Disclaimer: I do not own the DC characters of Hawk and Dove, whom I loosely based my main characters on.
When Dan came to, he recognized the inside of a hospital room. It was not the infirmary at his facility, nor was he dead. Then it all came back to him: the creatures, Trafalgar Square, the explosion. And he bolted upright.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa," said a voice beside him over the obnoxious beeping of a heart monitor.
Dan looked over, not settling back down. It was a woman he didn't recognize. She wasn't dressed like a nurse, in fact she wore a plaid shirt and jeans and a beanie. Her hair was blonde and cropped short, save for the fringe that hung nearly to her chin. Dan tried to place her, but couldn't. "Who…?" he started, but his throat ached and he stopped.
"Take it easy, tiger," she said with an American accent, gently placing her hand on his shoulder and easing him back down on the bed, "You're pretty banged up. Your leg was bitten right through to the bone, your clavicle and a couple ribs are broken, and you lost a lot of blood from your head. Also, you have a concussion and multiple bruises. Not to mention I think they took out your tonsils."
Dan stared at her in disbelief. "What?"
"Just kidding about the tonsils. Everything else is true though," she said with a grin. She held out her hand. "Hannah Hart, one third of the American Trifecta."
Dan reached out with the arm that wasn't in a sling, and shook her hand. His grip was weaker than normal. The American Trifecta… he remembered the name vaguely. "I'm-"
"Dan Howell, I know," said Hannah, nodding her head, "You're international news, Dan. Well, you and your friends. Stopping the experimentation of our people, exposing a corrupt government agency? Dude, that's nice."
This was already moving too fast for him. His head ached. She produced a Styrofoam cup of water, and he gulped it down gratefully. Once he could think again, he spoke up. "Hannah, can you tell me why I'm not dead?" he said. The car had exploded, with him right beside it. It really should have killed him.
Hannah nodded. "Oh, easy. You're practically made out of fire, as you know. Usually people die in car explosions because of burns, not because of the actual impact. And you can't be burned; fire comes out of your skin. I mean, the explosion didn't help, but it didn't exactly hurt you much either, besides the collarbone," she replied with an easy smile.
Dan nodded slowly. He was a little taken aback at how lightly this woman was taking things. "So," he started, "What the hell happened after I was… indisposed."
Hannah leaned back in the plastic hospital chair. "Well, let's see. That's when we showed up, some of the Trifecta and I. Like I said, you were fine, but your wolfy friend was toast. After that, we helped the rest of your team take care of the other creatures –pretty creepy, by the way- and send them back to their creators. Parliament is holding MI5 responsible for taking care of them however they see fit, the things just can't stay in the city. Also, I think you have a new acting prime minister now. They kicked the old one out, or made him resign, or something. Not sure how those laws work. Anyway, he won't be hurting any of us ever again."
"Jesus," Dan sighed, hanging on her every word.
"Exactly. Now, anyway. After we settled that, we found the rest of your team and after a few conversations with the mayor declared London safe again. Laws against mutants are already starting to be brought up for change. The press has been waiting for days for you to wake up, so they can ask you questions and whatnot," Hannah concluded.
Dan's eyes widened. Days? "Where's Phil?" he asked quickly.
"Most likely asleep, or at least I hope," she replied, "It's about 7 am. I took the last shift of waiting for you to wake up, but Phil has the longest one. He's amazing, cares about you a lot. A couple of your other friends have been watching for you to wake up as well. I'm actually covering for someone."
"Who?" he wondered.
Hannah was about to answer when she looked up and pointed. "There she is," she chirped.
Dan turned and he nearly couldn't believe his eyes. Her hair was bright red now instead of the light blonde he knew, and braided down the side of her head. She smiled sheepishly as she leaned around the doorjamb to Dan's hospital room.
"Jenna?"
Her smile grew a little brighter. "Welcome back to the land of the living," she said.
Now his head really ached. "What are you…? Wha-what are you doing here? Where did you go?" He asked so many questions all at once, he was surprised Jenna didn't pick up and leave right then. But she didn't, instead she walked in.
"I went home," she said with a shrug of her shoulders, "I was angry about what was happening at The School-"
"Side note, is that really what you called it, like officially? That's a shit name, man," said Hannah Hart to Dan.
"I know, we don't call it that anymore," he explained briefly and looked back at Jenna, "Continue."
