Realistic or Modern I'd Rather See Your Star Explode

[CanaryCry]

Thankfully, unlike most people, it seemed that spending a little bit of time near her had soothed some of Claire's internal rabid fangirl. With her much more calm and collected, Sophie felt much more comfortable accepting the help up to her feet, careful not to accidentally knock the woman with her wings as she got up.

"Yeah, thats true," she murmured as she got to her feet, debating over and over and finally nodding a little to herself. "Let me just take care of that real quick. Than we can go."

It was safe here, she thought, though being fully on her own and mostly powerless still gave her a nervous little thrill in her chest. Nova was weird, and eccentric, but he wasn’t dangerous. He was a hero, wasn’t he? So it was safe. Mona would forgive her for not keeping up the transformation that entire time she was gone.

Letting go of Claire, Sophie took a step away to have some space and closed her eyes, clasping her hands loosely together in front of her when she didn’t have the energy or the mental wherewithal to do her usual performance each time she transformed. There was no media here, and only Claire around to watch, so Sophie just stayed still and let the rainbow of lights take over every inch of her from head to wingtips. After just a moment she was left as plain, blonde-haired Sophie, average high school girl, rather than Star Shine, the bright and sparkling hero. She was sure for a mega fan like Claire it was very underwhelming, but at least the woman was kind enough to catch her when she almost fell over after.

It was much harder to muster the energy to keep moving when her body wasn’t actively producing more on its own, at least not to the degree it did when she was transformed, and Sophie was grateful for Claire's help in not getting lost trying to follow after wherever Nova and Raven had gone, but also just to walk the distance to the hangar without giving in to the urge to lay on the floor and have a nap.

"White line?" She asked distractedly as they walked into the big room, eyes drifting up and around rather than down, and only looked at her feet when they had already stopped walking. "Oh. That."

She looked up when Nova snapped his fingers, glancing over at where Athena was pushing buttons and wondering if they had rehearsed the timing, only to give an amused little huff at the phrase Ghost Zombie Jesus. Where did this man come up with these things so quickly?

"I’m not touching that one." She said with a little shake of her head, and just worked one-handed at getting her topmost layer of jacket off as they made their way inside. Being dressed for a snowy photoshoot wasn't doing her any favors inside of a well-heated facility and she was going to suffocate if she didn’t take it off.

"Thanks, Claire," she murmured quietly when they got to the hammock, climbing gratefully into it with her folded up jacket held in her arms like some sort of pillow and giving a little sigh of relief at finally being off her feet. "I think I’ll just close my eyes, if that's okay. . ." The windows being tinted or not didn’t matter much if she didn’t look. If she was lucky, it would be a long enough flight she could catch a nap before they stopped again.

 

[Junko Natsumizaka]

Claire smiled softly as she witnessed Sophie's sleepy transformation, making a special place for it in her memory. I've seen a myriad of your transformation performances all over the media, but this one tops the cake. No frills, or extra flourishes. Just the real Sophie.

"Thanks, Claire."

"You're welcome, dear." Claire smiled. With a soft hum, a bird flew through the slowly-closing doors, taking up a perch in the corner of the hammock alcove. "Give me a call if you need anything. He'll be sure to carry the message on."

"I think I’ll just close my eyes, if that's okay. . ."

With a nod, Claire turned to leave, pulling a long black curtain shut to leave Sophie in calming, dim light. As soon as she reached the cockpit, she said in a low voice, "Let's keep the windows tinted back there, the only view she should be getting is her dream world's."

"Alright, we'll keep it down." Nova gave her a thumbs up.

Claire settled into the seat behind Raven's, reclining in her seat. She watched the scenery outside transition from the hangar's to orange desert dotted with greenery as Athena chatted with Nova through their phones.

Eventually, Nova hung up due to a disagreement, turning to Raven instead.

"Say 'asphyxiation' five times in a row." Nova pouted.

"Asphyxiation five times in a row." Raven smiled subtly.

"Come on-" Nova tilted his head a bit.

"-It's a good tongue twister." Raven said curtly.

"I think it was a sh!tty tongue twister." Nova pouted, jolting back in his seat in frustration.

"Devil's Advocate's not going to work." Raven replied calmly.

"Asphyxiation asphyxiation axfixa-" Claire laughed. "-It got me!"

"Raven," Nova gave her a serious look, "come on, match that."

"Tongue twisters are silly." Raven spoke without even thinking about it. She stole a glance at Nova's eyes before relenting. "But I'll work on it. I'll see what I can do after some thought."

"You've got one minute." Nova pointed to the dashboard's clock. "If not, mine's the beeest!"

"Nova, keep it down." Claire reminded gently.

Raven gritted her teeth, opening her mouth to argue back.

"Fifty nine..." Nova grinned before Raven could get a word in.

Fifty Nine Seconds Later

"One point one," Nova counted, "one point zero one, one point zero zero zero one, one point-"

"-I got it." Raven insisted, handing Nova her phone. "Say this five times in a row."

Nova grinned. "This five-"

"-the word on the phone, Nova." Raven corrected.

"Wh!re-cheshire." Nova pronounced confidently.

"You should pronounce it-" Claire began gently.

"-I know how the Dictionary says you're supposed to pronounce it." Nova assured with a grin. "I just like my way better. Everyone wants to argue on how to pronounce it, or they just don't know their heads from their @$$3$ and pronounce it so fast they hope no one will notice. I go with the third option - I make my own way."

"You can't just go with 'wh!re-cheshire'." Raven argued in a monotone. "That's the dumbest thing I've heard from you all day."

"Turducken?" Nova reminded.

"Second." Raven corrected. "Still f!ckin' stupid."

"Alright, we'll go to any steakhouse, and if they bring me the sauce after I order it my way, I win. Bet you Gabriel's toupee."

"Gabriel doesn't wear a toupee." Raven said.

"And he won't if you win." Nova grinned.

"Nova!" Claire aimed a light smack at the back of Nova's head. "Not his hair!"

"It'll grow back...if I'm wrong." Nova aimed a teasing expression at Raven.

"Raven, don't-" Claire warned.

"-And if I'm wrong, you'll let Gabriel shave your head." Raven smirked.

"Deal." Nova agreed without hesitation.

"Nova...you haven't shaken her hand yet, you can still reconsider!" Claire urged.

Raven extended a hand to shake.

Claire tried to get between them, but watched in what felt like slow motion as Nova made a grab for Raven's hand, shaking it before she could even stand up.

 

[CanaryCry]

Sophie barely heard Claire speaking again as she drifted off, with barely enough coherent thought left in her to think she was being rude for ignoring the woman before she went lights out. The slight motion of the hammock and the very faint rumble of engines had her dreaming of being a little girl in the back of her parents' car, watching birds fly by the windows and wondering what it felt like to be with them until she was, suddenly, flying between them with her own two wings.

It had been such a novel thing, when she’d first found out she could fly. Now it was so normal, and so linked to fighting or modeling it was more like a chore than freedom. But in a dream she could still feel free. In her dreams she could still float wherever the wind took her without a care in the world. If only it could have lasted forever.

Sohpie woke gradually at first, a little more than an hour after she’d fallen asleep, and in the dim lighting almost fell out of the hammock trying to remember where she was. The sling itself reminded her of when she’d laid down, and she huffed an annoyed little breath at herself before more carefully rolling her weight in the hammock until she could put her feet on the ground and look groggily around. The windows were still tinted, but she could still feel that they weren't on the ground, and if she hadn’t felt more awake than she had before she might’ve thought she'd only slept a minute or two before waking up.

