Archive of Our Own ^beta

The address that William was given led him to an abandoned warehouse.

The bus didn't stop anywhere close to it. So, even though the ride was long, and he was exhausted, William walked all the way over to where the address led him to. And when he stood in front of that seemingly abandoned building, he checked the address twice just to make sure that he was in the right place.

Then, he texted the number that gave him this address in the first place, and let him know that he was there.

The place he was supposed to go to was supposed to be a secret, hidden lair. And through text, he was instructed to head into the abandoned building, find their secret elevator, and descend into the base. And even though he briefly worried about the possibility of a kidnapping, realizing that it would’ve been a perfect crime that he was just walking into… He also knew that there was a good reason for them being so secretive. 

The elevator wasn't too quick, but William still found himself bracing on the way down. And then, as the doors opened up to the secret base itself, William found himself bracing even further- grip tight around the straps of his duffel bag, and shoulders squared, even though he knew that his poor posture would make it difficult to keep his back straight.

William stepped into a large room. And, as soon as the elevator dinged, proudly announcing his arrival, three other people stepped out from around the corner, to greet him.

But, even so, William's eyes fixed on the decorations, instead of the strangers in front of him- more notably, the large banner that was hanging from the ceiling.

WELCOME TRAINEE HEROES!- written in big, bold letters. Underneath it were, presumably, the names of the other people in the program- himself, along with two others. Dakota and Vyncent.

The decorations didn’t look particularly new. Even if it was hard to tell at first, William still noticed it with the way some of the streamers seemed to droop, or with the subtle deflation of the balloons… and the fact that Vyncent’s name under the banner fell once William set his sights onto it, and slowly fluttered onto the ground right in front of them.

It was obvious that these decorations had been set up earlier for the other two, and then left up for when William would show up much later than the rest of them were expecting. He almost felt bad- but then, he figured that he didn't need to. Deadwood was far away from Rockfall. For all he knew, these two could've been living just around the corner.

And besides- there were still balloons, and streamers hanging up in the base, as well as (presumably, fresh) food laying out on a table. And they were still standing around (maybe a bit awkwardly) as he arrived… So the sentiment was still there, and still appreciated nonetheless. If he were less observant, maybe he would have taken it at face value.

William could still be thankful.

“Hey.” He said, and he was glad that his voice remained steady, even if it was quiet.

“Welcome, William!” Tide said, clapping his hands together, and despite himself, William still jumped at the sound of it.

He knew Tide. He was some big-shot superhero that's been around for a while, now- so popular, in fact, that even his dad knew who he was.

He was still dressed up in his blue supersuit, despite the fact that they were supposedly in a down time. And when Tide shook his hand, William squinted a little at the suit, and wondered how often their base got attacked, if he felt the need to wear it now. (Or, maybe more accurately, William wondered how long he was going to be hanging around for. Maybe it was just… an on-call sort of thing, where he was technically working, and could leave at any moment.)

Dakota was a boy that was much shorter than him, with a clear, boundless amount of energy. And when he shook William's inviting hand- squeezing it so tightly that he swore he could feel every bone and nerve ending dying rapidly- William had to check on it afterwards to make sure that it wasn’t swelling up. Or broken.

But the pain still lingered, even after he tried shaking it off. Pricking, and stinging his palm…

Vyncent was the exact opposite of Dakota.

William couldn’t get a good read on him. As he approached, Vyncent’s chin raised, and his eyes tracked William’s hand- as if he was wondering what William possibly had in store for him. He hesitated, even with William’s hand outstretched, and when he did take it, he squeezed- not as hard as Dakota had, but still hard enough to make William wince. 

William thought that he was going to be paired up with kids that were just like him. Heavily inexperienced, with powers beyond their understanding- either molding themselves into wonderful superheroes (in their case) or just learning to control and deal with them (in William’s case).

But it seemed like the only thing they all had in common was their age. These two, clearly, must’ve been training for this. Or, maybe, they must’ve gotten some sort of memo that William clearly missed out on. Either way, there was a clear weak link- William was some kinda black sheep that just barely qualified for this program, while these two must've fit in perfectly.

Still, he gave them a shaky smile, and pretended like he was exactly where he needed to be.

-

When William settled into his room for the night, the provided bed was comfortable, and the blankets were warm…

But it was just about as comfortable as a hotel could afford to be. The sort of comfort that was good for a few days, before it became dull, and it started making you feel even more homesick than you were before.

William was going to be there for a while- he was determined- and, one day, that'd mean making this room into a safe spot.

For now, that meant throwing his things onto the desk next to his bed, and hoping that he'll learn to love it, if he couldn't find a good way to decorate it in time.

-

Around a week after orientation, Tide had brought school supplies over to the base- lovingly gifted to them by the Prime Force, and Ms. G in particular, who wanted them to do their best once school started up in a couple months.

Suddenly, on their dining table were stacks of binders, notebooks, pencils, and cases to put those pencils in… and, clearly, there were some things in that pile that weren't totally necessary for him to have, like multicolored pens, or calculators…

But William took them anyway. There was enough stuff for all of them, and the other two weren’t looking at the pile, but William took a plastic bag for himself, and started stuffing it with school supplies with the kind of speed that seemed feverish, and intense- but was actually just kinda nervous.

Everyone was outside their rooms. Tide was in the kitchen, Dakota and Vyncent were on the couch, quietly playing video games together- and when William poked his head out of his room, he figured that this was going to be the best time to get something good, even though he’d rather do it when nobody else was around.

So he aimed to do it fast, and quiet- but with every notebook slamming against the side of the plastic bag, he knew that he was being a little too loud, and instead just aimed to do it fast. (At some point as well, William went completely invisible- but he didn’t really care if the other guys looked over, and saw a plastic bag packing itself.)

The bag was heavy, after he lifted it off the table- but with him being invisible, he knew that they couldn't see him struggling with it. 

“Dinner should be done in an hour!” Tide called out, probably after him, but William didn’t look back.

He accidentally slammed his door when he entered his room again. He wondered if the clicking of the lock was just as loud in their ears as it was in his. 

And as he dumped those school supplies onto his bed, and set out to assort everything properly, his phone started to ring. A panic shot through him- thinking that it could've been Tide, calling to let him know that he was upset about the door slam, or maybe it was his own roommates, curiously checking in…

But then, he realized how ridiculous it sounded, when he saw that it was just his dad on the other end.

William sighed in relief, and didn't waste another second before he picked it up. As greetings were exchanged, William fit the phone between the side of his face and his shoulder, and kept talking while sorting his new things.

“How’s orientation?”

“I got everything ready for school.” He leaned forward, and put a hand over the supplies dumped haphazardly onto his bed. Notebooks into the same piles, first. “It doesn't start for another couple of months, though… so it's fine.”

“Your aunt told me that school's starting in about a month, over here.”

“Guess I got lucky, huh?”

“Haha. Yeah, I guess so.” William's eyebrow twitched at his tone- which was suddenly a little more stiff, and awkward. “What about your, uh… training?” 

His dad asked it hesitantly, like he still wasn't sure what they were doing, or how he was going about it.

“It's, uh…”

Tide had them doing basic training, before they were to do anything important, or really heroic. Not just basic hero training. Basic training.

They were starting out with some simple exercises for the first week. Trying to assess where they were, and setting some goals, for where they wanted to be before the end of the month… and while the other two excelled at it in their own rights, and were progressing quite quickly, William was visibly struggling. 

He didn't have super speed or strength like Dakota, and he wasn't as fit as Vyncent was, apparently- and he hardly felt heroic, after their training sessions. He just felt gross, and sweaty, and out of breath- so, really, it wasn't much different than his time at the school's gymnasium in Deadwood. But it was the worst kind of nostalgia. 

In Deadwood, a fake note from his parents always got him out of the gym classes that he'd struggle through, and that would be that- no real judgment from his peers, and no effects on his grades. In training, Tide always let him take a break when he asked for it, which would usually end in him sitting out for the rest of it- and aside from a disappointed look from Tide, and weird looks from his teammates, they didn't call him out for it. They just pushed him to do his best in every session.

Still, despite his best efforts, William couldn't help but feel like he was falling behind the rest of them.

But he couldn't tell his dad all of that.

“It's great.” His voice was flat, and he kept it so, to make it sound more believable. “I'm surrounded by kids my age with the same problems-” Problem was a stretch- William wasn't standing a chance at catching up with them, “-and we're all becoming friends, and training together…”

They were not. William didn't know about Vyncent, and Dakota- but he never left his room if he didn't have to. In fact, after the first day or so, William had to break his horrible habit of ensuring that he never left his room, unless the other three were out of sight. 

He found out the hard way that since he wasn't leaving his room, he wasn't getting enough water to drink, and thus, he almost fainted during one of the training sessions. (Then, he asked himself- what was more embarrassing? Using the base’s amenities as intended, or passing out during training while the other two were still doing their warm-ups? The answer was obvious.)

But adults had a very weird vision of this sort of thing. 

In his parent's eyes, William was just a kid, and he was at the prime age for randomly making friends his own age. Even though he's never been sociable, and even though his old friend group was only formed much later in life, his dad still thought that he should’ve been able to make friends at the drop of a hat- maybe, even, just like he used to, when he was William's age.

William wasn't that sort of person. But he'd rather die than disappoint his parents, and tell him that the same program that he practically begged them to join was one that was… a bit disappointing, so far. (As far as he was aware, he could make it. And once he was done, all of this could end up feeling like a weird fever dream, with people that he'll never have to see again, when it's all said and done.

And years down the line, if his mom ever asked him about his nice friends from the training program, he could always play dumb, and act like they all just naturally separated from each other.)

“Still falling through the floor?” His dad asked, and he could tell from the chuckle that he was trying to keep the conversation light.

So, even if it was strained, William forced a laugh as well.

“Yeah… But, um… The more we train, the easier it gets to control. So…” Just that very morning, he fell through the floor, and he had to find some way to get back up while his body stayed intangible. “Still falling through the floor, though, but we'll see if that changes. Haha.”

He didn't know how stretches were supposed to help him with his problem. But he knew that he could be patient, if he needed to be.

His dad sighed. His voice must've been coming through as calm and collected as he hoped it would've- because he seemed to be satisfied with his answers.

“You know your mom and I are always just a phone call away, if you ever change your mind.” 

“I'm having a great time, don't worry about me.”

“Of course. I love you, William- keep in touch. Stay safe.”

“Night, dad.”

The smile on William's face faded away as soon as the call ended.

The guilt that came from lying made a pit in his stomach, and then that feeling of dread spread throughout his whole body, until William found himself becoming intangible, and falling right through the floor of his bedroom yet again.

-

Another week passed. 

William was used to being cooped up in his room for hours and days at a time. Especially when he didn't have the steady structure of a school schedule to keep him going outside on a more consistent basis…. 

But infamously, in the summer, he only realized that he was in his room for so long when he eventually crawled out of it- his hair a mess, skin paler than usual, and with the bags under his eyes grossly prominent. His mom would spot him from across the house no matter how quiet he tried to be, and she'd click her tongue, and say that he needed to go outside more often. 

That nagging would, eventually, spur him into leaving the house for a couple hours. No matter how hot it was, he'd go on a walk. Or hike. Or something, just to get out. And even though William didn't keep a good track record of keeping safe on hikes, the walks were still nice. He missed them. It kept him from going stir-crazy.

So- even though he felt just fine staying in his bed, curled up under several blankets, and watching shitty movies from his laptop- William knew that the only way he was going to feel okay again was if he left, and got some fresh air, and natural sunlight.

He imagined his mom's voice in his head, as he went through the process of getting up- and even though her voice sounded vivid in his imagination, he was still tempted to call her. But he knew that calling her to ask him to get out of bed would've been weird- and horrible, since he promised that he'd call her as often as possible, and yet, he kept forgetting to…

He'd call her on the walk, William abruptly decided. He'd see how she was doing as he was getting better.

Unfortunately, even as put on his shoes, and his hoodie, and readied himself, he was caught just as he was leaving the room.

“William…!” His shoulders raised, and he winced.

Then, slowly, he turned around. “Hey, Tide…”

He didn't look very upset- just confused. Behind him, William could see that Vyncent and Dakota were already in the training room, hiding away, and trying to look out at William without being seen.

Tide gestured to the room with his thumb.

“It's time for training?”

They were looking at him expectantly. And William panicked- even though this was just three other people he was living with, and not as serious as his head was trying to make it out to be, he still felt like he was going up in front of his class, preparing to present a project.

His palms started to sweat. His throat closed. If it was even possible, he probably looked paler- or, maybe, he went even further past that, and his face turned to a sickly shade of green, for no apparent reason aside from confrontation.

He needed to get out of the base. His fight or flight response had always been flight- and right now, every cell in his body wanted him to run to the elevator, get out of the warehouse, and jog down the street until it felt like his legs were going to fall off completely. Maybe, he hoped, that nervous energy could similarly be staved off with a nice, long walk.

“I'm…” 

Why would he miss training? 

Dakota and Vyncent were training to be superheroes, for Christ's sake- and they were looking at him weirdly, like there was nothing on Prime that could be more important than that. He's already missed so much training. William imagined himself saying that he wanted to go on a walk, just for Tide to brush him off, and assure him that anything he wanted to do could be done within the walls of their base.

What could be more important?

His mind cycled through different excuses. His mom was sick. His dog died. His dad slipped, hit his head on the counter, and fell into a horrible coma- and now, William needed to fly halfway across the country, and go back home to say goodbye to him before the doctors pulled the plug. Anything to get out of here.

“I have to- go… To… A job interview.” Was the lie he eventually landed on, messy as it was.

But it seemed to work nonetheless. Tide's face softened. Dakota and Vyncent didn't look that suspicious anymore. William felt like he could properly breathe again. 

“You are?”

“Just looking for something part time…” His hand found its way to his sleeve, rubbing it soothingly. He'd eventually regret wearing it, if it was going to be really hot outside. “And… I want some extra money…”

This time, when Tide's eyes narrowed, it looked more coy than upset, “I hope you're not looking to get out of training.”

William laughed very nervously. “It's just an interview- I'll see if I can work out the hours. If I get hired.”

“Alright. Just make sure you tell me, next time you're going out- it's my job to keep my eye on you.”

“Of course.”

Then, Tide turned around, and said, “Vyncent, Dakota- back to training!”

And as William turned around, and headed towards the elevator, he didn't let out his huge sigh of relief until he was tasting fresh air- assuring him that the rest of them wouldn't hear it.

-

Initially, it wasn't in his plan to get a job.

But as he found himself walking around, and seeing different places he could apply to, William realized that a job would probably be really good for him. Earning a little extra money, and spending some time outside of the base was just the thing he was looking for- and if he picked up a few shifts that just happened to overlap with their training time, then William wasn't one to complain.

He eventually applied for a job at Rusty's- a store very close to the base, with people that looked just as tired as he was.

He got the job within the week.

-

Tide was very considerate.

When William got his uniform, and tried telling Tide that he wouldn't be able to do any afternoon training with the rest of them, he assured William that moving the time would be no problem at all.

So, instead of doing their warm-ups in the afternoon, when they were all properly awake and likely ready for the day, Tide started waking them up early to do it. At the break of dawn, while they were all still in their pajamas, and still trying to rub the sleep from their eyes, they were also doing stretches, and push-ups…

William wasn't very happy with the recent development. The other two- well, it was impossible to get a read on Vyncent, but he never looked happy with the way anything was going. Dakota otherwise seemed fine. But none of them were immune to being tired, or hating the fact that they were training so early.

Tide let them know that it was going to happen, anyways- with school starting up, they were going to have to find a way to get some training done before school. This was an easy routine they had to fall into… William just started it a little early.

Part of him felt guilty. He barely knew these guys, and yet, one of their first impressions of him was just… The lazy guy that made them train in the morning, just because he wanted a new job. They never shared those sentiments out loud, but William was paranoid, and it was very easy to assume.

After training in the morning, William would go to work. If he wasn't working, William would train, nap through the rest of the afternoon, and then stay up a little later than he should've the following night.

It was an interesting schedule. 

For the first few days, William was dead on his feet- standing by the cash register, and barely having the energy to keep his eyes open for more than a few seconds at a time. He knew that if he were sitting down, he'd likely fall asleep on the spot. After a couple weeks, he was still tired, but building up a tolerance that made it somewhat easier.

Not that it mattered. For some reason- maybe from the stale air, or the buzzing lights, or something in the environment- William easily recognized that he was not the only one in his group of coworkers that seemed perpetually exhausted.

In fact, it seemed like dead-eyed, quiet employees were a staple for this branch of the company. His young manager was one. Every time he got on his shift, and greeted his coworkers, he'd get tired mutterings in return, and then he'd spend the rest of his shift in silence- only interrupted, if a customer needed anything from him.

It was a nice break from everything. His first job, technically, and he was actually doing pretty well.

-

After a while, Dakota started visiting Rusty’s very often while William was on shift.

Sometimes, he wouldn't even be greeted as Dakota walked in. William would just see a head of raspberry red hair wandering around the store as he was at the register, or as he was stocking shelves, and he'd have to double-take, to see if he could spot him.

But even though he didn't always announce his arrival, every time without fail, he'd let him know when he left- which was usually anywhere from 10-20 minutes after he initially entered. Sometimes (most of the time) he'd just walk in, wander, and then leave without buying anything.

Was he trying to be friendly, or was William being watched? He couldn't tell. And he didn't even know what kind of information Dakota could be gaining from their- not hangouts- they weren't hanging out, this was the furthest thing from it- and yet, there was no other word for it.

He just showed up, and left, while letting William know that he was there.

It was… weird.

-

William’s always been able to see ghosts, as far back as he could remember. 

Back in Deadwood, even though they didn't really have superheroes like all the big cities did, some of them had that ability to see spirits.