Jenna gave Hannah a look and went on. "Anyway. I was angry, but only because I felt like all the people I helped were overthrowing me. I'm over that now, mostly because it was stupid, but also because I was super selfish about it. I should have stayed to help you and the rest of us who needed it. I'm sorry," she said, and by the end of her speech she was staring down at her feet.
Dan swallowed. "No, it's okay," he said softly, "It all happened quickly, in retrospect. Why didn't you just tell us where you went? How did you even get away?"
"Like I said, it was mostly spite. I stole a car from the junkyard and just drove. It took a lot of sweet talking these guys to get me back to the US," Jenna responded, nodding her head towards Hannah.
The blonde shrugged. "We let her join the Trifecta," she added.
"How did you even end up in Britain?" Dan asked his friend, suddenly wondering to himself why that question had never occurred to him before now.
"Family vacation," Jenna said, as if unconcerned, "I was a kid, about ten, when I started to manifest. According to this one-" Hannah snapped her fingers into a gun shape towards Dan. "-powers start to show at a different age for everyone. I was seen by the wrong people and taken from my family right then. I don't remember if they tried to do anything."
"At least it was Louise who found you," he said.
Jenna shrugged and glanced out the window. He could tell she still felt pretty bitter about her entire situation, and even if it was a little unfair Dan understood. Going on for how many years thinking you have some sort of power over your oppressors and then learning it's a lie would mess up anyone, at least for a while. When the conversation ended, a slightly awkward silence fell over the room. Jenna shifted her weight.
"I'll go get Phil, and a nurse," she said finally, "I'm sure you need to be seen by both."
Then she left the room. Hannah twiddled her thumbs, looking at Dan expectantly. He just raised his brow. She smiled toothily in return.
"Can you tell me about the Trifecta? Phil mentioned it was run by three women," Dan began.
"Ah, yes. Like I said, one of the three is me, hence the trifecta part," Hannah said, drawing a triangle in the air with her finger, "The other two are my friends, Grace and Mamrie. We run it because we all have similar, very unique abilities. Grace can absorb someone else's power for a limited amount of time and use it, which is very cool. Like she could just touch you and then shoot flames from her hands."
Dan's eyes widened. "That's a little troubling," he admitted.
She shook her head. "Don't worry, it doesn't work with accidental touches. She has to do it with purpose. Anyway, Mamrie's a shield. No one has been able to figure it out yet, but she can somehow project something to stop someone from using their powers. It's kind of a terrible thing to feel. And I'm a reader. I can look at someone and just know if they're a mutant, and what their power is."
"That's wicked. Do you go out and search for them?" Dan wondered. That sort of power was probably much faster and more precise than Louise's method.
"Nah, that's too conspicuous. We don't hide or anything," she assured at his confused expression, "But there's still a lot of negative feelings towards our kind. But, if a situation arises, we're fully allowed to show up and take in a kid who needs help. We have an entire school for it, but it's only mandatory if the kid wants to join the team someday."
Once again, Dan was hanging on Hannah's every word. Phil was right; the Americans had a great system. He filed away some of her words for later, just in case his own team ever had a chance to develop something similar.
"Speaking of the team," Hannah said brightly, "We brought a handful over with us. When you're feeling up to it and are cleared for more visitors, you can meet them. They're dying to meet you."
Dan said he would be happy to meet them. He was excited to see even more of those like him. He was curious to see what they could do. That's when a nurse walked in and started in on the medical stuff. She checked his vitals and asked if he felt any pain. He didn't, and the nurse informed him that that was because he was being pumped full of pain meds. The IV drip in his left arm seemed to prove that. While she explained the extent of his injuries, at one point the nurse moved just so that Dan could see past her. Phil was there in the door.
He didn't look happy to see him this time. He was staring at the floor, his arms crossed, completely ignoring Dan's gaze and the nurse while she talked. Dan looked at Hannah, who still sat beside him. She simply pursed her lips. Yeah, she knew Phil was going to be angry. Dan kicked himself for not expecting it as well.
"The conclusion on your calf is that you will be able to walk on it again," the nurse was saying as Dan stared at Phil, "Everything just needs a little more time to heal. Over the next couple weeks if there's significant improvement, we'll start to lessen the dosages of the meds. You'll feel the pain then, but it'll be better for you in the long run. You'll make a full recovery. Okay?"
The nurse was happy for him, he could tell. No doubt she was aware of what he went through. "Okay. Thank you," he said to her and managed a smile.
