Chapter Forty-Nine - Owl of Her Attention

Athena, being the good sister she was, kept her attention focused on Handshake and his guard. The guard wasn’t much of a problem. Sure, he was all dark and brooding, with his arms crossed and the whole ‘leaning cooly against a pillar’ look, but she caught a glimpse of his eyes and his thoughts made her relax.

Mostly, he was thinking ‘oh poop, oh poop’ over and over again. But he was using the kind of words that the Boss didn’t like. Athena didn’t think that thinking that kind of word was against the rules, or else Big Sister would be very angry at Athena for some of the things Athena thought.

So, she dismissed the guard. He had a knife and a baton, according to his own surface thoughts of grabbing either. He didn’t have any powers, which meant he was just a boring normal person, and while he was bigger and probably physically stronger than Athena, she wasn’t worried. The Boss would smack him around if he tried anything.

Handshake, on the other hand, had plenty of power. His thoughts were hard to read, going at a million miles an hour. It was hard for Athena to get anything from him, and his eyes didn’t linger on her for long enough that she could untangle the web of his thoughts.

She had the impression that he wanted stuff from the Boss, and that he was worried about Trinity and Athena and the Boss. Athena grinned. He wasn’t all that worried, but she could work on that.

Handshake gestured to the table he’d been sitting at when they’d entered the room. “Shall we sit?” he asked.

“Sure,” Big Sister said. She moved to the table, pulled out a seat, and sat.

Athena took her place on Big Sister’s right, and Trinity her left, neither of them sitting. Handshake glanced at both of them and smiled. It wasn’t a very real smile, and it didn’t take Athena’s mind-reading powers to figure that out.

“So, I imagine you’re here because you have questions,” Handshake said rather smoothly. “Of course, as per usual, I’m willing to answer what I can and discover what I cannot, for a price.”

Big Sister frowned. “Would that price change now? What did you try to do earlier, with that handshake?”

Handshake raised his hands. “I was merely trying to ensure that nothing untoward would happen during our meeting, that’s all. You know how my power works?”

“I don’t!” Trinity cheered.

Handshake blinked, then glanced at Trinity. “I can make deals and seal them with a handshake. All parties will then be compelled--though not forced--to carry out their part of the bargain. I have a few other abilities, of course, but they all centre around that core concept.”

Athena nodded a little. That was a pretty strong power. Not in a fight or anything, but under the right circumstances she could see it being useful. Her power was way better though.

Big Sister Emily stared at Handshake for a long time, her brow knit together in a mean scowl. Athena was happy she wasn’t the one being pressed by that stare. “You will not try that again,” Emily said.

“As you say,” Handshake said. He was smiling still.

The Boss’s look went even darker. “You don’t seem to understand. You will not try that again. There would be consequences if you do.”

Athena gulped. That sounded serious. Like, going-to-bed-without-snacks serious.

She glanced at Handshake, looking the man in the eyes, then she blinked and turned to look at the Boss. Big Sister Emily didn’t look like she was too warm... why did Handshake think she was hot when she was angry?

Handshake shifted in his seat. “Shall we continue on to business then? I’m certain you have plenty of questions.”

“I do,” Big Sister said. “First, let’s talk price?”

“If you wish.” Handshake rubbed at his chin. “The difficulty here is that different questions are worth different amounts. How are you in terms of liquid assets? Can you afford the answer to your own questions?”

Big Sister pursed her lips. It wasn’t quite a pout. “Alright then. Maybe we can trade for some things. I’ll ask a question, you tell me the price, and we go from there?”

“Certainly.”

“Fine then. In that case, the Cabal. How are they involved in Eauclaire?”

Handshake shrugged. “I know little, but I can, perhaps, illuminate some things for you there. Usually it’s bad for business to talk about them, but lately the winds seem to be turning.”

“In what way?”

Handshake shook his head. “That answer has a price too.”

Big Sister hummed. “Fine. What’s the cost?”

“How about instead of money, I ask a question and you answer it honestly. You’ll be happy to know that a lot of people are asking about you and yours. Don’t look so surprised. You’ve been on the news twice in as many weeks.”