He didn't know if it was the area affecting him, or something he was born with, but it was undeniable that he had it. And once- when William was seven, and right when it was at the height of its manifestation- he saw something that shook him to his very core.

His parent's home had a basement he hated going into. But his brother was helping his mom out, and maybe, William looked a little too peaceful, minding his own business on the couch, because she asked him to get something from the basement- urging that she trusted him to get it, with the sort of condescending tone that he wouldn't be able to pick up on for another couple of years.

As a kid, and even to this day, William hated the dark.

And the basement wasn't always dark. There was a dim light he could turn on once he got to the bottom, and there was also whatever natural light was coming in through the windows- but even in the middle of the day, it was never enough to see properly.

He always found himself pressed against the railing. Practically hugging it, since he was so young- staring with wide eyes at the cobwebs, and at the wooden beams in the ceiling- almost feeling like he was entering another world entirely, as he stepped down.

And on that day in particular, while looking through their fermenting vegetables, William saw a face in the dark.

He froze, and gasped when he saw it- only to then regret that gasp, when he realized that he practically invited the ghost to interact with him, by letting it know that he could see it.

The face looked old- with sunken eyes, and a shining pupil, that almost made it look like an animal's eyes getting caught in a camera's flash- but then, after a while, it changed. A smile creeped up on its face, and quickly after that, the same wrinkles that defined it, and made William so aware of its age just made the face look deformed- because the smile kept creeping up. Lips pulling upward, eyes squinting to slits and sliding down the sides, before it began melting along with the rest of the wrinkles on its face-

On that night, William ran up the stairs- scraping his knee on a step, and fumbling when he heard that ugly face start to cackle behind him- and he ended up clinging and crying into his mother's shirt for the rest of the day. Pleading with his parents to understand what he saw, and why he couldn't sleep without the light on in his room.

They didn't fully believe him until several months had passed, and William wouldn't get his much needed sleep. William was never mad at them for not believing him, since it was outrageous, and as far as he knew, nobody else in his family could see them.

But sometimes, even years and years later, William saw that same face in the dark. Or, at least, something similar to it.

He knew that it couldn't have been the same one. That one was trapped in his basement, sitting quietly between jars of fermenting vegetables, and waiting for the next unsuspecting victim to go down there, and witness it. But when it was a little too dark, and everything was just a little too difficult to make out, William would see it in bundles of clothes, or stains in the wall-

And one night, after coming back to the base after a shift from Rusty's, William swore that he saw it again. Or, at least, something like it. And whatever it was, it was vicious, and probably wanted to hurt him-

And so William ran into the closest room he could find. Door opened, then slammed shut, with a faint blue shimmer laying over it. William then leaned against it- breathing heavily, as if his efforts would actually scare off any of the horrible spirits that were lying around in his new home-

But it took him a second to realize that he wasn't in his room. And that, instead, he was in the room of one of his new roommates- Vyncent Sol- who was wide awake despite the time, and looking back at him with wide eyes.

“I…” William felt like his throat was closing up, from how nervous he was. His palm grew sweaty, and even though he moved to open the door, he didn't get the grip quite right the first time around, “I'm- sorry… sorry.”

As if something as simple as a protection on the door could stop a spirit from phasing through the adjacent wall, and hurting all of them. William wasn't dumb- but in the heat of the moment, where all he could think to do was run, it was all he did.

Vyncent removed his large headphones, and showed off his ears- far sharper than anything William's ever seen before. Even though he didn't always wear those headphones, William swore that this was the first time that he was paying attention to whatever was underneath them.

“Did something happen?”

“No.”

“Did you get… lost?”

Was the truth really more embarrassing?

“...yeah. Sorry. All the- walls, and doors look the same…”

William properly took in Vyncent's room, sentence trailing off as he did so.

Unlike William’s room, Vyncent's actually seemed to be worth staying in for long periods of time. He had posters all over his walls, patterned bedsheets and blankets, a little extra furniture- even a television, which he was currently fixated on. It didn't have the same stiff, sterile energy that his own room had. If anything it looked a little more… home-y.

Vyncent didn't look too bothered, thankfully. Just a little more thoughtful. And when William finally got a grip on the doorknob, Vyncent started talking to him again.

“Since you're here, can you help me with something?”

William hesitated.

Then, he figured that staying in there for a little while longer was better than going out there. For now. Just until he could compose himself.

William wiped the sweat on his palms off on his hoodie. 

“Yeah, sure- what's up?”

Vyncent then glared at the television. “I can't… understand any of this.”

William squinted. 

Even though he couldn't understand what language was being spoken in the movie, he could tell that the subtitles were in Spanish. And when he picked up the remote and hit pause, he noticed that everything else seemed to be in Spanish, too.

“How did you even manage this..?” He muttered. 

It only took him a minute at most to change it back- having experience with elderly grandparents that didn't know much about how newer technology worked- and when he gave the remote down to Vyncent, he noticed Vyncent glaring at the tiny thing, like it offended him.

When he hit a button of its own, it paused. Then, when he hit another button much more hesitantly, he exited out of the movie, and back to the homepage. William held his hand out, ready to help him back onto it, but Vyncent shrugged off his attempt immediately.

Then, right as William took it as his cue to leave, Vyncent said, “I can't find anything good on this.”

“...if you want something specific, there's a search bar.”

Vyncent just shook his head.

“There's too many options to pick from. I wouldn't even know where to start.”

When William held his hand out again, Vyncent looked at it for a few seconds too long- even looking up at him, like he was trying to judge his intentions- but, this time, he finally handed the remote back over.

“What kind of movies do you like?” He then asked.

-

William knew that Vyncent wasn't from anywhere nearby. It wasn't something he hid- in fact, after talking to him, he realized it was one of the only things he actually knew about him…

But he didn't know that ‘not being from here’ extended past Rockfall, New Haven, or even Deadwood. In fact, Vyncent said that he was from another world entirely.

The conversation came about when they lingered around in the fantasy genre a little too long- deciding to watch one of the movies, even though William wasn't a huge fan of the genre himself. And, suddenly- instead of helping Vyncent, and leaving- William found himself sitting alongside Vyncent, and watching the movie.

Even though the movie was cheap, and the majority of it was inaccurate, according to Vyncent… it didn't stop his roommate from going into more detail, and explaining what his own world was like. A floating island, with lush green grass, and monsters that were much more terrifying, and real than the ones being shown on screen. And it was nothing like Prime, he relented, since everything in the city was gray, and lifeless to him…

William didn't get a word in past affirmations, throughout the whole movie. And he didn’t need to. By the time the movie ended, Vyncent was so wrapped up in his own talking that he didn't even notice, at first. And then, when Vyncent asked him to turn on another movie just like it, William obliged, and turned on the very next one that was suggested to them.

Then, he sat up, and stretched his back a little.

“How'd you get all the way over here?” William asked his first full sentence in a while. “And- why? Shouldn't you train at home?”

From the way he talked about it, William noticed that his own home was overrun by things that were much more dangerous. So why give that up, and come here, when it was clear that he didn't even like being on Prime that much in comparison? Why not train at home, and stay there?

Vyncent frowned. William saw his eyes shifting around, like he was trying to take in every inch of the screen, and memorize it- even as it was ever-changing. A couple seconds passed before he answered. And then, when he did, William noticed his face shifting into one of complete sorrow.

“I can't.” Two simple words, spoken so quietly that William almost didn't hear it.

Vyncent didn’t say anything more about his home. William didn't press, nor did he want to leave, and go back into that dark hallway just yet. So they watched the movie in complete silence. 

And, after it was over, William sat through a couple more of them with him. He didn't leave until the room started lighting up with an early morning light, coming in through a small window at the top of Vyncent's bedroom. And when he did leave, he heard a quiet “Thank you.” Being passed his way.

“No problem, Vyncent-”

“Virion.” Much louder, this time.

“What?”

Vyncent wasn't even looking at him. 

“My actual name is Virion.”

“...do you want me to call you that?”

“No.” He said, definitively.

And when he eventually left, William was too confused to be scared of an empty hallway.

-

At the end of the first month, everything was going… as well as it could have.

William was still falling behind, but he was getting good at accepting that. He was building up his own tolerance- and he was okay with that, since it wasn't affecting his teammates.

At the end of the first month, multiple things happened all at once.

First, Tide introduced friendly sparring into their training regiment. He made sure to tell them that sparring was only something on the table, if he was around to supervise it- and even though Dakota was pumped, and Vyncent seemed to be more neutral about it, William felt some dread creeping up.

He wasn't a fighter. He didn't know what made Tide think that he was. But instead of putting Dakota and Vyncent together, since they've both performed just fine- he instead paired William up with Vyncent for a demonstrative performance.

William hadn’t listened very well to the ground rules. He was too busy looking at Vyncent- who was staring him down, like he was trying to scare him. There was a buzzing in his head, as Tide started them off- and William watched Vyncent hold his arms up, and shift his weight around a bit.

“Hey- I mean-” William looked over at Tide for just a second, hoping that he looked just pathetic enough for him to feel bad for him, “Is this really-”

William didn't remember what Vyncent did. 

He didn't remember the impact, or even the few seconds leading up to it- no fist reaching towards him, or even a slight movement out of the corner of his eye. One minute, he was standing. In the next, he was on the ground, and being looked over by his roommates, to make sure that he was okay.

Then- just past the faint ringing in his ears- Tide announced that they were done for the day. 

Tide gave William some gross medicine. The disorientation was gone, but the headache that came with it lingered for a long while afterwards. And when William went to the bathroom, he looked at himself in the mirror, and noticed a giant bruise blooming on the side of his temple- still in the early stages, but likely staying there for a while. 

(Later that night- much later- Vyncent apologized to him, and William quietly accepted it. 

Then, he wondered if he had a concussion, and if it was safe for him to sleep.)

The next time they tried it out, Vyncent and Dakota were the only ones actually sparring. (William thought about trying it again- not considering it, but instead, just thinking of it like some horrible hypothetical- and even just the thought of being on the mat again made him turn intangible, and stay that way for a long while. As if one of their fists would go flying past, and hit him by accident.)

The next thing that happened- despite the sparring mishaps- was Tide announcing that they could do field work, if they wanted to. 

Not fighting the villain or even the henchmen they may have, but instead, doing much more simple things- like saving civilians, and making sure that they were being evacuated. Or figuring out how to get to a scene as quickly as possible, if they needed to.

They were given tracksuits, and masks that covered up the top of their faces. Something small, to protect their identity while they were out. 

They were also given really high-tech wristwatches.

They could make calls, get directions- but, most importantly, they could get notified for anything that might attract a hero's attention. Tide explicitly made sure to tell them that (for now, until they got used to it,) they were only allowed to be on the field if Tide was there to supervise.

William wasn't aware of Rockfall's crime rate, or how often that opportunity would arise. He came from a place that had no superheroes at all, and he didn't really pay attention to stuff like that- so William was expecting slow days, with some of them having small chances of them being on the field.

-

Unfortunately, it wasn't much, but it was still a lot more often than he was expecting. 

Bank robbers. Muggers. People causing general mayhem in town- sometimes in Rockfall, but mostly in the nearby city of New Haven. Notifications popped up on the wristwatch throughout the day… But whether or not the three of them could actually help was another story. 

William missed a lot of the outings, since he was at work, and he knew that leaving in the middle of a shift would just end up getting him fired. And so, he happily stayed out of the way, while the other two happily joined Tide.

The real trouble happened a few days after that. On his first outing.

Dakota and Vyncent were in the living room. William left his room to get something to eat- and in that split-second where he was hoping to go completely unnoticed, his wristwatch went off.

There was a villain causing havoc in Rockfall, close to their location.

And here they were, on William's day off, and on a day where Tide was in the middle of handling something else. 

William looked up to find the other two already staring at their watches, before looking up at each other.

“Should we..?” Dakota asked.

“I mean…” Vyncent said after a pause, “He said we could go out unsupervised, after we got used to it…”

William didn't point out that he's never done this before, while the both of them have only done it a couple times. 

He, instead, whispered, “Okay, you guys have fun…”

“William!” Suddenly, with only a small breeze as an indicator for how fast he was going, Dakota was behind him in seconds, patting his back and rushing him to his room, “Come on, get dressed! You're free this time- and you need to get your experience in!”

So, with a few dismissals that were immediately brushed off, William ended up going to his room and getting ready anyway.

On that mission, things didn't run as smoothly.

He tried his best to keep up- but when Dakota and Vyncent immediately split off, he knew that he was done for.

There was only so much he could do, whilst being able to go invisible and intangible. So he evacuated people as best as he could, while also keeping an eye out for the same supervillain that was making a mess of things, just so he could stay out of the hero's way.

Everything went sort of downhill, when Dakota directed his attention away from helping civilians, and towards fighting the villain that none of the other heroes were rushing to get to just yet. 

The plan was to only get involved until a hero showed up- stall him, then disengage- but in the chaos of it, Dakota got a little too carried away, and William got a little too distracted in trying to get away-

And they clashed accidentally, mid-fight, sending them both to the ground- disoriented, as they tried to get their bearings again.

And because of that clash, the villain was able to make his escape. William saw him getting away, and he saw Vyncent chasing behind him- dressed in a cowboy outfit now, for some reason, when he swore that he was in the same tracksuit as them- and it made him think that the impact was a little more worrying than he initially thought it was.

Dakota was on his feet soon enough- clearly dazed, but ready to jump back in.

“What was that!”

William closed his eyes, and breathed, as Dakota's footsteps padded around the pavement.

Eventually, those footsteps stopped right beside him- and as he opened his eyes, he saw that Dakota was staring at him with a worried look on his face. Something that only faded, once he realized that William was conscious. 

The look faded back into something more fitting for the disappointment in his tone. Dakota helped him up, lifting him up just as easily as picking up a pillow, and William stumbled to his feet, and immediately pulled away from him.

He struggled with what to say. They both got caught in the impact, but for some reason, apologizing felt too… formal.

“Are you okay?” William asked, to be nice.

“I would've been better if we caught him.”

“We probably shouldn't have gotten involved, anyway…”

Dakota eyed him. Immediately, William straightened up his posture.

“We need to start getting more involved.” Dakota muttered. “We're training to be in the Prime Force, we need to learn how to take down low-tier villains like him- and we're not just going to get by with basic training.”

The words sunk in William’s stomach. “I…”

Dakota turned away, as if he didn't want to hear what William had to say.

Then, as Vyncent turned the corner- now dressed normally, slowly shaking his head, to indicate that he lost him as well- Dakota’s frustration notably ramped up.

“Hold on.” 

Then, he sped around the corner, leaving Vyncent and William behind to watch him go. Vyncent checked in on him, and William nodded- he was fine- even if he felt bad about getting in the way.

-

The walk back to the base was silent, and tense.

Tide was in their base, likely to greet them after another job well done, but William easily brushed past him. Phasing through his door just as easily as he would at home, but thankfully, not intangible enough to fall through the floor just yet.

His face was hot. He was frustrated and embarrassed, clearly, and none of that congratulations was meant for him, so he didn't bother soaking it in.

Instead, he clipped off the watch that the Prime Force gave to them. and, after sitting down on his bed- thankfully tangible enough to do so- and he just stared at it for a bit. Ignoring the impulses that made him want to throw that watch at a wall, and let it stay wherever it landed.

-

First and foremost- above all else- William loved his family.

He, out of anyone else he knew, got really lucky- his parents were kind, and understanding… And, sure, maybe a little stern at times, but he was mature enough to know that them saying it was for his own good wasn't just something they mindlessly said.

And so William- trying his best to keep on the straight and narrow- always followed along with whatever they said. No staying up too late. No skipping school. No going out past his curfew. No lying, cheating, hiding- doing nothing they wouldn't do, since William was still in the young stage of his life where he thought his parents were infallible.

And then he died. 

He died- and then he came back- and since then, William swore he got a little screwed up in the process.

His walk changed, for one. After that fall, he couldn't keep himself from bumping into things, or tripping… and after that fall, something mentally locked in him, and suddenly, it became a million times harder to talk to anyone that wasn't in his immediate family…

But, especially for that last one, his parents were quick to reassure that it was all just symptoms of growing up.

After the fall, William also saw his parents in a new light.

He fell, and when he came back, he had superpowers- on top of the fact that he could see ghosts. And even though his parents were kind, and understanding, and William was lucky to have them… they were completely unaware of how to help him. 

After he recovered from the initial injuries, he was regularly falling through the floor, and walking back up from the basement with bruises on his knees. Or he was going invisible during class, or dinner, and no matter what he tried, he couldn't seem to bring himself back on command.

His parents wanted him to be normal, just as he did. So they tried keeping it a secret. Then, when William couldn't explain why he was constantly crawling up from the school's basement, they tried online school. Research into superpowers, and how they developed. Anything, to keep it contained, and controlled-

But, even then, that wasn't enough.

William kept attracting unwelcome attention, from neighbors and stray spirits alike. It wasn't just the sort of thing he could keep to himself no matter how much he tried to- and they all knew that, deep down. Even if they wouldn't say it.

And then, one day, for reasons completely unknown to William, a superhero came knocking on the door of their humble little home.

And even though William didn't catch the entire conversation, he still picked up enough. They heard what he could do. They wanted to include him into a superhero training program. And when William poked his head out, he saw that his mom was handed a business card, and told to call whoever was on the other end.

He also knew his mom well enough that the nice words and sweet time meant nothing, compared to the cursory glance she gave the business card before she put it in her pocket- barely even looking at it, before she had her mind made up, and knew she wasn't going to call them.

William didn't leave his room until dinner. And then, over a quiet meal, he asked about it- and made it clear that he knew what they were there for.

Aside from a look, she didn't seem too keen on hiding it from him.