She nodded once and said she'll be back to check on him in a few hours, and then walked right by Phil into the hallway. Then Hannah stood up.
"I'll leave you two alone," she said. She squeezed Dan's shoulder, a place that wasn't close to an injury, and then left the room. He did catch Phil give her a grateful smile on her way out.
Then, Dan cleared his throat. "Phil-"
"Don't," his partner interrupted, holding up his hand as he slowly walked into the room, "I know what you're going to say."
Dan gulped and looked away. "What am I going to say, then?" he said.
"You're going to say that there was no other choice. That the creature was going to kill you anyway. And maybe that's true. You're going to say that in the moment, it was all up to you. You were being slammed into a car, you were bleeding all over, you had to end it," Phil said, and sat at the foot of Dan's bed, right at the edge. He wasn't yelling, or spitting the words. He was just talking. Like he was exhausted. "You're powerful, Dan. You're a leader, and we all know it. And now, the entire world sees you as the hero of London. Willing to blow himself up rather than see that beast hurt more innocent people."
"That's not fair, Phil," Dan said immediately, "All I saw was me, a spark, and gasoline. Do you blame me? I might have been a bit delirious, my head was bleeding."
He looked at his lap, and if Dan looked close he could see he was grinding his teeth. "Okay, look, I get it. Adrenaline, not in the right mind, those are all well and good excuses. But don't you see? By making that car explode, you killed that creature, and the rest of the pack went mad. My head felt like it was going to burst trying to hold them all in until the Trifecta got there. Which meant I could only rely on Zoe obsessively holding you and telling me you were alive while unconscious on the ground."
He pursed his lips. "Is everyone okay?"
"See?" said Phil, waving his hand in Dan's direction, "I'm trying to tell you that you broke our promise again and you're asking about everyone else. That's called deflecting."
Dan clenched his jaw. "They're my friends, and I had to. That thing wasn't going to let up-"
Phil slapped his own knees so hard Dan shut right up. Still, his voice did not rise in volume. "This is what I'm talking about. They're your friends, but you didn't think to ask for help? You would rather solve everything yourself. There's a point when heroism transforms into arrogance, Dan."
His heart lurched uncomfortably at the word arrogance. Out of everything he had ever thought himself to be, arrogant was never something that Dan considered. Self-esteem was not his strong suit, and even though at the moment he still wouldn't mark himself as better than anyone else, maybe Phil had a point. Now that he thought about it, Phil had been occupied but everyone else… Dan looked down at his lap.
"Well, when you put it that way…"
Phil reached over and clasped Dan's hand. The brunette looked back up. "I know that's a little harsh, but I just want you to see. Our friends are more than just our friends now. They're our team. They look to us for guidance, but if you can't even rely on me, how are they ever going to rely on both of us?" he said.
That stung a bit. It was well deserved. "I'm sorry, Phil. You're right, it was stupid," Dan muttered.
"Yeah, it was stupid," he replied with a nod, "You and I are stuck together forever, you know. Might as well make the most of it,"
A smile crept onto Dan's face. "Our names do match," he relented, "Are you mad?"
Phil shook his head. "No. I was, for a bit while we waited for you to wake up. But just seeing you okay makes me feel so much better," he said softly.
His smile growing, Dan squeezed the hand clasped in his own. Phil mirrored his expression and pulled his hand up to his mouth, placing a gentle kiss on Dan's knuckles. "Heal quickly," the taller boy continued, "We have lots to do."
Lots to do indeed. Dan allowed the news of his being awake and okay to be spread, which meant a sudden influx of visitors and gifts. Anyone who was not directly related to Dan or his situation were mercifully kept out, because he heard enough thanks from watching the news than he ever needed to hear in his lifetime. Members of the team trickled in and out; Phil and Louise were there nearly all the time, when they weren't dealing with the press, and Zoe, Chris, and PJ came by every day. Carrie came in one day and lifted her shirt to show Dan the angry scars on her stomach, cleaned and stitched since the last time he saw her. Jim was only a few doors down the hall, apparently recovering from a gunshot wound, as an MI5 agent's rouge bullet had hit him in the thigh. Tanya almost never left his bedside. Caspar was actually upset he had missed the big fight, but he 'supposed' he was mollified when he saw how hurt everyone was, and Zoe told a gruesome tale.
She said right away that she had sent Joe home on the train to Brighton, but she didn't want to leave Dan just in case something happened. He ended up using the 'I'm in charge' card and made her go see her family. Slowly, he told them all to try and visit home now that they could, instead of staying in the hotel they were put up in for all hours of the day. However, sadly, their old base in the mountains was the only home they had to go to.
