A Second Generation Whateley Academy Adventure

New Year's Escapade

by

MaLAguA

 

Part Two

 

Friday, December 30th - 7:51am
Kythe Residence

Caroline wasn’t joking when she said there was a proper and spacious gym in the basement. The moment Vic got to the bottom of the stairs, he was greeted by a corridor with a small lineup of doors. He could glimpse a large laundry and a couple of storerooms.

The gym was the first entrance to the left. It was certainly of a much higher caliber than Vic had expected for a home gym. Nothing too big, but the use of the space certainly made it feel like that, with a little bit of everything for a good workout: A couple of punching bags hanging; small weights, mats and bands rested by the side of the room; large cardio machines were lined near the back, facing a TV screen for comfort; a door at the side for a private bathroom; And a large tatami space for sparring.

“You have all this for yourself?” Vic wondered out loud back then, once the glazed sliding door was closed. He would assume that this place was soundproofed.

“Yeah. Sometimes, Cole comes over for a sparring session. Others, I bring Parker or another of the ‘staffers’ under my care to train their technique,” Caroline answered.

“And I can use everything?” Vic asked.

“Yep… just be sure to clean up afterward.” She pointed to the side of the room where a spray bottle and a clean rag sat in a basket. “If something happens, be sure to let me know.”

And with that, she left him, giving him free rein of the space. It was Friday morning and he found himself enjoying the enhanced facilities a bit too much. The mats were perfect for calisthenics, the treadmill was long enough for him to walk without worrying about tripping back, and the TV screen was ideal as a distraction.

With all the space around and the commodity, Vic couldn’t help but imagine himself rich.

“I know it’s not my home, but might as well enjoy it,” he thought to himself. He was currently staying in Lifeward’s home over the winter break as a favor she was providing–one he didn’t want to abuse. She was one of the better people in the Syndicate who’d gotten him off the street and put him in proper education and was going the extra mile to make him feel comfortable despite everything.

He continued his sit-ups, just to finish his morning routine. He got the all-clear from Caroline that he could do them, having recovered from the gut stub he suffered just days ago, with the caveat to not push himself if he was in pain. Still, that injury did make pushing past the last couple of reps a struggle.

He could still remember the day when he first acted on his ‘to have a fitter body’ resolution. Back then, he was squatting in the abandoned building with Josh and the place wasn’t exactly a worthy gym, so the first workouts he did were just simple things he remembered from PE class.It had cost him to get done with the reps. Now, by the time he was laying exhausted, he could acknowledge the stamina he’d built.

Although as he laid down, recovering his breath, his eyes moved down to his hands. One had suffered from broken fingers in a fight with his step-sister Gwen, months upon months ago, while the other had received a cut from that power mimic’s knife just a couple of days back. Both of them now appeared to be carrying on with the trend of the change, letting him see how the green discoloration had spread out from the injuries and was ever so slowly moving past the rest of the skin–with an odd pressure or twitch being felt in the sections between each of his fingers. He tried to scratch it, only to find that the itchy point was underneath the skin.

Vic wasn’t happy with that, but he was starting to make peace with the matter, mostly for lack of an alternative. Going from one stable life form to another, like Caroline said, was the better option, but that didn’t mean he was happy with it. He hoped he could tack on a ‘yet’ to that sentence, but he really didn’t want to think about it.

Still, if his reason for sticking to this workout program was to get the healthy body he wanted, what was the point of it now? Should he keep on trying? What about studying? He was applying himself extra hard just to get into college, but what hopes would he have to go there if he was going to become an instant target for any anti-mutant supremacist in the area?

“Hm… And to study what?” The words escaped his lips as he stared up at the ceiling while the sound of the TV droned on in the background.

He wasn’t sure how long he lay there, contemplating the meditative void, but it didn’t feel like much in the end when he heard the door at the side of the room open. It was Sophie, conspicuously attempting to peek in before realizing that Vic was already staring back at her.

She was the other problem of his stay. Caroline’s daughter and Dereck’s sister. So far, she seemed intent on making Vic’s stay as uncomfortable as possible. At first, he thought it was his imagination, but as the week passed and they crossed paths more often, the more he realized she was actually hostile towards him–that is, until she’d outright said it, calling him a monster yesterday during breakfast

Caroline tried to placate, to deliver the twist on the message, saying that Sophie either didn’t mean it or wasn’t really thinking of the words she was using. But it was pretty clear to Vic that this wasn’t the case. Since the incident, lunch and dinner between the three was an awkward affair, with Sophie no longer bothering to hide her distrust. The fact that Caroline scrapped the vacation plans to ground her didn’t exactly aid in their mood.

Vic felt bad for getting himself in the middle of them. Becoming the source of discord for another family.

Is something wrong?” Vic asked

“What are you doing?” she asked, although her tone felt more like an accusing inquiry rather than a normal question.

“I’m just resting after doing sit-ups,” Vic answered, although by this point, he might as well claim that he was napping. “Have you been to this room before?”

“No… not really,” Sophie answered as she peeked and looked around. “I mean, I’ve been here. Mom lets me use this room when I have to do my therapy on rainy days.”

“Therapy?” Vic asked, but the girl didn’t seem to notice as she went on to her next question.

“What are you after?” Sophie frowned as she said it. Though there were very clear differences between the siblings, Vic felt as though he was looking at a tiny version of Dereck. Just accusing him of everything with a belittling look. “Why did you really come to our house?”

“I didn’t have a place to stay,” Vic answered dryly. By this point, he was already tired of the girl’s inquisitorial attitude towards him. After all, that was the truth, he really had no backup place to stay. A part of him even wondered if he should give building squatting another chance now that he managed to get some more money and hone his skills. Although who knew, maybe he’d end up running into trouble much worse than the one in Massachusetts. Or maybe he could end up running his own gang–how would that look?

“Are you a criminal?” Sophie asked, making Vic wonder if she could read his mind. “As in do you meet up with the bad guys?”

He had to remind himself that Caroline had hid everything Syndicate related from both of her children, so there was no way she would know. “I don’t. I mean, you could say that I used to run with bad people… but I’m out of it.”

“Hm… Once a bad guy, always a bad guy. It’s what my dad says,” Sophie muttered with suspicion in her voice, which just made Vic roll his eyes.

“What’s your problem?” Vic demanded. “I haven’t done anything bad.”

“Not yet, right?” Sophie said before slipping back into the corridor, not even bothering to close back the door as he’d been told. Leaving Vic mildly frustrated, which put a hamper into his morning.

Who could’ve told her that? He wondered to himself, even though a part of him already had a clear idea. Of course, he wasn’t that invested in going out of his way to change her mind.

Friday, December 30th - 8:11am
Kythe Residence

Sophie pouted as moved upstairs from the basement, almost making an effort so as to not stomp her feet to express her dislike.

It was his fault, right? It was Vic’s fault, right? She thought to herself. Ever since he got here, nothing about the house has been right. Mom was supposed to be free from work for the next couple of weeks, and yet she was too busy in her office to do much. Vic got to walk around the house and do everything he wanted, even though Dereck said he had ill intentions… That he had some evil plan in the making and Mom wasn’t seeing it.

Reaching the hallway, she paused. “But, is it so? I mean, Mom told me Vic was from the streets, right? What she did was nice and mom isn’t dumb, she wouldn’t get herself tricked. It’s been half a week and he hasn’t done anything too weird…” she thought to herself as she moved back to the living room.

Could Dereck be wrong? He repeated and assured her that Vic was dangerous and not one to be trusted. That he had ties with evil people and would be criminals. That he was taking advantage of Mom’s kindness and would eventually try to harm her, somehow. Even though Mom used to be a heroine, Dereck assured that Vic would have ways of taking her down.

