“Dad, I’m home!” Taylor called out.

“In the kitchen,” was the answer.

Taylor grinned and pulled Lisa in by the hand, the blonde reluctantly stepping inside with puffy eyes and running mascara. Taylor gestured down the hall to where the restroom was and Lisa nodded in understanding, making her way in that direction while Taylor diverted to the kitchen.

“Hey Dad, are we still on for dinner tonight?”

“Should be,” he answered.

There were several sheets spread across the table in front of him that he was frowning over, so Taylor moved to see what had him perplexed. “Why is Medhall sending so much work to the DWU all of a sudden?”

“I’m not sure, and that bothers me,” he answered, sitting back and rubbing the bridge of his nose. “Everything seems above board but I can’t help but feel I’m missing something important.”

“Want me to go over things? I could probably hack their security and poke around a bit and see why they’re so interested.” Taylor said. She could probably get Lisa to look over her findings as well just for the added scrutiny but would have to ask first.

“I don’t want to impose, but I would appreciate it all the same,” he said. “Anyway, you need to change before we go?”

Taylor shook her head, setting her bag down on the table as she pulled out the gun and accessories. “My outfit should be fine, but I do need to secure this first.”

“Where did you get a gun?”

“I helped her,” Lisa said, stepping into the kitchen. “I needed to case the place for our robbery tonight, so we went in as customers. Taylor did need one after all.”

Her father looked between herself and Lisa even as she continued to unpack everything, checking to ensure everything was in working order while also performing basic maintenance with the cleaning kit that they had picked up with it. Everything seemed good, so Taylor amended her outfit to include the shoulder holster and the leather jacket Lisa had gotten her on their mall trip.

“Lisa, this is my father, Danny,” she said, gesturing from one to the other. “Dad, meet Lisa.”

“Also known as Tattletale of the Undersiders,” she said with a practiced flourish. “Your daughter has been an invaluable help, not to mention being a delight to hang around with.”

Her father took a moment for that to all register, and in that time Taylor had loaded a magazine and slid it into the gun. The click of the mechanism snapped him out of it, turning his attention back on her as she set the gun on the table.

“I thought you said you weren’t going to be an active villain?”

Taylor shrugged as she stood. “I mean, is it really villainy if they’re targeting the Empire? Oh, before I forget.”

She sent an email to Lisa as she hurried over to the stairs to retrieve the holster and jacket. Thirty seconds later she was coming back down the stairs, holster snapping into place as she pulled the jacket over it. When she came back down, Taylor walked in on her father standing over Lisa, attempting to be intimidating. She had to admit, if Lisa hadn’t been an experienced cape, it would have probably worked.

“Lisa, play nice. Dad, she can literally reduce you to a sobbing mess in seconds,” Taylor said, slotting the gun into her holster and securing everything. “Well, are we ready to get dinner?”

Lisa turned abruptly towards Taylor, blinking. “Wait, I’m still invited?”

“Of course,” Taylor said with a frown, wondering what she had missed. “You’re my best friend, why wouldn’t you be welcome?”

“Do I get a say in this?” her father asked, crossing his arms. “I allowed you to go to Toybox after seeing how Armsmaster was treating you, but if you’re going to be consorting with villains…”

Taylor froze. “You wouldn’t.”

“You do that and you lose your daughter,” Lisa snapped. Her fists were clenched, and tight fury framed her face.

“I’m not taking moral advice from a criminal,” her father said. “Taylor’s been through enough as it is—”

“Yeah, and she doesn’t need another betrayal!” Lisa yelled. “She’s been burned by every authority figure in her life but you. Don’t do this.”

“Being a villain is dangerous, and working openly will only put a bigger target on her!” her father countered with a booming voice, his face turning crimson. “Toybox was supposed to keep her from getting involved with the gangs, not send her out to help them!”

“Do I get a say in any of this?” Taylor demanded, mirroring his own choice in words. “Toybox are only villains because it’s illegal to profit from powers and they sell to everyone willing to pay. The Undersiders are small-time thieves that target the gangs, helping them bloody some Nazi noses is hardly a cardinal sin.”