"What time is it?" She murmured to herself, resting a hand on her forehead and fighting down the urge to rub her eyes because she knew for a fact she’d put on shadow and liner and mascara in the morning and she was not going to accidentally smear it. It was long-lasting and durable, but not that durable.

After a pause to think, she looked towards a little flutter of wings and narrowed her eyes at the bird sitting nearby to try and remember what had been said to her before she slept. "Birdie?" She asked, feeling a bit silly but just groggy enough still to ignore it. "Is Claire around?"

The ship wasn’t that big, at least from what she’d seen of the outside of it, but it was pretty dark where she was sitting and she didn’t want to stand up and risk falling over if there was some sort of turbulence. Why were they still flying? Where was she?

 

[Junko Natsumizaka]

"Is Claire around?"

The bird chirped a cheery tune, fluttering off its perch to pull the curtain open with its beak.

The cockpit was visible straight ahead, past a beaded curtain partition.

Claire's ear's nearly perked up at the sound of chirping. She rose from her seat and approached Sophie with a warm smile. "How're you feeling, dear? We've got around an hour left, you could continue your rest if you like!"

 

[CanaryCry]

Sophie was just starting to try and get herself to her feet when she heard footsteps coming closer, and after a little pause could only assume Claire hadn’t been kidding and the bird had summoned her. It gave the younger girl immediate Snow White vibes, but that could have been the exhaustion talking.

"An hour?" She managed, giving her head a little shake and reaching out to the curtain to push it a little aside, despite the new light coming from the cockpit hurting her eyes a little. "In this plane? Did I only black out for a few minutes? How is there still an hour left?"

Where was she? How far had they taken her when they’d picked her up from off in the snowy forest? She'd been under the impression it must have been close, or else why would they have bothered to take her there instead of dropping her at the nearest hospital, but if they still had another hour's flight left on what appeared to her uneducated brain to be a very fast aircraft, she couldn’t imagine how many miles away their journey had started.

She decided then that it was probably best she didn’t tell Mona or her family how long the trip had been. She was relatively certain Nova and Claire and the others were good people, and she was safe with them, but the distance was likely to set both her agent and her mother on a rampage.

 

[Junko Natsumizaka]

"We're traveling a bit slow right now, dear - the healing tank can make you more prone to motion sickness." Claire smiled softly. "There's plenty of time for you to rest. Or, if you'd like company, I've got some storybooks, and we could untint the windows for a lovely view, or just talk, if you like."

Meanwhile, in Iowa

"They've heard us?" Grandma exclaimed.

Tom flinched, whipping the phone away from his ear so fast he nearly dropped it. "Don't get too excited now, we don't even know if they'll be able to help."

"If they can't help, all hope is lost, Tom. This is it. It's got to work." Grandma replied, audibly forcing herself to speak softer.

Earlier today, on the alien spaceship

"What should we do with him?" One alien asked, carrying John by his shoulders.

An adjacent alien's arms shook as they struggled to keep hold of John's legs.

"Put him with the others. How many time do I have to tell you that - they all go in one cage." The commander rolled her eyes, shaking her head. In the corner of her eye, she caught another alien looking away in guilt. "And you," She pointed a finger in his direction, "come here." She commanded smoothly.

As the two aliens carrying John trudged away, the third came to stand before the commander, neck bowed in guilt.

"You've been feeding the prisoners...haven't you?" The commander used her index finger and thumb to lift the alien's head. When their eyes met, she sang softly. "Less like pigs, more like twigs. I need them to look hungry." She abruptly reverted to talking. "Desperate. Uncomfortable at the very least. When was I not clear?"

"You were clear." The alien replied in a bare whisper.

"I was clear, wasn't I?" The commander drew in a deep breath, exhaling slowly.

Beads of sweat trickled down the alien's face as the seconds dragged past.

The commander turned to the rightmost hallway, calling, "Bring her in."

The alien's best friend was dragged in by his feet by four others.

"No, I swear, I won't-" The alien fell to his knees, desperately pleading.

"-you've had your chance." The commander smiled, looking down at him as he gripped the hem of her gown. "Clear the table, and bring out a fresh platter."

"NO, PLEASE-" The alien begged. "I'll do anything, I'll-"

"-good." The commander snatched the fabric away, heels clicking against the marble as she sauntered to the table. "Then you will do as I ask." She sat cross legged at the head of the table, eyelids drooping at the sight of the aliens restraining his comrade atop the platter. "How much does she mean to you?" She asked, her gaze not leaving his comrade's terrified eyes.

"She is everything to me! Please, I will do anything-" The alien pleaded.

"-and you, what does he mean to you?" The commander asked the alien on the platter.

Rage mixed with the terror as the other alien replied, "-he is more than you will ever know."

"Hah, well that is something." The commander folded her hands, leaning in. "I hope you're happy with your last words." She turned to the aliens holding her down. "Save the heart."

As the aliens made to slit the throat, the plated alien spat in the commander's direction.

A moment later, she was left twitching on the platter, blood dripping from her neck into a goblet.

The alien's body went limp as he saw his lover's heart placed on a plate for the commander. Tears welled in his eyes, blurring the image of the commander sipping from the goblet of blood.

"Bring me the president of the United States." The commander shooed him away. "Or I'll be adding your mother's heart to the menu. You have one day."

She will pay if I have to die to make it happen! The alien thought, anger overtaking his features as he made for the exit.

One Hour Later

John sat bolt upright, clutching his head as a wave of dizziness washed over him. He squinted around for some detail in the dim light, just making out the shape of bars blocking the exit. He wrinkled his nose at the damp air, turning to see what soft thing he'd been resting on. "...Thank you." He shifted in embarrassment, looking from the woman's lap, to the shape of her face. He scooted a bit nearer in the low cell, trying to make out her features. "How long have...you been here?"

"It's hard to keep track in total darkness." The woman replied, sounding parched. "But if I had to guess...over twelve days."

John slumped against the uneven wall, bits of cement pricking against his back. "How do you pass the time?"

"We talk." A boy in the far corner replied.

John turned his head to make out the shadowy figures of over ten other silhouettes.

"Or we argue." An old man laughed.

"Do you tell stories?" John asked hopefully.

"Stories?" The woman asked. "Do you like telling stories, John?"

John's face lit up, straightening his posture in excitement.

 

[CanaryCry]

Sophie frowned still, but after a moment to pause and feel the way the plane shifted under her feet did carefully sit back down in the hammock, as upright as she could manage to do so. It still didn’t make sense. She knew Claire was right about the tank, though she felt okay, just tired still - but if she’d napped for a while even flying slowly should have gotten her back to where she was supposed to be already. She could’ve flown herself back by now, if they had been a reasonable distance from where they’d began.

"How far did you take me?" She asked, doing her best not to demand despite the anxious flutter it put in her chest. "How long was I unconscious for?" With a little shake of her head, she tried not to press too hard for answers, knowing she wasn’t supposed to know exactly where she’d been and understanding that sort of secrecy. She just didn’t like that her rescuers had whisked her so far away from home. Even though she was trying to be a hero, she was still just a high school teen. They could be accused of kidnapping, if they'd done it to anyone pickier or more flighty than she was.

Sighing, she brushed her hands over her hair to smooth down what frizz lying tangled up in the hammock had given her and just tried to relax about it. She was going to have to be relaxed when Mona eventually picked her up or the woman was going to figure out something was weird about it and put her on house arrest for the rest of forever.

