Chapter 2

Sunday 10th April 2011

My powers didn't make sense.

Granted, parahuman powers in general didn't make sense, but my powers seemed to be so far out of the norm that I was reluctant to even consider myself just another parahuman.

Now you may be wondering how I came to this conclusion. It was not a conclusion I just came to without reason. See, I woke up in the middle of the night, not because something woke me up or anything, but because I was out of sleep.

That's right. My first power made sure that I only slept for four hours at the most. My first power, [I Can Whip Something Up] _because apparently, my powers come with names_ had more depth than I had initially thought. It affected not only my mind but my body as well. I woke up feeling like I had just experienced the best sleep of my life, my mind was sharp and clear, sharper than it had ever been before. It felt like all my life, I had been thinking with only one side of my brain, and now I had both sides at my disposal.

Not ready to wake up just yet, because it was 2 am in the night, I decided to spend some time to try and understand my powers. It was how I found out that along with an understanding of what they did, they also came with names. I also found out that while I got an instinctive understanding of what they do, there was more depth to them which I would only understand by delving more into them.

And so I decided to put them to the test. My first power [I Can Whip Something Up] was mostly passive but I found they seemed to work full time when I was actively doing something, and so, with my second power, [Putting on the Reich] in mind, I picked up my torch, hung it over my reading table and started drawing. Turns out that my second power was all about designs, all I needed to have in mind was an idea and then I would get inspiration on how to best reach that idea.

I got all my clothes out of the closet and by merely looking at them, I could think of ways to alter them to look more official without losing the casualness about them. A cut here, a little shift in length there, an alteration or two there and I got a casual shirt or pair of jeans which wouldn't look out of place in a formal dinner.

A few minutes of working on my stripped nightwear with a pair of scissors and Mom's old sewing kit had me looking like a mafia boss. It should have looked ridiculous, it really should, but the image I was seeing in the mirror would beg to differ.

With this, I could be the world's No.1 designer without even trying. And it didn't even just stop at clothes, I could think of changes in the costumes of some of the most famous heroes I know, how a subtle change in color here and there could change how someone was perceived. By sitting down on my desk, I came up with ten different costume ideas for all protectorate heroes which would garner respect from people merely from their appearance.

I was actually caught off-guard when the sun filtered through the curtains. Time sure flies when one is busy. I stood up, and despite spending hours huddled over my table, I didn't feel a single strain on my body. I felt as fresh as I had been when I had woken up and was only starting to feel the beginnings of hunger.

All in all, I was happy with my powers. They were subtle, which meant there was no fear of being outed by mistake. And most of all, they didn't have any combat capabilities which meant I was no use to the gangs or the protectorate. Granted, the designer part could interest some groups given the parahumans' obsession with appearances but all in all, I had no intention of putting on a costume, joining a gang, or the protectorate.

I didn't know the first thing about fighting, hell, I know I can't throw a punch without hurting myself in turn. And given that my powers didn't lend themselves to combat, I was content with continuing to live my life as some unpowered noob. Nothing in my plans had changed, and I didn't see anything in the near future that could make them change.

-NEW-

My home was a hive of activity for the rest of the day. As technicians worked to reconnect and get everything back in working order. I had Wi-Fi installed, paid for cable, and even had a mechanic look at Dad's old car. Like I had thought, it was not pretty. Most of the parts would have to be replaced with new ones, and unfortunately, even my new account was not up to the task.

It took the whole day to put everything in order. The backyard was cleaned and everything else was righted, the lawn was mowed and trimmed and even made to look better than it had been before. By evening, after everyone had left, I looked around the house and hummed in appreciation. Now this was a house someone lived in. Granted it was a bit big for only one person living there but that was okay with me. I have always loved my solitude.

I went shopping and stocked the kitchen and fridge with enough food to last me at least a week. I was not the best cook out there, but growing up with my mother meant that I had picked up a thing here and there and could whip out something healthy enough without giving myself food poisoning. I always preferred homemade food to takeout or the junk sold in restaurants, and therefore would rather spend some minutes creating my meals, instead of eating the usual Brockton Bay garbage.

I had been to Fugly Bob's with Mike and Jason once and it took me a colossal amount of restraint not to burn the place to the ground there and then. Mike had tried his hand at the Challenger and we had to carry him back to his apartment. It was one of the few times we ever hangout as a group.

Anyway, by the time night came around, I was set to restart living my life. Tomorrow, I would go back and apply for the spring intake at the college, thankfully intake wouldn't stop until the end of the week so I would be going just in time. I ate supper, despite not feeling the need for it; it didn't mean I didn't enjoy a good homemade meal, and sat down to watch some trashy sci-fi movie. It was boring as fuck, but it helped pass the time.