And since both of them went to the same mutant school, Whateley, he already had quite a list of things that he’d caught their new household guest’s committing. Things like breaking the arm of a girl, trying to drown a member of the Future Superheroes of America, getting along with the mafia. He also said Vic was rude and mean.

“He is bad news. Don’t trust him,” was the summary of Dereck’s warning and, ever since Christmas’ Eve, she resolved to be on her toes about him.

And, because of that, she tried to keep an eye on Vic whenever he changed rooms and even tried to spy onto anything that he was doing. Yet, so far, she hadn’t seen anything suspicious, but she wasn’t going to give him the chance. No one would harm Mom.

But in the end, that’s not how Mom saw it. Yesterday, when Vic prepared an, admittedly nice, breakfast, Sophie felt bold enough to start going on the offensive and try to push back on his apparent niceness, pretty much in the same way the meanest girls in her school did. A part of her thought Mom would take her side. She got scolded instead.

The plans of the day together were canceled and would probably be like that until she made up with Vic or until Mom would forget about the incident… if that ever happened. It made for an awkward rest of the day where she would be given the cold shoulder treatment by her mother as a reminder of what she needed to do to make things right.

And she wasn’t about to do it yet. She blamed Vic for the bad time yesterday. Or even her Mom for taking his side.

“Mom is too nice…” Dereck told her.

“Maybe there is something I’m not seeing?” Sophie muttered sitting on the couch’s arm, ignoring her homework that she’d left there for the past couple of days. She hadn’t been feeling like working on it, not when there’s danger in the house. “Maybe I can find something in his bags? But… is that a good idea?” She said leaning onto the side to peek into the hallway only to suddenly hear a strong tap on the door followed by the ring of the doorbell.

“Mom?” Sophie was about to call out, but remembered her mom headed off to do some grocery shopping. So, rather than calling for Vic, she got up and approached the door, wondering who it could be. If it was Parker or Uncle Cole, it would probably be fine. If it was a friend from school making a surprise visit, that would be the most welcomed. If it was a package Mom had ordered, she had some practice in receiving them. Anything else, she would turn them away.

“Hello?” Sophie asked as she approached the door.

“Well, are my ears deceiving me? Sophie, is that you?” The deep voice of a man called out with a joyful voice, one that the young girl recognized as she opened the door right away.

It was a man. Athletic and muscular in such a way that even extra layers of his coat wouldn’t be able to hide. He had a trimmed mustache and beard that matched the hairstyle that would scream ‘model hero’ or ‘action star’ even if not in uniform. Looking down, a smile decorated his mouth as he spread his arms for a welcome.

“Dad!” Sophie squealed as she wrapped her arms around him and squeezing as hard as she could, and yet her father was one of the stronger heroes, so it felt as though she was hugging a block of concrete. She still gave it her best just to hear her father laugh.

“Ow! Ow! Have you gotten any stronger?” he joked as he reached to pick her up. “It’s too early for you to manifest mutant powers. Have you found you can fire beams from your eyes? Maybe do magic like your mother?”

“Mom says I’m too young to worry about that.”

“What are you? Like, nine or ten?”

Sophie giggled. “I’m eight, Dad.”

“Really?” He laughed as he was hugged by Sophie. “I’m glad to see you up and about now, little superstar. How are you doing?”

For a brief moment, Sophie thought of telling her father about what Dereck had told her about their guest. Wondering if he would be able to handle things ‘like an adult’. But in the end, thought against it, knowing that Mom and Dad could easily get into fights. “I’m good!”

“That’s great,” he said, pressing his forehead against hers.

Sophie nodded. “Mom told me I’m fully healed! Now I can do sports at school now.”

“Good… good. I’ll never be able to thank your mother for healing you. I just have to be careful.”

He said that but he just tightened his muscles, applying a bit more pressure into the hug that got Sophie gasp a bit from the limit pressure applied. “Dad! That’s too much.”

“Oops, sorry,” Dad joked, easing up on the pressure.

“I’m not that strong, Daddy.” Sophie giggled as she could breathe again.

“Hm, hopefully someday you will,” Dad mused. “So, are you looking forward to our time together?” When Sophie nodded, he added. “Hm, how about starting now? Would you want me to take you home? Have fun with your brother during the break?

“Can I?” Sophie gasped, even sounding hopeful.

“Yeah, you just have to convince your mother,” Dad said with a conspiratory smirk.

“Rather than going around my back and having Sophie ask me, you can try asking me yourself,” Mom’s words came in so sudden, they had Sophie flinch.

She stood at the sidewalk, dressed in her day’s casuals and carrying a couple of bags from the nearby small grocery mart. Despite their apparent weight, she effortlessly crossed while bearing a soft smile about, one that Sophie suspected wasn’t fully sincere, like she was about to tussle with dad.

“So, George, are you going to have Sophie ask me or are you going to do it yourself?” Caroline repeated her question as she entered the house, walking around them, being mindful of the bags of purchases wrapped around her wrists, still bearing the charming smile she always put up for the man.

“Fine,” her ex-husband, George, conceded. “I was asking Sophie here if she would want to spend more time with her dad and brother. Since it’s been so long…”

“She just spent Christmas Eve and Day with her brother,” Caroline said. “Plus I think you’re currently busy these days. With your event.”

“Fair enough,” George noted as he put Sophie down.

“How long are you staying?” the young girl said excitedly, practically leaping in place. Caroline couldn’t really fault her, this was the first time in a couple of months since she saw her dad, the first time in a month since she heard his voice. "Mom bought me a new set of playing cards from the Christmas fair! Want to see them? I have some drawings I made! Ah! I can show him the puzzle I put together on Christmas!”

“You still have her doing puzzles instead of playing outside?” George said, amusedly,

“She gets plenty of exercise already. I prefer her exercising her mind.” Caroline replied before telling Sophie. “That is after you’re done with your homework.” She pointed at the book that rested open half progressed on the table. “It’s been like that for days now.”

“But… but dad is here,” Sophie pleaded.

Caroline couldn’t help but relent, “Fine, you can show him. Maybe, who knows, he can help you finish your homework,” she said, reaching over to stroke her daughter’s head, although she was quick to move away, either out of spite for yesterday’s incident or because she was too excited to see her father. “But first, can we have a chat in the kitchen?”

“Is Dad in trouble?” Sophie asked as she moved to the table to close her book and make room.

“Uh oh, I think I am,” George mused, applying a playful tone to his usual smugness, just enough to come across as charming for Sophie, but not enough for Caroline.

“Are you going to fight?” Sophie asked, sounding concerned.

Caroline shook her head, before speaking up in a reassuring tone. “We may no longer be husband and wife but that doesn’t mean we can't still be friends, right?”

George answered with a diplomatic smile. “I agree. We’re a team, even if we’re apart.” That seemed to put Sophie at ease.

“Now… I’ll just take a moment,” Caroline assured as she guided George onto the kitchen.

“I’ll be back, sweetie,” he told Sophie as he marched after.

“Okay! I’ll go to my room! There’s something I want to give you!” The young girl was quick to give her father’s leg a hug before moving back into the hallway.

Once across the threshold and with the groceries set on the island counter, Caroline activated the engraved spell on the door frame that guaranteed that words wouldn’t slip out. Her ex-husband picked up on the glow of the sigils before they disappeared. “A sound spell? Quite out of place for the suburban life you claimed you were after.”

“I’m still a magic user. Doesn’t mean I let all that knowledge go to waste.”

“As you say,” George said with a smug shrug of the shoulders. Something that sit quite poorly with Caroline. “Hm… this kitchen is beautiful. First time I came here, found it nice, now it’s better.”

“Thanks.” Caroline answered dryly. “How’s Dereck doing? He told me you would have him house sitting during the winter break.”