“Not now. When you're grown…” In just a year, William reminded himself. If that. “And when you're old enough to be making those kinds of decisions, you can. Just… not right now. Not when you're still in school. Maybe before college. Or after. Whenever you're ready for it, okay?”

And William thought he was mature enough to take it with the kind of grace and understanding that he always had. These were his loving parents, they knew what was best for him. And since he was already so close to turning 18, it wasn't that big of a deal. It wasn't worth fighting over. 

It didn't matter that, as he nodded his head, and as they continued to speak, he didn't speak any further on the subject because he was too busy fixating on the fact that his hand kept going through his fork. Refusing to touch it.

It didn't matter that he only became tangible again when he tried to phase through his door, and ended up slamming his face against it instead, to his mom's immediate dismay. Because he didn't have a choice when he was falling through the floors, but he did when he refused to try the doorknob first.

It didn't matter that he fell through his bed, and woke up underneath it.

It didn't matter that something ugly built inside of him. Or that he couldn't get his mind off the business card in his mom's pocket, likely tucked away in a drawer by now. Untouched, until William was 18, or even older than that.

When's the last time you did something brave?

When William was still in school, some kids in his old posse let it slip that they almost ran away when they were much younger.

Individually, as children with still developing brains, they realized they could turn doorknobs with ease, and that their parents weren't always paying attention. And thus, they could slip out, run all the way down the street- further, if they tried- and they could disappear and play as long as they wanted to before their parents even realized they were gone.

They also relented in that same story that none of them made it past the driveway before they all suddenly realized what they were doing, and suddenly, got too scared to do it.

William’s never done it. He liked his home, and he was smart enough at a young age to know that the old family dog would've been barking up a storm if he tried something like that. It wasn't the first time he couldn't relate with his crew. He never stayed out as late as they did, and he never got too involved with their schemes if it could get him in trouble-

And he could not tell you what came across his mind on that night, or what impulses finally bubbled up.

He was invisible throughout it. Rummaging through those drawers in his kitchen until he finally found that same business card that his mom so carelessly put away. Turning the lock on his bedroom door quietly, as if his parents could hear it while they were still asleep. He didn't know what he was thinking when he called the number on the bottom of the card.

He just knew that, when someone eventually answered, his heart jumped into his throat. And, with it beating so fast that he was worried about it stopping completely, he hung up immediately.

That wasn't the bravest thing he did, in recent times. 

Nor was it when he put his phone down for only 20 minutes, sitting or laying in complete silence before he tried calling again. Just to hang up again. Or when he composed himself, called again, and had to clear his throat a couple times over before he could finally talk to somebody about this whole program he's been hearing so much about.

It was when he brought it up to his parents again. It was when he got fixated on it, and wanted to go there- and even though he was virtually denied every single time he asked, it was the night where that ugly, impulsive feeling bubbled up, and he told himself that he had to get out of there now.

It was a hot night in July when he finally crossed that driveway. Not as a toddler, suddenly realizing they could do it, but as a teenager, knowing what was best for himself at that moment. Leaving with a duffel bag, an address on his phone, and a call made their way, letting them know that William was ready to join the program.

Of course, William was never that brave. Or rebellious. His parents found out about his departure immediately. And when they called him on his walk over to the train station, his mom cussed him out so loudly that William wondered if anyone in the neighboring houses could hear it as well.

What was he thinking- she swore, on the power walk home- leaving the house like that, without a word, with nothing but a note, telling them where he's gone. What was he thinking? How far did he think he was going to get?

When he got home again later that same night, the tune would switch up. Going from lecturing him, to telling him that they were glad that he was okay. And it was stupid- it was evident, he realized maybe a little too late that he wasn't safe from his teenage hubris- but it had some effect. 

This time, when William told them that he needed to do this program- just to get a handle on his powers, and nothing too crazy, for someone his age- they listened to him. 

They realized that keeping him in the house the whole time wasn't doing anything good, and that William's case would have to be special. They made sure he packed up his things properly. They made sure he had something to eat as well as a packed lunch, before they drove him to the train station, to give him a proper goodbye. 

They chose to see it as them sending him off to a boarding school, and right before he got on that train, he swore that he heard his mom asking him to call on the daily at the very least.

-

And where did that get him?

He showed up late. The party decorations were set up oddly, and nobody touched the food laying out. He was falling behind his roommates- who, sometimes, seemed like they hated him- and William was starting to realize that, maybe, he was getting a little in over his own head, when it came to the whole superhero thing.

Was he in the program to learn more about his power, or because he was sick of staying inside his room all day, and needed a fresh start without all those awful spirits lying around? Was he still there because he believed he could learn, and get further, or was it just out of spite, because he'd rather embarrass himself around a few teenagers that hated them, then tell his parents that they were right? And that he was just stupid, and stubborn?

God- he considered himself brave for leaving because it was the first time he made and stuck with a choice that determined something important. And yet, it seemed like he made the wrong one. And since making it, he realized that maybe he was never brave. And, maybe, he wasn't crossing the driveway, onto a new path of his life- but instead, making it just halfway across before he realized what he was doing, and realized that he didn't want to do it.

He was never this stubborn. Or prideful. Or angry. He changed when he fell, but in none of the ways that mattered. And, now, he was a coward, on top of dealing with emotions that made him moody, and impulsive- and he hated it.

… and he really, really wanted to go home.

He knew that they were all supposed to be training to become superheroes. He knew that he was going to be signing up with a few kids that already set their sights on being a superhero when they were adults, which meant that they were going to be much more competitive and serious about it than he was. He signed up for all of that when he joined, and he knew that the eventual plan was just to learn how to use his powers, and do something else after high-school.

He didn't know how he missed the whole Prime Force thing. 

No wonder someone like Tide was staying with them full-time. No wonder the Prime Force was getting involved. No wonder the other two were so powerful already, likely trained before they even got there.

Maybe it slipped through, in the few minutes that he couldn't hear his mom's conversation. Maybe that fundamental misunderstanding was why his mom was initially so hesitant to let him do this, and why his persistence must've looked so strange to her. After years of never mentioning superheroes, and never expressing any interest in becoming one, he was suddenly just leaving home in the middle of the night, to chase the opportunity to become one.

And he thought the exercises were hard. One month in, and they were already testing out missions- and he was already failing miserably. Again. He was nowhere close to solving the actual problems that he wanted to solve, but he was noticeably falling behind-

And, really, it didn’t seem like it was worth it.

-

That night was his real driveway moment.

William spent most of it outside- invisible, and contemplating how smart it'd be to just… pack everything, and leave in the morning without saying another word. These lot weren't his family. He didn't owe them an explanation for dropping out, and he certainly wouldn't feel bad if he did.

He wondered how the laws worked. If he would get arrested, for some reason, or if he could just quietly go back home, and not have to worry about any of this- suitcase stuck in the driveway, staring back at his home, contemplating…

It was late. He was tired, and the last time he made a drastic decision like that, he ultimately regretted jumping in headfirst.

William wanted to give himself some time to think. 

He had a little less than a month before school started. On the last day of summer, if he was still unsure about this whole superhero thing, then he was going to pack his bags, and leave for Deadwood first thing in the morning. 

There was no use in dragging out the decision, if he was ultimately going to regret it.

-

When William walked back into the base, he was shocked to see Tide. 

He wasn't horribly absent by any means- he still lived with them, and he was around often enough for William to recognize it- but he didn't see him as often as he saw the other two. Sometimes, he'd just get back to the base to a pot of something half-eaten on the stove, and with Tide nowhere to be seen.

But tonight, it seemed, was different. Because Tide was wearing a pink apron, and he was making a pot of something that smelled distinctly like Hamburger Helper. And when William stepped in, it took Tide a second to see him- catching him out of the corner of his eye, instead of seeing him come in- but once he did, Tide gestured for him to come over.

“William! You're home early.”

William frowned, and stalked over anyway. “I didn't go to work today.”

The pleasant look on his face faded immediately, “Where did you go?”

He shrugged. “Just on a walk.”

“Well…” He pulled out a bowl. “You're still just in time for dinner.”

And, even as William was going to disagree, and insist that he wasn't hungry, Tide still prepared him a bowl. 

And, to his dismay, as soon as he sat down, Tide sat directly across from him. Before William could ask what he was doing, or why the others weren't on their way to joining them, Tide already started talking.

“Now, I got to talk to Dakota, and Vyncent about this- but I haven't had the chance to talk to you, since you were in your room all day…” He started, slowly, and William's brown furrowed, as he waited to see where Tide was going with it. “But what you all did on that mission was incredibly reckless.”

Oh. Thank God. For a moment, William thought that Tide was going to tell him that they were all going on a real mission, for once.

“You don't have to worry.” William cut him off quietly, before he could continue the lecture. “I wasn't- fighting anything.”

“Oh. Well… Maybe, they should’ve been following your lead, then. Huh?”

William thought back to the search and rescue mission. Going without Tide's permission, and going fully against Tide's orders to stay out of it- but, even then, every time William thought back to it, the only thing he could remember was the disappointment coming from Dakota.

Then, the ensuing trouble.

Tide stood up, and patted his shoulder as he left- presumably, to get Dakota and Vyncent- but just before he could, William's head snapped around.

“Wait- Tide.” He turned back around. And, maybe, if William were more nervous, he would've just started mumbling, or not saying anything at all. “I still need to talk- I need to tell you something important.”

Tide looked unsure. He still turned around, and got back in his previous seat- but William detected a nervousness that must've been coming from the fact that they’ve never had to have a serious talk before. At least, not one being started by William, of all people.

“Is everything okay?”

“Yeah, it's fine, it's just…” William's thumbs were brushing over each other. He said the next part quietly. “I've been thinking about dropping out of the program.”

The words came out smoothly. Not to his teammates, but instead, to Tide- who was fine, but acted more like a distant teacher, than anyone else.

His eyes widened a little, “Really?”

“Really.” At least he was confident enough to stand by it.

“What- brought this on?”

William had a million reasons.

He wasn't catching up to Dakota or Vyncent anytime soon, if at all. The attempts made him miserable as all hell, and made it difficult to work- in fact, with this schedule, William didn't know how he was supposed to do it and go to school, of all things…

On top of all of that, William was no closer to keeping his powers in check, or putting them to better use.

Tide didn't know that William never wanted to join the Prime Force, and that he was just joining to control his powers, and then head back home as soon as he felt comfortable enough. (At this point, it'd be until he felt comfortable at all. Which was never happening. Maybe he should've taken his chances with another school, or program… Maybe he should've waited a couple years.)

It was hard to put these thoughts into words that sounded sensible. But he tried his best. 

“I don't think I’m benefiting from this program.” He said, first and foremost. “Or… I'm not getting what I want out of it. And I know it's- I don't want to be impatient, or…” He started mumbling. And then, when he looked back up at Tide- who was staring at him, like he was trying to figure something out- William picked his tone up a little. “I'm still- I don't know if I want to. But it's still an option. And if I did want to leave, I didn't just want to do it without any warning. So…”

“Right.” Tide still looked surprised, but he also seemed to be processing it well.

William tried squaring his shoulders. “I'll let you know if I'm leaving by the end of the month.”

“Take your time, William.” Tide ducked his head down a little, in an attempt to meet his eyes, but William kept his gaze on the bowl of beef stroganoff. “If you're still unsure after that, you don't have to drop out immediately. But you're also free to leave at any time.”

William nodded along. “Thanks, Tide.”

He didn't get more than a few bites in before he excused himself from the table, and went to bed.

-

William still woke up the next morning, and he was still in the program, despite it all-

Unfortunately, some time during the night, William went intangible, and he only realized it after he fell through his bed. He was trapped, between the underside of the bed and the floor- not having enough room to squeeze out, and yet, somehow not having the power to phase through it, either.

He didn't fret right away. When his hand refused to go through the side, he just laid there- hoping to get another few minutes in before he was in any real danger.

In that short time frame, William heard his door open. And though the opening below the bed frame was small, he still had a clear view of the door from where he was laying. He squinted at first against the harsh light of the hallway, but his eyes adjusted rather quickly to the sudden light change.

Not that it mattered. The intruder made himself known immediately.

“William?”

William's eyebrows shot up. It was Dakota.

… Dakota's never gone in his room before. He usually stayed out of it, and bugged William whenever he decided to leave it. He didn't even knock before he entered.

And yet, in this situation, he was practically William's knight in shining armor.

“Under here…” William whispered, and through the slight crack under the bed, William was able to see Dakota's head whipping around, to try and find the noise.

Even though he didn't see him, he still reasoned that he was under the bed. And so, needing nothing more than just his index finger, Dakota raised the bed off of him- tilting his head slightly, when he realized the position that William had been sleeping in all night.

“You look like a mummy.” He muttered. His voice sounded strange- a little raspy, like he'd just woken up- but just as soon as it was there, he cleared his throat, and it was gone.

“Thanks…” He sat up, just narrowly avoiding smacking his head against the top of it, and crawled out.

“Can't you go through things?” As he stood up, he could hear Dakota letting it go, and letting his bed frame slam against the ground. “Why were you under there?”

“My powers aren't…” He fidgeted, hands rubbing together. Dakota watched the motion very carefully, “I can't… use them very well. Sometimes, I'll just fall through things.”

Dakota frowned- and he wasn't looking William in the eyes as he spoke, but it didn't seem like it was an intentional thing.

“I was looking for you last night, but…”

William shook his head, “I was under my bed, by then. I think.”

“So- all night?”

“Yeah.”

“Yeah.” Dakota nodded along, a little awkwardly- and William couldn't seem to remember ever seeing Dakota like this. “Right. Well. Um. Before training, I wanted to talk about yesterday.”

William was filled with dread in an instant. “Yeah..?”

He half-expected Dakota to go on some rant, or something- talking about how William could've done better, and how it was risky, and, maybe, even saying that William should reconsider his line of work…

Instead, he looked a little… Pitiful.

“I wanted to say that I was sorry for yelling, like that. You…” Dakota's eyebrows furrowed as he looked off to the side, like he was recalling his frustrations. “...we're all still in training. And Tide told me that we should've waited, before jumping into something like that. I think it was- unfair for me to get mad at you, when none of us were really doing what we were supposed to be doing.”

William nodded. His gaze was fixed onto the wall beside them, he couldn't seem to move it away. 

He just hoped that Tide didn't talk to Dakota about it because of their talk last night. 

“It seems like you and Vyncent were doing just fine.”

Dakota bounced on his heels. His arms swung, and then returned to a stable position- like he couldn't keep still, but he knew that he had to try, for a conversation like this. Despite initially feeling tense, William's shoulders slumped, and relaxed. It was either his super energy making him so hyper- or maybe, just maybe, he didn't want to have this conversation much more than William did. Maybe William wasn't the only one that was so nervous.

“I wasn't supposed to go after the villain. And I brought you both with me. So.” His shoulders rolled with a shrug. “And I wasn't- I just didn't want you getting hurt.”

“It was hardly a threat.” William winced, “It was just some… guy in a frog suit.”

“Point is- I don't know. We got a long way to go, and you need some extra help. So… I'll help you out.”

“Okay..?”

Dakota finally looked up at him.

“It's early. Vyncent’s not gonna be awake for a while… I thought we could get some training in early, before you had to go to work.” He beamed, like it was an amazing idea, “Just you and me- some one-on-one time, to make sure you're ready for the next time.”

And, even though it was the absolute last thing that William wanted to do, he still found himself agreeing to it.

-

The two of them stood in the empty training room.

Usually, Tide would have music playing for them- generic pop music from the radio that William never really liked, but listened to anyway. But this time, since Tide wasn't there to oversee their training, Dakota was the one in charge of the music-

And even though William wasn't really a fan of the hip-hop blasting through the speaker either, he had to say that it was much better. Clearly, Dakota thought so as well- bouncing on his feet along with the beat, and somehow becoming much more energized because of it.

“Alright- William-” He was grinning, shaking out his arms to stave off some of the energy, and William straightened up. “I used to be really- skinny, and weak too. Before my Sensei whipped me into shape.”

“Okay?”

“I'll get you lifting buildings in no time.”

Their training wasn't much different from Tide's. Dakota did stretches alongside him, watching him attempt push-ups, and sit-ups… and then immediately regretting it, when William tried sitting up, and he felt his head rushing so much that he immediately fell back down.

“Come on- my Master had me doing 100 push-ups a day, when I was as scrawny as you!” 

“Did your Master hate you?” William tried, but the sentence mostly came out as an incomprehensible wheeze.

Dakota frowned. “Or… I think it was 300, after the first day, actually… More complaining means more push-ups!”

William sighed, and wondered if he punctured a lung, somehow. So Dakota let him rest a bit.

But when William sat up a couple minutes later, and tried retreating to his room, Dakota grabbed the collar of his shirt, and dragged him away from the door- ignoring the indignant choking noise William let out, from the half-second his airflow was cut off.

They moved on from standard exercise, over to a spot in the training room that had bouncy floor matts- elevating William with every step of his feet, and making him feel slightly unsteady.

Dakota seemed unphased. “Vyncent and I have been sparring- and I've noticed that you never get involved.”

“I can't fight, Dakota.”

“And you can't get better if you don't practice.” He said resolutely, “You can't be that bad. Come on- try to hit me.”

Dakota kept his guard up, as if William's weak punches could do anything to hurt him.

“...” So William tried.

When his fist connected with Dakota's forearm it did so with a quiet impact. Dakota didn't even move, at first, and after a pause, he wondered if he even felt it at all. It was so terrible, in fact, that Dakota put his guard down immediately, and looked at him like he was- sad? Disappointed? He couldn't tell.

“...was that your-”

“That was my best.” William cut him off, shaking his hand, since it was starting to ache. “That was me at full power.”