Brian called me to thank me for Aisha, she had indeed been at the Palanquin and had somehow gotten her hands on some alcohol. He thankfully found her before she got wasted and drove her home.

It was late in the night when I finally went up to sleep. I still woke up stupidly early, but by the time I was ready to go to submit my application, it was morning proper. The college was on the other end of the city, opposite my place, and I had to take two buses to get there. By the time I got off the second bus, I was really wishing I had enough money to repair Dad's old car. Brockton Bay public transport was a nightmare.

-NEW-

3RD Person POV

Jessica sipped her soda as she watched Mike and Jason. Like almost everyone in Brockton Bay, they were discussing what had happened last night, and like all of their 'discussions', they tended to get very animated. It was during days like this that she really missed having Alex around.

Alex was a guy of few words, rarely speaking unprompted even amongst his friends. He was a treasure trove of knowledge, though, most of the time being more informed than either of the other boys, and most often the one who put an end to their arguments before they could delve into insults, neither one willing to concede the other's point.

Alex was undisputed as the smartest in their little circle, and whenever the arguing became a little too loud for his liking, he would shut it down bluntly and with cold facts, destroying whoever was wrong with his seemingly unending knowledge about everything. He did not lord his superior knowledge over others; in fact, he kept to himself as much as possible, preferring to bury his nose either in a book or his phone.

Only emerging when something irritated him, most of the time it was his two male friends. Alex was not a social person, very logical, and often came off as uncaring to others to the level that one may even call selfish.

He preferred to dress in simple clothes, usually opting for oversized t-shirts with jeans and sneakers. And of course, a thin silver necklace that holds a USB drive, which was basically a mobile library of its own. The few times where Mike or Jason decided to contest Alex's knowledge, he would just plug the USB drive into the nearby device, usually his laptop, which he carried almost everywhere, and show them the evidence.

He kept his hair in a short afro which he barely bothered to brush.

The four of them had formed their friendship seemingly out of nowhere at the beginning of their first semester and had somehow persevered to the end and even the start of this one. The three of them had managed to stay together even without Alex for the entirety of this semester with Jessica filling in for him to little success. The group was fracturing though, they were wearing on her nerves, and one of these days, one of them would say something they couldn't take back.

Jessica did not doubt that without Alex, the two would have come to blows a few times by now had they even been the least bit inclined to violence. Jason, despite being big and burly, was the gentlest person she knew, even though his size and the fact that he was black often gave people the wrong idea about him. Mike, on the other hand, was a wisp of a boy, very thin and tall, standing even taller than Jason and Alex, who were both no slouch themselves.

His…delicate constitution ensured that he tried to avoid fights unless he wanted to end up in the ICU. The two could shout at each other all day long, but thankfully, there was never any fear of their arguments ending in a physical fight.

Looking at them, she could see Mike's ears burning in clear anger, his thin, pale, gaunt face moist with sweat, while Jason glared at him. Had his skin tone been capable of it, his face no doubt would have been red with anger. She opened her mouth to try to defuse the situation, even though she had no idea what she was going to say, when someone suddenly sat in the one empty chair at the table.

The arguing pair immediately stopped and turned in unison to glare at the intruder, only to freeze at what they found.

"Tsup guys?" Alex waved with his lopsided grin and was promptly dog-piled by the two, exclaiming how happy they were to see him. "Yeah, I know you missed me, kindly get off me before I sue you for assault and bodily harm."

They got off, both grinning widely.

"Dude." Mike grinned. "Please tell me you're back. I can't stand this guy with his ugly mug."

Jason rolled his eyes. "Bitch please, your pale vampire-looking ass looks seconds away from bursting into fire from exposure to the sun."

One insult led to another, and they delved into another argument. Alex stared at them, flabbergasted.

"The hell?"

"Yeah, they are worse than before." She replied dryly before she gave him a soft look. "Hey, how are you holding up?"

"Better than I expected." He replied with a shrug, and as was typical of him, promptly changed the subject. "Got reenrolled in the same class with you guys, so have a lot of work to catch up with."

That pulled the other two from their argument as they started briefing him about everything he had missed since February. For her part, Jessica just watched them seeing that Alex looked much better than he had the last time they had seen him at the funeral. Back then, he hadn't even seemed to understand what was going on around him, but now he looked sharper than he had been even before. He seemed more… free.

