"Hello Medusa, here is today's patrol route, Aegis will be joining you at three and will be following you until you're done for today," Armsmaster said as he sent the information to her armband. "And in addition to that, the Protectorate has been requested for guard duty next Friday at six for a Charity Gala at the Frosberg Gallery."
"Understood, but I can't actually do guard duty during that time." Verity replied.
"Why is that?" He asked.
"Well, I'm already going to be attending it as a guest, so I don't think I can pull double duty like that." Verity said a bit sheepishly.
"I see, that is perfectly acceptable, we're basically guests as well, the guard duty is more of an emergency only as the REVOCS Corporation has its own Private Cape Security Team, alongside its mundane guards."
Something twanged inside Verity's head at that. "Oh. They have. Private Capes. Huh." She said as casually as she could, still coming out rather stilted.
"Many of the big companies do, which usually goes from three to six members, the PRT and Protectorate classifies them as Rogues, and most of them have public identities, the most famous one is Disney's All-Star Squadron, though REVOCS' Four Heavenly Kings-" Verity forced herself to strangle down the choked noise she almost let out at that. "-are getting rather popular as they sometimes partake in normal heroics." Armsmaster let out a grunt of disappointment. "I myself find them rather appalling as they could do much good with the Protectorate, but at least they are not villains."
"Well… I can't really fault people wanting to be Rogues, I'm dating one, and some… probably most people, even among those with powers, probably aren't really cut out for the intensity of this."
"It is not the fact that they are Rogues that I have problem with, it is that most of them are basically nothing more than hired thugs with no sense of loyalty to them," Armsmaster responded.
"Mhm." Verity hummed noncommittally. "Didn't know this was a thing before just now so I can't really judge about their character."
"A good stance to take, as I believe the saying 'assuming makes an ass out of you and me' would be the most appropriate when discussing the character of people you don't know," Armsmaster said.
"Snrk!" Verity let out a short snort of laughter as even with the deadpan delivery, that was the first time she'd heard him curse. "Yeah, yeah, I'm really not qualified to talk about a lot of things so that expression applies to me alot."
"Yes leave what you don't know to either people that do or start learning about, I mostly do the later, now then enjoy your patrol Medusa," Armsmaster said as he began to walk past her.
"Have a good one, bossman." Verity said with a smile as she set out to her patrol.
There had been no incidents on her watch so far.
Not even a mugging.
The city was actually quiet for once. Somehow, it was more unsettling than actually dealing with things, not that she wanted crime to happen, it was just that with its rep it gave her more of a 'calm before the storm' vibe.
Though there was still three hours remaining of her patrol so things could change.
"Hello Miss Medusa, I am ready to join you on patrol," Came the voice of Aegis as he flew into her field of view.
"Hi Aegis, happy to have ya." Verity greeted him with a wave and a smile. "You gonna be flyin' high while I stay low, or do you stick closer to the streets?"
"I fly high, that is how we usually do it when I am with the others," He answered.
"Aight, just checking, just checking." Verity said. "Preferences and all. You ready to go?"
"I am," He replied, his tone just as polite as it had been everytime she had interacted with the Ward so far. And it especially seemed that he held Verity in high regard.
"Awesome, let's do this then, Aegis." Verity said as she began to move.
The boy nodded as he flew up a little bit higher into the air to get vantage, and so the two of them continued the patrol together, with the only thing of note happening was the two of them lending a hand with a car crash which had sadly resulted in one fatality on impact. The medics had arrived to take the driver of the other car to the hospital alongside the passenger of the car whose driver had died.
Which had thankfully happened towards the end of the patrol so Aegis had been escorted right back to the Ward Base after it had been resolved.
"That was a tragedy," Aegis said as they now stood outside the PRT HQ.
Verity sighed as she put a comforting hand on his shoulder, unsure if she could go for a hug and settling for that instead. "It's always disheartening, but you have to look at it a different way: It wasn't as bad as it could have been. A lot like when we show up to take down Villains, a problem we can deal with by punching it real hard in our particular case, even if we're not there at the start, stopping them at all prevents all kinds of bad stuff from happening in the future."
"I know, but with that I can do something personally to make it not progress, there it just happens instantly and you can only deal with the aftermath, but unlike villains going off those issues can be solved preemptively as a collective," Aegis said.
