Alt-Power AU: Backseat Flying
As far as superpowers went, Taylor was pretty happy with hers. She sat on her hospital bed, resisting the urge to test her powers any more. Someone might see. But it was tempting, so tempting.
Okay, don't lose control. Don't break down. This is some kind of illusion or Master effect. It's not what it looks like.
The bug control was… not so great, admittedly. Creepy. But it wasn't her only power. She could fly, and she was strong! Like Alexandria with a side-order of bugs! She let herself hover up off the bed by an inch, just to luxuriate in the feeling.
I'm not trapped. Not entirely. Why am I floating?
Then she dropped to the bed. That wasn't right. She frowned and tried to get her power to cooperate. She wanted to be flying, and it was as easy as willing it before… Not so much now, though.
So I can control my powers, but not my body? Weird, bad… Why are my arms so skinny?
Her arm jerked out in front of her of its own accord, and she yelped. "What?"
I can kind of move? It's hard… I didn't shout, though, and that's not my voice. Okay, troubleshooting time.
Taylor was rapidly going from pleased with her powers to terrified. Her body got up, feeling as if it was being puppeted by a thin but inexorable suit of armor moving on its own, and walked her over to the window. Her terrified reflection stared back at her.
I think I know that face. Mostly from the news back before Gold Morning. Never seen her looking so scared, though. If this is an illusion it's a weird one.
Taylor tried to move her limbs, but she was trapped below the neck. "Stop it, power," she hissed, at a loss for what else she could do. Her bugs were still under her control but bugs couldn't help her here. "Please!"
Power… Fragile One? You here? Yes, kind of? That's reassuring. I don't think many Masters would be able to fake our connection. But… that means this isn't some obvious ploy.
"Let me go!" Taylor whispered. She didn't like being confined. Not after the locker. It was her power, it shouldn't be hurting her. "Now! Stop it! Listen to me!"
Shit, she's freaking out. No clue what's going on here, but who knows if this kid even is who she looks like to me. Crap. How do I stop using the forcefield?
Suddenly, her body was hers to control once more, save for her left arm.
Sorry, kid wearing the face of Skitter. Really. Let's try communicating…
Her left arm rose and poked at the window.
No? No tracing out letters, no morse code… The hell is this? I can't make myself do it.
Her fingers glanced over the glass, moving randomly.
Clever Master trick, stopping me from communicating. But did you think of… this?
Her left hand rose of its own accord, still feeling like it was wrapped in unyielding solid objects, and pat the top of her own head.
"The fuck?" Taylor whispered.
Contact!
Her power stopped malfunctioning after that, thankfully just before her father showed up. Taylor kept her mouth shut about her abilities and let her father take her home.
This is weird.
She lied about being fine, and shut herself in her room. Taking out a pencil and notebook, a fresh one, she wrote down what she knew.
She could control bugs. Further, this part of her power hadn't disobeyed her yet.
Hmm… Nope. Can't control bugs.
As for other powers… She could fly. Sometimes. When it wasn't cutting out. And she could be body-jacked by what she thought might be a full-body shield.
I know I can't write, but let's just check again.
Her power seized her hand for a moment, scribbling out a little squiggly line on the page.
As I thought. No communication. Which implies the Master or whatever behind this doesn't want me communicating with her. Whoever she is. Either she's trapped in this illusion just like me, or… She's real. Don't like what that might mean.
"So weird," Taylor breathed. Powers weren't supposed to act on their own… Except for things made by powers, sometimes. Masters? She wrote that down.
Actually, all powers probably could do things on their own. They just don't. You're on a track, not sure it's the right one.
But it seemed more likely that she just didn't know what she was doing yet. Maybe using her powers required self-discipline that she didn't have yet? It was just as valid a possibility, so she wrote it down.
No, it's not about discipline. More about being comfortable with yourself. In tune with what your power wants and what you want.
Her arm moved of its own accord again, her hand shaping into a fist.
Wow, can't even make a thumbs down hand sign. Or a thumbs up.
"Behave," Taylor told her own arm. Her voice shook a little. She really didn't like this.
