"Gentlemen. We have misjudged this... Guardian."
Bertrand Theterby, only secretly known as "The Raven", sat behind his desk in his underground hideout, tiny creases on his forehead visible to his main lackeys, Mr. Stone and Mr. E. Mr. Stone, still concerned by his recent performance evaluation by Theterby, nervously clutched his arm, still feeling the pain from his fight with the teen hero. Mr. E was less concerned. In fact, he seemed downright distracted, his eyes almost glazed, as if he were on a whole different plane of existence.
"Even if we ignore our failed attempts at neutralizing her, there would be cause for alarm."
Theterby turned on the TV, and Katherine Mulligan could be seen interviewing Captain Nikita Griffin, next to a station holding cell that contained five dazed criminals, all bloodied and beaten. The sun had barely even risen.
"Captain Griffin, in light of recent video evidence, the public is bound to think that this is the work of the Royal Woods vigilante. What do you have to say about the matter?"
"The Guardian does not exist.", Griffin responded gruffly, the look in her eyes one that could kill.
"So she has a name?", Mulligan tried to push the issue forwards, but Griffin, looking even angrier, left the scene. The TV paused then, focusing on the jailed thugs.
Thetherby stared at his men, his eyes already calculating a response. "Do you know what I despise? Corrections. Inaccuracies. I detest the tiny details that a plan could, should have factored in."
Theterby stood up, clenching his fists. "And I especially am not fond of finding out that there is an unaccounted player in the game."
The small man, pet raven cawing angrily on his shoulder, pointed at E. "Mr. E, you were the one to so boldly claim you had her figured out. A week has passed and you have been uncharacteristically silent. I suggest you open your mouth... Or I'll have it forced open."
E sneered back. His encounters with The Guardian had forced him to rexamine his outlook, or well, his methods. He wanted more time to formulate their next meeting and found all this rather tedious. Then again, Tetherby would never let him go with what information he held. He'd have to cooperate. For now.
"As you said. We misjudged her. I am not too proud to admit I misjudged her. She is far more dangerous than we thought."
"And how is that?", Tetherby pressed on, craning up to catch a glimpse of E's face.
Mr. E's voice almost sounded impressed, excited. "She's the real deal, Tetherby. No strings attached. We can't scare her off. She actually... Cares."
Tetherby nodded slowly, assessing the gravity of the situation. "Then this is officially a matter of grave importance. We cannot press on with the serum, not yet, not while this "Guardian" is around."
"But how do we stop her, boss? She beat me and Mr. E!", Stone piped up.
"For once, my vacuous associate, you are right. She has brains, brawn, dare I say it, heart.", E responded, showing doubt as well.
"All fair points, gentlemen. But no one is unbeatable. We know that she is a child, a teenager, to be specific."
Tetherby went to the west wall and punched in a combination on a keypad. The sounds of shifting gears turning sounded out.
"And everyone, even a super hero, get tired. She's working out late at night, she's fighting hardened criminals, and whether she likes it or not, she is fueled by some level of guilt."
E and Stone cautiously stepped back as the boom of heavy footsteps and a ferocious breathing pattern greeted them.
"So here is my plan, gentlemen. We shall hire some thugs, make her busy, keep her nights long. And in a few days, a week perhaps, when she is struggling to keep her eyes open..."
An inhuman roar erupted out of a mouth with sharp, piercing teeth. Red eyes from the darkness still terrified in the light. It was misshapen and ugly and monstrous. And it would be the perfect weapon to deploy against The Guardian. Tetherby grinned maliciously, imagining the bloodshed.
"...We shall send Agent Wolf to "remove" this obstacle from my path..."
"Shoot her in the knees, boys!"
Four criminals, loitering outside of the local bank, but not attempting to rob the place, began to blast at The Guardian, cloaked by the night, eyes dark even without the eye shadow because of her tiredness.
"Knee, more like... More like... Knee.", Lori tried to say a quip, but she was barely making any sense. She stiffled a yawn as she smacked two of the robbers with her fists, sending them flying to a wall.
"Why don't these hurt her?!", one robber panicked, getting picked up by Guardian.
"Doesn't matter, just keep her going!", the final one called, suddenly face to face with her soul searching stare. Guardian could see the scared kid in the corner, peaking at the scene. She smiled softly at him, to reassure him. He smiled back. The robber's legs shook as he tried to keep a brave face. "They said you were scary. You're not that scary. I bet it's just an act."
Guardian turned her face back to the robber, and growled.
"I'm scary when it's useful."
She flew over his head, so fast he couldn't see her. Suddenly, she was behind him. The robber screamed, and she elbowed him in the face, nearly knocking him over, before returning to her original position again to elbow him once more.
"Why are you doing this? Why do you need to keep me going? Are you working for Mr. E?", Guardian barked, sounding like she could break the robber in half.
The robber turned his gun at the kid. He had to keep her awake, a bit more, and she would surely reach her peak. She already looked dead tired, shaking herself from the sleep deprivation. A whole week of intense crime fighting all night would do that to you, Lori had yet to face this much a night.
"I'll do it! I'll do it!"
Guardian, feeling herself about to fall down, moved herself towards him so her weight would fall down on him.
SMASH!
"...You're grounded. Heh."
Guardian stood up, disoriented. The kid, now safe, went up to thank her.
"Thank you, Ms. Guardian!"
Guardian smiled affectionately, though she sounded slurred. "Just doing what anyone should do, kid. The right thing."
The kid smiled again, and after getting directions from her back to his street, went on his way. Leaning back on a wall, Guardian wondered to herself what was going on. "The stuff at Pingrey Enterprises, Mr. E, that big guy and the scientist, now this... Something is up. Mr. E mentioned a boss. I beat him, suddenly people are fighting me..." She felt her eyes droop. "God... I'm so tired too. I don't know how much I can do about all this."
Then, a police radio that was still transmitting from a car nearby alerted Guardian of something else. "All units, proceed to Royal Woods bank. The vigilante known as The Guardian has been spotted, I repeat, The vigilante known as The Guardian has been spotted. Subject is extremely dangerous and highly unethical, and must be stopped at all costs."