Verity sighed again. "Listen, I… I'm probably not the best person to be talking to this about, but I know exactly the feeling you're talking about. But… our powers aren't built for that kind of problem. That's the kind of things people have to put their head towards. And, heck, cars are made safer every year, so it's not like people aren't trying to deal with it."
"I know, which is kinda why I want to be a hero and stop villains for most of their actions cause those people who fix that kind of problem to not… be around," Aegis responded. "You get me?"
"Yeah, I gotcha, I gotcha." Verity said with a nod. "I think we're on the same wavelength here."
"Yeah us Brutes have a lot of the same issues, so that is why we gotta make sure Thinkers can think, and Tinkers can tinker in peace, and I am not just talking about the Parahuman kind," The Ward said with a laugh.
Verity laughed with him. "You know, right now you're starting to sound like a Thinker."
"Well I think I can thank my Mama for that," Aegis answered. "Though before I go, I have to thank you for helping out Shadow Stalker."
"...I, I just, I just did the right thing to do?"
"Not talking about what she did, which is a whole mess… I don't even know how to parse, I was talking more about her attitude. She has become much more... sociable person in the last few days, not as on edge, aggressive, and well... mean. After you had your talk with her."
"Well that's good, I haven't really had the chance to talk with her since…" Verity wracked her mind for the last time she did. "...I can't keep track of time, I don't know, but that's good, it seems like she's making an effort to be better you're saying?"
"Yeah, and if she keeps it up she might even be allowed to go on patrol again come June." Aegis said. "Well it was good to patrol with you Medusa, and thanks for the talk."
"No problem, dude, and it was nice to have you as my eyes in the skies today." Verity said with a smile.
He nodded as he went over to the entrance and disappeared from Verity's view.
"So, you ever had snickerdoodles?" Verity asked as Taylor sat down, having hugged the girl a moment ago, since she invited Taylor over for cookies due to it felt like it had been awhile since they'd talked.
"I don't even know what those are, are they cookies made from Snickers?" She asked in confusion over the word.
"Snrk, no, no, I don't touch anything with peanuts." Verity said with a snort of laughter as she brought the plate of soft snickerdoodles over and set them on the coffee table. "They're super soft cookies made with cinnamon sugar, and one of my personal favorites. This batch turned out really good, too." She didn't say that she couldn't get them to taste like how she remembered.
"I still don't know why you keep making cinnamon-filled stuff when you're allergic to it," Sabah said from her spot at the dinner table where she was drawing up various dresses for the Gala.
"Wait, you're allergic to cinnamon?" Taylor asked with a slightly horrified look on her face as she stared at the potential cookies of death.
"Yeah, but it's not a bad allergy." Verity said defensively. "It's like how lactose intolerant people will be like 'Okay, so I'm lactose intolerant, but' and then drink a milkshake."
"...I hope you appreciate that Brute body of yours," Sabah just said.
"Oh no, I did this before too." Verity said with a cheeky smile. "Cause like, you know, everyone else in the family liked cinnamon, wasn't gonna rain on everyone else's parade and stop them from enjoying stuff with it."
"Then you still inform them, and say you want stuff without it and they have to accommodate you," Taylor spoke up this time. "Like we couldn't have… I don't remember precisely what it was at my Grandparents place, as they were allergic to it despite the rest of us eating it regularly at that point in time."
"Well…" Verity trailed off, as her mind drifted into the past. "I only realized I was allergic closer to recently, like during pandemic recent, and like, my little sister, she has a severe peanut allergy, and like, even my own stupid ass little brother has trouble with that sometimes, and my mom's dad still regularly eats like raw peanuts, so like, I didn't really want to like… distract, from hers, cause if she has any peanuts or stuff that even touched peanuts, she goes into anaphylactic shock, and she could die, and so obviously like, that's more important than me feeling a mild discomfort, you know?" Verity finished, completely in her own head as she spoke.
"Verity your health is just as important, even if the reaction isn't as severe…" Sabah said.
"Verity," Taylor began after Sabah had finished. "This might sound a bit… yeah this is definitely rude… But your family sounds like a bunch of asses."
"No, nonono, that's just, you, you haven't met them! It's fine, they're, they're, they're all good people they're just, just, not, you, you know, good at…" Verity stammered defensively. "Thinking about other people, sometimes? No, that sounds really bad, uhh…"
"Ha, well enough about… that potential mess, I do wanna taste these," Sabah said as she came over and picked up one of the cookies, Taylor doing the same.