Okay, I'll let go. If we can't communicate then the next best thing is an understanding. We're in this together. Maybe.
Her arm fell limp, and she breathed a sigh of relief. "It's going to be hard to be a hero if I can't trust my own power," she mused.
Hero, you say? Wasn't she a villain first? It doesn't seem right that you want to be a hero. Admittedly, I know almost nothing about her life before the Leviathan fight, and even after that it's sketchy, but still. If it's being a hero you want, then let Fragile Victoria steer the way!
Taylor lifted off her feet, suddenly flying. She floated in the middle of her room, not at all in control of herself, and her hands put themselves on her hips. She stuck her chest out and… posed.
Can't give me any control at all without giving loopholes for me to express myself, anonymous Master. Not that it helps me understand the point of all this…
"Okay." Maybe she could work with this.
But not without a lot of practice and research and a better understanding of what the hell was going on.
It's been a week. I think I have to treat this like it's real, because if it's not I have no way out and I'm going to go insane.
Taylor hefted her backpack and reluctantly boarded the bus. It was her first day back at school since the incident, and she really wished dad could have let her stay home longer. Practicing with her powers was so much better than anything to do with school.
If this is real… I am back in time. I am the power of one of the most important, for good or ill, parahumans of our time. She didn't have my powers before, so if this is time travel there's no point in trying to preserve the timeline or anything, it's already changed.
She sat near the front of the bus, avoiding the weed smoke filling the rear. The driver looked like he had partaken himself.
Proto-Skitter is currently a surprisingly shy, gangly teen showing absolutely no signs of callous villainous leanings. Am I in a mirror world where everything is reversed? Or did something really fucked up happen to her later? Did the Undersiders brainwash her or something? She wants to be a hero right now, and I know Skitter became Weaver for a while, but still. Didn't see any of the Undersiders following her when she jumped sides…
The bus bumped over a pothole and stopped to pick up another load of gang members, druggies, and the occasional normal apathetic teenager.
No assumptions, Victoria. You don't know what you don't know. But you do have goals. Priorities. Priority one is keeping an eye out for any sign this isn't real, and by extension any way out. Priority two, in the meantime… Keep weirdly adorable not-Skitter on the side of heroes. How hard could that be? I can just fly her away the second I see an Undersider.
The bus pulled up to Winslow, and Taylor joined the exodus. Its halls were as grimy and untended as ever, and the people were worse. The people stared. Whispered. Some ignored her, but most looked at her like she was a sideshow freak.
That's not normal. What did you do, Taylor, that you showing up at school is a gossip-worthy event? Are they all secretly afraid of you? Do you have some sort of alternate personality I haven't seen yet because you don't show it to your dad? Is Skitter about to come out?
Taylor bowed her head and hurried down the hall, away from the main gauntlet of loitering bystanders. She tried not to let it get to her.
"I didn't know the loony bin had an exchange program," someone jeered.
She passed her locker, resigned to keeping all of her textbooks with her, and made it to her first class without incident.
Never mind. Don't tell me Skitter was – There's something on that chair!
She froze halfway through the motion of sitting down, her flight and forcefield kicking in to hold her up just above the surface. She jerked up and stood on her own, her power returning to her control, but as she did she saw that someone had spilled something on the seat. She had almost sat in it.
Madison was watching from across the classroom, a little frown on her face. Taylor wordlessly took the seat to the left of her usual place, thankful her power had… saved her. That was weird.
Is this what high school is like when you're not one of the popular kids? I think I would have noticed.
New theory: Skitter was not only inevitable, one specific high school somehow dodged a bug-based bullet. This was the worst school day I have ever experienced.
Taylor tossed her backpack on the floor of her room. "First day back… not bad," she muttered.
Not bad? What do you count as bad, then? I suppose whatever put you in the hospital in the first place, but surely that was a one-off event.
She went to the bathroom, closed the door, and turned on the shower.
Time to go to sleep… Worst part of this situation, by far. I miss my own body.
"Thanks," Taylor told herself in the mirror. "Power. Thank you."
Wait, is she talking to me? I did stop her from sitting in juice, but that was nothing.
