"I am trusting you with an important mission here, Mr. Stone. I need to be sure that you won't fail me again."
Mr. Stone, sitting in his little broom closet room, the walls sandwiching him quite a bit, seemed a lot smaller than usual. For someone who could look so threatening, he seemed rather harmless here. But he didn't mind feeling small. For all his strength, he could never reach the height he so yearned for. If he had to feel small as punishment until he could, so be it.
His thumbs twiddled as he heard himself reply in the past.
"Boss, I swear on my own devotion to you, I will not fail! The Guardian may have bested me once, but she won't do it a second time!"
The clock on the wall ticked away, tick, tock, tick, tock. Mr. Raven was always talking about time, about how imperative, was that the word, yes, imperative that they would progress in due course. The city rested on his boss' shoulders. Perhaps that was why he was so angry. No one could share his weight, not even Mr. Stone.
"So you say. But time and again, I have seen much will, but no way. How can I save this city from itself if you can't even carry out one task?", Raven had asked, his words logical enough, even if it hurt when he felt his touch.
Mr. Stone whispered the words he had answered to Raven to himself. "You can trust me. I can help too.". He sounded almost like a little boy, scared and alone in his imposing room.
The walls were empty, besides one to do list. It had been hung there for a long, long time. Perhaps today…
"Perhaps today I can check off my list.", Mr. Stone thought, his heart swelling a little. Today was a new day.
Getting off his racecar bed, Mr. Stone took off his PJ's and put on his suit. He liked it. It made him feel just a little grown up.
"All right. You can go. And to prove to me you are truly trustworthy, I want you to carry out one more task.", Raven had said, turning his back to him.
"Of course, boss! Anything!", Mr. Stone had said, too eager to please, like an excited puppy.
"Very well. First, this device. If The Guardian gets her hands on it, she could find her way to the inner labs of Pingrey Enterprises. I located this yesterday, but haven't had a chance to use it. I want you to prove to me you're capable of handling such responsibilities." The Raven held the device between thumb and forefinger. It was so small, black, like a button.
Mr. Stone carefully took it, the device even smaller in his large, rough hands.
"I am trusting you, Mr. Stone.", Raven said with an authoritative whisper.
Mr. Stone, dressed in his suit and hat, lumbering and cumbersome, almost slipped, but stopped himself. He looked at the sunny day with a feeling of hope.
"I won't let you down, boss!", he said to himself, and he cheerfully left off, a group of hired goons walking with him to conduct the mission.
A large yawn, and her arms stretched out to the sky, looser and healthier than ever.
"Oh, man, I feel goooooodddd."
Lori, getting out of bed with air in her chest, greeted the day with vim and vigor.
"I haven't slept this well in years, I think! Everything seems perfect! I don't even feel tired!"
Excited, and happy with herself for once, Lori started flying around the room. Leni, thankfully, was already outside, it being Saturday and all, so there was no worry of being caught.
Humming happily to herself, Lori "backstroked" in the sky, looking outside at the sunny day from her window.
"The weather's nice, I feel strong, I made things up with my siblings, and I even went out on patrol!"
Lori then realized the final statement was false.
"Wait… NO I DIDN'T!"
Crashing down onto the bed, Lori face palmed. "How could I be so irresponsible? Who knows what horrible things could have happened without me? Werewolves, maniacs, and whoever that boss guy is, not to mention all the usual robbers and jerks!"
This was no time to dilly dally. There was work to do! Saturday was a totally free day for her, and while Lori probably would have rathered sleeping in, relaxing, maybe video chatting with Bobby, she had other, more pressing matters at hand.
Rushing to the garage, Lori was happy to see that no one had found her hiding spot yet. "Underneath the carpet that smells like dog poop. Even Lana wouldn't dare touch this!", Lori thought, her nose plugged, as she lifted the carpet and the floor panels underneath with the greatest of ease. Her costume, kept in a zip up jacket of sorts, looked clean and crisp. Lori nodded her head with determination. "Time to get to work."
"Hey, Lori!"
Lori jumped up five feet into the air, lucky not to stay floating. In front of her was Lincoln, clearly a little excited and jittery, as he gazed upon his big sister, who quickly dropped the costume, hoping he wouldn't see it.
"Lincoln! Hi, hello, howdy! Yooooo!", Lori greeted, snapping her fingers. "What's up… Dude?"
"Good Luna impression, Lori!", Lincoln laughed, somehow not noticing Lori's anxious shaking.
"Yeah, thanks!", Lori flashed a thumbs up, smiling her most "innocent" smile. "Say, um, what brings you here?"
"Oh, well, I just wanted to say that I know…"
Lori, eyes wide, let out an ungodly scream, shattering an innocent lightbulb.
"...Okay, that was weird. Anyway, I know that things have been hard recently, what with me being on wheels now, and I thought that maybe now that you were trying to be more present, we could hang out today!", Lincoln explained, eager for a positive response.
Lori, calming down a bit now, looked a little surprised. "You don't usually jump at the opportunity to hang out with one of us, little bro."
Lincoln sheepishly smiled, rubbing the back of his head. "Well, you know, after what happened to me, I've been reevaluating some things."
Lori nodded, all too familiar with that feeling. "Yeah. That sounds about right."
"And, well, I feel like we're doing better, and I wanted to just have a nice day with you! I can't remember the last time we hung out!"
Lori had to agree, and truthfully, she thought it sounded like fun. But how could she make up for her missed patrols? And crucially, how could she be good enough for Lincoln if her focus was split?
"Well, I DID say I would try. I can't just fall at the first hurdle.", Lori thought, clenching her first. "I can't say no to him, and I won't! If I'm going to be a better sister as well, I need to sink my teeth into the challenge!"
Turning around, Lori smiled warmly. She had quickly placed her costume in it's zip up jacket again, and let it rest on the floor for a moment. Rubbing her hands in determination, she looked at Lincoln, who seemed very relieved and grateful. "So, where do you wanna go, Linc?"
"Well, first I thought we could go to the comic book store!"
Lincoln, sitting in the shotgun seat next to Lori ("Shotgun!" "As if the driver's seat is even an option" "I'm a fast learner"), started explaining what he was hoping to do today with her. He was a bit bouncy, but he couldn't stimm too hard, since it still hurt a lot to move.
Lori rolled her eyes affectionately. "What a twist!"
Lincoln seemed unsure now, and worried. "Oh, sorry, would that bore you? We could do something else! I don't wanna be selfish…"
"What? No, no, it's not like that!", Lori answered, before swerving dangerously from a truck. Angry, she stuck her head out. "LISTEN YOU SHITHEAD, JUST BECAUSE SOME OF US HAVE SUPER STRENGTH DOESN'T MEAN YOU CAN DRIVE LIKE A MANIAC!", She barked, biting the air aggressively, before realizing Lincoln was right next to her.
"Lori, just because you golf doesn't mean you have super strength.", Lincoln joked, and Lori sighed in relief. "Yeah, well, I should have a censor button. Let's pretend I said Poo Poo head, please?"
"Sure thing. But, um, what were you saying before?"
"Oh, um, I was trying to say that no, of course that's not boring to me! In fact, I'd say I'm becoming quite the expert on superheroes!", Lori flaunted, pursing her lips proudly.
"Oh, really? What's the name of Ace Savey's sidekick?", Lincoln asked, eyebrows cocked.
"Easy! Spongebob Squarepants!", Lori snapped her fingers, feeling clever.
"Spongebob's not a superhero!", Lincoln snorted in response.
"Wait, he isn't? What the hell is he then?"
"He's a sponge."
"Gee, thanks for telling me!", Lori stuck her tongue out, and the two laughed. Lincoln seemed just a little more at ease. "Well, I'm happy to hear that! I think we could have fun there!"
Lori couldn't help but wonder if it would feel weird, now that she was a real life superhero. But she also couldn't help but feel fear again. WOULD they have fun? Lori was more than willing to be a good sister, but she had to be a good hero too! What if she saw someone robbing a store nearby? It was happening so frequently, the chances were she'd have to intervene.
