sorry about not updating this here, i got SV and SB but forgot about this thread
**
Emily Piggot smiled as she looked at the ceiling, her niece was irrepressible as Assault, but at least she was responsible enough to take her medicine. “Alright,” Emily said bringing her face back down and putting on her “Director’s hat”. “You are on two weeks restriction and grounding for fighting in school, this of course won’t be difficult since you’ll be coming here with me every day until we find another school that will take you in. Maybe Immaculatta will take you,” Emily pondered out loud, “they have a history of taking “troubled” students.”
I shuddered and shook my head slightly, “I’ll be good,” I said mentally begging all that was holy that she did not send me to a catholic day school. My parents hadn’t been particularly religious, but my mother’s parents had been, if not particularly devout, then at least holiday Shintoists and that was the “religion” that I had been raised in until I started seeking my own path. I was still seeking, but I already knew Christianity was not for me. Aunt Emily smiled at me and I relaxed, of course she had been kidding me.
“Now, what to do with you for the rest of the day,” Director Piggot muttered looking at the schedule on her computer screen. “All the other Wards are in school and none are scheduled to come in until tomorrow, so I guess that I can have someone walk you through intake now instead of at three when we had planned too.”
“Actually ma’am,” I said getting her attention, “if you’ll allow me, I would like to go sit with the victim until she wakes up and I can explain what happened to her.” Emily Piggot’s eyebrows quirked at the suggestion and then her eyes flared wide and rage suffused her face. “Exactly,” I said before she could speak, “I tagged her before she left with the EMTs but that has a maximum effect of twelve hours, and I don’t want her to wake up and freak out.”
Emily Piggot mentally berated herself for not considering the possibility of the victim having triggered, even she would have probably triggered if stuffed into a locker with that kind of filth and the door locked. Picking up the phone on her desk she pushed a few buttons before speaking. “Hannah, I need you to take Akane to get her phone issue and ID’s, and then I need you to run her over to Bay General so that she can sit with the victim. If the girl’s father is there, either give Akane a domino and explain that we think his daughter may have triggered due to the incident or play it off as the savior coming to sit with the victim, your call. If she did trigger, don’t push the Wards but do mention it as a possibility, I don’t want to alienate the man at this juncture, and assure him that all the hospital bills will be covered.”
A moment later the director hung up the phone and stood, “Come with me Akane,” she said leading the way out the door of her office and down the hall. We stopped in front of an office even as a PRT officer was coming out
**
Daniel Hebert turned his head from his daughter to look at the door to her hospital room as it calmly opened. Instead of a nurse or doctor though, a girl of about Taylor’s age and a uniformed woman walked in and quietly shut the door. “Can I help you?” he asked as the girl’s face became troubled.
“I’m sorry I wasn’t there earlier,” the girl said stepping over to Taylor’s other side. “If I had been on time I might have averted this whole thing.”
“Akane,” the uniformed woman started in a disapproving tone, the girl cut her off however, her voice dripping with cold hatred and self-contempt.
“I missed my intended bus,” the girl said with not quite a snarl. “If I hadn’t I would have been ten to fifteen minutes earlier, probably right behind her coming inside according to the video. If I had been, I would have been able to stop this immediately, and she wouldn’t have suffered she wouldn’t be here.”
“Akane,” the woman said, obviously straining to keep a civil tone. “If the Probation Officer and principal had done their jobs you wouldn’t have had to put that little psychopath in the hospital, if the principal or a teacher had reported a damn thing, this wouldn’t have happened either.” The woman, a PRT agent by the undress uniform she was wearing and the badge on her hip continued. “There was nothing more you could have done, and you went above and beyond in what you did, it’s why you’re not in trouble with the director.” Sighing the PRT agent turned to Daniel and addressed him. “I’m sorry for our intrusion Mister Hebert, I’m Special Agent Hannah Washington, PRT, and this is the Director’s niece Akane.” She held her hand out and he took and shook it. “Akane wanted to come sit with your daughter until she woke up, and the director ok’d it while giving me some instructions on things to handle when we got here.”