". . . I’d kinda like to see outside," she acquiesced finally, quiet and trying not to be petulant about everything. "I can't get this high on my own." Wings she had, but ocygen tanks she did not. As many times as she had seen it, she thought she would always enjoy the view of the world from above. "Maybe you can tell me some more about the team? Was if hard, when you first started working with other people?" Sophie didn’t think she was good enough to be totally solo, not for anything bigger than petty crimes or single combatants. It would be nice to hear about how Claire had started working with Nova and the others.

 

[Junko Natsumizaka]

"How far did you take me?"

Claire smiled softly, an apologetic look in her eyes. I know you want to know, to have some sort of reference to where you are, and I know it must be scary, and I'm sorry...I can't share that with you.

"How long was I unconscious for?"

Claire swallowed. "I...can't answer that one, either."

". . . I’d kinda like to see outside."

"Of course!" Claire sighed, relieved to find something she could help Sophie with. She turned to the cockpit, thinking for a moment before singing, "Untint the windows please."

Her bird fluttered to the dashboard, flicking a switch with its feet.

Claire's skirt swished in her wake as she spun round to watch the transition. The dark panes faded to translucence, sunshine bathing the cabin's walls. Tiny buildings dotted the distance, briefly visible through holes in the thick blanket of clouds.

"I can't get this high on my own."

Claire moved to stand beside her, gently placing an arm around Sophie's shoulders. "How do you feel, when you're flying?"

"I guess this means I don't have to read those stupid articles anymore." Claire laughed softly. "The media can't capture any authenticity these days. "

"Maybe you can tell me some more about the team? Was it hard, when you first started working with other people?"

"...Parts of it." Claire nodded. "I'd always wanted to be a big hero that helped people, made a difference, and made people smile. When they first offered me a spot, I felt attacked...Total me issue, I know, but...it felt like they were all telling me they saw I couldn't do it on my own. Nova...he assured me we'd only be a team in title at first. He promised I wouldn't have to do anything I didn't want to, and that if I had spare time, I could help other team mates. I hung out at the base, and was pretty happy to have a way to spend time I didn't know what to do with. It was also pretty amazing to get tasks from the AI in the control room - it prints up these little 'wanted' posters for villains, and tacks them to a corkboard. You can just pick up whichever one you want, and it handles the organization so we're not getting in each others' way. And the little robot arms are so cute!" She giggled. "Eventually, I talked about how...I feel...during the moments where an enemy is so...impossible, I can't even wrap my head around how I'd take them down." She whipped out her rainbow lollipop phone. "Everyone was understanding, and kind - it's like the family I never had. And my family is always just a phone call away." She smiled, miming licking the phone before putting it back in her pocket. "The phones are cute, too. Nova's trying to make everything look more like toys to make it all a bit less...daunting...for new recruits. Have you seen some agency phones? They're these serious black boxes from the 90's." She shook her head. "There was even a debate on what the phones would be themed after. Nova wanted to make this wheel people would spin like Wheel of Fortune, where it would completely randomize every aspect of the phone. Of course Casanova was on board for that one, so I organized a vote on the decision. Now we handle all decisions that way, so that's another good chance. In the end, we voted in favor of everyone customizing their own phone. Imagine me carrying around a green sea otter with umbrellas for feet as a phone?"

 

[CanaryCry]

Claire's lack of answer and dubious expressions were not reassuring, but Sophie got the point despite taking it with an annoyed sigh. Apparently even extremely vague answers like Number of Miles from the ski resort were off limits, which didn’t make any sense to Sophie. It was stupid, and screaming about it wasn't going to change anything, so she just had to take the hand she’d been dealt and stop trying to ask.

Whoa, smart bird. Sophie thought when their little friend actually touched something on the ship's controls, and held up a hand to avoid squinting against the sunlight as her eyes adjusted. She had to wonder if it was the bird or if Claire's powers told it specifically what thing to touch and how, but she was quickly distracted by the view. It was always so pretty, up where the clouds separated her from the word below.

"Whats it feel like?" She repeated, humming a quiet, considering note to herself as she thought of how to explain. It was oddly reassuring that, rather than be a super fan disappointed by reality Claire seemed happy enough to hear things about Sophie that were real rather than glamorized by magazines. Well, she thought, real things about Star Shine, amy way.

"It's windy," she said after considering, and at least managed a little smile in decent humor for Claire despite the nerves still fluttering inside her. "I don't really feel the rise and fall so much as people do in planes, or on roller coasters, not unless I change altitude too fast, and the cold doesn’t really get to me. I know everybody wants me to say it feels like freedom, but it’s different. It's more . . . calming, I think is the best word? Like listening to the ocean with the sea breeze in your hair, or watching the way sunlight comes through the treetops in a dense forest. . ." She smiled a little unsurely, not knowing if she was making any sense to someone who had never felt it before. "But it hasn’t stopped being fun yet, I can say that at least."

Some things would always feel like work, and some days her wings would feel heavy, or her powers would feel like a burden, but she hoped that flying freely through the sky when she had nowhere else to be would never stop being peaceful.

Sophie was quiet while Claire talked about her team, and as she went on it did make the young teen feel a bit better about basically being held captive for a while. At the same time, she couldn’t help thinking Claire had hit the nail on the head when she talked about feeling like people thought she couldn’t do it on her own. Sophie recognized that there were probably a lot of people stronger than her that she wouldn’t never be able to face alone, at least, but the feelings of inadequacy were still familiar. Like she would never be enough, just by herself.

It seemed like the team, even if they were all very different and didn’t always work together, was all about having a support system when you needed it, and keeping everyone organized to make sure they could help the most people to the best of their abilities. Like siblings, she thought, even though she didn’t have any herself. Distant sometimes, but always ready to have each other‘s backs.

"Why umbrellas for feet?" She asked with a little laugh, startled out of deeper thoughts by the imagery. "It sounds nice, your team. Most of the places I’ve looked at so far have felt like spruced up corporate offices, so . . . I guess it’s nice to know not all of them are gonna be like that."

She had thought she was just going to accept the fact that joining a hero agency was going to be like any other mundane job, with someone hovering over her head telling her what to do and when to do it. She had Mona now since she was underaged, but she at least still had some say in which jobs she took and what things she said. It was nice to know she didn’t absolutely have to lose that.

 

[Junko Natsumizaka]

"It's windy,"

"And your flyaways are like little weathervanes." Claire grinned.

"I know everybody wants me to say it feels like freedom,"

Claire jokingly turned to look over her shoulder, as if searching for the people that'd said that, before looking back with a small smile.

"but it’s different. It's more . . . calming, I think is the best word? Like listening to the ocean with the sea breeze in your hair,"

Claire closed her eyes, picturing the vibe Sophie described.

"But it hasn’t stopped being fun yet, I can say that at least."

"I'm glad to hear that you have a place to go when you need to relax." Claire smiled warmly. "Your words took me to such a calming place there...I'd love to write a poem with you one day. 'Flight as a Feather'." She giggled.

"Why umbrellas for feet?"

"I've been trying to get a grip on the way Nova's mind works for a while." Claire laughed.

"It sounds nice, your team. Most of the places I’ve looked at so far have felt like spruced up corporate offices, so . . . I guess it’s nice to know not all of them are gonna be like that."

"Shhh." Claire joked. "If Nova hears any drop of that he'll go on a rant about how crap they all are." Her eyes panned the room for a subject change. "Do you have any pets?" She asked, eyes resting on her bird.

 

[CanaryCry]

The more she and Claire got to talk like two normal people, the more the older woman began to feel like a friend instead of a starstruck fan, albeit a very new and unknown sort of friend. She was much gentler now, and Sophie thought it might just be because of her own exhaustion and the state they'd found her in, like someone treading lightly around a person that was ill, but it was still thoughtful.

