on the scene. I met him at the edge of the alley, both criminals at my feet, bound with zip ties. Seeing that made me smile, but it wasn't because it was a funny sight or because I did a good job.
I thought they were innocent, yet the real innocent people were afraid of me. I attacked the girl who saved them, someone I assumed was a villain. The actual criminals weren't dead or even seriously poisoned.
And what did that girl, that hero get for trying to save some lives? I maimed her because I couldn't wait to kick some cape ass. Some hero.
"If it isn't Glory Girl," the police officer said as he got out of his car.
I got over myself and flashed him a winning smile, recognizing the voice almost immediately. "Afternoon, Officer Ryder. How's it going?"
Officer Ryder smiled. He had gone without his usual police cap, revealing short, dark brown hair. "It's Captain, now."
I grinned. "Congratulations!"
"Thanks. To answer your question, my day hasn't been too bad, but making an arrest would make it a lot better."
"Well, today's your lucky day. I have a couple of criminals gift-wrapped for you."
I helped Officer – Captain – Ryder replace my zip ties with proper handcuffs and hauled the perps inside the back of his car. Not really engaging, but it was easy enough to do.
In a way, I was sort of glad that I was dealing with a cop instead of an officer from the PRT. If the criminals I arrested had superpowers, my... mishaps would, somehow, be brought under the attention of the local director. That was a clusterfuck I didn't want to deal with.
Instead, Brockton Bay's finest dealt with more mundane offenses. The police were supposed to work with the PRT to keep the city under control, developing a more specialized skillset that let them tackle a wider range of situations. In practice, they were the PRT's glorified errand boys, since the majority of Brockton Bay's crime involved capes.
More often than not, the boys and girls in blue had a chip on their shoulder, and I didn't blame them. Pretty much none of them seemed to resent me, but if it meant that they could get some work done, I could play along and have some fun in the process. It felt kind of like throwing a dog a bone or something.
Nah, that was too patronizing. It was more like giving a fellow crimefighter a helping hand.
And if it meant that Miss Piggy wouldn't get an excuse to shove me and Amy into the Wards, then that was just a bonus. I didn't mind the Wards. Dean was there, obviously. But I'd much rather join them on my terms.
"I'll need you to tell me what happened here," Captain Ryder said, holding the notepad and pen he got from his car in his hands.
"These two were being apprehended by a cape who could control bugs."
He stopped writing. "Bug powers, huh? Pretty interesting. Why isn't this cape here?"
"I said that I'd handle this for her." It wasn't exactly a lie, though it would be much better if what happened stayed secret. "She stopped those two from robbing a woman and her friend, and knocked them out. All I really did was tie them up."
"Does she have a name?"
"I didn't ask."
"Well, it'll have to remain a mystery. I don't get paid to name capes."
I chuckled. "Neither do I."
Captain Ryder probably couldn't name her even if he could. There was a good chance that bug girl would be given a name by the PRT if she didn't choose a name for herself.
"You mentioned witnesses, right? Did you speak to them?"
"They ran away before I could, but they weren't injured."
He nodded, scribbling some more in his notepad. "Anything else you'd like to add?" I shook my head. He closed the notepad and tucked his pen in his shirt pocket. "Then that's that. Thanks for rounding these two up and making these streets safer."
"Not a problem. I beat them up, you lock them up."
"You know it."
We shared a laugh after that. Moments like these were nice, and I tried my best to savour them whenever they came along.
One thing my mom taught me was to let service workers like police officers know they were appreciated. Simple things like remembering their names and favourite hobbies or thanking them for a job well done were easy to do, but being genuine always did the trick.
I cheated, of course, but knowing how to win friends and influence people made my job a whole lot easier.
He looked past me and nodded once. "Panacea, it's good to see you."
"Sure," she said.
The good officer smiled, briefly. "If you see that bug cape, tell her not to be so shy next time. See you around, Glory Girl."
I smiled. "Bye, Captain."