“Alright, that explains why you’re here,” Daniel said nodding. “Do those instructions have anything to do with this “situation”?”
“Unfortunately yes,” Agent Washington answered. “First let me inform you that the hospital bills from this are being covered by the PRT, we are at least partially at fault and intend to make all possible amends to that.” Daniel nodded so she continued. “Now while there are some papers you will need to sign, Non-Disclosure Agreements for identities, nothing saying you can’t sue after the fact, I also want to assure you we are using every bit of power to ensure that both the girls involved, and the school administration will get fully prosecuted under the law.”
“From that statement one of the girls was one of yours,” Daniel growled visibly suppressing his temper. “Explain to me what happened from your agency’s point of view considering everyone knows that the Wards, which is the only way this could be your fault, go to Arcadia.”
The agent sighed, “And that is a good chunk of why we left this new, probationary member, attending Winslow,” she said. “That she was already a student there with a passing, but not exemplary scholastic record who wanted to stay there also counted towards her staying there. What we didn’t know, because the school and her probation officer didn’t report it to us, was exactly what she had been up to while there. Her little clique apparently had picked out your daughter to torment and turn into their personal punching bag, and the school’s principle was either bribed or threatened into silence.”
“Silence my hide,” the girl, Akane, growled. “Back home she would have at least been charged as an accessory after the fact, if not a co-conspirator.”
“Akane’s mother was a police officer and her father a Marine,” Agent Washington said shooting the girl a look, “she has some very black and white views on things.” Akane snorted in what Daniel took as amused contempt for the comment and Agent Washington continued. “Anyway, because of that, the girl’s actions were never reported to the PRT or Protectorate, maybe not even to her probation officer as her civilian identity was on probation for assault and she was never violated.”
Daniel nodded, objectively he could see how someone at least passively covering up the situation could keep another group from doing their job. “Alright, and I assume there are going to be further investigations into this and how it happened?”
“Oh absolutely,” Akane said an almost feral smile crossing her face, “Aunt Em is not happy, and when she’s not happy…” she trailed off and Agent Washington shuddered slightly nodding before picking up the commentary.
“Yes, the director is almost a force of nature when she is on the warpath over something,” The agent said.
“I think she’s also been shown that a singular member cannot be left alone in a place like Winslow,” a new voice said from the doorway. “Not that she particularly liked Shadow Stalker anyway.” All attention turned to the speaker, a frizzy haired brunette in a white robe. Standing behind her was a blond girl, both of them maybe a year older than Taylor. “I suppose I have you to thank for the damage done to Shadow Stalker,” the brunette continued as she entered the room and addressed Akane.
“Hello Panacea, Glory Girl,” Agent Washington said. “Thank you for coming here so quickly.”
**
I looked at the two newcomers, so I could judge their mood before answering. The blonde was almost lounging, and maybe a little miffed that she had been needed to get here this fast, but the real power apparently lay in the brunette who was approaching the bed at a determined pace. “Yes,” I answered, “and even with the possibility of charges, I’d still beat the hell out of her if I felt I needed to.”
“You dislocated her knee, cracked two and bruised four ribs, and hit her head against something so hard she was unconscious for over an hour,” the healer said in an irritated tone as she started to read the chart. Suddenly she glared at it and snarled, “And you should have bounced her off the floor or walls a few more times while you were at it. Now I’m glad I came up here instead of going to the PRT Headquarters first.”
I smiled as I offered her my hand, “Akane Takamachi,” I said introducing myself. “Slayer of bullies through physical means for ten years running.”
The healer and the blonde both chuckled, and Mr. Hebert and Miss Militia both smiled, “It’s nice to meet you Akane,” the healer replied taking my hand. “I’m Amy Dallon, and this is my sister Vicky,” she shook my hand like a professional and then as she mentioned her sister hooked a thumb over her shoulder at the blonde who waved.
“The gentleman here is Mister Daniel Hebert, head of hiring for the Dock Workers Union,” Miss Militia said gesturing at Mr. Hebert, “and the young lady is his daughter.”
“Yes,” Amy said, her face going into what I was taking as a professional mode. “Mr. Hebert, do I have your permission to heal your daughter?”