Sophie smiled a little at the idea of writing poetry, giving her head a little shake. "I was never very good at creative writing in English," she said with a shrug. "I don’t think you’d want to read any of my sorry attempts at poetry."

It distracted her, at least, from the thought of 'flyaways' and wondering what her hair looked like just then, without a mirror to check it in. She was still tired, and the people around her had seen her water-logged and dizzy, so a little frizz wasn’t going to make her look any worse than she already had.

A threat of Nova's potential rant had her stifling a little giggle behind her hand, and she was quick to nod her agreement and lower her voice to join in on the joke. "That’s the last thing we want. I think I’d pass out again just listening to it. I’ll have to call if I need something to lull me to sleep."

She shifted her weight a little and looked at the windows again, trying to settle in a bit better and wondering fruitlessly just when they would get to somewhere familiar. "Just a cat, right now. She's more Dad's than she is mine, since he’s home more than I am, but it's kinda nice when she comes and sleeps in my bed with me at night. She's a calico. Her name's Stella. What about you? Any pets at home, or are you out and about too much for that?"

 

[Junko Natsumizaka]

"I don’t think you’d want to read any of my sorry attempts at poetry."

"If they're sorry, I'll accept their apology." Claire smiled gently.

"I’ll have to call if I need something to lull me to sleep."

Claire giggled a bit louder, unintentionally copying Sophie's move to stifle the noise with her hand.

"Her name's Stella."

"Did you name her after anyone?" Claire guessed.

"I'd love to meet her sometime. Oooh, I could translate a conversation between you two!" Claire got excited for a moment before taking a deep breath and calming down. "If you'd like."

"What about you? Any pets at home, or are you out and about too much for that?"

"I consider every animal in the world to be my pet." Claire hummed a soft tune, and her bird came to rest on her outstretched fingers. With her free hand, she patted the bird's head with a finger, bringing the bird a bit lower for Sophie to pet if she so chose. In reply, the bird chirped a short continuation of the song. The bird chirped a different, choppier tune, gently shrugging her finger off its head. "Oh?" Claire's eyebrows shot up in reply. She sang, "Thank you.", prompting the bird to flutter back to its perch as she turned to Sophie. "Dear, we'll be landing, soon. Let's get you buckled up!" She held out a hand to Sophie, leading her to the cockpit. "Seatbelts for safety!" Claire exclaimed, punching the air.

From the ship's back, the bird repeated the line in chirps.

"All set, guys?" Nova asked, turning a head to double-check.

"All set!" Claire gave him a thumbs-up.

"Alright, brace for impact!" Nova announced, dramatically pulling a series of levers and buttons in fast succession as he trilled a Star Wars soundtrack.

The edges of Raven's lips tilted upwards, knowing full well what was truly about to happen.

The landing itself was surprisingly smooth, transitioning from a gentle decline to soft circles around the landing base to decrease speed.

"All unboard!" Nova whistled, making a deep 'choo choo' noise. "Hey, Sophie," He unbuckled his seatbelt and stood, offering her a fist bump, "you did good, kid. New place, strange people, but you kept your cool." He winked, whipping out a baby blue burner phone. I hope we can meet again, kid. "My number's the only contact in here. Don't lose it, and call me for whatever - especially if it's to say 'yes I'd love to join the team'!" He grinned.

Raven remained in her chair, reclining with her eyes closed. I need to rest better tonight...

Claire stood beside Sophie, ready to escort her out and remain in the background for a bit as she greeted her family, politely answering any questions they needed.

 

[CanaryCry]

Sophie couldn’t help but smile at Claire's quips, amused even if she thought some of the jokes were a little silly, or a little lame. Sometimes lame jokes were the best kind, she thought, and having a friendly face to chitchat with was more than she could have asked for, given the circumstances. Despite the initial scare, things had turned out pretty well for her, so far.

"Some old movie star, I think," she said with a little shrug, thinking of her cat's name. "It was Mom's idea. I just thought it sounded pretty." She chuckled at the idea of talking to Stella herself, a bit stunned by the idea. "When I was little I would’ve jumped on that in a heartbeat, but I feel like it would just be really confusing. . . I think I’d just like to know if she's happy, and if she knows we love her. . ."

Otherwise she wasn’t sure she wanted to hear what her own cat had to say about her. She did, at least, take the chance to very gently pet Claire's bird friend, and blinked in surprise when it was time to start landing. Finally. She wasn't sure what she would have done if the flight had been much longer. She just hoped they hadn’t left the states.

"You're like Snow White," she commented with a little smile as Claire helped her to get up and make her way to a more secure chair, settling in for the worst part of flying in planes - the landing. She did not appreciate Nova's joking hint that they might have a rough time of it, rolling her eyes despite being amused by his humming. After flying under her own power, she couldn’t help thinking that it was so much easier when she had her own wings, rather than being stuck in a big metal box under someone else’s control, with no idea how good of a pilot they were. Thankfully, everything went without a hitch.

Letting out a soft, relieved breath at a safe landing, she glanced at Nova and fist bumped him back without much thought, automatically taking the phone as she got to her feet because it was being handed to her. She blinked at it once it was in her hand, realizing what it was and confused about why she had it.

"Oh. Thanks, I . . ." she trailed off after a second to realize what he had said to her, and found herself looking confusedly between Nova and Claire, as if asking for an interpretation. "Wait. Huh?"

Me? 'Join the team'? What is happening? Was that a job offer? Sophie's head was spinning with too many questions, but she let herself be guided towards the exit without a fight, too dazed to do much else. ". . . Can I use it to call my agent?" She was sure they were dropping her off to wait at the hospital for a ride, which would come quickly enough once she called for it. Once Mona came to get her, she wondered distractedly if the ski trip would come to an end and she would be forced to go home. It had only been hours, but her photoshoot felt like it had happened ages ago.

 

[Junko Natsumizaka]

"Some old movie star, I think," she said with a little shrug, thinking of her cat's name. "It was Mom's idea. I just thought it sounded pretty."

"Hmm, I thought you might've been a Winx club fan at one point." Claire joked.

"...think I’d just like to know if she's happy, and if she knows we love her. . ."

Claire smiled warmly at Sophie's worry. "I'm sure she does. Most animals can sense their human's feelings towards them. That's why comfort animals are so fascinating - they can always feel when their owners need comfort or company, and they're right there for help, moving closer to cuddle."

"You're like Snow White,"

Claire grinned wider than she had all day.

"Halloween costume idea." Nova commented. "Problemo solved, Claire." He half turned to Sophie, "Halloween Costume Confusion's usually a thing for Claire in September." He turned to Claire. "Come to think of it, why haven't you gone as Snow White before?"

"I did go as Snow White during a trick or treating night when I was three, and I do try not to repeat costumes too many times. There are so many things to dress as, and Halloween only comes one a year-"

"-Not if you go to a ton of parties in one night." Nova winked before turning back to the controls.

"Oh. Thanks, I . . . Wait. Huh?"

Claire smiled gently putting an arm around Sophie to lead her to the slowly opening door. "Keep it with you, dear, and give Nova a call if you'd ever like to talk about anything."

". . . Can I use it to call my agent?"

"You already have, dear. Remember, back in the cafeteria?" Claire reminded softly. "They should be here, soon. I'll stay with you until they do."

Together, they walked down a flight of steps that extended, onto solid ground. "Let's get you to a waiting room, hmm?" Claire smiled.