Would she end up hurting Lincoln's feelings?
"And after that, I was thinking of going to Gus' Games and Grub! I bet I could beat you at all the games!", Lincoln bragged cockily, and Lori smirked at him in response. "In your dreams, Lincoln!"
Lincoln then seemed worried again, and added "Oh, but, I think you should choose something too! I don't wanna choose all the places we go to! I don't wanna be selfish.", he repeated, biting his lip.
"What was worrying him?", Lori thought, as she looked at him with an understanding smile. "Hey, Linc, it's okay! You have every right to be a little selfish! I mean, with what you've been through…"
The words faded as Lori flash backed to that horrible day. His pain, his fears now, created by her.
"...This is the least you deserve."
Lincoln, seeing the sad, heartbroken look in her eyes, felt even worse. "She's sad because of what happened to me. Is spending time with her making her feel worse? Seeing me like this? I don't wanna make Lori sad."
The two siblings sighed melancholically, as they passed a subway entrance. "I hope I won't ruin it for her.", Lincoln thought. "I hope I won't ruin it for him.", Lori thought.
"What will it be, sir?", the ticket lady asked, her glasses drooping as she looked up at the giant man and his companions before her.
"The Guardian, wrapped up all nice for my boss!", Mr. Stone declared, trying his evilest laugh.
"...Very nice, but I was referring to tickets, sir."
"Whoops, sorry!", Mr. Stone apologized, rubbing the back of his head. He turned back to his men, a trio of normal guys, staring around the place searching for a hint of the masked obstacle. "Hey, guys, what side of town do we want?"
"I mean, she's usually around our district, no?", asked the first guy, Digger, who had sandy hair and a Dora the Explorer shirt forever drenched in sweat.
"Yeah, but she was also at Royal Woods High! Maybe THAT'S where we'll find her!", Po, an Asian man with frazzled hair and an excited grin, suggested. He was pumped to find The Guardian and succeed.
"Po, it's Saturday! She'll probably be at the mall or somethin'!", Wedge, a stick like man with a New York accent corrected.
"At the mall?", Mr. Stone asked, scratching his head.
"Teens, man, they love that place."
"Dude, WE love that place too! That's where we get our frozen yogurt!", Digger reminded.
"The one with the sprinkles, or the one with the little colorful things?", Wedge asked, abrasively.
"That's the same thing, no?", Mr. Stone asked. All 4 looked back at the ticket lady, who sighed. "Yes. Yes it is."
"Okay, so we're in agreement: Fro yo with sprinkles, which are also little colorful things?", Mr. Stone asked, and the rest nodded happily. Mr. Stone smiled, he liked treating his goons.
"All aboard then! Next stop: Yummy!"
The four were soon on the subway, happily passing the time. Mr. Stone was bouncing his knees, humming a song he had heard on the way, Po was braiding Digger's hair, and Digger and Wedge were engaged in a fierce debate.
"I'm tellin' ya, Dora the Explora is dyin' to Goku, she's got nothin' on him, man!"
"Wedge, you watch every episode three times with your kids? Sit down!"
"I am sittin' down, and so is Dora once Goku goes literally ape on her! She needs help from the audience for pete's sake!"
"YOU DON'T KNOW HER, YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT SHE'S BEEN THROUGH!"
"How's that look?", Po asked, showing Digger a mirror.
"Oh, fantastic! I look pretty!", Digger replied, and everyone nodded enthusiastically.
"There's our stop!", Mr. Stone pointed out, and the thugs all got out of the underground, blinded by the bright lights. The Mall was right in front of them, large and imposing.
"Boss is gonna love it when we get him the fro yo!", Mr. Stone said, excited.
"...Wait, weren't we after The Guardian?", Po asked, rubbing his chin.
"...Poo Poo.", Mr. Stone replied, face palming.
"Nothing like the smell of a gas station to start off a perfect day.", Lori thought sarcastically as she parked near a navy blue gas station and cream colored convenience store. Lincoln didn't seem to mind, thankfully, but she did. Precious time wasted, wasted when she knew that she would surely need to leave at one point to fight crime.
"In that case, I gotta think of a way to treat him at least a little. A little can go a long way, after all.", Lori thought, spotting the convenience store. "Bingo!"
Quickly removing about five dollars from her purse, Lori shoved them in Lincoln's hands, after placing him in his wheelchair. "Say, why don't you buy yourself a snack while I do this totally cool filling up?", Lori winked, smiling a fake smile for the jokes.
"Yeah, totally cool. I'm REALLY getting the short end of the stick. Woe is me, do I pick pretzels or chips?", Lincoln joked back, dramatically sighing.
"Na, na, na, I get to sniff all this and you don't!", Lori "mocked", taking a big sniff before coughing heavily, making Lincoln laugh and feel slightly better. They were having fun, they hadn't quarreld at all, and most importantly, Lori seemed happy and not at all depressed by his condition!
"Maybe you can join up once you're done! We can choose together!", Lincoln offered, and Lori liked the idea, so she nodded.
"She wants to be with me!", Lincoln thought, as he rolled into the store, disappearing from Lori's line of sight.
Lori was beaming. Lincoln seemed happy, and not weirdly sad! She must be doing something right, then! Whistling to herself, she filled up Vanzilla, and congratulated herself. "Who's a good sister? Uh huh, oh yeah, that's me, it's my birthday!". She shook her hips and closed her eyes, and when she opened them, she stopped dancing for a pretty good reason.
The driver in the car right next to hers was being held up at gunpoint.
"Gimme all you got in the bag, lady, and no one gets hurt, capisce?", the robber said, his hands steady as his gun.
"Does that include the coupons? Because I don't mind giving away the hair salon one, especially after what Janine did!", the driver replied, pointing inside her purse.
"...I shouldn't be, but I am deathly curious now, what did Janine do?"
"She wore crocs at a FUNERAL!"
Lori looked back and forth in worry. She knew she had to stop the crime, but she hadn't expected it so early. She'd have to do it quicker than usual, so as to not leave Lincoln on his own, or reveal her identity. She raced to get the zip up jacket from the back of the car.
"Jeez! Maybe I should have robbed her instead! The nerve!", the robber replied in the meanwhile, looking disgusted.
"Yeah, I have her address right here…", the driver fished through her purse, but was stopped short by an authoritative voice.
"While I agree that's a fashion crime of the highest offence, I'm going to have to stop you, and leave you with a warning." The Guardian announced, her cape floating in the wind, leaves flying away from her.
"The Guardian? I thought you only come out at night!", The robber shouted, aiming his gun at her, panicking.
Guardian reacted quickly, however, snatching the gun from his hands and unloading the bullets. "I made a special exception for you." Holding the now mostly harmless weapon, she threw it up in the air to distract him, and stomped hard on his foot, making him scream.
Inside the store, the scream couldn't be heard, thanks to "Bad Blood" blasting loudly over the store radio. Lincoln, nodding his head quietly, grabbed a bag of bean chips for Lori and was still mulling over what he wanted, when he suddenly caught a glimpse of the bored clerk, and recognized her. Waving as he wheeled over with the chips, he greeted her. "Hey… Shannon, right? From the Guava club?"
"Hey, kid I never met before.", Shannon replied, a little confused, but mostly bored. "I'd ask what brings you here, but that would start a conversation, and I could break out in hives. You wouldn't want to see that."
"Oh, we haven't met, technically, but I know you! My sister Luan's in your club!", Lincoln explained, placing the bean chips down.
"Oh, yeah, Luan, she's nice!", Shannon replied, a small smile on her lips. "She's already managed to get everyone to come over to her house. I've seen less energetic nuclear fusions.", she laughed a little to herself, snorting.
"Huh. I don't remember you coming over.", Lincoln asked, confused.
Shannon looked a little embarrassed now, and she rubbed the back of her head. "Well, it's not that I don't want to, per say, just… I'm not really someone who gets invited to places. So that's new."
"New things can be exciting, though! That's what I learned once, on a highly educational day of my life! You'd be surprised at how common life lessons are, if you apply yourself enough and also just hang out with your friends.", Lincoln professed, trying to appear wise.