"I don't know… Maybe you're just my subconscious." Taylor stared into her own eyes. She felt somewhat silly, talking to herself, but on the off chance someone or something could hear her… "But thank you. For helping me instead of fighting me or taking over."
I'll admit, I was tempted a couple of times. Fly up to them, blast the aura… Hey, that's something. What happened to my aura? You have my shield and my flight, but not the aura.
Taylor shook her head and turned away from the mirror.
Missed my moment. Oh well. Better late than never!
Her power lifted her arm and pat her head like it had in the hospital. She thought she knew what that meant, now. They were in this together. Her and her power, maybe her and her subconscious… whatever. Someone or something was on her side.
Yeah, that's right. I'm here for you. Trust your superpowers, they know what they're doing. Not right now, though. I'm going to close my nonexistent eyes and sit in a nonexistent corner.
"Yes!" Taylor yelled, her body cutting through the air like a fish through water, high above Brockton Bay. Her body flipped and soared, violating gravity with a casual, effortless ease. All the cares and worries and stress of her life could wait, because she was flying under her own power and it was amazing!
Nothing beats that first flight.
She flew over the city, looking down at the lights and buildings. Brockton Bay wasn't a nice city, but it looked pretty nice from above, at night, when all that could really be seen were the various lights.
Hard to believe it's still there… Not abandoned, no Crater Lake, no Leviathan or Bakuda damage… It looks good.
One of the many lights shone brightly. Very, very brightly. Taylor squinted at it. Was it getting bigger?
…But this is Brockton Bay, so even at its best it's still home to Nazis. Not even the skies are safe. Taylor, I really hope you recognize Purity. I know you've been researching capes, come on, put two and two together!
The glaring light resolved into a reverse shooting star, a trailing figure of light flying up into the sky. Another parahuman. A villain, Purity, whose powers were flying, being very bright, and shooting extremely powerful beams of energy.
Yes, tense up! You know who that is! Let's get out of here, baby superhero not-Skitter is not a match for Purity. You have bugs, strength, flying and a one-shot shield, she'll just shoot you twice and sear us to oblivion.
Purity. Right there, flying somewhat lower than Taylor herself. Just… flying. Hard to look at directly, and seemingly oblivious to the much darker, unexpected second flier in the air with her.
Why aren't you flying away?
This was an opportunity. Taylor hadn't read anything about Purity being immune to her own blasts. If she got in close and grabbed onto her from behind, would Purity be able to blast her off, or would she be helpless because doing so would hurt her, too?
I guess you're freezing up? Not the best reaction for a hero, freezing in the presence of danger, but we can work on it.
Taylor cautiously flew down toward Purity, her movement silent in the night sky. If she could just get close enough, she might be able to end this without a fight at all, and arresting Purity would be an amazing start to her heroic career. When would she ever get a chance like this again?
No, don't do that! Go the other way!
Her careful approach was abruptly reversed as her power kicked in and pulled her in exactly the opposite direction, much faster than she had been moving to start with. She let out a startled yell.
Purity turned around, alerted by the noise. Her body flared brightly, and a swirling helix blast of white light shot their way, passing through the air not ten feet from Taylor's shoes.
Let me handle this! You can fight a flier once you have more than five minutes of experience flying.
Taylor flew away, spinning in the air, but not of her own will. Her power twisted and dove, flying her away at what she thought was her top speed. Another spiraling helix beam pierced the air way too close to her for her to complain about being forcibly retreated. Her power dropped her through the sky, falling down to the buildings below.
Purity doesn't care about collateral damage but she won't fire if she can't find us.
Her power pulled her down below the rooftops, then yanked her around to hover under a fire escape, pressing her body up against the rusty metal.
Now we wait and find out whether she's angry enough to really search for us. Keep quiet!
The bright shooting star of Purity's form streaked overhead, casting momentary illumination on the mostly dark streets. Taylor panted fearfully. She was trapped, her sneak attack had failed, and she was all but paralyzed several stories off the ground–
Oh, shit, you're freaking out again. Sorry!
Her power lowered her down to the corrugated surface of the fire escape, and she could move again.