Then, William noticed, Dakota looked a little more understanding- like he finally understood why William would much rather run away from his problems, than face them head-on.

“Okay, well- first of all, I'm not really a punching guy either. That's more Vyncent’s thing. So by my standards, it was a good first attempt.”

“Okay.” William couldn't help but feel like he was lying to him about that…

“But with punches, the whole point is you gotta follow through with it-” Dakota demonstrated really, really slowly. And yet, William still winced through the impact, like he was worried it'd hurt. “Follow through- don't just stop when you hit my arm. Okay? Try again.”

William did so. Follow through.

“Again.” Follow through. “Again.” Follow through. “Again.” Follow through-

-

William's whole arm was aching by the end of it.

They retreated early because William told him that he needed to get ready for work- but William didn't have work that day. Nor did he have work the next day. He just didn't want to do all of this, while he was already feeling so terrible.

With nowhere to go, and not wanting to continue his training, he ducked into Vyncent’s room, and quietly shut the door behind him.

“Room for one more?” He asked, but it was so quiet that it was barely audible.

Vyncent seemed surprised to find him in there, but after William explained that he'd been training all morning, and that he needed a place to hide, Vyncent seemed to understand it as well. (William didn't have to explain much, either. Maybe it was because he was still sweating, and flushed- or the fact that his arm hurt, and he couldn't seem to keep his own hand off it- whatever it was, Vyncent agreed to let him hide in his room for the next couple hours.)

They watched movies in silence. Still staying in the fantasy genre for a bit, since it seemed like Vyncent was mostly just interested in those sorts of movies. After the second one, Vyncent said that he was running out of movies to watch, and asked for recommendations. William (not having the heart to say that he wasn't really a fan of the fantasy genre, and was only watching these to hide from Dakota) brushed it off by saying that he preferred old, boring movies.

“Did you ever want to start watching movies in the other room? It's got a bigger screen.” William asked- not encouraging, but just genuinely curious. “If you asked Tide, you could probably get him to set it up for you.”

If he had the time, William reminded himself. 

He didn't expect Tide to be around all the time, but after a while, it seemed like the superhero was getting a little too busy for them- which meant that talking to him was rare. (It also meant that training times and sleep schedules were being dictated by three teenagers, who likely didn't have to keep track of that sort of thing beforehand.

William was doing fine. Dakota always woke up early, so he was probably going to bed at a reasonable time. Considering how late he stayed up with Vyncent that one night, he was more worried about him than anyone else.)

Vyncent ducked his head, “I like it in here. It's quieter.”

“It's only loud out there whenever Dakota's there.”

Vyncent didn't really laugh. But he exhaled through his nose, and his eyes crinkled, like he was smiling. So William sat up a little. For some reason, getting an almost-laugh out of him made William just a bit more confident.

“Maybe I'll try when he's not home.” Vyncent said, and William nodded along. 

“Or you could try your chances at a movie theater. But I don't know if you'll have the money for that…”

Vyncent looked at him, blank-faced, and asked, “What's a movie theater?”

And so, William tried his best to describe them in a way that would make it sound appealing. Because, sure, there were lots of people around them, and sometimes if they brought kids in there, it was difficult to get them to stop crying- but the screens were massive, the sound was in good quality, the snacks were okay, and the seats were… there.

He tried pivoting the subject. 

Back in Deadwood, he and his friends would try to sneak snacks into the theater (for fun, he told Vyncent, since he didn't want to say that the real reason was because the food was always so expensive). And, one time, one of his friends just stuffed all their candy down the front of his jacket, and they almost made it past the front- but his jacket was noticeably lumpy, and everytime they walked around, you could hear it moving around, so they got caught, and had to throw it all away.

Maybe it wasn't that funny. William was just caught up in how hard he and his friends were laughing in the moment, when his friend started waddling past the concession stand, and how much harder he was laughing when his friend got caught, and had to turn over the front of his jacket, and dump out all the candy they brought.

He saved something. They all had to share it, but still, as he retold the story, William had a bright smile on his face-

And it dimmed a bit, when he looked over, and saw that Vyncent just scrunched up his nose a little.

“That sounds awful.”

“Which- part?” William asked, a little nervously.

“Just being in a place like that. Not your friends- they sound… cool. I guess.”

“Hm.” William certainly didn't feel cool.

“...why did he put the candy in his jacket? Can't you bring in a bag?”

“They could've checked the bag.”

“Why?”

“Just in case- to make sure you're not bringing in something dangerous.”

“Do people normally bring in things that are dangerous?”

“No. Because they check the bags.”

Vyncent nodded, like he understood. But he wasn't quite done asking.

“Can't you go invisible?” Vyncent then asked, “Why didn't you bring the candy in?”

“I couldn't. That was a long time ago- I didn't have my powers back then.”

A pause.

“How'd you get your powers?” He asked, quietly.

William knew that he must've looked alarmed at the sudden subject change. And at first, he almost didn't answer his question.

“I died.” 

Vyncent didn't look like he understood it any further.

“You came back?”

“Yeah. I think so.”

“...alright.”

The rest of that movie was watched in silence.

But because William was still hiding, he stayed for the next few ones- and didn't leave Vyncent's room until some time had passed, and he could act like he just came back from work.

-

Dakota was the sort of person that liked to take things at face value. 

He didn't really keep close track of things, and whenever William said he was doing something, he didn't see him leave the base, but he didn't care to think too hard about it. And thus, William and Vyncent were able to stay under the radar for the most part.

Dakota found out eventually that William was skipping ‘essential training time’ to go and watch movies with Vyncent. Not because he wondered why William picked up more shifts after he only insisted on working part-time, or even noticing when he came home- Dakota didn't even happen to walk into Rusty’s, while William wasn't on shift, just like he feared he would.

It was because, one day, he decided to walk into Vyncent’s room, and saw them in there with him.

And, so, he came up with a new idea. After stretching, instead of jumping into sparring, William was asked to run a few laps around their base.

“When I was still in training, I ran seven miles every single morning!” Dakota said, as he slowly jogged alongside William- not in a boasting manner- but it didn't make William feel any better, nonetheless. He didn't even sound out of breath. “But when I was still playing soccer, for practice, we'd only have to run two-”

“Dakota-” William wheezed out.

“You're only running half of one!” Dakota bounced on his feet, and picked up the speed, “Come on- steady pace- come on!”

-

It didn't just stop with running half a mile.

Dakota thought that running around the warehouse a couple times was boring, and so, he encouraged William to start running around town instead, even though William wasn't from around there. (And, preferably, didn't want to run around the same town where his potential new classmates would be hanging around in.)

Dakota assured him that it'd be fine, and that he'd be with him the whole time-

And then, not even five minutes later, Dakota patted his pockets, and loudly announced that he left something at home. And before William could complain, Dakota was off in a flash- the breeze from his run pushing into William's face, and blowing his hair back.

The minute he was gone, William stopped jogging. Took a few deep breaths-

And then realized that he had no idea where he was. Or where Dakota wanted him to go. He could probably make it back to the base, if he really tried- but, at the same time, he was tired, and he was close to a park that had a few benches on it.

It was a hot day. It didn't take much to convince himself to collapse onto one of those benches.

-

He almost fell asleep on the bench.

Then, a breeze flew past his face- and, behind his eyelids, he noticed that something was blocking the sun.

When William finally pried his eyes open- squinting, and still needing to hold his hand near his eyes to block the light- he saw the faint outline of Dakota's head, with the sun shining brightly around the edges of his silhouette. 

William scowled. And as Dakota’s calloused hand wrapped around his arm, he almost started crying.

“Come on…”

Dakota hoisted him up immediately. William stood, then his knees buckled a little- and even though Dakota easily swept under his arm, and prevented him falling over.

“I wasn't even gone for that long!” Dakota tried, keeping his arm slung over his shoulder, to keep him from falling over, “Come on- just a little more to go.”

“I'm done.” William announced firmly. “I- don't think my legs are working properly anymore…”

If it weren't for Dakota supporting him, and keeping him upright, he probably would've fallen over. He felt horribly unsteady. And, really, he didn't have to do all this if he didn’t want to.

“William…”

“I have work tomorrow.” Dakota gave him a look, “No, I actually do- and I don't want to stumble around the whole time…”

“We still have to get back to the base.”

“I'll just- give me a minute. I'll be a minute…”

Dakota rolled his eyes, and sighed- but William could see that he didn't really look annoyed.

“Come on, I'll carry you back.”

“What- okay.” He was already looking around William- and, really, he didn't mind being carried, if it meant that he didn't have to move. “Sure.”

Dakota kneeled down, hooked his arms under William's legs, and lifted him up as easily as he would’ve lifted up a backpack. And then, just as William thought that he was going to get an easy lift back home, Dakota shifted into place, and started sprinting at full-speed. Which was, of course, much faster than a normal human being should've been able to go- much faster than a car, in fact- but still sprinting through Rockfall on the sidewalk.

William almost couldn't hang on. In fact, if Dakota hadn't kept his grip on him steady, William probably would've fallen off- getting hit by a car on his way back, and dying for a second time, all because Dakota was too fast for him to keep up with him.

When they returned to the base, William was drunk with disorientation. Every sway, and movement from Dakota made him feel like he was seconds away from fainting- or puking, which would've been much more embarrassing. In the warehouse, and down the elevator, everything looked like it was spinning.

The inside of the base was dark, save for the light being on in the kitchen. It only helped slightly.

“Delivery!” Dakota announced to the seemingly empty base. “Oh, hey! Vyncent! What are you doing out here?”

Then Dakota turned around, leaned back, and unceremoniously dumped William onto the couch, right next to Vyncent. Aside from rolling over, and letting his arm hang off the couch cushion, William didn't really move. William was sprawled out on the couch, and he didn’t open his eyes until he felt a finger poking at the back of his head.

“What did you do to him…?” Vyncent asked, cautiously. 

“We were training.” When William's eyes peeled open, he saw Dakota- backing up into a room, eyes on Vyncent, as he said, “You're next. Vyncent.”

“I'll see you when the movie's over, Dakota.” Vyncent said in a similar tone, and Dakota visibly cheered, as he was walking away.

After Dakota left, there was a brief pause. Then, seconds later, William's staring at the wall was interrupted by Vyncent leaning over, and trying to get a good look at his face. Today, he had a much more pleasant look on his face, eyes a little wide, and staring at him curiously.

“Did you have fun?” He asked.

“I'm not moving.” William said into the couch cushion. Then, he turned his head. “Why are you out here?”

“I can barely hear you.” Vyncent complained a little, as he leaned back against the couch cushion. “Sit up.”

“No.”  

Then, soon after- displaying a sort of playful restlessness that he hadn't seen with Vyncent before- William felt that finger tapping against his head again. This time, on the top of his head, rather than the back of it

“You're growing out a few white hairs.”

“Really?” William had his hood on, usually- so the only people that could've seen it and told him were unable to. Until now, it seemed.

Vyncent kept poking. William put his own hand to the top of his head- feeling around, as if he could feel the color, but also moving Vyncent's hand away in the process, since the tapping was starting to get really annoying.

“Or you're balding.” Vyncent said, flatly, and William immediately slapped his palm over the top of his head.

“Dude!” He wasn't balding- his hair was just fine!

“I can't tell-”

Immediately- with one hand covering the top of his head- William started to sit up. After Vyncent put a hand on his arm, he was further helped up into a sitting position. For a second, he glared at Vyncent- one hand still covering the top of his head- and in his display, Vyncent's face twisted, like he was trying to avoid laughing.

“Maybe it's gray hairs. From stress, Vyncent.”

“Of course.”

“Stress that you both are putting me through.” He pressed, further- that slight anxiety from making a potentially bad joke ebbing away, as Vyncent's smile crept upward.

“I don't know why you're training with him so much.” Vyncent then relented, leaning back against the armrest. Eventually, William gave up the bit, and mirrored his relaxed demeanor. “I just get by with standard training, and sparring. And, even then…”

“You don't knock him out in one punch?” He asked, coyly.

“I apologized for that. One.” Vyncent clicked his tongue. “And two… he's way too fast.” He gestured to the room Dakota was in, “You try sparring with him- you'll see.”

“He's gonna knock the shit out of me…” William whispered, quietly horrified at the very thought of an actual sparring match with him. Then he kept talking, voice lowering with every word, “I think I've had enough for the whole week- or month, or year- but, knowing him, we'll be outside again tomorrow. I don't even know why we're doing this, or why my limbs haven't fallen off yet-”

Midway through his ramblings, Vyncent frowned. “Why are you doing all of this, all of a sudden?”

William shook his head. He spoke up a little, as well. “He offered. So I took it.”

“But… Do you want to train this much?”

Vyncent's tone was suddenly serious.

It made William want to change his demeanor as well. He sat up, and tried to mirror Vyncent yet again- but no matter what he did, he still couldn't come across as confident, and cool as he wanted to. He was just… nervous.

“Um- no- but… but I don't not want to. You know..?” That didn't seem to be the answer he was looking for. William panicked further. “On the mission, I wasn't… as good as I could've been. And if I want to catch up with the rest of you, I'll have to work twice as hard.”

Vyncent’s frown just deepened. He leaned his head against his hand, and leaned further back into the couch.

“That's not going to happen as soon as you want it to.” He said bluntly, but before he could interject, Vyncent said, “I've been training like this for years. Long before I came to Prime. And Dakota’s likes keeping active. So we're at an unfair advantage.”

“...so I have to catch up.”

Vyncent rolled his eyes.

“We're not becoming superheroes tomorrow. And we weren't supposed to fight anyone, so stick with standard training. Do not trust Dakota with knowing your limits.”

It was blunt, and maybe a bit harsh, but William could tell that it was being said with the best intentions. 

He was in a lot of pain. And even though Dakota could relate to feeling like him ages ago, William wasn't a super-being that had super muscles. He couldn't lift hundreds of pounds with ease, or run 60 miles an hour- he could hardly make it a quarter of a mile, without getting breathless, and needing to stop- so they were going to be on even playing fields. And maybe, even if Dakota thought it was easy, his scale for what was easy was broken.

Maybe William could take it easy.

“Thanks, man.”

Vyncent looked back at the movie, but he never stopped looking tense.

“There's nothing worse than being forced to do something like this, if you don't want to.”

It was easy to get a bad read on Vyncent, and to think that he was especially annoyed at him- but then, if you peeled that back, looking past his facial expressions and actually talking to him, William noticed that there was a little more to it.

Uncertainty. A sort of nervousness that William could relate to. Maybe a homesickness that he could also relate to- even if it could never be as intense as what Vyncent was feeling, they were both a little out of their element. (Even though with Vyncent, sometimes, it was difficult to tell- unlike William, he didn't have much trouble looking stoic, so long as he didn't talk. He wished he could've had that sort of air of confidence about himself.)

William was smart enough to pick up on the fact that the sentiment wasn't completely aimed towards him, and his feelings. 

Vyncent's eyes were distant, and yet glued on the screen- and he was glaring at it, like he was trying to recall something.

“Do you think you're cut out for it?” William asked back.

“Training?” 

“Just… Hero-work in general.”

Vyncent scowled, like it wasn't even a question. “I know I am.”

“Do you want to be?” William asked, a little awkwardly.

“...” Vyncent side-eyed him. Then, he said, “I don't know. But it's nice here, and I'm doing well. So I'll stay.”

William wished he could've said the same for himself.

-

The next day- for the first time in a long while- William spotted Dakota walking in through the door at Rusty's in the middle of his shift

As soon as Dakota spotted him behind the register, William held his hands up, in a surrendering position. 

“I'm working, I promise.”

Dakota rolled his eyes, but walked over- standing right behind the counter.

“Just making sure…”

“You can't be here if you're not paying for anything.”

“Says who?”

“My manager.”

Dakota looked around. There was Some gum, and chapstick near the register- and so, he took some strawberry chapstick, and looked at it closely for a second.

Dakota then put the chapstick on the very end of the conveyor belt, laid it down flat, and spun it. It moved slowly. And even as William tried to reach it, or bring it closer with the conveyor belt, Dakota would take it away at the last minute, and reset its progress. Looking at William, like this was a fun challenge between them, and not the most tedious job he's ever done.

“Why are you here, Dakota?” William asked, when he took it away again.

“I'm buying chapstick.” William gave him a look. Dakota relented, “And to see if you're actually working today.”

Dakota took it away again. William scowled.

“What about before that- when I first started working here? Why'd you come over so much?

Dakota huffed. It almost reminded William of the sort of sad sigh that dogs would give for no reason in particular.

“I was bored.” 

He wished that there were people behind Dakota to rush him. Or, he wished his manager- who was only a couple years older than him- would come around the corner, see Dakota messing with him, and politely ask Dakota to leave the store.

But, unfortunately, Dakota came in on a very slow day, and his manager was taking a break. (And, knowing his luck, he'd likely stay on his break until Dakota left.)

“You don't have anywhere else to go?” William tried taking the chapstick, and his fingers barely brushed it, before Dakota took it away, and reset its progress. “It's a big city- you could go anywhere you wanted to go…”

“I wanted to see you.”

“Why?”

Dakota shrugged.

“Vyncent's not really… social. He doesn't like leaving his room, and he doesn't really talk to me outside of training, or sparring.”

William's eyebrows furrowed. 

He knew that Vyncent was closed-off, but sometimes, those two would play video games together- sitting on the couch in the living room, with William constantly sneaking around behind them- and William knew that it wasn't an indicator of how close they were. But to him, and anyone else on the outside looking in, it was easy to guess that they got along well enough.

(William only really talked to him while watching movies, though. And even though watching that many movies would have indicated that they were close, William wouldn't have called them close at all.)

“I'm not very sociable, either.” He ended up saying.

Dakota shook his head, like the very thought of it was ridiculous. “No. You're not.”