"I'm on the honor roll, thank you. I am quite learned."
Shannon then looked a little sad. "But even then, I doubt I'd be much of a fun guest. I kick ass at Trivial Pursuit, but that's not exactly trending on Myspace."
"No one uses Myspace anymore.", Lincoln replied dryly, and Shannon cursed. "Damn it. See?"
Lincoln nodded. "I understand how you feel. I'm afraid of being a party pooper today."
Shannon wouldn't normally ask, but she felt that perhaps she should, for once. "How come?"
"Oh, well, as you can see, I'm kind of wheelchair bound for a bit, and well, my big sister Lori's been really sad because of it. She even struggles to sleep from the worry! We're hanging out today, and I really want her to have a good time. Hopefully, she'll come here soon, and we can buy some stuff together! I think that could be fun!", Lincoln explained, looking concerned, as he held the bean chips and looked at them instead of at Shannon.
Shannon couldn't help but smile at that. What a sweet kid. "Aww, that's very thoughtful of you! I doubt I would have thought of that at first, but then again, I don't have friends or siblings, so maybe I would? Not enough information to reach a convincing hypothesis here."
"Well, maybe Luan can be your first friend! I'm sure she'd love to!", Lincoln offered reassuringly, and Shannon nodded thoughtfully. "Maybe… It would definitely help me with my Rex problem. I'll think about it!"
Lincoln then noticed a newspaper with a headline about The Guardian, an opinion article about whether or not Officer Griffin was right to be suspicious of the hero. "Darn, whoever wrote that is an idiot."
"That's my mom.", Shannon said, raising an eyebrow, and Lincoln blushed in embarrassment. "I am SO sorry!"
Shannon then snorted again, easing Lincoln's conscience. "Oh, don't worry, I happen to agree!"
"Really?"
"Yeah! The Guardian's out there being proactive! It's like I keep telling my mom, if crime is a disease, and your white blood cells, i.e, the police, aren't handling it well enough, why NOT strengthen your defences with a booster like The Guardian?", Shannon explained, pushing her glasses up and sounding very scientific.
"Yeah, exactly!", Lincoln replied. "And she's super cool, and has a cape and goes all pa pow! Bam!", he enthused, punching the air.
"Yeah, that too. But my mom, ugh! She keeps talking about how "the police aren't being effective" and "crime is at an all time high", and then she focuses all her attention on The Guardian! Like, hello? Priorities?", Shannon mocked her mom. She then sighed thoughtfully. "She clearly cares so much to put herself in harm's way. I wish I could be more like her."
"Well, it's never too late to start! You already seem pretty cool in my eyes!", Lincoln said, and Shannon grinned toothily in response. "Thanks! You, um, too!"
Meanwhile, the battle between The Guardian and the Robber waged on. The Robber kept swinging and missing, as The Guardian tried her best to dodge each hit.
"Come back here so I can hit you!", The Robber shouted, frustrated.
"See, with that intelligence, no wonder you picked a life of crime!", Guardian growled. She was annoyed at how she was bound to let Lincoln down like this, but also at the callousness of the robber. Lori recognized designer clothes, and that's exactly what he had on. He wasn't some down on his luck guy who needed help, he was greedy and selfish. Everything she never wanted to be again.
Unfortunately, she got distracted with her thoughts, and slipped on her cape, falling on her butt. "Ow!", she remarked, seething.
"Ha! Now I got you!", The Robber crowed, preparing his foot to kick her.
The Guardian knew she had to think quickly. Looking around, she saw a gas nozzle right next to her and aimed it at The Robber. "Back off. Now.", she growled, sounding furious at his whole personality.
The Robber had heard of The Guardian's fear factor, and stepped back. "Okay, okay, just don't use that thing!"
"Keep moving back!", The Guardian cried, as he kept stepping back. "I am, I am!"
"Okay.", The Guardian put the nozzle down…
Then flew super fast and appeared behind The Robber, smacking him unconscious with one strong hit.
"Nighty night."
Standing over him, The Guardian sighed in relief. Another good deed done.
"This guy is dangerous, though. He could have run at any time, but he was willing to fight me, AND rob that other woman for the crocs. I should fly him over to the station with a note about him."
And so, she did just that, and when she returned, costume back in the zip up jacket and eye shadow mostly rubbed off, she found Lincoln in the store, about to choose something for himself.
"Hey, Lori! You were out for a while, are you… Woah, ARE you okay?", Lincoln asked, and Lori didn't understand what he meant. "Yeah, why wouldn't it be?"
"You look like you've been, um, well…", Lincoln didn't finish, but Lori managed to catch a sight of a bit of eye shadow left over from her fight. Panicking, she rubbed it off and lied through gritted teeth. "Oh, what, this? I was, um, bothered by the gas fumes! Had to go and wash my face in the bathroom."
"But your eyes are so black. I thought you had slept better."
"Oh, I did! I guess the fumes made me cry a bit or something, heh.", Lori tried, hoping that would work.
Lincoln knew a lie when he heard one. Lori was upset, because of him. She was hurting from seeing him like this. "Stupid, selfish Lincoln.", he thought, and he decided to only buy bean chips then.
"Hey, where's your snack?", Lori asked as he left with her.
"I… Wasn't hungry.", Lincoln responded, badly lying as well.
Lori looked away, now actually feeling like crying. Lincoln seemed so upset! Was it because she hadn't come with him to the store? Oh, if only she could make it better!
But how? How?
"I can't believe I got sidetracked like that!"
Mr. Stone and his goons were walking dejectedly around the mall, no fro yo to cheer them up cause they all felt bad.
"Yeah, me too, I can't believe you got sidetracked like that!", Wedge insulted, deflecting the blame.
"I can't believe the wax on this floor! I can see my face!", Po pointed at the floor. "I wonder if we can get copyright on that."
"Guys, we're not in this for the money!", Digger yelled, before remembering why they had joined the team. "Oh, wait, yeah, we are. Well, anyone go to law school?"
"I'm banned from all law schools. You're welcome.", Wedge bragged, but no one was sure what was so impressive about that.
"I'm going to let down the boss, just like he feared I would! I'm a bad henchman!", Mr. Stone bemoaned, sitting down and moping on the fountain. He looked at his reflection. Such an ugly, stupid, useless man. What family would ever accept him? What kind of person would care about him?
"I'm sorry I dragged you into this, fellers. You can run off if you want.", he said quietly.
The trio couldn't help but feel a little sad for Mr. Stone though, even if the day so far had been a serious waste of time.
"Hey, chin up, big guy! Day's not over, we could still get this right!", Digger reminded optimistically. "As Long John Silver's always says, "We speak fish"! I'm sure that means something!"
"It really doesn't.", Wedge retorted.
"I like fish.", Mr. Stone nodded.
"My cousin met a fish once. He was a certified public accountant.", Po contributed to the conversation.
Mr. Stone smiled and stood up. "You're right, guys! We can't give up yet! Let's find that blonde teenager of seemingly average height and build who wears a hoodie!"
"Yeah! How many of those are there, 3? 2? 3?", Wedge said confidently.
Suddenly, Mr. Stone's eyes caught one just like that.
Pointing dramatically, he shouted above the 2010's pop song you've already forgotten exists. "Guardian! 19:32 and 26 seconds!"
Immediately, the foursome tip toed exaggeratedly towards the girl. Mr. Stone then carefully tapped her shoulder. "Excuse me, Ms. The Guardian, but we kind of need to hold you prisoner, not for long, just a few hours or so in an underground facility, is that all right? We can come another day if your schedule is full!"
"Yeah! No one wants to be detained at an inopportune time! It's just upsetting for everyone!", Digger added.
"And rude!", Po nodded.
"Besides, Subway tickets cost a lot, so like, yeah.", Wedge finished.
"The Guardian" turned, making everyone jump and do silly karate poses.
She lifted her hand, and…
"Hey! Welcome to "Reininger's"! I'm Leni Loud, how may I be of service?"
