Myri doesn’t look all that impressed by Felicity’s word choice at the moment, and for the record, Felicity doesn’t necessarily blame her. She doesn’t always think through her slightly skewed moral compass and gentle disregard for the laws of man and when she’s imparting wise life lessons to Shayla and Lucia, she doesn’t always think about the fact that they’re six.
“A hairpin lock pick is a girl’s best friend.” That much she definitely believes in. “What if you lose your keys? Or lock yourself out of your apartment. Or need to rescue your stuff out of your skeevey soon-to-be-ex-boyfriend’s apartment when he isn’t home to avoid confrontation.”
At that explanation, Myri just looks exasperated. “They’re six, Felicity.”
Felicity sighs heavily, before nodding her agreement, because yes, they are six. Now might not have been the time to teach them. “I know. I know. But I wasn’t expecting them to get that good at it.” There’s a beat. “And this also really isn’t the worst thing they could have learned in this castle and you know it.”
There’s a small look of consideration at that because there is a chance that Felicity might have a point there, but Myri eventually finds the protest and Felicity holds up a finger to cut her off.
“Archer.”
The look that comes next may be a small concession, but it’s a silent one. Myri isn’t going to let this go, and Felicity knows it. In fact, Felicity probably deserves it, considering what the girls have gotten themselves into, but, again, she didn’t think this far ahead.
“I will get them brand new Christmas presents.”
Myri’s gaze shifts for a moment, and she shakes her head. “You don’t have to … ”
“No, it’s fine. I’m the one who taught them how to pick locks so close to the holidays. It’s the least I could do.” There’s a beat. “I was planning to spoil them anyway.”
“You always spoil them.”
“Benefits of being fun Aunt Lissie,” Felicity smirks a bit, before sighing as she leans back against the counter. “But I’m telling you – picking locks is going to come in handy one day. You’ll be thanking me.”
“We’ll see when that day comes,” Myri sighs as she moves to sit next to her on the couch. “Right now, I’d simply settle for making sure that certain things remain secret.”
“I think we can manage that much.” Felicity gives her a small shrug. “It could have been worse.”
“Really?”
Felicity purses her lips for a moment, before glancing back to Myri. “They could have gotten into Aunt Felicity’s very special adults only drawer.”
It takes a moment for the implications to sink in, and as they do, Myri’s cheeks flush a bit in response. “Yes, I will take ruining Santa over that anytime.”
“I thought so,” Felicity smirks, before holding up her hands for a moment. “And I will hold off on the sneaky lessons until they’re a bit older.”
“Thank you,” Myri says with a nod. “It should wait until they need it. They should get to be children, at least for a little while.”
The other woman pauses for a moment, before glancing over to Myri. “You do realize that part of being a kid is getting into trouble occasionally, right? Exploring and falling on your face, but learning how to pick yourself back up again?” Myri looks apprehensive for a moment, and Felicity sighs before getting up and making her way closer. “You’re a great mom. I’m not saying you aren’t. And you protect Shayla so fiercely and that’s important. But you gotta let her grow a little on her own too. You give her a little room to run and she won’t try and do it the hard way.”
“I know. I know, you’re right but … ”
“I know.” Myri doesn’t have to say it, because Felicity knows. She sees the same thing with Vi sometimes. “Just … trust her a little. She might surprise you.” There’s a beat. “Even if she’s six.”
Myri smirks a bit at that, before gesturing towards the door. “Come on. Let’s start with Santa, and see where we go from there.”
Edited 2015-12-10 23:59 (UTC)
all i wanted was to break your walls ~ felicity & stiles & vi ~ 954 words
“God, are they still playing this song?” Felicity looks up from the back seat where she’s strapped in with Lucia, making a face as she does. Vi reaches forward to turn down the music a little before shaking her head.
“Don’t worry about it. We’re almost there anyway.”
“Not a Miley Cyrus fan?” Stiles smirks at her from the driver’s seat and Felicity laughs.
“I have nothing against her personally, but I want that song to die a thousand painful deaths.” She turns back to the baby with a grin. “Isn’t that right, Lu? ‘Wrecking Ball’ has got to go.”
Stiles laughs a bit at that, before turning his eyes back to the road. “So we can basically eat … whatever we want completely for free?”
“Yep. Mr. B owes us big time.” Vi says with a nod. “We saved his workers from the Armored Platypus Incident of 2014.”
Stiles hits the brakes a little hard as he coasts to the stop light, turning to Vi with wide confused eyes. “The what?”
“About a year and a half ago, this giant armored platypus came through the Veil and smushed their restaurant like a pancake. Vi and I were going out to eat there and managed to take it out before it could hurt too many of their employees and do too much damage.”
“The Bayarsaikhans were so grateful, they sent us an invitation for the grand reopening and told us we could bring whoever we want and eat as much as we want for free. We tried to tell them that that would be a mistake and might end in them being completely eaten out house and home, though not literally because the restaurant isn’t actually their home, but they seem insistent on treating us to delicious Mongolian barbecue.”
“And since they have the best Mongolian barbecue in London, we aren’t going to argue with them.”
“Sounds like a plan to me,” Stiles says as he pulls into a parking space in front of the restaurant. The music is the only sound for a moment as people are coming streaming out of the front of the otherwise peaceful front of the restaurant. He squints for a moment, before glancing back to his two dining companions. “That … doesn’t seem good, does it?”
Vi frowns as she leans closer. “Do they seem … scared, to you?”
Felicity’s head picks up from the back of the car and her eyes widen. “Oh no. You don’t think …
I CAME IN LIKE A WREEEEEEEEECKING BAAAAAAAAALL …
As the song hits it’s chorus a massive centipede breaks through the front of the restaurant, sending rubble everywhere. All three occupants of the car jerk back, and Vi’s eyes just stare blankly at the sight. “What the hell is that?”
“That? That would be a Fiendish Monstrous Centipede.” Stiles states, eyes wide in horror as he stares it down. “Oh, God, we’re all going to die.”
“No. No we’re not. We’re killing this thing, and then we’re having our barbecue, and that’s final.” Felicity reaches to pull her gun out of her purse, and checks to make sure it’s loaded. Stiles eyes widen before he turns to Vi to see if this is a plan they really want to pursue.
“How bad is this thing?”
“Well, you mean aside from the fact that it’s enormous, could squash us like a bug and has ‘Fiendish’ in it’s name?”
“Stats, Stiles, focus.”
Stiles looks exasperated for a moment, before putting his game face on. “They have a poisonous bite. Don’t let it get close enough to grab you because I’m pretty sure it’ll just squeeze you until you pop like a python.”
Vi nods in agreement, before gesturing for Felicity to reach into the back to hand her the bow stashed there, while going into the glove compartment for the spare Excalibur to hand to Stiles. “We can’t just leave it running around London. We all have ranged weapons so use the car for cover. Just … shoot it until it dies.”
“That’s it? That’s the plan?”
Felicity shrugs as she slides her clip back into place and climbs out of the car. “It worked last time.”
Stiles takes a deep breath and tightens his grip on the gun before nodding. “Alright. Let’s … do it then.”
They jump into action, just as they did before, arrows and bullets flying towards the creature. Not all of them hit as the centipede is a windy, wily thing, but eventually they manage to land enough good shots that the creature collapses down into the parking lot, before shimmering out of existence.
“What?” Felicity frowns. “Where did it go?”
