Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Catalina launched another fireball, spinning to duck the car that came flying right at her. She had been at this for over an hour, launching fire and earth and spinning to avoid Tudor’s newest creation.

Tudor is getting more powerful. This creation is much stronger than the others.

Tudor Corps, a secret, underground organization, had been the bane of Catalina’s existence for years now. Every few weeks, fully sentient robots stamped with the Tudor Crest would appear in the middle of a London street out of seemingly nowhere. These robots could run, jump, fly, shoot lasers, you name it. Many speculate that the leader of this Tudor Organization must be a super himself, some sort of master of electronics. The robots are sent out every few weeks with one job alone: to capture as many citizens as possible. When these citizens are taken, their families might as well mourn them then, barely any come back alive. Sometimes their bodies will be found later by the police, weird burns or wires sticking out. Failed human experiments.

And the ones that do come back, they’re…not themselves.

Case in point, the creation Catalina was fighting now. From the brief glances she could get, Catalina deduced that this creation was probably a man in his late forties. Key word, was. He was barely that anymore. He had giant tusks extending from all over his body, and his skin took on a rocky, unnatural look. He was growling, stomping through the streets trying to cause as much havoc as possible.

Catalina launched another fireball, trying to think of a way to stop the creation from causing any more harm. Suddenly she had an idea. She used the air around her to fly up higher, causing the creation to growl at her position in the sky. As soon as he bent his knees to spring up after her, Catalina launched back down, kicking him square in the face.

He fell with a thump, and Catalina quickly used the earth around him to build a makeshift cage, trapping his unconscious body. She landed back next to him and dusted off her gold costume.

“Thanks Goldstorm, we got it from here.”

Catalina turned to see a few government officials approaching. She read the name on their jackets—DSO: Department of Supernatural Operations. She huffed and turned to them with a professional, regal look on her face.

“Of course, happy to be of service,” Catalina said before lifting into the air once again, gold cape sparkling in the sun. She knew the DSO officials could handle the unconscious body. They access to a far safer prison than anywhere she could’ve put the creation.

———————————————————————————————————————

She quickly made sure no one was outside before landing softly on her balcony, opening the door quietly and stepping in. She hummed, smelling the food in the kitchen.

“You’re back!” Catalina hears a voice call from the kitchen, it’s owner came rushing over. “Are you ok? Did you get hurt?”

“Nothing more than a scratch, it’s not a worry Jane,” Catalina says complacently. Jane hums and reaches up to Catalina’s shoulder where a red cut was still bleeding. Jane put her hand over the cut, and Catalina felt a warm light replace the pain. A few seconds later, the cut was all healed.

“Thank you Jane, you’re a miracle worker,” Catalina said, smiling.

“Oh it's no problem at all Lina. Come sit, me and Cathy were just about to start a show with dinner.”

Catalina complied, quickly running to change out of her suit before sitting on the couch next to her other roommate.

Cathy was sitting on the couch, legs propped up on the table, computer in her lap. She hummed as Catalina sat down, typing a few more words before closing the computer and sitting up. The TV talked quietly in the background, put on some news channel no one was really listening too.

“How’d the fight today go?” Cathy asked, turning to Catalina. “I calculated the average fight length seems to be up 12.38%, and creations are getting stronger, nearly…”

Catalina smiled at the younger girl. “Cathy, the fight went fine mija, we’ll talk statistics later. I’m a bit tired now, how’d your day go?”

“Everything was fine. I broke down another government firewall today, did some online shopping for those new plates you wanted, and my novels going pretty well.”

Catalina was about to respond when something on the TV caught her attention. She shifted her attention, and it seemed like Cathy was interested too since she turned the volume up.

“Today’s fight between our city hero Goldstorm and Tudor Corp’s newest creation was interesting, but we all can’t help but reminisce about the old times, right John?” The TV reporter said, looking almost giddy.

