Brockton's Celestial Forge

by Lord Roustabout

The Celestial Forge is the greatest combination of crafting powers in Jumpchain, meaning it is the greatest combination of crafting abilities in all of fiction. In Brockton Bay a forgotten side character's trigger event ends with him linked to the Celestial Forge rather than his intended shard. His expanding collection of tinker abilities drag him into the city's cape conflicts.

144. 98-1 Interlude Taylor Pre Emma Add Danny

98.1 Interlude Taylor - Preamble Emma - Addendum Danny

Preamble Emma

Emma smiled as she walked through the halls of Winslow High. Moving with confidence, she felt better than she had in weeks. Even with the aftermath of the attacks dragging everything down, she couldn't help but feel warm inside.

Part of that was her appearance. She had woken up early to see to her hair and makeup. There would be touch ups at the event, but she had gotten everything just about perfect. That meant she had been able to enjoy her half day of school while showing off her best face. She loved the looks she got when people saw her like this.

It was her way of letting the school know that she had modeling work lined up. A little detail that set her apart from the rest of the pack. She could play off indifference and let the rest of her social circle spread the word for her. Where she was going, who she was meeting, what kind of event she had lined up. Sometimes she put extra effort into her hair and makeup even when it would need to be completely redone at the job, but that was fine. Putting herself in order helped her get in the right mindset for her work.

Right now she felt focused and important, even more so than with a typical job. Because this wasn't a typical job. The charity event was a bigger deal than anyone anticipated. Being involved meant she was someone who was making a difference. Even more than the handful of kids who were wearing Garment's coats.

Maybe a half dozen kids had come to school wearing one of the coats that Garment had sent out to her volunteers. Apparently, they'd gone to anyone who'd helped with the event, so it wasn't like it was an exclusive or prestigious thing. Emma did have to admit, they were rather nicely designed. She could appreciate the quality and customization, how they seemed tailored for each person's style.

But they had been given out for setup work. The people who received them weren't going to actually be part of the event. And the event had ended up bigger than anyone could have imagined.

Normally she hated working for 'exposure'. She had fudged that rule for charity events, but that was mostly an excuse to hang out with Sophia while her friend was in costume. In every other case it was just some designer or event coordinator hoping to cheap out, acting like their work was so important that even being tangentially associated with it was somehow worth her time and labor.

The thing was, that was kind of true with Garment's event. It hadn't been when she signed up, or at least it hadn't been obvious, but interest had exploded over the past two days. A lot of that was the fact that it had come together so well and so quickly. People could barely believe what they were looking at and everyone wanted to see what would happen.

The projections for the streaming numbers were insane, and she was going to be part of that. Sure, it was just during Parian's segment where she would just be smiling and waving, but it was more exposure than she had ever dreamed of getting from a single event. National level attention. International even.

She definitely didn't regret her commitment. The terms had been rough and it had come across as a longshot, but that had paid off big time. So far, her modeling career had been fairly minor. By the standards of a typical high schooler it was huge, but she understood the scope of the industry. Department stores, local fashion shows, charity events, and the odd commercial were the bush leagues of modeling.

Modeling seemed like a glamours industry and it definitely could be, but Emma knew how hard it was to really make a career in it. The kinds of jobs the other girls filled their time with weren't exactly the kind of stuff she wanted to be associated with. Even her parents had an understanding about it. Modeling was something nice for her to do now, but without a major break she wasn't going to make a career of it.

By signing up for this event she had finally gotten a shot at that major break. Maybe nothing would come of it, but she was going to get national level exposure in just about the best context she could hope for. Maybe it wouldn't translate to any larger jobs, but at the very least it would boost her local profile. She smiled a little wider as she imagined the prospects that could be opening to her.

Her good mood contrasted sharply with the rest of the students. At least those who had actually shown up for class. The school was still half empty. It felt even emptier without Sophia and Madison. Sophia was already on her way to the event, having been pulled from class for some briefing that all the Wards were getting before the event, and Madison hadn't come back to school yet. Her parents always were overprotective like that.

They were far from the only ones. Plenty of students were being kept home until after the recovery work, or for other reasons. Emma noticed that most of the Asian students were absent. She didn't know if that was because of the thing with the hostages, or if it was just another precaution, worried parents and a stressed city.

Though for the first time since she could remember, there weren't any signs of the ABB. No gang colors or symbols or junior or prospective members trying to look tough. They were finally gone.

Not that she cared. It had never bothered her. She was too connected for them to cause her any problems and they weren't something she concerned herself with. In fact, she barely noticed they were gone. It didn't even make a difference to her, one way or the other. The gangs had always been background noise at Winslow High, so a shift in something that was already beneath her notice wasn't worth commenting on.

She walked past where a custodian was scrubbing at a fresh Merchant tag that had been painted over some ABB graffiti. Nodding, she chatted politely with the girls who had fallen in to walk with her. She played up her indifference as they complimented her hair and asked about her role at the event. It was just the right level of gracious admiration, a group dynamic she had worked to cultivate from when she started at Winslow.

It also made it so much easier to deal with Taylor. Unfortunately, she and Sophia hadn't been able to properly welcome Taylor back. Really, it should have been easier with fewer people in the school, less students or teachers to work around. Instead Taylor was taking advantage of the empty school to hide from them. The previous day's cat and mouse exercise had resulted in nothing but frustration

It would have been easier if they could use their cell phones, but the school was just close enough to the field for signals to be blocked without actually damaging electronics. Without being able to properly coordinate things it was hard to manage with just Sophia and whatever girls she could rope in. And today she didn't even have Sophia's help.

That was why she was so surprised when she turned a corner and saw that some of her friends had actually managed to corral Taylor. Janine had taken care of it, which made sense. The blond girl was in Taylor's math class and had apparently gotten some of the other girls to help.

The classroom was close to the school's entrance, so there were limited places for Taylor to dart off to. She had clearly been trying to leave, but they'd managed to delay her just long enough. Emma smiled at the sight of Taylor's lanky frame boxed in by the other girls who played at having a normal conversation.

She clearly realized she's been caught, that her plays at running and hiding had finally failed her. Unfortunately, Emma didn't have time for anything serious. She needed to leave in order to make it in time to get ready for the show. She'd have to limit herself to a snide comment in passing and save up a proper welcome event for later.

As she got closer, she got a better look at Taylor. She was wearing less baggy clothes than she usually did. Nothing bold, still her unambitious jeans and sweatshirt combination. The clothes weren't even new, but they were different. Slightly brighter, better fitting, and somehow more coordinated. She was also standing straighter, even in the face of Janine's admittedly amateurish attempts to insult her. It was like Taylor was trying to pretend that she was ready for what's going to happen.

There was something about the image of Taylor standing like that in those nearly fitted clothes that caused Emma's mind to jump back to a particular moment. It was a moment that she'd been thinking about a lot lately. A frank conversation she's had with the head of her modeling agency.

People who dealt with models didn't mince words. Topics other people would avoid or be delicate about they approached head on. They were facts of life in the industry. If you were too big for a job or the wrong height or had bad hair they would tell you directly. The sensitive didn't last.

Early on, she'd had things explained to her. What certain jobs were looking for and the kinds of things that would exclude her from other work. How the same features that could make her popular in one area could lock her out of another.

It had very plainly been stated that certain work would not be available to her, no matter how hard she tried. Sure, it was possible for someone to defy convention and break through, to make things work, but that wasn't her. She was good, but she wasn't extraordinary.

Managing expectations. It was probably a kindness when it came to young models. It still stung, but she understood. After all, she was stronger than that, and it's not like she was shooting for a career as a supermodel. That was the silly dream of a little girl who didn't know any better that would only be supported by wide eyed weak idiots.

She had put it behind her and excelled where she was able to excel. And then Khepri made headlines and everyone was so keen to focus on THAT aspect of modeling. What it took to truly rise to the top. Figure, stance, and attitude. She could master the last two, but the first… Not for her. It was stupid and arbitrary, but she had to accept it. Had accepted it, until everyone had decided to harp on about it.

Taylor slowly turned away from Janine and looked directly at Emma. It was like she'd known Emma was there the whole time. Like she's been expecting her. Emma felt a surge of irritation. She swallowed the snide remark she'd been planning to deliver in passing and signaled to Janine and the girls she was walking with. Both groups converged, cutting off Taylor's escape and letting Emma slip into an opening as the rest of the group surrounded her.

"Oh, Taylor. I almost missed you there. Back already? I mean, it's not like anyone would have noticed you were gone. Or cared." She said with a cruel smile. Taylor just looked at her with dead eyes.

"Absolutely." Janine echoed. "It's not like anyone wants her here."

Other girls started chipping in with their own insults. Juvenile stuff for the most part, all while Taylor stood there with an impassive expression on her face. Trying to weather the storm. Towards the back of the group Tianna pulled out her phone. Maybe she'd be able to get another clip of Taylor breaking down. Something they could spam to her if she made another email address, or just share around the school anonymously.