I should know better, Masters don't like losing control.
Taylor gripped the metal of the fire escape with both hands. The searching light that was Purity could be seen in the distance, safely flying away.
Safely. Maybe even letting her guard down.
"I'm not scared," she muttered, trying to psyche herself back up. "Just… Fly in. Grab her arms from behind. Drag her to a police station. Easy."
Say what now?
Taylor attempted to lift off from the fire escape, marshaling her for the moment cooperative power of flight. She could do this.
Do you have a death wish? I was there when you tested your force field, I know you know you can only take one big hit. Purity does massive beams of continuous big hits.
She immediately found that her power took her down to the sidewalk and left her there. "Up," she muttered, trying to will herself back up into the air. This had to be some expression of her subconscious, she must still be afraid. Deep down. Even though she wasn't. She wanted to be a hero.
This is a terrible idea and I will not be a part of it. You're grounded until you come up with an actual plan I can get behind.
Taylor's power stubbornly refused to cooperate. Purity, on the other hand, had turned around and was sweeping back toward her, searching the street once more.
And Taylor didn't just have strength, a forcefield, and flight. She had a fourth power that never disobeyed her. That would have to be enough. She had to hide while she gathered her strike force, Purity was looking for a person, not bugs…
Yes, go find cover… That dumpster works. Good. I approve. No, don't hide in it– Yes, take the cardboard out and cover yourself like a hobo. Now we wait for her to give up.
Her best bugs were unfortunately ground bound for the most part; she had venomous spiders and fire ants, but Purity had yet to come within ten feet of any solid surface in her erratic search. That said, all this being dragged around by her subconscious using her forcefield and flight had given her ideas. Wasps to pick up the spiders, flies for the ants, and her heavy stingers and biters were airborne. Not many of them, but she didn't want many, she wanted effective.
Assuming we get out of this alive… I wish I knew more about you. A few weeks of observation does not explain why shy, bullied Taylor Hebert suddenly wants to wrestle Purity to the ground. Did you try to do this the first time around? Or are my powers emboldening you? You sure seem to like them a lot more than your own.
Purity was impossible to look at directly, but the bright glow was an easy target for all of the bugs Taylor had in range. She sent them there, in ones and twos and threes, flying them behind the now slow-moving blinding light. Purity didn't notice a thing; it was hard to tell, but Taylor thought she was now taking the time to look at rooftops and fire escapes.
And I approve of that. My powers are great. Once you understand them. Yes, I mean you, Fragile One. You're still here. Right? I think I can feel you. I'm not imagining it.
She began landing bugs on Purity, single insects latching on to what didn't really seem to be a costume. Taylor's mental topographical map – she thought that was what this most resembled – was getting clearer with every insect on her target, and she was becoming certain that Purity was wearing jeans and a low-shoulder shirt. It made sense; her power worked as its own disguise, making her body impossible to look directly at. No need for a costume under that.
It also left a lot of exposed skin and hiding places for spiders and wasps. Purity hadn't noticed anything amiss yet, and the fact that she was wearing clothing at all said something. Her power probably didn't destroy things on her. Her skin was normal, albeit glowing, human skin.
Oh, Taylor. Kid. You must be terrified right now, huddling behind a dumpster to avoid being found by a Nazi. You're nothing like Skitter at all, are you?
Fifteen black widows, two dozen wasps, and seventy ants lay in wait all over Purity's clothing, all positioned within striking distance of vulnerable bare skin. Purity herself was floating over a rooftop half a block away, looking down at something. She was at least fifteen feet above the roof.
Nothing like Skitter. Yeah. I need to remember to keep my mind open. One crazy plan to take down a Nazi who couldn't possibly deserve it more does not a supervillain make. You weren't even going to hurt her!
Scores of bugs bit, stung, and skittered across bare skin in unison. Purity choked out a pained cry and fell out of the air, momentarily blindsided by unexpected, sourceless pain. Her legs hit the roof first, and all of the bugs on her body felt the crunching vibrations as they buckled under her.
Taylor burst out of her cardboard hideout and threw herself into the air, her flight responding perfectly, as if it had never left her control for an instant.
