More Awkward Than He’d Like
Starring Blink and Ophiuchia
Written by Cybernetic Socialist Republic and Lessoni
Jack started awake, a headache beginning to form. For a moment he panicked, figuring he’d been kidnapped or something similar when he realized he was in a car. His panic subsided in a moment when he realized two things, that he wasn’t blindfolded and that he was sitting between two heroes. Amalure and... he wasn’t sure he’d caught the name of the other guy, but he figured if the Amazonian trusted him, it was fine. With the question of whether or not he’d been kidnapped answered, he turned to Amalure.
“What uh, what happened? I remember Chris at gunpoint and then it’s just blank.”
While Amalure carried Jack to the cab that Matthew had called, she had been growing increasingly worried, as he didn't wake up, that the teen might have suffered from more than exhaustion. Her eye contact's sensors didn't appear to be showing anything abnormal though she feared she might have missed something. Her A.I. guardian, Aethelind had been giving her the silent treatment the last few days, only taking and responding to direct commands and she didn't particular feel like appealing to her for more complex analysis. Thankfully, before Amalure relented and asked, Jack stired awake, confused, asking where he was. Amalure leaned gently against him before speaking.
"It's all right, Jack, we're just taking a cab to one of our hero friends, Matthew's, apartment. Long sory short, you helped capture the bad guy, then collapsed from exhaustion, Matthew offered a chance to go to his apartment so that we could all continue to get to know eachother, noone really took up the offer. On account of there being an unexploded grenade in the building and you not seeming as if you'd wake up any time soon, I decided to carry you into this cab with Matthew and we're now headed to his apartment, where perhaps you can get some proper rest."
Jack pondered for a second. Everything he heard sounded like exactly something he’d do, though his cheeks turned red when she told him he’d passed out.
“Well, that’s just... I’m not a rookie, I swear, that was just my first time fighting an actual meta and- y-you get it right?”
Amalure could tell by his reddening cheeks that Jack was rather embarrassed and that only became clearer as he stammered while explaining himself. She gave him a small smile, intending to be reassuring.
"Don't sweat it, we all have a first time, it's always stressful and leaves you feeling self conscious about the mistakes you might have made or what others might think. But the important thing is that you endured it."
Amalure went out of her way to be reassuring, she had already observed that he was rather awkward when he spoke to the opposite gender, never-mind being in close quarters with Amalure, discussing something he'd normally be embarrassed about anyway.
"Besides, there were plenty of 'heroes' at that party that did little to nothing to restrain the villain, the fact you had the courage to act only bodes well for how you'll manage future engagements."
Jack’s blush subsided, if only a little. It was good hearing that he’d done well from someone as experienced as her, though doubt still remained in the back of his mind. In the moment, he could do nothing, but he resolved to toughen up as best he could.
“Th-thanks, that means a surprising amount. You did pretty dam-darn good yourself, especially when he pulled that grenade launcher. How long have you been doing stuff like this?”, he asked.
Amalure wasn't about to talk about the full extent of her experience in being a warrior, seeing as she was gestated, then raised by her alien A.I. guardian while under study by military scientists. For now, she'd keep things simple, she considered it unlikely Jack would inquire much, as he still stuttered as he spoke.
"Well, I joined TIAMA about four years ago as a part timer, the thing with being part of TIAMA rather than doing solo work is you end up having to face down Metas, independent heroing normally has you focusing on common criminals."
Four years. It seemed like an eternity to Jack, especially considering he’d been heroing for no more than a year or so.
“Wow, that’s a... really long time. I was a kid four years ago, and you were, like, getting shot at and stuff.”
He paused for a moment, planning what he was going to say next.
“I’ll admit, if this is what pro work is like, I think I might be in over my head. Before tonight I’d fought one meta, and all he could do was walk through walls. Not exactly on the level of that bulletsponge, I think.”, said Jack.
“By the way, I forgot to say... thanks, f-for the whole ‘making sure I didn’t get blown up’ thing. And also for getting me a place to sleep tonight.”
It struck Amalure that while she had digital access to much of the files that TIAMA had on heroes that she'd been meeting with and she was well aware of Jack's age, in all likelihood, Jack had no idea of her's.
"I mean, I don't think I was really that much older than you when I started out four years ago, I'm twenty-two, after all." Amalure said, getting across the fact that the age difference between the two wasn't quite as wide as he might have assumed.
"You're welcome, by the way, but it wasn't exactly like I was going to leave you there or depend on someone else to get you out, not to speak to negatively about the rest of the heroes there, but they don't really seem to think ahead and consider their fellow heroes on that much." Amalure was starting to regret that the reasonably productive conversation they were having about codes of conduct was so rudely interrupted by the now captured James.
"Also yeah, after all this, getting a decent night's rest is rather important. Then tomorrow we can think about how we can potentially meet back up with the rest in a venue less vulnerable to being attacked."
Jack wasn’t sure how old she was, but he wasn’t expecting her to be so close to him. He expected her to be in her late 20s at the very least, though he knew better than to say that.
“Ah, I’m sure everyone else was just a little... frazzled, from the whole getting shot at thing. I know I was, at least. As for venue, doesn’t TIAMA have like a headquarters somewhere? Seems like it’d be a safe bet.”