One girl commented on her appearance, another complained about her smell. Emma chipped a comment about expired orange juice, but there was no reaction. No reaction even when Janine brought up a particularly bad story from Taylor's gym class. They continued with her grades, her skin, her lack of friends, the people she was forced to work with on projects, and the things she had to do to even get them to help her.

Things were dragging out much longer than Emma had imagined. She could tell, something was wrong. Normally Taylor would have wilted under the insults. She would cringe into herself until she broke down or managed to escape somehow. Usually having to push through the crowd, being tripped or shoved as she did. But she wasn't reacting. Wasn't even trying to get away. Instead she just kept glaring. Not at Emma, not at anything in particular, just glaring, like she was more frustrated than hurt.

Emma felt her forehead crease as she pressed on. "Can you believe she's back after faking like that, just to get out of school?" She asked loudly.

There was a flicker of restrained movement from some of the wider audience of students that had gathered to watch and some of the girls in the circle were looking uncomfortable for some reason.

"I know." Said Janine quickly. "Probably the only way she can avoid failing. She didn't even hand in her art project."

The one they had drenched in paint. "Probably knew how ugly it was." Emma said. "I heard she's close to failing. Probably going to be held back, or kicked out altogether. But then she's always been slow."

"Wasn't her mom a teacher?" One of the girls said in a cruel voice. For the first time, Taylor showed a flicker of a reaction.

"Oh yeah." Emma said with a smile. "Her mother would definitely be ashamed of how stupid her daughter ended up."

Slowly, Taylor turned her eyes to Emma. She could see the pain there. It was being held back, but there was no concealing it. She smiled a bit wider, showing some teeth. The other girls pounced. You could tell they didn't know enough to really hit home. Some didn't even know she was dead, but every jab, every insult built up. Emma could smell the blood in the water.

It was close, and Emma had wasted too much time with this already. Taylor wasn't worth the trouble of making her late, but she could bring it home. Head off with a victory against whatever defiance Taylor thought she was capable of. She just needed to bring out the big guns.

She turned from the other girls to speak directly to Taylor. "What's the matter, Taylor?" Emma asked, "You look upset." Taylor gave her a confused look, like she couldn't follow the shift in the conversation. Emma smiled as she continued. "So upset you're going to cry yourself to sleep for a straight week?"

Taylor's mouth dropped open. Emma smiled as she watched the expression transform from that false resilience to outrage and then despair. And then the tears came. Welling up in her eyes and overflowing down her cheeks.

"She's crying! She's really crying!" Janine exclaimed. In the corner of her eye Emma could see Tianna raise her phone, capturing the moment.

But something was wrong. Taylor didn't try to cover herself. She didn't run, fighting to push her way through the ring of girls. She just stood there, tears dripping down her cheeks as her expression slowly shifted back to defiance. To something more angry than sad.

"Of course I'm crying." Taylor said. "She was my mother. And she's gone. Anyone would be devastated by that."

Emma frowned. Something was seriously off script. "Another breakdown, Taylor? I figured you'd be resilient. Be strong enough to deal with it by now."

Another callback to that discussion. Another big gun that she'd held in reserve for moments like this. And another seeming misfire. The reaction wasn't playing out the way it was supposed to.

"What does strength have to do with it?" Taylor asked. "Not being bothered by losing a parent doesn't make you strong, it makes you deranged."

The anger in Taylor's voice was unfamiliar. She was used to hearing frustration, desperation, but not this. Not directed defiant anger. Emma's frown deepened and she could feel lines from on her forehead.

"Years later and you're still clinging to that. Expecting everyone to feel sorry for you?" Emma mocked. "All over someone who's gone and forgotten. You're the only one who gets worked up like this. It's not like she mattered to anyone else."

Emma watched Taylor's reaction with a smug grin on her face. That grin faded when Taylor sniffed, and then smiled. Smiled!

"You're wrong." Taylor said with complete conviction. "My mother made a difference in a lot of people's lives. She meant the world to them." That smile grew and the tears stopped flowing. "Her students, her friends, her family." Taylor looked up at Emma. "My mother would be proud of how she's remembered."

"You really think that?" Emma asked. Things were going wrong. She needed to leave, but couldn't leave things like this. "You really believe anyone cared?

Taylor looked directly at Emma. "Your sister was named after my mother."

It was a plain and direct statement. Something Emma barely remembered. Anne was always Anne. They had never called her Annette. Because that was Aunt Annette's name, not Anne's.

The other girls had fallen quiet. They were looking to her. No, they were looking at her. This wasn't supposed to be a fight, it was supposed to be a quick stomp on her way to better things. Anger and frustration bubbled under the indifferent expression Emma forced onto her face.

Maybe it was a mistake to have tried this now. She should have waited for when she had Sophia and Madison to help. They knew the rhythm of these things. The other girls were throwing everything off, especially Janine. They were dragging her down, but refused to surrender. She was too strong for that. She was a winner, not like Taylor.

Taylor who stood there with that stupid look on her face. Like she was better than she was. Like she was better than Emma.

She could not leave things like that. She needed to go nuclear. The biggest gun she had in her arsenal. She smiled and moved forwards slightly into the circle.

"Huh, I guess people did care about your mother." Emma said. "It's a shame that you killed her."

The crowd went dead silent. You could have heard a pin drop in the hall. Taylor just looked at her with a wide eyed, stupefied expression. Emma smiled as she continued.

"Don't you remember? You were at my house. You were supposed to call you mom, but I guess you didn't care enough. She was dialing you when she got into that accident." Emma leaned in. "It was your fault."

"Oh." Taylor said. Just 'oh'. Like it was nothing. Like it didn't matter.

"That's it? You don't even care?" Emma asked as harshly as she could. "You know your dad-"

"I made a mistake." Taylor said. "Sometimes, mistakes have consequences that are a lot worse than anyone could have imagined." She shook her head. "Missing a call isn't the kind of mistake that anyone could predict would have that kind of result." With each word Taylor seemed to be growing more defiant. "People make mistakes, and then they have to live in the world with the repercussions. Sometimes they're minor and sometimes they're devastating. More devastating than you could have possibly imagined at the time."

There was conviction in Taylor's voice and to Emma's horror she saw people in the crowd nodding along.

"We have to deal with the results of what happened, even if we couldn't see them coming." Taylor continued. "I… I should have called. But that doesn't make me responsible for the accident. No one could have seen something like that coming."

Somehow, it felt like Taylor was talking about something else. Something that was somehow BIGGER than her mother's death. Emma didn't know what to do. She felt helpless and lost. She wasn't used to feeling that way, not here, not next to Taylor. She needed to get back in control. It had to be a front. One last hit was all it would take to bring everything crashing down. Then it would make sense again.

"Your father-"

"Are you done?" Taylor asked.

"What?" Emma exclaimed before she quickly found her feet. "I'm just getting started."

"No." Taylor asked, looking at her with dead eyes. It almost was like an expression of pity. "Are you done with all this? There's no point anymore."

Emma forced a false smile on her face. "Come on, Taylor, you know better than that."

"I'm serious." Taylor said directly. There was no hint of uncertainty, no instability or emotion in her voice. "After everything that's been happening, with everyone who's been suffering, everyone trying to get their lives back together, you're still doing this? Now? Even though it doesn't matter anymore?" Taylor's eyes turned hard. "Even now that the reason for all of this is gone?"

"What are you…" There was something in Taylor's expression that caused Emma's voice to die out. It took her a moment to see it, but suddenly it was clear. Taylor knew something. Taylor knew…

"What?" Emma barked. "What are you talking about?" Her voice broke and pitched up into a near screech.

And Taylor stepped forward. Willingly closed the distance between them. Emma tensed for an attack or some desperate flailing outburst, but instead Taylor spoke in a soft voice. Quietly, like despite the circle of observers, she was trying to give Emma privacy.

"I always wondered why you'd been making my life hell for the last two years." Taylor whispered. "I should have realized it sooner. After all, we were on the phone when it happened, weren't we?"

Emma froze. She felt sweat bead on the back of her neck as Taylor continued. Softly, but she knew it wasn't soft enough to not be heard by the girls who were leaning in to hear what was being said. Taylor glanced at them before continuing.

"I should have realized, but you know what?" Emma looked at Taylor. "It doesn't matter. So many people out there have had terrible things happen to them without needing to attack others, just to make up for their own weakness." Every muscle in Emma's body suddenly tensed like a piano string. Her heart was hammered in her chest and it felt like she couldn't get enough air. All while Taylor continued talking.

"This has to end." She said, like she was dictating terms. "The ABB is gone. It doesn't matter anymore. You don't need to keep attacking me just so that you can pretend to be strong."

Something broke. It felt like those piano tight muscles suddenly snapped and lashed out. A hundred moment's blended together from that horrible incident in the alley that DIDN'T BOTHER HER, flowing into Sophia's advice, Taylor's weakness, the dynamic at school that let everything make sense again. It was like all of it, everything compressed into a single moment that overwhelmed her.