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“I... guess I could answer some questions,” Big Sister said. “Who will decide on which question is worth more?”

“I suppose that’ll be up to both of us to decide. I can shake on making this a fair trade, if you want. My powers do work on myself,” Handshake offered. As far as Athena could tell, he was being honest.

“Boss,” Athena said in a stage whisper. “I’ll tell you if he thinks he’s cheating you.”

“Oh, thank you, Owlwatch, that’s helpful.”

Athena preened while pointedly ignoring Handshake’s momentary look of confusion. He didn’t know what her powers were, and that made him nervous. Good.

“So, for knowledge about the Cabal’s involvement in Eauclaire... can you tell me about your team? Just the names of all the members and maybe a few tidbits about them?”

“I suppose I can do that,” Big Sister said. “We have Owlwatch and Bandit here. They’re owl and raccoon themed, as you can tell. You’ve met Ursa Minor as well and I imagine she’s left an impression.”

“Indeed,” he said, his smile going just a bit wooden. “What are everyone’s powers?”

“I don’t know if I should say that,” the Boss said.

Handshake nodded. “Fair enough, I won’t push.”

“So, what can you tell me about the Cabal.”

Handshake squinted. “I’ll tell you what I can, but I think my information is worth a few more questions. I don’t mind if you pay afterwards, of course.”

“Okay,” Big Sister Emily said.

“The cabal sent three of their heroes to Eauclaire. Black Shield--whom you’ve met--Thunder Clot and Spin to Win. Spin to Win is currently working with the local HRT to weed out some corruption. I suspect that he’s actually working to install more Cabal members in Eauclaire’s HRT. Thunder Clot, on the other hand, seems to have caused some trouble elsewhere and was sent to Eauclaire, which is a bit of a backwater in terms of heroics, to cool their heels.”

“And what are the Cabal’s goals here?” Emily asked.

“Eauclaire had a surprising number of new masks during the last Power Day. Including yourself and your young companions here, Miss Ursa Minor, and your lucky friend, there are nearly a dozen more masks. Last year Eauclaire had four.”

“That’s a significant increase,” Big Sister Emily said.

“It is! The Cabal will have an interest in recruiting, of course, but also in ensuring that they can get their claws into new heroes before they make a splash or move to other cities and disrupt their operations there. I still believe that most of the Cabal’s money comes from advertising.”

Athena blinked. How could villains make money from advertising? That was just weird. Didn’t they have time to rob banks like proper villains?

“Thank you,” Big Sister Emily said. “I guess it’s your turn to ask questions.”

Handshake nodded. “Are you single?”

“W-what?”

The man across from them shrugged. His smile was still in place, but Athena knew that it was more genuine now. “It’s a simple enough question.”

“But why?”

“Because half the questions people have fielded me about you have lingered around that sort of gossip. It’s not world-shaking news, but it’s the sort of thing that people love to talk about. There are a lot of rumours out there, you know? I personally suspect that you’re too young for the girls in your... employ to be your children, but a lot of people claim otherwise.”

“What? No, they’re my sisters,” Big Sister protested.

“That answers another question I had, thank you. How many people are part of your group, exactly? Bandit here was quite the surprise.”

“We have... a couple more people,” Big Sister admitted.

“I could use more accurate answers,” Handshake said.

Big Sister didn’t look amused by that answer. She stared hard at Handshake. “I need to prioritise the safety of my team. I can’t let people know things that might hurt us.”

“I understand, how about some more innocent questions then? Tabloid stuff to feed the rumour mill. What diet are you on to stay so thin? Exercise regimes? Who made your costume, your siblings? Are any of them sidekicks? Are there any rumours you really dislike? Any celebrities you have beef with? Hero crushes? Any internal strife between the siblings? What do your parents think? Is it true that you had a fling with Glamazon?”

Athena glanced at her Big Sister and marvelled at how her face remained placid while in her mind she was screaming. Truly, Big Sister Emily was incredible.

***