 

[CanaryCry]

It was entertaining, listening to everyone talking about Claire's Halloween costumes, but at the same time bouncing her attention back and forth between them all was making Sophie feel even more tired, somehow. As she walked off the plane with Claire keeping her on track, she could only look at the little phone in her hand, in wonder. Was that what it was always like, being part of a team? Were they friends? Did they feel like family? What would it be like to be part of a group like that, one that was looking out for people and for each other rather than for every opportunity to help themselves look better? Sophie was only in high school, and though she’d met other teams before none of them had made her feel the same way. Maybe she was just being naive.

"Right." She managed with a little nod when Claire said she’d called already, opening it up with a little smile at the novelty of using a flip phone. "I don’t really know if I was fully conscious when that happened."

She wasn’t even sure she was now, to be honest.

It was simpler to let Claire lead, so Sophie followed the older woman's footsteps as she dialed Mona number to find out how close she was. She’d meant to call and say that she was ready to be picked up, and was surprised to learn that the woman was already on her way and not far out. It was just a matter of waiting, then.

"You don’t have to sit with me." Sophie said, offering Claire a sort of hesitant smile when she'd found a good enough chair to occupy in the hospital's main lobby, with a good view of the entrance. "I’m a big girl. I can wait by myself."

She would've been fine just waiting around on her own. Hospitals were safe enough, really, and it wasn’t like she was unfamiliar with them given how many times she’d gotten minor injuries from scuffles with criminals. But, given how tired she felt, and how much had happened in the last 24 hours, she had to admit it was nice not to be alone while she sat around trying to stay awake.

"Oh, I see her walking up." Sophie said when she’d spotted a familiar form coming from the parking lot only a few minutes later, and shifted forward to get to her feet. ". . . Thanks for everything, Claire. I'll just go meet her at the front, so you don’t have to talk to her if you don’t want to." She knew Nova was trying to keep the location of the base a secret, and wasn’t sure what else the man didn’t want people knowing, so it was probably best she not let Mona grill poor Claire for answers.

 

[Junko Natsumizaka]

"I don’t really know if I was fully conscious when that happened."

"I know." Claire nodded softly, gently patting Sophie on the back.

"You don’t have to sit with me. I’m a big girl. I can wait by myself."

"Oh, they left me here. They'll come to pick me up later." Claire waved it off. She picked up a magazine to browse through while they waited, understanding that after all the taking, Sophie would most likely appreciate a bit of silence.

She heard a child crying in another room as a father attempted to calm him through getting a shot. I can just hear Nova talking about how he could be doing better. Claire shook her head softly to clear the smile away.

"Oh, I see her walking up."

Claire flipped her magazine shut, neatly sliding it back in its place to stand beside Sophie.

". . . Thanks for everything, Claire. I'll just go meet her at the front, so you don’t have to talk to her if you don’t want to."

"There are some questions I've got to answer to make sure the story stays together, dear." Claire replied quietly, giving Sophie's hand a gentle squeeze before extending a hand to greet Mona with her sunshine smile. "Hello. You're Mona, right?" She patiently waited for the inevitable return question asking who she was. "I'm Faunasaurus Rex. You might know me as one of the independent heroes who helped during the Parade Traffic Jam during last year's Autumn Parade?" She offered kindly. "You can call me 'Faun' for short."



"That's a mighty fine parkin' job you did there," Grandma complimented Raven. "I keep tellin' John, that when he parks the truck..." she trailed off, jovial composure breaking. "...I keep telling John..." Her eyelashes fluttered as she scrambled for words.

"Ma, how about you head on inside," Tom patted Grandma's back, "and make them some of your famous lemonade? Whaddya say, fellas?" Tom aimed a steely gaze at the heroes.

"Hell yes." Athena exclaimed.

Nova raised his eyebrows as Grandma turned to hide her latent tears. "We'll need a lot of lemonade, silly straws," he listed as she walked towards the house, "cold glasses, and sandwiches! Oh, and some of those tiny little umbrellas you can only find in bars but always miss in the grocery store until you're at the checkout counter...then is when you remember. You turn back to see Mr. and Mrs. Murphy on your @$$ like, 'You gonna cash out, yet?', then you say, 'The f!ck are you looking at?' and by the time you've sorted that out you forget what you were thinking, turn around, cash out, and the moment you're done putting your groceries away the image of that cute little umbrella flashes in your mind-"

"-Now you listen here," Tom spoke with a purposeful slowness as he led Nova and Raven towards the barn, eyes locked to the former's, "I've never trusted heroes. Never relied on 'em for sh!t. Bunch of flashy clowns prancin' around ignoring the bigger problems to make headlines. But I'm out of options, and I need my John back. If you can help, I'll set aside every grudge I've every carried. Or at least try to. I'd do anything for John, so I hope I've shown you how much that boy means to me. How important-" Tom stopped walking to lean against the open barn doors. "-this job is to not only me, but ma, too."

Nova nodded, his tone matching the graveness in Tom's voice when he replied, "My grandma is the most important person in the world to me. I can't imagine losing her for one moment, let alone a day. Sunshine of my life she is, there for me in my darkest hours. We'll get your son back to you, safe and sound. You have my word."

A moment of silence passed between the two.

"So," Raven interjected. "what was John doing when the aliens arrived?"

"Stacking hay. Well, he was about to." Tom shook his head. "Those dam aliens swooped in..."

Meanwhile

Athena hovered around the farm, searching the premises for any clues. At one point, she saw the old lady placing a pie near the windowsill, swiping it as she zoomed by. Hmm...blueberry pie...

 

[CanaryCry]

Sophie made an incredulous sort of face when Claire said that she’d been left behind, thinking it was both rude and unnecessary to make her stay, but she was too tired for arguing and just had to assume that it was for a reason. She didn’t need a babysitter, and she was sure Nova and the others knew that. Maybe it was just because she was so exhausted, and they didn’t think she would stay conscious until she was picked up, or maybe they didn’t even believe her agent was coming to get her. There were a thousand possibilities, especially being far from home. She was sure Mona had made sure her parents knew that she was all right and they didn’t need to fly out to come get her. At least, she hoped so.

It would almost have been a relief when the woman showed up alone, if Sophie couldn’t so clearly read the 'You're in big trouble' in the woman's eyes, only held back by her need to assess Claire, Sophie's safety, and what kind of media nightmare may or may not be brewing. Sophie was sure she was going to get an earful later, but for now Mona was perfectly professional, if a bit terse.

"Ramona Reynolds, yes." The pantsuit clad woman confirmed, her voice steady and her handshake firm. "Miss Star Shine's agent." And, thus, her advocate for any legal snafus, go-between with any hero agencies, and temporary guardian whenever she was out of her parents' sight. The message was clear enough, given the job most agents did when it was for younger aspiring heroes. If Claire was some sort of threat, or any sort of paparazzi hound, she was dealing with someone actually in charge now.

Claire's identity, at least, began to relax the set of Mona's shoulders. "Ah, yes. 'Faunasaurus Rex'." It was a ridiculous name, she thought, but not the worst she’d ever heard. "You'll have to forgive my being blunt, Miss Faun, but she has been missing for hours, outside her home city, in a blizzard. I need to know where she was, who with, and what happened while she was gone."

Sophie made a soft, almost distressed little sound, holding both hands up in front of her as if to fend off the woman's profession, wrath. "Mona, I’m fine, she was helping me-"

Her agent only held up a finger to quiet her, barely glancing at her. "Not now, Star, the grown ups are talking," she interrupted, though her tone was not unkind. Sophie was sure she would get all of the worried hovering and check-overs the second Claire was gone, and just heaved a defeated sigh. Now was not a time she had the energy to fight.

