Go Team Go 1: Origins
(A/N: Second up today.)
Caregiver
Hego gaped in shocked disbelief at the two bodies in the morgue, almost unable to believe his eyes. Oh gods… Thank goodness his siblings hadn't been allowed in here. "M-mom? D-dad?" he asked quietly, leaning against the glass, eyes filling with tears. This couldn't be happening.
"We're sorry," the doctor gently declared, placing a hand on the young man's shoulder. Hego sniffed and sobbed, shaking his head in denial.
"This can't be happening," he said. "Tell me this is a nightmare."
"No… We're sorry. They raced out to try and get you five… when the comet hit… they were killed," the doctor stated.
"But… but my siblings and I… we were hit directly. H-how could we have survived and not mom and dad?" he asked. It just wasn't logical. He wasn't what you'd call intelligent, but even he knew that shouldn't have been possible.
"We don't know," the doctor admitted. Hego looked down at his hands… Perhaps it had something to do with these powers… The powers they'd been gifted. Surely there was a reason for this. There was always a reason. Maybe it was destiny that they obtained these gifts! Maybe they were meant to be the brave and bold protectors of Go City! He looked at his parents' bodies and all feelings of happiness fled… But destiny at what cost? Now they were alone. Now they were nothing, and if he hadn't been named his siblings' guardian in the case of his parents' death, they would be taken away from him, and from each other.
Hego sobbed, falling to tears. All his hopes and plans were dashed. He was supposed to have gone to college. He was supposed to have been something. Now that future was shattered. Now it was his duty to remain and protect his siblings and raise them. He couldn't do it by himself, he couldn't. And the others… how was he going to tell them that mom and dad weren't… weren't coming back? He was supposed to have been something, but maybe he still could be. These powers… Surely they meant something. Surely this loss of his parents, his life being shattered in one moment, wasn't for nothing. He wouldn't let it be for nothing… He couldn't… But first… First he had the business of funeral plans and legal issues and just… just the whole mess.
KP
Shego viciously punched and kicked the practice dummy, working on her martial arts. Fury and hatred blazed in her eyes. They were dead, they were dead, they were dead! How dare they die! How dare they! They were their parents! They weren't supposed to die. They were supposed to be here. She wasn't supposed to get stuck with her brothers. She kicked the dummy so hard it snapped. All at once she screeched in frustration, grabbing her hair and pulling it. She fell to the ground and buried her face in her knees… But she wasn't crying. She wouldn't cry. Crying was for the weak and spineless. She was not weak.
"Shego…" a voice said softly. Oh gods, not him.
"What?" she asked, looking up in annoyance at none other than Hego.
Hego hesitated then looked back at her. "Are… are you okay?" he asked.
"Take a guess," she sneered.
"I'm sorry… I just want to help," he said quietly.
"Then get lost," she replied, turning back to the broken dummy.
"It's… it's okay to cry," Hego said gently.
"If you're pathetic," she argued.
"Let it out, sis," Hego stated.
"I'm not going to cry!" she yelled at him.
Hego was quiet a long moment. Shego was turning away from him again. "You know that I'll always be here… if you want to talk or… or just be near somebody," he offered.
"Take-a-hike," she icily articulated.
Hego bowed his head sadly and sniffed. "I'm trying, Shego, okay?! I'm trying to keep things together! I'm trying to make sure you and Mego and the twins are safe!" he stated. She said nothing. Hego shook his head, tears slipping down his cheeks, and went back inside. Shego sniffed. Hego needed to man up. She wasn't crying… But she wanted to… Ugh, no, bad Shego, bad… She couldn't tell herself that.
KP
Mego walked aimlessly through the house, looking up at pictures that decorated the walls. He expected his parents to walk back inside any moment and say that they'd brought home Chinese food or pizza or something… Even just to say they were home. Shego hadn't wept when Hego had given them the news. She'd hardly even reacted beyond blinking at the eldest in shock. The twins had been in tears in an instant and calling Hego a liar. Shego had then promptly turned and left, Hego going after her while also trying to comfort the twins. Mego, for his part, just hadn't moved… He hadn't been able to feel his body.
He heard sobs, suddenly, and looked up. The twins… He felt a painful pull at his heart and scowled, quickly forcing it away… But the twins were wailing and crying and screaming for mom and dad… Mego swallowed over a tightening in his throat and relented, going straight towards the Wegos' room. He entered quietly and saw his baby brothers curled into little balls weeping. He shut the door behind him, approaching them cautiously.
"Guys…" he began.
They looked up at him in anguish. "Mego, we want mommy and daddy," Wego One said.
"Bring them back," Wego Two insisted.
Oh gods, he wished he could. "It'll be fine, we'll be fine," he lamely offered. He wasn't really one for heart-to-hearts, so he wasn't sure what else he could say or do. He approached them and sat on their bed. They leapt into his arms weeping. He swallowed tightly again and buried his face in their heads, trying not to cry. He couldn't cry in front of them. They needed someone who was composed to cling to.