“Then why keep coming back?”

Then, Dakota looked a little… guilty.

“When you told Tide you had a job interview, I thought it was just something you said to get out of training.” Dakota looked down at the chapstick, right as it reached its destination. Then, he looked back up at William expectantly. “At first, I just wanted to check in. Then, I just… Kept coming back.”

“And now?”

“I don't know.”

William swallowed dryly.

“I wouldn't dream of it.” William then said. Dakota gave him another look, “I promise, this time. No more slacking.”

“Good.” Dakota beamed, and William winced a little, “I like having you on our team, William. I'd hate to see you falling behind.”

William felt his face soften, eyebrows upturned. This whole time, he was convinced that Dakota hated him- but, maybe, for once, William was just looking into things wrong. And maybe, even though he wasn't all that good at training, or being a hero…

The positive thoughts melted as quickly as they'd come, and he knew that his face must've matched it. 

As he tried taking the chapstick, and Dakota similarly tried reaching for it, there was a sudden spark of blue, and Dakota immediately ripped his hand away..

Then, William finally took it, and scanned it.

“1.75.” He said smugly.

“Can you spot me?” Dakota grinned sheepishly, when William's face pinched, “I'm kinda broke right now.”

-

William felt a familiar impulse. The same one that got him stuck in this mess in the first place- the urge to leave.

Everything still hurt from the extra training with Dakota, to the point where had to skip basic training, and he was considering calling in sick to work. Overall, he was miserable- and deep down, yet resurfacing, was that urge to go back home, and stay in his room for another couple of days.

But the last time he acted on those sorts of urges, he ended up getting in trouble, and told off…

So instead, he tried to sort his feelings out. William pulled out a notebook, one of many he'd use for school, and he started journaling. At first, he was just jotting his feelings down- his frustrations, and homesickness- and every time he turned to a new page, he ripped the previous one out, tore it, crumpled it, and then threw it over to the trashcan on the other side of the room.

It helped a lot more than he would. Eventually, the writing changed- and soon, he found himself writing a hypothetical letter.

For some reason, even if the thought of leaving was still on his mind, William was having trouble seeing what leaving would look like. As much as he felt out of place, he wasn't callous enough to leave without a word, or frustrated enough to tell them that he wanted to leave, and sometimes, it was their fault…

He told Tide because he was in charge of taking care of them. For the other two… well, if he left, he'd have to write them a letter, of some kind. Something personal.

He tried. Once, twice- each attempt getting torn out, crumpled, and thrown away. No matter what he tried, he couldn't seem to say anything good, for his own standards. It was all too stilted, or awkward, or rambly…

In one particularly long letter, William found himself getting completely off topic. Talking about how, if they still wanted to be friends, or if they were free, then they could call or write to William whenever he wanted… he just couldn't stay, since he wasn't as fit as they were to be superheroes. Just an unfortunate fit, but otherwise, good company…

I'd need a win, he wrote, I need to prove myself…

And when he was done writing it, he stared at it a little too long, and threw it a little too hard towards the trash can. 

Unfortunately, it didn't make it in. For once, he hit the wall, and it landed perfectly on his desk. At the same time, as soon as the balled-up letter landed, William's door opened.

To his relief, it was Vyncent's head poking in. And, as soon as he saw that William was awake, he pushed the door open further, and even stepped inside.

“Dakota said you guys weren't training today.”

“We'll be back at it some other day.” William assured him, quietly. He felt a lot better now, admittedly. “What's up?”

“Wanna watch a movie?”

He didn't even consider it- he knew that he'd need the distraction. “Yeah.” 

William slowly got up, and dragged one of his thinner blankets along with him. 

He left his room, sat on the couch, and stayed there for at least half a minute before he realized that Vyncent wasn't following him. And when he looked over, he saw that the door to his room was wide open, but there was nobody in sight. He wasn’t standing in the doorway, or on his way…

He waited another minute before he stood up, and walked around the couch. From where he stood, he could just see Vyncent's back.

“Vyncent?”

Vyncent snapped his head around. Eyes wide, and eyebrows raised, almost acting like he was a deer caught in a car’s headlights.

William didn't see anything off about him. Vyncent seemed to recover rather quickly, standing up straight, and smoothing his face out… so William thought nothing of it. He was likely just startled.

He walked out with his hands stuffed in his pockets, and with his head low. And, before William could ask what kind of movie he wanted to see, Vyncent abruptly said, “I want to try going to a movie theater today.”

“Oh- really?” At Vyncent's nod, William started walking to his room again, “Why- anything you want to see specifically?”

“I just wanted to try it.” He said, a little stiffly.

And, despite himself, William found his chest getting a little lighter.

-

Since Dakota was out, it was just the two of them navigating the streets of Rockfall, and trying to find the theaters. 

On the way, they came across a store selling candy, and Vyncent suggested sneaking something in. And while it was a good idea, Vyncent tried stuffing his selection down his shirt before they even made it to the register- and William had to get involved, before an employee saw.

They showed up 20 minutes early to a showing of a movie with an interesting title, and they sat through the previews- with Vyncent sheepishly admitting after a while that he thought that the movie had already been playing, and that it was all just boring.

Overall, Vyncent did just fine.

The theater wasn't that full, so it wasn't too overwhelming. He had his headphones on the whole time, hands slightly cupped over them, like he was trying to block out even more sound… or, maybe, it was just a nervous habit, and he was just doing it to soothe himself.

Either way, every time William looked over, he saw that Vyncent was far too entranced in the movie to really do anything else- like drink his soda, or eat their candy and popcorn- and some part of William mourned being unable to talk to him during the movie, because of that…

But another part of him was happy that Vyncent got to experience it at all.

At the end of it, when they were leaving, Vyncent took his untouched soda, and brought it with him on the walk home.

“Did you like it?”

“...yeah?” At William's look, he elaborated, “I didn't really get the movie. But it was fine. I liked it.”

His tone was neutral. Stiff. William didn't get anything from it.

“...”

“...” Vyncent's eyes shifted to look over at him. Then, he cracked. “Next time, let's stay in.”

“Deal.” William said, and he laughed.

-

The last weeks of summer passed by slowly.

He would train with Dakota almost every day, even though it didn't last very long. Then he'd work. And during his free time, if he wasn't hiding away in his room, he was hanging out with Vyncent.

William wouldn't say things were better… But they were certainly different. (He also wouldn't say that any of them were close by any means, but he also wasn't as distant with them as he was with his coworkers.)

All in all, in terms of whether or not he should leave, William was still unsure.

But it was still nearing the end of the month. 

And he still promised Tide that he'd have an answer for him by then.

…and he did say that if he was still unsure, then it wasn't worth dragging out, and that he'd just end up leaving anyway. So, technically, he guessed that he already had an answer for him.

He was leaving.

He had a good run. Somewhat. He ended up liking Vyncent and Dakota a lot more than he thought he would. But William refused to be the victim of the sunken cost fallacy (or, alternatively, the victim of a gross supervillain that wanted to kill him dead), so it was unfortunate, but inevitable.

…

But he couldn't get rid of the sinking feeling in his gut. One that, eventually, would probably lead to him sinking through the floor, and into the basement.

He had months to consider, and at the last minute, he was worrying that it was moving too fast. So William put his shoes on, pulled over his hoodie, and intended to go on a calming walk, to let himself properly think about what he wanted to do, in the end.

Just as he looked out at his room- surveying it, and thinking about how much he'd have to pack, and what he'd have to say to Tide, and everyone else- the door to his room opened up quietly behind him.

He didn't even know that it was open until Dakota's unmistakable voice sounded behind him.

“Hey man.”

William screamed.

His nerves felt like they were on fire, as Dakota stepped out from around the corner- like William just got caught doing something he wasn't supposed to- but then, he realized that he wasn't really doing anything wrong. He was just standing there. Perfectly fine, normal activity.

“Hey?”

Vyncent was right behind him. Maybe not with him, but still looking in curiously.

Dakota opened his mouth, and loudly inhaled- just on the verge of saying something- but his eyes fitted down to his shoes.

“Are you going out?”

William already had his shoes on. And his hoodie on. If anything, it would've looked suspicious if he said no.

“...yes. I’m just… going on a walk.”

“Really? It's past curfew.”

He laughed, and he knew painfully well that it sounded too suspicious. 

“I sneak out. All the time.” William shoved his hands into his pockets, “You know- like- going to parties, and all that. I used to do it all the time. I love sneaking out.”

“You just don't seem like the type to like that sort of thing.” Dakota said, and he shrugged, like William's lie was actually believable.

William felt his palms getting clammy. “Really? I- I was. Very popular back home. Love parties. And people. And all of that. Um.” William sniffed.

Dakota's face relaxed.

“Good! I was just about to ask you. Bring something warm, we're going out tonight.”

Vyncent looked down, like he was thinking about it. William's eye twitched a bit.

“Where- what? Tonight? From- here?” 

“Where else?”

“Where?”

He was looking over at Vyncent- but Vyncent very quickly shook his head. He didn’t know anything more about this, either.

“Just going around the block. For fun. Nothing too crazy.”

William didn't know if he meant around the literal block, or around the entirety of Rockfall. He knew Dakota sometimes had trouble differentiating that- and that meant running a little more than half a mile, before he realized that Dakota's distance was off, when he wasn't thinking too much about it.

“If Tide finds us sneaking out, won't he call the police? Or the… Prime Force?”

William tried to see the logistics of it in his head. Would they get horribly punished? Demoted? Would they want to find out?

Dakota waved his hand, “Pft- that's if we get caught.”

“What makes you think we won't get caught?”

“Tide has a curfew, but he's only really around to feed us, and check up on us during the day. But we've already eaten, and it's almost 10- so what are the chances he's gonna go looking for us right now?”

“That's a good point.” Vyncent said, in a weird tone that made it difficult for William to tell if he was joking or not.

“He's probably asleep, or something- and if we come back before he wakes up, then we'll be fine! Right?”

“When does he wake up?” Vyncent asked, and for a moment, Dakota looked genuinely puzzled.

“We'll just… we won't stay out that late. But we'll still go out. Tonight. Come on.” He gestured to the door with his head, “Please.”

William rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.

“I don't know…” Dakota pouted, and William felt a little bad. “Why do you even want to go out tonight? We had two months to break the curfew.”

Vyncent shrugged, but William could tell that he was more on Dakota's side. Suddenly, the guy that had trouble going outside all on his own wasn't so opposed to it. 

And for what?

“Summer's almost over- after tomorrow, we're not going to get to stay out all night, and-” Dakota paused, like he was struggling to come up with the words, “We can't- have fun, after tomorrow.”

William didn’t feel the need to remind him that he still had weekends, and breaks to look forward to. He also didn't have the heart to tell him that he probably wouldn't be there to have fun with him.

“So?”

“So?” Dakota repeated, “Let's have some fun tonight.”

He and Vyncent shared a look. Even if they were thinking different things, it was clear that they were both trying to weigh the pros and cons of going out that night. 

William had to get his sleep schedule in order. But that was a poor excuse.

Just a few minutes ago, he thinking about whether or not he was going to buy the appropriate train and bus tickets, and call his parents to let them know that he was going home early- all while wondering how to tell his roommates that the program wasn't something for him, and that he was quitting before he could disappoint them again-

But he never made it that far, did he? 

He was still in his pajamas, with his hoodie pulled over it. His clothes were still strewn about, and his laptop was still on his desk, with its charger being somewhere in his room… and, usually, he wouldn't forget something like that. He could recall it just as easily as he could recall his name. But, at the same time, it just felt like pushing through a weird mental block. 

So he wasn't ready. He was still deciding, standing in that driveway, despite the fact that he decided to leave if he was still unsure. (Unsure was generous, as well. He told Tide that he was deciding, and then, he ultimately pressed himself to come to a conclusion… But at the same time, technically, it wasn't the last day of summer. Just the second to last. He said he'd decide and then leave on the very last day-

And even though he was sure that his mind wouldn't change in the span of a couple hours, he liked the sound of fun.

One more night couldn't hurt.)

“Yeah, sure.” His voice was too quiet. He cleared his throat, and repeated himself, as Vyncent looked at him a little weirdly- like he wasn't expecting him to actually go along with it.

Dakota was practically beaming. “Vyncent?”

Vyncent nodded, seemingly resigned to his fate. “Okay.”

Dakota cheered.

-

When they snuck out that night, Dakota made a big show of it.

First, they snuck out of the base- Vyncent and Dakota, in particular, walking in large strides, and trying to sneak around, while William was fine with going completely invisible, and slinking alongside them.

“Where'd William go?” Dakota whispered, as they stepped onto the elevator.

“I'm right here.” William whispered from behind them. And all of their hard work to sneak around was immediately ruined by the startled shout he let out in turn.

Vyncent and William shushed him. Then, Dakota started giggling- and despite himself, the mood lightened enough to make Vyncent join, and to make William smile along with them- only turning visible, once Dakota pressed the button to go up.

It didn't grab Tide's attention. They exited the lair quietly, and didn't start talking until they were a fair bit away.

Dakota turned around. And, while looking back at them, he finally explained what was going on.

“Alright- we're starting school tomorrow, but I realized that neither of you are actually familiar with Rockfall, since you're both…” Dakota paused, eyes mostly focused on Vyncent, “...from very far away places.”

“Okay?”

“So I'll give you guys a tour!”

-

Their first stop was a pizza place.

“This is the best pizza you’ll find in Rockfall.” Dakota announced as they left- Vyncent holding open the door, as William took the responsibility of carrying the multiple boxes he ordered, “And I have the perfect place to eat it in.”

Their next stop was the park right next to it.

There were still streetlights on, so the three of them could still see the dirt path ahead. Past a couple of trees, and a little further down, there was a playground with a few picnic benches next to it- all completely empty despite the time of year only because of how late it was.

They plopped the pizza boxes down onto the table, and sat down on the benches. Vyncent struggled for a second- his foot getting caught on the side, where the seat connected to the table itself- but then, after a while, he got it unstuck, and then sat up.

“I come here all the time.” Dakota announced proudly. “Especially at night. You can hear crickets too, if you really listen.”

Vyncent and William quieted down for a second, and very quickly heard the aforementioned crickets in the grass alongside them. It was nice, for a moment… and so long as William didn't think about how low-cut his socks were, and the potential of there being ticks in the grass… then it was nice.

“I don't think we can eat all of this by ourselves.” He poked the side of the box.

“We'll be fine.” Dakota assured him, before he popped off the top.

Dakota went right in, and took a slice. Vyncent was much more cautious, peeling it out of the box like he's never seen a pizza before, and looking over at Dakota before he also took a bite.

Meanwhile, after taking his own slice, William picked away at the meat, and put it back in the pizza box- just for Dakota to pick it up, and stack it onto his own slice. He preferred his pizza to be just cheese. And even though he could still taste the remnant pepperoni, it was much more preferable. 

William could hear Dakota kicking his legs underneath the picnic table- quietly brushing against the dirt. 

None of them talked. None of them even needed to. William couldn't remember the last time the three of them were so blissfully quiet, not because it was awkward, but because it was peaceful.

In the end, Vyncent had a couple slices. William got up to three before he looked in the box, and realized that it was empty. Dakota ate the rest of it- leaning his head into his elbow, and peacefully sighing, like he was ready to fall asleep.

William wondered what his metabolism was like. At the same time, he didn't want to know.

Vyncent turned around, and faced the empty playground. “What's that?”

“It's for kids.”

He gave it another consideration.

-

They were a little too tall to be playing in there, but that didn't stop them from trying.

Vyncent was hanging off of the monkey bars- kicking his legs up as far as he could, and effortlessly making it from one side to the other multiple times over. After another minute, Vyncent pulled himself up, and even started climbing on top of them.

William watched him nervously, for a bit. Each time Vyncent took a step somewhere that he wasn't supposed to, he felt like he was going to watch him slip, and fall… But Vyncent never did. And when he finally dropped down, it was because he wanted to get down- eyes roaming around the playground, and wondering which part he should go to next.

Without needing to worry about Vyncent anymore, William sat down on the swings. It was hung a little too low, and William's knees bent as he sat, but then, as he started pushing himself back and forth, he knew that it wasn't going to be much of a problem for long.

When William was younger, the swings used to be his favorite- and it was easy to remember why.

Every swing- back and forth, slow but speeding up- brought him up high. As he was at the highest point, his stomach would feel weightless as he descended, and he would have to kick his feet a little, to ensure that he could keep up the pace, and height.

Swings were only so limited. But also William enjoyed how controlled it all felt.

Out of the corner of his eye, in between swings, William saw Vyncent getting on something that spun around. He saw Vyncent trying it out, kicking the ground to spin. And then, as he was descending again, he saw that Vyncent was quickly turned into a purple blur, on that same ride.

The next time he descended, he saw Vyncent stumbling away from it.

William's grip on the chains tightened. Then, before he could wonder what happened, the answer became clear.

“William!” Dakota's distinct voice called out, and this time, when his stomach dropped, it was from pure dread. “I'll help you out!”

“Wait-” When he felt hands on his lower back, barely there, but ready to push him up, William's heart jumped up to his throat, “Wait- wait- wait- wait- wait-!”

William was launched into the air. Not weightless, like he hoped, but moving past that- wrapping the seat of the chair around the top of the swings. In half a second, William's grip loosened up, and he was thrown off the swings- turning intangible at the last second, before his body could connect with the play structure, and break every bone in his body.

Because of his landing, and because he was still intangible for a little while after it, William was stuck in the sand at the bottom of the play structure. But, even if there was sand in his shoes, and hoodie, and in his hair- and maybe some in his nose as well, he realized with a huff- he was alive. And when Vyncent offered him a hand, he gladly took it.