He let the journalists come see him as well. As it turns out, every major news medium wanted an article with direct quotes from Dan and Phil. They always walked into Dan's hospital room dressed to the nines and speaking their flattery, and while he smiled and answered their questions, Dan could always see right through them. This was a major story for them, but for their team it was life. And since the Beasts of London, which was the popular name for the incident, they would be expected to do more fighting and saving. Zoe had the right idea a couple days ago, though now it seemed like years. A genesis, she called it. The Mutant Genesis of Great Britain: headline and lifeline.
When it came to his injuries, Dan healed just as slowly as anyone else. Just as the nurse said, he was weaned off the pain meds, and he started to feel the pain, especially at night. Broken bones and lacerations turned out to be different kinds of pain. His leg and the back of his head burned and itched at the same time and he didn't dare scratch them. His ribs and his collarbone emitted dull aches, and whenever Dan shifted he swore he could feel the broken bones pressing or grinding together. It was a little bit like his own personal hell, considering he couldn't walk without help yet, and even though he was getting better he knew he had weeks of physical therapy to look forward to when this was over.
Weeks into his recovery, Dan got a surprise that he wasn't expecting, one that he didn't know he wanted until it happened. One afternoon while he sipped at a milkshake and watched a soap opera, Phil knocked on his wall.
Dan didn't look away from the television. "What's up?" he said.
"You have some visitors," his partner replied. There was a pause, which caused Dan to glance over. Phil continued. "You might want to prepare yourself."
He looked confused for only a moment, and then a woman appeared in the doorway. It was Dan's mother, and behind her came his father and brother. For the better part of a year, Dan hadn't been thinking about his family at all. And now they were suddenly here, and all he could do was stare.
"Dan," his mother sighed, "We're so happy you're okay."
He was speechless, and he gaped like a fish for several moments. "You… you're actually here?" he managed to say.
Mrs. Howell took that as permission to walk in, so she bustled right over and sat as close to Dan on his bed as she could. Her husband was not far behind, while Adrien sort of lingered in the doorway. "We're so sorry, darling," she said, reaching up a tentative hand to brush some of Dan's curls from his forehead, "You look like someone's put you through a blender."
"Or you were attacked by a wolf," his father added.
"I was," Dan supplied.
It looked as though his mum was about to burst into tears. "When we… told the hotline about you and your abilities, we didn't know something terrible was going to happen to you. It all started when the prime minister started all that nonsense about the blood testing, and now it's all over the news! The things that were done to you children are horrific," she paused and reached out to squeeze his hand, "Please tell me you didn't go through that."
Dan shifted his left arm uncomfortably, as the place where an IV drip was in his vein suddenly itched. He tried not to think about that needle too much. "No. Louise picked me up sometime between home and where they were taking me. She's been saving people like us for years," he said. He supposed he ought to spare his mother the dirty details for now.
"We heard all about it on the radio one day," she informed him, clasping Dan's hand tightly in both of hers.
"In fact, she won't shut up about Dr. Louise," said his dad, and she gave him a dull slap on his arm.
Dan smiled. He supposed if anyone were the real hero, it would be Louise. "So, what have you guys been-"
He didn't get the rest of his question out. "Daniel, honey, we're sorry," gushed his mother, again, "You've been here for weeks all injured, and we couldn't make up our minds on if you would want to see us again. We walked in here fully expecting you to kick us right out, but your friend there said you'd want to see us. But we wouldn't have blamed you."
Phil was leaning in the doorway, smiling. Dan remembered when he was sure he never wanted to see his parents again, when he was convinced they hated him for his powers. That was a lifetime ago. Now, he knew he would need them just as much as he did then. "Stop saying you're sorry, of course I want to see you," he told them firmly.
"Just one more," said Mr. Howell, "We're sorry that you couldn't trust us, or confide in us. Your… abilities may not something we know anything about, but they didn't change you. We knew you were scared of them, and we sent you away instead of trying to help you."
"To be fair, dad, that is what the government told you to do. And it ended up working out for the better," Dan replied, glancing once again over at Phil. He winked in return.
His dad snorted. "You call this 'better'?" he said, gesturing to Dan in his hospital gown with his arm in a sling and bandages in multiple places.
Dan shrugged. "Could be worse. I could be trying to get a law degree."