“Fiendish creatures are usually summoned by someone,” Stiles replies as he goes to lean against the hood of the car, while Vi makes her way around to check on Lucia. “We should try and figure out who the sorcerer is so that they can’t do it again. And we should probably fill in Wynn.”
Felicity nods as she goes to slump next to him, pouting up at the remains of her favorite restaurant. “Why is the world conspiring against me and my need for delicious stir-fry?”
Stiles reaches over and pats her on the shoulder gently. “I’m sure we’ll be able to figure something out. Maybe the kitchen made it out intact?”
She sighs as she looks back at him with a small smile before shaking her head. “C’mon. Vi should take Lu back to the castle and fill Wynn in on the way. We should make sure no one else is hurt.”
Stiles smirks, before nodding his agreement and getting to his feet. “After you.”
Edited 2015-12-19 19:01 (UTC)
i strut my stuff with lots of confidence ~ cora & willow ~ 1,159 words
Cora glances over to her friend, studying her for a moment before glancing back to the street they came down. “You don’t have to do this. I can take the lead or we can go back and get Val’drin to do it.”
Willow shifts awkwardly in her “cover” an awkward leather outfit that isn’t really Willow at all, but sells the part well enough – or would, if she were actually comfortable in it. She keeps awkwardly fidgeting with the fit, and glancing down to make sure she’s still wearing it properly. Cora goes naturally with leather for intimidation but Willow has always been more flowy with bright colors so this is definitely a change up for her.
“You don’t know anything about the kind of magic we’re dealing with,” Willow points out, which is the main reason why she had taken point on this mission in the first place. “They ask you anything, we’re dead in the water. And they already made Val’drin with the earlier buy.”
“Or they are.” Because Cora will tear apart anyone who tries to hurt Willow and that’s a promise. “You could walk me through the basics.”
She takes a deep breath before shaking her head. “No. I got this.” She squares her shoulders and gives herself a bit of a nod as though to convince herself as well as Cora that she could do this. Then there’s a beat and she glances back to Cora with a slight frown. “I think. How do you do the whole … intimidate-y thing? Is it a feeling? I mean, do you practice in the mirror?”
“It’s more … confidence,” Cora says slowly, never really having taken the time to think about the exact process she uses to intimidate people. “I know that I can hurt them, easily, and they’re usually pissing me off, so it’s easy to get angry enough.” There’s a beat. “And the claws and fangs definitely don’t hurt.”
“Yeah … I don’t have any of those.”
“No,” Cora says with a smirk. “But you are a pretty awesome magic user and probably know a spell or two that could really make them hurt. Even if you can’t cast it yourself, you’ve heard of them, right?”
Willow pauses for a moment, tipping her head to the side before a small smile crosses her face. “Yeah. I’ve found a few that are pretty … gruesome.”
“Good,” Cora grins. “So if you feel them starting to freak you out, picture their head exploding or something.”
Willow grins back at her before nodding. “Okay. I can do this.” They start to step forward again, before she stops and turns back to look at her. “If I get into trouble, you’ll be in listening distance, right?”
Cora nods before giving her hand a squeeze. “I’ve got your back.”
That seems to have the biggest effect on Willow’s confidence before she nods and continues on her way to the warehouse, with a little straighter spine and a little more pep in her step. All the bravado in the world, however, isn’t going to change the fact that they’re two teenaged girls and all the much older men were not impressed by their presence.
The lack of suitable respect right off the back seems to deflate Willow a bit, but after some quick back and forth Willow heads with them to the other room to “inspect the merchandise” and make sure they had what the knights were looking for. Cora is forced to hang back with the other muscle, but thanks to her werewolf hearing, she can hear the conversation in the other room with perfect clarity.
At first it starts off normal, him testing her knowledge to prove that she was in fact who they were looking for, but then the questions start to get strange and Willow’s voice starts to get a little uneasy, almost as though she’s sensing the trap before it actually snapped into place. Cora starts to shift her position, moving closer to the door on instinct and the other men don’t seem to notice at first, just figuring she wanted to keep moving.
“Do you know the ideal about this room?” the bad guy’s voice floats into the room, sounding way too confident for Cora’s liking. “No one will be able to hear you scream.”
There’s a small bit of panicked silence on Willow’s part, but eventually her voice comes back, shaky but still having that bit of confidence in it because this is one thing she was certain of. “Actually, someone will.”
Then, predictably, she screams.
Cora wishes she could have seen the look on his face when that scream is answered by a werewolf’s snarl, but for now, she’ll settle for the stunned surprise of his guards when she suddenly sports claws and fangs.
* * * * *
Taking out the remainder of the crew turns out to be relatively easy, and before they make off with the artifact they came for in the first place, they discover a stash of magical items that according to Willow really shouldn’t be left around for anyone else to find. So instead of hiking back to Val’drin, they call both him and Chief O’Keefe to take the baddies off to jail and sit and wait outside the warehouse where (hopefully) Val’drin will reach them first.
As he pulls the car up to the alley, he rolls down the window and peers at the two teenage girls sitting by the front door. “Did you get the artifact?”
Willow nods brightly, before holding up the gold piece wrapped in a handkerchief in her hand. “Present and accounted for.”
“Wonderful. Now is there any reason we couldn’t have met at the rendezvous as we had previously arranged?”
“We could have,” Cora replies, looking tired, but that’s probably from getting shot at a handful of times. “But the bad guys also had this big pile of magic crap we thought would be better off in Knight custody.”
The drow raises an eyebrow at both of them, before smirking dryly. “Well, I do love a good pile of magic crap. Well done.”
“Thanks!” Willow says brightly, letting the dryness of Val’drin’s tone pass in favor of the compliment, and she gets to her feet as he turns off the car to follow her back into the warehouse. Once they reach the back office, Willow lets Val’drin slip ahead of them, and she reaches out for Cora’s hand, giving it a soft squeeze. “And thanks for having my back.”
Cora gives her a small smile before squeezing her hand in return. “Always.”
There’s a brief beat, and then Val’drin pipes up with: “If you two are done having your sisterly bonding moment, might we move all of this to the car before the police show up?”
Cora and Willow’s expressions both flatten simultaneously, and Cora rolls her eyes. “Sir, yes sir.”
Edited 2015-12-20 15:08 (UTC)
when i think back on all the crap i learned in high school ~ cora & stiles & abigail ~ 1,553 words
Cora glances over at Stiles as she adjusts the book bag on her shoulder, looking just about as uncomfortable with this scenario as she is. It’s not that she doesn’t want to agree with him, but at the same time.
“It’s not as though we have a choice.” Cora shifts her bag up onto her shoulder again. “No one can pinpoint exactly when the students went missing or why. So we can’t go sneaking around after school when no one is around.”
“Yeah, but … high school?” He glances back to her with a slight pleading expression. “I don’t know about you, but high school in Beacon Hills does not exactly have the greatest track record of it’s students making it out alive.”
“Then you should fit right in.” Abigail chimes in as she comes to stand next to them, one hand resting on the strap of her messenger bag. “Since that seems to be what’s happening to the students here.”
“And you at least have a leg up on me,” Cora sighs as she turns to face the school building again. “I never went to high school period.”
Stiles glances over and blinks at her for a moment, before turning back to Abigail again. “Maybe we should make sure she has a chaperone at all times.”
