Check 31 - Only the brave can endure suspense

In the control room once more, Daisuke had the super computer run a quick diagnostic while Hiro situated himself. He'd given the teen a quick rundown, which wasn't much, of anything that had changed in the last twenty or so hours. That conversation had lasted the amount of time it had taken to reach the elevator and head downstairs, just the facts.

"There are reports of various power grid failures throughout the Tokyo metropolitan area," HEUSC reported, now that everything was back online from within the Kambe grounds. "Outages reach as far as Shinagawa and Ichikawa."

Hearing that, Daisuke couldn't help but give Hiro a look, even if the teen couldn't see it. Whatever entity had intervened on the teen's behave had taken out a good half of the entire area's power grid. HEUSC had generated a map, indicating the affected areas in red. It was a miracle they'd been able to maintain, or regain, power so quickly. All the same, it would be safe to assume they'd soon receive a visit from the police before too long. Chances were good they'd be able to trace the outage back to the Kambe Estate.

"HEUSC, pay out double any damages this incident incurred."

"As you wish, sir. Balance: Unlimited."

Arms now folded, Daisuke contemplated Hiro. He'd been more forthcoming this time around, though he wasn't sure how much of that was from pure shock or from his opening up more. He was like a tide that kept coming in and out, unsure of whether or not he could trust those around him. If his life was as hard as it appeared to be, he supposed he could understand why he might have trust issues. That and anonymity was likely necessary in his chosen path as a super hero, to not only protect himself but those he loved.

Hiro turned in his chair, looking up at Daisuke, perhaps feeling the strength of his stare. "What's up?" he asked, keeping things simple. The fact that he hadn't been able to really offer any new perspectives on recent events didn't help matters, but he knew the older man also wanted answers, though he wasn't sure how to provide them.

"You said the miasma almost took you," Daisuke said, keeping his voice soft. "That you couldn't fight back. What exactly happened?" He doubted it would help him explain anything to the police, but it might give him enough wiggle room to come up with an excuse.

The teen looked down, exhaling a sigh that seemed heavier than any Daisuke had heard before. "I don't know for sure," he confessed. "It was like my soul went back in time to when I tried to enter Aunt Cass's memories before, well, you know." He gave a half-hearted shrug. "I was there as a third person observer, watching my body fly across the room and into Baymax. I've never revisited my memories like that before."

Whatever it was, it had to have been bad, but Daisuke wasn't sure what to say that might help. He relaxed his stance, unfolding his arms and stuffing his hands into his pockets. Physical comfort would likely be rejected at this point, not that he felt like reaching out to touch Hiro. But it was a thought that crossed his mind as he waited, noticing even Baymax didn't move forward to offer support.

"Whatever it was inside Aunt Cass," Hiro continued in a smaller voice, "it left her body in a miasma of energy that was as dark as poisoned blood. And it attacked me, engulfed me, and tried to kill me. It almost did."

Hand now to chin, Daisuke couldn't help but look thoughtful at this confession. He wasn't entirely sure what to make of it. Chances were good it had to do with more spirit than physical, since he felt certain Hiro's body, at least, hadn't moved since he'd left him to sleep. Not until his violent awakening. "You said something intervened." Once more, he wasn't sure if even Hiro knew what had stepped in, but it never hurt to ask.

A shudder ran down Hiro's spine. "I've felt it once or twice before," he admitted, "but never on this level. I knew I was too weak to fight the darkness and I almost gave up. And then it exploded within me, like an atomic bomb. I don't have a name for it. But it was so much stronger than other times. I felt like I was going to vaporize. Not even putting the universe back together hurt that much."

Daisuke had to blink in surprise at that, not sure what he meant by that. The idea that a mere teen had to fix something on such an infinite level was beyond his comprehension and he couldn't help but stare at him like he was some kind of apparition. He really hoped Hiro was speaking metaphorically and not literally.

Now running a hand through his unruly hair, Hiro released another deep breath. "Something inside Aunt Cass— something happened to her that was so terrible— I don't even have words for whatever it was. I don't know if it was the darkness of the memory protecting itself, or maybe the trauma manifesting. Whatever it was, it was so horrible, so terrifying it makes me shudder just to think about it."