Both the Howells started to laugh, and his mother leaned over and kissed his brow. "Oh, I should have brought you flowers. Why didn't we get flowers, James, these are dying," she said to his dad, touching the wilting blooms beside Dan's bed.
"There is a gift shop, you know," he replied, rolling his eyes behind her back good-naturedly. Dan cracked another grin.
She promptly rose. "We are bringing you flowers, Danny. We will be right back," she declared. She stood, and her husband followed, but she paused in the doorway beside Phil. "I'm sorry, young man, but I don't think we ever asked who you were," she said.
He smiled warmly. "Phil Lester," he said, holding out his hand.
Dan's parents each shook. "You're the one we've been hearing about, you and Dan are in charge," said Mr. Howell.
"We're so proud," Mrs. Howell interjected, looking towards Dan.
"You're the ice guy, right?"
"That'd be me," Phil nodded, "I'm also Dan's boyfriend."
They were both quiet then. Adrien's eyes widened, the first emotion Dan saw on his brother's face since he walked in. Dan looked at Phil and moved his hand across his neck in a sporadic cutting motion. He had never, ever brought a boy home or mentioned the possibility of even liking one before.
His mother spoke up first. "Oh, well, how sweet," she said. She moved in for a hug and squeezed Phil around the shoulders. "Thank you for taking care of him," she said and then looked at Dan, "We'll be right back with flowers, love."
She walked out. His dad clapped Phil on the shoulder once before following. Phil looked at Dan with a very I-told-you-so expression. "Danny," he mouthed. Dan shook his head, and then Adrien cleared his throat. He had been quiet this whole exchange, but then again he had always been quiet.
"So, you're mutated," he muttered. His voice was lower, and Dan could swear he was taller too. They as brothers had never been close, but he could notice some things.
"I am."
"Cool," Adrien said, and his eyes trailed down to Dan's hand, resting in his lap. Oh, I see, Dan thought and flipped it over, palm up. A flame lit up his hand, which was carefully lifted away from the blanket to avoid a disaster. He watched his brother's eyes widen, and then he extinguished it before any smoke alarms could go off. "Cool," Adrien said again, this time with enthusiasm and a smile, "Do you still burn things?"
Dan smirked. "Only if they piss me off."
It was much too hot to wear a suit and tie. Why were there no trees? Why was everything concrete? Why does the mayor talk so much?
"Stop fidgeting," Louise whispered, elbowing Dan in the arm that was not still in a sling, "You'll be fine. Just make sure your answers are long-winded enough."
"It's so fucking hot. You're lucky, being a girl and getting to wear a dress," he grumbled, pulling at the collar of his dress shirt.
"You could have worn one if you wanted to."
"That is unfortunately not socially acceptable."
Louise chuckled, and he could practically feel her rolling her eyes behind her sunglasses. They were standing behind a podium currently being held by the mayor of London, who was singing Dan and Phil's praises. He was going to make sure that every microphone at this press conference knew all about what really happened with the Beasts of London. Finally, everyone was going to hear from Dan Howell himself in his first public appearance since being out of the hospital.
In June. In the sun. Brilliant.
He turned desperately to Phil. "Can't you do it?" he whined pathetically.
Phil chuckled. "They have questions for you," he said.
"Yeah, but we're basically one person," Dan complained, pressing his forehead on his boyfriend's shoulder, "And literally the whole world will be watching. I'll be on TV. What if I screw up?"
"I don't think it'll be the entire world," he said, putting his arm around Dan's shoulders.
Louise shrugged and added calmly, "I estimate at least almost a billion people watching. That's not even close to the whole world." The boys gave her a look. "What?"
They looked away, and it seemed like the mayor was finally finishing up his speech. "Now, what I'm sure you've all been waiting for, healed and out of the hospital we have the spearhead of the saving of our city. While we've picked the brains of Dove until we're unsure if he's got any left," a pause as the crowd chuckled, "I'm sure we all need to hear from the Hawk. Ladies and gentlemen, Mr. Daniel Howell."
Dan took one last steadying breath and with a little difficulty from his right leg, climbed the steps to the podium. And just like that, his nerves were gone. It was like being on stage. Phil and Louise were not far and stood behind him. Dan waved with his free hand amongst applause and the flashes of cameras, and then they started shouting his name, all vying to be called on. Dan felt a bit like a schoolteacher. At the edge of the crowd, he could see the five visiting members of the Trifecta watching with encouraging smiles. Hannah Hart waved. Hesitantly, Dan pointed at a woman in front of him.