He ignored her, glancing back towards the hallway as he did.

Lisa’s eyes widened, her teeth were clenched as she seemed to seethe. “Don’t even consider going behind her back and violating the trust she has in you. You earned a lot of lost goodwill back by standing up for her then, don’t flush it all away in a moment of righteous indignation.”

Taylor moved to pull Lisa into a side hug, giving her friend what comfort she could. Taylor hadn’t dug into the details of her past, but it wasn’t difficult to figure out the basics from what little she had picked up from their time as friends. Add in that outburst and another small piece fit into place. Taylor just squeezed her friend tighter.

“Lisa’s right,” Taylor said before her father could counter her. “Armsmaster personally shut down the investigations into what happened to me, twice. Even Dragon couldn’t overrule him. I want nothing to do with an organization that refuses to help just because I won’t join their club.”

“Everything is corrupt,” Lisa added. “The Protectorate works with the Elite if you are curious. The Rig uses Uppercrust’s tech for that shiny forcefield. Being a cape is just a numbers game to them. They need us to show up to fight the Endbringers, to stand strong against any Class S threat that emerges. We’re all just bodies to throw at the problems in this shitty world. Once you accept that, things make more sense.”

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A heavy silence fell over the room, because how could she say anything to such a cold and pragmatic outlook of the world?

“Well, as fun as this was, I think I should bow out tonight,” Lisa said after a moment, her finger rising to Taylor’s lips before she could dissuade her. “Sorry Tay, but you know I’m right. As grateful as I am for the offer, tensions are high enough and I’ve already ruined your evening. Take a moment to calm down, then clear the air. I’ll just make it worse if I stay because I don’t know when to keep my mouth shut. I’ve got to get ready for tonight’s job besides.”

Lisa then pulled Taylor into a tight hug.

It was over just as quickly as it began. “Stay safe out there, you never know when you might run into a dastardly hero.”

“Or a gorgeous blonde in a purple catsuit,” Lisa countered with a wink.

Taylor couldn’t help but snort and give her a light shove. “Take care of yourself, Lise. Give me a call if you want me to play mission control.”

“I’ll do one better, I’ll see if the boss will hire you for it,” Lisa said. “Talk to you soon, alright?”

Taylor nodded and Lisa let herself out. She had put on a brave face, but Taylor knew most of it was an act. Once the door shut, she spun around on her father, fury sparking within her.

“I hope you’re happy with yourself,” she said softly, her teeth clenched tight.

“Happy with—” he said. “Taylor, you brought a villain home, a villain that gave you a gun. Do you not see anything wrong with all this?”

“No, I really don’t,” she said. “Lisa had been in a bad place today and I thought inviting her out for dinner would help given the hints about her family she’s dropped. She’s one of the few people I’ve met that has been supportive of me rather than out to use me. I’ve volunteered my services as a result.”

“Volunteered,” he said, flatly. “It sounded to me like she was going to pay you.”

“Her boss might,” Taylor countered, anger slipping through to color her words. “Lisa was recruited at gunpoint, she isn’t a villain by choice. Most aren’t for that matter. That doesn’t make them all good people, but it does paint things in a different shade. Remember, the PRT considers me a villain too, just because I joined a group that wasn’t part of their clubhouse.”

“You think I don’t know that?” he yelled. Taking a breath, her father dropped back down into his chair, face in his hands. “Your mother was a villain too, according to the PRT.”

“She ran with Lustrum,” Taylor said through gritted teeth, taking the opposite seat. Yelling wasn’t getting them anywhere and she wasn’t going to escalate along with him. Lisa was right, they did need to clear the air. “I did some digging but the PRT scrubbed a lot of information related to Lustrum.”

“No surprise there,” he said. “Her followers made sure there wasn’t much to find when they faded into the background. Annette kept journals, even had plans to write a book years down the line.”

Taylor perked up at the mention of journals her mom had kept. The ache in her chest at the subject matter was still fresh even years after she had died.

“Do you think I could see them?” she asked.