“You are so right, it’s been nearly 4 months since the villain known as the Jade Speedster has made an appearance. The public was left in shock when our hero’s most infamous nemesis suddenly disappeared.”

The footage then cut to a 4 month old fight, one of the last ones between Catalina and her so called nemesis. Catalina, clad in her regal gold costume, could be seen shooting fireballs on the street. A green blur was all that could be seen, zipping around her. Suddenly the blur stopped, right behind Lina. She flashed a cheeky grin before decking Lina in the face, sending her to the ground. Lina got up fast and growled, but the blur sped away again. The fight went on for another few minutes, both landing hits on the other. Lina finally got the Speedster pinned to a wall, but before she could say anything, the green clad girl sent her a sly smile and phased through the wall. Now out of Lina’s grasp, and creating as much chaos as she wanted, she sped away.

“We haven’t gotten such entertaining fights in a while now. The Tudor creations are all growly, and not that fun to watch. You almost start to miss the high tension, banter-filled spars we used to see from these two supers,” the TV reporter said.

“Totally John. Not to mention that the Tudors actually hurt people. The Jade Speedster stole some stuff, left some property damage, generally wrecked havoc, but no one ever got hurt.”

“That’s so true. But can we also talk about their costumes? I mean damn, that—”

The TV suddenly shut off. Catalina turned accusingly to the culprit sitting next to her on the couch. Cathy placed the remote back on the table and sighed.

“Disgusting pigs, can’t they see that these battles aren’t something to joke about? It’s not some sort of game,” Cathy said, shaking her head. She then shyly looked up at Lina. “And I know you don’t like thinking about her Lina.”

Lina knew exactly who Cathy was talking about, and shook her head pompously. “I don’t know what you’re talking about Cathy. I am indifferent towards the Jade Speedster.”

Cathy looked at her knowingly for a few seconds, but then just shrugged. Jane walked over to the couch, three bowls balanced in her hands. The two others thanked her, and they all sat down and turned on another episode of whatever show they were watching, enjoying the feeling of eating and laughing together.

But Catalina couldn’t help but let her mind wander back to her old “nemesis.” She was glad the Speedster was gone, their fights always infuriated her. And she had better things to deal with then the havoc the green girl wreaked.

Is that all you feel? A voice inside her asked. Mixed in with the righteous anger she felt towards the supervillain, there was something else.

Is that…worry? She asked herself. She shook her head, why would she be worried about a villain. It’s good that she hasn’t seen her in 4 months. Good riddance.

Lina pushed the rest of her feelings down. Turning to focus on the show and her friends. The Jade Speedster was gone, and Lina never had to worry about her again.

———————————————————————————————————————

Jane and Lina were washing the dishes from dinner when Cathy walked in and sat at the counter.

“Uh guys, I just found this. I think they slipped it under the door,” Cathy said, a little uneasy, holding up a letter.

Catalina took the letter from her, recognizing the stamp on the front. Seems like Jane recognized it too from the sharp inhale.

“I thought they said they would stop contacting us?” Jane said quietly. Catalina hummed and opened the letter, DSO stamp staring her in the face. She read it out loud.

“Dear Goldstorm and friends,

We apologize, we said we would stop contacting you, but this time it is urgent. We need you down at the center tomorrow at 10am. We will explain more there but we believe we found the solution to a big problem. You are going to want to hear this. We will need all three of your powers, so please all come dressed in your suits. We know two of you don’t normally dawn the suits, but we promise you won’t be seen by the public, this is a secret operation. We promise this will be the last time we need you. This is for the good of the entire city.

We thank you for your cooperation,

DSO—Department of Supernatural Operations”

Catalina sighed and turned to the others. Jane was biting her lip in worry, and Cathy’s expression couldn’t be read.

“They want me and Cathy too? They know our powers aren’t offensive. And our suits? I don’t think I’ve ever put it on, not since you gave it too me just in case Lina. What do we do?” Jane said, worrying her lip.