Trauma, as Daisuke knew, manifested differently for each person. A lot depended on the depth of the trauma and the inner strength of the person who had to experience it. As previously surmised, Cass probably didn't even realize it was there, which meant it had to be something so absolutely horrible that she'd tried everything in her power to hold it at bay. And, left to fester, its strength had grown over time, to the point it could overwhelm even someone like Hiro, who seemed to have the power of the gods.

Hiro gave a bit of a scoffing laugh. "Maybe if I hadn't been so weak, so run down, I could have handled it better. I honestly don't know."

Such raw energy had obviously had an effect on his young cousin. Daisuke just wasn't sure what kind, or to what end. Something had changed in him, and it wasn't just that his body appeared to be healed of all that had ailed it beforehand. At least there was that. But it still left him wondering how in the hell he was going to explain this to anyone who might ask. He wasn't even sure what Hiro had told him was an accurate representation of it either. There didn't seem to be words sufficient, and it was probably sheer luck, or the blessings of the gods, that had kept the teen from going full out supernova and taking all of Tokyo with him.

…

There were worse things, Katou told himself as he lay there in a private room of the police hospital. Hearing he was a cop, they'd gotten him in quickly, but there were plenty of people waiting for treatment after a system-wide power outage had caused massive accidents and other incidents. It was a miracle the medic had gotten him there at all with traffic backed up the way it had been.

It was a testament to the Japanese that they were so efficient, he thought, proud of his country. They'd gotten him in and x-rayed before he could even register what was going on. And, at the medic's insistence, they'd gone and done an MRI too, just to check for possible internal injuries. He supposed it was warranted, after everything he'd been through. He now waited for the prognosis, the medic having offered to step in and help clear out the emergency room.

A knock sounded on the door before it slid open and Hoshino, of all people, entered the room. "I heard you were here," he said.

"Hey, Hoshino," Katou greeted. With pain meds running through him, finally, he was in a better mood than he'd been in earlier.

Hoshino approached the bed, pulling up the nearest chair before sitting. "It seems the city-wide power outage can be traced back to the Kambe Manor. Care to shed any light on that?"

Katou rolled his eyes. "'Hey, Katou, it's nice to see you. How are you doing?' Is it too much to ask for a proper greeting every once in a while?"

The comment didn't seem to impress his former partner. "This isn't a joke, Katou! The police are ready to storm Kambe's house over this. I managed to convince them to give me a chance to find out what happened beforehand. You don't want him labeled a terrorist, do you?"

Hearing that, Katou almost jumped up from the bed but couldn't. "Are you insane?!" The motion, unfortunately, made his ribs constrict painfully and he winced, having to clench his teeth against the throbbing. He all but growled. "Hoshino! Are you crazy?"

The younger cop didn't even look contrite, further fueling Haru's ire. "I'm not saying he will be, but I need to understand what happened so it doesn't happen. I understand you may have been there. Talk to me."

It took a minute or two for Katou to get his breathing back under control. If he'd been on a heart monitor, it probably would have spiked, but it apparently hadn't been deemed necessary. As things stood, he felt certain his blood pressure was through the roof. "Yes, I was there. But I have no more idea of what happened than you do."

Hoshino had his hands clasped in his lap now, a look of almost earnest pleading on his face. "Then tell me what you do know. I want to help you and Kambe as much as possible, especially considering everything that's happened. But this recent outage isn't helping things."

Katou let out his breath in a short sigh. He didn't dare take a deeper breath to give voice to his frustration. Despite not having much more than a bandage on his scrape from earlier, his ribs felt tight. The ice pack he'd used earlier had gotten too warm to be useful, allowing any swelling to return. "All I know is that Kambe said someone stole some electromagnets and we were in the process of trying to find them when some kind of power surge happened. Maybe they were somehow used in that."

Taking out his notebook, Hoshino wrote a few notes. "Anything else?"