Her father nodded. “They’re in my closet. I didn’t have the heart to move them into the basement with the rest of her stuff. Just… Be warned, I didn’t get far into them, but she goes into graphic detail about some of the stuff they did. There’s also mention of cape identities throughout, so keep that in mind.”

Taylor nodded, feeling her throat turn dry. “I’ve had to deal with identities a fair bit recently, don’t worry, I’ll be tactful.”

“You know I worry,” he said.

“I know.”

Her father then clapped his hands, standing as he did. “Well, since it seems tonight didn’t go as planned, Pizza or Chinese?”

Taylor chuckled, leaning back as she did. “Some shrimp lo mein sounds good.”

“I’ll call it in,” he said. “Will you be going by Toybox tonight?”

Taylor nodded. “I need to check on a few things, but I don’t see myself sticking around for long. I was going to pop in after dinner, but it seems we’re staying in. I can get that knocked out while the food’s on the way.”

“Alright,” he said as she stood and moved to the living room.

Activating the remote, she stepped through the portal and into her lab.

“Taylor, good to see you,” Harry said, looking up from some new device being delivered. “How have you enjoyed Arcadia so far?”

Taylor smiled, eager to put the argument behind her for the moment. “Arcadia is so much nicer than Winslow, even if it is crawling with pushy heroes.”

“I did notice the Dallon girl following you,” he said. “Is there a problem there or do you have it under control?”

Taylor moved over to her station, checking the progress of her shell. “It’s under control. Amy is just a bit enthusiastic since I have a hunk of metal where my brain should be.”

“Interesting,” he mumbled. “I was under the impression brains were some sort of limit of hers.”

“Riley does keep insisting she’s lying about that,” Cranial said, joining them. “If true, she could be a valuable addition to our respective projects.”

“I did extend her an invitation,” Taylor said absently. One of the newly delivered assembly arms was out of sync and would need calibration. She set about doing that as she added the file notes for Lisa to the group folders for Riley and Cranial to look over at their leisure. “Up to her if she accepts, of course, but I imagine people would pay a pretty penny for her services.”

“Taylor, I would give you a million dollar bonus upfront if she joined with healing as a paid service,” Harry said. “She could make billions if her power is as versatile as we suspect.”

“Age reversal would be huge among the billionaire crowd alone,” Cranial said.

“Still just a theory,” Harry said. “If she shows interest, let me know, I’ll approach her as another familiar face.”

“Will do,” Taylor said. The arm was back in working order and she set the tasks for the next few days. Her shell was coming along nicely, but would require some hands-on work soon. She would also need the remote pilot system to be ready for when her shell was complete. That was another project to add to the list once the quantum entanglement system was delivered. Luckily her growing catalog wasn’t interfering too much with her own work as software could easily be copied once complete.

Just as her father messaged that the food had arrived, a second alert came in on her client line. It was from Coil requesting she contact him about the job. She smiled and called up the included number, voice modulations firmly in place.

“Cyber,” an oily smooth voice asked.

“Speaking,” she said. “Coil, I presume?”

“Indeed. I am to understand you offered my little Tattletale your services?”

“I did,” Taylor said. “She was using my software to investigate an Empire front when she sent a request for help with a problem. When I saw what she was doing, how could I not offer? The Empire is a blight on the city after all and I am all for their removal.”

“I can appreciate such enthusiasm,” he said. “Though it is concerning that you maintain such access to systems you sell.”

“I have to offer tech support somehow,” she answered. “Don’t worry, I don’t actively spy on my clients and can only access the systems if someone allows me access as she did.”

“Very well,” Coil said. “How does twenty thousand, plus five percent of the value of their prize sound?”

“Twenty five and no percent sounds better,” Taylor said. “Less math to manipulate for either of us, and you know Tats will tell me the number if she picks up on that. She’s a feisty one like that.”

“Indeed. Very well, I accept those terms,” Coil said and ended the call.

Taylor smirked and wrapped up her last item and logged out of her console. Waving goodbye she returned home, eager to have dinner with her father despite the argument. Later, she would help Lisa stick it to the Nazis and hopefully get a few fun toys for her eventual armory.