“He’s fine.”

“You should probably spend time with him.”

“I’ll be home just before he goes to Whateley. Plus I know he’ll enjoy having the place to himself. Did tell him he can invite his girlfriend, but he chickened out. Can you imagine what powers their kids might have together? I’m sure it would be impressive.” George mused. “Did you see her powers?”

“I did. Gwen is such a nice girl, powers or not,” Caroline nodded.

“Yeah… but they are important. For the force, for the image and for the respect.”

“Hm…” was all Caroline could say as she began to stash the groceries.

“How’s Sophie? You’ve taken good care of her. I appreciate that,” George said.

“She’s back to perfect shape. Can even compete in school’s P.E. now.”

“Glad to hear.” George noted. “Think she misses her brother and me?”

“After you tried to get her to build rapport with her just before I got here, I can’t say she doesn’t. I do agree they would be happier together, which is why I offered to take them both.” Caroline said, although was keenly aware of the plethora of problems that might bring.

“I told you, Dereck stays with me for the purpose of superhero training,” George asserted.

“I agree that’s important. But is that what he really wants?”

“What? So you’d have him be something like an artist? Or an accountant?” George mocked. “I’m doing this because I know what’s best. Trust me.”

“I wish I could,” Caroline said, mostly out of George’s earshot.

“Keep that in mind. At some point, I’ll talk to you about Sophie if she starts developing powers.”

“And if she doesn’t?” Caroline asked.

George’s eyes widened slightly as he considered the possibility but still said. “Then she can stay with you… as long as I can still visit her. But that’s not going to happen. She’s a Seaver.”

Caroline frowned at that answer, but let it slide. “She’s going to your place in a couple of months, for a week. I trust you did as I asked.”

“Yes, yes. I asked for time off from the agency to be with her.” George noted.

“Good, just wanted to know that,” Caroline said, “So, what brings you here?”

“What? I can’t just drop by and say hello?”

“Not what I mean. I would’ve preferred if you’d warned me on the phone before actually showing up,” Caroline said. She didn’t really like being that strict, but this sort of surprise could throw her off a loop. On a day she might be busy with a job, she suspected he might pounce on the opportunity to use her absence against her or keep on trying to sway Sophie to his side. “It’s not that I don’t appreciate the visits, but my schedule can be a tad erratic some days.”

“Fine. That was my mistake,” he said, somewhat insincere, “I was just in the city for an event. Wonder if you’ve heard of it? ‘Heroes United’. An initiative meant to jumpstart superhero groups in cities that find themselves lacking protectors.” George said as he reached into his coat’s pocket and produced a small flier of the event, showing some of the iconic heroes of the agencies aligned, among which was Gigaton, George. ”Of course, these groups would be subsidiaries of mine, meaning resources and guidelines are run by us.”

“Sounds like quite an event,” Caroline said, feigning interest. Of course she knew about this event. After all, Portland was the home base of one of the Syndicate’s divisions, holding key infrastructure and operations. Because of that, no major villain or criminal group operations was allowed to take root anywhere nearby and any vigilante or enhanced with a proclivity towards justice was monitored in the case of a teamup event. An event such as ‘Heroes United’ that might potentially upset that status quo was set to have the organization’s attention, sending covert operatives to gather intel. Heck, the higher ups even considered having her exploit her previous connection with George as though that would grant them a finger on the decision scale.

“I think I saw posters for this here and there… but I thought it was just a sort of convention,” Caroline said, feigning obliviousness.

“Well, it partly is. I mean, we have to offer something for the normies attending. Either unique products, souvenirs, autographed items or just the experience of a show, I’m sure they’ll have a good time.”

“Well, glad to see you still try to take care of your fanbase.”

“Heroes are nothing without the recognition of others,” George noted. “I’ll be here till Monday, holding auditions for the new heroes that might wish to join the project. But, my schedule will be free otherwise.”

“Sounds like a good time to explore the city and enjoy the sights. Will you be dropping by?”

“I’ll be busy for most of my stay… I may have free time when interviewing candidates, but I’ll have to be in the vicinity of the hotel. But I was wondering. The hotel has quite some good commodities, there’s a bar, a pool, quite a vista from the roof and then there is the convention itself. How about you drop by and we spend the night together, like old times?”

Caroline sighed. “I’ll think about it. Do wish you’d picked some day other than New Years Eve for this.”

“Yeah… same here. Mechanist thinks people are just gears that can be fitted into the schedule and it’ll all work out. I mean, it does work out, but it doesn’t mean we have to be okay with it.” George said, awaiting for Caroline to nod in agreement. “I did have the idea of inviting you to the event as one of the VIPs. Imagine the surprise when they hear that Safety has left retirment and is assessing candidates. You could show up while we’re conducting the interviews between five and nine, at room 109-” George produced a marker from his pocket and began writing the time and place when…

“I don’t have any plans to return to the world of superheroing any time soon,” Caroline answered.

“Is that so? So you’ve really settled down into parent life?” George snorted. “I don’t buy it, especially after Dereck mentioned something, Lifeward.”

Caroline inwardly frowned, knowing what this was about. Just about earlier this year, when her son was staying over with her, he happened to pick up on her new codename, Lifeward, when answering an urgent call from one of her assistants. That forced her to tell that she was now acting as a small-time vigilante for the clinical institute she worked for. “I should’ve emphasized to him that it was to be a secret.”

“Don’t be mad at our son. He was just too happy to hear his mother was secretly being a hero. It only took a little prodding to get him to spill it,” George smirked, now she knew why he was being so smug when he got in. “So, you couldn’t keep yourself off the street and beating the bad guys? They say Portland has a bit of a thug problem, is that why you chose this city?”

“It’s not as you paint it.” Portland does have a thug problem, but that’s because the Syndicate only polices anything that reaches a certain level of threat. But when they do, it’s up to the operatives in the area, Caroline included to lessen their effect, by whatever conspicuous means they decide.

“Hm… Did you update your suit?”

“Of course, I did.” Caroline said, closing the cupboard as she was done sorting the groceries.

“Can I see it?” George mused.

“No,” Caroline said right after. “For the record, I’m just the occasional vigilante. My work has me go from one place to another, treating patients and filing reports. That being said, I do don the suit in the case of an emergency or when there is a situation needed. It’s a ‘nice to have’.” While, Caroline anticipated that kind of thing, she wasn’t exactly in the mood to go through her cover story

“I see,” George snorted, quickly losing interest. “So, that's a ‘no’ to showing up? Shame. I hoped to go with you. Would’ve been nice to be out together like good old times.”

“It wouldn’t be a ‘yes for dating you’,” Caroline said. She did hope that George wouldn’t take it as a refusal to spend some time together.

“Well, I had to ask,” George shrugged, throughout the conversation, his friendly demeanor melted away, “I kinda hoped you would’ve reconsidered after being away for so long.”

“I don’t think so. I’m fine as I am right now.” Caroline thought for a moment. “Have you thought of the question I gave you last time we talked on the subject?”

“Yeah. The dumb question,” George scoffed.

“It’s not a dumb question.”

“Asking me if I would be willing to quit heroing just to spend time with my kids. That’s some sadistic game you’re playing.”

“Or, how about this? Would you be willing to ease up in your projects? How about easing in the rhetoric with things like no longer calling criminals monsters or pulling back your punches?”

“What? And let the criminals think they can get away? Think that I’ve gotten soft? Forget about it.”

“Then the answer will be the same. I don’t think you’ve given it much thought or are willing to adjust.”

“You really are just trying to pretend as though you’re on your high horse.”

“I’m not on a high horse. I just want you to be a better role model and to unfocus. To be able to put the welfare of others before the want for ‘punishing the wicked’. I saw it two years ago in display and knew the cost that I would have.”