She flailed blindly, drowning in the volume of emotion and sensation. Lashing out at the source of it all. Fighting. Yes. She had been rescued because she fought. That was what she needed to do. That was the answer. It was what let her survive. What made her strong.

And then she was being pulled back. Her arms were being gripped and she was being hauled off someone. Off Taylor. There was blood on Taylor's face. On her arms. She had been scratched.

There was blood on Emma's nails. One of them was broken. Others were chipped. Her manicure was ruined. Some of the blood had gotten on her dress. She'd be changing at the event, but she needed to change first. Needed to look her best. Why wouldn't they let her leave? Her mother was picking her up. She had to go.

Teachers had come out of their classrooms. They looked concerned. Not angry. Not the dismissive frustration that she could get out of. Someone was calling someone. She was going to the principal's office? That wasn't right.

She needed to leave.

Interlude Taylor

Taylor panted for breath as someone helped her to her feet. It was Mitchel Brown. She had planted two flies on him at the start of the school day. Even as her mind was racing and her body was in a complete state of panic, she could still feel her swarm and through it every person she had tagged.

More people were moving in to help. Sandra Anderson and Monique Davis. She was still too dazed to register them directly, instead feeling them through her power. Them and the rest of the students who had gathered around.

They were making room for her, trying to help her. It was more than she expected, considering her status at the school, but people were actually trying to help her. Well, help her carefully. The students helping her up were making sure to avoid her arms, or anywhere near her face, or any other place where there was blood.

The burning lines of the scratches had felt red hot when Emma had been clawing at her. That had quickly shifted into a combination of a sharp sting and dull ache. She was bleeding. Not badly, but it wasn't good either. There was blood getting in one eye. Her glasses had been knocked off. Someone, she didn't know his name, tagged with a single fruit fly in second period, had found them and handed them to her. She put them on, but the frames had been slightly bent. They still fit, but didn't sit quite right.

At the direction of a teacher she was being led to the principal's office. Emma was already there and she was being taken to her. While she was still bleeding. Of every aspect of the situation, that was what her mind focused on. She was bleeding. She could see the school secretary, Ms. Stoningham, and Principal Blackwell react to her as well as feel them through the bugs she had tagged them with. They looked horrified. Not angry, not concerned, horrified. Specifically horrified. That was what stood out.

"Voice call from Joe." Her watch informed her as she was 'helped' into one of the chairs in the office.

The watch. It was just lucky she had turned off the automatic force field in school. Somewhat bitter luck, really. That decision had let her face get clawed apart, but if the forcefield had deployed against Emma then she would have been exposed in front of the entire school. She had thought the worst she'd have to deal with was the odd punch from Sophia, someone tripping her, or thrown object. Not Emma going feral and trying to claw her eyes out.

At least she was seated at the opposite side of the office from Emma. Principal Blackwell tried to make some kind of order while Ms. Stoningham was sent for the first aid kit. Taylor wasn't really paying attention and Emma seemed to be in a daze. The other girl was slowly coming back to herself as Principal Blackwell tried to question her.

Question Emma. Nobody was talking to her. Nobody had even asked if she was okay. It was like they were afraid to.

"The call will be automatically muted. Voice responses will be selectively concealed. Tap watch if you wish to manually accept the call." The watch informed her.

She took a breath. And she was still bleeding. That hit her hard. Emma had never done anything like this. Never gotten this physical and never caused this much damage.

Never come this close to consequences.

That finally sank in. Emma would try to get out of this. She had her friends, her father, and the teachers on her side, but there was only so far they could stretch things. Even if everyone backed up whatever ridiculous story she came up with, they couldn't ignore this. Not anymore. She might actually be held accountable. Maybe not for anything more than this, but even that was something.

But Joe was on the line. How had that happened? How had he known? Then she remembered. The first function of the watches, the reason he had made them to begin with. Medical scanners. Alerts for if any member of the team was injured. The rest would be automatically notified.

Joe had been alerted, because of what Emma did. That realization caused a sinking feeling to form in her chest. This wasn't supposed to happen. She hadn't wanted to drag him into her petty school problems. Not him. Not with everything else that was happening.

He had offered to help. Not just against the Undersider's boss, but with things at school. An open offer for anything she wanted. But how could she take him up on that? He had told her, made it clear how important her mission was. Important enough that it had brought him onboard with the Undersiders. Important enough that it had set the course for his entire cape career.

Without that, who knows what would have happened? What Joe and his team would have become? The dynamic between Joe, the Protectorate, and the other gangs, it had all grown out of that first decision. Out of the fact that she had gone to meet him and his thinker power had told him how important what she was doing actually was.

It felt like a betrayal to focus on anything other than that mission. She knew they were close. Lisa had talked about getting a meeting with the boss. Once that happened she would finally be able to unveil the secret that she had risked everything for. That she had dragged Joe into villainy for. The undercover work, the risks, the danger, the pain, the training as she pushed her power and the tools Joe had given her as far as she could, it all led to this.

Not this specifically. Not sitting in the principal's office with the wounds of Emma's brutal assault burning on her arms and face, all while barely ordered chaos played out around her.

And that was the point. This was specifically what she didn't want to drag Joe into. This wasn't important. It wasn't something that had been serious enough to drive a critical decision that shaped the future of the city, if not the world. It was stupid, petty, and small. It was the baggage of her life from before she'd become a cape.

And she had just dragged Joe into it. And there was no way out. Joe was waiting on the line to speak with her. She felt embarrassed to even mention something like this to him. It was beneath him. It was beneath her. This wasn't something she should have to deal with anymore, not with everything else she was trying to manage. Not with how important it all was.

That brought up a fresh wave of resentment for Emma. It wasn't enough for her to make Taylor's life hell. It wasn't enough for her to dredge up the worst moments of her past, to weaponize the trust that had been placed in her. It wasn't enough for her to drag her mother's name through the mud. She had to ruin this as well. To take the most important thing Taylor had ever done and shit all over it, like she was actually worth the time and effort.

That had been the most significant revelation she'd had. After Joe had told her about Emma being attacked, about the actual reason for why this was all happening, it had just felt meaningless. Maybe that was because she was a cape now. She had been through so much worse. Facing down Lung on that rooftop, infiltrating the Undersiders, fighting Bakuda's forces at the storage yard, clashing with gangs after the Ungodly Hour, witnessing the summit at Somer's Rock.

It had all been terrifying, but she hadn't broken from it. Not the way Emma had. When there was that unanswered question, the burning 'why' behind every slight and cruel act it had somehow drawn Taylor in. She had almost convinced herself that it must have been significant. That there had to be some good reason for everything falling apart. But no, there wasn't.

Emma was broken. That was all there was to it, and it wasn't worth Taylor's time. Hell, Winslow barely seemed worth her time. Back when she had been lost and fighting against the unknown cause of her troubles she had refused to back down. Refused to change schools or look into other options. It felt too much like letting them win.

She didn't feel that way anymore. The school was just as broken as Emma. They were made for each other. The idea of taking remote classes or online courses suddenly didn't seem like such a bad idea. It wasn't letting Emma win. Emma couldn't win. Whatever petty victories she might have convinced herself of, just from what she had done, Emma had already lost.

Maybe that was why she had mentioned it. Why she had given Emma a chance. Stupidly, she thought she was being nice. Giving the girl who used to be her friend an opportunity to stop. To see what was actually happening. To let her know that whatever reasons she had for what she did, they didn't matter anymore.

That had been a mistake. She hadn't realized just how broken Emma actually was. There was nothing rational about how she had reacted. No plan or strategy or understanding of her situation. Emma… she had never moved on. Never gotten better. It was like she was still there, still trying to fight the people who had started this, and everything else was just a cover to let her pretend she was okay.

And that was the mess that she had dragged Joe into. On one side there was a parahuman conspiracy that had the fate of the world in the balance, and on the other there was Taylor's damaged former friend who had caused a mess that needed to be cleaned up. And there was no getting out of this. No easy way of explaining that everything was fine, that she could deal with it.

Actually, as Emma seemed to come to her senses enough to begin spinning the incident for Principal Blackwell, Taylor was forced to admit that she didn't know if she could deal with it herself. This was going to be messy. Joe had already been dragged into it. At the very least she would need to explain things.

He would want to help. Taylor knew that. It was a strange feeling, having the support of someone like Joe. She had been dealing with this on her own for so long. Every attempt to reach out had only made things worse. She had learned, taught herself, how to stand on her own. How to manage, or at least function, without help from the people around her.

Joe could help. There was absolutely no question to that. She's always known that he could help. But it had been so petty, so minor. It was like asking Eidolon to help you with your laundry. It wasn't a question of whether he could, but the very act of asking was an insult to both his abilities and your own capacity. All the work Taylor had put into dealing with her situation, it was meaningless compared to Joe's offer of help.