“That might be difficult, given that we’re all on separate schedules.” Belle makes her way forward and holds out a sheet of paper to each of them, containing their schedule of classes. “You all have the same study hall with me in the library, as well as the same lunch when I’m ‘on duty’ so we’ll be able to share information and not get you all into trouble.”
“Sounds good,” Cora says with a nod before squinting down at her schedule and frowning. “What’s … Introduction to Agriscience?”
“I gave you each whatever electives they had to make sure we covered our bases.”
Stiles nods, before glancing at Cora with a smirk. “Guess you’ll have to take it and find out.” He then turns back and starts to head towards the door with a shrug. “See you guys in a couple hours.”
Cora and Abigail glance at each other for a moment, before they take a deep breath and turn to follow in after him.
* * * * *
Cora is the last one to arrive in study hall, looking more grumpy than usual. She drops her book bag down as she slumps into the chair across from Stiles and Abigail, and Stiles holds out his hands at her as he asks the question.
“Where have you been?”
Cora scowls before crossing her arms in front of her chest. “I got detention.”
Both Stiles and Abigail look at her baffled for a moment, before he squints at her. “You’ve been a student for all of three hours, how do you already have detention?”
“Because the teacher was an ass,” she fires back and Stiles buries his face in his hands while Abigail looks amused, if nothing else.
“Whatever, fine, hopefully we’ll have figured this out before the end of the day and you won’t have to go through with it.” He takes a deep breath. “But that would require the two of you coming up with something more useful than I have which is bupkis.”
Cora shakes her head. “I didn’t really find anything either. No weird scents or behavior.”
They both look to Abigail who doesn’t notice at first, but eventually she looks up, glancing between the two of them for a moment, then back to Cora. “Who did you get detention from?”
Stiles frowns then glances back to Cora. “What does that matter?”
Abigail sighs. “Humor me. Who was it?”
“Castleman. Why?”
Abigail nods once, before passing the files down to the rest of the group. “Each of the victims got detention with Castleman the day they disappeared.”
Cora and Stiles both blink for a moment before they each take the file and start flipping through them. Stiles frowns and then nods. “It’s the only thing all of them have in common.”
“So we’re thinking maybe whatever happened to them happened in detention?”
“Makes sense to me,” Stiles nods as the bell rings, and he hands the files off to Abigail. “I have Castleman sixth period and Abigail has him eighth, so between the two of us I think we can manage to get ourselves thrown into detention with you.”
Cora frowns then glances to Abigail. “Are you sure this is a good idea?”
“Seems like the best idea we have.” Abigail gathers the files and gets to her feet. “I’ll hand these off to Belle and let her know what we’ve found. I’ll see you guys at lunch.”
Stiles nods as both he and Cora get up to head to the door. He drapes one arm around her shoulders as they go and pulls her in closer. “Try not to piss off too many other teachers before the end of the day.”
Cora crosses her arms in front of her chest, before glancing up at him. “So are you saying I should take out my frustration on you instead?”
Stiles falters for a moment before he steps back to part ways with her, moving his arms in an “in and out” gesture. “I was thinking more along the lines of deep breathing, you know? In and out.”
Cora rolls her eyes, before turning to head in the opposite direction. “Go to class, Stiles.”
* * * * *
Castleman was the chemistry teacher, so thankfully finding ways to get detention was easy. Stiles ultimately decided on being his usual charming self, talking so incessantly that Castleman practically exploded in the front of the room while Abigail …
… Abigail got to class early, but built an improvised flash-bang grenade out of the materials stored in the back of the class. She claimed it was an accident, but it’s still unclear on if the teachers actually believed her on that one.
With the plan seeming to have done the trick, the three of them arrive at the classroom in question at the same time, all prior to Castleman arriving, and they arranged themselves around the room while they waited. Cora is towards the front in case something decided to jump out of the black board and murder them, with Abigail sitting a few rows behind her and Stiles in the back on the opposite side. Cora can hear the sounds of the school emptying out around them and it isn’t until things are completely quiet that Castleman appears, scowling at the three of them without reservation.
“It’s been a long time since I’ve had three students that are quite so … aggravating.”
“Thank you,” Stiles beams back at him, and Castleman glares.
“That is not a compliment, Mr. … ” He pauses to look down at his roster. “Stilinski.”
Stiles just continues to grin at him, before leaning back on his seat. “I dunno. I prefer to look on the bright side.”
“That will be your last mistake.” As he speaks, the dark material of the blackboard shimmers, and long spindly legs start to push out of the slate and onto the ceiling above them. “There is a consequence for being unruly students such as yourself.” The head of a giant, menacing looking spider appears next and he continues to speak. “I’m sure with attitudes like yours, no one will miss you either.”
None of the knights seem all that impressed. In fact, Cora and Stiles are both smirking while Abigail looks almost disinterested. As the spider finishes sneaking into the room, the teacher looks frustrated at their lack of a response.
“Why aren’t you terrified?”
“Well, for one, we’ve seen scarier things than that,” Stiles says as he shifts so that he’s leaning forward against his desk. “Two, you brought a spider to a werewolf fight.”
Cora’s eyes flash gold and the teacher looks started for a moment. “What … ?”
“Yeah,” Stiles smirks. “I’d run if I were you.”
* * * * *
“Why did you tell him to run?”
“I didn’t expect him to actually listen.”
The three of them are sitting against the lockers outside of the chemistry classroom, all covered in black gunk from the now dead spider creature – funny thing, it exploded when they were done murdering it – and they all look exhausted, but at least they’re done with high school. There’s the sound of skittering heels as Belle rounds the corner to meet them, and her eyes dart over each of them with concern as she does. “Are you all alright?”
Stiles gives her a thumbs up. “All clear. Spider’s dead and bad guy’s tied up inside for the cops.”
Belle looks surprised, but probably more because everything got wrapped up as quickly as it did. “Great! Then I’ll call Detective Valens and Wynn and let them know the mission is completed.”
Cora nods in agreement and then she looks up hopefully. “Then we can go home?” Belle nods as she steps away with her phone, and Stiles sighs as he slumps back against the door.
“Well, that wasn’t so bad.”
Abigail shifts next to him, slipping her hand in his before nodding her agreement. “Let’s never do it again.”
As far as first missions go, it probably could have been worse.
Emphasis on the “probably.”
For one, Gus is on her team, which is a plus as far as easing into things go. She’s not really sure what to make of most of the people here, but Gus is the one person she’s sure she knows well, so having him by her side is enough of a confidence booster that she can do this. She’s been working on her magic in small doses, trying to make sure she stays useful, but at the end of the day that isn’t going to be tested until she’s actually in the field.
Which is now, apparently.
The other benefit of this mission is that it’s happening on her own turf. Being back in New York again almost makes it easier to breathe in a way, because the beat of the street is one she can remember unlike London where everything just seems backwards. The second they touch down at the airport, she’s ready to get back into the thick of things and trying her best to make it seem like she knows what she’s doing.
She doesn’t, but she sure as hell can fake it.
The woman who’s the lead on the mission – Helen – seems very nice but very British. She’s the kind of woman that makes you want to impress her, all the while knowing that you never really will. She’s seen too much to be swayed by the kind of flash and pizazz that Malina had wasted her time on with her father. She seems to demand something real without explicitly asking for it or making you feel like less for not having it and that’s something that Malina is quick to respect about her. Malina is torn between wanting to find her own way and wait for Helen’s every cue. She is the mission leader, so in theory she’s the one making the calls, so while there are some instances where Malian wants to step forward and assert herself, she doesn’t want to step on the other woman’s toes.
