Hey interesting fact if you take out these quick A/N I'm up to 10,000 words exactly

KC, the multi-millionaire who had gathered a small army of vigilantes, hackers, office workers, and a kind receptionist to tackle the issue of drug inflation across the world. She had donated to thousands of charities, was known for adopting stray animals, and was the first person to be born with natural powers. She was an icon for teenagers, lived in a mansion above the Willamette, and had a hobby for baking.

Currently she was yelling at Aphmau.

"You three are idiots!" She was tending to Lucinda's shoulder, which had dislocated. Her yellow eyes focused on the short girl, and despite her being almost the same height, she towered over her in her fury. "Idiots! Stupid! The kids who eat tide pods!"

"Sorry." Aph mumbled.

KC rounded on her, fury blazing in her eyes. "Oh you're sorry, are you? Sorry you didn't follow correct protocol? Sorry two of you got injured? Sorry-"

"KC." A girl with dull purple hair poked her head in. "We've found something."

KC took a deep breath. "Thank you Michi. I'll be out in a second."

The girl gave a thumbs up to Lucinda and left.

"You all are staying right here. Do not move a muscle until I get back. Am I clear?"

The two of them nodded. She huffed out a breath, her pink hair falling out of her bun. "Good."

And then she was gone.

Aph let out a breath. Lucinda struggled up, testing out the sling around her shoulder.

"God she can be terrifying."

Aph made a noise of agreement and breezed over to the window. "She has good point though."

Lucinda snorted and stood up fully, walking over to stand by her. "Like what? Last time I checked, I wasn't munching down on laundry detergent, I was doing my job."

"But you did get hurt." Aph said, looking up at Lucinda. "I told you to use your secondary, Luci. If I had trained more, maybe I could've gotten us out of there before you had to deplete your reserves. You aren't able to go out on the field for another two weeks now, because of me." She bit her lip nervously.

"Aph," Lucinda started, "you are not responsible for my decisions. I made my own decision to use my secondary." She awkwardly maneuvered herself to hug Aph around the shoulders. "Besides, wasn't Laurance saying I needed to relax?"

"I always say you need to relax," came the voice. Laurance was leaning against the doorframe, helmet in his hands. He took a look at Lucinda and Aph entangled in each other's arms. "Affection. Disgusting. I want some."

They gladly included him in the hug, five arms and a sling encompassing everyone.

Laurance pulled out of the hug, only to pull Lucinda into a closer one. "Never do that again, okay?" he whispered into her hair. "Not even in a life or death situation."

Lucinda looked at him, disbelief written on her face. "You guys are acting like I could've died. It was just exhaustion and a dislocated shoulder."

"Not telling them about the stab wound through your shoulder?" Another, higher pitched voice joined them and Lucinda glared at KC. "You know, the stab wound that was partially cauterized?"

Aph and Laurance simultaneously punched Lucinda. She yelped.

"You're a fucking idiot. I take all the mushy stuff back. I was carrying her!" Laurance turned to KC. "I was carrying her! How did her blood not get all over me?"

She gave him a disapproving glance. "Do you not know what cauterized means?"

"Should I?"

Aph jumped onto his back, arms wrapped lovingly around her neck. "Basically, the effect that a lightsaber has."

"Anyway, off the topic of Lucinda being stupid," KC said, glaring at Lucinda until she went back to lay in the bed. "I have some news about the Ro'Meave kids."

That got their attention.

"From the DNA we got off Laurance's helmet, we can confirm that this Ro is indeed related to Ro'Meave. Unfortunately, the DNA doesn't match any prints in any database, and it was too faint to make an accurate guess of what he looks like. We've been scouring everything, and we have no idea if this son is the same son that Garte tried Zia on. We doubt it, though."

Laurance transferred Aph so she was on his shoulders instead. Lucinda was disappointed; she wanted to be carried.
"The other two, since they didn't touch you, we don't know if they are related, but they did say half-brother and adopted sister, so we're taking their word for it." KC rubbed at her eyes tiredly. "Worst of all, they have a spy in the FC."

Lucinda reeled in shock. "How do you know?"

KC sat on the edge of the cot, taking her hair out of the bun. "They knew what times you would be on guard duty. They also were able to insert that bug into the system that allowed them control the doors and cameras. That part of our security is guarded by some of our oldest hackers; unless they've been trained in genetic code-breaking since they were kids, they have a person on the inside."

"That sucks ass." Laurance said blankly. Lucinda agreed with him.