Eyes temporarily closed, Katou debated what else he could tell his former work partner. "Kambe thought one of the staff might have stolen said magnets, though the individual in question disappeared shortly after the theft was discovered so we can't be sure. I'm not even sure how big the items in question are, or how powerful. All I can assume is they probably had something to do with it."

It was Hoshino's turn to sigh as he closed his notebook with a clack. "I suppose if that's all you know, I'll have to be content." He stood and headed towards the door, stopping to turn back for a brief moment. "Katou, I am glad you're doing well, all things considered. Don't go anywhere." He then left the room, sliding the door closed behind him.

"Not good," Katou said to himself. And though he wasn't entirely sure what had happened, he felt certain Hiro was a big component of it. "I hope you have something planned for a situation like this, Kambe." Though he doubted it.

….

Suzue leaned against the top of the prep table as she watched Cass form patties from the ground beef mixture she'd made. The woman's skills in the kitchen were indeed truly impressive. It made her wonder why she'd chosen to showcase her cooking skills with the hot wings the night before.

"I thought more went into making hamburgers," Suzue confessed as she watched Cass heat up a griddle on the stove. They'd found some buns in the pantry, or something close enough to pass as them.

Cass laughed. "Maybe what some called hamburger steaks. In America, we do things a bit differently." She checked the temperature of the griddle by holding her hand above the surface. "Could you find an egg and crack it? I need it in a tall glass or jar where I can mix it. In a pinch, a bowl will do."

Blinking in confusion, Suzue headed to the nearest fridge. It was not uncommon to have a soft fried egg, with a rummy yoke, for hamburger steak, but she had no idea what Cass could possibly need with raw eggs, let alone with just mixed ones, unless she was making Tamagoyaki, a rolled egg omelet. Though why she'd want to make some for hamburgers was beyond her.

With a bit of an effort, mostly because the shell broke into the bowl she found, Suzue managed to get the egg ready. She looked up from her labors to see Cass putting the first of several patties on the griddle. The meat sizzled and hissed on the hot metal, making her glad she wasn't the one putting them there, especially when one pocket seemed to pop, sending grease flying. "Now what do I do?"

"I need about a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar and Dijon mustard added," Cass said, her back to Suzue as she checked the meat.

Suzue made an uncertain noise, causing Cass to look over. "Uh, we don't use those measurements here," she confessed.

Giving herself a bit of a head smack at the realization, Cass laughed. "I'm sorry. I got so used to using non metric I forgot. It's about half an ounce of each. When in doubt, just give the mustard a good squeeze. And add a good pinch of salt."

"What exactly am I making?" Suzue asked, measuring out the necessary ingredients. All she saw was a mess of eggs, mustard, and seasoning. And the vinegar didn't exactly have the best smell either.

Cass flipped the burgers, satisfied with their current progress. "Mayonnaise," she replied. "I don't know about you, but I prefer mine made fresh."

Suzue looked down at the bowl and back up at Cass as older woman hummed to herself, trying to figure out how what she had became the beloved condiment. The Japanese version was certainly more sweet than savory, and she wasn't sure how she'd like the difference. "So, what do I do?"

Meat situated for the moment, Cass brought over a whisk from one of several hanging on a utensil rack. "Use this to whisk everything together until it's frothy. And then we'll start adding oil."

Deciding it might be best to pretend she was handling the usual tools in a garage, Suzue did as she was told, feeling pleased with herself when the resulting froth appeared. With Cass's continued instructions, she gradually added olive oil until it emulsified and became a creamy mix.

"Not bad," Cass complimented as she took a small spoon and tasted it. "Needs a little more salt and acid, and maybe some herbs." She added the desired ingredients and had Suzue mix them all in before pronouncing it done and asking her to put it in the fridge for now.

By the time the mayo was done, the burgers were just about ready as well. Cass took some butter she found in the refrigerator and seasoned an unused section of the grill, toasting the sliced buns on it. "I sometimes like to sauté some onions and add them," she confessed. "But Hiro prefers his raw."

Once more, Cass instructed Suzue on some of the prep work, mostly in cutting a tomato, an onion, and washing off some lettuce she'd found in the fridge as well. The slices were a bit uneven but were more than acceptable as she put them on individual plates, one for each type of produce, before adding them to the growing options on the staff table.