-NEW-

I was on the second bus on my way back home when I felt the source of my powers approach again. This time I tried to act as normal as possible even as I felt my body tense in anticipation. I had two powers already, subtle powers they might be, but I still felt there were too many already. But as I felt my mind reach out again, I knew they wouldn't be the last ones. I felt it latch onto one, and given how long I had examined my powers earlier, I had a little better understanding of how they worked, and just from the feel of what I had felt, I could feel the possibilities from them.

The strange energy through which my mind melded with the powers just wasn't strong enough this time, and I let out a sigh of relief as the moment passed without my mind latching on to anything. I made my way home, nodding as I passed by the neighbors. I knew them all, even though I had barely exchanged more than a dozen words with anyone in the neighborhood.

As I passed by the Hebert residence, I smiled as I thought back to the last few hours. It had been nice seeing Jessy, Mike, and Jason again. We may not be the closest of friends, but we were all happy with the arrangement we had. None of us was the overly social type and barely had any contact with each other outside of the college, but that which we had while there was enough to satisfy any pesky social interaction cravings that may develop.

It had been enough to placate Mom whenever she had raised concerns about my social life.

"Alexander!" I paused as I heard my name. Every adult who lived around here called me by my full name. "How are you, kid?"

"I'm fine, Mr. Hebert," I replied, looking at the other man curiously.

Danny Hebert was a tall, thin, balding man with dark hair. He has large green eyes and wears glasses, which gives him an official and stern vibe while also coming off slightly awkward because of his thin frame. From what Mom had told me, Dad had been the one to endorse him for his position in the Dockworkers Union despite him being pretty young at the time.

"I haven't seen you in the neighborhood during the day in some time." The man said. "Though I understand you have been up and down for the last few months."

"Yeah." I wasn't sure what to say to that, never been one for idle conversation. "I have some free time now, and I just came back from college."

"Oh." He seemed genuinely surprised before he smiled gently at me. "That's very good. Your mom would be happy to know that you are trying to finish your education."

I just nodded at that. I knew she would indeed be happy, that's one of the reasons I was doing it after all. In any case, this conversation had gone on long enough that I wouldn't be considered rude for walking away, though.

"Was there something you wanted help with, Mr. Hebert?"

He chuckled. "Your mom always said you had weak social batteries, and I imagine this has been very taxing on them."

I just scratched the back of my neck, not sure what to say to that.

"Anyway, I was thinking about getting Taylor and I phones." He said with a grimace, which I understood. Mom had once mentioned how Annette Hebert had died and what effect it had on him. "Since you work in an electronics store, I thought you might give me some helpful advice on the subject."

"Well, that's….uhm depends on what you want the phones for."

"How about this?" Danny started. "I give you some money, and you get us some phones which you think will work best for a father and his fifteen-year-old daughter?"

He must have seen my reluctance to the idea as he continued. "Look, I trust your judgment, and besides, I wouldn't know the first thing about what to buy."

I wondered why he didn't just get his daughter to buy the phones if that were the case, but he seemed dead set on his decision, so I just agreed, if only to end the conversation.

"Okay," I said and stopped him as he went to get the wallet. "How about I buy the phones, then you can pay me back when I bring them."

"Yeah, sure. That works for me."

I bid him farewell and left.

I prepared something to eat, only just starting to feel the beginnings of hunger despite not having eaten anything the whole day. Even then, I knew I could have gone for another couple of hours without truly feeling hungry.

By the time I was done, the sun had set, but there was still an hour or two left before the streets could really get dangerous. Enough time for a trip to the boardwalk and back.

-NEW-

"Fuck…" I huffed, feeling like I was about to throw up. I had to take a moment to catch my breath on Mr. Hebert's steps. "I should probably try to get in better shape."

Maybe going for an evening walk all the way to the Boardwalk wasn't the best idea, especially given the rising tensions in the city. I hadn't given much thought to Lung's arrest, I usually kept myself fully aware of what was happening in the city, it not only kept me safe, but it also helped in defusing many of Jason and Mike's arguments. I had been a little out of the loop given what had happened in the last few days, only passively noticing things and moving on.

I had known about Lung's arrest last night after a brief look at PHO. And like an idiot, I hadn't given any thought to what was likely to come out of it, like, say, what the other gangs would do. Anyone with half a brain would know that now the ABB had lost its strongest cape, the other gangs would try to move into Lung's territory.

Not that Oni Lee wasn't scary, but he was just one man, and he didn't command as much fear as Lung.

It was not even that late, but no one seemed to care as the streets were already full of gang colors by the time I returned from the Boardwalk. The ABB were patrolling their territory to keep the other gangs from moving in, while said gangs were circling looking for openings.