George’s lips thinned as he strained, his features hardened. “What happened to Sophie-”

“You’re going to say it was an accident, that you gave the men that did it what they deserved, but the way you went about it… it made me wonder what was worth more? The following your crusade earned you? Or your family?”

“Again, a stupid question,” George said, his tone growing harsher. “What would you’ve done?

“Exactly what I did.”

“And would you drop your life here and move with me if it means spending more time with Dereck?”

“If you could give me the right answer, I would,” Caroline lied. After all, she was currently working as a Syndicate high operative.

“Fine,” George scoffed. “I’ve been getting around anyway. Meeting new people that would hopefully share my ideas better.”

“And I wish you the best,” Caroline answered, much to her ex’s frustration.

“Yeah, I don’t need your wishes,” George scoffed. “I just can’t believe you.”

“I can say the same.” Caroline noted. “You know your daughter hasn’t seen you upset like this. Try to at least have her know the best version of yourself.

“Fine… I’m nothing if not a model father. A super dad. Just be careful that our daughter doesn’t get to resent you.”

Caroline tried not to roll her eyes. Her ex husband could be sweet at times, which was how she fell for him once. But when push comes to shove, he starts having trouble handling his tone and manner. “Alright George. I’ll think about attending your event as a civilian. But it’ll be a brief stay.”

“You’ll see how much worth it staying by my side is.” George said as he moved to the door. “Call me if you change your mind. I’ll be in the Blackbell hotel most of my stay.”

“Leaving already?” Caroline asked as she followed her ex-husband to the door. Fortunately, Sophie hadn’t returned yet, although considering the amount of books and toys that had been left on the table.

“Of course. I already had the conversation I came for, even if it left me disappointed.” George said as he moved out the door. “I keep on forgetting how stubborn you can be.” A sigh, that could almost be considered as longing, escaped his lips. “But as you said, we don’t have to be enemies. I just hope you won’t try to turn my daughter against me.”

I could say the same, the words were stuck in Caroline’s tongue, but instead she said. “I would never.”

“I wouldn’t know, considering how you walked away… I’ll call you next time I’m around. See if we can go for lunch or a coffee.”

Caroline sighed. “Sure we can.”

George just answered with a scoffing smirk as he walked away.

Once the door closed, Caroline sighed. Dealing with her ex-husband was a mixed bag of emotions. A part of her remembered the reasons why they were together while the other saw the parts she later uncovered the parts she hadn’t seen before. One thought back of his actions and the incident and days after that led to their separations while the other wondered how he was doing out of friendly concern, wondering if he could be swayed to change.

“I really am the soft one,” Caroline muttered to herself, shaking her head as she heard the car outside take off.

“Aw, Dad already left?” Sophie said just as she just returned to the living room with her hands filled with books and games she wanted to play with him.

“Sorry, sweetie,” Caroline said, tussling her head. “I can play with you, if you want.”

“I just wanted to play with Dad,” Sophie said saddened, moving away from her mom’s touch, this time rougher than before. Caroline could tell she was angry at her. She never really stopped blaming her for the separation, and all this just made it worse by reminding her.

Without saying anything, Sophie moved back to the already cluttered table where she began to sort out some of the things she brought. And as she did, Caroline noticed the odd one out. A small christmas present, haphazardly enveloped in a silly seasonal wrapping. It was a gift Sophie picked just a couple of weeks ago for her dad.

“Oh… right. Would’ve been the perfect time to give it.” Caroline said. “Don’t worry, you’ll give it to him later?”

“But it’s so long till I get to visit him…” Sophie pouted.

“Don’t worry about it, he’ll have it. So… how’s the homework?” Caroline asked to change the subject.

“I’m stuck,” Sophie said dryly. She wasn’t in the mood to talk and, right now, Caroline, wasn’t in the mood to admonish her attitude.

“Do you need help?” she offered.

“I can do it,” Sophie said, still being somewhat resentful over the events of the day before.

“Alright. Be sure to call me if you do,” she said as she moved down the corridor only to pick up on a presence around the threshold leading to the basement. It was Vic.

“Did something happen?” he asked.

“Just a visit from my ex-husband. Nothing to worry about,” Caroline said. “How are you doing? Did you like the workout space?”

“I liked it. Big, with just what I needed.” Vic answered.

“Good good…” Caroline noted before looking over her shoulder and whispering at Vic’s way. “I take it Sophie hasn’t approached you, right?”

Vic thought for a moment, almost considering or hesitating. That was enough for Caroline to know the answer before he shook his head.

“Well, give her a little bit of time. Hopefully, she’ll come around,” she said. Sophie couldn’t hold that suspicion and grudge forever, could she?

Saturday, December 31st - 4:57 pm
Kythe Residence

After a phone call with Tanya, wishing her a happy new year with friends and family, and promising that they would call each other the next day, Vic made his way downstairs, thinking he deserved a small break after finishing his assignments. Now, the next week or so would feel like a vacation before his return to Whateley.

What things he could do, he wasn’t sure. Either bring his tablet and poke around his friend list, either Danny and Lizzy, Josh (now that he had his new number) or any of his friend’s from Whateley. Alternatively, he could also try to be a normal kid and just play games or watch TV. Thing that has felt like ages since he did that.

He stepped up into the living room only to find, unsurprisingly, Sophie already occupying the spot on the couch, hurriedly flipping her book open in such a way that he couldn’t dissimulate the slam of the cover against the table. She quickly turned to throw a glare in his way.

By now he suspected that Sophie intentionally stayed in the living room to be able to keep an eye on him.

“What do you want?” she asked Vic. Before she tried to, at least, pretend to be civil, now she simply appeared in a bad mood.

“I’m just here to relax,” Vic said, tangentially spying as to what she was doing. It appeared to be a math exercise book that she appeared to be stuck in the middle of. For a moment, he hesitated about even trying… but, he figured there was nothing wrong in asking.

“Hey, how’s the homework?” He asked.

“What do you care for?” Sophie asked as she looked at the book.

“I’m just asking.” Vic said. “I already finished mine.”

Sophie kept on her eyes trailed on him, narrowing ever so slightly as though she was trying to figure out his ‘angle’. But then she relented. “I’m stuck.”

“Do you need help?”

“Um…” Sophie stammered as she thought for a moment. Vic thought he could see her come around but then her mouth opened and she said, “No.”

He was about to call it the end of that matter and head back when footsteps came from around the corridor. Caroline made her way down the stairs at a redoubled step. She was dressed in a long coat, with a purse under her arm, looking ready for a trip out. Although maybe she went off a bit too inconspicuous, in Vic’s mind.

“Hey Vic. Is Sophie there?” she asked as stepped into the living room

“Mom?” Sophie called out right away, reaching out for her hand.

“Hey sweetie,” Caroline said, answering her gesture with a soft squeeze. “Everything alright?”

“Mom. Dad is in town,” Sophie asked. “Can we go and see him tonight?”

“Sorry sweetie, but the day makes it a little bit complicated. I called him earlier today and he said he would be busy. He would barely be going out of the hotel,” Caroline said apologetically. “I don’t know if he’ll be available tomorrow, seeing as his event will still be going… but you’ll be seeing him in a couple of months where you’ll have his attention. Aren’t you excited about that?”

“Yeah…” Sophie said somewhat crestfallen.

“Are you heading out?” Vic chimed.

“You’re leaving again?” Sophie groaned.

“I just got a call from an acquaintance. The package I ordered is ready, so I’m heading to pick it up. If I don’t get it now, I’ll have to wait till next year,” she joked. “Best to get this thing sorted out, especially to get ahead of the traffic jam.”

“How long will you be out?” Sophie asked.