The foursome stopped their poses, and realized the teen in front of them, a very cheerful girl in a seafoam green dress and with rounded white sunglasses on her head, was definitely NOT The Guardian. For one, she wasn't beating them up, or wearing her costume, or using any of her powers.
Huh, guess that's all the evidence really.
Mr. Stone took off his cap in apology, before realizing he didn't actually wear one. He quickly borrowed one from a nearby shelf. "I am deeply sorry, Ms. Loud! I was sure you were a different blonde teenager of seemingly average height and build who wears a hoodie! Now that I think of it, you weren't even wearing a hoodie!"
"How did any of us graduate?", Digger thought out loud.
"Jokes on you, I didn't start school, so I never failed to!", Wedge bragged, pointing at his big brain.
"Oh, no worries! I just wish I could help you out now that you approached me! I wouldn't wanna leave you with an empty feeling!", Leni smiled brightly, almost blinding with the light from her teeth.
"Oh, I know how you feel! We should think of something, guys!", Mr. Stone said in alarm, urging them to come up with an idea.
"Well, this IS a clothing store!", Po pointed out. "Maybe she could show us the way to the Fro Yo store!"
"What does that have to do with clothes?", Wedge put his arms on his hips in annoyance.
"I panicked, and when I panic, I get hungry.", Po explained.
"I can totes do that! But, like, what else can I do? Oooh!", Leni enthused, excited. She giddily bounced. "What if I gave you awesome outfits? No offense, but you look kinda... Shabby, and if you need to find The Guardian, you should totes have awesome uniforms, so you won't feel out of place!"
Mr. Stone and the others happily agreed. "It might even get her to come to us!"
"Yeah!", Leni and the four men jumped up in the air.
For the next half hour, they went around the store, finding overalls and hard helmets and work boots in the "Construction worker costumes that look like they could fit in an action movie" aisle.
"I told Fiona and Miguel this would come in handy one day!", Leni thought to herself, as she judged each outfit.
Digger ended up with an orange vest with white sleeves (though he kept the Dora the Explorer shit over the vest, saying it was for his kids), a yellow hard helmet, and two toy digger bucket's attached to his arms as if they were his hands. "If my ex-wife could see me now!", he bragged.
Po got a lime green vest and headphones to protect his ears, the headphones carrying imprints of mushrooms, "Because Mushroom clouds are in explosions, and they are also very cute!". He also had fake bombs to throw, not that they really hurt, but they were mildly distracting, and that was better than nothing.
Wedge was dressed like a giant pneumatic drill. Nothing more had to be said.
And Mr. Stone was a little harder to figure out, but Leni decided she could give him a hat, cause he really liked the one he borrowed.
"Thanks for the clothes! And the directions!", Mr. Stone thanked Leni, and she waved to them goodbye.
"She was very nice!", Po said, eating his fro yo.
"Lovely!", Wedge added.
"Yeah!", Mr. Stone exclaimed, and everyone sighed happily.
"...Well, time to kidnap someone!", they all said, with no hint of irony or self awareness.
Vanzilla seemed less energetic as it parked near the comic book store. As it skidded to a stop, Lori, who had seen how silent Lincoln was, tried to spark some life into their day. "Hey, um, we're here! Yay!", she announced, throwing her arms up in the air. "You ready to do all your geek stuff?"
Lincoln sighed a little. "Yeah, I am.", he seemed oddly preoccupied with her eyes. Lori tried to energize him again. "So, um, what's the color of the underwear on the superhero you're planning to read?"
Lincoln allowed himself a small smile, but he seemed worried still. He shifted uncomfortably in his seat. "Um, Lori, if you prefer, I can go on my own and then come back, and I can show you what I got in here. If you prefer. Do you?"
Lori's eyes widened, and she got out of the car immediately, adamant in proving him wrong. "What? Why would I want that? Linc, I literally want to come! Really!"
"Lori, you don't need to…", Lincoln started, but Lori frowned. She was NOT going to be a bad sister! Heck, it's not like she was lying! She really DID want to come!
"Show, not tell.", she thought, and, light in her eyes, she grabbed her phone, and showed it to Lincoln. "Lincoln, do you know what this is?"
"...A phone, Lori, I'm on a wheelchair, not braindead."
Lori stifled a laugh at his dry humor, and Lincoln had a wry smile too.
"Okay, yes, duh, but what I mean is that this is MY phone. I think we all know I have a BIT of an attachment to it."
"Lori, IT filed a restraining order on you once!", Lincoln remembered, chuckling.
Lori rubbed the back of her head. "I should have known the "self awareness" app was a bad idea. It DID look dashing in a suit.", she then shook her head to focus. "But moving on, you know that I would NEVER shut it off!"
"Yeah, it's just a certainty of life, like death, taxes, and videos that buffer the moment you want to show them to someone.", Lincoln listed off.
"Well, not anymore!", Lori announced, and she shut her phone off. The light going off was so unfamiliar to her, it nearly blinded her.
Lincoln's jaw hit the floor. "Holy Moley! Lori, are you okay? Do you need to lie down?"
"No, Lincoln. I want to be with you. My phone can shove it! Well, it can't, physically, but you know what i mean!", Lori said, and Lincoln felt very warm in his heart. As Lori helped him into his chair, he was quietly appreciative. Maybe she WASN'T sad after all!
"Well, I hope you're ready for me to talk your ear off! Because I have a LOT of comics to show you!", Lincoln started stimming, and Lori looked at him lovingly. "Like "The Flabbergasting Grunk! He's a normal guy who if he gets too cocky, turns into a giant man baby! Makes it hard to fight crime."
"I would assume. I mean, he has to carry around a giant diaper, and he probably needs naps…", Lori replied, joking, and Lincoln waved her off. "Uh, duh, that would be so dumb!"
"And what, Red Flashlight isn't? He waves a red flashlight, and the shadows turn into weapons he can use?", Lori started, before scratching her chin in thought. "Actually, that kinda sounds cool now that I say it out loud."
"I mean, it WAS.", Lincoln stated flatly.
"Ooooh, I sense some DRAMA.", Lori ennounciated, snickering. "Rant to me, oh sage of superheroes!"
"Oh, WHERE do I begin?", Lincoln rolled his eyes, grateful Lori wanted to listen to him. "First of all, they make him evil in the 90's because it's SO EDGY AND COOL. It's not cool to practically genocide your entire corps! And then, like, he was brainwashed? Way to cop out! And then it takes years, literal years to get him back, but they keep rebooting the series every few years, which makes every story pointless! Like, it's not even Red Flashlight anymore! They gave Superlative Dude a son, and it was really interesting, and made him feel human, and then they just made him go with the evil step dad and grow up and shit because… Reasons? And they keep making Flying Rodent Man kill in movies and stuff! HE HAS ONE RULE! HOW HARD IS IT TO FORGET?!"
Lori stared, impressed. "Wow. You're really passionate about this."
Lincoln seemed flustered for a second. "Yeah. Silly, I know."
"...Actually, I think that's really cool.", Lori replied, with a proud smile.
Lincoln didn't know what to say, so he just smiled back.
"Ooh, I wonder if they'll have any Guardian stuff here!", Lincoln crowed, and Lori couldn't stop her curiosity. "Oh, yeah, her! Um… What do you think about her?"
"Oh, I think she's…", Lincoln started, when suddenly, they were interrupted by a loud, energetic, bouncy voice.
"THE GREATEST!"
Lori and Lincoln's heads were turned by the voice, and they finally entered the store, only to be surprised by a wave of black and blue. About 15 nerdy guys and girls were sort of crowding the comic book store, eyes firmly set on a familiar 14 year old talking over near the checkout counter, the owner of the store hanging up behind her a board with fan art of The Guardian.
"Wait, what?", Lori uttered out loud by accident, while Lincoln excitedly ooh'd at the rest of the store. "Check it out, Lori! They have Guardian cosplays!"