They manage to come up with two different leads, one of which is in Malina’s old neighborhood. It takes her a moment before she’s actually comfortable volunteering that information but the second she does Helen is quick to divide them into two groups to cover both pieces of information – Malina, Helen and Gus in one, and the two other knights in the other, sent to search down some high-powered Wall Street broker while they headed down to the quiet Queens neighborhood where Malina had grown up.
“You have good instincts, you know,” Helen says to her as Gus gets directions (and lunch) from the local hot dog vendor and Malina turns to her in surprise, blinking at the unexpected compliment (though she’s unsure if it’s a compliment or merely a statement of fact – with Helen’s tone, it’s hard to tell).
“ … Thanks,” she says with a shrug. “I’m just … still kinda new at this. I don’t want to screw up and get someone hurt.”
“That’s fair.” Helen nods slowly. “But there is always a risk with the kind of work we do, and Wynn wouldn’t put a knight in the field if he wasn’t certain that in optimal conditions, they would come home safely.”
“Yeah,” Malina says half-heartedly, not really sure where her faith in Wynn lies as of yet, but so far, so good. “I just … know that I haven’t been here long. Screwing up a mission doesn’t exactly make the best first impression.”
“Also fair,” Helen tips her head to the side, studying her for a moment, before glancing around to the rest of the neighborhood. “And while I am an expert in many things, this particular neighborhood is not one of them. Perhaps it would be best if you took the lead.”
Again, she’s hesitant, but she wants this mission to go well. “Okay. What do you need?”
“Right now, we need information. Where is the … social center of this particular neighborhood? Where can we talk to the most people?”
That question is easy enough to answer. “The mosque. Most of the people in this neighborhood are Muslim – that’s where you’d be most likely to find people with their guard down.”
“Do you know where it is?”
She can guess what the next part of this is going to be and part of her wants to resist setting foot there if at all possible, but when it comes down to proving that she’s worthwhile in these efforts versus hiding from her past, the first one is going to win out, every time. She takes a deep breath, before reaching for the hair tie around her wrist and starting to pull her hair back.
“You’re going to need a scarf,” she says softly. “And I’d button up your shirt.” Malina then reaches for the scarf around her neck to start wrapping her hair. “I don’t think they’d buy you as a convert, but if you respect their customs, you’re more likely to get information out of them.”
Helen nods, before reaching to start buttoning the buttons at the top of her blouse. “How long has it been since you’ve been there?”
“Ten years.” She pauses as she finishes tying her hair into place. “So long as we don’t run into my grandparents we should be fine.”
“Is that a risk?” Gus says as he comes up, handing off a hot dog to each of them. “Because that might not end well.”
Malina gives him a look as she takes the hot dog from him, going to take a bite. “We have to go to my old mosque.”
Gus nods once, before glancing to Malina with a smirk. “I’ll stay outside.” Malina rolls her eyes before finishing off her hot dog.
“Alright. One trip down memory lane, coming right up.”
* * * * *
They manage to make it through the mosque without incident, and some of the members there were actually happy to see her which is baffling but comforting all at the same time. One of them even offers to pass on a hello to her grandmother, with the understanding that her grandfather wouldn’t be present when the news is conveyed.
The information they gain is enough to put together the puzzle pieces and dispatch the bad guys in question, and once they’re finished being taken away by the police, the team heads back to the airport to head home. Malina claims one of the clusters of four for herself and Gus, Gus stretching out so that his feet are resting on the seat next to hers, while Malina is unleashing her hair again, shaking it out so that it hangs around her shoulders again. As she’s getting ready to get comfortable, Helen makes her way over from the side and places her hand on the back of the empty seat.
“May I?”
Malina hesitates for a moment, before nodding, straightening so that she’s sitting up more. “Sure.”
“I didn’t want to bring it up during the mission, because it didn’t seem pertinent, but if you don’t mind I’d like to ask now.”
Malina knows what Helen is going to ask before she even says it, and part of her doesn’t really want to answer. Gus opens his eyes and eyes her warily, before glancing back to Malina, almost as though to silently say You don’t have to explain shit, trying to make her feel less on the spot, but she can’t help but feel like Helen might actually get it.
Helen pauses for a moment, almost as though she knows the question is going to be uncomfortable. “You mentioned something about running into your grandparents being a problem?”
“Yeah,” Malina swallows as she adjusts her seat again. “My mom was a single mom and she wasn’t exactly married when it happened so they weren’t really thrilled with me to begin with, but when I started to develop magic … let’s just say my grandfather is pretty convinced I’m … possessed or some shit.”
Helen doesn’t seem surprised, really. There’s something about her that gives off this air of experience, far more than she would normally expect of someone Helen’s age, but she appreciates that she doesn’t seem disbelieving, if anything else. “How long has it been since you last saw them?”
“Ten years, give or take. I left home when I was sixteen to find my dad and pretty much never looked back.”
“I suppose it wouldn’t matter that the work you’re doing with it is good,” Helen states. It’s not a question, or a suggestion, but more of a fact, unsurprised by the world’s prejudices. Malina shakes her head.
“Nah, he’s pretty set in his ways. Magic is the work of demons, so he’s not going to waste time trying to discern whether or not they are good ends. They don’t justify the means, not to him.” There’s a beat. “Probably didn’t help that I got my magic from my father, and he abandoned my mother to be a single parent instead of marrying her and saving her the shame.”
Helen smirks a bit. “People will always have their prejudices, that much is certain.” She pauses for a moment, before leaning forward and resting a hand on her arm gently. The gesture is so maternal without being overbearing that Malina misses her own mother fiercely in that moment, but she appreciates Helen taking the time to do it now. “You did excellent work today, Malina. Don’t let people’s misconceptions take that away from you.”
Malina swallows, nodding in agreement. Helen doesn’t stay long, simply giving her arm another squeeze before getting up and making her way to the other side of the plane. Gus pushes up a little more, his eyes following her back before glancing back to Malina with a shrug.
“I like her.”
Malina smiles softly in return, before shifting to stretch her (very short) legs out to rest on the other seat. “Yeah. Me too.”
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roadrunnermuses2015-12-06 05:04 pm
insert training montage here ~ david & stiles
a David & Stiles mix
Gonna Fly Now -- Rocky
All I Do is Win -- DJ Khaled
You're the Best Around -- Joe Esposito
We Will Rock You -- Queen
Stronger -- Kanye West
Runnin' -- Yazz, Jamila Velazquez, Raquel Castro, and Yani Marin
Uptown Funk -- Mark Ronson feat. Bruno Mars
Eye of the Tiger -- Survivor
bonus track
I'll Make a Man Out of You -- Mulan
you were born with a wanderer's soul ~ felicity & thoster
a Felicity & Thoster mix
Crush -- Stanford Mixed Company
Something I Need -- OneRepublic
Latch -- Apollo Link
A Drop in the Ocean -- Ron Pope
Rose Gold -- Pentatonix
One Second and a Million Miles -- The Bridges of Madison County
Burn -- Ellie Goulding
Hysteric -- Yeah Yeah Yeahs
bonus track
Halo -- Postmodern Jukebox
trouble is her middle name ~ felicity & faye
a Felicity & Faye mix
Salute -- Little Mix
Black Sheep -- Gin Wigmore
Trouble -- Neon Jungle
Bad Girls -- MKTO
Chandelier -- VoicePlay feat. Rachel Potter
One Girl Revolution -- Superchick
Primadonna -- Marina and the Diamonds
Vienna -- Christian Borle
bonus track
Here's to Us -- Halestorm
you have to break rules if you want to break free ~ felicity & myri ~ 703 words
“It’s a very crucial life skill.”