Taylor should have been able to handle this alone, or at least handle this without Joe. She had talked to her father, told him what was happening, and they had discussed their next move. He had been absolutely livid. That detail about Emma's sister's name had come out during one of his rants. But it had been directed anger. There was none of the blame or shame or disbelief that she'd been worried about. Just that single point of information had been enough. The reason why this had all started.

She hadn't even needed to share the details. Just saying something had happened, that Emma had changed after the summer, had been enough. Her father had been in the city when she'd been off at camp. He remembered the gang fights. He didn't say anything, but he seemed to have an idea of what that 'something' might have been.

For the first time, she was facing her problems with the support of her father. They had talked and worked together to come up with plans, options she could take, and their next steps, together. Maybe they could have dealt with this on their own. Her father was more focused, more engaged than she had seen him since her mother's death. He was reaching out, working with other people. Driven by more than just desperation.

Maybe it was selfish, but the idea that things could be turned around on her own, that she and her father might be able to deal with Winslow, with the bullies, with the legal threats of Emma's father, it had more than a little appeal. A lot more appeal than exposing every horrible moment of her life to Joe and letting him take care of things for her. She had worked so hard to deal with this situation, to find some way of taking back control of her life, that just handing it off seemed like a failure.

But she couldn't ignore this. Joe knew. His team probably knew. And it suddenly hit her that the rest of the Undersiders might know as well. She had told them more about her trigger than she shared with Joe, but still, the idea of Lisa or Brian being brought into this mess was barely better than Joe finding out.

She reached down and tapped the face of her watch. The sound around her shifted slightly. The privacy field was in place. She could talk without being heard. Maybe she'd seem like she was mumbling to herself, or just mouthing words, but she doubted that would attract too much attention.

"Hello, Taylor?" She heard Joe's voice. "Are you alright? You can just nod if you don't want to-"

"I'm fine." She whispered, dropping her head. Nobody seemed to notice and Ms. Stoningham still wasn't back with the first aid kit. Currently the school secretary was digging through the mostly disused and clearly understocked nurse's office. In the office Emma had picked up steam in her explanations to Principal Blackwell and other teachers had been roped into managing the situation.

The rest of the teachers had been scattered to enforce some level of order on the school. Lunch was progressing, but the tone was different. Everyone knew something serious had happened. She couldn't pick up what was being discussed, but there were whispered conversations happening all over the school. Funnily enough, she could almost plot out the spread of the information from her tags. The students who'd been in the hall and their movements through the building as the news spread.

"Taylor, you're injured." Joe said.

She nodded her head a fraction. "It hurts like hell." She admitted. "But I don't think it's that bad?" She asked.

"It's not." Joe said. Results of medical scans. A core feature of the watch. "The scratches aren't that deep, but they aren't clean. You probably won't need stitches, but this is something you should have looked at properly. And there would probably be scars."

Scars. And they were on her face. Taylor let out a breath. There would be, meaning Joe wasn't even entertaining the idea of letting that happen, as if he couldn't instantly fix them if he wanted to. It was almost funny, something that would have haunted her for the rest of her life, Joe was able to wipe away without a second thought.

Like this whole situation. Like a lot of situations, honestly.

"It was Emma." Joe said, dispelling any hope Taylor might have had of diverting him from the situation.

"The medical thing." Taylor asked. By dropping her head she could obscure her face under her hair. It made the fact that she was speaking even less noticeable. "You got an alert?"

"Automatic feature of the watches." He said. "It also opens a data link for assessment of the situation. I saw what was happening."

Which made sense, if someone was being attacked by a villain and they needed to know what to expect. It was actually a really smart and well thought out feature. It just didn't account for the fact that she was living every day with people who would try to assault her to the very limits of what they could get away with. Or beyond, in this case.

"I blocked the alert from going to the rest of your team." Joe said. "Given the circumstances, I figured you'd like to decide what to tell them, and when."

Taylor let out a breath. Well, that was something. She only had to deal with Joe. That was still a big 'only', but it was a lot more manageable than having to respond to the rest of the Undersiders at the same time.

"What happened? With Emma?" Joe asked. His own thinker power had warned him about her. Obviously, he'd be concerned.

"She's been causing problems since the event you told me about." Taylor admitted. "Emma cornered me in the halls with some other girls. I couldn't get away and didn't back down. And she freaked out when I mentioned the ABB."

Saying it that way, it almost made it seem like it was Taylor's fault. No doubt that was how Emma would try to spin this. That Taylor deliberately provoked her. She couldn't pretend that nothing happened, so the best she'd be able to accomplish would be somehow reframing things to make them Taylor's fault.

A month ago she might have been worried about that working. Back when Taylor didn't know what had happened. When she was being overwhelmed at school and had nothing else in her life. When her father didn't know what was happening.

Just that was a bigger hurdle than she had realized. The fact that she would have to explain things in the aftermath of an incident. If one of the Trio did something she couldn't just go to her father, she'd need to explain things to him. Explain everything, including why she didn't say something sooner. It seemed like a little thing, but it was actually huge. She realized that now. Now that she could just tell her father "Emma attacked me" without needing to explain everything that led up to it. But that wasn't the case anymore. It was really significant to have someone who could just understand.

Unlike Joe. She could tell he was worried, but he didn't have context. Pieces, yes, but not the full story. Not all the painful details of her life that she had been desperate not to drag him into. Assuming he actually didn't know. That he hadn't turned some power or magic technology or specialist teammate towards the problem and dissected every detail in an instant.

Probably not, at least based on how he was behaving. She swallowed. There was no getting out of it now. No pretending that it wasn't a problem. All she could do now was try to control how this was dealt with.

"How bad have things been?" Joe asked. "You talked about school, and your father said there was an incident…"

"Things have been bad." Taylor admitted. Laying her petty teenage concerns out before Joe felt about as trivial and frivolous as she expected, but she pressed on. "Emma and some other girls have been causing problems since I started high school. And the 'incident'…"

She trailed off. It wasn't just the fact that she didn't want to admit what had been done to her, or how bad things had gotten. It was her trigger event. That would have been bad enough, but this was Joe. He knew things about powers. She was sure that if she told him about her trigger he would be able to perfectly dissect the meaning of it, her powers, and everything leading up to them. It made her feel unbelievably exposed.

Once again, that was assuming he didn't know already.

Joe seemed to sense where her hesitance was coming from. "I didn't look into what happened, or into any details from your school." He said.

Taylor held back a sigh of relief. On some level she knew how important privacy was to Joe, how firmly he held to the unwritten rules and respected people's personal lives. The way he'd set up the watches made that clear enough. Still, there were always concerns. Having them laid to rest was like setting down a weight she didn't know she'd been carrying.

But the weight was still there. The problem didn't go away just because she didn't need to deal with it immediately. To stretch the metaphor, she was standing there with the burden of her trigger and everything connected to it lying at her feet. And she would need to deal with it sooner or later.

"With this incident, it's at the point where I'm ACTIVELY not looking into what happened." He said. "By which I mean specifically excluding searches and using buffers to keep from knowing. I know this is personal, but it's getting to the point where it's hard for me to not know about this."

It was a serious admission, but at least he was being honest with her. At the very least, she could extend the same courtesy.

"I didn't want to involve you in this." She admitted. "It's something I've been dealing with and it doesn't have anything to do with cape work. I didn't want to make a big deal of it." Even though keeping Joe out of things wasn't really an option anymore.

"I think aggravated assault and battery counts as a big deal." Joe said flatly.

Taylor blinked. She hadn't actually considered it like that. Emma has snapped and Emma had done something that might get her in trouble, but that trouble… she never imagined it extending further than the school. Further than Principal Blackwell reluctantly metering out some halfhearted punishment.

But using those terms? Calling what happened an actual crime? A crime that would be punished, not swept aside by teachers and school staff? That didn't really happen, right? She had thought she had seen that threshold before and nothing ever came of it. Every time it seemed like things had gone a step too far, that they would have to take them seriously, it had fizzled and died. Not even after the locker.

She glanced up as she simultaneously felt out the position of people in the office with her bugs. Emma was continuing to explain her version of events, but the look on Blackwells face told a different story. Suddenly the horrified expressions she'd seen made a lot more sense. The cuts on her face and arms throbbed, reinforcing the gravity of the situation as things really began to set in.

She dropped her eyes again as Joe began to speak. "Taylor, you can't pretend that what happens in one part of your life won't affect you in other areas." He said. "Believe me, I know about wanting to isolate things," He sounded tired, like something was weighing on him. Or like something had been. "But people don't work that way. You can't just section off parts of your life and pretend they don't exist. Not without them dragging down everything else."

So that was it. She had to deal with the mess of her school life because it might impact her ability to function as a hero. Which might impact her mission. The mission was important enough that Joe had thrown everything behind it. It was pragmatic, but he wasn't even framing things like that.