“It shouldn’t take long.” Caroline said sweetly before turning to Vic. “Can you look after everything?”

Vic nodded. Idly rubbing the bridge between his fingers, there was something that had been bothering him about them every now and then.

“Good,” Caroline said, leaning in to bring her arm around her daughter before approaching the door. “I’ll be back before I’m missed, alright?”

“Okay,” Sophie said just as Caroline left the house.

And once the door closed, the silence (well, relative, with the TV on playing in the background) returned. It was just Vic and Sophie now. It’s not like Caroline hadn’t left them alone before when she was working on her report for the Syndicate… but this was the first time she’d actually left with the two of them present.

An awkward silence befell between the two for a moment. But that was about it, Vic could see Sophie frown and go back to her work trying to solve her homework while occasionally giving him a side eye look. She really appeared somewhat upset at Caroline’s comings and goings, which meant there wouldn’t be much of a point in staying there.

Without saying much, he stepped into the kitchen as he originally intended. He wasn’t feeling particularly peckish, but he was thirsty, so a drink would probably be a good start for his relaxing time.

“How am I going to survive this place?” Vic mulled over as the door closed. Being someone in the way of a family was the reason why he ran away in the first place. If the same thing was going to happen here, he would need to start considering some alternatives.

He decided to make himself some hot chocolate. Ideal for the weather and one he happened to catch a tutorial on the other day when he was searching for the pancake recipe.

But halfway through in the process, the tingle between his fingers returned, prompting him to stop and check them. His hands had been among the first things to change, one bearing the broken fingers from Gwen and the other sporting a recent cut from his fight with the power mimic last week. As such they had changed quite a bit, evening themselves out as Caroline had been predicting about how his changes would go. The scales were of a green hue, which sorta made Vic think of the classic ‘creature of the black lagoon’ kind of affair. It also didn’t help that his nails had grown a bit thicker, with the seams of the cuticles getting lost in the skin.

But his attention was drawn towards the point between each of his fingers. It was something akin to a restless muscle or tendon that twitched as though wanting to get into action. The more he looked at the things, the more his fears beckoned him to ignore it until the next time they would bother. But curiosity got the better of him and he exercised those ‘muscles’. They were tiny, practically parts of his fingers, but they were still there, reacting at the command. A membrane extruded between each of the digits, growing up as far as the middle section before it felt strained.

He had webbed fingers. The shock came in fast and the fear from it and the implications swept past him at a hastened pace. He was clearly resolved to not let himself go into a panic whenever something like this would happen, especially as he had the feeling there was still more growing to be done there.

“Well, I guess it’s kinda on brand…” Vic muttered as he poked the membrane in between. There was the feeling of tension that came from the flex of his fingers but he wasn’t sure if there were nerve endings within the semi transparent layer of thin skin. And wasn’t really interested in finding out.

He tested it a couple of times, swiping the air, cupping water and even trying to grab the glass of lemonade to see how much the thing would bother him. The answer was quite a bit, although only with the membrane between the index finger and the thumb, which while more slack than the others might get in the way if he tried to hold something. Still, once done, he reached into the same finger muscles that caused that growth, he found that just as easily as he could pull them out and stretch the membranes, he could also retract it and have them disappear back where they came, just as though they’d never been here.

“Well, at least this is something that I can turn on and off,” he said to himself. He flexed his fingers as a test. It was as though the webbing wasn’t really there, like it was just an option he could toggle on or off. If the changes were like that, he could work with it…

His gaze drifted off onto the green microscales on the back of his hand and tried to focus on them. Concentrating again, he tried to focus on every part of his skin, prodding for every little weird sensation and tugging at them hoping one of them would be the muscle or twitch that would make the condition disappear. Unfortunately, nothing happened. Having not done that before, he didn’t even know what was normal feeling and what was ‘new’. It all just felt standard.

“Of course it wouldn’t be that easy… It would’ve been cool if I were some sort of a shifter,” Vic mused as the whistle of the nearby heater told him the hot milk was ready.

“Oops…” Vic blinked. As he looked at the pot, he realized he’d made a bit too much. Too much for just one serving. “Maybe I should try again…”

“Sophie?” Vic called out as he walked out the kitchen back into the living room. “Do you want some hot chocolate?”

But Sophie had vanished from the couch, leaving her books spread on the table.

“Sophie?” Vic called into the corridor.

No answer.

“She has to be in the bathroom?” Vic thought, but when he peeked into the hallway and saw the door to the nearest bathroom open and the lights out within, he grew more and more concerned.

“Sophie?!” he called out, looking up into the second floor.

No answer still.

“I know you may not like me, but answer me to, you know, at least let me know you’re in the house…”

Still nothing. By then Vic had checked the larger bathrooms on the second floor..

“I’m going to call your mother.” Vic threatened, but even that didn’t get him an answer.

“Oh crap. Oh crap!” Vic mumbled as he wandered about the house, keeping his ears open for any hint that might point him in a direction. Yet it was very clear he was home alone.

“Caroline put me in charge and now her daughter is gone. This is bad,” he told himself as he wound back into the living room. “Where did she go?” His hand moved over to the book she’d been working on. She appeared to have just been scribbling and erasing her work to stall working on the next problem.

His thought back to when he arrived into the living room, the way she slammed her book just before he appeared. He thought nothing of it at the time, but now…

Vic quickly closed the book and found something under it: a flier advertising the event he saw a couple of days ago when walking around the mall. “Heroes United,” it was called. A sort of tryout application for a superhero agency mixed in with a convention. But more importantly, among the organizers was the superhero Gigaton, Sophie’s dad.

From there, the front door suddenly became the clear answer as to the question.

Vic cursed under his breath as he quickly went to his room. About two minutes later, he was running out of the Kythe residence, adjusting his coat and gloves into the cold street. By now, the sun had set and the world was dark just as snow was starting to fall. Not the best of times for this.

From there, he tried to give chase, even though he had no idea for certainty that he was on the right track. Still, he preferred to try, rather than give Caroline a call to report her daughter had slipped out while he wasn’t looking.

“Where are you?” Vic mumbled to himself, then redoubled his pace while also being mindful of his step on the sleeted floor.

Fortunately for him, his guess was right on the money. As he approached the bus stop, he happened to spot Sophie standing there waiting for the bus that just arrived. He had hoped to be able to catch up to her without making a fuss, but the door opened for her and she climbed in.

Vic had no other choice but to follow, fortunately managing to put his hand on the door just before it would fully close. The bus jerked and was forced into a stop. The driver gave him the stink eye for the stunt, quietly complaining about the schedule, but still opened the door to let him in.

He made the payment and stepped into the aisle. The thing was, luckily, empty, with only a handful of passengers either with their face stuck to their phones or with their eyes having drifted off to the side in meditative contemplation.

And among them was Sophie, having just found her seat halfway through the bus. His entrance didn’t go unnoticed and with a look that went from shock and surprise to a slight frown with each step he took towards her.

The bus got on the move, which meant, unfortunately, that meant he would need to wait for the next stop.

“What do you want?” Sophie whispered as Vic approached her seat.

“No, I should be the one asking,” Vic hissed as he caught his breath. “What are you doing, leaving the house like that?”

Sophie didn’t answer; she just crossed her arms and looked away.

“Come on, let’s get off at the next stop.”

“You can’t order me around!” Sophie started to raise her voice, but got a subtle shush from Vic. Fortunately, no one really seemed to react to it this time.

“Listen, I don’t want to do this, but I’m going to have to call your mom.”

“What? No?!” Sophie gasped in a whispered tone, having picked up on Vic’s request for discretion. “Please don’t tell her?”

“Then tell me where you’re going,” Vic said, holding out the phone as a threat.