"Dont misunderstand, Miss Faun," Mona continued, arms loosely crossed. "I am very grateful to you for finding her and seeing her back safely, but I do have to ask where she’s been. Call it motherly concern."

Truly, Mona didn’t expect to get very many details from Claire, given how few had come forward already, but it was expected of her to make the inquiries. She would look weak and unconcerned if she didn’t, and she was worried for Sophie's safety. The teenage hero appeared safe and sound, at least. If she hadn’t, her agent would have called in favors already to see that every legal ramification possible - and perhaps some that were not so legal - was brought down upon the heads of anyone that had hurt her.

 

[Junko Natsumizaka]

"You'll have to forgive my being blunt, Miss Faun, but she has been missing for hours, outside her home city, in a blizzard. I need to know where she was, who with, and what happened while she was gone."

"There's no need for an apology, Ramona." Claire smiled warmly. "I'd feel the same."

"I am very grateful to you for finding her and seeing her back safely, but I do have to ask where she’s been. Call it motherly concern."

"Of course." Claire tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear as she explained, "I've got a hideout with a medical tank somewhere deep in these mountains - I'm sure you'll understand if I can't disclose the location. Instinct told me to survey the area during the blizzard, and my heart broke when I saw Star Shine passed out in the snow. I felt the hospital's staff might not be able to act quickly enough, so I brought her in, and returned her to the hospital afterwards for an extra checkup." Claire smiled to Sophie to reinforce her story.

Meanwhile

A half-eaten pie tin sat out in the sun, catching the nose of a few ants nearby.

Just before they reached their prize, the green hand of a three-foot-tall alien swiped the tin, hungrily burying his face in its warmth. "Aaah." He sighed, drooling. He inhaled the food before dropping the container, hastily making his way to the heroes' aircraft.

Looking both ways, the alien pressed a button on his wristband, turning to a jello-like-substance to slide beneath the ship's locked door. He re-formed into his alien shape to search the ship, looking for a place to hide.

 

[CanaryCry]

While Claire and Mona talked, Sophie was busy doing her best 'oh my god how could you' face behind the hero's back, crossing her arms and looking annoyed at her agent to try and convince her not to be so distrusting without using actual words. Clearly Sophie was standing there, relatively unharmed, on her own two feet, and showcasing attitude rather than fear or worry. She hadn’t been attacked by any of her rescuers, and nothing dangerous had happened.

She was going to pay for getting herself lost in a blizzard later, but that was a different story.

"Instinct, hm?" Mona challenged, politely still but with a note of disbelief in her tone that was only mostly for show.

"I'd've been a goner if Faun hadn’t found me!" Sophie insisted before her agent could press any harder, choosing words that weren't actually lies without telling the whole truth. Honestly she wasn't sure just who on the team had plucked her out of the snow so anything was possible there. "And you know those med tanks gimme the creeps and killer fatigue, so can we please stop arguing so we can see a doctor and get outta here? I’m wiped, Mona, and I want to go see my friends. . ."

She was sure they knew she was okay by now, and nothing bad had happened to her in the end, but it had actually been stressful waking up somewhere unfamiliar by herself and she really did want to go back to somewhere reasonably familiar, see her friends, and pass out in an actual bed somewhere. It was only in moments like this, when there was no one 'important' around and she was at the end of her mental rope that she started to sound more like a petulant teenager than a seasoned star actress. It was already taking all she had not to fully devolve into whining and say she wanted to actually go home. She did, but it was too embarrassing to say out loud and she was doing all she could manage to save face.

Mona studied her for a moment, then gave a little sigh and turned back to Claire. "Thank you again, Miss Faun, for keeping her safe. I can take over from here." She shook Claire's hand once more, then produced a sleek, navy blue business card from her pocket to give over, with just her name and phone number embossed on its surface. "If there's anything I can do to pay you back, please don't hesitate to call." She was sure Claire had her own agency or network for any of her PR needs, but the offer was still there.

"Come on, Star," The agent said more gently, holding an arm out to pull the young hero close and give her both a hug and some physical support to stay on her feet, the gesture affectionate and protective. "I already called ahead to get you checked out quickly. Let's go."

Sophie heaved a sigh and relaxed, feeling safe with Mona around since the woman was always there looking out for her when her own parents weren't, and gave Claire a tired little smile and wave. "Bye, Faun," she called softly even as she was guided away. "Thanks for everything."

She wanted to say more, wasn’t sure how she could thank everyone for helping her, but the weird cell phone they’d given her was a heavy weight in her pocket still. If she wanted to, she could call, right? As strange and mildly terrifying as the day had been, she didn’t want to think she would never see them again. And then there was Nova's offer, hovering around in her head still. Especially if it’s to say 'yes, I'd love to join the team'. Was it really possible for someone as young and relatively inexperienced as her to join a hero team so easily? It felt almost too good to be true.

 

[Junko Natsumizaka]

"Instinct, hm?"

Claire nodded with a smile. "Mhm!" No need for an explanation here. Usually someone that has something to hide feels the need to have an overly complicated story to 'cover things up'. There've been tons of cases where I've had some sort of instinctual feeling to go to a certain place, then voila, someone in danger. I guess I've got my own spidey-senses. She giggled softly at the silly term as Sophie stepped in. Aaaw, that means a lot, Sophie. I'm sure you're tired right now. It's alright, your agent has nothing to go off - you're safe and sound, and I'm as innocent looking as they come. This should all be over soon so you can rest, dear. She ignored her desire to envelop Sophie in a hug, focused on staying professional and calm.

"Thank you again, Miss Faun, for keeping her safe."

Claire looked down at the card, running her finger over the details. Sleek and simple, giving nothing away - the impression you want for yourself.

"If there's anything I can do to pay you back, please don't hesitate to call."

"I'll be sure to let you know if I think of anything." Claire gently slid the card into her pocket.

"Bye, Faun, thanks for everything."

"Anytime, dear. It was faun meeting you." Claire giggled softly, waving goodbye. The moment they turned out of sight, she retook her seat, picking up a different magazine. A few minutes later she checked her phone for texts from Nova. Nothing. I hope the investigation's going well. She texted:

All went well. Time for the pickup

She flipped through her magazine for a few more minutes, happy they'd gotten a chance to eat earlier.

The Farm - One Hour Later

"I combed the whole place from top to bottom, aaand nothing." Athena shrugged.

"Behind the barn? Inside the barn?" Nova asked, pointing to various areas on a sloppy sketch he'd made of the farm. "In the haystacks? Inside the house?"

"All of the above." Athena sighed.

Nova sipped his second glass of lemonade. "You wouldn't mind if we come back later, right?" He eyed Tom. "We've gotta pick up a few more people with different powers that might help."

"Whatever you need to do to save my son." Tom replied in a reluctant tone, not looking away from the spike he aimed horseshoes for.

"Let's take another look around, shaaaall we?" Nova offered his arm to Raven, ending his sentence in a formal, British accent.

Ten Minutes Later

"I didn't eat any pie!" Athena blurted, eyes wide.

Nova raised an eyebrow, dropping the empty pie tin in her lap.

"Hang on," Athena looked down in confusion, "I only ate half the pie..."

"Oh? Wanna try that again-" Raven shook her head.

"-she's not lying." Nova snatched the pie dish off Athena's lap, making for the ship. "We'll take this with us for analysis."

Athena and Raven shared a look before the former shrugged, and they both turned to follow Nova.