Ahh! Making a break for– No, why are you going up, stay close to the ground!
Purity lashed out blindly at the air, firing a powerful spiraling beam of pure light, but Taylor's bugs were safely ensconced in her clothing. The bright blazing power came from her hands and only her hands.
She left off firing when more bites and stings distracted her, settling for hauling herself back into the air and slapping wildly, yelling all the while.
Taylor flew up behind Purity, moving as fast as she could. The flaring light pulsed as Purity smacked at herself, her skin flashing erratically, and in between the bright times her silhouette could be seen. She crashed into Purity's back, wrapping her arms around the supervillain and pinning the older woman's arms down. She held her body perpendicular as she flew Purity straight at the roof, avoiding her hands like the plague.
This is crazy!
They hit the ground at a speed closer to an arrested fall than a piledriver, and Taylor let Purity's lower body take most of the reduced impact. The older woman howled something entirely incoherent and slumped in her arms, the fight bleeding out of her in a matter of seconds, along with the light in her skin.
It took Taylor a few more seconds to realize that Purity had passed out. Maybe because of the pain. Her legs were… Not very straight.
But she had done it!
Open mind, Vicky. Open mind. At least she's doing it to a Nazi. Not like you didn't get a little brutal yourself, back in the day.
Purity stirred in her arms. Taylor yanked her up to renew her grip and, in the process, accidentally dragged her brutalized legs across the ground.
Purity screamed and passed out again.
Oh god, I need to teach you about first aid and proportionate force. Is this karma?
The police at the police station were remarkably helpful when Taylor flew down with an unmasked supervillain unconscious in her arms. They put Purity in handcuffs, covered her face for… reasons Taylor wasn't totally clear on, given Purity was a villain… and called the Protectorate.
Velocity turned up thirty seconds after the call ended, and Taylor got to meet her first hero while in costume. He was flustered and very appreciative of her impressive first capture. He asked her about her name, which she hadn't decided on yet…
Should probably have done that before making your first capture.
… And he asked about how she did it. She told the truth, mostly. Purity had attacked first, because she hadn't gotten close enough to launch her sneak attack, though she didn't tell him that part. She had run away, because her power forced her to, and her powers were kind of on the fritz. But Purity ran into a wasp nest or something, and she took advantage of that to take her down.
Oh no. Why are you telling him your powers are weird and not entirely under your control? That's going to raise so many red flags. I can't even stop you without it being obvious that something screwy is going on!
He had been properly appreciative of her struggles and awed by her capture of Purity, which made her feel good. Vindicated. He asked how, exactly, her powers were weird, and said he might be able to offer some insight, so she told him. Not everything, but enough to give him a general idea.
…And he's playing you like a naive fiddle. Damn. Since when was Velocity this good at asking leading questions and making all the right noises while otherwise keeping his mouth shut? At least you didn't say anything about bug control. You really don't like that power when you have alternatives.
Velocity didn't have any immediate insights, but he promised he would look into it, and suggested power testing even if she didn't want to be a Ward. She took his contact information and thanked him, and he took Purity away in the PRT van that pulled up a few minutes later.
That could have gone worse, but not by much. We need to get you a reputation as a good, self-controlled independent hero, and quick. They'll snap you up otherwise, and if you wanted that you would have gone to them immediately.
She thought that had gone pretty well. Well enough that she was having second thoughts about not joining the Wards. If all the heroes were helpful like Velocity, why was she staying away? Maybe the teenage heroes were like that, too. She didn't know.
By night, you break Nazi shins. By day, bratty teenagers shove you around for fun, unaware that you have two different sets of potentially lethal superpowers at your beck and call. I have got to get you out of this school before someone without powers gets the Purity treatment.
Dealing with the abuse was made no easier by the knowledge that she had single-handedly captured Purity that night. Even worse, the physical abuse now came with a side of fear. Her power, her shield, wasn't obvious. It was invisible, and it broke soundlessly when it did break. But if someone noticed that she wasn't actually hurt by their shoves and trippings and shoulder-checks, it would out her.
Sophia shoved her against a locker in passing, and she faked a pained gasp.