Sophie frowned, throwing him a glare. But as she realized that had no effect on him, she relented. “I’m… I was going downtown to see my dad. He’s a superhero at a convention.”

Ah… so she was looking at the flier, Vic thought. “Yeah, I heard. So you were just going to see your dad…”

“Mom only lets me see dad a handful of times a year. I just wanted to see him and… spend some time with him,” Sophie whimpered.

Vic held his silence for a moment, letting Sophie continue.

“He came by yesterday and mentioned that he would only be in the city for just a couple of days. I wanted him to stay longer… I couldn’t even give him his Christmas present.” Shuffling under her coat, she produced a thin gift-wrapped package. “It’s a gift card and a tie. I picked them both, thinking he might like them. That’s what dads like, right?”

“Yeah… It kinda is the normal thing,” Vic conceded, having gifted a tie to his dad last year.

“Mom says Dad has never worn a tie, but that he would do it for me,” Sophie said, managing to smile. “She laughed, but I think it would look nice on him.”

Vic echoed her smile. Although a bump on the road reminded him of their current circumstances. “So you planned to go all the way to the convention just to meet up with your dad and hand him this present, right?” Vic summarized. “Is there anything I’m missing?”

“Well, I hoped he would buy me some hot chocolate or sweets,” Sophie added.

“And you thought that your mom wouldn’t notice you were gone?”

“I planned to make it quick and then come back.”

“How?” Vic blinked. “Your mom said she wouldn’t take long.”

“She says that. She always does, but then she comes back home late.”

There was no denying that Caroline’s job as an operative for the Syndicate could take some wild turns, and things might take longer than expected. Heck, he guessed that, rather than spending Christmas Day with the candidates and the rest of the staff members in Silent Mountain, her original plan might’ve just been to quickly pick up Vic and head home.

Caroline’s work didn’t make things easy… neither did the detective agency in the case of Vic’s mother. Until the end.

“Are you going to tell my mom?” Sophie asked. “I-I can go back. Just don’t tell her.”

“Hm…” was all he said. He lifted his head to look at the surroundings. No one seemed to be paying attention to their conversation, only feeling the inertia as the bus slowed down as it reached its next stop. He looked down at his phone before sighing. “Move.”

“What?”

“Scooch over, let me sit,” Vic said.

The girl's eyes were wide with surprise, but she didn’t really object. After slipping the present back into the inner pocket of her coat, she moved over next to the closed window just so Vic could sit down.

“You’re not going to ask me to head back?”

“I’ll help you see your dad, hand over the present and then we will try to make it back home before your mother returns, alright?” Vic explained as he sat down, taking the time to adjust the scarf around the lower part of his face. He really didn’t have the time to search for a bandage or tape to cover the altered cut.

“I… Would you do that for me?” Sophie asked.

“I’m not okay-okay with this. But, I do know what it’s like to want to see a parent.” Vic said.

“R-really?” Sophie stammered. There was confusion about, but also quiet contemplation.

“Yeah. So we do this, and we head back, understood?”

Sophie nodded, finding herself unable to keep a smile forming on her face. “I’m going to see my dad,” she mused as she leaned in closer to the window, just to witness the city’s skyline grow close with each passing second, with the myriad of lights of the season flashing around. The remnants from Christmas and the welcome to the new year coming in.

“So, where are we going?”

“To the Blackbell Hotel!” Sophie said.

“Do you know where that is?” Vic asked.

“Yeah… it’s downtown,” Sophie noted. “I’ve been downtown a couple of times. I think I can find it.”

“Better make sure,” Vic noted as he checked his phone, sifting through the recent photos to find the one he took of the fliers just a couple of days ago. The resolution was clean enough to read the address. “I have it. Now, let me search the map and we’ll know where to go–”

His words trailed off as a notification popped up. A message from Caroline. Sophie heard it too and couldn’t keep herself from leaning in from the side.

[Vic. Sorry to say this but I happened to run into a snag in my errand. Traffic mostly. Tell Sophie I may be an hour… or two late,] the message read.

“Well,” Vic said as he moved on using the phone. “I guess you were right.”

Sophie nodded.

“You have to know that she loves you and she’s trying to do better.”

“I know she does. I know,” Sophie said. “But… things were better before.”

“Yeah…” Vic grumbled in agreement. “Things always felt better before.”

The two fell into a bit of awkward silence, just like many times before. Only this time, there was something different. There wasn’t any tense animosity between the two of them, just a quiet passivity.

At least I can say that I understand her a little bit more, Vic thought to himself as he adjusted the scarf as the bus kept on going. He checked the time on his phone and tried to make calculations. Hopefully, they would be back before she would find out they were gone… but in the likely chance they were caught, he tried to come up with a proper excuse.

The truth would put Sophie in trouble, even if it felt like a valid cause, so Vic preferred to avoid that. Claiming that it was his idea felt like the opposite end of the situation, but he wondered if she would be cool with him at least keeping an eye on Sophie. The best solution, though, as prompted by a store display they passed, would be to buy Caroline a present and pretend that was the intent all along. Of course, that would mean taking more time…

Vic’s inner planning faded to the back as he spotted their stop approaching. “Alright, Sophie.”

“Oh.”

“Listen, if we’re doing this, you’re going to be tagging along with me and doing as I say. If you tell me where we are going, you’ll follow, alright?” Vic whispered.

“Um…” Sophie paused, uncertain for a moment. “Okies, I’ll do as you say.”

“Good. This is our stop.” Vic got up just as the bus was starting to slow down.

Without saying a thing, Sophie got up and followed after Vic. The fear and trepidation of her quest faded away, letting her at least smile with a bit of ease as she followed him out of the bus.

In downtown Portland, the buildings were tall, practically threatening to topple over them. The sky was dark with the snow falling and the copious lights in the vicinity celebrated the new year. People came and went, back and forth about their business, like the course of a river, so Vic and Sophie did as they did and followed the path southward toward the Blackbell Hotel.

Saturday, December 31th - 6:02 pm (almost half an hour earlier)
Cosgrove House curio shop

It was a store tucked within a small mall within the fringes of the suburban side of the city. From the outside, it wouldn’t appear as anything out of the ordinary, just a pawn shop mixed with an antique store. Its random and constantly rotating inventory was on display in the front windows, while more varied pieces awaited deeper within the store. Lamps, snowglobes, plate sets, garments, hats, toys–it was quite a varied collection located within the cramped store at the front.

But it was the backside of the store that held the more interesting facet.

Caroline entered the place, adjusting her coat to flick off the snowflakes off the fabric.

“Sorry, we were about to close…” said the kid from behind the counter, about Dereck’s age, maybe a tad younger. He immediately perked up as he recognized her. “Ah! Mrs. Kythe! Happy holidays.”

“Hello, Roger. Happy holidays” Caroline greeted as she moved to the counter, dusting the snow off his head. “Is the master of the workshop still here?”

“Yes, he is,” Roger answered. “He just happens to be tending another customer. Would you like to step into the back while you wait?”

“Thank you,” Caroline noted. Roger had carried himself with the politeness and professionalism of a secretary.

“This way,” Roger walked out from around the counter to turn around the sign at the door before leading Caroline to the aisle at the back of the store where an old door laid closed in between the curtains. Nothing strange about that, except for the ornate horizontal line traced at the height of the doorknob that could be considered a style choice. When Roger grabbed the doorknob, rather than pulling it open, he instead dragged the thing across the surface, letting a soft magical glow slip out where the wood and brass made contact.

Now, the door opened from the opposite side, revealing the entrance to the special backroom, which resembled a lounge crossed with a restricted library. The cushioned chairs were spread about in the same way one would with a waiting room, with candle light warming the place in the day’s weather and a nearby window providing a good view from a third floor height. There were a couple of doors in and out of the space, which had a sort of enchantment or spell put on them for security purposes.