Cathy spoke up next. “I mean, it sounds important. ‘The good of the city?’ I…I say we go, just to hear what they have to say. We can always say no. But if we don’t go, and we had the chance to help people, we’re gonna regret it.”

Jane nodded, and both her and Cathy turned to Lina. She was deep in thought, considering the options. After a few minutes of silence, she made her choice.

“We will go, just to hear what they say. But if it puts you two in danger, we won’t take the offer. That’s the plan,” Lina said, turning to look at her friends.

Jane and Cathy nodded. Lina smiled at them, and they smiled back. They said their rounds of goodnights before heading to bed, leaving Lina alone in the kitchen.

I really hope that was the right decision.

———————————————————————————————————————

“Bye, thank you! Come again!” Anne shouted out the coffee shop door, customer service smile plastered on her face. As soon as she shut the door behind her and changed the sign to “closed,” her smile dropped to an annoyed frown.

“Wow, I’m honestly surprised your eyes aren’t stuck in the back of your head from how many times you rolled them.”

Anne looked up to see her best friend, coworker, and one of her roommates, Anna. She was smiling cheekily from behind the coffee shop counter. Anne rolled her eyes but smiled back.

“I was literally refraining myself from grabbing her and pushing her out the door. Can’t that lady see we we’ve been closed for 20 minutes!” Anna just laughed at her friend’s pain.

“Well at least we’re all done for the day, while you were dealing with her I cleaned up and all the other stuff. We’re good to go!” Anna said, leading Anne out the back door.

They hopped into Anna’s truck and drove home to their apartment, listening to music and laughing on the way back. They got up to the apartment door and could faintly hear the TV on in the living room.

Looks like Kitty’s already home. Anne thought, and excitedly pushed open the door.

“Kitty, we’re hoooome!” Anne shouted.

“Annie! Anna!”

Anne laughed as her cousin ran over from the couch to launch herself into a hug. She hugged her back just as tight.

“Yeah yeah, enjoy your cousin hug and leave me to carry all the stuff,” Anna grumbled from behind them, but Anne could see the smile that was on the woman’s face.

“Oh come on, your mighty strong enough,” Anne laughed, sticking her tongue out at Anna. Anna stuck here tongue out back and Kat laughed. Anne and Anna got changed into some more comfortable clothes before getting settled in the living room with Kat.

“So how were your classes today Kit?” Anna asked, and Kat shrugged.

“Eh, they were fine. Senior year’s hard but at least I don’t have to do anything this weekend. I’m so ready to relax tomorrow.”

“My god I hear you,” Anne agreed. “I’m so ready to spend all day in bed watching TV.”

Anne shifted her attention to the TV that was still on in the living room. It seemed to be on some news channel. What grabbed her attention was what they were talking about.

“You are so right, it’s been nearly 4 months since the villain known as the Jade Speedster has made an appearance. The public was left in shock when our hero’s most infamous nemesis suddenly disappeared,” the TV reporter said.

The screen then showed footage of a fight from nearly 4 months ago, the cities resident  hero fighting a green blur. Anne watched as the two danced around each other, trading blows. The golden hero pinned the other to a wall, but the other escaped. The sight was too much for Anne, and with superhuman speed, she grabbed the remote and turned the TV off.

“Annie…”

“It’s ok KitKat,” Anne smiled crookedly. “Just don’t like the reminders.”

Kat nodded and leaned into Anne’s side. Anna grabbed her hand to provide comfort but not crowd her. After a few minutes, Kat stood up.

“I’m gonna go start dinner, I’ll bring it here. You guys relax.”

Anna nodded her thanks and turned to Anne who was still sitting on the couch. Kat walked away.

Anna sighed. “You know you can talk to us Anne? Kit hangs off of every word you say like you have all the answers to the universe. And if for some reason you don’t want to talk to her, my ears are always open.”