Verity watched both intensely to gauge their reactions.
They munched for a few seconds before swallowing.
"Well they are very tasty." They said at the same time.
"...Oh no, I do have Mastering powers." Verity said in faux-horror. "It's contained in my cooking!" As she spoke, her voice wavered in fake terror.
"Well that explains a lot of why I fell for you so hard," Sabah said jokingly.
Verity's face dropped at that. "...Wait, shit, you might be onto something there…"
"Wha? Huh?" Sabah stated in confusion.
"Well, because obviously someone like you wouldn't like someone like me that quickly unless it was because of the transformation." Verity said, her head spinning.
"What… no, I was joking you numb-numb," Sabah said as she went over to Verity and pressed her hands against her cheeks. "Never say anything like that, I've already said I fell for you before you injected me with your stuff or even stuffed me with your food."
Verity cringed hard out of her rebounding breakdown. "Phrasing! Phrasing, Sabs, phrasing!"
"I will phrase it however I like, especially if it stops you from thinking stuff like that," She said as she pulled her hands away from Verity's cheeks. "I love you, and there is only the normal stuff in my brain that makes me think that, none of the liquid you put in me."
"That is even worse than the last one somehow?" The disbelief was clear in Taylor's voice.
Verity, meanwhile, stood up. "Excuse me for a moment." She said, before walking over to her bedroom, picking up the reinforced pillow made specifically for this, and then screaming into it for a long moment, then putting it down, getting control of her breathing, and then walking back out, a smile on her face. "Okay, I'm good now." She said, a bit more forced with her cheer as her voice seemed a bit deader.
"Okay so… what is with the dress making? That's a bit outside of what you normally sell Sabah?" Taylor asked.
"It's for the two of us, we got invited to a Charity Gala on Friday," Sabah answered.
"Oh you were invited as well?" Taylor asked in surprise.
"...I'm sorry, 'as well'?" Verity asked in confusion, everything about the Gala continually tripping her up internally.
"Yeah Dad and I got an invite from Mrs. Kiryuin," Taylor answered.
Again, something twanged in Verity's head, now at hearing Taylor say that name. "Oh, that's lovely! Do you already have something in mind to wear, or?" Verity said, pushing through that strange sensation.
"We do… got some of my mom's old dresses that fit me," She answered with a smile.
"Aww, I can't wait to see." Verity said, her smile a lot more genuine at that idea. "Obviously Sabs is making ours wholecloth, and if it weren't for the fact I'll be there as me and you'll probably be there as you, I'd suggest about matching, but… I don't know where I was going with this."
"Well it will be nice to see the two of you there," Sabah said.
"The same," Taylor replied. "But that is for later, for now we have cookies to eat."
"Yaes, cookies, do either of you want any milk? I forgot to ask earlier."
"Could you warm it?" Taylor asked sheepishly.
Verity smiled. "Of course sweetie."
"...What are you calling for?" Asked the rather tired voice of Tattletale on the other side of the phone.
"Hey TT, I was just calling to check in on you guys, see how you're all doing, make sure you're okay, maybe get my tin back." Verity said cheerily. "Are you okay? You sound really tired."
"I'm fine, just been awake for about… 48 hours now, and oh right we have that…" She said in realization.
"TT, that's not healthy! You're a growing young lady, you need sleep!" Verity said worriedly.
"I will, I will, christ you're such a mother hen… mother snake… mama snek… Oh good lord I am tired if I am starting to talk like Regent," She said in horror.
Verity forced down her chuckling at that. "Well, make sure you do, I can't have a future minion not living their best life you know."
"Pfft… Well better working for you than for Coil, cause at least you haven't put a gun to the back of my head… shit why did I say that?" Tattletale muttered after it clicked what she had just said.
Verity meanwhile felt a spike of anger at the reminder, before it was replaced with amusement at Tattletale's slip up. "That just means you're starting to trust me~."
"Well my power says I can, which is probably affecting my subconscious thoughts," She theorized. "And the lack of sleep is not helping."
"Yeah, you really should get some sleep soon." Verity said with a lightly authoritative tone. "Your wellbeing's more important than the brownie tin, so you should hang up, maybe change into something comfy, and then just go straight to bed."