The one she came through had already closed, with the doorknob sliding into position.

Caroline sighed. “I made it,” she thought as she took a seat.

When she got the message that the enchanter was going to close shop until next Sunday, she knew she had to run this errand now. It was such a shame, though, as she hoped to at least use this afternoon to try to mend the fence between Vic and Sophie so they could get along.

How she would do that without forcing them, she had no idea where to start–and this came from the woman that frequently mediated supervillain disputes and grudges. But there was the feeling that she couldn’t just let the thing sort itself out. If Sophie was adamant about not leaving him alone or giving him any peace of mind, it could hardly be considered a rest for him when his personal situation was about to send his life down a tailspin.

“Hopefully, this will help,” Caroline muttered to no one as she read. With Vic having mentioned that he’d conversed with the spirit before and gotten some news as to where he got it, questions were naturally in the forefront of her mind, but until there were more developments, it was far more productive to worry about tonight’s dinner.

Speaking of which, Caroline reminded herself that the main course for the New Years eve dinner only needed to be warmed up in the oven. It wouldn’t take much. At least she’d gotten good at anticipating and preparing for this sort of situation, even if she didn’t want to.

After that, she reached out for her phone and texted. [Vic. Sorry to say this but I happened to run into a snag in my errand. Traffic mostly. Tell Sophie I may be an hour.] She thought for a moment. One could hardly predict how bad the weather would get and the traffic on the way here already stalled her quite a bit. With her luck, she had to assume the worst. [Or two late.]

Her train of thought was fortunately stopped when the glyphs on the door at the back dissipated as the knob was turned. As it opened, Caroline was greeted by a familiar face.

“Lifeward!” greeted a teenage girl of inhuman aspect, of dark ebon skin with faint markings all along, of long pointed ears and a tail swinging with a claw sickle at the tip. “Happy holidays,” the girl greeted with an attempted mature tone.

“Raffina. I knew that was your driver I saw outside. I hope you’re enjoying your vacation.” Caroline smiled. The girl, her occasional pupil in the magic arts, was aloof and haughty, even snobby. A bit too obsessed to appear cool and above others, as Caroline had confirmed when she checked the surveillance footage, yet she knew that there was a sweeter side about her that could surface during their training sessions.

“I’m having fun. My father is taking us over to Europe for a couple of days. Think he wants to either congratulate me for my trial or compensate me for forcing me into that trap. I did well, didn’t I?”

Caroline was about to agree when her eyes moved onto the door at the back as it opened again. It was the master enchanter of ‘House’ Cosgrove, Barrick Cosgrove, the current head and master enchanter. He entered, wearing comfortable clothes that wouldn’t stand out much if put in the middle of the street–except for the heavy duty apron with runic markings, the elegant gloves of brass and leather with imbued fantasy inspired markings. The same could be said about the tools that were on his hand.

“Barry,” Caroline greeted, politely excusing herself to Raffina.

“Ah, Caroline, so good to see you. Although we’re about to close up for the holidays.”

“I’ll be quick. I just came for-”

“For your commissioned item, I know,” he said as he slipped his chisels and brushes into the pockets of his apron. “It should be in the workshop, one of my apprentices was working on it. Just give me a moment to fetch it and make sure it’s up to standard. Then, we can all go over our holidays.”

“I agree,” Caroline said, fighting the urge to check on her phone.

“Oh,” Barry noted, turning around just a couple of steps away. “When you made the commission, this was made under the Syndicate’s credit, right?”

“Yeah,” Caroline said.

“I just got a note from the Syndicate’s contact in the treasury. They’ve declined to pay for this, citing that it’s not approved. Something about it being the end of term and it not being intended for a working operative.”

Caroline frowned. She had made sure the paperwork was in order for this when she sent it right after the meeting of the heads of the division. That could only mean. “Laureate…” Caroline cursed under her breath. She didn’t know the man that well, but could somehow sense that this was his doing to get back at her for the meeting. It didn’t matter in the end. “Just put it on my tab. I’ll see if I can get reimbursed for it later.”

“Very well,” Barry nodded as he moved onto another one of the doors. Upon his presence, the magical markings manifested upon the wooden surface only for the lines that connected the characters to retreat away with a wave of the hand, a sort of magical lock. And with that, he disappeared.

“Requesting an item for someone else?” Raffina chimed in.

“Yeah,” Caroline nodded.

“Is it for Vic?” Raffina guessed. “If I remember correctly, he did seem to have a condition, huh? Scales on his skin, right. Is it a part of his mutation?”

“It’s sort of a GSD. It’s quite complicated. I just thought of something that would help him get by.”

“Sorry to hear that.” Raffina noted. “I would’ve said something, but Leslie warned me it might be a difficult thing for him. I have no idea what I would do if I couldn’t look normal.” To show off, darkness began to evaporate from her skin, melting away the pigmentation and odd animistic patterns, revealing the normal pale hue underneath. All the extra inhuman features melted away, leaving a teenage girl.

“It’s fine. I’m quite sure he could’ve toughed it out,” Caroline said, though she wondered about it and what would the future hold for him. How well would he be able to fare with it, both immediately and after the fact. In the end she shook her head and changed topics. “So, you’re traveling for the next couple of days, then. And what brought you here? Did your parents finally give you permission for an enchanted item?”

“I wish. I’m still hoping for an invisibility cloak, flying heels or simple enchanted glasses that let me see through walls,” Raffina said with a casual laugh. Although knowing her, Caroline couldn’t help but feel as though the girl was asking her to intercede in her stead the next time the topic would pop up. Still, Caroline’s pause must’ve been too much for her liking as she felt compelled to answer truthfully. “They just insisted on checking my regulators.”

She pulled back her sleeve, channeling just enough mana that the markings could manifest themselves on her skin. Tracing all the way around her wrist were ornate golden lines made out of light. One of the workshops’ better designs: an intricate array of glowing markings that wrapped themselves around her wrists, with runes etched on around and over the lines, softly glowing at the tune of her breath for those with magical acuity to recognize it. They could’ve been mistaken as a set of bracelets from afar, and a fashionable tattoo up close.

“They didn’t get damaged, right?”

“It’s just a routine tune up,” Raffina said.

“Glad to hear. Then may you have a happy New Year.” Caroline said.

“Thanks,” Raffina said with a bit of a smile. “I’ll ask my parents if they can request you for training.”

“Sure thing,” Caroline answered. While she appreciated doing more impactful things for the Syndicate, things that would rein in the more dangerous elements, getting requested as a trainer for Raffina would count for the organization and would also be flexibly convenient, as it was quite close to home.

“Good,” Raffina said as she took half a step away only to pause. Her gaze went down as though considering something. “Hm… I was wondering…”

“Yes?” Caroline wondered.

“Well, I’ve been curious about the Whateley school since the event. I mean, it was the first time I met current students.” Raffina said.

Because of Raffina’s upbringing and circumstances, she’d had her powers for more time than the normal student at Whateley, which was then honed by personal tutors that had been hired by her father. In theory, she had all the support she would probably get from the school, but at the same time, had the connections to easily make it onto the roster as Vic’s classmate…

Yet, when it came down to her as to whether to go or not, she ultimately opted to not, without giving much of a reason. Caroline always assumed that she was content to be where she was, the ‘secret’ mutant within a normal school.

“So are you thinking of changing schools?” Caroline asked.

“No… I’m not,” Raffina shook her head, adding a bit of strength to her words. “I’m just curious as to how things are there. Leslie told me that the place is hectic and dangerous, but also fun. I just wondered what it could be like. Since the Syndicate has an agreement with the institution, I wondered if it could be arranged so I could visit it.”