The seat of the swing was too far high up for any of them to reach- wrapped around the top tightly, and swaying in the wind- and when William walked back over, Dakota was staring at it like he was puzzled over the result.

When he turned around, he was smiling.

“Ready to keep going?”

-

Dakota then led them into the woods.

It was dark, and William had nothing but a small hand-held flashlight to light their way. And even then- despite the other two's excitement- it didn't do much.

Dakota led him further, and further- thick trees, dead leaves and branches behind constantly stepped on, leaving everything aware of their surroundings- 

“What if we get lost?” William posed to Vyncent quietly.

“I know how to survive in the woods.” Vyncent said, simply, “Stick by me, and we'll be fine.”

He didn't need to tell William twice. He stepped in a little closer.

“Guys, we'll be fine! I've done this walk plenty of times!” Dakota assured him- 

But all of his reassurances did nothing for him, as soon as Dakota turned off the beaten path. William used to love hiking. And it didn't take an expert to know that leaving the path was a horrible idea. They were likely to get lost, or in the worst case (his case, at a certain point), likely to die.

“I used to take walks like this all the time, back home.” Vyncent muttered, keeping his voice low, but leaning slightly towards William, like it was a secret for his ears only.

“Yeah?”

“Back at my home, everything's a lot more… green, year-round. But it's still… nice, here.”

“Hm.” William gave a hum of acknowledgement.

They came across a part of Dakota's path where there was an awkward dip downwards, into a steeper part of a hill. Dakota jumped off of it like it was nothing, and landed safely onto the flat ground below. Vyncent took a little more care to climb down- but then, once he was down, he held out a hand to him.

“What about you?” He asked when William took his hand, and let himself be helped down.

“What?”

“What's your home like?”

“Oh.” Back on flat ground, and back to walking, William wiped his hands off on his jacket, and laughed. Loud, and awkward, “It's, uh…”

Back in Deadwood, they had forests just like these. Dense, and unending- perfect for camping in some places, but otherwise not really worth the trouble.

William and his crew would often go prowling through the woods, holding heavier flashlights, and backpacks, and a map- always worried that they'd get lost, even if it was in the middle of the day- but always way too excited at the thought of coming across something interesting to drop it.

William felt nostalgic. Homesick. He knew some parts of the forest behind Deadwood like the back of his hand, and even though it was haunted and slightly ugly in the fall months, it was still familiar to him. (And he guessed that the only reason why he wasn't completely panicking right now was because of that familiarity.)

Familiar. Miserable. Quiet. Ugly.

The words that eventually came out of his mouth were, “It's just like this. Haha.” And Vyncent nodded along.

They came upon what Dakota wanted them to see soon enough.

There was a shed in the middle of the woods. Old, abandoned, and small- and as they drew closer, it looked less and less like a shed, and more like a box. 

But Dakota beamed at the sight of it nonetheless. 

“I have no idea where this came from, but it's been sitting here for ages…” Dakota said, as he happily bounded towards it, and as the other two followed closely behind. “It's cool- come on.”

The inside wasn't very favorable, either. There were cobwebs in every corner, and when they all went inside, they had to hug the wall, to avoid being too close to each other.

“...this isn't what I had in mind when you said you'd be giving us a tour.” William reminded him, and once he did, Dakota then seemed to remember as well-

This was hardly a tour. They were in the main city for minutes, at most, before they immediately went off course.

“We can go back to it later-” Dakota waved it off easily, “This place- it's cool. I've seen it a couple times… thought you guys would like it too.”

“It's… humble.” Vyncent added nicely.

William shined his flashlight towards the ceiling. “Define cool.”

“Imagine spending the night here… Or camping. This would be a great place to tell scary stories in.” Then, like the idea appeared only after he suggested it, Dakota took away William's flashlight, and shined it under his face to get that creepy effect. “Scary stories.” He emphasized, pulling his lips up into a creepy smile.

William took the flashlight away from him. But he wasn't completely disinterested.

“Got any in mind?”

-

The three of them, despite the way the wood creaked and groaned underneath them, sat down in a circle, and decided to hang out in the little structure.

Dakota went first, and his story was hard to keep track of.

First, he talked about a man with knives for hands. Then, in the middle of him talking about that, he clarified that it was knives for fingers- and that, maybe, it wasn’t actually a man at all, and instead a woman, with long hair, and a scary face. Every time the story went somewhere even mildly interesting- a family camping in the woods, being haunted by that lady- Dakota would suddenly remember a detail that would (hypothetically) make the story richer, and just end up talking about that instead, for the next couple of minutes. 

All the while, Vyncent and William just nodded along to it solemnly.

In the end, Dakota relented, “I- uh… forgot how the story ends, but- I think the family chased the ghost off with a gun, or something.”

“They didn't die?”

“No.” Dakota sniffed. Then, he looked at William, “What about you? Do you have one?”

“Uh…”

“I do.” Vyncent held his hands out, and in the blink of an eye, Dakota handed the flashlight over to him.

Vyncent twirled the tiny flashlight around in his hand, almost blinding William when the light shone on him for half a second, before the light shined under Vyncent’s chin, and produced that same, eerie lighting effect. 

When Vyncent was young, something creepy happened to him.

Vyncent was home, along with his mother one night. And as she was cooking dinner, she heard the sound of something scratching against the door. And in his world (which Dakota repeated curiously, as if Vyncent hadn't brought it up to him before), it wasn't uncommon for strange animals to run amok. Especially at night.

The main problem was that those animals would somehow find their way into the yard, and eat their vegetables, or their chickens. And, usually, with nobody to chase them off, then they'd have less food for the next day. So, if his mother was too busy, she'd have little Vyncent poke his head out, and make sure that their animals were okay.

Most of those animals were terrified of people, so all Vyncent would have to do is get the broom, make some noise, and they'd leave their animals alone.

On that night he went outside, and at the sound of one of their animals crying out, he immediately jumped to action- hooting, and hollering, before he realized that it didn't sound anything close to a chicken at all. In fact, as he searched around the farm, he realized that it was coming from a cow.

When Vyncent jumped up on the fence to get a better look at it- having to climb, and struggling to keep his balance- he saw that one of their cows was being eaten. Not by any normal predator, though.

It was a rat.

It was the size of a normal rat (Vyncent held his arms out to demonstrate how big the rat was, and William shuddered- it might as well have been the size of a small house cat) but as it crawled away from the cow it killed, Vyncent could see it, and hear it. It was spitting- or heaving- when it wasn't eating, and it was moving in small, erratic movements…

And when it saw Vyncent, it froze completely. Then, with another hackle, it started chasing him.

“It was like nothing I’ve ever seen before- it looked possessed.” Vyncent gushed, waving his hand in front of his face, “There was nothing behind his eyes.”

It attacked him. Vyncent showed off the scar to prove it- a deep indent in his calf, like whatever it was just took a massive chunk out of his leg- and no matter how many times he tried hitting it with the broom, it refused to go down.

Eventually, the screaming and crying made his mom get involved, and she saved him from that horrible creature.

“I was bedridden for a month. Got a fever, almost died…” He reported miserably, “And one of our cows died! And we couldn't even find it- or kill it!”

Vyncent, apparently, heard that thing many times after the incident- chattering, and spitting in the night, like it was angry. Sometimes, he heard scratching outside of his window, and even if he pressed his face against the glass, and tried to see what was going on, he couldn't find it.

In Vyncent's young mind, that thing’s appetite had completely changed after it bit him, and tasted his blood- and he was convinced that it was trying to come back to finish him off.

Dakota, seemingly entranced by the story, drew a little closer. “Did it try again?”

“No. But we never saw it after that. So.”

Then, the flashlight shined onto William's face- and even though he'd been struggling to come up with something for the past half an hour… he felt like he finally had something to tell.

He took a deep breath, accepted the flashlight, and shined it under his face- trying his best to keep his hands as steady as he could make them, as he spoke.

William had this old house at the end of his road that none of the other neighbor kids liked.

As a kid, it was easy to rile him up, and Deadwood was a small enough town- 

“Deadwood?” Dakota repeated, with his eyebrows raised. “That's where you're from? William Wisp- from Deadwood?”

William didn't think it was all that strange. “Yeah?”

Dakota giggled. 

“Your life is so perfect, dude…”

With an eye roll, and a pause to ensure that Vyncent wasn't going to jump in with his own two cents to add, William continued.

Deadwood was a small town. So when one of the other kids talked about this haunted house… everyone knew what he was talking about. And even though his ability to see ghosts hadn't fully settled in yet, he still got inklings.

They'd tell stories about how she was a witch, poisoning the other kids in the neighborhood. Nobody would come by her place to trick or treat, or she'd eat the kids right where they stood on the doorstep- and if you picked flowers from the unkempt bushes around her house, or borrowed something without her permission, then you'd get cursed, and die.

Those same kids would have fistfuls of flowers in their hands- shoving them in little William's face, trying to get the curse off of them and onto him, even though he was horribly well behaved… 

Suffice to say, he was scared of the house.

Every time he drove with his mom mom, usually going to the store, William would duck his head down as they passed, and pretend that it wasn’t there.

And once he started walking to school, he tried leaving early, and taking paths to avoid walking past it- but after a few late passes, and a lecture from his mom, William started using the street to walk past. And despite himself, every time he walked past, he would see the woman who lived there.

She was old. Her posture was abysmal, from what he could see, and he knew he saw the sight of delicate glasses being perched on the bridge of her nose, but she'd spend those mornings and afternoons looking out the window- and no matter how many times William passed that house, she wouldn't acknowledge him. No waving, or smiling- just her eyes following him, like a creepy painting hung up on the wall.

“I remember- my friends trying to freak me out when I told them.” William said a little quietly, and even though it was so long ago, he could still feel that shiver running up his spine. “I'd be talking about the old lady, and they'd be like, what old lady? There's no old lady. That place has been abandoned for so many years…”

He showed her off, one time, when his friends walked home with him- pointing out the house across the street with the old lady- and he knew, then, without a shadow of a doubt that she was real and alive, since the others could see them too. And at the time, elementary school going into middle school, only a couple of his friends had that power.

“And I thought- she must've been going blind, or something, because there weren't any lights on in the room she stayed in, but…”

In the end, it turned out that the old lady was dead. 

Not a ghost, but instead, a body.

He didn't know how she died. He just knew that one morning, he looked down at her lawn, and wondered how someone could let it get that bad- and then, that very same afternoon, there were police officers crowding outside her door. When his parents talked about it, they said that she'd been there for a while.

Some kids said she must've been stuck to the chair that she was found in, and that it had been buried with her. William never really talked about her after it happened. A year later, a new family moved in like nothing happened, and nobody in any of William's schools brought her up ever again.

In hindsight, it was more sad than scary. That much was clear, when he was looking for approval from his teammates, and were just left with sad faces in return. (Especially that last part. Maybe William should've left out the reminder that some little kids had trouble being empathetic, and thus, turned this whole thing around, to make it more scary instead of sad.)

William's hand holding the flashlight went limp, and he frowned. 

“It… scared a lot of kids at the time. They thought she was gonna… Um… Rise from the grave… and come back…” 

Dakota, who previously looked to be deep in thought, muttered, “Such a small town, and nobody noticed?”

“Nobody checked on her.” Vyncent said in a similarly low voice.

“It wasn't for very long…” But it was a concerning amount nonetheless.

William saw her twice a day on a school day- passing by, looking directly at her through her window. Trying to wave, and getting no response… wondering why the lights were dim, and why he could barely see her face, when she was clearly sitting in front of her window. And yet, she still wasn't found until a long while later- and it was unclear how many times he saw her in that state, and was none the wiser.

(In his mind's eye, every time William tried to picture the old lady and what he saw that very morning, he'd picture that old face of the spirit in his home's basement instead. The horrible, decrepit thing that haunted his nightmares- now on a dead body, instead of hiding behind a couple pickle jars.)

Dakota shook his head, and muttered, but the only words that William heard were, “I don't know why you'd want…” before it got too quiet for him to hear the rest of it.

“I'll tell you a different one.” William tried sitting up a little straighter, “It's scarier. I promise.”

But before he could get into it, he heard the unmistakable sound of footsteps, coming up from behind him. It seemed like Vyncent heard it as well- ear twitching, and head shooting upward- and he stared at the open window, like he could get anything, from how low he was sitting.

Crunch.

William immediately turned his flashlight off. Then, he waited.

It couldn't have been an animal. The way it stepped- it was almost methodical, and purposeful. He didn't know any other way to describe it.

Then, as if to prove his point, a light shined through the open spot that was supposed to act as a window- not shining, like someone was trying to look inside of it, but shining, like it was just in someone's way. The middle of the light hugged the bottom left corner, and just to be safe, Vyncent leaned his head away from it.

Crunch. Crunch. Crunch.

William pressed himself up against the wall of the shed that was closest to the window, just so that anybody looking in would have a hard time seeing it.

His mind raced. Knife-hand lady, and rabid monster- or, more likely, just someone that owned the land, and didn't want these stupid teenagers running around on their property. Any answer to whoever this may be was still bad.

The light disappeared. They all sighed.

Then the door swung open, and the light of a much more expensive flashlight flooded in through the tiny shed.

They all screamed in one big, pathetic unison- pressed against the back of the shed, as if hoping that being as far away from the stranger as possible would ensure their safety. In fact, the minute that door opened, William's reflexes kicked in, and he went intangible in an instant- falling through the back of the shed, and tumbling down a small dip behind the shed.

Despite the initial scare, and the level-headed reactions they all had to being found, the person holding the flashlight turned out to just be a kid.

He couldn't have been older than 12- crooked glasses sitting over a stern look on his face. When William came back around, he could hear him talking to Dakota and Vyncent- and when the kid noticed that William was joining the conversation as well, he pushed his glasses up, and they fell right back down to the edge of his nose.

“This is my treehouse.” He stated, “My dad made this- our house is just over there.”

William looked back at it curiously. He thought that treehouses were supposed to be up in the trees… but, aside from that, it seemed standard. (And then, as he looked the other way, he could faintly see the outline of fences. No doubt from the backyards of a neighborhood that nobody noticed, until now.)

Vyncent and Dakota crawled out of the treehouse with their heads held down.

“Dakota…”

“I thought it was abandoned!” He ducked his head down, again, almost like he was giving the kid a small bow, “I'm sorry for causing trouble.”

The kid gave Dakota a weird look. As William was looking at him, and the flashlight, his eyes similarly narrowed.

“What are you doing out so late?”

The boy shifted uncomfortably. But, then, he seemed to figure that they were trustworthy enough.

He put a hand into his pocket, and handed over a folded piece of paper- something that must've been in there for ages, based on the slight crinkle in the paper. When William unfolded it, he saw a picture of a white cat, sitting still and staring at the camera. Above the picture in bold letters was the word MISSING.

“I'm looking for her.” He frowned, “She's an indoor cat, now, but she loves going outside- and she hasn't been home in a couple of days, now…”

“I'm sorry-”

Dakota cut in, “We can help look!”

“We can?” Vyncent asked, and Dakota just patted his shoulder. Vyncent winced at the contact.

“My gang and I- we're superheroes in training!” Dakota gestured towards them, but the kid just looked skeptical at the declaration. “If your cat is nearby, we'll find her! We got nothing else going on tonight!”

William didn't interject. He didn't feel the need to, either- this was the sort of stupid adventure he'd have back at home, with varying levels of success.

Maybe they'd continue walking around the forest together, telling ghost stories to each other while he shined his shitty flashlight in the trees, in search of a cat that was probably miles away from home.

“Fine.” The kid said, though he still sounded incredibly uncertain, “If you find her- I won't tell my dad that you were out here, in my treehouse.”

“Deal!” Dakota agreed immediately, since neither of them were interjecting.

-

Unfortunately, the three of them split up in their search. 

It'd only last for an hour at most, and if any of them got lost or worried, then they could just use their wristwatches to find each other again. (Dakota didn't have one, they learned in the same arrangement, but because of how fast he could move, it didn't matter that much if he got lost.)

William was able to borrow the good flashlight that the kid was holding, though. So even though he was walking through the woods, and he was nervous, at least he could see the path ahead of him quite easily.

It didn't do much to quell his nerves.

Flashlights were better in other places. On the road, maybe, or in a room in a house during a blackout, or an abandoned house in general- somewhere that could easily be lit up, and where everything could be easily seen, and processed. In the forest, with clusters of trees being grown together, and with no real viable path nearby, it was easy to be reminded of everything he wasn't seeing.

The gaps between trees, and the animals- or, he shuddered, people hiding behind them…

William could've told them a million different scary stories. Ones about trips in the woods with his old friends- searching for places to explore, and mostly ending up with them finding ghosts, both friendly and not. Ones that stared at them as they walked past, and ones that bolted after them with the intent of chasing them off, or possibly hurting them…

At the reminder, William hugged himself a little.

He hasn't had any real ghost encounters since he's been there. Just a couple scares, that were all largely fueled by his own paranoia, and maybe a few bad dreams… but being in the woods easily reminded him of the possibility of that happening.

William picked up the pace a little.

Then, he reminded himself that it wasn't just ghosts he had to worry about. There were wild animals. Rabid, vile ones. And there were people that could want to do him harm- even if it was less likely. And the only thing he could conceivably do to prevent anything bad from happening was for him to use his power, and hope for the best.

As he was walking- keeping his flashlight out, and his ears sharp- he heard the sound of something rustling above him. It made him freeze, something cold shooting into his chest- but he still spun around, and he pointed that flashlight to the treeline- because if it was going to be some vicious monster, he had to know what he was dealing with.

When he lit up the tree, he saw that the cat in the missing poster- Snowball- was looking right back at him.

William felt his heart leap up to his throat. He opened his mouth to say something- turning his head to see if the other two were around, since they were more capable- but he was completely alone, and likely going to have to bring the cat down himself.