“Crucial?”
Myri doesn’t look all that impressed by Felicity’s word choice at the moment, and for the record, Felicity doesn’t necessarily blame her. She doesn’t always think through her slightly skewed moral compass and gentle disregard for the laws of man and when she’s imparting wise life lessons to Shayla and Lucia, she doesn’t always think about the fact that they’re six.
“A hairpin lock pick is a girl’s best friend.” That much she definitely believes in. “What if you lose your keys? Or lock yourself out of your apartment. Or need to rescue your stuff out of your skeevey soon-to-be-ex-boyfriend’s apartment when he isn’t home to avoid confrontation.”
At that explanation, Myri just looks exasperated. “They’re six, Felicity.”
Felicity sighs heavily, before nodding her agreement, because yes, they are six. Now might not have been the time to teach them. “I know. I know. But I wasn’t expecting them to get that good at it.” There’s a beat. “And this also really isn’t the worst thing they could have learned in this castle and you know it.”
There’s a small look of consideration at that because there is a chance that Felicity might have a point there, but Myri eventually finds the protest and Felicity holds up a finger to cut her off.
“Archer.”
The look that comes next may be a small concession, but it’s a silent one. Myri isn’t going to let this go, and Felicity knows it. In fact, Felicity probably deserves it, considering what the girls have gotten themselves into, but, again, she didn’t think this far ahead.
“I will get them brand new Christmas presents.”
Myri’s gaze shifts for a moment, and she shakes her head. “You don’t have to … ”
“No, it’s fine. I’m the one who taught them how to pick locks so close to the holidays. It’s the least I could do.” There’s a beat. “I was planning to spoil them anyway.”
“You always spoil them.”
“Benefits of being fun Aunt Lissie,” Felicity smirks a bit, before sighing as she leans back against the counter. “But I’m telling you – picking locks is going to come in handy one day. You’ll be thanking me.”
“We’ll see when that day comes,” Myri sighs as she moves to sit next to her on the couch. “Right now, I’d simply settle for making sure that certain things remain secret.”
“I think we can manage that much.” Felicity gives her a small shrug. “It could have been worse.”
“Really?”
Felicity purses her lips for a moment, before glancing back to Myri. “They could have gotten into Aunt Felicity’s very special adults only drawer.”
It takes a moment for the implications to sink in, and as they do, Myri’s cheeks flush a bit in response. “Yes, I will take ruining Santa over that anytime.”
“I thought so,” Felicity smirks, before holding up her hands for a moment. “And I will hold off on the sneaky lessons until they’re a bit older.”
“Thank you,” Myri says with a nod. “It should wait until they need it. They should get to be children, at least for a little while.”
The other woman pauses for a moment, before glancing over to Myri. “You do realize that part of being a kid is getting into trouble occasionally, right? Exploring and falling on your face, but learning how to pick yourself back up again?” Myri looks apprehensive for a moment, and Felicity sighs before getting up and making her way closer. “You’re a great mom. I’m not saying you aren’t. And you protect Shayla so fiercely and that’s important. But you gotta let her grow a little on her own too. You give her a little room to run and she won’t try and do it the hard way.”
“I know. I know, you’re right but … ”
“I know.” Myri doesn’t have to say it, because Felicity knows. She sees the same thing with Vi sometimes. “Just … trust her a little. She might surprise you.” There’s a beat. “Even if she’s six.”
Myri smirks a bit at that, before gesturing towards the door. “Come on. Let’s start with Santa, and see where we go from there.”
all i wanted was to break your walls ~ felicity & stiles & vi ~ 954 words
We clawed, we chained our hearts in vain …
“God, are they still playing this song?” Felicity looks up from the back seat where she’s strapped in with Lucia, making a face as she does. Vi reaches forward to turn down the music a little before shaking her head.
“Don’t worry about it. We’re almost there anyway.”
“Not a Miley Cyrus fan?” Stiles smirks at her from the driver’s seat and Felicity laughs.
“I have nothing against her personally, but I want that song to die a thousand painful deaths.” She turns back to the baby with a grin. “Isn’t that right, Lu? ‘Wrecking Ball’ has got to go.”
Stiles laughs a bit at that, before turning his eyes back to the road. “So we can basically eat … whatever we want completely for free?”
“Yep. Mr. B owes us big time.” Vi says with a nod. “We saved his workers from the Armored Platypus Incident of 2014.”
Stiles hits the brakes a little hard as he coasts to the stop light, turning to Vi with wide confused eyes. “The what?”
“About a year and a half ago, this giant armored platypus came through the Veil and smushed their restaurant like a pancake. Vi and I were going out to eat there and managed to take it out before it could hurt too many of their employees and do too much damage.”
“The Bayarsaikhans were so grateful, they sent us an invitation for the grand reopening and told us we could bring whoever we want and eat as much as we want for free. We tried to tell them that that would be a mistake and might end in them being completely eaten out house and home, though not literally because the restaurant isn’t actually their home, but they seem insistent on treating us to delicious Mongolian barbecue.”
“And since they have the best Mongolian barbecue in London, we aren’t going to argue with them.”
“Sounds like a plan to me,” Stiles says as he pulls into a parking space in front of the restaurant. The music is the only sound for a moment as people are coming streaming out of the front of the otherwise peaceful front of the restaurant. He squints for a moment, before glancing back to his two dining companions. “That … doesn’t seem good, does it?”
Vi frowns as she leans closer. “Do they seem … scared, to you?”
Felicity’s head picks up from the back of the car and her eyes widen. “Oh no. You don’t think …
I CAME IN LIKE A WREEEEEEEEECKING BAAAAAAAAALL …
As the song hits it’s chorus a massive centipede breaks through the front of the restaurant, sending rubble everywhere. All three occupants of the car jerk back, and Vi’s eyes just stare blankly at the sight. “What the hell is that?”
“That? That would be a Fiendish Monstrous Centipede.” Stiles states, eyes wide in horror as he stares it down. “Oh, God, we’re all going to die.”
“No. No we’re not. We’re killing this thing, and then we’re having our barbecue, and that’s final.” Felicity reaches to pull her gun out of her purse, and checks to make sure it’s loaded. Stiles eyes widen before he turns to Vi to see if this is a plan they really want to pursue.
“How bad is this thing?”
“Well, you mean aside from the fact that it’s enormous, could squash us like a bug and has ‘Fiendish’ in it’s name?”
“Stats, Stiles, focus.”
Stiles looks exasperated for a moment, before putting his game face on. “They have a poisonous bite. Don’t let it get close enough to grab you because I’m pretty sure it’ll just squeeze you until you pop like a python.”
Vi nods in agreement, before gesturing for Felicity to reach into the back to hand her the bow stashed there, while going into the glove compartment for the spare Excalibur to hand to Stiles. “We can’t just leave it running around London. We all have ranged weapons so use the car for cover. Just … shoot it until it dies.”