I can't do much. I could out you, but you would hate me for it. Or hate yourself. I could help you fight back, but you're a Master, and if I puppeted your body into doing anything you would freak out, again outing you. We can't communicate. You aren't doing anything on your own.
"Mocking me, Hebert?" Sophia demanded, turning aside from the flow of students to more thoroughly stare her down. Not good.
Sophia, could you do a disembodied presence a big favor and leave Taylor alone? You are not helping my 'keep Skitter from happening' project. Also, you're a bitch.
"No," Taylor mumbled, scooting along the lockers to try and get away. She could fight back now, it would be easy. She had man-handled – woman-handled? – an adult supervillain last night, if Sophia shoved her again she could just not be moved.
But it would mean being outed.
Really, why can't I write? It would be so easy to coordinate with Taylor if I had any way of communicating. I have no idea what she's thinking right now. I never do!
Would being outed be so bad? Her gut instinct was to say yes, it would. She would be a target. Her dad would be a target. Fleur from New Wave was an example of what no secret identity could bring. There was already a Nazi target on her back in her cape identity of 'name to be decided, the superheroine'.
Sophia's fist smashed into the locker next to Taylor. That had to hurt her knuckles. "Want me to give you something to whine about for real?"
"I don't want anything from you," Taylor retorted. "Just go away." On the other hand, if she was outed as a superhero Sophia, Emma, and Madison would never bother her again. She took down Purity and the heroes knew about her, nobody could claim she was a supervillain now. She had a reputation.
Yes, show a spine! Now throw in a little flair, look at her like she's worthless… You can popular-girl your way out of this if you know how. I know you're not a popular girl around here, but the surprise will throw her off. Maybe you wouldn't mind if I fixed your posture? Little things? Let's try.
Taylor felt herself straighten up, her force field going rigid around her midsection and chest, holding her up and throwing her nonexistent chest out.
What did it mean? Did her power, her subconscious, agree with her? Be a hero? Stand tall? It was a crazy idea, but taking down Purity was crazy too, and she did have that to point to. She was a hero. Why not act like it? New Wave did okay these days.
What was there about her civilian identity that she so badly wanted to preserve, separate from the part of her that took down supervillains? Her dad, but she could find ways to protect him.
Okay, she's staring like you're crazy… Shove past her! Come on, I'll get you started, let's work together.
Her power pushed at the back of her legs, urging her forward.
"Hebert, are you on drugs?" Sophia demanded. She raised a fist. "Thought you couldn't get any more pathetic–"
Go, while she's busy monologuing! Escape!
Taylor punched Sophia in the face with an appreciable fraction of her force-field-granted super strength. Then, for good measure, she floated up six inches off the ground, in plain sight of the entire hallway filled with apathetic teenagers.
Sophia crumpled to the ground. All motion in the hallway ground to a halt.
… Or do that.
"I am a superhero," Taylor announced to the hallway, because if she didn't someone was going to shriek about supervillains any second now. "And I am done with this bullshit!" That felt good to say. Really good. She smiled despite herself.
…
"Holy shit." The first person to break the stunned silence was not Emma, or Madison, or any of their hanger-ons. It wasn't Mr. Gladly, or a teacher come to side against her. It wasn't one of Winslow's more suspicious students.
"Holy shit," Greg repeated as he pushed through the crowd, toward her. "Taylor! You're flying!"
"I'm a superhero," she told him. Because it bore repeating.
"Can I be your sidekick?" he asked.
Excuse me?
Maybe she was riding high on knocking Sophia out in a single punch, on the knowledge that no matter what happened next she wouldn't be going back to the torment, but she genuinely considered it. "I'll get back to you on that."
… At least Skitter can't possibly happen now. Mission accomplished?
Bonus Scene: some time later…
"Hey, new girl–"
No, Tattletale! No poaching!
"Aaaaaaaah!" Taylor screamed as her power rocketed her away from the rooftop, the purple-catsuited person she'd barely gotten a good look at, and over the ensuing minute, that side of Brockton Bay.
Additional Bonus Scene: In a more serious, some might even say Grimdark, universe…
This didn't feel very good.