Lori could barely believe it, as she saw it. People of all weights, shapes, sizes, and places, dressed like her. A tall Muslim girl with her hijab substituting for the hoodie top waved at them, a trans man stood with his boyfriend, both dressed like her, sharing a quick kiss, and behind her, a glasses wearing non binary fan was regaling their younger sister with their fanfic.
"I… She already has fans?", Lori voiced out loud. Lincoln elbowed her. "I mean, duh! They like her, I like her, she's awesome, Lori! We have an actual superhero in town!"
"You like her?", Lori asked quietly, doubt creeping in.
"Yeah! She saves people!", was Lincoln's simple response, but it was less simple for Lori, who stared around, eyes locking on the speech giver, who's identity shouldn't have surprised her.
It was Lyberti, of course, wearing a press hat over her curly black hair and near her red bow. Her light green dress stood out in the sea of black and blue, and her red boots could hardly stay still as she proudly talked of the night The Guardian saved her.
"There I was, with my dad, trapped by that weirdo, I think his name was Mr. E, whatever that means. And boy, I tell you, it was scar-eee! Like, it was our apartment, all right, but it was so dark and spooky, and I also had some chicken nuggies waiting in my room, so there was a ticking clock here."
Lyberti made swooshing sounds with her hands as she tried to replicate the action that followed. Lori couldn't help but smile at the demonstration, even if it felt quite unearned. She was just starting out at becoming a better person, and many parts of Lori were still unsure she could ever truly get there. So could she really inspire people already?
"And then, we heard the smallest "thud" (Lyberti hopped to make the sound), and I'm like "is it a birb? I like birbs, maybe it can peck the guy and stop him" but it wasn't a birb, it was The Guardian! I saw her costume upgrade first, by the way, pretty cool, I know.", she bragged, clearly enjoying the rare amount of attention. While she hadn't done anything, she had just been rescued, it felt like she had finally "done" something meaningful. After all, her scoops were constantly rejected by the paper due to her age. This was better than nothing, so much better. People were actually noticing her, thought she was actually kinda cool too. It made her usually sparkling eyes sparkle just a bit more.
"And then she was all "wha pow! Yoooo! Bangi bangi bangi! Ora ora ora!", Lyberti illustrated the fight, sort of, and the cosplayers all ooh'd and aah'd at the display.
"What fight were you seeing.", Lori thought to herself with a fond expression.
Lyberti then put a hand to her heart as she smiled gratefully. "But the best part was when she saved me! She untied me and my dad, and she was all so concerned, asking how she can make it up to us, asking if we were okay! It was like, I really mattered… To her. Like, it's so crazy, right? She's this hero, who risks her life to save people and stop criminals, and I'm just…", Lyberti stopped talking, and a feeling of emptiness was apparent in her eyes. Could she ever do important things too? Could she ever be someone?
She cleared her throat, and brushed it off, for now. "Anyway, I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for her. If she was here, I'd just want to… To thank her. She's a real hero."
Lori tried not to shed a tear, but she felt a momentary light in her heart, hearing that. She still had a long way to go, especially with Lincoln, and she was still so worried about today. But knowing that Lyberti was alive and well, that was truly something special.
"She is NOT a hero."
The sharp, sudden claim was like a bolt of lightning, and everyone in the store jumped. Heads swiveled to the store entrance, to find none other than Officer Griffin, wearing a serious and sour expression, standing in the doorway, disgust in her tone. She slowly stepped inside the place, staring at everyone in there with judgement.
"This city's had a vigilante for what, 12 days, and already she's got admirers? You people really think this is how the world works? Just put on a mask, and beat up criminals?"
Lincoln rolled his eyes, but he didn't want to say anything, in fear of angering the woman. Lori, meanwhile, didn't wave off the words. She hated hearing criticism, and she didn't exactly agree with this, but she herself held much doubt. She could understand why someone like this would.
Lyberti, meanwhile, didn't agree. "That's not all she does! She saves people!"
"Saves people. That's just a side effect! We have thugs in hospital beds all over town! And you wear her costume like she's some sort of, of, of pop star?", Officer Griffin retorted. She was frankly, quite tired, having spent the recent days trying to get a peep out of all those wounded criminals about The Guardian, any information, really. But she had nada. The vigilante was scary, dangerous, violent, and breaking the law. Was she really the only one who cared about the rules?
Lyberti, not usually so brave, and already sweating from the negative attention, tried to speak the truth, stuttering as she did. "Well, um… You see… I…"
But she couldn't muster it. The disapproving look was too much. What could Lyberti say? She was just some girl.
"As I thought. Can't even come up with an excuse. The Guardian is a danger to this city, people. Don't get too attached. The police will take her down soon enough."
Lori didn't voice any protests herself. As always, she was on a sliding scale of pride, pain, guilt, and determination. Right now, she just wanted to focus on making Lincoln's day. And at least, it seemed like things were improving…
"HELP ME! HELP ME!"
Screams of agony suddenly blasted into the store, now that no one was talking. Alongside the screams were clear as crystal sounds of violence, punches and kicks that reverberated across the room. Everyone was taken aback by them, with only two managing to react: Lyberti, who exclaimed "That sounds like Leo!" and Lori, who had disappeared in a flash, no one even noticing she was gone.
"I'll be back ASAP, Lincoln, I promise.", she thought to herself, as she ducked to the other side alley, and put on her costume in near record speed. Despite this, she could hear the pain in Leo's voice. "Gotta train at this, gotta be faster.", she noted, as she put on her hood and rushed to the scene.
Leo was a round boy, with tan skin, and shot brown hair styled into a fauxhawk. To those who wallowed in shallow waters, he would have been deemed unattractive, different, odd. It didn't help that he was also more feminine than people liked. Those who mattered didn't mind that, of course.
But there were those who did, and they did not show much compassion.
His attacker didn't mince his words, he preferred to use his fists. There was no need to tell him anything, anyway, for his feelings were clear. Leo had shouted a fair bit, but no one seemed to hear him, which was far more scary than the man in front of him. Leo wasn't getting any stupid thoughts, of course, he wasn't about to assume no one cared to come to his rescue.
But he definitely wished he hadn't needed any in the first place.
Another punch to the nose, another to the stomach. How many times had he gasped for air, only to receive another strike? He had lost count. Surely soon he would lost consciousness. What then? He hoped his mother wouldn't worry too much. He hated to make her worry over nothing.
"You had enough? Huh? You had enough?", were the first words he had heard the entire attack. His victimizer grinned a bit, and blood seemed to glimmer on his knuckles.
"He certainly has."
The low growl surprised both of them. Leo was barely able to keep his eyes open, but what he saw was startling and weirdly reassuring. A blue cape was scraping the ground as he began to hear punches, and he could make out a big blue G when the figure turned around slightly. Wasn't that The Guardian Lyberti wouldn't stop talking about? She made Lyberti happy. Leo smiled, approving, as he took a minute to breath.
"You think it's okay to hurt innocent people? You think it's okay to hurt people not like you?", The Guardian shouted, smashing the culprit's face both ways, before uppercutting his jaw hard. A tooth flew out.
"They all said you were scary. You're just some stupid girl who cares! What, trying to be kind?", the asshole mocked, trying to regain his upper edge, and he swiped at The Guardian's feet, sending her down for a second, which made her cut her cheek, nothing too painful, but still. Being taken by surprise could still hurt her. But the words affected more.
The Guardian's eyes narrowed, and her heart pounded, and the asshole suddenly knew true fear.
She got up, smashing him onto a wall, and spoke in a voice far more serious than any he had ever heard. "Yes. And my act of kindness to you is not breaking every bone in your body. But maybe I won't be so gentle next time."
"Enough!"
The Guardian turned around, and saw a crowd emerge. Her fans, most awe stricken and cheering, some others from the store, now a bit more scared and at least recognizing her violence, Lincoln, who looked at Leo, and knew in his heart that The Guardian was in the right, Lyberti, who rushed to Leo's aid, and Officer Griffin, who rushed to scold the vigilante.
"I should arrest you right here, right now. Unfortunately, I'm the only one approving of a warrant.", Griffin growled at her, as The Guardian let go of the violent jerk.