Guardian scowled, breathing heavily. "Only I could do good things and still get shit for it. Damn it. I better go back to bed before they catch me."
She couldn't help but mutter "At least there, people see I'm trying."
"Lori? Lori, wake up!"
"5 more minutes, mom."
Rita looked back at Lincoln and Lynn, who both shrugged, as Lori dozed off in her chair, snoring loudly, in a position that would probably cause long term back pain, but she didn't care right now.
"How many times do I need to break your nose and then reposition it before you collapse? I'm about to collapse too, see, all the cool kids are doing it...", Lori muttered, sounding deranged.
"Jeez, has she been playing your video games or something?", Lynn asked, scratching her head.
"Maybe, "Nose breaking simulator" is trending right now.", Lincoln replied, curious as well.
"Well, whatever it is, she needs to wake up already, or she's gonna be late for class.", Rita stated, before sighing. "Lynn, I hate to use this, but... Did you see that last Lions game?"
Lincoln, fully aware of what was gonna happen, handed himself and Rita ear plugs. A whistling kettle could be heard, as Lynn's face turned red. Biting her seatbelt off, she began to rant.
"ARE YOU FREAKIN KIDDING ME?! OF COURSE I DID! THE BASTARD HAS ONLY 2, 2 MOTHERTRUCKING YARDS TO GO, AND HE DROPS THE PIGSKIN?! WHAT DO YOU THINK THIS IS, BOI, AMEATUR HOUR?! HOW ARE YOU GOING TO LIVE IN THIS DANGEROUS WORLD IF YOU DROP EVERYTHING THAT'S IMPORTANT ON THE FLOOR?! WHAT IF THE FLOOR WAS MADE OF LAVA, GENIUS?! YOU'RE MAKING BALLBOYS GET BALLS NOW, CHILD LABOR LAWS DON'T MATTER IN YOUR SELFISH, DISGUSTING WORLD YOU SON OF A..."
Lori, shaken by this, bounced up and karate chopped the empty chair in front of her, cutting the top part in half. "I BET YOUR MOM ROBS BANKS BETTER THAN YOU!"
Suddenly, Lori realized that everyone was staring at her, specifically at what she had done to the chair. She grimaced, her mind racing to find an excuse.
"We REALLY need to give Vanzilla a tune up.", Rita suddenly commented, and everyone seemed to agree. Lori sighed in relief.
"Yeah, if Lori can do that kind of damage, imagine what I could do!", Lynn bragged, smugly grinning at Lori. Lori rolled her eyes. She almost had half a mind to fly out of the car and show Lynn what for, but she knew that was a bad idea.
"Well, enough chit chat, Lori, I need you to take Lincoln and Lynn to early basketball practice, pronto!", Rita explained, dropping two large sport equipment bags on the eldest Loud. "Your father has a problem at work that needs my, um, unique help."
Lynn Sr. cleared his throat. "Kotaro, funeral march cowbell remix please."
Kotaro jingled in the saddest way he could.
"Ahem. We're gathered here today to mourn the accidental death of this random health inspector. Who could have guessed that a frying pan to the head was a bad way to greet them?"
"So yeah, just walk over to the gym there before heading off to school, and make it quick, we're on the clock!"
Lori nodded, and tried to step outside the van, only to fall flat on her face, leaving an identation on the sidewalk the shape of her face.
"Damn, the sidewalk sure is ugly today!", Lynn commented, oblivious to Lori's strength again.
"Sweetie, are you all right? You seem kinda, sort of, totally out of it.", Rita asked, helping Lori up, and dusting her off.
Lori groaned. The constant lying was getting tired already. How could she keep this up? "Oh, um, I'm fine! Just a little tired, as I've been recently."
Lincoln, who was being helped onto his temporary wheelchair by Lynn, seemed a little guilty, but he didn't say anything for now.
Hands on her hips, Rita nodded. "I understand, dear, but try and stay focused." She leaned in and whispered in Lori's ear. "Between you and me, the other kids are a little annoyed that you're kinda... Out of it and not helping with chores."
Lori hadn't even realized she wasn't helping with chores, and felt a little attacked. "It's not like I've been doing nothing, I'm just really worn out!", Lori whispered back, hoping she hadn't give her secret away like that.
"I'm sure you are, dear, it's not that I don't believe you. Just give it a think, the others feel that way for a reason." Rita then left a quick kiss on Lori's forehead, and jumped back into Vanzilla, driving away as fast as she could.
Lori stared at her driving past, arms crossed. "If she knew what I was going through, she wouldn't say that. The dishes would understand if the jewelry store seemed more important! Dishes can't understand, what am I saying."
Turning around, Lori then realized only Lincoln was there, waving at her from his wheelchair. "Excuse my french but where the fucque is Lynn?", Lori asked, looking underneath the wheelchair.
"She wanted to get there first."
"Ah, that makes more sense." Lori steadied herself, blinking away the sleep (though she still felt like every step was a marathon), and began to push Lincoln to school.
"This is... Weird, huh?", Lori asked, a little unsure. She wanted to talk to Lincoln about it, but she wasn't sure what she could say that would help.
"Not really, it's just what I need right now. Besides, it's about time you carried your weight around here!", Lincoln joked, thought Lori seemed miffed. "Yeah, the others seem to think that too.", she muttered, narrowing her eyes to the side. "Well, you have been sort of absent. Ever since I came back from the hospital, you've been really quiet and tired and stuff.", Lincoln commented, biting his lip.
Lori didn't want to hear more criticism, but with Lincoln, it felt more acceptable. He had actual reasons to dislike her, after all.
Lincoln looked down, sad. "Is it because I got hurt? I don't mean to make you worry, Lori, honest."
Lori shook her head violently. "Of course not! I mean, obviously I am worrying, I'm your sister, but it's not your fault, I'm just... I'm just kinda worn out, okay? I'm working really hard and no one seems to notice!", she flung her arms wide, nearly removing a stop sign.
"Well, there's gotta be a reason! Only a bad family would just say that unfairly!", Lincoln responded, and Lori nodded. "I guess, but it still feels harsh. I mean, maybe the chores, fine, but I'm doing great at a ton of things!".