 

[CanaryCry]

Sophie managed one last little wave and a scoff at Claire's jokes, but had a small smile on her face as Mona led her away. Doctors and hospitals were things she was used to, after managing to hurt herself so many times in the middle of hero work, and after having so many x-rays and tests done as she grew up to be sure her transformations and wings weren't having any ill effects on her body. She wouldn’t say she liked being there, but she was at least used to it enough that she didn’t immediately get anxiety upon entering medical buildings like some others did.

The appointment, still, was mostly a blur for her. As tired as she was, she almost nodded off once or twice while Mona and the doctor talked, and devoted all of her own energy to not giving away any extra information about Nova and the others away while answering the doctor's questions about what had happened. The fact that she’d passed out in the snow, been rescued, and woken up in a tank was completely true, and the rest she was just rather vague on, saying she'd been able to take a shower and eat good food before she’d run out of energy again and been taken to the hospital to meet up with Mona. There were always security concerns when it came to minors, but given she had made a name for herself in certain media circles and Mona was her witness for most of the times she’d been hurt while adventuring before, there weren’t too terribly many questions.

Sophie had planned on being carefully silent on the ride back to the ski resort, which would have been difficult if it weren’t for the fact that five minutes in she leaned her head against the window and almost immediately fell asleep. Rather convenient, she thought when they arrived and Mona shook her awake, but when she looked in the mirror she wasn’t really happy about the little red spot it left on her forehead.

"Sophie!" Rooney cried when they got back to the suite they were staying in at the resort, the redhead the first to run to her side and hug her upon her arrival. "You’re back! We were so worried!"

"'M okay," Sophie mumbled into the other girl's shoulder, feeling tired and smothered but also a little warm inside when their other friends hurried over to check on her too.

"When Mona came back without you, Roo about peed her pants!" Peter declared, a grin on his face as he tried to make light of the situation, but something concerned in the set of his brow as they crowded around to give her hugs and careful pats on the back. "You've gotta tell us what happened, we've been dying to know where you went."

"Maybe a little later, guys," Sophie managed, waving a hand in front of her as if to try and push their worries away when Rooney finally stopped trying to suffocate her and the others gave her a little room. "Promise I’ll spill, but it's been a long day. . ."

"You look exhausted." Izabel agreed, hands on her hips and a worried face on until it shifted into something more panicked. "I mean, you look great still, just, uh - just tired."

Sophie shook her head, fatigued beyond worrying about it now when no cameras were around to capture ugly photos of her for the tabloids. "It's fine, Iz. I am tired. I’m just gonna go sleep it off, and we can talk all about it later, okay?"

There was a general murmur of consent among them before they let Mona usher her away to her room, the agent only sticking around long enough to make sure she took off her shoes and outer jacket before flopping unceremoniously into bed. It wasn't home, but it was warm and soft enough that she hardly had time to think about the day before drifting off again.

********************​

Sophie slept through the evening and night with only one disturbance for Rooney to give her water on her way to her own bed, not waking until the next morning. There were distant sounds of people up and about outside her door, getting ready for the day but letting Sophie sleep for now, and for a little while she only laid alone in the room and listened before habit had her forcing herself out of bed. She needed to shower and make herself presentable before she showed her face to anyone, lest the worry from the night before return.

It might have been more peaceful if her mind didn’t get stuck on the heroes that had helped her, and the phone hidden away inside the sweater she’d worn to bed. It was killing her, not knowing what Nova had been trying to tell her, if he really meant she could possibly be part of their team, even after how useless and stupid she’d been in front of them. Once she was ready for the day, she found herself still sitting on the edge of her bed, staring at the one contact in the phone and trying to figure out if she even knew how it text on flip phones.

Finally, she bit the bullet and just hit Call before she could stop herself. She was sure the dial tone was the worst thing she’d ever heard in her life, until the call clicked over to an actual voice and she found herself inexplicably tongue-tied.

"I- ah, Nova?" She managed, feeling a flush rise to her cheeks at immediately sounding so stupid. "This is Nova, right? I hope I’m not waking you up, I just -" She gave her head a little shake, fighting the urge to press a hand over her eyes so she didn’t ruin her makeup before it fully dried. "I couldn't remember if I really got to say thank you yesterday, so . . . so, thank you. . ."

She wanted to slap herself. It hadn’t been so long since she’d actually been on a phone call that she’d forgotten how to speak. She’d done plenty of interviews in front of plenty more people that were a million times more intimidating. It was just that, one-on-one with someone that was a hero and that could potentially change her future, it felt a whole lot more personal somehow, and apparently 'personal' made her shove her own foot in her mouth. Real smooth, Sophie. Way to make a great impression.

 

[Junko Natsumizaka]

"It's gonna need...eight hours?! What kinda analysis does our supercomputer need to do?!" Nova rolled his eyes, dragging his feet on the way out.

Raven patted the supercomputer on the head. "It's okay, little guy, he's just impatient. He doesn't mean it."

"Weirdo, talkin' to computers. You know it can't hear you. It's not even alive." Athena remarked.

Raven half-turned to her with a glare. "If AI takes over, you're the type of person who's going to die, first."

"Fine by me...if they take over, I bet they won't even be able to touch me." Athena folded her arms.

Raven's lips twitched upwards as one of her vines creeped around Athena, grabbing at her ankle.

Athena flew into the air, hugging herself as she looked at the supercomputer, then the place on the ground she'd been standing. "No fair!" She pouted, flying out when she realized what had happened.

Raven laughed as the doors closed behind Athena.

Meanwhile

Nova replied to Claire's message:

We'll be there, soon.

Two Hours Later

Raven slept peacefully in a hammock made of her own vines, right beside the supercomputer. Her plan was to alert the others when the supercomputer finished analyzing the clue. Before falling asleep, she'd texted another superhero in their team to investigate around the place where they'd found the pie dish.

Meanwhile

"So, do you like kids?" The man asked, shoveling an overlarge bite of food into his mouth with the decorum of a pig.

"Don't you think...it's a bit early to be talking about kids?" Claire asked, nervously tucking a loose strand of her hair behind her ear for the eighth time. She beheld her glass of wine as if it was the most fascinating thing in the universe - anything to escape the way he ate.

"Why not? I thought you said you were looking for a long-term relationship? Wouldn't that mean kids too, down the line?" The man asked thickly, unintentionally spitting a bit of food onto Claire's sleeve.

Across the fancy restaurant, Nova adjusted his audio-spying device.

"This is why people like you end up alone..." Nova yawned, slumping forward in his seat to rest his head on his crossed arms. "...So rude..."

"Are you even listening to me?" Nova's date asked.

Nova eyed her boredly. "...The fourth reason your cookbook illustrating side business won't ever take off is...?"

"Side business?!" The lady stood, flinging her water on Nova. Her chair screeched backwards, drawing stares.

Nova glared at her, blinking water out of his eyes. "Don't make a scene."

"You called my passion a side business!" The lady raised her voice.

"Look, lady," Nova sat up straight, "I don't care how you feel about it. Unless you can get it off the ground, it's a side business. And it should stay that way until you can make a living off it, instead of leeching from your brother and calling it unfair. Now, if you asked 'Hey Nova, how do you think I could get my business off the ground', I would've helped you. But to sit here and complain about why it'll never happen? I can't respect that. Now get the hell outta here."

"Mam, if you continue to be a disturbance," A waiter approached her with a formal posture, "I'll have to ask you to leave."

The lady glared from Nova to the waiter before stomping out as loudly as she could.

"Would you mind helping her hail a cab?" Nova asked politely. "I think she's having a bad day."

The waiter nodded, heading after the lady.

Nova grabbed a few tissues to wipe his face off, then re-adjusted the spying device. Good thing I set it up under the table, or North would've thrown me at the sun.