Amy chose to hang back while I got everything ready, which made me wonder why she decided to join me now. Maybe she got bored or something. She didn't look bored, at least.
"You all right, Ames?"
My sister blinked as if she was in a daze, before she smiled at me. I couldn't help but return it. "I've been worse. We're done here, right?"
Now that we were the only ones left in this alley, it was just like all the other alleyways in this city: boring and unremarkable.
"Definitely."
She smiled again, but this one didn't have as much energy. "Great, now you can take me back to the hospital. Haven't finished my shift yet."
I flew behind her and wrapped my arms around her waist. It was the ideal position: slinging her over my shoulder or holding her in a fireman's carry would be too uncomfortable, flying side-along was too troublesome and bridal carry was just... no. Hell no.
"You're lucky, you know that?" I said.
"Why?"
"Because you get free flights on demand."
"Oh? You're lucky too."
"Why, 'cause I've got you on speed-dial?"
"Among other things. But that is a perk only you get to enjoy. How does that feel?"
A rush of cold air hit me just then, masking the full-body shudder that came over me. "Like I don't deserve it."
Amy's little nose scrunched up. "Pardon me?"
I took in a deep breath. I didn't like showing weakness, not one bit, but Amy was my confidant, the one person I could trust without fail. I didn't want to bottle up these thoughts and explode at someone who didn't deserve it.
So I had to get this right.
"I've forced you to stop saving lives just to fix my mistakes, but you never really complain when I call you. All you do is tell me to learn some restraint. I'm sorry that I didn't listen to your advice, Amy. I appreciate you helping me out so much. I really meant it."
Amy ducked her head, almost like she was hiding a blush. The police weren't the only ones who needed a show of support, and I was glad to give it.
For the next minute or so, I just enjoyed the flight. Flying with a passenger wasn't quite as fun as flying on my own, mostly because I couldn't pull off any stunts. Although, soaring through the air with someone to talk to was an experience with its own allure.
"You didn't force me to do anything," Amy said, breaking the silence. "I chose to help you."
I frowned. "Because you knew what would happen to us."
Amy looked at me with those brown eyes of hers, eyes that were so deep, yet barren and empty. "I..."
She looked ahead, away from me. My first instinct was to prod her into answering, but she gave me time to speak. Now was my chance to return the favour.
"I wanted to help you. I'm not saying that you were right, because you definitely weren't. But you didn't force me to do anything I didn't want to do."
I tightened my hold on my sister. Giving someone a hug while I was flying like this wasn't difficult, but it was really easy to make it all awkward.
Amy leaned towards me, trying to return my hug as well as she could. That would have been the awkward part, if she did it wrong. Luckily, she didn't.
"There's just one thing that's bothering me." I didn't have to see Amy's face to know she was frowning. "It's what that bug master said."
I stared ahead, trying to figure out what my sister was getting at. "You mean how we basically get away with murder?"
"There's that, but she also said she was trying to get away from assholes like us. It seemed like she was depressed or –"
My hold on Amy suddenly became a vice-like grip. It only lasted for a second, but that was one second too long. Thankfully, I didn't snap my sister like a twig.
"Wait!" she said, putting her hands over mine. "It's not what you're thinking. I'm just speculating, and I don't know if she is depressed in the first place because I didn't really focus on her brain when I was healing her. But happy isn't a word I'd use to describe her."
It wasn't as bad as I thought. That still wasn't what I wanted to hear. "Fuck."
"Yeah," she agreed. "We screwed up."
I blew out some hot air, taking in my surroundings. I wasn't anywhere near the hospital. Maybe I passed it or something, being so focused on Amy's little bombshell.
"We screwed up big time. What's the point of telling me all this?"
"She chose to be a hero and fight crime, even when she was struggling."
I frowned. "Just like Dad."
"Right. But with the way she is now, it'd be easy for some gang to sink their claws into her and make her a villain. And if that happens..."