"Yes… moooom." She responded sarcastically as she hung up.
Verity couldn't help but grin in 'sadistic' glee at that. "Operation: Coinflip is under way." She said to herself proudly, before laughing 'evilly'.
"What are you laughing about?" Sabah asked from the kitchen.
"Nothing, nothing, just figured something out for the future, you don't have to worry about it yet babe." Verity said, having forgotten for a moment she wasn't the only one present.
"Well good luck with those plans dear," Sabah responded. "So you ready to start putting on dresses?"
"Oh hell yeah!"
"Hey…" Sophia greeted Verity as she saw her enter the Wards' Common Room, and at the moment she was the only present as everyone else was either free, doing console duty, or patroling.
"Hi!" Verity said with a grin as she came in. "How you doin'?"
"Just a little bit bored," She answered.
"Well, I'm here now so that should change." Verity said as she went over and grabbed a beanbag chair before sitting in it across from Sophia, close enough she could reach out but not close enough that she was crowding the girl. "Do you like snickerdoodles?" She asked as she held up a tupperware containing soft cookie goodness.
"Never tried some," Sophia answered.
"Alright, asking again to make sure, you don't have any allergies right?" Verity asked as she held out the container. "These are made with cinnamon and some other stuff I can go over if you do."
"I don't," She responded in a hesitant tone as she reached out and took one of them, and carefully took a bite out of it.
"...So, verdict?" Verity asked.
"They are soft," She simply said as she took another bite, this one much bigger.
"That's the point." Verity said with a nod. "I really like my cookies soft, and snickerdoodles are the softest cookies I know. While I think you might be the toughest cookie, not sure about that."
Sophia snorted at that. "No, I am soft and bend easily… Taylor, Taylor is a tough cookie."
"That is why I said 'might', you have some pretty strong competition." Verity said with a grin. "Though you're probably right, she is definitely…" Verity actually thought about the expression for a few seconds. "Oh yeah no yeah you're right she's the toughest cookie I know."
"So why are you here?" Sophia asked after a few seconds of silence.
"Well, seeing as you're the only one here, the answer should be obvious." Verity said. "I came to sit on this awesome bean bag, duh."
Sophia let out another snort at that.
"Yeah, but, seriously, I just wanted to check in on you. I feel like we haven't talked in a while." Verity said. "...Or talked when it wasn't about major stuff in general, now that I'm thinking about it."
"Why?"
Verity blinked at her in confusion. "Why what?"
"Why do you just keep trying to help me? I know you said you see a lot of yourself in me, but it can't be just that?" Sophia asked. "You know what I did, I am… scum."
"...Uh." Verity said, not sure how to respond to that, caught off guard by what seemed to be genuine self-reflection. "While I don't… approve of referring to yourself like that, I just…" Her mind and words switched tracks. "Did, did you think I was just going to make you stop with Taylor and just stop there?"
"What do you mean with that?" Sophia asked in confusion.
"Like…" Verity thought for a moment on how to say this. "Did you think our relationship was just 'stop being an asshole' 'okay' and then that would be the end?"
"Kinda… not in that way but most adults just stop when they think they solved the problem and don't need to do anymore," Sophia said trying to formulate a correct response as she was very much so unused to talking about this kind of thing.
"Well they're pieces of shit." Verity said which made Sophia's eyes bulge in response, definitely not having expected that response. "You don't… It's like when you're treating an illness, right? You can deal with the symptoms all you want, unless you deal with the actual issue it's just going to keep happening."
"...And if you do cure it, but if you just put them back where they got it, you just start all over," Sophia added. "I've heard something like that before at the hospital with that being added."
"Yeah, that's, that's basically what I'm talking about." Verity said. "I'm not just saying 'be a better person' and leaving it at that, I actually want to help you be the 'best you' you can be."
"...Nobody has actually said that to me before," Sophia said. "People just… said I should be and they did… nothing afterward."
"Ha, yeah I know that feeling." Verity said, rubbing the back of her neck as a few memories surfaced. "See, I uh, instead of doing horrible shit, I ended up with uh, sticky fingers, so to speak. People kept telling me to stop, but at the time I didn't fully understand that other people were like… people? Like I didn't understand that really until I was like… your age, maybe a little older."