Back at the other end of the restaurant, Claire's date asked, "Why've you been so quiet?"

Claire looked back to him, snapping out of her daze. I was almost certain I heard Nova's voice... "I was just...thinking about my pets at home. Do you like pets?" She invented wildly.

"...You weren't even listening to me, were you?" The man asked, offended.

"...No." Claire replied honestly. "But, I don't think you were, either. I want a long term relationship, yes, but I want it with someone who won't rush me through things like kids and buying a house. And..." Claire took a deep breath, hesitating on saying it for one last time... "...someone who doesn't eat like a pig."

"If you didn't like it," The man slammed his fist one the table, "you should've said something." He pointed an angry finger at her, "That's the problem with women these days. I can't even be myself around them. I get all dressed up, and take you to this fancy restaurant-"

Claire tried her best to remain calm as she replied, "-A gentleman should know not to eat like a pig, slam his fist on the table, and point fingers. Also...I would've been fine with a picnic from Subway by the lake, but you insisted on taking me here-"

"-It's just like a woman to turn everything back on a guy like that. You just used me for this dinner, didn't you?"

"I could've made my own dinner back at home, or eaten out with my friends." Claire replied politely. "You really don't need to get this mad, I'm just trying to help you with some advice for your next date."

"So you're already deciding this date's over?" The man spat. "You didn't even give me a chance."

"We've gone out twice." Claire stood slowly, making to pick her purse up from the chair between them. "And this will be the last time."

The man grabbed her wrist to prevent her from taking her bag.

"Let go." Claire sighed.

"Not until you apologize for being rude."

"I won't apologize for doing what I know is right." Claire met his eyes with a tired gaze. "Please don't do this. Just let go, and try to be a better person next time."

"How can I be a better person if no one gives me a chance? Pretty girls like you throw me away all the time."

"You're pretty decent looking yourself."

"Rate me out of ten." The man's grip tightened around Claire's wrist.

"We're not doing this." Claire insisted. I'll never get anywhere with him...some people...just can't be helped... "Let go."

"Or what?" The man tightened his jaw. "You'll sue me for harassment?"

"You don't wanna know..." Nova shook his head, munching on a partly-soggy French fry.

Claire hummed softly, gradually getting louder.

"What's that, an anti-anxiety exercise?" The man mused.

I'm sorry, Daniel. Claire thought as thousands of ants marched in, moving unnoticed from the other customers by blending into the red marble tiling.

One child pointed, "Mooom, the floor's moving!"

But by the time his mother turned, the ants had already passed that spot. "No it's not, dear." She patted his head.

The ants started at Daniel's ankles, prompting him to dig a greasy finger into his socks to itch at the spot. Soon they reached his chest, stinging him with thousands of tiny bites.

"What's happening?!" Daniel shrieked, releasing Claire's hand.

Claire forced herself to maintain her composure as she walked away, not looking back to see Daniel dancing wildly about, trying to get the ants off.

Two waiters warned Daniel against continuing to be disturbing, to which he replied, "THIS CRAZY LADY JUST SET FIRE ANTS ON ME! ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!"

They shrugged, moving to escort him out.

On the way out, Nova shot a bit of water under Daniel's feet, causing him to trip and drag the waiters down so they tumbled like dominoes. He rushed outside to meet Claire as she climbed atop a caribou, trying to get away before anyone saw her tears.

"Heyyyy," Nova greeted, summoning a bit of water to form icy steps so he could walk to Claire at her level. "yeah...crazy thing - my date just flung water on me, and stormed out. What a coincidence, huh?"

Claire tried to force a laugh before breaking down in tears. She covered her face with her hands in embarrassment. "What was I thinking? I knew he wasn't the one for me, but I kept trying...I just..."

"Aaaw," Nova patted her back, pulling her hands away from her face to look into her eyes. "it's not your fault, Claire. He was a d0u(heb@g, it's what they do. Nothing you did would've helped him - the change has to come from him."

"Yes...I know that...but..." Claire sobbed.

Nova pulled a tissue from his pocket to dry her tears. "...But it doesn't stop you from being hopeful. Yeah, I get that one. Just think...we're superheroes! We're durable as f!ck. We'll live for long enough to find someone, eventually! And while you look, you'll have the best friends ever by your side." He smiled softly.

"...Thank you, Nova." Claire nodded, taking the tissue from him to dab at more tears. She took a few deep breaths, calming herself while Nova continued talking.

"And...that's probably the most b@d@$$ thing I've ever seen. Fire ants? You outdid yourself." Nova praised. "Picture the little guys around a dinner table, back at the ant hole." He put on a funny, high-pitched voice similar to Mickey Mouse's. "'That guy was a real d!ck. Oooh, he was so bitter, we couldn't even swallow the bites we took!'"

Claire interrupted one of her deep breaths with a hearty laugh.

"Yeah! Even the ants hated eating him!" Nova cheered.

"It's not that...fire ants don't eat humans. Their mandibles are more like...little pincers. They use it to shrink their food down, or defend themselves." She made a set of pincers near her mouth with her index fingers.

Nova thought for a moment. "Huh...I did not know that. Well then, they'll hate having his stench near their noses while they walk around. The little things..." He made a pair of pincers with his fingers, speaking in a voice that resembled Hannibal Lecter's, "...Oooh, the vile one tastes like trash...we can't even eat him on a platter with some fava beans!"

Laughing at his absurdity helped lift Claire's spirits. "Hop on. We're heading home." Claire patted the reindeer's head.

The reindeer huffed a few times, eager to move on.

"Oooh, reindeer ride. Hey Mrs. Claws, how's Santa doing?" Nova laughed as he summoned more water, wrapping the stairs around the reindeer's side so he could hop on. "It's so dark in this alley I thought it was a moose."

"Reindeer like the song I was singing more." Claire replied with a smile, gently tapping his left antler.

The reindeer headed left, trotting along wherever he could to avoid traffic.

"Ever get a parking ticket on one of these?" Nova jested.

"They run before the officer can put the ticket on." Claire smiled, patting the reindeer's head.

"Sweet. I've gotta get myself a Reindeer 9000 one day." Nova laughed.

Claire laughed as well, finding his laughter unusually contagious tonight.

The Next Morning

Nova woke up abruptly, realizing he had fallen asleep cuddling a fluffle of bunnies on Claire's couch. He searched the cracks of the couch to find the noise that'd awoken him from his slumber. Checking his watch as he fished out his phone from beneath the couch, he realized it was late afternoon. No wonder...I was supposed to be up hours ago. "Claaaaaaaire," He called, groggily pushing bunnies out of the way of his search, "it's not a bad thing to 'wake a person from a peaceful sleep', you know!"

"Still doesn't stop me from feeling bad, Nova!" Claire sang sweetly, calling all the bunnies to her side.

They all hopped over to help her make her bed. "There you guys go. Give Nova some space to search for his phone."

"Found it." Nova answered just as it was about to stop ringing.

"I- ah, Nova?"

Nova muted himself to excitedly alert Claire, "It's Sophie!"

Claire pumped her fists in the air as Nova un-muted.

"This is Nova, right? I hope I’m not waking you up, I just - I couldn't remember if I really got to say thank you yesterday, so . . . so, thank you. . ."

Aaaw, she's nervous. Nova thought, wanting to pinch her cheeks. Don't worry, I'll cover for you, kid. "Heheh, those healing tank side effects are a pain in the @$$, aren't they? Sounds like you're still feeling it, huh?"

No worries, I'll give you an opening. "So, did you wanna ask anything?" Nova asked cheerfully, stifling a yawn. "Claire's here, too, so ask away!"