“That’s it? That’s the plan?”
Felicity shrugs as she slides her clip back into place and climbs out of the car. “It worked last time.”
Stiles takes a deep breath and tightens his grip on the gun before nodding. “Alright. Let’s … do it then.”
They jump into action, just as they did before, arrows and bullets flying towards the creature. Not all of them hit as the centipede is a windy, wily thing, but eventually they manage to land enough good shots that the creature collapses down into the parking lot, before shimmering out of existence.
“What?” Felicity frowns. “Where did it go?”
“Fiendish creatures are usually summoned by someone,” Stiles replies as he goes to lean against the hood of the car, while Vi makes her way around to check on Lucia. “We should try and figure out who the sorcerer is so that they can’t do it again. And we should probably fill in Wynn.”
Felicity nods as she goes to slump next to him, pouting up at the remains of her favorite restaurant. “Why is the world conspiring against me and my need for delicious stir-fry?”
Stiles reaches over and pats her on the shoulder gently. “I’m sure we’ll be able to figure something out. Maybe the kitchen made it out intact?”
She sighs as she looks back at him with a small smile before shaking her head. “C’mon. Vi should take Lu back to the castle and fill Wynn in on the way. We should make sure no one else is hurt.”
Stiles smirks, before nodding his agreement and getting to his feet. “After you.”
i strut my stuff with lots of confidence ~ cora & willow ~ 1,159 words
“I’m not sure if this is a good idea.”
Cora glances over to her friend, studying her for a moment before glancing back to the street they came down. “You don’t have to do this. I can take the lead or we can go back and get Val’drin to do it.”
Willow shifts awkwardly in her “cover” an awkward leather outfit that isn’t really Willow at all, but sells the part well enough – or would, if she were actually comfortable in it. She keeps awkwardly fidgeting with the fit, and glancing down to make sure she’s still wearing it properly. Cora goes naturally with leather for intimidation but Willow has always been more flowy with bright colors so this is definitely a change up for her.
“You don’t know anything about the kind of magic we’re dealing with,” Willow points out, which is the main reason why she had taken point on this mission in the first place. “They ask you anything, we’re dead in the water. And they already made Val’drin with the earlier buy.”
“Or they are.” Because Cora will tear apart anyone who tries to hurt Willow and that’s a promise. “You could walk me through the basics.”
She takes a deep breath before shaking her head. “No. I got this.” She squares her shoulders and gives herself a bit of a nod as though to convince herself as well as Cora that she could do this. Then there’s a beat and she glances back to Cora with a slight frown. “I think. How do you do the whole … intimidate-y thing? Is it a feeling? I mean, do you practice in the mirror?”
“It’s more … confidence,” Cora says slowly, never really having taken the time to think about the exact process she uses to intimidate people. “I know that I can hurt them, easily, and they’re usually pissing me off, so it’s easy to get angry enough.” There’s a beat. “And the claws and fangs definitely don’t hurt.”
“Yeah … I don’t have any of those.”
“No,” Cora says with a smirk. “But you are a pretty awesome magic user and probably know a spell or two that could really make them hurt. Even if you can’t cast it yourself, you’ve heard of them, right?”
Willow pauses for a moment, tipping her head to the side before a small smile crosses her face. “Yeah. I’ve found a few that are pretty … gruesome.”
“Good,” Cora grins. “So if you feel them starting to freak you out, picture their head exploding or something.”
Willow grins back at her before nodding. “Okay. I can do this.” They start to step forward again, before she stops and turns back to look at her. “If I get into trouble, you’ll be in listening distance, right?”
Cora nods before giving her hand a squeeze. “I’ve got your back.”
That seems to have the biggest effect on Willow’s confidence before she nods and continues on her way to the warehouse, with a little straighter spine and a little more pep in her step. All the bravado in the world, however, isn’t going to change the fact that they’re two teenaged girls and all the much older men were not impressed by their presence.
The lack of suitable respect right off the back seems to deflate Willow a bit, but after some quick back and forth Willow heads with them to the other room to “inspect the merchandise” and make sure they had what the knights were looking for. Cora is forced to hang back with the other muscle, but thanks to her werewolf hearing, she can hear the conversation in the other room with perfect clarity.
At first it starts off normal, him testing her knowledge to prove that she was in fact who they were looking for, but then the questions start to get strange and Willow’s voice starts to get a little uneasy, almost as though she’s sensing the trap before it actually snapped into place. Cora starts to shift her position, moving closer to the door on instinct and the other men don’t seem to notice at first, just figuring she wanted to keep moving.
“Do you know the ideal about this room?” the bad guy’s voice floats into the room, sounding way too confident for Cora’s liking. “No one will be able to hear you scream.”
There’s a small bit of panicked silence on Willow’s part, but eventually her voice comes back, shaky but still having that bit of confidence in it because this is one thing she was certain of. “Actually, someone will.”
Then, predictably, she screams.
Cora wishes she could have seen the look on his face when that scream is answered by a werewolf’s snarl, but for now, she’ll settle for the stunned surprise of his guards when she suddenly sports claws and fangs.
Taking out the remainder of the crew turns out to be relatively easy, and before they make off with the artifact they came for in the first place, they discover a stash of magical items that according to Willow really shouldn’t be left around for anyone else to find. So instead of hiking back to Val’drin, they call both him and Chief O’Keefe to take the baddies off to jail and sit and wait outside the warehouse where (hopefully) Val’drin will reach them first.
As he pulls the car up to the alley, he rolls down the window and peers at the two teenage girls sitting by the front door. “Did you get the artifact?”
Willow nods brightly, before holding up the gold piece wrapped in a handkerchief in her hand. “Present and accounted for.”
“Wonderful. Now is there any reason we couldn’t have met at the rendezvous as we had previously arranged?”
“We could have,” Cora replies, looking tired, but that’s probably from getting shot at a handful of times. “But the bad guys also had this big pile of magic crap we thought would be better off in Knight custody.”
The drow raises an eyebrow at both of them, before smirking dryly. “Well, I do love a good pile of magic crap. Well done.”
“Thanks!” Willow says brightly, letting the dryness of Val’drin’s tone pass in favor of the compliment, and she gets to her feet as he turns off the car to follow her back into the warehouse. Once they reach the back office, Willow lets Val’drin slip ahead of them, and she reaches out for Cora’s hand, giving it a soft squeeze. “And thanks for having my back.”
Cora gives her a small smile before squeezing her hand in return. “Always.”
There’s a brief beat, and then Val’drin pipes up with: “If you two are done having your sisterly bonding moment, might we move all of this to the car before the police show up?”
Cora and Willow’s expressions both flatten simultaneously, and Cora rolls her eyes. “Sir, yes sir.”
when i think back on all the crap i learned in high school ~ cora & stiles & abigail ~ 1,553 words
“This is a terrible idea.”
Cora glances over at Stiles as she adjusts the book bag on her shoulder, looking just about as uncomfortable with this scenario as she is. It’s not that she doesn’t want to agree with him, but at the same time.
“It’s not as though we have a choice.” Cora shifts her bag up onto her shoulder again. “No one can pinpoint exactly when the students went missing or why. So we can’t go sneaking around after school when no one is around.”