They were already in the school, and were close to approaching the gym. Suddenly, they overheard a loud voice from the door next to them.
"Lori Loud is not doing great at all!"
Lori and Lincoln both stared at each other, silently nodded, and moved close to the door to listen in. "You hear anything?", Lori asked.
"I think a dog is chewing a bone? Lana is gonna kill whoever bent the pet rule without letting her in."
They kept listening in, and a resolute, calm, measured voice responded. It was like a string on a guitar being plucked just perfectly at the right tone and bass each time, clear and all encompassing in a room full of sounds, of ceiling fans and chewing and finger taps.
"Mr. Fenrisulfer, am I to believe that you find Ms. Loud's inadequate school work responsible for my daughter's mediocrity? I for one have found Ms. Loud to be quite exemplary of what we would want from our youth."
"Who's that?", Lincoln asked. "I don't know!", Lori replied, sounding annoyed again. "But who thinks I am a bad influence in grades? Who, like, could I even be doing that to?"
"Bobby?", Lincoln smirked, and Lori blushed. "All right, fair point, but if anything he's distracted in another school, Linc."
Mr. Fenrisulfer grunted, and yelled back, sounding oddly aggressive, even for his usual self. "She's been sleeping at class, she's been handing in half assed assignments! Do I even need to tell you that your daughter practically idolizes her?!"
"What kinda idiot would do that?", Lincoln joked, and Lori nudged him. "Shut up, squirt!". Lori was, however, a little concerned and frustrated. It wasn't like she meant to do badly at class, and considering the little time she had for school, she thought she was doing not badly at all!
The measured voice responded, not shaken for a second by the mini rant. "In my line of work, patience is a virtue, Mr. Fenrisulfer. Let's see if your current assessment is accurate. I feel like you might be surprised by what Ms. Loud can accomplish. About my daughter, well, she'll just have to work harder for once."
"Yeah, Mom, I know. I'm sorry.", came a quiet and resigned voice, full of guilt.
"That kinda sounds like...", Lori started, before feeling the door open. Jumping back, she carried Lincoln with her, and smashed her head on the locker, falling onto the floor.
"Lori, are you okay?"
Carol Pingrey, who had just exited the room, rushed to her aid, while Mr. Fenrisulfer gave Lori a judgmental stare. The measured voice was nowhere to be seen, however. Lori rubbed her head, calming both Carol and Lincoln down. "Yeah, I'm fine.", Lori noticed how hard her head hurt though, despite her powers.
"Well, from where I am, you're not fine at all!", Mr. Fenrisulfer glared down at her, offering his hand to pick her up. Lori took it, frowning the entire time.
"Hey, my friend is very fine! Oh, that sounds weird, I'm just gonna... Stop talking. Now. Right now. Now. Yeah. Now. Sorry. Yeah.", Carol mumbled away, blushing a bit.
"Well, like, I'm not sure myself how I'm not fine, Mr. Fenrisulfer. It's not like I won't get the college I want with a couple of bad grades.
"I see you overheard what we were talking about, Ms. Loud. Well, contrary to popular belief around here, you have been declining rapidly the last couple of weeks, especially this week! You seem distracted, and not really that bothered to work hard!", the teacher chewed out Lori, making her feel worse and worse.
"Great, does anyone ELSE wanna tell me how horrible I am?", Lori shouted, shaking her fist.
The boy whose locker was smashed into by Lori, looking scared, backed off slowly.
"Well, um, according to Mr. Fenrisulfer, my grades are slipping too because of it. I mean, I don't know about that, that seems kinda weird to say, as if I have just been talking to you instead of doing my homework.", Carol added, but she seemed to be not very truthful.
"Sir, if I may add, Lori's been going through a tough time, I was hospitalized...", Lincoln started, trying to defend Lori, but Mr. Fenrisulfer was having none of it.
"I don't care how distracted she's been, I demand that she..." But suddenly, he stopped, noticing Lori was asleep while standing up. "You know, I wanna get angry, but that's kind of impressive.", Mr. Fenrisulfer admitted.
Lincoln and Carol nodded in agreement.
"Well, tell Loud when she wakes up that she has detention after school. You too, Pingrey. And um... You there, you with the freakish arms."
The freakish arm girl sighed. "I can't believe I failed lunch."
Lori woke up hearing what Mr. Fenrisulfer said, and scowled. Now she would have to miss patrol, or risk further trouble from the school? Everyone was on her case, despite her efforts!
"My life is literally trash.", Lori muttered. "What's he even doing here in the middle school?!"
"Lori, this is the highschool.", Carol commented.
Lincoln looked alarmed. "Crap, I'm late for practice!"
Lori seemed apologetic and distressed. She bit her lip. "Okay, that's not making my case for being innocent..."
"So, you wanna be with me?"
A young man, who was thinner perhaps than he should, with sunken eyes, looked at the little voice asking him that question with frustration.
"What do you think?", he answered, perhaps too aggressively.
The little voice turned out to be of a little girl, Pepin, whose black bangs barely hid her disappointment.
"I think you never want to be with me!"
The young man, Bruce by name, rolled his eyes, and rolled over to his side, clutching his pillow. "I'm busy."
"Doing what?"
"Nothing, thank god.", Bruce whispered, yearning for sleep.
"You said that yesterday, the day before, last week! You don't do anything anymore! The dishes are smelly, like you!", Pepin complained, crossing her arms. She wanted to stomp her foot, but was afraid it would wake up their parents, who were also resting.
"Because I'm busy!", Bruce whined.
"Busy doing nothing?!"
"I'm tired! I... Never mind, you wouldn't understand, idiot.", Bruce insulted her, shooing her off. Why couldn't she just leave? Why did the roof have to leak right over him? Why couldn't things just be better?
"You go to school, then spend hours with your dumb friends, of course you're tired! But we don't even get to see that anymore! Mornings and nights suck now, you know? You suck! Suck, suck, suck!", Pepin snapped at him, before calming down. She sat on his bed. He didn't bother looking at her.