"It'd be our fault." My lips twisted into a wry little smile. "Kind of figured this could happen." Then I remembered how Amy put down that girl after trying to help her. Amy rarely snapped at anyone. "I shouldn't have put you in that position –"
"No, that was on me," Amy said, bowing her head. "She was shouting at you and I wanted her to shut up and then I overreacted because I couldn't let her go public with this and... I fucked up."
"I know what you mean," I said, my tone a lot flatter than I expected it would be.
"... Yeah." She paused, almost like she was searching for the right words. "It felt good at the time, just cutting loose. But then... anything bad can feel good until you step back and think about what you did, right?"
"That's right. Just don't beat yourself up over it. What matters is that you knew where you went wrong without needing anyone to point it out. I certainly can't say the same!" I tried to laugh, but I quickly trailed off when Amy didn't join me. "I know you're worried about her, Amy. I am, too, but you can't dwell on this. It isn't healthy."
It was the only way I kept myself sane. There was far too much shit in the world to get gloomy over, and I didn't need to add any more things onto the grief pile.
"But we can do something, can't we?"
I wasn't sure we could, without going public. We already missed our chance.
"We can apologize to her. We just have to find her first."
"Good idea. The second we find her, we'll give that bug master the best apology in the history of apologies. In the meantime... you know what you have to do."
Don't try to take justice through blood and broken bone. Don't use Amy as my get out of jail free card. Be spotless in public and in private. That way, we'd be safe if anyone I crippled and blackmailed tried to come after us.
"Totally. You won't have to clean up after me ever again. I mean it."
That was the best thing I could do for that bug girl right now until I could apologize to her face. It wasn't going to be easy to break this habit of mine, but it had to be done.
Anything less would be an injustice.
It didn't take too long for me and Amy to reach the hospital once I focused on flying there. As we came closer to our destination, our conversation drifted towards lighter topics. I needed the distraction. That bug girl was stuck in my head, ensnaring the memory of our encounter with every web she wove.
"You have got to fix that rat's nest you call a hairdo," I said.
"This again?" Amy said.
"You know it! Just say the word, and I'll get Janine ready to work her magic."
"It isn't that bad... is it?"
At least she didn't give me some crappy excuse.
"When was the last time you combed it? Treated it?" Amy didn't respond. "Exactly. FYI, I'm definitely gonna remind you once your shift's over."
Amy smirked. "I'd be shocked if you didn't."
She was doing an amazing job taking care of everyone who needed her help, but it was obvious that she wasn't taking care of herself. Honestly, it felt like she assumed she didn't deserve a reward for doing so much.
I knew that being a hero was its own reward, but sometimes you just had to go out and spoil yourself.
When I touched down on the roof, I set Amy down with the softest of landings. She let go of my hands a couple seconds later. I could have dropped her off on the ground floor, but it would just draw unwanted attention, and Amy never liked attention of any kind.
"We're arrived at our destination," I said, barely stifling a broad grin. "Thank you for flying Air Victoria. I hope you enjoyed our flight. Be sure to join us again any time you want to spread your wings."
Amy rolled her eyes. "Did you practice that in the mirror?"
"Nope. I'm a natural."
The faintest hint of a smile touched her lips. "Well, Miss Natural, you want to stick around?" she asked, pulling up her white hood and red scarf. "I should be done in an hour or so."
What could I do in that hour? I already finished my homework back on Friday. I got into the habit of doing it early, or else I'd be forced to do it while I was tired or under pressure. There wasn't anything waiting for me at home and Dean was still busy with the Wards. While that sucked, I could always talk to him when he was free.
"You don't have to, if you don't want to," Amy said. Her shoulders were hunched together.. I know you'd rather do something else than spend time in a boring hospital and –"
"Ames, please." I grinned at her. "I'll stick around. Family always comes first."
"Always?"
I knew that Amy wasn't really as confident as I was, but that's why I was here. She helped me fix my mistakes, and I'd help her work on her flaws. That was what family did for one another. Amy might not have been related to me by blood, but she was my sister in every other way that mattered.
"Always."