He was being concerned and understanding. Stupidly understanding. He had told her that he'd had a hard time in high school. She couldn't really see that, but then again, could anyone who saw the image of Khepri in those stupid internet videos imagine her like this?

Regardless, she wasn't ready to have this conversation. Not here, not now. She didn't know if she'd be ready at a later point, but anything would be better than whispering the details of the worst moments of her life over a secure line while ten feet from her worst enemy and the principal of her school.

"Please, just leave it, for now?" She asked. "I'm not… You're right. I have to deal with it. We can talk later, but for now can you leave it? I… I'd rather you not find out that way."

How would he find out, anyway? Newspaper articles? Tweets and blog posts? Or would he go further? School reports and medical files?

No. Not like that. In the face of that, she could deal with telling him herself, as much as she didn't want to. Just, not right now.

"Alright." He said. Taylor sagged into her chair in relief, drawing a moment of attention from the other staff members in the room. Still no one was approaching her and that first aid kit still wasn't here. Ms. Stoningham had at least found something and was making her way back to the office. "But I'm not leaving this." Joe continued. "At least let me help you."

Taylor took a breath. "Okay." She said, "But I'm not sure what you can do."

As soon as she said the words it seemed like a mistake. Well, technically that statement was true, just from the other direction. She wasn't sure what he could do, not because she didn't think he could do anything, but because she didn't know what he COULDN'T do. Just hinting at it seemed like she was inviting disaster. She quickly moved to say something else before Joe could start pitching ideas that might well qualify biblical events.

"I think they're trying to keep things contained." Taylor said. She noted the activity she'd felt through her bugs. Or specifically the lack of certain activities. "It doesn't look like they've called anyone yet. They're just keeping us in the office." Still without treatment. She was lucky the bleeding wasn't that bad. Still, it hurt and it was getting on her clothes.

Her new clothes. Well, new old clothes. The ones Joe had dropped off when covering for her costume upgrade. That had still felt weird, but not that weird when she put it in context. There was nothing special about the clothes. They had been okay. Not anything crazy, just slightly nice clothes. Her father had actually been happy that she had gotten them. He even ended up asking why she hadn't worn any of them.

It was almost embarrassing how comfortable she felt in them. Close enough to her old look not to be a massive change while still comfortable and unassuming. They had been made to look second hand, like something she would have been able to find and afford with her allowance. She had been worried about attracting attention, but after finally speaking with her father last night she decided she didn't care.

She had to wonder if that had been part of what led to this. As if any of that made a difference at this point.

"Would you like me to call the police?" Joe asked.

Taylor tensed. "What?" She asked. How could he…

"I can make a 911 call seem like it's coming from the school. One of the unattended payphones. An anonymous report." He explained. "It will keep them from trying to bury this. At the very least, it will get it into the system."

That could actually work. Providing Joe could pull it off. Which seemed like a weird thing to doubt. She had just been worried about him calling down the wrath of God, but somehow a phone call was too much?

"Do it." She whispered as Ms. Stoningham finally returned with a first aid kit. The kit was mostly empty, down to band aids, antiseptic spray, and a bit of gauze that had come partially undone. The school secretary started seeing to her cuts with an indifferent attitude and horrible bedside manner. Any concerns about involving the police died with the sting of antiseptic on her open scratches.

Joe left the line open as he fabricated the call. Apparently, it was going to seem like it came from the pay phones near the gym, which he assured her didn't have anyone around them. Taylor listened as the call connected.

"Nine one one, what is your emergency?" The operator asked.

"Um, I'm at Winslow High. One of the girls here was just attacked. It's really, really bad. There was a lot of blood and I don't know if she's okay." It wasn't Joe's voice. The voice wasn't even male. He had managed to completely fabricate the voice of an exasperated teenage girl. It was almost freaky how real it sounded.

"Winslow High? Please tell me exactly what happened." The operator continued.

"The girl's name is Taylor Hebert. A bunch of other girls surrounded her after class, then one of them, I think it was Emma Barnes, just launched herself at Taylor and started tearing into her. The teachers had to pull them apart, but she had cuts on her face and arms. I don't know if she needs an ambulance, but it looked really bad."

"Where are they now? Is the situation contained?" The operator asked.

"The teachers took both of them to the office. I don't know if someone else called you, but it doesn't look good. They haven't told us to go home or stay in our classrooms or anything. I don't know if Emma had a weapon. It might have just been scratches, but there was a lot of blood afterwards."

"We're dispatching assistance." The operator said. Taylor was surprised at that. Surprised they cared enough for a high school fight, but she supposed the blood might have made things more serious. She was also surprised they had the manpower to spare with everything else that was happening in the city. "Can you give me your full name and stay on the line?"

"Um, I'd rather not." The emulated voice said. "Look, the teachers here… I'm not going to get in trouble for reporting this, am I?"

"Why would you think that?" The operator asked.

"This kind of stuff happens a lot and… Look, I don't want to give my name. Is that okay?"

"It's fine." The operator said. "Can you please describe the incident for me?"

The call continued as Joe, or the voice that he was emulating, gave details on the attack, including the people involved, where it occurred, and the extent of her injuries. It was clear that Joe hadn't pulled any information from before her watch had alerted him, which was a relief. The explanation given to the operator was that they had come into things late and only had an account of the end of things. At the very least the operator seemed like she was taking things seriously, though she did press for the caller to identify themself if possible.

When the call finally ended Taylor was sitting in the office with a mishmash of poorly fitting bandages of various sizes plastered to her face and arms. Ms. Stoningham had left to find a better stocked first aid kit, which either spoke to the quality of the school's supplies or its rate of violent incidents. At the very least it gave her a chance to speak with Joe again.

"Did that actually make a difference?" She asked.

"The police are sending a car." Joe said. Taylor couldn't help but raise her eyebrows, which uncomfortably pulled on the large pad band aids that had been affixed to her face. "Two officers, male and female. Um…"

"What?" She whispered.

"There was a flag in the dispatch system that boosted the priority, specifically for your name." He said. Taylor felt panic well up inside her. "It looks like it's tied to an incident back in January. I'm guessing that…"

"It is." She said quickly. "I'll explain later, just please, leave it." It was better that it was over the locker than her cape identity, but neither of those options were something that counted as good.

"Alright." He said. "I didn't realize that it involved criminal proceedings."

Taylor could barely believe it either. After everything that happened, nothing had come of it. The staff didn't care. It didn't even seem like there was a real investigation. Legal battles, yes, but things had been so overwhelming that they barely registered. Then things were back to normal the second she returned to class.

"It was bad, but like I said…"

"Later, right." He said. "But the police might want to talk about whatever happened."

Taylor doubted it. It had become clear that nobody actually cared about that. For her, that was probably the breaking point, the moment when she had truly given up on getting help from anyone in the school. Because if that wasn't enough, then what was?

"…And that's when she attacked me!" Emma declared. Taylor slowly turned her head towards where the other girl was emphatically gesturing at Principal Blackwell. Not even in her office, she was spewing bullshit right out in the open. "Ask anyone who was there. I was just defending myself."

The cheap bandages on Taylor's arms were turning red as blood slowly seeped through them. Her face was probably just as bad. The worst injury Emma seemed to have to her name were some bruises from where Taylor had tried to kick her off and a broken nail.

"She really thinks she's going to get away with this." Taylor said. She dropped her head. "And she's probably right."

"You can't think that." Joe said.

"People always believe Emma." Taylor said in a dry whisper. Even now, Emma was the one they were listening to. Though that seemed more like they were afraid of approaching Taylor in this state. When things had finally reached a point where they couldn't be ignored.

"There is evidence. You can disprove her." Joe said.

"What, the watch?" She asked.

"Audio is no problem." Joe said. "You have a complete recording." She did. Joe hadn't looked at it. At least not yet. She was privately grateful for that.

"It won't be enough." Taylor said. "She can say I attacked her at the end and she was holding me off, or however she decides to spin it. Try to turn this around and make it my fault." The idea of real consequences had been nice, but it was seeming like a more and more distant prospect as Emma slowly returned to form.

"The watch can emulate a camera point from scanner data. Make it look like someone was recording the fight." Joe offered.

Taylor gave her head a slight shake. "No. There were too many people. Wherever you set the angle, someone would realize that nobody was actually there." She slumped. "And it's not like we were lucky enough to have someone recording things."

"Oh." Joe said. "Hold on."

"What?" Taylor asked.

"Someone did record it." He said. "That was 'lucky'." He put an odd emphasis on the word. "They've just gone far enough from the school to get a cell phone signal and are sending the video to some of their contacts. Well, they're not sending the file. The video's been uploaded to a cloud service and they're sharing access links."

"You can tell that?" Taylor whispered. She knew that Joe was… well, Joe was Joe. Trying to figure out what he was capable of was nearly a lost cause, but was he really monitoring all cell phone activity in the city? Did he just focus on the area around the school? Track specific students? How did that even work?