"I'm sorry, big brother."
Nothing.
"I'm really sorry."
Bruce heard the regret in her tone. But what could he do? He couldn't tell her where he really went, not yet. But he was doing this for her. Surely he didn't have to snap every time. She didn't do anything wrong.
"...Well, you did it. Now I'm so tired, I wanna sleep."
Pepin's ears perked. She knew the peace offering when she heard it.
"...Mom and dad can't take you tonight, huh? Did they even make dinner?", Bruce asked, care for once in his tone. He wasn't criticzing his parents. They worked at the hospital all day, so when they came back, they usually couldn't cook.
"If I eat anymore tuna, I will turn into a fish.", Pepin simply replied.
"How can you be a fish, when you're an annoying stray?", Bruce teased, nooging her.
"Stop it!", she giggled, not bothered by that one bit. The two siblings had a silent moment, then Pepin bounced off to get the rest of the offering. "I've read this to you so many times, don't you get sick of it?", Pepin sing songed, as if it wasn't her chosen book.
"And give up on "Mr. Wolf and His Little Kitten Have a Video Game Contest"? Heretic!", Bruce joked, and Pepin laughed once more. She sat down with the book, and cuddled up to him in his bed.
"Try not to fall asleep.", Pepin said, yawning. Bruce nodded. "I'll do my best."
Later that night, Pepin already asleep, Bruce left the bed and kissed her forehead. "If you just knew, Kitten. I'm doing so much more than you think. You'll see. You'll see, and you'll love me, like you once did. I'm doing this for you."
He had to repeat that in the shivering laboratory over and over again, as the looming, horrifying figure of The Raven presented to him the latest experiments to test.
"...I'm doing this for you."
"Your existential pondering is too loud."
Lori looked up at Mr. Fenrisulfer, who glared at her disapprovingly in front of her uncomfortable school desk. Lori felt the pencil shards in her hands.
"Damn it, superpowers, you're not helping.", she thought, muttering as she picked the pieces up from the shiny floor.
"Excuse me, sir, I was just literally debating the concept of justice in my head, or the lack of it.", Lori snapped, still really pissed. She should be out there, saving people, and doing good, but she's in here because people still think she's doing badly! She wasn't expecting a parade, but surely some people noticed the changes in her?!
Mr. Fenrisulfer apparently didn't like parades. "Ms. Loud, if that is the case, then you shall agree that by neglecting your schoolwork, you are breaching the rules of this institution, and thus, committing an injustice of your own."
Lori was still frustrated, and she showed it. So maybe she wasn't acing it, but there was a perfectly good reason!
"Whatever.", she muttered, sinking into her seat, still giving Mr. Fenrisulfer a stinkeye.
"Don't worry, Lori, I believe you! You can do no wrong in my eyes! In fact, you're a sight for sore eyes! Cause you're pret...", Carol rambled, before stopping herself in time. She had a furious blush now, and coughed out "Oh, um, look, there's nothing over there, isn't that fascinating?", and was now very busy staring at that nothing.
Mr. Fenrisulfer, meanwhile, sat down and stared at Lori with a mixture of annoyance and, strangely, concern. He had seen it before. The frustration, the fatigue, that all too familiar look, of knowing you could be doing better, but also knowing you're trying so hard. But he wasn't just going to walk over and ask her what was going on. Besides, he knew from the past that Lori could be a little selfish, a little jerky. He was probably just being naive. So he looked down at his phone instead, feeling the time slowly slip away.
Lori, meanwhile, felt her dark thoughts collide in her mind. She really was trying, but people still thought she was selfish, mean. ...What if that was all she could be?
Suddenly, Lori looked to the side, bored out of her mind, and caught the sight of a man walking past, the one she had fought earlier that morning. Her eyes nearly popping out of their sockets, she got up and looked outside the door, startled.
"What's he doing here? What would his boss want here?"
"Ms. Loud, sit down. This isn't based time with Bobo, or whatever show you're all into.", Mr. Fenrisulfer barked, pointing to her seat.
Lori had to think of something, quickly! She couldn't just let a criminal go around the school!
"But won't this get me in even more trouble?", Lori hesitated, feeling a moment of selfishness. She then quickly shook her head. "And what if someone gets hurt? I can angst later!"
"Mr. Fenrisulfer, I just REALLY need to go to the bathroom! I have a mighty, earth shattering need to go, or the consequences could be drastic! I mean, we're talking LIVES at stake here, Mr. Fenrisulfer, lives! You could be sitting in the near future, taking about the tragic day when you didn't let me go to the bathroom to take care of a MIGHTY NEED!", Lori tried her best to excuse herself. She was kinda bad at lying.
And by kinda I mean excruciatingly bad.
"All right, all right, spare us the drama! I need to go deal with a business thing anyway, my supervisor is being a moron.", Mr. Fenrisulfer explained calmly, opening the door for both of them. He scratched himself, making Lori cringe. "If you don't come back right after, though, you'll have detention for a week. Got it?"
"Sir, yes sir!", Lori saluted, and she bolted down the hall, adrenaline pumping.
"Don't worry, Lori! I'm sure whatever number you're doing is wonderfully healthy and natural!", Carol called out after her.
Mr. Fenrisulfer looked back at Carol.
"...By the way, it's obvious you've got a crush on her. Work on it, girl."
Carol burried her head in her hands, gay panicking.
Lori ran and ran, until she reached the bathroom. Taking her costume out of her backpack, she began to put it on, while her mind raced. "This guy could be working for Mr. E. Maybe he wants revenge? Has something planned? Or maybe he's working for that tough guy who was hurting that poor scientist? Or maybe he's on his own personal vengeance trip?"
Applying the final touch of eyeshadow, The Guardian was immediately back in the halls, searching for the criminal.
"Boss says she should have been out by now. This means she might be around here, if Mr. E is right. I know you don't like it, but that's what the shock collar is for. So if she really is some teen, you better get ready to..."
The Guardian was now really mad. Those assholes were going to hurt some innocent kid who didn't do anything? They wanted her, surely!