She looked at KC, brushing her curly hair out of her eyes. "And what about all that spare power you had in the room we were guarding. Did they take any of that?"

KC sighed, looking much older than she was. "All of it."

Lucinda's stomach dropped. "Shit."

"To put it more eloquently, fuck." the pink haired girl said, smiling a little. "But it doesn't matter. We still have thousands of ounces of power left. Speaking of which." she pulled out three small pills, each one a creamy white. "You guys need these?"

They all gave a groan of appreciation. Lucinda took the one on the far right, refusing the water bottle KC offered her. She didn't have a problem with any sort of pills, and the rush of power that greeted her a few minutes later was greatly appreciated.

"And with that, I make my exit." KC said, sauntering towards the door. She paused. "Hey, Laurance? Can I borrow some firepower? I'm going into a meeting and might need some heavy-duty backup."

Laurance looked surprised, and rolled up his sleeve. "This is the first time you've ever asked me for mine."

KC shrugged, gripping his forearm. She closed her eyes, and when she opened them, she smiled. Flames glowed low orange on her fingertips.

"Thanks. See you all hopefully not soon."

She shut the door quietly behind her.

Lucinda automatically stood up, grabbing onto Aph's shoulder as a wave of dizziness came over her. "Someone want to call us a Lyft?"

Kim screeched in pain as Garroth pulled the glass out of her neck. The stupid exploding bulbs had managed to hit her in several places, including her neck, arm, and ankle.

Stupid bulbs. Stupid glass. Stupid Illusion.

Just thinking the name made Kim want to scream. They had been right there. She had had her in her grasp. She had told Vylad to leave them, so sure in her abilities. And then everything had fallen. The lights had gone out, they had escaped, and Illusion had a secondary power.

She screeched again as the thin sliver of glass came out of her arm.

"That was the last one," Vylad said from where he sat holding the bowl of bloody glass.

"Thank fuck. Now let's go find them again." Kim struggled to rise.

Garroth forced her back down, hand heavy but avoiding the cut on her neck. "No way. You are hurt. I get that you're mad, but think for a second."

Kim ripped off her mask in frustration. She hated it when her brother was right. She forced his hand off her shoulder and walked over to her personal minibar (why did she have a minibar? This apartment was extreme) and popped the lid off some cheap beer. She downed it all in one gulp, and stared at Garroth. "I gave up my diet."

"There's chocolate in the third row down." Was all he said, exchanging an amused glance with Vylad, who had set the bowl down. "We're having a healer come by in a few hours, just to make sure the wounds aren't infected."

She said nothing, anger still simmering in her stomach. Frustrated, she took a large bite out of the chocolate, some of her fury being taken away by the sweet taste.

"I am slightly less mad, but I still want to know when we're tracking their asses down." She announced, tossing the bottle into a glass recycling bin.

"No clue. There's always the option of ransacking the FC Headquarters, but that's basically suicide."

"Fine." She bared her teeth and started walking to her room. "Wake me up when the healer gets here."

She fell, exhausted, on her bed, and it felt like she had barely closed her eyes before Vylad was gentling shaking her shoulder. "Hey." he whispered. "The healer is here. Do you want him to come here or go to him?"

She answered by standing up, barely realizing the sun had gone done outside. She walked out, leaning on her brother as she yawned.

An ruggedly handsome man was talking with Garroth as she walked out. His mop of bright red hair contrasted nicely with his tan skin, and a pale scar stretched on either side of his nose. His eyes were unique, one blue and one green, and they looked at her older brother in such an intimate way she felt as if she was intruding when she cleared her throat to get their attention.

They both spun towards her, eyes wide with surprise.

She made an innocent expression, widening her eyes and raising her eyebrows. "I assume you're the healer?"

He smiled nervously and held his hand out for her to shake. When she grabbed it, it dwarfed hers in size. His hand was warm when she shook it.

"I'm Blaze." he said softly, his voice quiet and kind. Kim idly wondered how he got wrapped up in the drug business. And then her tired mind fixated on something.

"Blaze? Garroth's boyfriend?" She looked at the man closer.

His grin split to reveal sharp canines. "That's the Blaze."

"Well, pleasure to finally meet you. I'm taking you out to dinner so I can share all his embarrassing stories with you."

"Kim" Garroth reminded from where he leaned against a counter. His face was flushed cherry red, and his lips were pressed together.

"So, how does the neck feel?" Blaze said, a teasing tone in his voice. Kim reached up to brush her fingers over the wound. She gasped in shock, feeling the absence of the cut. She moved her hand to her elbow, and then to her ankle. Both cuts were closed. She looked at Blaze.