But that was a secondary concern. Someone had recorded the exchange. Possibly the entire exchange. Stuff like that had been done before. Videos of her getting tripped or breaking down had been circulated around the school. Just another way to make her life hell, and another thing that the teachers never did anything about. You'd figure they could have tracked the recordings to someone, figured out who took it, but they never cared enough to try. And even if they did, what would they do against someone who was just filming?

Now it had happened again, for this. Which meant she might actually have some leverage, providing it covered the point when Emma attacked her. If Joe could get the video.

Which was a petty concern. With everything else Joe could do, that wasn't even in doubt. If Joe knew about the video and knew what the video was about, then he could definitely 'get' it, somehow. Maybe even in a way that was deniable enough that she could use it to defend herself.

But that meant he would see it. Possibly the whole exchange, everything Emma had said, everything she did. Another layer of the barriers keeping her cape and personal lives apart from each other would come crumbling down the second he saw that.

"Joe?" She whispered. There was silence on the call. "Joe, did you watch the video?"

When Joe spoke again, his voice was cold. Empty. The lack of emotion was more frightening than any kind of response she could have predicted. She would have taken anything else, rage, pity, sadness, anything but the cold resolution or Joe's response.

"Emma. She really said THAT about Professor Hebert?"

Taylor swallowed and looked over to Emma. The girl was actually smiling as she continued to spin her tale. She had been talking continuously, creating details out of whole cloth and finding new ways to cast blame on Taylor. She watched as Emma pressed on, oblivious to the fact that she had just drawn the attention of a legitimate force of nature.

"What are you going to do?" Taylor asked, dropping her head again to hide her responses.

"This… this is up to you." He said. She could feel the restraint in his voice. The effort he was expanding to hold himself back. "How do you want to handle this?"

And there it was. It was up to her. Joe was involved, just like she had been trying to prevent. He didn't know the whole story, but he had seen enough. A single exchange had been enough and now he was ready to…

To do what exactly? Or more specifically, what couldn't he do? He had chosen a cape name specifically highlighting his lack of limits. And right now, the only meaningful limits were whatever she decided to set.

It was a heady feeling, like she finally had power and some level of control over her situation. Except it wasn't real control. She just got to decide where the building storm was directed before the oncoming disaster was unleashed. Every revenge fantasy and dream of justice was suddenly at her fingertips, but she couldn't predict what form it would take, because Joe was pretty much the opposite of predictable.

"I don't want anything that can be traced back to us. To you." She said, "I don't want Emma to get away with this, but direct involvement will just make things worse."

"Right." He said. "I can get the video for you. That won't be traceable."

"How do you know?" She asked.

"They used an address list to share the link to the video, and the link isn't secured. There are about fifty ways it could get out, and I can cover all of them. They'll never be able to trace it to any one person." He explained.

"Beyond the one who recorded it." Taylor said. She wasn't feeling particularly charitable, but it was still something she felt she needed to know. "Who was it?"

"The video was taken and shared by a girl named Tianna Kim." Joe said.

"Tianna?" Taylor asked. The girl was one of the lesser members of Emma's circle. Hanging around the fringes, taking cheap shots whenever she could. It didn't surprise her that Tianna had been the one to film it. She suspected she'd been behind some of the other videos and pictures that had been shared.

Taylor had at least entertained the possibility that it might have been someone looking out for her, someone who saw what was happening and wanted to help. It was a long shot, and unbelievably long shot, but no. It was just Tianna.

"Do it." She said, "I don't know what good it will do at the moment, but I'm glad we can have it."

"Right." He said, then paused. "I can send it to your father, if you want?"

Her father. It hit her that they hadn't even let her call her father. Hadn't called him either. She'd been in the office the whole time. No calls had gone out, just desperate attempts to sort out the situation while Principal Blackwell wore an expression like she was attending a funeral.

She'd been so focused on Joe's call she hadn't even registered. They should have offered to let her call. They should have made the call themselves. They should have done something.

She looked over to the principal. She could raise a fuss, make demands, or call out what was happening. Which would mean getting into another conflict with Emma, who was still here and still talking. She had moved on to demanding they talk with the other girls from the hall, insisting they would back her up.

"I don't know if it would do any good." She said, "My dad's been helping with recovery work. The association could probably get in touch with him, but it's not like we can send him the video."

"Actually, he's in the office today." Joe said. More casual knowledge. She knew he was careful about people's privacy, but the sheer casualness with which he could disregard those limits was a little harrowing. "He's been dealing with some of the early aid and funding that's come in from the charity event."

Taylor blinked. "Really?" She asked. She hadn't heard anything about that.

"Yeah. The Dockworker's Association is one of the groups that have made major efforts towards the recovery. They were listed on the site and have already received supplies and funding. Your dad's been in the office dealing with that."

And apparently Joe had been keeping an eye on it. She didn't know if he'd been watching her father or focused on the recovery work. She hoped it was the latter, but it did mean that her dad was in the office. He was actually one phone call away, and had been this whole time.

They could actually send him the video, but that would be the way he'd learn about the incident, but actually seeing what happened. If she hadn't already opened up about Emma she didn't think she could bear him seeing THAT, but as things were? With what he already knew?

At least it was better than whatever Emma was trying to spin.

"Can you avoid making it suspicious?" She asked. "Like, enough of a delay for it to be reasonable?" She suspected that Joe hadn't had enough time to watch the full video. At least not watch it like a normal person. Once again, she could only guess as to how Joe saw the world at this point, particularly when it came to technical stuff.

"I'll take care of it." He said. "Enough of a delay to be believable and I'll make sure to use publicly posted email addresses. Ones that your father will see."

"Thank you." Taylor said quietly.

"Don't worry about it." He said. He still sounded on edge, but maybe a bit better for having been able to do something. "And the police are about to pull up to the school. It would probably be for the best to act surprised, assuming that matters."

Taylor doubted it did. People weren't paying attention to her. Beyond the token treatment it was like they were hoping she'd just disappear and take the problem with her. Instead she kept her head bowed and focused on her swarm. She tracked the movements of every person she had tagged. She mapped out walls, doors, windows, and air ducts. And she felt the police car pull into the school's parking lot.

She tagged the two officers who stepped out and followed their process into the school. There was a pause as they entered the front door, like they noticed something. The blood on the floor. Her blood. It hadn't been cleaned up yet. Some janitorial signs had been put down around the worst of it, but otherwise it had been left.

There was a trail of drops leading to the office and the officers followed it like… well, exactly like what it was. It was almost funny. A literal blood trail leading its way to her.

Outside in the parking lot a woman got out of her car. She looked towards the police car, checked her watch, then hurried towards the entrance of the school.

Emma's mother. She had been waiting to take Emma to her modeling work. It looked like her parents hadn't been told either.

The officers made it to the principal's office before Emma's mother even made it to the front door. They both stepped into the office without hesitation. Blackwell looked up and Taylor found herself having to reassess her initial appraisal of the woman's expression. If before she had looked like she was attending a funeral, now she looked like she was attending her own funeral. And it was closed casket.

"Good afternoon. I'm Officer Kieth." The male officer said. "This is Officer Ramirez. We received a report of an assault on a student."

Principal Blackwell looked at the officers, then at Taylor, then at Emma. She cleared her throat and straightened her back. "There seems to be some kind of misunderstanding. We had an altercation between two students, but I wouldn't characterize it as an assault."

"Is that so?" Officer Kieth said, stepping further into the office. "Would these two be Emma Barnes and Taylor Hebert?" He asked, carefully pronouncing Taylor's last name.

"I don't see how that's relevant-" Blackwell began, but Emma cut her off.

"I'm Emma Barnes!" Emma declared, jumping to her feet. "Taylor attacked me when we were in the hall."

"Is that so?" The officer asked. He was clearly looking at Emma's hands. The broken nails and the blood on her fingers. "Ramirez?" He asked.

The other officer had crouched down to examine Taylor. "Defensive wounds. Fingernails, by the look of it."

Emma suddenly balled her hands into fists, hiding covering her broken nails. "What are you saying?" She asked.

"Just making observations." Officer Ramirez said. "Miss? Are you alright? Any other injuries?"

Taylor looked up at the woman. "She knocked me down." She said, "I think I might have some bruises, but nothing as bad as this."

"She's lying." Emma said. The two officers just exchanged blank looks. "You can't believe that. Just look at her!" Given their relative states, the statement fell a little flat.

"I would like to speak with Miss Hebert privately." The female officer said.

"What, so she can lie about what happened?" Emma said. Blackwell just stared down at her with a grim expression. The awkward silence was interrupted when Ms. Stoningham returned with a slightly fresher First Aid kit, but seemed completely stunned by the scene in front of her.

"Officers, if I could speak with you for a moment, I believe all this could be resolved." Principal Blackwell said.

Officer Ramirez smiled at her. "Thank you, Principal…"

"Blackwell." She said, glaring at the woman.