“Yes, please,” he said. Amy nodded and reached out for Taylor’s hand when I voiced a thought.
“Could you possibly fix her eyesight as well?” I asked.
“Why,” Amy asked turning her head to look at me, “I take it she wears glasses?” she asked Mr. Hebert who nodded.
“Her glasses were destroyed in the locker,” I answered. “If she wakes up without them, all she’ll see is blurs, not a face she’ll recognize.”
Amy nodded, “It is a reasonable request, do I have your permission for that as well Mr. Hebert?”
“Yes, of course,” Mr. Hebert replied. “I rushed here straight from work, so I didn’t have the opportunity to go home and find her spare pair.”
Panacea nodded at the response and took Taylor’s hand even as I moved over to where Vicky was standing. “So, bully buster huh,” the blonde said smiling. The rest of her comment and my response were cut off though by Panacea’s cursing snarl.
“That psychotic bitch,” Amy snarled ripping the hospital bed’s sheet back to expose Taylor’s legs and the rows of feminine hygiene products laying around them. “I don’t know how she did it, but these were all fused inside her body and causing sepsis to set in already.”
“Taylor is going to be alright though right?” Mr. Hebert asked, and Panacea nodded in response as she gathered the materials and dumped them into the biohazard waste receptacle.
“This just went from assault to attempted murder,” Miss Militia said with a grimace. “Panacea, we are going to need you to add this to the report.”
“Gladly,” the healer snarled. “There were also a goodly number of healed and nearly healed micro-fractures. Tell me Mr. Hebert, is your daughter clumsy, prone to falls or accidents?”
“No,” the older man, now starting to show anger in his face instead of the sorrow that had been there. “It does however explain quite a few things, things I had noticed but couldn’t figure out how to bring up in conversation. Though not why she didn’t tell me.”
“Mister Hebert,” Miss Militia said as she laid a hand on his shoulder in her role as Special Agent Hannah Washington. “Over the years I’ve been an impromptu older sister for more than a few wards and they always have reasons,” she used her fingers to make air quotes when she said the word reasons, “to not tell or talk to their parents about things that are going on in their lives.” The other three of us looked slightly ashamed at that, knowing it was true, but the elder cape in her civilian persona continued even as I subtly touched my hand to Taylor’s foot. “Of course they are being teenagers, but we, as adults, have to remember how we were then, and then choose how we’re going to handle them.”
Amy coughed into her hand to get the attention back and everyone turned to face her. “She will wake up in a few minutes,” she said addressing Mr. Hebert, “and I’ll have the nurse bring in two trays of food for her so that she has enough to fill her up because she’s going to be ravenous with hunger. Over the next couple of weeks she’s going to need to eat more, and it’s going to need to contain a lot of leafy green vegetables, lean beef, beans, and dairy.”
“Thank you for this,” he said nodding, “I’ll tell Taylor and make sure those things and more are available.”
Amy nodded and then turned her attention to Miss Militia before she continued, “I’m going to go fill out my report for you on what we found, and I’m sure the Director will find it interesting reading.” Miss Militia nodded and then the healer turned her attention to me and smiled, “I hope to see you at Arcadia soon. I doubt you’ll find any bullies that need so energetic a busting, but you never know.” She shrugged at the end and smiled as she turned toward the door. I smiled and waved at the pair as they left.
“And that brings up another subject,” Miss Militia said to Mr. Hebert. “Barring your daughter completely dropping the ball on her placement exams, she will start attending Arcadia as soon as she is ready.”
Smiling Daniel Hebert looked at the ceiling for a minute before responding. “I don’t know if she’ll want to or not to be honest with you.” He said, a frown forming on his face, “She went to Winslow in the first place to stay with a friend of hers who didn’t make the cut for Arcadia, I don’t know if she’ll take this opportunity to get out of that hell hole without her friend or not.”
“Dad,” a voice that I had only heard once before, that had been sobbing and pleading to be released from its incarceration, answered from the bed. “Emma hasn’t been my friend since I started high school, in fact, she was one of the people who put me in that locker.”