“Yeah, but … high school?” He glances back to her with a slight pleading expression. “I don’t know about you, but high school in Beacon Hills does not exactly have the greatest track record of it’s students making it out alive.”
“Then you should fit right in.” Abigail chimes in as she comes to stand next to them, one hand resting on the strap of her messenger bag. “Since that seems to be what’s happening to the students here.”
“And you at least have a leg up on me,” Cora sighs as she turns to face the school building again. “I never went to high school period.”
Stiles glances over and blinks at her for a moment, before turning back to Abigail again. “Maybe we should make sure she has a chaperone at all times.”
“That might be difficult, given that we’re all on separate schedules.” Belle makes her way forward and holds out a sheet of paper to each of them, containing their schedule of classes. “You all have the same study hall with me in the library, as well as the same lunch when I’m ‘on duty’ so we’ll be able to share information and not get you all into trouble.”
“Sounds good,” Cora says with a nod before squinting down at her schedule and frowning. “What’s … Introduction to Agriscience?”
“I gave you each whatever electives they had to make sure we covered our bases.”
Stiles nods, before glancing at Cora with a smirk. “Guess you’ll have to take it and find out.” He then turns back and starts to head towards the door with a shrug. “See you guys in a couple hours.”
Cora and Abigail glance at each other for a moment, before they take a deep breath and turn to follow in after him.
Cora is the last one to arrive in study hall, looking more grumpy than usual. She drops her book bag down as she slumps into the chair across from Stiles and Abigail, and Stiles holds out his hands at her as he asks the question.
“Where have you been?”
Cora scowls before crossing her arms in front of her chest. “I got detention.”
Both Stiles and Abigail look at her baffled for a moment, before he squints at her. “You’ve been a student for all of three hours, how do you already have detention?”
“Because the teacher was an ass,” she fires back and Stiles buries his face in his hands while Abigail looks amused, if nothing else.
“Whatever, fine, hopefully we’ll have figured this out before the end of the day and you won’t have to go through with it.” He takes a deep breath. “But that would require the two of you coming up with something more useful than I have which is bupkis.”
Cora shakes her head. “I didn’t really find anything either. No weird scents or behavior.”
They both look to Abigail who doesn’t notice at first, but eventually she looks up, glancing between the two of them for a moment, then back to Cora. “Who did you get detention from?”
Stiles frowns then glances back to Cora. “What does that matter?”
Abigail sighs. “Humor me. Who was it?”
“Castleman. Why?”
Abigail nods once, before passing the files down to the rest of the group. “Each of the victims got detention with Castleman the day they disappeared.”
Cora and Stiles both blink for a moment before they each take the file and start flipping through them. Stiles frowns and then nods. “It’s the only thing all of them have in common.”
“So we’re thinking maybe whatever happened to them happened in detention?”
“Makes sense to me,” Stiles nods as the bell rings, and he hands the files off to Abigail. “I have Castleman sixth period and Abigail has him eighth, so between the two of us I think we can manage to get ourselves thrown into detention with you.”
Cora frowns then glances to Abigail. “Are you sure this is a good idea?”
“Seems like the best idea we have.” Abigail gathers the files and gets to her feet. “I’ll hand these off to Belle and let her know what we’ve found. I’ll see you guys at lunch.”
Stiles nods as both he and Cora get up to head to the door. He drapes one arm around her shoulders as they go and pulls her in closer. “Try not to piss off too many other teachers before the end of the day.”
Cora crosses her arms in front of her chest, before glancing up at him. “So are you saying I should take out my frustration on you instead?”
Stiles falters for a moment before he steps back to part ways with her, moving his arms in an “in and out” gesture. “I was thinking more along the lines of deep breathing, you know? In and out.”
Cora rolls her eyes, before turning to head in the opposite direction. “Go to class, Stiles.”
Castleman was the chemistry teacher, so thankfully finding ways to get detention was easy. Stiles ultimately decided on being his usual charming self, talking so incessantly that Castleman practically exploded in the front of the room while Abigail …
… Abigail got to class early, but built an improvised flash-bang grenade out of the materials stored in the back of the class. She claimed it was an accident, but it’s still unclear on if the teachers actually believed her on that one.
With the plan seeming to have done the trick, the three of them arrive at the classroom in question at the same time, all prior to Castleman arriving, and they arranged themselves around the room while they waited. Cora is towards the front in case something decided to jump out of the black board and murder them, with Abigail sitting a few rows behind her and Stiles in the back on the opposite side. Cora can hear the sounds of the school emptying out around them and it isn’t until things are completely quiet that Castleman appears, scowling at the three of them without reservation.
“It’s been a long time since I’ve had three students that are quite so … aggravating.”
“Thank you,” Stiles beams back at him, and Castleman glares.
“That is not a compliment, Mr. … ” He pauses to look down at his roster. “Stilinski.”
Stiles just continues to grin at him, before leaning back on his seat. “I dunno. I prefer to look on the bright side.”
“That will be your last mistake.” As he speaks, the dark material of the blackboard shimmers, and long spindly legs start to push out of the slate and onto the ceiling above them. “There is a consequence for being unruly students such as yourself.” The head of a giant, menacing looking spider appears next and he continues to speak. “I’m sure with attitudes like yours, no one will miss you either.”
None of the knights seem all that impressed. In fact, Cora and Stiles are both smirking while Abigail looks almost disinterested. As the spider finishes sneaking into the room, the teacher looks frustrated at their lack of a response.
“Why aren’t you terrified?”
“Well, for one, we’ve seen scarier things than that,” Stiles says as he shifts so that he’s leaning forward against his desk. “Two, you brought a spider to a werewolf fight.”
Cora’s eyes flash gold and the teacher looks started for a moment. “What … ?”
“Yeah,” Stiles smirks. “I’d run if I were you.”
“Why did you tell him to run?”
“I didn’t expect him to actually listen.”
The three of them are sitting against the lockers outside of the chemistry classroom, all covered in black gunk from the now dead spider creature – funny thing, it exploded when they were done murdering it – and they all look exhausted, but at least they’re done with high school. There’s the sound of skittering heels as Belle rounds the corner to meet them, and her eyes dart over each of them with concern as she does. “Are you all alright?”
Stiles gives her a thumbs up. “All clear. Spider’s dead and bad guy’s tied up inside for the cops.”
Belle looks surprised, but probably more because everything got wrapped up as quickly as it did. “Great! Then I’ll call Detective Valens and Wynn and let them know the mission is completed.”
Cora nods in agreement and then she looks up hopefully. “Then we can go home?” Belle nods as she steps away with her phone, and Stiles sighs as he slumps back against the door.
“Well, that wasn’t so bad.”
Abigail shifts next to him, slipping her hand in his before nodding her agreement. “Let’s never do it again.”
i'll be my own savior ~ cora & faye
a Cora & Faye mix
Team -- Lorde
You Don't Know Me -- Allison Iraheta
Soon We'll be Found -- Stanford Mixed Company
Measuring Cups -- Andrew Bird
Turning Tables -- The Backbeats
Darkest Hour -- Charlotte Martin
Faith (When I Let You Down) -- Taking Back Sunday
I Will Follow You Into the Dark -- Stanford Mixed Company
bonus track
Run the World (Girls) -- Beyonce
i know who i want to be, be worthy of you ~ malina & helen & gus ~ 1,682 words
As far as first missions go, it probably could have been worse.
Emphasis on the “probably.”