Typical of my luck, my black ass just happened to stumble into a group of Empire goons just as I left Lord Street. I didn't wait around for conversation, immediately hightailing it out of there. Unfortunately, I was quite the juicy target for the skinheads, and they chased after me. For three whole blocks, I ran like my life depended on it, and given who was chasing me, it probably did.

It took me almost breaking my legs in half to reach the street on which my house was, but when I took the streets, the skinheads decided I wasn't worth it and gave up. Or maybe they were as tired as I was; anyway, for whatever reason, they gave up their chase and left me alone. Had to run for a minute more or so before I finally came to a stop. I was almost at Mr. Hebert's house, so I dragged myself to his porch and collapsed there, breathing like an old steam engine.

Which was weird as I hadn't felt this exhausted since I got my first power. Clearly, it had its limits, and maybe actively applying myself physically was where it drew the line. Even then, I could feel my exhaustion disappearing fast. Faster than should normally be possible, so maybe it hadn't abandoned me entirely.

It was a bit dark, but the lights on the porch were on. The door opened, and a girl, Mr. Hebert's daughter, looked down at me. The girl was tall, almost as tall as I was. Before she could say anything, I gave her a thumbs up.

"Just… gi_give me a …se…second." I panted as my heart slowly stopped trying to beat its way out of my chest. When it had calmed down enough and I wasn't panting like a dying dog, I carefully pushed myself to my feet. "Sorry about that, ran into some Empire goons back there. It was not fun."

"Right." Her voice was dry and a little suspicious. "Can I help you?"

"Oh, right." I reached into my backpack and retrieved the two boxes. "Could you give these to your dad for me? you can tell him we shall settle the rest tomorrow."

She frowned suspiciously at the boxes and crossed her arms across her chest. "What's in there?"

I opened my mouth to answer, but the door opened again, and Mr. Hebert peered out.

"Taylor, what's taking_ oh, hey Alexander!"

"You know this guy, Dad?" Taylor asked with a frown.

"Of course. Don't you?" Danny laughed. "This is Alexander Thompson, he lives a few houses down the street." He walked forward and took the boxes. "Is that them?"

"Yeah." I nodded. "The smaller one is yours. It should be easier for you to use."

Mr. Hebert thanked me and paid me my money with a little extra for my 'troubles'. I was just leaving when Taylor cleared her throat.

"Uhmm, sorry for… my behavior before." She apologized, looking uncomfortable. "It's just that you looked a bit familiar, though I don't remember ever seeing you, and I wasn't sure what to think."

"Eh, don't sweat it, kiddo," I replied with a wave. "It's a dangerous city, having some stranger suddenly appear on your porch is never a good thing." I paused. "As for being familiar, I grew up around here. I don't move around often, but we might have run into each other a few times. That or you might have met my cousin Brian. He has a very memorable face, especially to girls." I winked at her, and her ears burned. Yep, she definitely knew Brian. "And if you squint hard enough, with one eye closed, and under the right lighting, you might even think that we look alike."

She snorted. "Yeah, probably."

I left and returned to my house only to tense as my power source stirred again and made its approach. I reached for it with vigor, having some saved energy from the last miss. My mind, or whatever force I possessed, reached out and caught something. And I felt as if my third power slot was in place, and understanding how it works flooded me. Now I have an impeccable sense of fashion. I can make an appealing outfit out of just about anything. In addition, I will always have an innate knowledge of what is fashionable in the area wherever I go.

It seemed my powers wanted to turn me into a fashion tinker. From the fact that I can design and make clothes to look cool and intimidating, I now have the ability to make an appealing outfit out of anything. I can pick up a trash bag or a sack and fashion it into a beautiful pair of pants, and people would love it. And it wasn't just about making clothes, it gave me knowledge about fashion, no one could apply makeup better than me, and I knew which colors matched best, and which clothes looked best for what circumstances.

Anything regarding fashion, I was an expert. Not only can I design, but I can now make, and any clothes I make would look unbelievably good. As it was, if my career as an engineer failed, I knew I could become a billionaire through fashion. And seeing how my powers were not apparent, nobody would ever know. Not unless I told them myself, or I was subjected to some test that detected parahuman powers.

And I was happy to keep things like that.

-NEW-

AN: Jumpchain abilities in this chapter.

Fashion Sense is Tingling (The World Ends With You) (50CP)

You have an impeccable sense of fashion. You can make an appealing outfit out of just about anything. In addition, you will always have an innate knowledge of what is fashionable in the area wherever you go, allowing you to remain on top of your game no matter where you are. You'll usually be a trendsetter.

(I have a list of abilities in my version of the celestial Forge and I roll for a new ability every 2000 words. I get 100 Cp every 1000 words.)

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