KP
Hego was on the phone, trying desperately to finalize funeral arrangements. "Look, I know that. Just… just do it," he said. He hung up and nearly crushed the phone in his hands. He put it down before he could destroy it and leaned on the counter. What was he going to do? He'd gone over the last will and testament of their parents. All monetary assets would fall to them, divided equally. Unfortunately, their parents didn't have much.
This house, the house they'd grown up in… There had been nothing about what would happen to it in the will, so he assumed it meant they would lose it, which meant they would be out on the streets. No, he couldn't let that happen. He would find a place for them to stay. The one relief in all of this was that his mother and father had had the foresight to bequeath custody of his siblings to him. They were his dependants now, but how would he provide for them?
He needed a job, but who would hire a blue skinned man with no education? He supposed he could slather on makeup to hide the blue and dye his hair black again, but the education was a huge factor as well. One he didn't know how to overcome. He'd be working for minimum wage. That just wasn't enough. To support all five of them? Oh gods, how had his life become so complicated by means of just one incident? He looked at his hands. These powers weren't for nothing… There was a reason for them. It was destiny. They could protect Go City from crime and evil. Ugh, what was he thinking? He had to get a solid foot on the ground first. They couldn't do much homeless on the streets with no money, no food, and no, well, anything.
KP
Hego looked up and spotted Mego in a mirror's reflection, watching him from the door. Hego ran his hands through his hair. He needed to be strong and composed. He took a deep breath and stood up straight, turning tiredly. "Hey little brother. What's on your mind?" he asked. Mego was silent, tilting his head. "Mego?" Hego asked curiously. What was with his sibling?
"You won't be able to handle it," Mego stated.
"Handle what?" Hego asked, playing dumb.
"Oh brother, spare me the act, you big dolt. You know perfectly well what!" Mego shot.
Hego frowned, dropping the act. Oh he knew, all right. Mego was referring to them. Mego and Shego and the Wego Twins. The second eldest didn't believe Hego could take it. "I'll manage just fine," Hego optimistically declared, pride insulted. "What, you don't think I can take care of my siblings?"
"You? Oh please. You can hardly take care of yourself," Shego stated, entering just then looking surly and angry.
"Look, Mego, Shego, just trust me. Have a little faith. I'll handle everything," Hego assured.
"Not by yourself you won't!" Mego shot.
"Yes I will," Hego insisted.
"No you won't!" Mego shot.
"Yes I…" Hego began.
"Uh guys, guys, focus," Shego said.
Hego scowled at his two siblings, saying, "I will handle everything, got it? I'm not going to ask you two to give up your lives and futures to help me raise this family!"
"Why not? You've already given up yours!" Shego barked. "I'll probably end up doing the work anyway. You people, ugh, you're all so lazy! Especially Mego!"
"Hey!" Mego protested.
"Can it, moron!" Shego shot at Mego.
"Why you little…" Mego began.
"I will be fine on my own!" Hego shouted, breaking them up.
"Why do you care so much?!" Mego demanded.
"Why do I care? Because you're my siblings!" Hego shouted back, offended deeply that Mego hadn't guessed that on his own.
KP
Mego and Shego were quiet for a long moment, looking at Hego in shock. "Hego, Shego, Mego…" Wego One said from the door.
The three older siblings turned. "We're all in this together," Wego Two added.
"None of us have to be alone," the two chimed together. The gazes of the three older ones softened.
"Fine… But Shego, you and Mego need to finish school. No dropping out. "I… I can search for a… for a place we can stay."
"We're leaving?" the twins asked, obviously devastated at this news.
"Wego One, Wego Two, we don't have a choice," Hego answered, kneeling next to them and placing his hands on their shoulders. "This house, it's the city's now."
"Great, just perfect," Shego grumbled.
"If we pool our assets, we can afford something," Mego stated.
"Share my money with you? Yeah, I don't think so," Shego said.
"Then you can be on the streetsalong with the rest of us!" Mego shot. Shego started and looked down angrily. She hated when her brothers had points.
"Fine," she grumbled.
"We'll deal with everything after the funeral tonight, okay, just… Let's all try to stay…" Hego began.
"Please don't say positive," the Wego twins begged. There was no reason to be positive.
"Together," Hego finished. Mego felt like he'd been punched in the gut. Hego was right… Shego swallowed, harrumphed, and marched out. The Wegos smiled at Hego trustingly.
KP
She wouldn't cry, she wouldn't cry, she wouldn't cry… She told herself those words over and over as they watched the funeral proceed. Open casket, they were invited to come up and see the bodies. She wouldn't cry. She didn't cry. She couldn't cry. They approached the caskets and stopped, looking down into their parents' faces. She wouldn't… she wouldn't cry… The twins burst into tears, screaming and sobbing for mommy and daddy.
Hego was weeping, even Mego was crying. She was tougher than all of them put together, though. She wouldn't weep… Except suddenly she found her body shaking, she found herself in her brothers' embraces, and she heard sobs. But none of her siblings were howling except the twins. This was a female's sobs. Then she realized in horror, disgust, dread, and finally more misery than ever before, that they were her. It was her sobbing and screaming in misery. Her brothers led her quickly back to the seats.