"Well Principal Blackwell, I look forward to the opportunity, after I have had a chance to speak with Miss Hebert."

"I will be happy to speak with you." The male officer said. "And of course, hear anything else Miss Barnes has to share."

"You can't…" She was cut off by the phone ringing. Ms. Stoningham looked over the group, then quickly moved to pick it up.

"Hello, Winslow High School." She said professionally. "Can you hold for…" The secretary paled. "Hello Mr. Hebert."

Principal Blackwell's eyes widened. She looked between Emma, Taylor, the officers, and the phone before seemingly making her decision. "My office." She said quickly.

"I sent through the video." Joe said. "Sorry for not telling you. Things seemed busy."

Taylor nodded slightly, not wanting to risk responding with the officer checking over her. She also avoided reacting to the woman who pushed her way into the office.

"Emma?" Zoe Barnes cried. Whatever she'd been worried about, the site inside the office didn't reassure her.

"Mom?" Emma said. "Mom, we have to go." She tried to push towards the door, but Officer Kieth blocked her path.

"Are you Emma Barnes's mother?" He asked.

"I am. What happened here? Principal Blackwell?" Emma's mom asked.

Blackwell looked between Emma's mother and the waiting call in her office. "Emma was involved in an incident. It seems someone reported it to the authorities. We are working to resolve matters, but I would encourage cooperation with these officers while we see matters through. Now, if you excuse me, I need to speak with Miss Hebert's father."

She turned and stepped into her office, closing the door behind her. Emma's mother looked around with a stunned expression.

"Well, since you have a guardian present, I would enjoy hearing your account of the incident in question." Officer Kieth said.

Emma narrowed her eyes. "My father's a lawyer." The statement didn't have the impact she seemed to be hoping for.

"Well then, would you prefer to wait for him?" The officer asked.

"No. No, we have to go. Right mom? We're late." Emma said, trying to squeeze past the officer.

"Emma, what's this about?" Her mother asked, moving into the office. "Maybe we should call your father."

Officer Ramirez stepped forward, taking the first aid kit from the secretary's desk. "I'll leave you to that. I trust you have a nurse station?" She asked.

Ms. Stoningham looked to Emma and her mother, then to the officer. "I'll show you the way."

"Thank you. Taylor, are you able to walk? Any dizzy feelings or light headedness?" She asked.

"No, I can manage." She said, climbing to her feet as the secretary led them out of the office.

"Your father is tearing Blackwell a new one. He'll be on his way soon. Both Officers Kieth and Ramirez have excellent records, and Ramirez has specialized in assault cases." Joe explained. Taylor looked at the female officer. She did have a calm and confident manner, like she had seen this kind of thing before and knew what to expect.

"If this is going to get personal, I'd rather not listen in. I'll be standing by if you need anything and will keep an eye on the situation. If you're good, just tap the watch." He said. "Hope I was able to help."

Taylor gave a single nod. She heard Joe let out a breath of relief. A ghost of a smile crossed her lips as she reached across and tapped the face of her watch, ending the call. Things were looking crazy, but somehow it was a better kind of crazy than what she had grown used to dealing with every day.

Addendum Danny

Danny drove through the streets of Brockton Bay as fast as his car could take him. It was significantly slower than he would have preferred, but with the roads still damaged and traffic from the charity event he was just lucky not to be caught in gridlock.

The day had been a rollercoaster of stress. He had barely slept the previous night after Taylor finally told him what had been happening at school. The real cause behind it. Really, it was such a fundamental betrayal that he couldn't blame her for keeping it to herself. He never would have imagined Emma to be capable of those kinds of things, but he remembered that summer. He knew how those kinds of things could impact people.

Not that it even began to count as an excuse. Taylor had shown him the notebook. The documentation of everything that had been done to her and every failure of the teachers to intervene. Just the thought of it made his blood boil.

He had always worked to keep his temper under control. He'd seen where that could go from his own father. It wasn't something he would ever risk repeating, no matter how hard it was at times. And he wasn't just angry at Emma or Alan or the school. The truth was he was angry at himself. Angry at what he'd let happen, and angry at what he let himself become.

He had cut himself off from people. People who could have helped him and who would have helped Taylor. It was mostly out of shame. Shame for how he broke down after he lost Annette. Without his wife to help bridge things and with the weight of guilt he didn't want to face anyone.

Honestly, it was easier to assume that they wanted nothing to do with him, that they blamed him for her loss and for how much Taylor had suffered. It was easier to isolate and cut himself off rather than face that possibility. Even if they might have wanted to help, he chose to avoid the potential shame and derision rather than risk reaching out.

A lot of that was from Annette's parents, who actually did feel that way and weren't afraid to let him know. They had never liked him and things were particularly bad after Annette was gone. Nothing to do with him and only distant contact with Taylor. At his worst and lowest he had even worried they would try to get custody of Taylor. To cut him out forever, like they wanted to do with Annette.

Reaching out to Annette's friends had been a wake-up call. Really, it had been a series of wakeup calls. While working with the college's physics department he'd had a chance to talk with Professor Singh about how things had been since Annette passed. Well, talk with Rani, rather than Professor Singh, as she had insisted. It seemed a bit informal. Honestly, he couldn't remember Annette ever using less than the woman's full title.

The two of then had a somewhat contentious professional relationship, but she had been very sympathetic about both Annette's passing and how Danny had dealt with it. It was easy to pretend that nobody understood, that everyone was expecting him to carry on perfectly, but that wasn't the case. People who knew Annette wanted to help, but he had been too ashamed to let them. And because of that, he'd allowed things to get this bad.

And then to get worse. Emma. Taylor explained that something had happened to her the summer before they started at Winslow together. She didn't know what, but he remembered the riots and gang fighting. It was easy enough to imagine what she could have been caught up in.

And because of that, she'd been making Taylor's life hell. Torturing his little girl with everything she knew from their years as best friends. Working with those two other girls to make her miserable every single day. It was supposed to stop after the locker, but apparently, the school couldn't be bothered.

And the locker. Taylor said she still didn't know who had pushed her in there, but suspects were obvious. Just imagining little Emma doing something like that to Taylor…

He had to calm himself down again. Anger wouldn't help. Not in this situation. And the worst anger came from helplessness. From not being able to do anything or even understand the scale of what you were dealing with. He'd been simmering in that anger for months. For longer than months, though it was the locker that really brought things to the surface.

And now something had happened again. Not as bad as the locker, thank God, but this time he got to see it happen. He would be eternally grateful to whoever in Taylor's class had sent him that video, as much as he hated seeing it. Hated that it happened, but for once it felt like he wasn't helpless.

A video from one of the girls who ganged up on Taylor, sent to him by someone who apparently had more decency than most of that school put together. He'd seen what Emma had said about Annette. How Taylor had endured under the cruelest accusations imaginable. And then he'd seen Emma attack his little girl.

That anger again. It was probably a good thing the police were already on site. Principal Blackwell had the gall to suggest everything was in hand, that they were 'sorting out' the situation. Like he wouldn't drop everything for the sake of his daughter.

They didn't know about the video. That helped temper the anger into determination. No doubt they would find out soon, but until then it was an advantage. At the very least, it was something they couldn't deny. No matter what Alan might try.

Speaking of the devil, an expensive car pulled into the Winslow parking lot directly behind Danny's station wagon. It must have been purchased in the last couple of years because Danny didn't recognize it until Alan Barnes stepped out.

"Danny!" The man called to him, but he was already taking long strides towards the front doors. Alan started jogging to catch up, fighting to close the distance.

Danny saw a custodian mopping a patch of floor, but didn't miss the drops of blood leading away towards the office. He lengthened his strides as the front doors flew open behind him.

"Danny, wait." Alan called, but Danny was already halfway to the office.

He pushed his way in to find a female officer sitting next to his daughter. Taylor's face and arms had been carefully bandaged. They didn't seem to still be bleeding, but it looked as bad as it had on the video.

At the other side of the office stood a male officer next to Zoe and Emma Barnes. Zoe looked shell shocked while Emma seemed somehow confused about the situation.

"Dad!" Taylor called. The officer helped her to her feet and he was hugging his little girl. Seeing her like this that anger came back, but it was focused. At the very least it wasn't the anger of helplessness. Not anymore.

"Mr. Hebert?" The officer said. "I'm Officer Ramirez. I spoke with your daughter following her attack."

"Has it been established that there was an attack?" A breathless voice from behind him. Danny turned to see Alan panting in the doorway.

"Mr. Barnes, I presume?" The other officer said. "I'm Officer Kieth. And yes, our investigation had confirmed that there was an attack, with your daughter implicated as the assailant."

Alan seemed shocked by the man's bluntness. Behind him Zoe just wilted. "I hope you did not speak to my daughter without legal representation present."