Sophia stared at her with wide eyes. "You were?" She asked in sheer disbelief and Verity could tell that how she viewed her had changed a little bit.
"Yeaaah, I uh… I wasn't exactly self centered I'd say, never had a strong enough sense of self to be that, but like, I didn't…" She bit her lip, not having said this out loud before, but the Mom Friend Override was in full effect, allowing her to push through her discomfort if it meant helping someone else. "I didn't fully consider anyone outside my immediate circle as being… real people? No, that sounds really mean-"
"Like you were the only thing that mattered, everybody else existed for your sake except a scant few?" Sophia asked.
"K-kinda, kinda, yeah… yeah, yeah like that, but not like in a, 'I'm the center of the universe' way so much as a… ignorance, I suppose? Well, the other one is born of ignorance too I suppose…" Verity said, unsure how to put this to words. "Like, my little brother is definitively egotistical, even though he's almost an adult, but he's also working through that. I mean, I didn't really fully realize until I went to college, really, and just started… interacting with more people, and I realized I was at best a side character in the narrative of the world, in everyone else's narratives."
"Yeah I've realised that too now, I am just not that important when compared to everybody else, I thought I was the hottest shit, and now I've finally realised that… that I don't matter that much."
"Okay, now we're getting into nihilism, the whole 'nothing matters' thing, which is where I'm gonna come in with my personal philosophy regarding that, okay?" Verity said, seeing a worrying thread in that line of thought.
"Okay," Sophia said back.
"You do matter."
"Huh?" She asked and looked like she had expected many more words from Verity, and not just… that.
"You, matter." Verity said. "In more words, we? We're just individual specks of dust on a little larger speck of dust in the vast infinity of the universe. In terms of human history, we're barely significant, and in terms of the earth's history we're definitely insignificant. In terms of the universe as a whole, we may as well not exist. The world's been existing long before we've been and it's going to keep doing it long after we stop. That's how infinity works. But! And there's a big but here, if nothing we do matters in terms of the universe, that means everything we do matters! Life has the meaning we give it! If nothing matters, make it matter! And you matter to me, meaning you at least matter to someone, so if you can figure out who or what matters to you, like, I don't know, maybe there's a show you like, that matters to you, so you could include that in how you think of yourself, but actually don't base your identity around tv that never ends well, I mean more like, figure who matters to you, and figure who you matter to, and that's what matters, that's what you keep going for." Verity said, finishing her explanation. "It's what I like to call optimistic nihilism. When nothing matters, make it matter."
Silence reigned between the two of them for about a minute, Verity letting her have it to process (and catch her own breath), before Sophia broke it.
"So long as I care about someone, and someone cares about me… it matters even if it just affects the two of us," Sophia said after having thought about it.
"Yeah, basically." Verity said. "It can matter even if it seems like the other person doesn't care, even. So long as something matters to you, it matters, because you matter."
Sophia's face went through several expressions before settling one of clarity as if something clicked. "I… I think when I get home I need to apologise to my mom."
"If that's what you feel you should do, go for it." Verity said encouragingly. "I'm here to support you to be the best you you can be, so if you ever need anything, you can just come to me, okay?"
"I will… so do you think you can talk a bit more?" She asked.
"Yeah, sure!" Verity said with a smile. "What do you wanna talk about?"
"It's about Emma," Sophia said.
"...Right." Verity said, a bit of her cheer disappearing as she remembered she had also done horrible shit. "What about her specifically?"
"I went to see her yesterday, and she is getting… better, but her mind is still stuck in that Predator and Prey thinking, and I want to help her stop believing in that, as it was my fault she started taking that nonsense seriously," Sophia explained.
"And it's my fault she Triggered." Verity said solemnly. Not… blaming herself, so much as accepting the responsibility. "I'm not… I'm not a psychologist, I was an accounting student, this isn't really my wheelhouse, but… I do know it'll help if you're there for her. Friends… friends can pull each other from dark places, you know?"
"But it was me that pulled her down there in the first place and caused her to break her friendship with Taylor," Sophia refuted.
"So pull her out." Verity said, as if it were that simple. "You're the only friend she has that can really know what she's going through, so… be a friend, try to help her, and I know this is a tall order, but you can help deal with that mentality, of like, pushing, gently, gently pushing, it towards something that can be more healthy, like… she's supposed to protect the pack, or something, instead of a lone wolf thing, maybe? I don't know."