**
Emily Piggot smiled as she looked at the ceiling, her niece was irrepressible as Assault, but at least she was responsible enough to take her medicine. “Alright,” Emily said bringing her face back down and putting on her “Director’s hat”. “You are on two weeks restriction and grounding for fighting in school, this of course won’t be difficult since you’ll be coming here with me every day until we find another school that will take you in. Maybe Immaculatta will take you,” Emily pondered out loud, “they have a history of taking “troubled” students.”
I shuddered and shook my head slightly, “I’ll be good,” I said mentally begging all that was holy that she did not send me to a catholic day school. My parents hadn’t been particularly religious, but my mother’s parents had been, if not particularly devout, then at least holiday Shintoists and that was the “religion” that I had been raised in until I started seeking my own path. I was still seeking, but I already knew Christianity was not for me. Aunt Emily smiled at me and I relaxed, of course she had been kidding me.
“Now, what to do with you for the rest of the day,” Director Piggot muttered looking at the schedule on her computer screen. “All the other Wards are in school and none are scheduled to come in until tomorrow, so I guess that I can have someone walk you through intake now instead of at three when we had planned too.”
“Actually ma’am,” I said getting her attention, “if you’ll allow me, I would like to go sit with the victim until she wakes up and I can explain what happened to her.” Emily Piggot’s eyebrows quirked at the suggestion and then her eyes flared wide and rage suffused her face. “Exactly,” I said before she could speak, “I tagged her before she left with the EMTs but that has a maximum effect of twelve hours, and I don’t want her to wake up and freak out.”
Emily Piggot mentally berated herself for not considering the possibility of the victim having triggered, even she would have probably triggered if stuffed into a locker with that kind of filth and the door locked. Picking up the phone on her desk she pushed a few buttons before speaking. “Hannah, I need you to take Akane to get her phone issue and ID’s, and then I need you to run her over to Bay General so that she can sit with the victim. If the girl’s father is there, either give Akane a domino and explain that we think his daughter may have triggered due to the incident or play it off as the savior coming to sit with the victim, your call. If she did trigger, don’t push the Wards but do mention it as a possibility, I don’t want to alienate the man at this juncture, and assure him that all the hospital bills will be covered.”
A moment later the director hung up the phone and stood, “Come with me Akane,” she said leading the way out the door of her office and down the hall. We stopped in front of an office even as a PRT officer was coming out
**
Daniel Hebert turned his head from his daughter to look at the door to her hospital room as it calmly opened. Instead of a nurse or doctor though, a girl of about Taylor’s age and a uniformed woman walked in and quietly shut the door. “Can I help you?” he asked as the girl’s face became troubled.
“I’m sorry I wasn’t there earlier,” the girl said stepping over to Taylor’s other side. “If I had been on time I might have averted this whole thing.”
“Akane,” the uniformed woman started in a disapproving tone, the girl cut her off however, her voice dripping with cold hatred and self-contempt.
“I missed my intended bus,” the girl said with not quite a snarl. “If I hadn’t I would have been ten to fifteen minutes earlier, probably right behind her coming inside according to the video. If I had been, I would have been able to stop this immediately, and she wouldn’t have suffered she wouldn’t be here.”
“Akane,” the woman said, obviously straining to keep a civil tone. “If the Probation Officer and principal had done their jobs you wouldn’t have had to put that little psychopath in the hospital, if the principal or a teacher had reported a damn thing, this wouldn’t have happened either.” The woman, a PRT agent by the undress uniform she was wearing and the badge on her hip continued. “There was nothing more you could have done, and you went above and beyond in what you did, it’s why you’re not in trouble with the director.” Sighing the PRT agent turned to Daniel and addressed him. “I’m sorry for our intrusion Mister Hebert, I’m Special Agent Hannah Washington, PRT, and this is the Director’s niece Akane.” She held her hand out and he took and shook it. “Akane wanted to come sit with your daughter until she woke up, and the director ok’d it while giving me some instructions on things to handle when we got here.”
“Alright, that explains why you’re here,” Daniel said nodding. “Do those instructions have anything to do with this “situation”?”