For one, Gus is on her team, which is a plus as far as easing into things go. She’s not really sure what to make of most of the people here, but Gus is the one person she’s sure she knows well, so having him by her side is enough of a confidence booster that she can do this. She’s been working on her magic in small doses, trying to make sure she stays useful, but at the end of the day that isn’t going to be tested until she’s actually in the field.
Which is now, apparently.
The other benefit of this mission is that it’s happening on her own turf. Being back in New York again almost makes it easier to breathe in a way, because the beat of the street is one she can remember unlike London where everything just seems backwards. The second they touch down at the airport, she’s ready to get back into the thick of things and trying her best to make it seem like she knows what she’s doing.
She doesn’t, but she sure as hell can fake it.
The woman who’s the lead on the mission – Helen – seems very nice but very British. She’s the kind of woman that makes you want to impress her, all the while knowing that you never really will. She’s seen too much to be swayed by the kind of flash and pizazz that Malina had wasted her time on with her father. She seems to demand something real without explicitly asking for it or making you feel like less for not having it and that’s something that Malina is quick to respect about her. Malina is torn between wanting to find her own way and wait for Helen’s every cue. She is the mission leader, so in theory she’s the one making the calls, so while there are some instances where Malian wants to step forward and assert herself, she doesn’t want to step on the other woman’s toes.
They manage to come up with two different leads, one of which is in Malina’s old neighborhood. It takes her a moment before she’s actually comfortable volunteering that information but the second she does Helen is quick to divide them into two groups to cover both pieces of information – Malina, Helen and Gus in one, and the two other knights in the other, sent to search down some high-powered Wall Street broker while they headed down to the quiet Queens neighborhood where Malina had grown up.
“You have good instincts, you know,” Helen says to her as Gus gets directions (and lunch) from the local hot dog vendor and Malina turns to her in surprise, blinking at the unexpected compliment (though she’s unsure if it’s a compliment or merely a statement of fact – with Helen’s tone, it’s hard to tell).
“ … Thanks,” she says with a shrug. “I’m just … still kinda new at this. I don’t want to screw up and get someone hurt.”
“That’s fair.” Helen nods slowly. “But there is always a risk with the kind of work we do, and Wynn wouldn’t put a knight in the field if he wasn’t certain that in optimal conditions, they would come home safely.”
“Yeah,” Malina says half-heartedly, not really sure where her faith in Wynn lies as of yet, but so far, so good. “I just … know that I haven’t been here long. Screwing up a mission doesn’t exactly make the best first impression.”
“Also fair,” Helen tips her head to the side, studying her for a moment, before glancing around to the rest of the neighborhood. “And while I am an expert in many things, this particular neighborhood is not one of them. Perhaps it would be best if you took the lead.”
Again, she’s hesitant, but she wants this mission to go well. “Okay. What do you need?”
“Right now, we need information. Where is the … social center of this particular neighborhood? Where can we talk to the most people?”
That question is easy enough to answer. “The mosque. Most of the people in this neighborhood are Muslim – that’s where you’d be most likely to find people with their guard down.”
“Do you know where it is?”
She can guess what the next part of this is going to be and part of her wants to resist setting foot there if at all possible, but when it comes down to proving that she’s worthwhile in these efforts versus hiding from her past, the first one is going to win out, every time. She takes a deep breath, before reaching for the hair tie around her wrist and starting to pull her hair back.
“You’re going to need a scarf,” she says softly. “And I’d button up your shirt.” Malina then reaches for the scarf around her neck to start wrapping her hair. “I don’t think they’d buy you as a convert, but if you respect their customs, you’re more likely to get information out of them.”
Helen nods, before reaching to start buttoning the buttons at the top of her blouse. “How long has it been since you’ve been there?”
“Ten years.” She pauses as she finishes tying her hair into place. “So long as we don’t run into my grandparents we should be fine.”
“Is that a risk?” Gus says as he comes up, handing off a hot dog to each of them. “Because that might not end well.”
Malina gives him a look as she takes the hot dog from him, going to take a bite. “We have to go to my old mosque.”
Gus nods once, before glancing to Malina with a smirk. “I’ll stay outside.” Malina rolls her eyes before finishing off her hot dog.
“Alright. One trip down memory lane, coming right up.”
They manage to make it through the mosque without incident, and some of the members there were actually happy to see her which is baffling but comforting all at the same time. One of them even offers to pass on a hello to her grandmother, with the understanding that her grandfather wouldn’t be present when the news is conveyed.
The information they gain is enough to put together the puzzle pieces and dispatch the bad guys in question, and once they’re finished being taken away by the police, the team heads back to the airport to head home. Malina claims one of the clusters of four for herself and Gus, Gus stretching out so that his feet are resting on the seat next to hers, while Malina is unleashing her hair again, shaking it out so that it hangs around her shoulders again. As she’s getting ready to get comfortable, Helen makes her way over from the side and places her hand on the back of the empty seat.
“May I?”
Malina hesitates for a moment, before nodding, straightening so that she’s sitting up more. “Sure.”
“I didn’t want to bring it up during the mission, because it didn’t seem pertinent, but if you don’t mind I’d like to ask now.”
Malina knows what Helen is going to ask before she even says it, and part of her doesn’t really want to answer. Gus opens his eyes and eyes her warily, before glancing back to Malina, almost as though to silently say You don’t have to explain shit, trying to make her feel less on the spot, but she can’t help but feel like Helen might actually get it.
Helen pauses for a moment, almost as though she knows the question is going to be uncomfortable. “You mentioned something about running into your grandparents being a problem?”
“Yeah,” Malina swallows as she adjusts her seat again. “My mom was a single mom and she wasn’t exactly married when it happened so they weren’t really thrilled with me to begin with, but when I started to develop magic … let’s just say my grandfather is pretty convinced I’m … possessed or some shit.”
Helen doesn’t seem surprised, really. There’s something about her that gives off this air of experience, far more than she would normally expect of someone Helen’s age, but she appreciates that she doesn’t seem disbelieving, if anything else. “How long has it been since you last saw them?”
“Ten years, give or take. I left home when I was sixteen to find my dad and pretty much never looked back.”
“I suppose it wouldn’t matter that the work you’re doing with it is good,” Helen states. It’s not a question, or a suggestion, but more of a fact, unsurprised by the world’s prejudices. Malina shakes her head.
“Nah, he’s pretty set in his ways. Magic is the work of demons, so he’s not going to waste time trying to discern whether or not they are good ends. They don’t justify the means, not to him.” There’s a beat. “Probably didn’t help that I got my magic from my father, and he abandoned my mother to be a single parent instead of marrying her and saving her the shame.”
Helen smirks a bit. “People will always have their prejudices, that much is certain.” She pauses for a moment, before leaning forward and resting a hand on her arm gently. The gesture is so maternal without being overbearing that Malina misses her own mother fiercely in that moment, but she appreciates Helen taking the time to do it now. “You did excellent work today, Malina. Don’t let people’s misconceptions take that away from you.”
Malina swallows, nodding in agreement. Helen doesn’t stay long, simply giving her arm another squeeze before getting up and making her way to the other side of the plane. Gus pushes up a little more, his eyes following her back before glancing back to Malina with a shrug.
“I like her.”
Malina smiles softly in return, before shifting to stretch her (very short) legs out to rest on the other seat. “Yeah. Me too.”