Amalure didn't very much like ths idea that singled meta could frazzle the group so badly that they'd respond by scattering after concluding their engagement, though she recognized that the way they left the bowling alley, it very much looked like that's what happened,
"I don't mean to be too harsh, but I was under the impression that the majority of the heroes at that party had been under fire before in the line of duty, so I they know by now not be so bothered by it that can't fulfill objectives after they've been interrupted in a timely fashion. Tomdo otherwise shows weakness. We won't always be dealing with a single troubled meta trying to take all of us at once, we'll be facing coordinated, determined foes. If they think our morale is so easily broken, they'll surely exploit that in the future."
Amalure realized, though it wasn't her intention, she might have made Jack feel bad about himself with what she had just said. Before continuting, she gently grasped his hand.
"Don't take it the wrong way, you don't need to feel bad, it was your first time and you did about as well as could be expected of you, if not better. You just need to work on your stamina."
Jack considered her words, slightly sheepish. Yeah, he was fairly new, but it wasn’t like that was the standard among heroes. It was her last statement that ruffled him, however.
“Hold on, I-I wasn’t exhausted or anything, I just... I’ve never gotten that close to dying before. I usually deal with street toughs and the occasional burglar, and they aren’t much of a problem when you can teleport behind them and hit them with something heavy. That guy? I tried to trip him up and I did nothing. Literally nothing. He looked me in the eyes for a second and I thought that was it, I was gonna die. I think I would’ve if Rachel hadn’t tackled him. When the fight ended, that realization just caught up with me, I guess.”
As she watched Jack closely, It seemed as though Amalure had tapped a nerve by bringing up his stamina, that's good. She didn't want Jack to ever be entirely comfortable around her, just enough so that he saw her as someone that cared, preferably significantly more than others.
"Jack, exhaustion and stamina isn't only physical, it's mental and emotional. When you face difficulty during a battle, you need the emotional stamina to not lose focus and the mental stamina to keep thinking on your feet and changing tactics based on what works and what doesn't. Then after the battle you need the emotional stamina not to be overwhelmed by the aftermath and the mental stamina to keep thinking about what your next task needs to be."
Jack opened his mouth to respond, then closed it. He didn’t have a good response, it seemed. She was right.
“I uh... yeah, I guess you’re right. Don’t much like it, but you are. How do you do it? You were like, amazing in there and you didn’t even break a sweat.”
Amalure gave a sheepish smile in response to Jack's compliments. Good, he was complimenting her having to invite them an encouraging sign. Now she just had to play it humble, but not too humble, to avoid him thinking she could be like her. The goal was more about ensuring he remained enamoured with her and gained confidence from her example, not him becoming indepedently confident.
"Thanks, I just did what I knew I could within the powers I have, while leaving space for others to do the same. It's all one can, or even should do when in a team. Getting to know each other better just let's you know how you should depend on others and when. In any case, it's just about having the confidence to play your role."
Amalure thought about leaving it at that, but she was reminded of that armored woman, Sophie, that ended up being the one to restrain James. Amalure didn't like her at all and it had absolutely nothing to do with her personality. She'd barely interacted with her after all, but it was clear she presented an obstacle to Amalure wedging herself into a de facto position of leadership among her fellow heroes. Now was as good a time as any to start feeling out what others thought of her and making subtle suggestions.
"Anyway, it's not like I was the one that ultimately restrained the villian, you might not remember, but it was that woman in power armor, Sophie, that did. You know, the one that tripped and fell as she entered the bowling alley?" Amalure sincerly giggled, more because she was pleased that Sophie made a mistake rather than her still finding it funny.
Jack listened, not enthralled but almost there by her words. He understood his mistake now; he’d been impulsive, hadn’t told anyone his plan, and almost gotten killed for it. He got lucky this time, but luck runs out eventually, he knew that for a fact.
“I do remember a lady in a robot suit. Didn’t see her fall over, though. Shame, it was probably hilarious. You know, I wish I had powers like you. Or at least your critical thinking skills. Jumping around is cool and all that, but bullets hurt, like, a lot.”
Amalure realized that Jack really did look up to her, as the compliments kept coming, just as she wanted. Now it'd be about tending to this connection and deepening it, for that she needed to encourage not only attraction, but dependency.
"Well, the good news is, critical thinking can be improved and while normally one can't get new powers, finding creative ways to use the ones you have can be just as good. Doing that, of course, comes about from improving how you think. I obviously don't know the nature of your powers like you do, but I can guess there are ways you can use them that you've yet to think off, I know it's something that happens with me. I mean, you can teleport while carrying things, that's incredibly useful. "
Amalure gripped his hand a bit more firmly, though still gently.
"Perhaps tomorrow we can discuss that, or maybe tonight, if you're willing to stay up a bit later." Amalure said, giving Jack a small but mischievous smile.
Jack gave a small smile at her words. She was right; he could do some pretty cool shit. He blushed as she tightened her grip on his hand, fighting a reflex to jump away. It felt... nice. His blush deepened at her last sentence.
“Th-thanks, Amalure. I’d love to stay with you- I mean- wait... I’m just gonna stop talking now, if you don’t mind.”
He looked down into his lap, cheeks burning, though he didn’t release her hand.