“Unfortunately yes,” Agent Washington answered. “First let me inform you that the hospital bills from this are being covered by the PRT, we are at least partially at fault and intend to make all possible amends to that.” Daniel nodded so she continued. “Now while there are some papers you will need to sign, Non-Disclosure Agreements for identities, nothing saying you can’t sue after the fact, I also want to assure you we are using every bit of power to ensure that both the girls involved, and the school administration will get fully prosecuted under the law.”
“From that statement one of the girls was one of yours,” Daniel growled visibly suppressing his temper. “Explain to me what happened from your agency’s point of view considering everyone knows that the Wards, which is the only way this could be your fault, go to Arcadia.”
The agent sighed, “And that is a good chunk of why we left this new, probationary member, attending Winslow,” she said. “That she was already a student there with a passing, but not exemplary scholastic record who wanted to stay there also counted towards her staying there. What we didn’t know, because the school and her probation officer didn’t report it to us, was exactly what she had been up to while there. Her little clique apparently had picked out your daughter to torment and turn into their personal punching bag, and the school’s principle was either bribed or threatened into silence.”
“Silence my hide,” the girl, Akane, growled. “Back home she would have at least been charged as an accessory after the fact, if not a co-conspirator.”
“Akane’s mother was a police officer and her father a Marine,” Agent Washington said shooting the girl a look, “she has some very black and white views on things.” Akane snorted in what Daniel took as amused contempt for the comment and Agent Washington continued. “Anyway, because of that, the girl’s actions were never reported to the PRT or Protectorate, maybe not even to her probation officer as her civilian identity was on probation for assault and she was never violated.”
Daniel nodded, objectively he could see how someone at least passively covering up the situation could keep another group from doing their job. “Alright, and I assume there are going to be further investigations into this and how it happened?”
“Oh absolutely,” Akane said an almost feral smile crossing her face, “Aunt Em is not happy, and when she’s not happy…” she trailed off and Agent Washington shuddered slightly nodding before picking up the commentary.
“Yes, the director is almost a force of nature when she is on the warpath over something,” The agent said.
“I think she’s also been shown that a singular member cannot be left alone in a place like Winslow,” a new voice said from the doorway. “Not that she particularly liked Shadow Stalker anyway.” All attention turned to the speaker, a frizzy haired brunette in a white robe. Standing behind her was a blond girl, both of them maybe a year older than Taylor. “I suppose I have you to thank for the damage done to Shadow Stalker,” the brunette continued as she entered the room and addressed Akane.
“Hello Panacea, Glory Girl,” Agent Washington said. “Thank you for coming here so quickly.”
**
I looked at the two newcomers, so I could judge their mood before answering. The blonde was almost lounging, and maybe a little miffed that she had been needed to get here this fast, but the real power apparently lay in the brunette who was approaching the bed at a determined pace. “Yes,” I answered, “and even with the possibility of charges, I’d still beat the hell out of her if I felt I needed to.”
“You dislocated her knee, cracked two and bruised four ribs, and hit her head against something so hard she was unconscious for over an hour,” the healer said in an irritated tone as she started to read the chart. Suddenly she glared at it and snarled, “And you should have bounced her off the floor or walls a few more times while you were at it. Now I’m glad I came up here instead of going to the PRT Headquarters first.”
I smiled as I offered her my hand, “Akane Takamachi,” I said introducing myself. “Slayer of bullies through physical means for ten years running.”
The healer and the blonde both chuckled, and Mr. Hebert and Miss Militia both smiled, “It’s nice to meet you Akane,” the healer replied taking my hand. “I’m Amy Dallon, and this is my sister Vicky,” she shook my hand like a professional and then as she mentioned her sister hooked a thumb over her shoulder at the blonde who waved.
“The gentleman here is Mister Daniel Hebert, head of hiring for the Dock Workers Union,” Miss Militia said gesturing at Mr. Hebert, “and the young lady is his daughter.”
“Yes,” Amy said, her face going into what I was taking as a professional mode. “Mr. Hebert, do I have your permission to heal your daughter?”
“Yes, please,” he said. Amy nodded and reached out for Taylor’s hand when I voiced a thought.