"Oh, you're good."

He shrugged. "You should see the bites I have to heal when Garroth and I-"

"OKAY." Garroth said, pushing his boyfriend towards the couch. "Enough about the personal life."

"Aw, but babe, I wanted to hear your embarrassing kid stories."

Kim called after the retreating couple. "He once dumped applesauce on a seagull!"

"Did you really?"

Kim tuned out Garroth's flushed reply, instead moving towards the window, where the barest bits of sunlight were streaming through the window. Sunrise.

"What time is it?" She called, turning around. Blaze and Garroth were gone. "Assholes." she said fondly.

"That's probably what they're doing." Vylad came from where he had been standing, moving to bump her shoulder. "And it's like six thirty in the morning."

"Huh." She leaned against his shoulder, her head tilting almost entirely horizontal. "Do you want to go grab a coffee?"

"Do you just want to see this Lucinda again?"

"No."

"Liar."

"Dad friend."

Vylad's ivy green eyes gained a sadness to them. "I'm still mad at Father."

Kim sighed heavily. "I know. Isn't it weird that even though we're avenging him, he was the guy who adopted me, then sent me to the other side of the world, sent you to a military academy when you were sixteen, disowned Zane, and tried an untested drug on Garroth." She paused. "Have you heard from Zane?"

Vylad bit his lip. "He meant what he said, Ghosty. When he left through that door, he wouldn't ever willingly lay eyes on us again."

Kim grabbed his hand and started leading him towards the door. "I know. I just miss him is all."

"We all do." He said softly.

The rest of their trip was spent in perpetual silence, Vylad driving a small convertible into the fog.

"So what's the name of the coffee shop?" He asked, pulling over when Kim motioned for him to.

"Meteli coffee. I looked on their corkboard. Apparently it's named after the town the owner comes from. It's cute."

"And right next to a flower shop," Vylad mentioned. "Maybe we should pick up some roses for the two lovebirds."

Kim held open the door for Vylad, wrinkling her nose. "I think Garroth is more of a daisies sort of guy."

"Maybe." he acknowledged.

"Welcome to Meteli, how may I- Oh!" There was a girl other than Lucinda at the counter, short and curvy, black hair pulled in a fishtail braid. She was gaping at Vylad, who was gaping right back.

"Aph!" He suddenly yelled, surging forward.

"Vylad!" She slid over the counter, landing in a run. They collided in the center of the store, with a loud SMACK, arms wrapping around each other.

"What are you doing in Portland? I thought you were in Arizona still!"

"No way!" he yelled. "I just moved back to live with my sister." He pointed wildy at Kim, who was standing there, very noticeably confused.

"This is Aph?" She said, moving closer.

The two friends untangled themselves, Vylad running his hands through his hair in excitement. "This is Aph!"

Aph looked back and forth between the two siblings. "This is your sister?" she questioned. "You two look nothing alike."

"Adopted siblings." Kim explained, pulling out a chair to one of the tall tables.

"Oh! You're Kim." Aph suddenly lit up. "No way," she whispered, running back to behind the counter. She poked her head in the door to the kitchen. "Oi! Mr. Manbun! Get out here!"

An exasperated voice came from the kitchen. "Aph, you're not a real part of the staff. You're just filling in for Lucinda for a day."

"Doesn't matter, get in here!"

"What could you possibly want to show me, you absolute-"

Vylad and Kim both gasped.

A man with reddish brown hair had come out of the kitchen, his dark skin stained with white flour. His blue eyes widened with shock at the sight of Vylad and Kim.

"Laurance?" Kim said, moving forward.

His expression of shock morphed into one of pure excitement. "Kim! Vylad!" He rushed forward, and so did the two siblings, and all three collided in a nhug, Kim didn't care that flour was now on the back of her leather jacket. Her childhood friend, and Garroth's ex.

"Um."

Kim whirled around, disregarding the two boys she was hugging.

Lucinda was standing there, arm in a sling and hair piled into a bun. Her eyebrows were pulled into a perfect expression of confusion.

"Should I ask what's going on?" She said, letting the door close behind her.

Aph beamed. "No. Now get behind the counter, young lady."

Lucinda looked at Kim, red lips curving into a smile. "I assume you're going to want a hot chocolate?"

Kim nodded her head, completely mute.

"Wait. Kim is Hot Chocolate Girl?" Laurance yelled, whirling his head to face her.

"Yeah. You know her?"

"She was the Kim! The sister of my ex!"