The Guardian didn't want to say anything. She knew what was important right now anyway.
"If you really want to do good, you should hand yourself in.", Griffin added.
The Guardian gave her one stare, then whispered "We both have something more important to do. But don't worry. I'll do it for you."
And so, The Guardian walked over to Leo, and helped him up, Lyberti letting Leo rest his arm on her shoulder.
"Are you going to be okay? Do you need me to walk you to the hospital?", The Guardian asked, softening her voice, ignoring what she had to do for Lincoln for now. Leo looked badly hurt, his nose nearly broken, and both eyes sunken.
"No, it's okay. You did more than enough. Thank you.", Leo replied, gratefully.
Guardian smiled. "Just doin' my job."
Lyberti stared at her friend in worry, then at her hero in shame. "If I had heard him sooner, instead of being so distracted in there…"
Guardian knew that feeling all too well. She looked right into Lyberti's eyes and encouraged her. "Accidents happen. I'm sure that when it counts, you'll make the right, kind choices, Ms. Evans, even when it's hard."
"...What makes you think that?", Lyberti asked in confusion, as she picked Leo up with both arms, carrying him. It seemed to be straining her, but she didn't mind, if it meant helping her friend.
Guardian noticed that, and her suspicions proved true. "Just a feeling."
With that, she quickly flew off so she could change back into Lori, and meet up with Lincoln, most of the crowd cheering her as she set off, Officer Griffin thinking to her words, and trying to find fault in them. She was failing, so far.
When Lori came back to Lincoln, though, things took a turn for the worst.
"Lori! Where were you? I got worried…", Lincoln started, now back in the store, when he saw the cut on her face.
Lori panted, hoping he'd buy her lie. "I had to, um, vomit, like, literally a lot! I think those bean chips did something to me. Gas stations, huh?"
She noticed that he seemed… Almost terrified?
"...How'd you get that cut, Lori?"
Lori gulped. If Lincoln suspected… He could connect the dots…
"Oh, um… I f-fell! Y-yeah, totally fell!"
Lincoln knew that was logical, but he didn't want to listen to logic. This only strengthened his fears about Lori's sadness from him. She was crying, she kept running off, now she was hurt? He saw her stutter and gulp, was she lying? Why would she lie, unless…
She was hurting herself.
"...Lori, you know, all the excitement kinda drained me. Could we… Could we go to Gus' Games and Grub now? Maybe get you something to eat?", Lincoln asked, his voice as small as the tears budding in his eyes.
"Oh, if that's what you want!", Lori nodded, eager to please. "But didn't you want to buy a comic?"
"...Maybe another time."
Lincoln rolled off, moving towards Vanzilla. Lori felt horrible. Why was he like this? He seemed miserable again!
Refusing to leave without at least buying him one thing, though, Lori reached for a comic book with a name he had mentioned before, hoping it would be a nice surprise.
"Wow. This is bad, even for me."
Mr. Stone and his crew, all slumping on their bar stools at Gus' Games and Grub, sighed vocally, sipping sadly on milk with their straws, at least, as sadly as one could do that. They had traversed most of the city, but had found no trace of The Guardian, and no peep of her activities from anyone else. Had she not gone on her patrol? Was the day a complete waste? So it seemed.
"Maybe if we wish really hard, she'll come!", Po wondered aloud.
"I already did that earlier at the wishing well in the mall. No dice.", Digger replied.
"I can buy you some if you need.", Mr. Stone offered helpfully.
"Sir, you've had enough milk.", Gus, as in of Gus' Games and Grub, tried to take away the cup from Wedge, who violently took it back. "I'll tell you when I've had enough!"
A loud, ominous growl came from his stomach, and he clenched it. "Never mind, I have. No one enter the little goon's room for a while!", he cried, rushing off to the toilets. Gus cringed.
"Boss is gonna be so upset with me. You guys okay if I take a moment to rehearse my apology?", Mr. Stone asked, and the others nodded in understanding.
Mr. Stone got up, and, with heavy steps, walked outside the store, alone with his thoughts. He didn't kick at the leaves, as he didn't want to hurt them.
"Maybe this is punishment for hurting the doctor guy. Boss told me to do it, I didn't want to let him down. Maybe it's because I failed to hurt him properly, that's why I'm being punished."
He sat down, head on his arms. "I just hate hurting people, and letting them down. I'm sorry, Boss, I didn't mean to fail you again. I understand if you want me to go. I'm sure I can find a nice box to live in, until I get my act together. Unless you prefer no box. I'll do that, then, promise."
Suddenly, Mr. Stone heard small sobs above his head. Staring at the roof of the establishment, he could scarcely believe his eyes. It was The Guardian, in the flesh, crying quietly in her arms.
The reason had occurred only a few minutes ago:
"So… You wanna eat first, or play some games?", Lori asked, trying to keep a smile on her face, thought it felt artificial.
Lincoln shrugged. "I don't know…". He didn't look like he was in the mood for anything but guilt.
"What, afraid I'll beat you?", Lori tried to raise the mood, and momentarily succeeded, as Lincoln cockily stared at her. "Oh, no, I'm afraid of beating you so hard you'll never want to play again!"
"You're on!", Lori challenged, and the two went to the first fighting game they could find, "Two Ninjas beat the living shit out of each other with hammers".
"Die! Die! Die!", Lori yelled, as she smacked Lincoln's character.
"No u!", Lincoln retorted, slamming her character over and over. There was no real strategy for the two of them, just fun, rapid button mashing.
"WINNER!", the game shouted out, as Lori smashed the skeleton out of Lincoln's character. "Oh, yeah! Try and get that fixed! Uh huh! Oh yeah!", Lori cheered, victory dancing. Lincoln snickered, happy to see Lori finally happy.
"Come on, best 2 out of 3?", Lincoln asked, holding two tokens in his hands.
"Bring it, tiny!", Lori teased, ruffling his hair, and they started another round. However, Lori was distracted, when she saw what looked like a criminal standing outside, waving a purse, while a woman bounced around trying to get it back. She quietly zoomed off, to inspect, while Lincoln, overly focused on his game, didn't notice at first, and kept on slamming.
"Wow, Lori, you're really getting your butt handed to you! Guess I'm the best after all…", Lincoln started, laying a finishing blow, only to notice Lori was gone. Looking around, he saw her come back from where she had gone, one bit of eye shadow she had automatically applied still there.
"Oh, sorry, Lincoln, I didn't mean to bail, just…", Lori started, trying to explain. "See, I thought I saw someone dangerous outside, and…"
"No, Lori, it's okay.", Lincoln said, tears choking his throat. "I know why you keep going. Don't try to hide your eye from me."
Lori panicked. She had forgotten to get it removed. "Lincoln, it's not what you think…"
"No, I know what it is, Lori. It's okay, you don't need to lie about it, I don't want you to. I know why you don't want to be with me."
Lori shook her head violently, terrified. "Lincoln, I DO want to be with you! It's all I've wanted today, I'm really sorry I keep disappearing, it's just…"
"You don't need to feel sad from looking at me."
Lori paused, surprised. She hadn't seen that coming.
Lincoln felt himself start to cry, so he turned around a bit. "I know this is hard to look at. I know you can't sleep at night because of me. You're so worried and, and, and heartbroken, all because I was careless, and got shot."
Lori could hear her heart shatter at that sentence. Tears welled in her eyes too.
"And here I am, forcing you to see me like this, forcing you to get afraid I'll get hurt again, what with all the criminals out these days, just so I can have some fun. I can't believe I was so selfish! Please forgive me, Lori. Please.", Lincoln pleaded, so disappointed in himself.
Lori didn't know what to say, she was so shocked that she could barely speak. Her hands shook, and her chest tightened in pain.
Lincoln drooped his head in shame. "It's okay, look, maybe you go and distract yourself from me, I'll find something to do here. Then we can drive home, and forget this happened. I don't mind staying away if it means you won't feel sad, or hurt yourself."