"Mr. Howell, how do you feel about the term mutant?" she asked, quick and to the point.
"Well, I feel like it fits," he replied, "Considering me, and those like me, have mutated genes to cause our powers, I'd say mutant is exactly what we are." He pointed to another journalist.
"Have you ever hurt anyone with your powers?" he asked, and Dan noticed he was nearly swallowing his voice recorder.
"No, I've never hurt a person. However, I have singed many inanimate objects, including a few trees in my home town," Dan responded. Questions just started coming rapid fire then, impatient with Dan's choosing strategy.
"Do you consider other mutants dangerous to the average person?"
"No," he said firmly, "We've never seen someone with powers destructive and uncontrolled enough to be dangerous. Leaving them untrained is dangerous, not to mention scary. Allowing mutant children to learn to control their abilities will make everyone's lives happier and easier, and it will just help our team to grow. Make sure you contact us if your kid has any… peculiarities."
"Is that what you are now? A team?"
Dan nodded. "Yes. After saving London, my friends and I have decided to dedicate our times and our lives to keeping the people of Britain safe with our unique abilities. Negotiations with Parliament are currently underway to repeal former Prime Minister Page's legislation against mutants and to make us an independent agency."
A female journalist pounced in right at the end of his statement while there was a smattering of agreed applause. "What is your opinion on Page and his beliefs?"
Dan swallowed and was silent for a few beats. "Page used fear to control people. He alienated mutants from the public for being different, just so he could be free to do his evil science experiments. There is a better way to learn about us. Dr. Pentland," he pointed behind him at Louise, "Has every piece of information you could ever need on mutants. Page's experiments were inhumane and often killed people. Children. And as we saw, made people into uncontrollable made sure to shut them down as soon as we could."
Another hand went up. "Mr. Howell, will you lead this new agency as well?"
"Yes," Dan said, "Along with my partner Phil Lester, without whom nothing would ever get done. Not to mention our amazing first tier, who helps make decisions."
"What makes you fit to lead?"
That gave Dan pause. Some cameras took advantage of his dumbfounded expression. He cleared his throat. "Well, Phil and I were voted in by our peers when they needed guidance. They also named us Hawk and Dove. Together they taught us how to work as a duo. We've all shed blood for each other. We would be nothing without the team behind us," he said, "And leading is not something you can prepare for. You're either born with it or you're not. Following someone blindly is when we end up with situations like the Beasts of London. I've heard on numerous occasions that people are like sheep. Mutants may be people, but at least we're sheep with wolves' teeth."
That earned some chuckles from the crowd. Dan smiled and moved his attention to yet another hand. "What will you call your new team?"
"The Mutant Genesis of Great Britain," he said importantly. "Or just Genesis. Or maybe the MGGB. I'm behind whatever catches on, honestly."
Soon it was over, and with Phil's help Dan descended from the podium. His leg was still hurting. "You were brilliant," Phil said with a grin.
"Was I? I wouldn't know, I think I blacked out."
Louise was all smiles as well. "This is amazing. After this, we'll soon have nearly everyone believing in us. There will always be people who are afraid of those who are different… but once we start saving their lives, there will be less," she said and pulled out her shiny new smart phone, "Four missed calls! Yikes. Let's go, boys, still have loads to do, including a birthday party." She nudged Dan's shoulder, and that jogged his memory. It was in fact his nineteenth birthday today. Through everything, the date must have slipped his mind.
She went ahead, heading to where they parked their car. Dan immediately started shedding clothing, starting with his tie and suit jacket. "Can we skip the party?" he asked.
"No," Phil said firmly, "We're celebrating and you're going to freaking like it."
Dan stared at him. "Yes, sir," he murmured.
Phil smiled and leaned forward to peck Dan on the lips. "They need it as much as you do. It's an excuse to just have fun," he said.
"Fine. Lets go back to being an underdeveloped superhero team later," Dan said, rolling up his sleeves and throwing his jacket over his shoulder, which looked quite comical with his arm in a sling.
Phil took his free hand, lacing their fingers together. "You know we're not just an underdeveloped superhero team," he retorted.
"I know," Dan smiled. And Phil wasn't just his partner. They weren't just trying to be heroes. This wasn't just a mission to end discrimination, and it wasn't just a boarding school drama with a twist.
It was an origin story.
FIN.
(Stay tuned for something special)