“Hey. Hey.” He said, with his voice sounding so quiet that the cat probably didn't even hear it. “Pspspspsp.”

The cat flinched to look over at him, eyes squinting as it looked directly into his flashlight. 

Then- so quiet, it almost wasn't audible- William heard a very sad, “Mrow…” coming from the tree.

William sighed. With nowhere Dakota or Vyncent in sight- and, with no guarantee that the cat will stay there, or if he'll even find his way back- William knew that it'd be up to him to save the cat.

William knew that his powers had a little more to deal with, than going intangible or invisible. In some instances, if he really focused on it, he could even float.

Unfortunately, it wasn't something he used all that often. And so, as he tried to use it to get to the cat, his hand went intangible instead, and the flashlight easily clattered to the ground. William then tried to jump and do it again- but to no avail. His powers were being finicky. Nobody else was around to help, and if he left, there was no guarantee of him finding it again.

If he wanted to reach the cat, he'd have to climb.

“Okay…” He took a deep breath, and widened his stance. Bent his knees. “Okay.”

It was very easy for William to demotivate himself.

As he climbed, William thought of every self-loathing statement in the book. He was weak, and stupid- he couldn't even lift his body off the ground, and if it weren't for a few low, conveniently placed branches, he wouldn't have been able to get more than a couple inches off the ground. 

His eyes stung. His fingers prickled because of the branches sitting underneath them, poking and prodding, leaving behind cuts in his skin- he thought, at any minute, he was going to slip, and all of this stubbornness was just going to leave him at the bottom of the tree- cradling a broken arm or leg, and wishing that he never tried climbing it- but he made it to a spot that was almost comfortably sat on top.

And it was then- nearing the cat, huffing and puffing, like he ran a mile instead of doing something just about as strenuous as climbing a ladder- when he realized that there was a view to be seen, from where he was standing.

It wasn’t much. Even with his height advantage, the most he could see were the top of a few trees, a cluster of buildings from Rockfall, and the bright lights and tall structures of the distant city of New Haven, just over the horizon…

But William still found himself stopping, and hugging the tree to steady his position. Because, really, he had to admit- the view of the city was pretty fucking nice.

You wouldn’t find something like that in Deadwood unless you went hiking- stomping through badly marked trails, and unsteady territory, just in the hopes of finding some nice view of town to look at while the sun was rising. Nothing that could be properly taken on a phone, or preserved- just something that you could stick to your memory, if it was beautiful enough.

William felt a familiar fascination. Even without the sun, or the clouds, or the sky being lit up into a thousand colors- there was still a city. People. Distant sounds, muffled by the quiet breeze rushing past his ears, and blowing through his hair. There was enough light to make the sky a shade of dark blue instead of black, and yet, it wasn’t overwhelming enough to drown out the stars, either.

With a strange reinvigoration, William suddenly wondered if he could get even higher.

Not just in the treetops he was in now. He wondered if there were hills nearby. He wondered how early he’d have to leave, day or night, to catch the view of the sun setting or rising- peeking over the city, and making the view even better. He wondered if the hike would be worth it.

It’d require another night, or two- maybe even more, since he’d need to go during a time that didn’t affect his work schedule, or his early morning training- breaking the initial promise of leaving by the end of the month…

But he wasn’t entirely set on leaving, was he? He was always just unsure. And he agreed, if he was still unsure, he was going to leave, but now…

Was this a valid reason to stay? Just for a good view? After he saw that sunset, would that be it, and would he regret his decision? He didn’t know. He could leave at any time, Tide assured him. This deadline was just something he made to keep himself in check, and realistically, pushing it back wouldn’t really do anything.

So, William weighed both sides, now that it was the end of the month.

If he left, that’d be that. Maybe his mom would say a few things, but his parents weren’t petty, and they loved him more than they loved being right. He could go home, back to the familiar, and he could take some time to himself. And he’d be fine.

Or he could stay. Training in the morning, then school, and some shifts at Rusty’s. Maybe he could have some more sessions with Dakota, if he still wanted to. He could constantly keep busy, keep training- and maybe, one day, he’d be able to get a better handle on his powers. Maybe he’d get more confident. Maybe he’d get friends from his new school- more of the sort of stuff that you couldn’t get from staying in your room all day.

Maybe it was the view. Maybe it was the promise of a better one- hanging on just a little longer to see it- he didn’t know. But, suddenly, the thought of leaving was making his stomach turn.

If he did get better, everything would change. He’d be happier. It was the same want that brought him out to the driveway to begin with. And even though he wasn’t making progress as quickly as he wanted to… William was still high up in a tree. And back in Deadwood, if he tried something like this, he would’ve fallen.

It was small victories, small reasons to stay. And in his own reasoning, he hadn’t even brought up his own teammates- which he was still iffy with, notably, but as days passed, and as he saw them more and more- training, then movies with Vyncent, and then training again with Dakota- things have gotten easier.

He didn’t know if they were friends, but he had the feeling that they were getting there. It was a possibility. And if he went back to Deadwood- especially now, if they weren’t completely friends- then he was going to break off something that would be nice, just for a couple more years of being lonely.

…

William could give himself a little more time to think about it at the very least. And if he ever found himself in the driveway, or close to crossing it, then he could just leave.

For now, William had to get this cat out of the tree.

And so- with a weird, newfound determination- William climbed up the next few branches.

The cat backed away a bit as he approached- but it must've actually been stuck, because even as it turned around, and looked for new places to jump, it stayed where it was, even as William joined close by. And then, with his arms awkwardly stretched out, he reached for it-

And, initially, the cat was not having any of it. It backed up, ears low, and away from him- but then he stayed still. And as he stayed still, it grew wary. Curious. And after sniffing his hand, she carefully pressed her tiny head up against it as a show of solidarity.

William wasn't really sure how to go about handling cats. He continued petting it, and it even started rumbling, and purring- but he didn't know if it was happy, or scared… And he still had to find a way to get it down, since it was clearly scared of the height it managed.

So he held his breath. Closed his eyes for just a second, before he realized that he'd need them open- and then, slowly, cautiously, he picked up the cat.

Even through his hoodie, William could feel the cat's claws latching onto him, as well as the way its body shivered against him.

William then took in the city view one last time, before he tried descending down. 

With one misstep, and only one hand holding onto the branches, there was a crack. And then, William fell.

From that height, the only thing on his mind (despite the fear, really) was the fact that the cat would likely get hurt from everything as well. And so, instead of screaming, he let out a gasp, like the air was punched out of his lungs- and with neither of his hands holding onto the branches, he instead wrapped his arms around the cat- hoping, as he braced, that at least the cat wouldn't be injured on the way down. 

But he didn't hit the ground.

Instead, it was like he just suddenly stopped, mid-air. And when he cracked his eyes open, he realized that he was finally floating. Stopped mid-air, upside down, and hanging right in front of Vyncent, who was staring at him a little wide-eyed, and holding his arms out, like he was prepared to catch him. 

William's eyes similarly widened, but before he could say anything, the cat started wiggling around- and William remembered what he was doing. And then- with his breath being held- his body turned, and he slowly descended the rest of the way down.

As soon as his feet touched the ground, William was suddenly attacked. Not by the cat, who was starting to get a little antsy in his grasp, but by Dakota, who was suddenly set on wrapping his arms around him, and enveloping him in a really tight hug.

“Good job, William!” 

The hug itself lasted seconds, but it felt like it lasted much longer. The cat, not a fan of being squished, jumped out of his arms, and clawed at William's face in the process of escaping- but Vyncent was quick  and caught her again.

William's shoulders raised, and even after Dakota let go, that tense feeling never really left him. Maybe it was the fall, or the fresh stinging pain on his face- but his heart was still beating, and he was trying to get rid of the sick, weightless feeling that one had when falling. Or, maybe, the more embarrassing feeling of realizing that he'd been watched for a while, if they were both there to meet him at the bottom.

His face flushed. He was still breathing a little heavily, as he asked, “Were you both- here the whole time-?”

“No.” Dakota said, at the same time Vyncent said, “Yes.”

“...if you guys were here, I could've used the help.” He gestured to the scratch on his face, before he pressed his sleeve against it. He wondered how much it was bleeding- if it was even bleeding at all, right now.

“Well. It looked like you had it all under control- so why get involved, right?” Dakota's voice was weirdly stilted, and when William realized it, his eyes narrowed, “I mean- I mean, you're as capable as the rest of us.”

“Why are you talking like that?”

Dakota's eye twitched, “What? Like what?”

There was something going on.

William could feel it deep-down in his bones.

He looked back at Vyncent, who immediately turned his head when William tried meeting his eyes. The cat was perched in his arms, much happier than when William was holding him, and thankfully not trying to escape anymore.

“What's going on?”

“...”

“Vyncent?” Did not even crack. He was getting nowhere, even if he was looking away. “Dakota?”

In a matter of seconds, Dakota somehow looked more and more guilty.

Until he popped.

“You had it handled!” He repeated, voice raising, then lowering as he quickly muttered, “I thought- you'd need a win- and…”

“Why would I need…?”

William squinted. Where has he heard that before? He recognized the words. 

He thought of paper, strangely. A pen. When he looked at Vyncent, he saw him sighing, and sliding his hand into one of his pockets.

“Dude…” Dakota cut in, and it made Vyncent hesitate- but, otherwise, he still handed over whatever he'd been hiding.

The folded paper note he was holding looked like it got crumpled up and straightened a thousand times over- before, eventually, it was left to be folded over and flattened as neatly as they could manage.

William already knew what it was going to be before he opened it up, but he still ended up unfolding it in front of them- staring at the chicken scratch he wrote just a couple weeks ago, apologizing for leaving so soon, and without so much as a warning. He couldn't say it to their faces, he remembered that much- and he didn't know why he couldn't, but…

It didn't seem to matter much, now. Apparently. He couldn't even read his own writing.

He looked at Dakota, “And you knew about this?”

“I…” He looked over at Vyncent, “I heard you and Tide talking about it. Over dinner.”

It didn't take long for him to remember what he was talking about. In fact, once he did remember, William's face stung in embarrassment- and he swore that the weird feeling in his chest was almost enough to make him go invisible again.

“You both knew?”

They just knew his consideration. They didn't know that he wasn't as serious as they were, or that he was slacking off, or planning to weasel his way through the program, while the rest of them were off being- heroic- and William didn't even know what he was doing. The note- he didn't think his crazy ramblings would ever see the light of day.

Dakota and Vyncent both nodded at the same time.

“And that's why you guys have been- weird? You wanted to watch movies with me, and…” He looked over from Vyncent, to Dakota, “And you've been making me run laps around Rockfall.”

Vyncent shrugged, “I just like watching movies.” 

Like a puzzle, the pieces clicked into place rather quickly. “What about the theater?”

Vyncent kept his mouth open, like he wanted to say more, but no words came out. Maybe he was going to say something nice, and thoughtful. William didn't know. The gesture was thoughtful enough for him to reconsider Vyncent saying nothing.

When he looked back over at Dakota, he looked like a kid with his hand caught in the cookie jar. Nervous. And, maybe, a bit apologetic- but only because he got caught.

“I wanted to give you some extra help, since you said you were falling behind.”

“And- this outing?”

“You said you'd probably leave at the end of the month. I wanted you to see Rockfall before you did.” The nervousness was back, “In case you changed your mind.”

William didn't know how to feel.

On one hand, knowing that they knew the whole time- with Dakota getting a more clear and sanitized version of events, and Vyncent getting a version that was a lot more personal- made a whole lot more things make sense. No wonder they were being weird. No wonder Dakota was so insistent on having fun tonight, when he seemed to be just fine with hero training all throughout summer.

On the other hand…

William's experiences with having friends have not gone so well.

He had his old crew, and he had a few kids he recognized around school a few times- but in both cases, William's new abilities brought more trouble than it was worth. Lots of unwanted attention, from spirits and bullies alike. And as days passed, and nothing seemed to get fixed, it became increasingly clear that those friends weren't going to stick around.

Even if William got himself under control, or he went back to school, he knew that he wouldn't have the same friends he did going into it. He'd have to make new ones. And with his near inability to talk to strangers… It wasn't going to happen. All he had for himself back home was a comfort that came from nostalgia, his family, and his house. And, at first, that was all he needed.

William's face twitched, and he looked back down at the note. So perfectly preserved that there wasn't even the tiniest rip in the fragile paper. He read it, kept it, didn't say a word about it even as it seemed to affect him, and then when opportunities came to hang out, Vyncent went out of his way to take it, even though he was nervous about interacting with his new teammates.

“...”

“I wanted the chance for all of us to become friends, before you decided to leave.” Dakota's frown turned into a pout, but William could tell that the sadness was genuine. “But I don't know what you like. Or… What you’re like, really. So it's hard.”

…and then there was Dakota. Who heard the conversation with Tide, and knew that William was thinking about leaving, and joined in on the efforts of making this place easier to stay in. Even if it wasn't perfect, it was certainly thoughtful.

William closed his eyes, and sighed.

“You could've… talked to me about this.” He said, quietly, though he knew that it wouldn't have been a good or productive conversation. “I'm not going.”

At the same time, Vyncent and Dakota went from being a little sad and mopey, to sharing wide-eyed faces.

-

On the walk back home, William properly spilled his guts to the rest of the team. 

He told them all the absolute truth this time- he had no idea what he was throwing himself into, and initially, he just joined to get a better handle on his powers… but since they were mostly focusing on other things, William's hopes of getting better were getting smaller, and smaller.

He didn't know if he wanted to be a hero, much less a part of the Prime Force, of all things. It was such a big responsibility, and since joining, it's been pretty clear that he hasn't been handling it as well as the rest of them.

“Especially if… I took it since it was offered, but if someone more qualified wanted it… I don't know.”

When walking together, and doing so at a more normal pace, William noticed that Dakota had to take a few extra steps in order to keep up with them, since he was a little shorter. He didn't notice it immediately- only when he turned his head, and heard the distinct pittering of his feet against the dry ground.

“I don't think it’s- like- something you're taking away from someone else.” Dakota said, wisely. His expression betrayed him being nothing but casual. “I think they just asked you to join because of what you could do. And if you said no, it'd just be me and Vyn.”

William scowled, “Now, why would they do that?”

“They saw something in you. Like they did for us.” William couldn't even imagine what they would've seen. Dakota pressed, “What can you do?”

William thought about it.

He could go invisible, and intangible, which is what he mostly struggled with. If he thought about it really hard, he could float a little. He could leave his body-

“You can do what?!” Dakota immediately interrupted.

“It's not very helpful.” William assured him immediately, “It leaves my body defenseless. And… a little dead. I think.”

It was terrifying.

The first time he did it was- well- after he died, and it was almost enough to convince himself that he had died… and then, after that, it came sparingly. In dreams, mostly, where he'd wake up, and wonder if the out-of-body experience he had was real, or if it was just another nightmare to keep him on his toes.

At least he didn't struggle with that power, William thought. He barely functioned whenever he fell through the floor- he couldn't imagine a life where his body would spontaneously collapse, and he'd spend the whole time outside of it.

Dakota was leaning towards him.

“What else?”

William frowned.

There was one other thing he could do- or, at least, that he thought he could do.

He didn't really know how it functioned, or what it did, but…

He flexed his hands, then his fingers on them- and Vyncent and Dakota watched as something in the air flickered.

It was blue, like the wisps were the ones getting involved, and William thought of a shape (a sphere, simply, with all of its dimensions) and then, suddenly, a bright blue orb appeared in the middle of nowhere- and as he strained, he could keep it there for just long enough for them to see. It didn't light up the path. It didn't do much of anything.

And then, as quickly as it'd appeared, it was gone- his little party trick ending with the orb dissipating into tiny, blue sparks, before disappearing entirely.

William didn't think it was much. Dakota seemed far too impressed.

“You can make circles?”

“No, I can just- make stuff if I think really, really hard about it.”

Then, Dakota frowned. And that frown turned into a glare.

“That's totally a cool superpower.” He said, a little spitefully- lightly punching William's arm, “I can't believe you. I can't believe you!”

“What!”

“If you just didn't want to, I'd understand- but thinking you can't, when you're clearly more capable than you think… unbelievable. You're unbelievable!” He kept punching, “God- God- just get some practice in! You'll be fine!”

The punches increased- not in strength, but speed- and yet, William still found himself leaning away from it, muttering a quiet stream of, “Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow…”

And when he looked over at Vyncent, he saw that the other was shaking his head. “He's right.”

“What the hell! Guys-” William's face was red in an instant. “It’s more complicated than that, I’m also homesick- and- I don't know! How is an orb going to save the world, huh?”

It was the loudest he's ever raised his voice in a very long time.

But neither of them seemed to notice. Dakota was looking at him like he was being stupid. Vyncent was thinking. 

“Can you make other shapes?”

On the walk back to the kid's house, William tried.

The most he could get was up to wiggly orb. Every time he tried to take a more complicated item's shape, it'd shutter, and disappear. At one point, Dakota tried touching it- and very proudly announced that it was tangible enough for him to feel it.

They returned the cat (and, solemnly, the good flashlight) to its rightful owner. Even though it was late, they seemed relieved enough- the cat, in particular, raced inside of the house, as soon as she saw it- and so, it was a job well done.

As soon as the door was closed, Vyncent elbowed him, and said, “Make more shapes.”

But then, just as he was about to, Dakota shook his head.

“We can test it out further… at our last location of the day.”

-

Their last location of the night was none other than Centurion High- the same school that they were supposed to be attending in a couple of days.

Their first obstacle was the front gate surrounding the school, which Vyncent and Dakota easily hopped over. William had a bit more trouble finding grooves to stick his foot into, and then once he was at the top, he was struck with a height that made him a little queasy- but he did end up jumping. His ankles felt like they were ringing, and he stumbled as the other two walked to the front, but he still managed to catch up.