"Fine, that's who they get!", she mused angrily. Kicking the lab door down, she yelled "Hey, if you're gonna kill anyone, kill me! At least I won't need to eat the mystery meat anymore!"
She wasn't, however, ready for what was in front of her. Instead of some guy she saw in the hallways, she saw a giant, snarling monster, with fangs that foamed and eyes that pore into her soul. Whatever clothes it was wearing were removed, and whatever inhibition it had was gone too, a shock collar now around its neck, applying such pain that whatever light said eyes once had was surely gone. It was the werewolf, the one from the fateful day she had gotten her powers.
"...I think I really do need to go to the bathroom now.", Guardian thought, shaking in fear, as the wolf lunged at her.
"Look at him!"
Inside The Raven's lair, footage from trackers showcased his latest success, Bruce, breaking through Pingrey Enterprises doors like they're nothing. The guards begin to shoot at him, but the bullets barely graze, mostly leaving tiny cuts rather than holes.
Raven's eyes widened with glee, and an evil smirk slid onto his face. "After all this time, we've made a prototype serum, and Melanie has nothing! She's still banging her head on the wall!"
Mr. Stone, looking confused, turned to The Raven. "But sir, didn't you say he was a, what's that word again, a patty?"
"A patsy, idiot!", Raven smacked Mr. Stone, and turned back to the footage, where Bruce was smashing through labs, looking for the right one. "Yes, he was, and he still is, but the serum is working, so far. He gets us what he needs, and if shit hits the fan, well..."
He grinned evilly.
"We'll just turn off the fan."
Bruce, meanwhile, was feeling his heart in his ribcage, his senses overloading. Everything felt easier, better now. He could tear those men apart like putty, he almost wanted to. But that wasn't what he was in for. Mr. Raven had said something about intel, intel about a serum that was similar to what he had. Apparently, Mrs. Pingrey was working on something that could make people stronger than him, and Mr. Raven wasn't accepting any competition. Bruce wasn't sure what this really meant, in the grand scheme of things, but with the wads and wads of cash promised to him, money that would keep his family alive, what could he say? So maybe some people got hurt along the way, what mattered was that he was doing what was right for his family.
"Yes, I definitely am.", he grinned, as he crushed one enemy so hard their arms shattered.
At first, he wondered how he would find the intel. Mr. Raven had said it was being kept in a secure location, and would require photographic evidence. Simply put, he would need to take a few quick photos of the secure location, destroy all the security cameras ("Easy peasy", he thought, as he used his weirdly strong nails to smash another one), and get into the getaway car as cool as you like.
"Attention, all employees, take the asailent down, but do not terminate him. I want him alive!", the sharp, direct voice of Melanie Pingrey tore through the air, demanding justice for the crime committed against her.
"I won't have humanity's best chance taken down by some brat with a clearly unfinished formula.", she thought, analyzing what she saw in front of her with patient fury.
"Oh, maybe not so easy.", Bruce thought to himself, as he broke through another lab, only to find nothing. "Where could it be?!", he thought, getting desperate. Guards were gaining on him, and if he didn't hurry up, he could die, even with the serum.
"No, I can't! I can't die! They need me!", Bruce growled, and he smashed the floor in the hopes a shockwave would knock the guards out. Instead, it tore the floor open, sending him and the others down onto the secret underground facility, the secure location containing exactly what he needed.
Bruce's eyes widened. Animals of all shapes and sizes were in cages, radioactive material was lying in barrels in a corner of the room, and there were screens showcasing an alien warrior fighting a monster. What did that all mean?
"Eh, whatever.", he shrugged it all off, taking a few quick pictures.
"Get him!", The guards screamed, rushing at him as he took the last one. "Shit!", Bruce exclaimed, and he leapt up, surprised at how gravity defying he had become. Back on level ground, he rushed out of the lab, ducked into the car, and left.
"He got the evidence!", a concerned woman told Melanie, but Melanie remained calm and calculated. "He did... But only one person would try something this audacious. Little Tetherby isn't exposing me anytime soon, and his serum, like mine, is unfinished. Whatever info he got won't help him, because he simply can't afford what I have. And now, I know what cards he holds. We're not trapped..." She grinned.
"He is..."
The next evening, Bruce felt like the greatest guy in the world. He had a serious rolling paycheck that would help his family get by every month, he was stronger, faster, better than before, and now surely his family would be giving him the praise he deserved. Or at least, so he thought.
He had slept nearly the entire day after all the effort he had put in, and when he finally woke up, his little sister, Pepin, stared at him, greatly disappointed.
"You forgot."
Bruce was still kinda sleepy, but he could feel the frustration rise in him. "Good morning to you too?"
"It's midnight.", she scowled, barely keeping her eyes open. There was a strange smell, like something slowly burning and melting.
"It can't be.", Bruce muttered, but he could see it was dark out. He looked back, and saw Pepin hug herself, shivering.
"Why aren't you in bed?", Bruce asked, annoyed.
"Well, our parents could barely function again, and you slept through the whole day, so I can't get to sleep."
"And why can I smell wax?", Bruce felt a growing dread.
"...Cause it's my birthday. And you forgot."
Pepin's voice was very small. She barely sounded angry, or disappointed anymore. It was worse than that. She sounded used to it.
Bruce wiped his eyes and yawned. "Look, I'm really sorry..."
"So what? Who cares? You don't.", Pepin replied, turning her back on him.
"Hey, no, it's not like that, I just..."
"Just what?", Pepin asked, pleading. "Tell me, Bruce, tell me! I want to believe you care, but all you do is sleep and shout at me and ignore me, ignore us! Mom and Dad kept crying cause they think you're leaving us!"
"No I'm not! I'm away because... because...", Bruce started, angry, but then he realized he couldn't answer. How could he tell them? They would stop him, no, he'd need an excuse. But he was so tired and emotional he couldn't come up with one.
Pepin had had enough. "Fine. Don't tell me. I don't care anymore."
She walked away, and Bruce stepped up, ready to tell her off, when he stepped on it. He heard a bit of paper tearing, and he picked it up. It was a little necklace, made out of paper, and it had a kitten on it. On the back, it said "To protect you".