"That could work to start with, like actual wolves protect all members of the pack, even the weak ones, whereas a…" Sophia tried to find a comparison.
"Whereas a snake lives and hunts on its own." Verity finished for her.
"Well that works due to her powers, but I was thinking of like a Zebra as they just ditch their weak members to try and survive."
"Ah, that works, but I was thinking more of a predator kind to sort of ease her into it, but if you think that'll work, go ahead." Verity said.
"I think I'll go with the snake thing to start with, suggest that to Ms. Yamada," Sophia agreed.
"Go ahead, it should hopefully be a nice jumping point." Verity said. "Anything else? Anything happening at school? Boys? Or even girls perhaps?"
"It's fine… it is just certainly a feeling to be thrown off my social pedestal."
"You were on a pedestal?"
"One maintained by fear, the skinheads are still to afraid to fuck with me, but people no longer see me as Queen Bee as it were," She replied.
"I mean, to be fair, you were probably less 'Queen Bee' and more 'Supreme Bitch'."
"Same thing in Winslow the place is a Hive of scum and villainy," She responded.
"Yeah, that's on my list of things to work on, but that's in the long-term category with 'take down Lung', right above it actually in difficulty."
"Eh take down the gang leadership, and you've solved like thirty percent of the school's issues at minimum," Sophia stated.
"Also a long term goal." Verity said. "But noted."
"So yeah I've got nothing else, and don't you have to go on patrol soon?" Sophia asked.
"Soonish, I can still talk for a few more minutes if you wanted to." Verity said. "And there are still more cookies if you want more."
"I would like more," She replied instantly.
Verity smiled and held out the container.
"Hey Big V," Missy greeted Verity as the snake woman entered her room in the Wards Base during a thankfully uneventful-so-far Sunday.
"Hey Little V." Verity replied with a smile. "How ya doin?"
"I am doing both good and well," She replied with a wide smile as she put down her pen.
"That's great!" Verity said. "Hey, do you like snickerdoodles? I saved you some from the batch I made."
"Yeah, I love them," Missy replied.
"Then voila!" Verity said, pulling the container from her bag and resting it on Vista's desk. "Snickerdoodles!"
"Thanks,"
"Yeah, so, everything been okay Missy?" Verity asked worriedly.
"It's been average, though what about you? Have you…" Missy trailed off.
"Okay so on that front, I have two things going." Verity said. "One's a… civilian private investigator," Which was technically correct, the best kind of correct. "Looking into them to see if they can find anything, and the other is something they suggested, so I'll ask first: have the PRT people tried giving you a recorder or a spy-style hidden microphone wire thingy at all to record stuff they say?"
"...No, and… don't you need like a court order to get permission for that stuff?" Missy asked. "I remember a… Law and Order episode mentioning that."
"Maybe for high tech equipment, but…" Verity pulled out a recorder, the kind sold in stores that doubled as a pen, which she had never really registered as being a thing before, but in hindsight she had seen people use in her college courses. "Not for civilian tech~!"
"So you think getting a conversation about them arguing can help?" Missy asked with hope in her tone.
"Absolutely it could help." Verity said. "Because then we'll have actual evidence, and while for police investigations you need a warrant… this isn't a police investigation, not yet, and this could very well lead to getting a proper investigation going, at which point it will be proof we can use in court."
"Thank you…" Missy replied as she wiped a few tears that had appeared.
"Hey, anything for the Little Misshy." She said in a vaguely Texan accent, before smiling. "Can I give you a hug?"
She nodded rapidly, a smile on her face that threatened to break her face.
Verity hugged her at that, happy to finally be helping.
As she did, a thought occurred to her.
"...I'm gonna need a bigger house."
It was Monday again and so Verity was back at the Boat Graveyard, eye beams melting and hands lifting as much steel as possible and at this point it was even clear to the naked eye that the Boat Graveyard had visibly lost over half its mass.
"I know I've said this many times, but I still can't believe that this is happening," Danny said as he stood beside Verity. "Like if we keep the pace tomorrow we can actually have the bigger ships coming in and dock now, and after that, only the shore needs to be cleaned."
"And at that point, we can start organizing the volunteer work right?" Verity asked.
