Out of all the multi-parter chapters that I've written. I'm surprised I never ended one with the word finale. Like I've gone up to seventeen parts in PNG and never ended one by calling it finale (but I'll probably change that when I get around to revamping that story).

Year One: The Barton-Rogers Renormalization Finale

Operations' Training Room A - 12:47 PM

It took her way too long to tie her shoes but she couldn't care less. At least they're tight. All she wants is for these stupid nails to disappear. If she wasn't in a bet with Merida, she would've had them professionally removed by now.

Angela starts running her laps alongside her classmates. Today isn't an evaluation day so she runs at a pace like her classmates. It feels like she's speed-walking but she'll take the light day. Then someone collides into another person behind her. Before she could speed up, she becomes a victim of the domino effect and falls over. Everyone topples on top of her and she was the unlucky one at the bottom. She doesn't have to curse because everyone on top of her does it for her.

Angela wouldn't be surprised if she broke a nail on the way down. She hopes she does because that meant it was one step closer to this bet ending. She wants to believe that if the bet never happened, her manicure would be perfect.

Hell, she already lost count of how many bit the dust.

-o-

Atlantic Residence - 12:49 PM

Merida wakes up. For a moment, she thinks that she was sleeping in the night like a normal person but sees that she's wearing her training uniform. Still feeling disoriented, she turns over and sees her phone. The time, the date, missed messages, and her lock screen flash in her face. Too much. Merida puts her phone down.

She's not sure how long she was asleep or how many classes she was missing. It doesn't matter. Merida looks at her hands and checks her nails. She isn't sure how she lost another one but doesn't care.

She chooses to go back to sleep. It's New fucking Jersey. Weird shit happens all the time.

-o-

Operations' Training Room A - 12:55 PM

Their professor is yelling at them to get up and continue running. Falling is no excuse. Angela is suffocating at the bottom of the dogpile. Everyone around her is squirming, trying to get some footing to stand up. Her classmates scream when someone accidentally pulls their hair, puts their weight someone on their body, steps on a limp - everything possible. Angela isn't the only one complaining because she wants to get out. How did Xavier avoid falling in this?

If there was one thing Angela wants to yell, it's to tell everyone to stop squirming like worms because it'll tangle them even more.

But she's getting out of here.

Using skills she's adopted from Camp SHIELD, being raised by a soldier, and having a childhood of roughhousing with Apollo and Xavier, Angela gets on her stomach. She finds an opening and uses all her strength to army crawl out of Weight Class A's pyramid.

"Thank god…" Angela mutters once she can see the sun and breathe properly.

Without looking back, she sprints. Angela doesn't finish her laps but heads back inside. Angela runs to the locker room and opens her locker. She shoves her things in her bag and slams the door.

Angela pauses as her body unexpectedly tenses. She turns back to her locker and sees that she shut the door on her hand. Shockingly, being trampled hurt more. How did she not lose a nail in the pyramid? Angela looks at it, unsure about how to process this situation. Angela takes her hand and tests it by opening and closing a fist. Nothing's throbbing or broken. Bless super soldier genes. But she broke a nail. Curse cheap manicures.

Now she only has one nail left.

Angela looks at it for longer than she should. Was this worth it? Is keeping one stupid nail worth having a laugh from Merida?

"Screw this," Angela says, biting it off. She'll fully remove it later.

To her surprise, Angela laughs. All the tension from her stupid bet is gone like her manicure. She's free. She can have bare nails for the rest of her life. Never has a manicure traumatized her like this.

-o-

Atlantic Residence - 13:44 PM

Merida wakes up again. Did she sleep through the week? No. She turns around and sees Angela walk in with a smile. Unsure if she should be intrigued, disturbed or concerned, Merida sits up on her bed and waits for an explanation.

Angela sighs, putting down her bag by the door. She looks up at Merida in her bunk and holds up her hands, nails facing her friend.

"I just soaked these is acetone from our RA," Angela says. "You win the bet."

Merida blinks. Yay? She thought she would be more happy about that ... and she is. She just cheers to herself by pumping her hands in the air, laughing in Angela's face, and going back to sleep.

Angela smiles to herself as she sits on her bed. She takes her phone out of her back pocket and calls Emily.

"Your green manicure," Angela starts. "What's the status?"

Emily: I removed them a week later and got a new one. I went for a nude colour since I have to go to a presentation for my parents. Apparently, bright green nails draw too much attention, like Britney.

Angela laughs a little. She misses Britney. "Mine is gone, Merida's is partially gone. Operations is too hard for this."

Emily: I bet -

"No more bets!"

Emily: … I bet that Iqadi's is still in perfect condition. I bet that it looks like she got it that morning.

Angela scoffs. "I can't bet on something I agree on."

-o-

Wakanda's Royal Training Room - 13:52 PM

Iqadi walks off the training floor, sweating. She brushes her hair back from sticking to her temples and forehead. Her nails comb through her scalp and they're surprisingly soothing. Better than any comb she owns. She approaches Imanu who's smiling brightly at her. Iqadi copies it, breathing more to catch her breath.

"How long were you watching?" Iqadi asks.

"The whole time," Imanu responds. "I wanted to see these in action."

Imanu takes one of her hands and looks at her manicure. He's not used to seeing her with nails like this although she's had them for a while already. They were still glossy and shaped perfectly, like her now post-training session.

"They're not claws," Iqadi says. She continues to smile at him and his fascination towards the manicure.

"Imagine them being black like your suit or even a dark purple like vibranium."

Iqadi looks at her hand and imagines the different scenarios. Admittedly, they'll look nice. They'd be even better claws than the bright green. Iqadi looks at Imanu and grins. She lightly scratches his arm with her claws and he pulls back.

"That's ticklish!" He yells, keeping his arm to himself.

But Iqadi steps forwards and traces his skin again. She barely grazes it but can feel goosebumps forming on her arms. Imanu keeps on backing away but she keeps on persisting. Eventually, he starts running away and she begins the chase like a panther.

She can easily outrun him but she gives him this advantage. It's more fun that way. They laugh loudly as they run through the palace like children.

The result of my green nails is that I am Emily. I changed my green nails for a light pink-nude colour (like I gave Emily because I'm the matriarch and I miss her). As I'm publishing this, mine are now a dark blue.