It was her birthday.
He had forgotten.
She had still made a gift for him.
For him.
He looked around. On the table was the cake, pathetic and small, barely touched. The lights flickered on and off. His parents laid on their sofa bed, practically knocked out, damp tears in their eyes.
He could hear Pepin sob softly in her sleep. Looking down, he felt tears fall down too.
What was the point of saving his family, if he was losing them?
The moment Agent Wolf lunged, Guardian rolled to her right, clattering into one of the lab stations. Her head actually hurt a bit thanks to the impact.
"Must be 'cause I'm tired.", she thought, rubbing her forehead, but she barely had any time to.
Agent Wolf was turned to her, unfurling his claws, dark ebony, shining despite the darkly lit room. Guardian could practically see her own reflection in them, and she gulped.
"You know, you look even scarier than last time! Is that a compliment, do you like that, please like that!", she begged, but Agent Wolf didn't seem to hear her, as he lashed at the station, narrowly missing her. Wood shavings and dust settled on her face, and she sneezed.
Rolling away again, Guardian tried to come up with a plan. "Calm down, Lori. You're usually the scary one. Maybe if I pretend I'm not scared, he'll be scared of me? It works on the normal criminals, and it kinda worked on Mr. E at the end."
Deciding to put this to action, Guardian floated onto one of the lab stations, staring down at the monster. "Don't make me hurt you. Leave this place now!", she growled, covering herself with her cape to appear larger and scarier.
But what worked with thugs and thieves failed with an actual beast. Barely acknowleging what she said, Agent Wolf swiped at the station, sending it flying to the other side of the room, and making Guardian nearly fall.
Back to floating, she decided to turn the lights off completely.
"This is my city, and my people, and you won't hurt them, if you know what's good for you!", Guardian threatened, but her voice shook slightly. She wasn't too confident. Her eyes went side to side, desperately searching for the wolf. Her knees shook as well. To make matters worse, she found herself getting even more tired, the little adrenaline she had beginning to seep out. She stiffled a yawn. Suddenly, she felt an animalistic grunt and snort, and she felt a slight wind coming from behind her. Horrible panting echoed in her ears.
"All right. Guess I'm the one who doesn't know what's good for her.", Guardian whispered, knowing this was insane, but that she didn't have much of a choice. She couldn't just run away screaming, she could do that once she was done pretending she could beat him.
Turning around quickly and punching him in the dark, Guardian set off like a thunderbolt, leaving the science lab and running through the school halls. The towering, ever approaching footsteps of the werewolf only added to her terror, it was like a nightmare, but there would be no one to comfort her after this, she was supposed to be the hero.
And to make matters worse, she tripped over a random backpack.
"Oh, for fu... Fudge sake!", Lori almost cursed, hoping Mr. Fenrisulfer wouldn't hear her. "Powers, what's the point of you if you're going to just turn on and off all... Willy nilly?! NAUGHTY, NAUGHTY POWERS!"
Guardian rubbed her eyes, careful not to remove the eyeshadow, and sighed. "Wow, I really DO need to sleep."
"I'll say..."
Guardian jumped at that, at the low, horrifying whisper emitted from Agent Wolf, who was writhing in pain from the shock collar, but still threatening her with his claws.
Guardian scrambled to her feet, dashing away again as Agent Wolf charged after her, growling like a beast.
"I need some time to think! But how?", she thought, before noticing the lockers around her. Determined, she tore one locker door off of its hinges, and crept in, locking herself back in.
"Okay, great, now, to come up with a plan!", Guardian told herself, but just as she said that, she heard a strange sound.
The sound of silence.
"There was nothing, followed by the hushed breathing of Agent Wolf, then a loud sniff, and then…
CLANG!
CLANG!
CLANG!
"He's tearing off the locker doors!", Guardian thought in terror, panicking. "Oh, what am I going to do? He's too fast, and he's probably as strong as me! God, why can't he be tired too?", she groaned, before getting a eureka moment.
"Wait, that's it! I'll tire him out, drag him somewhere where I can take him out, maybe the gym… Yeah, that, and then, I'll leave him in an alley, with a little note to his boss. What a brilliant plan, me! Why, thank you, me, that is very nice of you, and if I may say, your hair looks gorgeous today!", Guardian complimented herself, a little full of herself, before snapping back into action.
Readying her legs, she held herself back as she heard another CLANG! And another CLANG!, rapidly increasing in speed, rapidly approaching her. Finally, she could hear his footsteps in front of her, and with a spring…/
CLANG!
The door went flying into his face, and taking advantage of his writhing in pain, Guardian zoomed south towards the bathrooms, laughing triumphantly. "I scare some, kick the ass of others, I'm just the full package, baby!"
"Arrogant, selfish! Master right about you!", Agent Wolf screamed, the shocks energizing him to get up already, and resume the chase.
"How many times do I have to tell people, I'm trying to be better?", Guardian complained, as she reached the bathroom area, and, using her smarts, stopped at the right moment, and waited.
"You may be strong, but you're not that bright. If I want to keep Carol and Mr. Fenrisulfer safe, I'm going to need to outsmart you, tire you. And I know just how.", she grinned, confident.
Charging faster and faster on all 4 legs, Agent Wolf was practically slobbering at the mouth as he reached her, only for Guardian to jump at the right moment, causing Agent Wolf to smash into a wall, his claws almost embedded in said wall.
Guardian, meanwhile, used the jump to float above to the ceiling, where she began racing away upside down to the other direction, to the gym.
"Na na na! Catch me if you can!", she teased, giggling like a little kid. Sometimes, she really enjoyed the battles, and not just the saving of people.
"You won't live long enough to regret that once I'm through with you!", Agent Wolf roared, and he went after her, scaling walls and lockers, scratch marks left everywhere. But Guardian was faster on the ceiling, and he could barely catch up, his breathing becoming more ragged and tired.
With the gym in sights, Guardian smirked, and descended down to the ground, causing Agent Wolf to slip down and fall hard. Arriving at the gym, Guardian decided to slip back to her darker mask, her plan now in action.