Lori saw him wheel away, and wanted to stop him, but felt shame herself. She had only wanted to make him feel better. Now he felt worse than ever.
All because of her.
And, so, she had flown up to the roof, wearing her costume and shedding tears. She didn't feel like she could be Lori right now, not when she failed so badly.
Her cries masked the sound of Mr. Stone climbing up to the roof with a REALLY long ladder. When he plopped down next to her, she jumped, momentarily, and raised her fists in defense, but he held his hands up in surrender. "I'm not here to fight!", he announced in fear.
The Guardian lowered her fists then, and sniffled. "Oh. Sorry. But why not? Aren't you, like, a bad guy?". She was so overcome with emotion for Lincoln, that she barely had time to think about how strange it was, and still it struck her as at least odd.
Mr. Stone frowned, feeling bad about hearing that. "Boss always says we're the good guys. We're trying to do what's right. At least, that's what he says.". He twiddled his thumbs. Guardian noted how he looked almost like a little boy. Almost like Lincoln.
She placed a comforting hand. "Hey… Are you okay?"
Mr. Stone seemed startled himself, and his eyes widened. "I came to comfort you. Aren't you in the middle of crying? And… You immediately put that aside for someone who fought you?"
Guardian smiled warmly, tears still illuminated on her face. "Well, if there's one thing I've learned recently, is that I want to help others. I'm not the only one with problems."
"Still... "
The two were silent for a moment.
"So, why are you sad?", Mr. Stone asked. Guardian gulped. "It's… It's kind of private. Secret identity, and all that."
"Oh, of course! I didn't mean to be rude.", Mr. Stone said, looking scared. "Please don't hurt me!"
"What? No, I would only do that if you were committing a crime and or felony! Okay, that sounded better in my head, but you know what I mean! No… No naughty, mister!", Guardian scolded, then chuckled a little. "Sorry, I'm still new at this."
"Well, you seem to be doing a good job.", Mr. Stone reassured. "I mean, I don't want you to succeed, but like, I heard about you saving that family. I didn't like that Mr. E did that."
Guardian felt just a bit better thanks to those words. "At least I helped them. But I mean, you tried to hurt that doctor guy! How's that different, if you don't mind my asking?"
Mr. Stone sighed. "I never wanted to hurt the poor little guy. My boss told me that I should try and be more violent, I really wanted to impress him. When I threw him, I knew you'd catch him, I made sure not to throw too hard."
Guardian nodded. "All right, I believe you, but… That's still not great, ya know? Why do you even do stuff for him?"
Mr. Stone gulped. "...Private, secret identity stuff."
Guardian giggled. "Okay, fair."
"..."
"Why ARE you being nice to me though?", she asked.
"I don't know. I guess, I don't like seeing people cry. We may be on opposite sides, but still. Nice people like you shouldn't have to feel bad."
"Yes, I should.", Guardian grunted, upset with herself. "I was… I was trying to make a friend happy, be a better friend to them, if you will. And… I accidentally made them think that they made me sad. I don't know what to say. If I tell the truth, well… They'll know I'm The Guardian."
Mr. Stone listened intently, and then replied. "Well… Maybe you can trust them. Maybe you can only fix it with trust. Maybe you two just need to talk. I should know. All I have is broken, and my boss doesn't trust me, so the opposite must be true."
The Guardian wasn't sure if that was the way, but she felt thankful at the suggestion. "...Maybe. Maybe you're right. Say, you're not so bad."
Mr. Stone felt a little lighter hearing that.
Meanwhile, Lincoln, who had wheeled off next to the serving table, sulking as he stared at families and friends in the booths dining happily, had a nagging worry in the back of his mind that something was off. "Haven't seen Lori since we talked. She wouldn't just walk off, right?"
Lincoln's face paled as he realized Lori might be hurting herself again. "No, no, no! I can't let her do that, oh what kind of brother am I?!".
Speeding out of the restaurant, he was followed by Stone's goons, who were wondering where he'd gone off too, and were worried by the comments from the boy on the wheelchair.
"I'm sure you won't let him down, by the way. Your boss, I mean. I mean, sure, whatever your mission is, there's a good chance I'd need to stop you, but like, at least he values effort, right?", Guardian asked, trying to give Stone a mini pep talk.
"Maybe. At least I didn't lose this! It's some sort of device that apparently can lead you through Pingrey Enterprises. I think that's where you got your powers, right?"
Guardian nodded, but her mind was racing a bit. She had been meaning to check the labs out and figure out what all the crazy stuff was about, but she had been busy with other things. Perhaps this could help her get some answers. And it seemed as if that all too mysterious Boss was interested too. Perhaps this was the plan of action to stop all these bad guys, and save Royal Woods?
But their talk was interrupted, as Stone's goons shouted out "The Guardian?!" and Lincoln shouted out "Oh no! I'll call the police! Wait, should I do that? They kinda hate her guts…"
"Lincoln…", The Guardian whispered, concerned. Her concern shot through the roof, though, when the next thing happened.
"He's gonna call the cops! Let's tie him up next to her! Good work, by the way, Mr. Stone!", Wedge proposed. Digger seemed uncertain about this idea, but didn't protest, and Po was happy to aid.
"Wait, shit, I was supposed to tie you up!", Mr. Stone cried out, but it was too late.
The Guardian saw Lincoln getting shot in her head.
She saw his teary eyes just minutes ago.
She saw herself hold him in her arms, when he was just born.
She saw the men approach him, with their weird weapon arms, about to grab him, to hurt him.
…
She would not let him down again. She would not hurt him again today.
Fire lit in her eyes, and when she landed on the floor, a thud echoed across the air, nearly dropping the goons to their feet.
"Behind me!", The Guardian roared, not in a growl, not in Lori's voice, but an altogether different one, authoritative and loving and heroic and scared all at the same time. Lincoln obeyed immediately, stopping his wheelchair and staring in awe and shock as The Guardian fought.
"That's our paycheck! Take her down!", Wedge cried, charging at The Guardian with his drill head, dust kicking up from his feet.
The Guardian stood in his way, not backing down, and he bounced off of her like a ball hitting a wall. Wedge felt scratches and bruises all over his body as he struggled to get up. "How goddamn strong is she? Hasn't she gotten punched before?"
"It goes up and down. Right now, though, I couldn't care less about that. Right now, I want you to leave him alone.", The Guardian left them an ultimatum, cracking her fists, which sent a gust of wind that knocked Wedge down again.
"Sorry, ma'am, but we need that dough. It's only for a moment.", Digger tried to reason, as he leapt up with his digger bucket arms, and Po slid and tried to throw the fake bombs at her eyes to distract her.
The Guardian was nothing but focus, determination, and will. Doubt disappeared as she felt Lincoln behind her, and felt just how much she loved him.
"I said… Leave. Him."
She aimed her head, and prepared her legs.
"ALONE!"
She headbutted Digger, and with her spare feet, leapt up to slam down on Po's head, bruising Po's jaws, and sending Digger flying into a trash can, blood dripping from his nose.
"Guys, wait! Let me help!", Mr. Stone cried, stumbling down the ladder.
The Guardian snapped to him, and flew over, grabbing him by the shirt and returning him to the rooftop. "Don't intervene.", she warned, and flew right back down. Mr. Stone gulped, not noticing that the device was gone from his hands.
Back on ground level, The Guardian's eyes were still a fearful look into her soul, as she was surrounded by the three men now. They looked frustrated, and vengeful. "Get out of our way!", they cried, landing each a hit on her, sending her spiraling for a second. She fell down to see Lincoln, still looking scared, practically frozen in place.
"Don't worry. I won't let them hurt you.", she whispered, and despite never having met her, Lincoln found himself trusting her. She sounded… Familiar, in a comforting way.
The Guardian stood up, clenching her fists, feeling her determination rising. "I WON'T let them hurt you."
The men charged her again, but this time, it was no contest. A sharp hit to the midsection of Wedge, a kick to the nose of Po, a karate chop that send Digger flying. She got Po and Digger's heads to hit each other, and she used her cape to strike Wedge, making him bleed from his cheek.