Lucinda looked like she was processing this for a second. Then she shrugged, wincing as her shoulder bounced. "Okay. Cool."

"Why aren't you freaking out?" Aph said, handing her her apron. "These are some of our oldest friends."

"I'm not one of your oldest friends. I don't know these people. It's cool, but not that important to me." She looked at the lever to the hot chocolate. "Aph can you pull this for me."

"What-what happened to your arm?" Kim piped up.

Lucinda, Aph, and Laurance exchanged panicked glances. Then Lucinda stuttered out an answer. "Some powered thugs when I was walking home last night."

Kim narrowed her eyes. Lucinda had been hurt because of some druggies. She had half a mind to find those thugs and give them a piece of her mind. "That sucks. The drug issue is really bad around here, right?"

Laurance, Vylad, and Aph started speaking quietly to each other.

Lucinda finally managed to pull the lever with her elbow. "That's right. Honestly, it's a nice city, and there are some really good heroes to help around here, but I don't understand why anyone would want to move here."

To meet you. Kim thought, but aloud she said "My family grew up here, so I thought I might as well return to my roots."

Lucinda pulled the sleeve onto the cup. "Where did you move fro?."

Kim beamed as she took the to-go cup. "Belgium."

Lucinda covered her mouth with her hand. "No way! I've always wanted to go there. Oh, we are so hanging out so you can tell me all about it there."

Kim flushed dark red. "Uh. Um. Sure?"

"Kim!" Vylad called, holding a drink carrier with three drinks. "Let's bring the drinks to Garroth and Blaze."

Lucinda lunged forward and grabbed Kim's arm, scribbling on it with Sharpie. "Here's my number. Text me sometime so you can tell me all about Belgium."

"Oh, she will." Vylad promised, smirking as he dragged Kim out. She barely had time to utter a "Bye!" before the door closed.

"Vylad!" She groaned as soon as the door to the car closed. "Why did you drag me away? We were talking! I managed to talk to her!"

Vylad laughed. "You got her phone number, I'll give you that. But constant 'Uh' and 'Um are most certainly not a conversation."

"I think I'm going to go on duty tonight, maybe find those thugs that hurt Lucinda." Kim said, cutting off Vylad.

"No way you'll ever find them. A few drugged up thugs on a street corner? That happens on every street corner." Vylad said, moving his wheel to avoid a old pedestrian.

"Maybe I could." Kim snarked, flipping her short hair over her shoulders.

"And maybe you're obsessed over this girl," Vylad said, a seriousness coming over his demeanor. "Maybe you're paying too much attention to what happens to her, simply because you think she's pretty."

Kim crossed her arms. "Do you really think I'm obsessed with her?"

"Maybe not yet," Vylad warned. "But you're getting there. You're here to avenge family. Ignore Lucinda, and focus on Illusion. Just this morning you were roaring for her blood, and now you're going on a date with a girl to discuss Belgium."

Kim squeaked in indignation. "It is not a date! She just wants to know travel information."

"Mm." Vylad said. "If you say so."

"I do."

"Ok."

They spent the rest of the ride like the ride there, in silence. Kim stared out the window, feeling a little like an angsty teen.

They arrived in the garage, Kim taking the drink carrier. Vylad held open the door for her, and Kim walked in.

Garroth and Blaze were cuddling on the couch, the latter dressed in Garroth's pj's. They were watching a movie and as Kim watched, she laughed.

Both men turned to look at her in fear.

"Kim, I swear, this isn't what it looks like." Garroth started, but Kim was already walking over to them, wheezing.

"Oh yes, it isn't what it looks like." Kim said, handing them their cups. "Just two men, in a healthy relationship, being domestic and watching" she looked up at the tv, "a Barbie movie." She turned to Vylad. "Why did you put Barbie movies in my apartment?"

Vylad stood up, chuckles still squeezing themselves out of him. "First, our apartment. Second, it was a funny prank. But honestly," he gestured to the couple on the couch, "this is a lot better."

Blaze grinned and reached up to touch his boyfriend's face. "How was Meteli?"

Vylad matched the grin and took a sip of his coffee. "We met Garroth's ex again."

Blaze was thrown off Garroth's thighs as he surged up. "Laurance is in town?" He asked. "Like, actually living in Portland?"

Vylad nodded.

Blaze pulled Garroth down. "Babe. Watch the movie with me."

Kim shooed Garroth. "Your boyfriend is right. Relax. You can always go chat with Laurance later."

And she dropped onto the couch, watching the Barbie movie.