When Agent Wolf arrived at the gym, the lights were totally off. His eyes could usually see well in the dark, but fatigue was getting to him, and the near constant shocks were not as effective in controlling him as before. All this led to Agent Wolf panting as he sniffed the air for her, but his nose was barely functioning too.
"Terrifying, isn't it?"
Agent Wolf turned to the source of the low, growling, kinda scary whisper. But he couldn't see her.
"Not knowing where to go. Not knowing who to turn to. You don't like that, do you?"
He couldn't hear any footsteps, and while there was a sound of a barbell being dragged across the floor, he could hardly sense it's location. His eyes began to widen with fear.
"You threatened my friends, you work with people who planned to do worse, to do things I don't know yet. You want to hurt innocent people."
"I'm done seeing innocent people hurt. I won't let you.", Guardian's final words sent a shiver down Agent Wolf's spine.
Then the barbell struck.
A tooth nearly flew out, and he felt his whole body quake with pain. He wasn't used to that.
"Quiet! You're a menace, you don't really care!", Agent Wolf howled, sounding weirdly genuine.
Guardian, annoyed, shouted "No! I am trying! Why can't anyone see that? I'm trying my hardest, I'm tired of being horrible! Why... "
She dropped the barbel, the lights turned on for some reason, and she looked down, almost crying.
"...I don't want to be a monster. Not anymore."
For a moment, Agent Wolf didn't do anything. He simply stared at her, almost sad.
Then, they heard her.
"Hey, um, Lori, Mr. Fenrisulfer, you here? It's been a while, and I got worried, and I feel like maybe you left 'cause I was being weird and boring, so I ordered us some muffins! I also found this cool piece of silver, I don't know why some random guy just left it on the floor, but if anyone wants it, it's here!", Carol called out, only to notice the superhero and werewolf standing in front of each other in the gym. "OMG, you're The Guardian! And I'm not sure who you are, but you look cool too! You can also have muffins, if you want to! Oh, wait, can I take a selfie with you?", Carol asked, getting her phone ready.
"Silver?", Guardian voiced, remembering the weakness werewolves had to it.
"Muffins?", Agent Wolf asked, excited, before remembering the silver part, and gasping.
Rushing over to Carol, Guardian threw the silver at Agent Wolf, but he ducked, ready for it. Growling, he charged at Carol and prepared to strike her.
And without a moment's hesitation, Guardian stood in front of Carol and, arms wide, protected her.
"STOP!"
Agent Wolf did, momentarily, confused by the action.
Guardian's black eyes were full of fear, and her voice sounded not heroic, not scary, but terrified, worried, and full of care. "Please, if you need to get me so badly, if you really think I'm bad, then take me, I don't care what you do to me, but don't hurt her, or Mr. Fenrisulfer, or anyone else! It's me you want!"
There was no lie, no fraudulance. Guardian closed her eyes, fully ready for the pain. Carol seemed shocked at the very idea of all this.
Agent Wolf's eyes cleared, his brain wasn't full of shocks, and he could see for a moment…
And what he saw was a girl, a flawed one perhaps, one who made mistakes…
But one who truly loved and cared for others.
In that moment, it was clear, she was not perfect, not at all…
But when the chips were down, deep down in her heart, she was good after all.
This was no threat like he was told.
This was a girl, just trying to do the right thing.
And recognizing her now, recognizing her real identity, Agent Wolf's eyes widened, and he ran off, breaking through a window and running away.
Guardian was confused, but she didn't mind, she'd take it. Turning to Carol, she excused herself with a growl. "Well, Car… I mean, girl I've never met, I must be off now.", she hid in her cape, and disappeared, flying out the window to change from her costume.
When Lori was back in her regular clothes, in the bathroom, though, she began to feel even sleepier. All the adrenaline left her, and she suddenly found the floor very comfortable. Closing her eyes, she decided to take 5.
"Ms. Loud? Ms. Loud, wake up!"
Lori bolted awake, and to her surprise, found Mr. Fenrisulfer, who looked tired and worried. His clothes were kind of tattered, and his face had cuts.
"I looked all over for you! You had me worried sick!"
Lori seemed confused by that. "I just fell asleep for a few minutes."
"No, it's been an hour and a half. Your parents are in my office, waiting for me to reassure them you're okay.", he explained. "I, well, tripped on some things in my panic to find you. Who leaves a backpack in the middle of the bathroom?"
Lori sheepishly smiled, before feeling the guilt take hold of her once more. "Great. I worried my parents, they're probably even more disappointed in me, like my siblings, like you."
"...People are worried, Ms. Loud. Your grades are worse than ever, you're tired all the time, you apparently don't do any chores.", Mr. Fenrisulfer said, but he said it calmly, with sympathy. Lori was taken aback, but she didn't hate it. The teacher sat down next to her, softly speaking for once.
Lori hugged her knees, still depressed. "I get that, but it's not on purpose, I don't mean to be lazy or make anyone do things for me, or make their lives worse! I've been trying to be better, really I have! Why can't anyone see that? Why does everyone think I'm just literally the worst?"
Mr. Fenrisulfer looked off to the distance. There was a gleam of memory in his eyes. "...Perhaps they just can't see it, cause it's… Internal."
Lori looked up. She couldn't really deny that part, now that she thought about it.
"You know, when people love us, and I mean truly love us, not like… Someone I met today… When they tell us that we are hurting them, I don't think they would make that up. Maybe you're not meaning to. I find myself inclined to believe that right now. But those feelings are valid. Maybe there's something you're missing, or something you can do better.", Mr. Fenrisulfer spoke, his words of wisdom making their impact.
Lori sniffed a bit, nodding. "I can see that… I think. And I think… I think I know how I can do more.", she added, thinking about what her siblings were saying.
Still, tears flowed down as she said "Mr. Fenrisuler…"
He looked down. "Yes?"
"...Do you really think I can be a better person?"
He paused for a moment, before allowing himself a small, personal smile. "I saw you with your brother today. I hear about him from other teachers sometimes. He hasn't been that happy in a long time. I think he feels like you two are getting along. If that doesn't tell you my answer, nothing does… Lori. And if you still can't get it, you're gonna get a D in the next test."