Upon first entering the kitchen, Cass had taken out potatoes and cut them into wedges, only to season and oil them before putting them in the oven. Now she pulled them out to check how done they were. Satisfied, she placed them in a bowl before adding them to the table.

"You mentioned you wanted to finish a conversation from earlier," Suzue pointed out, realizing they hadn't talked about much besides what the café owner was doing or wanted Suzue to do.

Cass leaned against the prep table and ran a hand through her hair, all the preparations pretty much finished. "Oh, right. I guess I let my cooking get away with me." She gave a sheepish laugh. And then she let her shoulders slump as the mental exhaustion settled. "Actually, I was hoping to get some advice."

That brought Suzue up short and she found herself a chair to sit on. "I'm not sure what kind of advice I can offer," she admitted. "But I'll do my best."

"It's Hiro," Cass admitted. "I honestly don't know what to do about him anymore. I try. I really do try, but I have no idea how to handle everything he's going through."

Looking more like Hiro did when he got caught doing something he shouldn't, Suzue's eyes went wide. "I have no idea either. I've only known him for a few days and what I've seen frankly terrifies me. And you deal with this on a daily basis?"

Cass had to laugh a bit at that. "Well, not entirely on a daily basis," she admitted. "But he is a handful. Most days he's just like a typical teen. But when these episodes, or whatever they are happen, it is, as you say, terrifying."

"Maybe Master Daisuke has some ideas," Suzue mused. She glanced over at the staff table, realizing the food was getting cold. "We should invite him and Hiro up for lunch before it gets too cold."

Standing, Cass smoothed her apron. "You're right. Why don't you use that earring thing of yours and I'll get the condiments out. I should have seen about making some pickles but didn't think about it." She'd noticed there weren't any pre-made ones in the fridge. Nor had she found any actual bacon, though there was some dry-cured ham she'd been tempted to use, but decided not to.

While Suzue called the boys up for lunch, Cass got out the mayo they'd made, along with some fancy ketchup and mustard. It wasn't the kind she and Hiro were used to, but she figured it would do. At the last second, she remembered to add something to drink, going with bottled waters. That done, she took a step back to wait.

…

Daisuke acknowledged Suzue's invitation to the afternoon meal and was about to suggest he and Hiro head up when HEUSC alerted him to the arrival of a vehicle at the gate. He frowned, brows turned down in an almost scowl. "That was quick."

"Inspector Hoshino would like to enter the grounds," HEUSC announced.

The frown deepened. "I bet he would," Daisuke said under his breath, causing Hiro to look over from his location in the swivel chair. The monitor showed the live feed from the gate, the camera angled down to view the car waiting there. "Fine. Open the gate." He'd really hoped they'd have more time before the Division One detective arrived.

"Problem?" Hiro asked as he got up, watching the screen as it showed the massive gate opening to admit the police detective.

Daisuke didn't wait to see if Hiro would follow him as he headed towards the elevator. "You could say that. They probably traced the source of the outages back to us and now want to know what happened."

That caused Hiro's step to hitch a bit. He'd regained enough energy to walk on his own, but he could sense Baymax following close behind, just in case. "What are you going to tell him?"

Activating the elevator, the Kambe family head debated. "I suppose that depends on what he asks me." He glanced at Hiro with a calculating gaze. "I somehow doubt he'd accept the truth so I'll just have come up with something he can accept." The door slid open and he stepped into the waiting car. "Coming?"

Fortifying himself, mostly because he knew he probably wouldn't get out of being in the same room as the cop, Hiro stepped in next to Daisuke, having to take another step back so his healthcare companion could fit in with them.

The elevator took off, heading to the main floor, stopping near the kitchen. On the way to the front of the house, Daisuke looked into the room, noting the meal was ready as advertised. But, at the questioning looks from the two inside, he gave a bit of a nod to the front. "Hoshino's on his way up from the gate."

Suzue didn't hesitate as she followed him into the hall. Cass took off her apron, wiping her hands on her pants before stepping into line next to Hiro. "This can't be good." And they all made their way to the front entryway.