The next one was the front door, which was locked, despite Dakota's immediate attempt at opening it. After the handle didn't work, he lifted his leg up, and William immediately knew what his next course of action was going to be.

William patted Dakota's shoulder, to encourage him to back up. “Don't kick it down, you'll break it, and then we'll have to pay for it.”

Dakota looked between him and the door, and settled on an expression that looked… coy. Cocky. “Can you pick locks?”

William's hand shook. “I don’t…”

Dakota looked back, eyebrows raised, as he said, “Oh, Vyncent's got it!”

When he turned around, Vyncent was in a different outfit- now wearing something that cloaked his body, and hid the lower half of his face. They backed up, and he made quick work of the lock- pulling out a couple things that William had never seen on his person before, and sticking it into the lock easily.

William looked at the lock, and then back at Vyncent, “How do you- do that so fast?”

Vyncent didn't say a word- he just shrugged. And then, seconds later, the door clicked, and then it opened.

Vyncent held the door open for them as they stepped inside.

Centurion High was a school contained within one building, and it was much bigger than the highschool in Deadwood. There were large halls with lockers running down them, and a few small murals on the walls- likely done by fellow students, if William had to guess, but still nice nonetheless.

It was certainly better than the rest of the hallway. The lockers were all the same dull shade of blue, and the walls and tiled floor were a lighter shade- either white, or beige- just dissimilar to tell the difference, but in the dark, it wasn't enough to really know. There were doors leading to classrooms, with the only differences between them being the numbers printed eight beside it, and stairs leading up to further floors-

“I haven't been here for a while, but I know it like the back of my hand!” Then, Dakota clicked his tongue, “I wish I brought my skateboard…”

William's comfort immediately shattered when he looked up, and found

“Are there cameras?!”

William pulled his hood forward a little further. As did Dakota, when he realized the same thing. (With their hoods up, and with Vyncent still in another outfit, it'd be impossible to pin it to them- but it still made William feel a little nervous, nonetheless.)

“Oh, yeah, huh!” Dakota exclaimed. “It's fine- I've snuck in here plenty of times.”

“Why?”

“For fun?” He said, like it was really so simple, “Come on!”

The first classroom they stopped by was one that was bland, and boring. It had a few posters tacked onto the walls, but otherwise no clear decoration aside from a ticking clock on the wall. They both stared at what they could, from the tiny window on the door.

“Can you make lock picks with your- ghost-shaping thing?”

He tried- thinking about the tiny tools that Vyncent somehow brought out of his back pocket, like he always had them on his person- but when he tried putting them in the keyhole, they dissolved immediately, and they both similarly let out a sigh of disappointment.

Until William got an idea.

He had no idea how lock picks worked. He'd need to bring that up to Vyncent, next time… but he knew how locks and keys worked. So William pressed the bottom of his palm against the keyhole- and now knowing that the shaping was tangible, he thought about something small fitting into the keyhole-

And then, with a turn of his wrist, the lock clicked, and it was unlocked. For a moment, both him and Dakota had matching looks of excitement on their faces.

“Imagine- you're on a secret mission.” Dakota gushed as they stepped inside, and William was very quickly starting to realize why Dakota seemed to be so enthusiastic over his powers. “You're undercover- and you're sneaking around like this- invisible- into the enemy's base…”

“If I was undercover, why would I be invisible?”

“Well, you'd still… you know.”

“And wouldn't they recognize me? Since I'd be in the Prime Force?”

“They won't recognize you if you're invisible.”

“I can't be invisible for that long.”

“Then practice.” Dakota shoved him forward, maybe playfully, but William still tripped over his own two feet, and face-planted onto the ground.

Then, Dakota started laughing really loudly. Even as he helped him up, and William continuously tried shushing him, he seemed to be very giggly- and it made William hope that the cameras in the hall wouldn't pick up sound, or recognize that it was Dakota's laugh.

“Dude…”

Once on his feet again, Dakota practically skipped around the classroom.

“Being a hero isn't all about punching, and kicking really well-” He punched, and then licked, as if to show off what it looked like. “There's other things to it.”

“I thought the Prime Force was all about… saving people, on the field. Punching. Kicking.”

Dakota stepped on a chair, then the desk- and then, finally, he put himself in a position where he was able to look down at William, instead of it being the other way around.

“They don’t punch, or kick.” Dakota rolled his eyes. “You can summon things out of- thin air!”

“Shapes.” William reminded him, with just as much enthusiasm as he felt. Which was absolutely none.

“Shapes- which you can touch. Imagine, if you could make something like- uh…” He thought really hard about it before he said, “Wall.”

“...”

William tried to make a wall. Nothing held up well, and he gave Dakota a look, like he knew it was going to happen.

Dakota was stubborn. “You can also fly.”

“Float. And barely.”

“And you can go invisible, intangible- whatever- that's a whole lot of, uh- potential you got there.”

“Sure.”

Dakota scowled, 

“You're so pessimistic.” He pointed at him, “How often are you actually training with your powers, anyway? You thought Tide was gonna help us with that crap?”

“I didn't think you and Vyncent would already be trained by the time I got here- I thought we were in the same boat!”

Despite the jab, Dakota didn't look very affected by it. He just turned his attention away, lifted his leg up, and easily stepped onto another desk. One slip-up, and he'd fall- the thought of it was horrible.

“His job is to make sure we're prepared to train, and do this whole superhero thing on our own- but if you just want to control your powers better…” Dakota glared at the ground- not angry, he realized, but just frustrated, “You told me- we should've come to you, when we found out when you wanted to leave. But maybe, you should've come to us, if you weren't happy.”

“I…” Had nothing. “Yeah. You're right… whatever.”

When Dakota finally looked at him, his facial expression was smoothed out. Calmer.

“Next time we train- you use your powers. Alright? And then, if you like practicing on the field, and you wanna be a superhero with us- you'll know how to.” He shrugged, “And if you don't- whatever- but at least you tried.”

William's own face twitched, making something close to a smile. “Sounds just fine to me.”

“Well!” The tension was gone in an instant, “You and Vyncent both. I think. I don't even know what his power is.”

Speaking of which… “Where is Vyncent?”

Timed perfectly, the two of them heard something at the same time. And at first, they thought it was Vyncent- but then William heard the familiar jangling of keys on a lanyard, and he's been in school bathrooms during classes long enough to know what that meant.

“Teacher.” Dakota muttered.

“Or it's security-” William quietly corrected him.

A flashlight shined in through the window on the door.

To avoid being seen, Dakota grabbed William by the collar of his shirt, and rushed to the other side of the classroom. On the way William's leg got caught on a desk, and slammed against it quite painfully- there was nothing to stop the loud screeching that came from a desk sliding against the ground, which immediately gave away their position.

In a panic, with the door opening up, William did two things at once.

First, he held onto Dakota, trying to fit behind him, to avoid being seen- and then, in his natural panic response, he went intangible. Only this time, he didn't go through Dakota, or the floor. The two of them- with William tightly holding onto him- tumbled through the wall, and right into the classroom next door.

The intangibility went away rather quickly. And then, with Dakota realizing what happened, he playfully slapped William's shoulder.

“Good job, William!” His voice was hardly quiet, but William was more willing to assume that it physically couldn't get any quieter, rather than it just being a volume control issue.

The two of them immediately filed out of the neighboring classroom. William was just fine with sneaking off, but as soon as Dakota's hand reached his arm, he knew what was going to try to do- and William leaned away, to put a stop to it immediately.

“We still need to go get Vyncent.”

Then, without letting go of his hand, Dakota realized that William had a point. “Did you see where he went?”

No- he didn’t. One minute, he was holding the door open for them- then, the next minute, Dakota was taking up the most of his attention, and distracting him- William just had to hope that he didn't get caught.

Then, William swiped Dakota’s hand- and showed off the wristwatch that was still attached to him. 

Dakota didn’t have his watch on him, so William lowered his arm, and the two of them watched him navigate. The interface was a mess, and everything was cramped together- but eventually, he found where Vyncent’s little GPS tracker was-

And he found that it showed Centurion High- the exact place that they were in- but it refused to give them any specific details, like where he could be, in the school. William scoffed.

“If I call him, everyone will be able to hear it.” He muttered, “Let’s just… look around, a little. You know the path better than I do.”

In their trip down the hallway, William was very quickly reminded of his… distaste, of dark rooms.

In his mind, any shadowy corner or unmistaken shape could’ve been harboring a horrible spirit that neither of them would ever be able to fight. And they were going slow, so it wouldn't have any trouble catching up to them if it tried-

William did his best to keep his head down.

Dakota was walking through the halls with his chest puffed up, and with a confidence that didn't feel earned- but, at the same time, didn't feel exactly unbefitting. 

At one point, they heard footsteps, and more of that light coming from a flashlight, and they tried to get out of there as quickly as possible. William was as quiet as a mouse. Dakota's sneakers briefly squeaked against the floor, which panicked them enough to go even faster.

William’s arm was grabbed, there was a slight pain in his shoulder- but then, in the blink of an eye, they were somewhere else entirely. And while William was trying to regain his bearings, Dakota was still incessantly leading him away.

His hood flew down. Even in his strange haze, he knew that would be a problem, if the cameras actually picked up his face-

William put a tentative hand on Dakota's arm. And even though the touch was light, he still backed up with where his hand was guiding him.

“Do you think the security cameras are seeing us?”

Dakota looked up, and frowned. It wasn’t pointing directly at them, but they couldn't comfortably navigate without being seen. 

He looked back at William. “Can you turn us invisible?”

William looked down at his hands.

Turning invisible was pretty easy. He just had to tap into a certain anxiety that made him want to pull his hood up, curled up in a ball, and disappear forever- and, once he felt that familiar gut-deep dread, he was gone.

But to give that to someone else…

He put a hand on Dakota's arm, and he watched Dakota wince just slightly- but nothing happened right away. He tried tapping into it again- thinking about how much trouble they'd be in if they got caught…

And to his surprise, Dakota eventually flickered out of existence as well. His was a little finicky, but with the assurance that he could barely be seen, William sighed in relief. They also learned that if William let go of him, then Dakota would be visible again- and so, the two of them kept going.

Dakota’s hand was warm, but calloused, and a little uncomfortable to hold. William’s, meanwhile, was at a perfectly fine temperature, but undoubtedly clammy- but they were invisible, and that’s what mattered.

It would’ve been even better, if it was quiet- but Dakota was also incredibly chatty. 

In every classroom they looked into to make sure Vyncent wasn’t somehow in there, Dakota would talk about whether or not he knew the teacher that was teaching there this year- and if he did, then he’d talk about what kind of person they were.

William noted a couple of his own teachers. He had an okay selection this year, according to him- but considering that Dakota was likely the type to disrupt class, and William liked to think that he was a perfectly fine student, he didn’t really trust him. (It also helped to know where those classrooms were, since William was still unfamiliar with the terrain.)

They stopped by classrooms, the cafeteria, the library- ducking into each of them, and gaining a proper tour of the school, whether Dakota initially meant to, or not. Talking about each of them in some length- even if it was just to show where he sat the year before. (And maybe, if they hadn’t gotten interrupted, Dakota could’ve used that same energy to give them a proper tour of Rockfall.

Maybe, he still had the time to do it another day.)

In the end, they found Vyncent standing near the gymnasium- wearing his normal tracksuit, and casually looking around, like he didn't know that he was in danger of getting caught. He was in front of a display of some kind- showing off all sorts of different trophies, and photographs of the different sports teams…

William could tell that Dakota was seconds away from going on a long rant about what kinds of things he used to get up to at the gym- call it intuition, or the fact that William knew that he liked that sort of thing- but as soon as he saw their teammate, he immediately pointed it out, and took the invisibility down for him. It took William a couple more seconds, before he was visible again.

“Vyncent!” Dakota called out, and William's immediate gut-reaction made him turn invisible again, and stay that way.

“Hey, man.” Vyncent looked over, and frowned, “Where's…?”

“Invisible.” And then, to William’s surprise, Dakota patted his shoulder, even though he couldn't see him. “But we were looking everywhere for you, man!”

“I've never been in a place like this before. I was just… exploring.”

“Were you homeschooled?” Dakota asked curiously.

“No.”

“Have you been here the whole time?” William asked quietly. 

“...” And then, thoughtfully, Vyncent looked back at the display case again.

William didn't know why he was staring so intently at the display case- but William noticed that it almost looked like he was staring at it longingly. Maybe he wanted to join a sports team. Maybe it was something much deeper. (Maybe, he could even ask him about it later.)

It was quiet, as they briefly waited for Vyncent's response- but then, as they saw that they weren't getting one, William tried to be friendly, and gently bumped his knuckles against Vyncent's shoulder.

“It's getting late.” William hadn't checked the time in a while, but he knew it to be true. “There's still people in here- let's leave.”

-

Their exit wasn't nearly as exciting as their entrance.

Dakota made him practice phasing through walls with the two of them- leading them into a classroom, outside, and through the front gate… And, even though it took a couple tries- and Dakota ended up smacking his nose against the wall so hard that he was still holding it with his free hand- they left soon enough…

…mostly unscathed.

“Hey!” It was heard as soon as they were on the other side of the gates- and then, seconds later, there was the faint light of a flashlight being pointed at them.

They didn't even turn around. They immediately started running- Dakota sprinting ahead at full speed, and leaving nothing behind but a cloud of dust in his wake. As Vyncent ran, he slowly started picking up speed- blowing past the school, and making it further, and further down the street-

And as William ran- slow as it may be- he kept up a somewhat steady pace. He kept his chin up, breathed in through his nose and out through his mouth- ignored the pain in his ribs that was soon washed away by the adrenaline of almost getting caught, and needing to get away before he got in trouble. 

It was painful, but it was just like his extra training with Dakota. Maybe, in the beginning of summer, he would've struggled with anything that was more strenuous than an easy hike, or a walk around the neighborhood. But now, training and steadily getting better, William was able to get out of there without help, and he wasn't seconds away from being caught.

As if remembering that he couldn't run as fast as them, William saw a blur, and felt the back of his jacket being grabbed- and even though his stomach still swooped at his feet getting lifted off the ground, he was still smart enough to recognize that it was Dakota that was rushing him to safety.

William was soon dropped off in an alley, where Vyncent was similarly disoriented, and waiting for them.

And, as soon as they got their bearings, William couldn't help but laugh.

-

It was almost five in the morning when they finally made it back to their base.

William tried helping them sneak in. Even though they used the elevator, he had a hand on both of their backs, and he made them somewhat invisible- but it was no use. As soon as that elevator opened up, a light in the base flicked on, and they (mid-step) realized that Tide was there. Sitting on the couch, in the dark, patiently waiting for them to get back.

They all soon stood in front of him, visible, and keeping their heads down. 

Tide was clearly disappointed. Arms crossed, brow furrowed, and everything. He was the most disappointed that William's ever seen him be, in fact, which was saying something, since he was pretty disappointed when William told him that he was thinking of dropping out of the program.

“If you boys didn't bring your watches with you, I wouldn't have been able to tell where you were at all.” He said, and they all just sort of hung their heads low, “There is a curfew for a reason.”

“Sorry, Tide…” William said, and Vyncent and Dakota followed in a similar, sad sentiment.

“Especially you, Dakota!”

“I forgot.” Dakota shrugged, but he also seemed like he didn't like getting told off very much. He mumbled, again, “Sorry, Tide…”

Tide sighed. Clearly, the disappointment was just coming from his own worry- and as soon as it seemed like they were sorry, it washed away. Half-heartedly, he waved them off- and it only took a second for the sorrowful expressions to leave Vyncent and Dakota's face- both, suddenly, uninterested.

“Training will start later today, but don’t think I'll be this lenient again!” He turned around, and said, “And don't sleep in all day!”

“Goodnight, Tide!” Dakota called back after him. And yet, they both watched as Vyncent went to his room, and Dakota easily followed him in there. 

Tide sighed. The minute his back was turned, Vyncent reappeared in his doorway, and nodded- quietly gesturing for William to join them.

With nothing left to say, William scratched the back of his neck, and kept his head down on his way to Vyncent's room- but, almost immediately, he was stopped.

“William.”

“I'll make it to training today.” He reported, nervously- but if the other two still wanted to hang out for a bit, he didn't know when it'll be, “I don't have work today…”

“We should talk.”

When William looked back at the doorway Vyncent and Dakota were both staring at him. When Tide looked back, they both looked away, and ducked into the room, like they weren't even paying attention- but the door stayed open, and William knew that they were probably hearing every word that they were saying.

William's smile was crooked, and nervous. And when he spoke, he couldn't seem to get his jaw to work properly. “Yes, Tide…?”

“School is starting tomorrow.” He said, and William's shoulders slumped a little, seeing that he wasn't in any worse trouble, for some reason, “And I was going to ask you about it last night, but you said you were thinking about dropping out at the end of the month.”

“I did.”

Tide gave him a look. It was sort of coy. “I couldn't help but notice that you weren't packed to leave.”

“...I'm not.”

“Did you decide already, or did you want more time to think about it?”

William briefly looked back to the doorway. Neither of them were there, but he could feel them waiting with bated breath. William took a deep breath himself.

“I'm staying.” He said, resolutely. 

“Are you sure?”

“Yes. I am.” 

There was still a part of him, trying to convince himself that he wasn't sure, but William felt a whole lot better about his decision, now.

Tide's face softened.

“Alright.” William nodded, and started walking away- and though he wasn't trying to stop him, Tide still called out, “You're still in trouble, William- and I expect to see you in training with the rest of them!”

William ran off to Vyncent's room, where he already knew that Dakota would be. And he did so with a faint smile on his face.