Breakout, how I long for thee.
Taylor sat in a dim office room, at a circular conference table. Her father was at her side, but he hadn't said a word since Piggot, the obese woman opposite them, had her assistant present two copies of the Ward enrollment contract for their perusal.
Being an independent hero on a team of independent heroes was, and is, better than working for anyone under these conditions. I'm the daughter of a lawyer, not a lawyer myself, but I know enough to know this is a piece of shit.
The contract was… not nice. To say the least. Danny was reading it impassively, but Taylor winced at almost every passage she could actually understand through the legalese. There was something about 'forfeiting merchandising rights' that made her think she was going to be ripped off financially, but the parts about 'probationary Wards' worried her more. She couldn't really understand large swathes of writing in between the parts like that, but she also couldn't see anything that sounded good in the parts she understood.
This is a bad contract. Unfair, too. It's treating Taylor like a criminal. Worse, because there's no legal system involved except on their side. Where's our lawyer? Why didn't Danny call somebody in?
It was eerily quiet as Piggot and her assistant waited for them to finish reading. Nobody had asked any questions yet.
Her father flipped the last page over on his copy, then returned to the start. "We'll need time to discuss this," he said.
"The longer you wait the worse the situation gets," Piggot's shifty-looking assistant said. "This contract won't be enforceable in… twelve hours or so. The secrecy clause."
The secrecy clause. They're actually holding your identity hostage? That's scummy, but also…
"I don't care," Taylor spoke up.
Yeah, that. Apparently flying in front of half of Winslow was the plan all along. We're an outed cape now.
"It's not up to you," Piggot's assistant said condescendingly. "Children often don't make good decisions. Right now, it's still possible to put all of this to bed. Nondisclosure agreements, a well-funded team of investigators to track down those spreading the information… It can all go away. Tomorrow? These things can't be stopped after a certain point."
Bullshit. Also, where's the good-faith effort to do all of that regardless? And I notice none of you are telling Taylor Sophia was a Ward, but I definitely see references to 'fellow Ward nondisclosure agreement' and 'in-house inter-Ward conflict resolution' in there… Damn my inability to speak up!
Piggot, throughout all of this, hadn't said a word. Taylor didn't like the disinterested way she was looking at them.
Danny reached for the pen the assistant had put on the table.
No. Come on, I thought you negotiated for a living! Why are you being browbeaten?
"Dad, I don't like this contract," Taylor said.
"It's the best you'll get," the assistant assured her. "Attacking someone with a parahuman power is a criminal offense."
"He's right, Taylor," Danny muttered.
He's wrong, Taylor! No fair court would convict! They want to bury this while you don't know about Shadow Stalker. I bet you anything that contract will stop you from saying anything about it once you sign.
This wasn't right, but he wasn't listening. What could she do to stop this? They only needed his signature, not hers. "Will someone at least explain, in simple terms, what you're signing before you sign me away to it?" she demanded.
"The contract is–"
Not him, never let the other side's lawyer explain something to you. They can tell the truth and still lead you to exactly the wrong conclusion. Time to intervene.
Taylor's arm went up of her own accord, her hand out. The assistant stopped talking.
She didn't know what her power intended, but she knew what she interpreted it to be. Stop. "No, not you," she guessed, following up with her own thoughts on the matter. "Dad, aren't we supposed to have our own lawyer?"
Good Taylor!
"I understand this," he said.
"Then explain it to me first." Her powers casually directed her arms over to the table, pulling the contract to the space between them.
Out of easy signing range. Now, let me work my magic…
Her finger thumped down on something on the first page. "What does this say?" she asked.
"That…" He paused, reading it over. "You, as a Ward, will be paid minimum wage plus a stipend reserved for college, college-equivalent education, or when you graduate the Wards program."
"Okay…" She waited, and sure enough, her hand moved again, flipping the contract to the third page and running over a small paragraph near the bottom. "And this?" It was forty-five words long, involved ten words she didn't know the definition of, and led straight into a page-long paragraph about something else entirely.