"Yep, we can definitely make it a big community thing hopefully, we truly need to show that Brockton Bay spirit hasn't been broken, just covered in crime and dirt."
"Yeah, it'll be great to see the coastline cleared out." Verity said with a satisfied smile at the visible progress they had already made. "Good for the environment, good for the city, just good all around."
"And hopefully after we're done with that and what happens later, I can get the Ferry back up and running," Danny said hopefully. "Again thank you Verity, for what you've done here, for the city and for my daughter."
"Eh, yeah, no problem. Like I keep saying, and apparently people don't believe me, I'm happy to help." Verity insisted with a smile.
"Yeah, just keep doing that, and people will believe you, and…" Danny trailed off for a bit before he continued with another topic. "Which is why I changed my will, so that if I die, you get custody of Taylor."
"I'm touched, but don't talk like that dude!" Verity said, immensely, profoundly moved by the gesture, but more worried about why this was being brought up in the first place. "...Wait, do you have, like, cancer or something?"
"I don't, but we live in a dangerous world, Verity, even if you just removed all the Capes," Danny said. "What happened to Annette could easily happen to me."
"Listen, I know my personal motto is prepare for the worst, hope for the best, but… s-seriously, is everything okay Daniel?" Verity asked, worried and a bit confused why it was being brought up all of a sudden.
"It's fine, I just wanted to tell you, since the Barnes were the previous ones, and… after that I don't trust them like I used to, especially Alan," Danny informed her. "This… just seemed like a good time to say it."
"I… honestly I don't know what to say to that other than… thank you for trusting me that much, I guess." Verity said, the idea of actually having that potential responsibility in her hands now playing against the idealized idea of being there for Taylor as she realized what would actually need to happen for that to occur. "But like… might be a bit hasty, but I consider you a friend, so like, don't do anything stupid, okay?"
"I won't, I plan to live for a long time, Verity, I want to see whatever children Taylor wants to have," Danny said and there rang a silence for a few seconds before a voice spoke up behind them.
"Yo Danny, that meeting with the new client is happening in a few minutes, so if you don't want to be late..."
"Ah thanks Kurt, time was running away from me," Danny said. "Talk to you later Verity." The man said as he began to talk away with his co-worker.
"Take care, Dan-Man!" Verity said as she turned her attention back towards the metal that needed to be broken down and/or slagged.
She moved over and pulled some of it out of the water and began to tear it apart but stopped when a new voice spoke behind her.
"Oh wow, you're even prettier in person Miss Medusa, all that blue and teal goes well together."
"Oh, thanks! I didn't really have control over it but I really like it too." Verity said as she turned around to face a little girl that was staring right up at her.
A little girl with hair done in ponytails shaped like drills, a large pink bow in between them.
She wore a pink lollita dress and in her hand was a pink umbrella, and covering her right eye was a purple eyepatch.
"Oh what are you doing in a place like this sweetie? Are you here with one of your parents or something?" Verity asked as she got down closer to her level.
"Yep, my mother is here to talk with the guy in charge, but that is boring so I came to find you Miss Medusa," She said with a chirpy and happy voice like she enjoyed every minute of life.
"Well you need to be careful, this isn't really a safe place for kids to be walking around in fancy outfits that can snag easily… also that outfit is really cute!" Verity said. "You look like you came out of a soft lolita catalogue, great look."
"Hehe, I know I designed it myself to be as cute as possible," She answered. "Your's is good too, very clashing."
Verity couldn't help but smile at that, since it was the point. "Thanks! I designed this with my girlfriend actually, well, I say designed, I just made suggestions, but if you design clothes this well maybe you've already heard of Parian?"
"I do, Nee-san is very good at what she makes isn't she?" The blond haired girl said.
"...Nee-san?" Verity repeated, only now picking up on the accent, as the pieces began to fall into place in her head. "Uh, I don't think I caught your name yet, and obviously I need to know the name of a fashion designer who's this good at cute stuff."
"Oh, my name is Nui Harime Kiryuin, Grand Couturier In-training for the REVOCS Corporation," She introduced herself with a little bow. "It is a pleasure to finally meet you!"
Xxx
A/N: If you like this or any other of my stories, you can donate to my Sub scribe Star . Adult (slash) StreamingViking and read commissioned stories and chapters before they are released here. Along with voting for which stories will be updated next via Polls.