Lori smiled gratefully, and wiped her tears. "Thank you."
"Okay, everyone, who's ready to get those chores done?", Leni asked, trying to brighten the mood, but all the other siblings seemed more annoyed than anything.
"Oh, yeah, sure, I just LOVE picking up Lori's slack!", Lola whined, crossing her arms.
"It IS pretty tiring.", Luna added.
"Yeah, but WATER you gonna do, she can't stop sleeping? Ha ha, get it?", Luan punned, before resuming her frown.
"I'll do laundry this time, guys.", Lana said, sighing, as she began to head downstairs, only to hear…
"Hey, the dishes are all done!", Luan cried.
"Gasp. Do you think… Lynn ate them?", Lucy asked, a horror music sting playing.
"...What the f… duck are you talking about?!", Lynn shouted.
"Yeah, Lynn's on a diet!", Luan joked, making the others laugh for a moment.
"Very strange, dudes. And get this, the floor is so clean, you can eat out of it!", Luna pointed out.
"And the laundry is all done!", Lana cried from downstairs, running back up.
"Even the trash got taken out!", Leni observed. "Which is a shame, I don't advocate for murder."
Lincoln, turning around in his wheelchair, suddenly smelt something in the air. "Hey, guys, I think I can smell…"
"Burpin' Burger! Yep, I felt like you all deserved some compensation! I also did all the chores, part of that compensation thing!", Lori suddenly announced, coming out of the kitchen, looking like a dirty, soapy, tired mess. Her clothes and hair were a fashion war crime right now, but she could hardly care less.
All the siblings didn't have time to thank her yet, though, as they ran over her to the food. Lori chuckled, as she got up acrobatically.
Lisa, however, had not run over, and was instead surveying Lori's arms and legs, which she wasn't hiding as well thanks to her fatigue. They were oddly developed, even with her golfing.
"Say, older sister unit, perchance you seem more, as the young ones say, "built", then your average teenaged form. Partaking in some gymnastic activities?", Lisa asked, eyeing her all over with curiosity.
"Yeah, um, sure, that.", Lori muttered, still too tired to care, as she walked to the dining room.
"Most peculiar. This might require further research.", Lisa thought, as she joined her.
At the table, as everyone ate, Lana voiced "Hey, thanks Lori! This is real nice of you!"
"Well, I haven't been the best lately, or longer, and I really have been trying to be better. But I see now that it was more, well, internal, so I wanted to show you I'm willing to be a better sister!", Lori explained, smiling tiredly. Her eyelids drooped as she stifled a yawn.
"That's great, really, but where's your food?", Lynn asked, and everyone nodded in agreement.
"Oh, um… I forgot, yeah.", Lori lied. She didn't feel like she deserved treats like that yet.
"Oh, that's okay, Lori, I forget stuff too! You can have some of mine!", Leni offered kindly.
"Ooh, me too, me too!", Lana chimed in.
"You may have been a real fucking pain in my patootie, but I'll gladly share as well.", Lola said, getting a disapproving stare from Luna. "Oh buzz off, like you're any better with that."
"I'm 15. Also, yeah, you can take mine if you prefer!"
"I wouldn't FRY to deny you of mine! Ha ha, that's a good one, you have to admit!", "Mr. Coconuts" said.
"Poo poo! Poo poo!", Lily piped up.
All the rest of the siblings were quick to join in, and Lori couldn't help but smile tearfully at them. "Aww, thanks guys! You're the best!"
Lincoln, smiling proudly at Lori, who he could see was improving, leant over to whisper in her ear. "By the way, I was thinking…"
But Lori was already fast asleep, to everyone's slight amusement.
Lincoln patted her head, then sighed a little sadly.
"I hope you'll like my idea tomorrow."
"You let her go."
Tetherby looked furious and outraged, in his base, as Agent Wolf, now half human half wolf, got shocked over and over again.
"I had to run away, the Pingrey girl could ruin the whole operation! You wouldn't want Melanie to know the werewolf is back!", he cried in pain, hoping Tetherby would buy it.
"But we had The Guardian in our grasp! I can't save the city if every time one of our men scratches their butt in a no parking zone, she comes in to stop them!"
"Don't worry, boss, me and the boys can go out, and actually capture her!", Mr. Stone declared, hoping to impress Tetherby.
"Sure… I think I can find a way to make that work…", Tetherby whispered to himself, before growling at Agent Wolf. "But you! I told you, help us get the serum, through this Guardian, through that lab, and THEN we'll set you free!"
"Please, give me another chance, I just got scared. I'll take the girl down!", he "promised", begging on his knees, his eyes fearfully remembering that one awful night it all went wrong…
"Let me go! I don't want to do this anymore, I won't even take the money, I'll pay you back! Just let me be with my family!", Bruce had pleaded, crying like a child.
"Oh, no, I wouldn't do that to your family, not when you're a werewolf now.", Tetherby had grinned evilly.
Bruce felt the fur and the fangs, and cried harder. "Cure me, please, I won't tell anyone!"
"Can't take that risk. Besides, you're more useful here, helping me perfect the serum, getting me the information. I don't care how long it takes, 10, 12, 13 years! If you can help me save this city, I'll cure you, and send you back! And if you don't, well, accidents will happen."
Bruce closed his eyes in surrender. He knew what he meant. "Fine. I'll do it."
"Good, good…", Raven smirked, offering his hand.
And there it was again.
"Remember… I gave your family, your Pepin, I gave them comfortable, safe lives. I went above and beyond. You need to do that for me. You want to make up for your mistakes? Help me do what's right."
Agent Wolf, sadly sighing, turned back into his human form, and with a heavy heart, shook his hand.
"Good to have you aboard…"
"...Bruce Fenrisulfer.", The Raven droled, and Mr. Fenrisulfer, feeling the kitten necklace in his pocket, looked down without hope.
This was more of a breather chapter, still developing the plot, but taking it easy. Why it took me so long to write I do not know. As you can see, Lori is sort of in an odd balance of being a scary vigilante and a sort of light hero, and this balance will continue to be hard for her over time.