“Hm…” Caroline thought for a second. “Well, maybe something can be arranged if you want to visit the school for a day. As long as you don’t plan on causing trouble.”

“Me?” Raffina’s smirk said she intended to have fun.

At that time, Barry returned from the backroom, with the locking spell reinstating itself as soon as the door closed. In his hand, he carried a small box. Nothing too fancy about it but it didn’t need to be. “Caroline, here’s your commissioned item.”

“Thank you,” Caroline said before turning to Raffina, already a couple of steps away from the door. “Remind me a couple of weeks after the new year and I’ll see what I can do.”

“Alright,” Raffina said and, with a bye and a wave of her hand, she walked out of the room through the only entrance, which magically adjusted to let her out.

Caroline shook her head, wondering what the girl was up to. Was she out to show herself off against people that attend Whateley? Or was she genuinely curious about it, maybe even enough to consider giving the school a try?

She supposed that, as someone who had mentored Raffina a couple of times now, she should, at least, acknowledge that it would be a learning experience for a girl.

“Shall I give you a quick rundown of the item?” Barry said as he offered the box to Caroline. “I’ll make it brief since you’re familiar with our work here.”

“Thank you,” Caroline sighed in relief. Hopefully, she’d be able to make it back home fast.

Friday, December 31th - 6:28 pm
Parking lot, near the enchanter’s store

Once in her car, Caroline allowed herself to take a breather in the driver’s seat. Just a pause before driving off. Her days hadn’t been overly stressful or busy, but today being New year’s Eve, it cast a shadow on her current status. Even now that there were just less than six hours away from the chime of the clock for the next year she was still off running errands…

Granted, at least this was one she chose to undertake, rather than a Syndicate assignment, but it still felt as though she needed to actually go ahead and take off an actual vacation.

“Well, I guess, at least, I can say I’m doing a bit better than last year,” she said optimistically.

She was about to turn the ignition key, when a buzzing in her pocket got her to stop. Someone was calling, and fortunately, it was a friendly voice.

“Talk to me, Cole,” Caroline answered.

“Heya, Caroline. Greeting you from the Blackbell Hotel,” Cole answered, with the characteristic but unrecognizable ruckus of large numbers of people blaring in the background.

“Oh, so they chose you to spy on the convention.”

“I volunteered, actually. I always find it fun to attend these sorts of events, whenever I have the chance. Today, being on the company’s credit card? That makes it all the more enjoyable.”

“You are an odd one,” Caroline said. As always, Cole was a unique character: A high ranking operative, just like her, one of the best trainers the company had to offer, and a master at hand-to-hand combat without powers. The man had a sort of moral compass, loved heroes and advocated for the idea of defending the weak, and yet, all those skills were employed by the Syndicate. Heck, the same thing could be said about her.

“So, how are things there or is this a social call?” Caroline asked.

“Was just checking. Wanted to wish you a happy new year in case I forget to send you the greeting,” Cole said.

“Thank you…” Caroline said. “Likewise. You know, I wish I could’ve invited you to spend the evening with Vic and Sophie. But things have been quite busy…” All the while holding in her tongue the recent conflict the two seemed to be having.

“Maybe next time.”

“So, how’s the event? Compared to the other conventions you’ve been to.”

“Hm… I mean, there are things for fans here and there. There’s the standards like food stands, souvenir shops, signed or exclusive items… but nothing really impressive or special. Just common swag stuff. There are only a few booths, mostly for the agencies managing the event, the support companies or a couple of the local artists that made their names drawing superhero art. That last is the one that’s making money hand over fist. I’m going to ask if I can get a poster of Safety, on the Syndicate’s money, now less.”

“Please don’t,” Caroline sighed.

“Heh. Aside from that, there's contests here and there. Marksmanship, trivia,combat–the usual. I thought of participating in all of them.”

“Don’t do that.” Caroline groaned. “The last thing we need is you doing something like crushing an entire tournament.”

“Fine. It’s just so fun to participate,” Cole said. “But yeah, the convention is kinda lackluster, for what it’s been advertised. Most of the effort appeared to go to the tryouts for the hero agency taking place within the hotel rooms. For the most part, they appear to be regular interviews.”

“I know it is…” Caroline sighed. “So tell me, anything else interesting.”

“Also, wanted to let you know I saw your husband arrive at the hotel a couple of hours ago. There was a bit of a clamoring uproar when he arrived.”

“Well, he always had his fans.” Caroline sighed. “I was on the fence about paying him a visit or not. Although he told me he would be quite busy.”

“Probably for the better,” Cole said. “His fans are a bit… too much. If you’d shown up, they’d either recognized you or would’ve probably inquired further as to who you are.”

“It’s not that much of a problem. I’ve dealt with them before,” Caroline said. It was when George’s popularity began to rise and their life slowly became more like a reality show that his priorities shifted and things began to fall apart. “So, what can you tell me of the candidates?”

“The team did some spying on the ones waiting in the hallway, as requested by the organization. Found that most of them are young, fresh out of high school or in college.”

“And do they have the talent?” Caroline asked.

“It’s hard to know without seeing them fight, but I lean towards them not having the experience or grit to face an opponent.” Cole paused as though to listen before continuing. “There’s the usual two categories. Mutants who think their powers will make winning fights a breeze, or fans who only got their first couple of martial arts belts, bought themselves a scuba suit or some other holdouts, and are now eager to play the vigilante part.”

“That sounds concerning.”

“It is. They’re awfully boastful. The worst kind are lingering about the side entrance to the hotel just outside the convention hall, waiting for their turn to be called… that or they’re camping out and hoping to get one of the heroes’ attention. Think I’ve heard the same story three times about how they, either on their own or as a group, beat up a group of vagrants off the streets, which might or might not be homeless people.” Cole paused again and sighed. “It also doesn’t help that they’re partaking in the New Year’s drink ahead of time. One of them almost went up against a member of the staff that bumped them.”

“Ah… So they’re really fans of my husband’s rhetoric,” Caroline sighed. “Things like ‘evildoers become monsters in my eyes’, ‘Monsters get exterminated’, ‘any lawbreaker deserves punishment’, and ‘righteous power will always prevail’ must be ingrained in their minds. No nuance allowed.”

“That check’s out. It’s really not good,” Cole grunted.

“No, it’s not…” Caroline sighed. “I do hope this initiative doesn’t take root in Portland. Having a formal hero group made up of zealous thugs connected to the larger agency would be troublesome to say the least. So, any news of the usual suspects?” Given the offices situated in Portland, the Syndicate kept a list of local mutants that would fit in the hero role: investigators, vigilantes, GSD cases and any registered mutant that had arrived in the past year. For the most part, none of them had gathered up to form a coalition, outside of the occasional teamup.

“I think I saw Chomsky earlier today, but other than that, no.”

“That’s fortunate,” Caroline muttered.

“Being fair, I think some of the people in the organization’s watchlist can be talked into an alliance with the Syndicate you’re trying to build.”

“Yeah. I suppose,” Caroline said before thinking. “Hm… would be good if we could get that list updated. There’s a chance that the Heroes United event has their own list we can compare.”

“My thoughts exactly,” Cole said. “I’ll see if I can get it.”

“Just don’t risk it, alright?” Caroline said. “My ex would still be too much for you to handle, with or without equipment.”

“I’ll be careful. I’ll craft a plan with the henchmen and agents in here. Talk to you later,” Cole said.

“Early Happy New Year,” Caroline said. The sentiment was echoed by Cole just before hung up.

“The superhero convention,” Caroline muttered as she turned the ignition key to start her car. “Not exactly the end of my world, just an obnoxious thing that’s happening in the city. Glad I didn’t take Sophie to the event. I’d rather she spends time with George Seaver, not Gigaton.”

 

To Be Continued