“Could you possibly fix her eyesight as well?” I asked.
“Why,” Amy asked turning her head to look at me, “I take it she wears glasses?” she asked Mr. Hebert who nodded.
“Her glasses were destroyed in the locker,” I answered. “If she wakes up without them, all she’ll see is blurs, not a face she’ll recognize.”
Amy nodded, “It is a reasonable request, do I have your permission for that as well Mr. Hebert?”
“Yes, of course,” Mr. Hebert replied. “I rushed here straight from work, so I didn’t have the opportunity to go home and find her spare pair.”
Panacea nodded at the response and took Taylor’s hand even as I moved over to where Vicky was standing. “So, bully buster huh,” the blonde said smiling. The rest of her comment and my response were cut off though by Panacea’s cursing snarl.
“That psychotic bitch,” Amy snarled ripping the hospital bed’s sheet back to expose Taylor’s legs and the rows of feminine hygiene products laying around them. “I don’t know how she did it, but these were all fused inside her body and causing sepsis to set in already.”
“Taylor is going to be alright though right?” Mr. Hebert asked, and Panacea nodded in response as she gathered the materials and dumped them into the biohazard waste receptacle.
“This just went from assault to attempted murder,” Miss Militia said with a grimace. “Panacea, we are going to need you to add this to the report.”
“Gladly,” the healer snarled. “There were also a goodly number of healed and nearly healed micro-fractures. Tell me Mr. Hebert, is your daughter clumsy, prone to falls or accidents?”
“No,” the older man, now starting to show anger in his face instead of the sorrow that had been there. “It does however explain quite a few things, things I had noticed but couldn’t figure out how to bring up in conversation. Though not why she didn’t tell me.”
“Mister Hebert,” Miss Militia said as she laid a hand on his shoulder in her role as Special Agent Hannah Washington. “Over the years I’ve been an impromptu older sister for more than a few wards and they always have reasons,” she used her fingers to make air quotes when she said the word reasons, “to not tell or talk to their parents about things that are going on in their lives.” The other three of us looked slightly ashamed at that, knowing it was true, but the elder cape in her civilian persona continued even as I subtly touched my hand to Taylor’s foot. “Of course they are being teenagers, but we, as adults, have to remember how we were then, and then choose how we’re going to handle them.”
Amy coughed into her hand to get the attention back and everyone turned to face her. “She will wake up in a few minutes,” she said addressing Mr. Hebert, “and I’ll have the nurse bring in two trays of food for her so that she has enough to fill her up because she’s going to be ravenous with hunger. Over the next couple of weeks she’s going to need to eat more, and it’s going to need to contain a lot of leafy green vegetables, lean beef, beans, and dairy.”
“Thank you for this,” he said nodding, “I’ll tell Taylor and make sure those things and more are available.”
Amy nodded and then turned her attention to Miss Militia before she continued, “I’m going to go fill out my report for you on what we found, and I’m sure the Director will find it interesting reading.” Miss Militia nodded and then the healer turned her attention to me and smiled, “I hope to see you at Arcadia soon. I doubt you’ll find any bullies that need so energetic a busting, but you never know.” She shrugged at the end and smiled as she turned toward the door. I smiled and waved at the pair as they left.
“And that brings up another subject,” Miss Militia said to Mr. Hebert. “Barring your daughter completely dropping the ball on her placement exams, she will start attending Arcadia as soon as she is ready.”
Smiling Daniel Hebert looked at the ceiling for a minute before responding. “I don’t know if she’ll want to or not to be honest with you.” He said, a frown forming on his face, “She went to Winslow in the first place to stay with a friend of hers who didn’t make the cut for Arcadia, I don’t know if she’ll take this opportunity to get out of that hell hole without her friend or not.”
“Dad,” a voice that I had only heard once before, that had been sobbing and pleading to be released from its incarceration, answered from the bed. “Emma hasn’t been my friend since I started high school, in fact, she was one of the people who put me in that locker.”
Wolf wins every fight but the one where he dies, fangs locked around the throat of his opponent.
Currently writing BROBd
Currently writing BROBd