"That probationary Wards are… Subject to 'operating costs' deducted from their stipend?" He looked up at her, his brow furrowed.
Yes! How good are you at reading contracts, again?
"Where in this document is 'operating cost' defined?" he asked Piggot's assistant.
"I bet it's not," Taylor said grimly. She couldn't parse the legal wording of the contract itself, but she could guess where this was going. Screwing her over. Just like Blackwell.
Bingo! Never agree to something that is not defined by you or the thing you're agreeing to. It's like a mystery box, but they get to say what's in the box whenever they want and you have to take it. Even better, look at this!
Piggot's assistant had opened his mouth to answer, but Taylor's arm was in motion again, flipping towards the back of the contract. "And this?" she asked her father, once it had landed on another line.
"That says that you will… sorry, will not, be entitled to remain in your recruiting jurisdiction, but will not be made to move, either."
Nope. Admittedly I'm cheating, with all my insider knowledge, but that's not actually what it says.
Taylor's finger tapped two lines down.
"Addendum, in situations where the identity of the Ward is imperiled, the recruiting party reserves the right to recommend a transfer, decided upon by majority rule." He paused. His brow furrowed.
She flipped back through the contract. While her power did that, Taylor looked up at Piggot and her assistant.
The assistant's eyes were bugging out. Piggot was glaring at her.
The smile she gave them was not a nice one at all.
Nobody expects the moody teen to understand contract jargon! Or to know exactly where to look for subtle abuses of power based on gossip from current and past Wards.
"When majority rule is required, the Ward, the parents of the Ward, the Director, and the leading parahuman of the District will each have a single vote," Danny read. "Yes, Taylor, I did see that. It means that we would…"
He trailed off.
He looked up at Piggot. "A single vote for each parent, or a single vote for the parents as a group?"
"As a group, but that doesn't apply in your case, does it Mr. Hebert?" the assistant replied, a sickly smile on his face.
Also a thing, but that's not what I saw that you missed. Allow me to show you…
One more flip through the contract. One more line for her dad to translate.
"Probationary Wards forfeit their vote and join their parents in the previously defined group for the purposes of majority rule."
"One vote for you." Taylor pointed at Piggot. "One vote for someone who works for you." She pointed at the assistant, but really it would be one of the heroes here in Brockton Bay. Same thing. "And… one vote for me and my dad, together."
Yup. There you go.
"We're not signing this." Danny picked the contract up and shook it at them.
"Then we will press charges for the assault with a parahuman power," the assistant threatened.
"Will you?" Danny asked. He flaunted the contract he still held. "Will you really? Because I think we're going to renegotiate, right here and right now, a fair employment contract. Or I'll walk out of here with this travesty, get a highlighter and a reporter, and see how much damage my daughter can do to your organization's reputation."
There's the union boss! We just had to knock him out of his shell.
"That would be inadvisable," Piggot said, finally breaking her silence.
"Yeah, it would," Danny agreed. "But it would hurt you a hell of a lot more than it hurt us. So get a proper negotiator in here, give me an hour to get a lawyer, and we'll compromise. Or we'll walk out, throw this in your face, and see what happens."
Piggot glared at him… and then at her assistant. "Get Michaels," she told her assistant.
Once he was out of the room, she looked to Danny. "My apologies," she said, her every word dripping with insincerity. "It appears our intentions were… misrepresented. It will not happen again."
No. It won't.
Author's Note: And thus, I end it about where it would cease being comedy and start being a genuine alt-power time-travel with comedic elements… or all-out crack. As you can see with the second bonus scene, the plot tended to trend more serious when I wasn't actively working to make it funny, and that was the hardest part about writing this. I held onto what you see here for a good long while because I kept trying and failing to continue from the 'punch-outing' point. There's so much more that could be done… but not in a short format without completely shifting gears. So I capped it off and ended it.
Also, formatting. This was really annoying to get formatted in AO3 and FF. Why do both have so many issues with italics and line breaks being pasted in?
Anyway, kudos to Ridtom, whose story Janus quite obviously inspired this concept. The key differences are that Janus features a Vicky who isn't blocked from communication, has a much more nuanced characterization, and an actual story!