"Miss Barnes had a legal guardian present through all questioning, save statements she freely volunteered prior to her mother's arrival. Also, as she had not yet been charged, the matter of legal representation was not pertinent." Officer Kieth explained. "Now, should Taylor or her father wish to press charges-"

"Yes." Danny said quickly. Taylor looked up at him through bent glasses from a bandaged face, steeling his resolve even further. "We wish to press charges against Emma Barnes."

"Danny, think about this." Alan said. "This is a schoolyard fight. It's not something that needs to go this far."

"It's gone more than far enough, Alan. And I think we both know this is about more than a schoolyard fight." He said.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Alan asked.

"Miss Herbert has provided accounts of an ongoing harassment campaign at the hands of Miss Barnes." Officer Ramirez stated. "It presents evidence of deliberate and malicious intention on the part of your daughter."

"You're using that to justify an arrest? On the word of a teenager? Blackwell, you can't let this stand." Alan said, turning to the principal who had been silent so far.

She took a slow breath before responding. "Officer Kieth had been very forthcoming and thorough with respect to the legal aspects of this incident. While I would have preferred to handle it internally, I do not have any standing to interfere in the event of formal charges being issued."

Alan looked from the principal to his wife then to the officer. Turning back to Danny he lowered his voice. "Danny, please. These are criminal proceedings. You know how serious they are."

"Yes, and I am serious." He said, wrapping an arm around his daughter. His hand brushed against one of the bandaged cuts and she flinched in his arms. It was all he needed to harden his glare towards Alan.

"Please. If you do this you know I'll fight it with everything I have. We both know you can't afford this." Alan said.

"Sir, are you attempting to interfere with the process of an investigation?" Officer Kieth asked. "That could be interpreted as harassment, bordering on obstruction."

"I know the law, and my rights, officer." Alan said. He turned to the principal. "You're prepared to accept this?"

Principal Blackwell looked slightly ill. "As I stated, I would prefer to handle this internally, but the officers have made their stance clear."

"We have ample justification for charges, given the personal injury, accusations of prior abuse," She looked directly at the principal. "And Miss Hebert's previous open assault case."

Alan tensed. "You can not be suggesting that my daughter had anything to do with that incident."

"I cannot comment on that matter, but this is the second time Miss Herbert was assaulted on these premises. At least the second time. I'm sure the subsequent investigation will help to address the possibility of any connection." She nodded to her partner and the man removed a pair of handcuffs from his belt. Emma looked at them like she couldn't believe what was happening.

"Emma Barnes, you are under arrest for the assault and battery of Taylor Hebert. You have the right to remain silent…"

Danny had seen arrests before, but there seemed to be a level of excessive formality to this. From the look on Alan's face he guessed the man was watching for anything he could use against the case. From his expression, Danny was willing to bet he was coming up short.

"This is pointless." Alan said. "These charges will never stand. I'll have my daughter out in an hour."

"Then I'll see you at the station, though given the current traffic and state of the roads, I'd recommend adjusting your estimate." The officer said as Emma was led out of the office. In handcuffs. Through a building full of her classmates.

That had to be intentional on the part of the officer. Emma's parents rushed out after her, with Alan shooting him an ugly look as he left. Danny shook his head and turned back to the remaining officer.

"Your daughter should have a proper medical examination." Officer Ramirez said. "We'll also need a medical report in support of her case. I can arrange an ambulance, or she can ride with you if that would make her more comfortable?"

"Taylor?" He asked. His daughter looked up at him.

"I'd like to go with dad." She said.

"That's fine. I'd like to follow up after your examination. I can meet you at Summerhill Hospital." Officer Ramirez said.

"I know the way." He said, before turning to face Principal Blackwell. "Though if you could give me a moment, I'd like to speak with Taylor's principal privately."

Blackwell raised an eyebrow while the officer gave him a concerned look.

"Mr. Hebert, I'd caution you against speaking alone if there are pending legal proceedings." She warned.

"This isn't related to the attack." He said. "I was meaning to speak with her anyway, and I doubt she wants an audience for this."

The officer glanced between him and the principal, then nodded. "Very well, Mr. Hebert. Providing it's alright with Principal Blackwell."

"Of course. Please, step into my office." She said.

The woman held open the door for him, then seemed to relish closing it, isolating them from the officer. She circled the desk and sank into her oversized chair, leaving him one of the seats reserved for delinquent students. He didn't mind. Power plays wouldn't help her now.

"So, Mr. Hebert, how can I help you?" She asked, resting her elbows on the desk.

"Well Principal Blackwell, I would like to know why you were sending my daughter's files to the PRT." He said, leaning back.

The principal froze. The only hint of movement was a series of frantic blinks as she tried to process what he said. She cleared her throat and leaned forward.

"I'm not sure where you would have gotten that idea." She said calmly.

"From the government routing number on the forms you attempted to have Taylor sign without informing me or seeking my consent." He said, keeping his voice level.

"Mr. Hebert, Taylor was merely confirming the accuracy of information already present. There were no agreements that would require parental approval." Blackwell said.

"Yes, and the fact that they were being sent to the PRT?" He asked.

"I think you must be mistaken." She said, "The numbers on those forms are quite complicated, perhaps your daughter was mistaken?" Danny gave the woman a flat look. "Or it could possibly be a misprint?" He still didn't respond. A vein in the woman's forehead began to swell and pulse. She took a deep breath before placing her hands on the desk.

"Hypothetically, the only reason an institution such as ours would have to deal with such routing codes would be matters concerning Wards. Mr. Hebert, you do understand that any action that might compromise the identity of a Ward is an exceptionally serious matter?" She said quietly.

"I understand." He said.

"Good. Then I trust we can put this matter to rest?" She asked.

"No." He said. "Because you haven't told me why you were sending my daughter's information to the PRT without my consent." He said harshly. "Because I understand the nature of those routing codes and data requests. And I have a right to be informed, independent of any Ward involvement."

"Mr. Hebert, in case you are not aware, the city remains in a state of emergency. I'm sorry that you feel personally affronted, but certain courtesies must be overlooked given the circumstances." She said, leaning forward in her chair.

"Given this involves my daughter, I believe I would consider myself to be personally affronted." Danny said, matching the principal's tone. "And in case you are not aware, I have been coordinating relief efforts since Thursday night. I am familiar with the state of emergency and the powers it allots to government officials. In fact, I personally reviewed them this morning."

Blackwell's expression became unsteady. "What are you saying?"

"I'm saying that I know the regulations for the release of that information and the steps necessary to bypass them. I'm saying that this looks like someone abusing an emergency to cover for data transfer, likely to cover for something else. Something involving my daughter." He rose from his seat and pressed his hands into the desk, looming over the principal. "Because unless Director Piggot herself specifically requested my daughter's file, this is a monstrous act of overreach."

The woman looked unwell. She was breaking out in a cold sweat and looked like she was about to keel over. "That is an interesting theory, Mr. Herbert. Of course, were any of it true, I would be unable to comment due to confidentiality policies. The identity of Wards would need to be protected. Even against your own accusations."

Danny sank back into his seat. "Of course."

He saw a spark of hope blossom from the woman. "Of course. Then you agree, we should put this matter behind us?"

"No." He stated simply. "I agree, it is not my place to raise these concerns." He narrowed his eyes. "Fortunately, there is an organization devoted to providing oversight on these matters, and they happen to have assigned a special representative to this city."

The blood drained from Principal Blackwell's face. "The Youth Guard."

"Yes." Danny said, leaning back. "I spent a good portion of this morning on the phone with Mrs. Garrick, the Youth Guard special representative for Brockton Bay. She was very happy to take my call, and very interested to learn the details of Taylor's case, as well as the PRT's apparent interest in it."

"What?" The principal hissed. "Her case?"

"Yes. Apparently, some departments take advantage of jurisdictional issues to end investigations on matters they'd rather not have pursued. It seems it's quite a serious matter." He said.

"You can't think that's relevant to Taylor's situation." Blackwell said quickly.

"I couldn't say." He replied. "After all, it's not my place to say, but you should be hearing from the Youth Guard fairly soon. It seems there aren't many legitimate reasons the PRT could have for this kind of action. It sounds like it could be fairly bad for them. Or for any institutions who were complicit."

Principal Blackwell took a breath. "Thank you for informing me of this, Mr. Hebert."

"You're welcome. I hope things work out for you. It seems like you are going to be quite busy for the immediate future." He replied.

Too busy to interfere on behalf of Emma, or to take sides against Taylor. Too busy covering for themselves to coordinate with anyone else.

Danny smiled as he left the office. His anger was still there, but it was tempered. It wasn't a useless force dragging him down. He could turn it towards something useful rather than have it destroy him.

Officer Ramirez walked him and Taylor to his car and talked them through the procedure for the hospital. Taylor had been hurt, but for once he could make sure it wouldn't happen again. Because it wasn't just him. For once, he wasn't alone. He had help. Reaching out had been hard, but it was worth the pain and the risk.

For Taylor, anything was.