Then, for her final blow, she readied herself, and flew straight at them, like a ball to bowling pins.
It was no contest.
"We surrender! We surrender!", Wedge cried, pathetically, as he and Po ran off.
"Stone, we'll see you next week! Sorry to bail, but… You can see!", Digger explained apologetically, as he ran off.
The Guardian, meanwhile, turned around, calming down just a bit. Lincoln looked star stuck, and he failed to find words. The Guardian smiled at him, then picked him up with his wheelchair softly, looking for a rooftop. Before that, though, she quickly looked at Mr. Stone, with a sad look in her eyes. He had realized the device was lost, and looked scared of what was to come.
"I'm sorry. But I have to do what's right. But maybe… Maybe if you need a place, if he can't care for you…", she offered her hand, and Mr. Stone struggled to comprehend.
"...You would do that, for me?"
Mr. Stone stuttered. "W...Why?"
"...Why not?", was The Guardian's response, and she flew off.
And with that, she cracked Mr. Stone's glass house, and while the crack was small now, everything had changed.
"Oh my GOD! That was amazing! That was… Awesome, spectacular, terrific, amazing, marvelous, just… KAFJDKAJGD!"
Lincoln was stimming so hard, he had somehow managed to keyboard slam in speech, and any other day, The Guardian would have found that amusing, but now, she just felt forlorn. Sure, she had saved Lincoln, sure, she had gained an important tool in her quest to save the city.
But that was The Guardian. And to Lincoln, Lori was still lost, still hurt, still sad.
As they took a breather on the rooftop, the late afternoon sun washing them over with brilliant orange, Lincoln felt his worry strike again. "Oh, great. Here I am, getting all excited, and I still don't know where Lori is! I got so distracted by all the crazy stuff…"
"And nearly getting kidnapped! Don't be harsh on yourself, Li… Kid.", Guardian retorted, careful to disguise her voice.
"I know, but… But she could have hurt herself! If I just talked to her earlier, maybe I could have helped her! But I was too scared to hurt her, and…", Lincoln started, holding his arm in shame, when Guardian joined in.
"...And they still got hurt."
Lincoln paused, nodding. "Yeah. How did… How did you know?"
The Guardian stammered. She blinked. She looked less larger than life now, and more real. More familiar.
"I… I…"
She turned around, clutching her chest in pain. "...Lincoln…"
She thought of the conversation she had with Mr. Stone. She thought of all the pain she saw her brother, her baby brother face today. All she wanted to do was be a better sister. To make up for her sins. If the way was this, why should she deny it?
"Trust. Trust, and honesty, and maybe that's the way. Maybe that's what needs to be done. I'm trying to be better."
She turned around, to a thoroughly confused Lincoln. She saw him, saw him stare at what he thought was a total stranger, with such compassion, and she wondered if she had ever loved him more than now.
"...I'm going to be better. So if one way doesn't work, just take the other road. So instead of falling down, I'm going to stand up, and keep walking."
She smiled. "I'm going to be better."
"...Sorry, but I am really confused, what are you…", Lincoln started, and then he gasped.
Taking off her hood, her cape floating in the wind dramatically, there she stood, his big sister Lori, with tears running down her cheeks, and a smile that made him feel like the best little brother of all time.
"...You can never hurt me. You're why I soar."
The embrace they shared, almost automatic at first, turned tearful and warm as Lincoln found his voice again.
"Lori… You're…"
"Yes. It's a long story. Crazy labs, mistakes…", she trailed off for a second, but tried to move past the guilt. She had to keep going to do right by him. She'd ignore how she couldn't forgive herself yet. "...Basically, I got superpowers, and I learned, thanks to you, really, that I had to use them for good. And I realized I could be a better person and sister as well, so I've been trying to do that."
Lincoln enthused, geeking out. "You fought all those guys! You can fly! Holy Moley, you're so cool!".
Then, he realized some other things that scared him. "You nearly got hurt so many times. You saved Lyberti and her dad. Did you fight that werewolf thing Carol was instagramming about?"
He cupped her face, staring into her eyes. "Wait… So you weren't hurting yourself?"
Lori laughed, tears dropping like cleansing rain onto the floor. "Of course I wasn't. I really did want to be with you, but I couldn't ignore those crimes, I would have told you sooner, but…"
"I know. I read comics, after all.", Lincoln reassured, before growing giddy again. "But oh my gosh! You're a hero! A superhero! You're, like, the coolest person I know!"
Lori's heart could have melted.
Lincoln then drooped his head. "Oh no. I guess we lost our day together, then. If only we'd talked about it sooner, or if I hadn't jumped to…"
"Hey, hey, I did the same! Let's just resolve to talk more often, huh?", Lori said, offering her gloved hand.
Lincoln shook it, and nodded. "Yeah. We can both do better. No reason why we can't help each other!"
A smirk dropped on his face. "Speaking of helping each other…"
Lori shook her head. "Oh, no, little bro, this is a DANGEROUS job!"
"Oh, come on! I can be your guy in the chair! I can give you advice on a head set, and we can spend more time like that, and I can give you quips, and…"
Lori chuckled at his excitement. "All right, I'll THINK about it. And about our day, well… Maybe it's not over yet. We can still catch a movie, like you wanted to!"
"I'd love that!", Lincoln pumped his fists, before getting sheepish. "But would you?"
"Honestly, I REALLY want to spend some time with my Lincoln. So yeah, I am more than up for it!", Lori said, before getting an idea, and smiling almost maternally.
"And say… Maybe I can get us there quickly, AND give you a little special something…"
"What do you mean?", Lincoln asked, curious.
"Close your eyes, and… Trust me.", Lori said, and Lincoln, closing instantly, reaffirmed that fact.
Suddenly, Lincoln felt wind, and he opened his eyes, confused.
And there he was…
Flying.
Or, well, he was being carried by his flying sister.
But it didn't make it any less magical.
"Oh my god. I'm…", he started, unable to articulate it. Lori simply replied "Yeah. We are."
Lincoln clung onto her, and for the first time since the accident, he felt truly free.
"Don't be scared. I've got you. You can put your arms wide.", Lori comforted, showing him that she was holding onto his chest as hard as she could.
Lincoln nodded slowly, and, cautiously, he stuck his arms wide.
The smile on his face was bright, and his eyes were like diamonds in the late afternoon sky.
He looked up at his sister. His heroic, flawed, but well meaning sister.
And it felt like maybe, for the first time in forever…
It would get better after all.
They would solve it together.
They would soar together.
"You failed me again."
SLAM!
"I ask you to do two simple things, and you can't even come close! You forgot your mission!"
SMACK!
"Why, why did I ever let you stay?!"
Mr. Stone was sent flying back onto a wall, shivering and crying as The Raven raised his fist, before lowering it.
"But it's okay. I knew you would. I planned for this."
"...What?", Mr. Stone's voice hinted at a broken heart.
"I still think you needed to learn a lesson. But it's fine. I wanted you to lose the device. Now, that blasted hero has a tracker on her, one that will let us trace her whereabouts when she goes to Pingrey Enterprises, which she will, tomorrow."
The Raven turned away, scowling. "But let this be a lesson to you, Stone. There is no one you can trust in this world, but me. She broke your trust."
"...Yeah."
"Remember, I'm doing this for your own good! You'll never survive out there, without my preparation! You think people will spare you like I have? You get hurt out there more!"
"...Of course.", Mr. Stone nodded, knowing he spoke the truth, even if it felt scary, and painful, and not at all like The Guardian's words of comfort.
The Raven didn't even bother looking at Mr. Stone. "...One day, you will make me proud. I know you will. And when that happens, you will finally have regained your place in the family again."
Mr. Stone felt a spark of hope, and he hoped he could please, despite how empty he felt.
"I will not let you down again…"
"...Dad."
Big chapter, huh? Lot's of important reveals and developments, plus some arcs being set up for some side characters! Next time, Lori and Lincoln will team up to uncover secrets inside Pingrey Enterprises, but can they work together as a team?