Anne exhaled and looked out the window, collecting her thoughts.

“Thanks Anna, I appreciate it. I’ll think about it,” Anne said, smiling at her genuinely.

Anna smiled back and clapped her hands. “Wunderbar! Now let’s transition to some other topics, what’s your plans for the weekend?”

They chatted lightly, putting Anne back into a good mood, until Kat came back into the living room with dinner. She gave everyone their plate and sat down before also pulling out an envelope.

“Hey guys! Here’s dinner. Also, I found this thing sitting near the door?” Kat said, holding the envelope curiously in her hand. Both Anne and Anna gasped, recognizing the stamp on the front.

Anne took the letter gingerly from Kat. She could hear Anna whisper, “How do they know where we live?” Anne opened the letter and read it out loud.

“Dear Jade Speedster and friends,

Please do not worry, you are not in any trouble. This is urgent. We need you at 10am at the location on the back of this card. We will explain more there but we believe we found the solution to a big problem. Please all come dressed in your suits, call three of you. We know one of you has never dawned the suit, but you will be protected. This is a secret operation. We promise this will be the last time we contact you. This is for the good of the entire city.

We thank you for your cooperation,

DSO—Department of Supernatural Operations”

Anne shook her head and put the letter down. “Anna what do you think? I mean, they know where we live. What’s stopping them from just coming here and taking us if we say no?”

“I don’t think they’d do that, but I agree, it’s better to just go and see what they want and escape if we really have to. They’re the government, they wouldn’t do anything too bad.”

“Makes sense. Then me and you will go—“

“I…I want to go too,” Kat pipes up softly. Anne stares at her in shock. She immediately shakes her head.

“No, Kit, it could be dangerous.”

Kat cries out, “I don’t want you to get hurt either! I want to help! And my powers are defensive. I can protect myself Anne.”

Anne starts to argue again but Anna cuts her off.

“Kätzchen has a point Anne. They already know where we live, so it’d probably even be safer keeping her near us. And who knows when new could use a protective force field. She could help us Anne, I think we should let her come with us.”

Kat squealed and launched herself at Anna for a hug. Anna laughed. Anne looked between the two for a few moments and sighed.

“…fine. For the record, I don’t like this. But at the first sign of danger we’re out of there. Got that?”

Anne had a brief moment to prepare before she too was pulled into the group hug by her cousin. She laughed before pulling herself away and sitting back on the couch.

“Come on, let’s eat. I don’t know about you guys but I’m starving!”

Kat and Anna joined her on the couch. The three friends enjoyed their dinner and chatted about their day. Anne couldn’t help herself from thinking about the letter.

I really hope that was the right decision.

Chapter Text

Jane woke up to a quiet house. She couldn’t hear the sounds of computer clicking or muffled prayers, so it seemed like Cathy and Catalina weren’t up yet. She got dressed and went to the kitchen, starting to make a simple breakfast. Soon Catalina joined her, taking a seat on the kitchen counter.

They both made small talk, waiting for the coffee to be ready. As soon as the machine beeped, almost like magic, Cathy stumbled into the kitchen.

“Coffeeeee,” Cathy grumbled. Lina and Jane laughed, sliding her a cup. Soon they were all sitting on the counter talking about their day.

“Uhm, guys, it’s Saturday,” Jane said, worrying her lip. Catalina nodded gravely. Cathy sat up too, much more awake after her coffee.

“Yeah, we should have another two hours before we need to head to the center. Let’s just take it easy this morning, si?” Catalina said, and Jane and Cathy nodded their agreement.

They spent the morning reading and lounging around the living room, half an hour before 10am, Catalina sat up and sighed.

“It seems like it’s time to go. I can’t fly all of us there, so pack your suits and we’ll change in the car when we get there.”

Jane and Cathy nodded, and all three of them went to grab their super suits. They packed them all in a backpack: Lina’s gold, Jane’s silver, and Cathy’s blue. They loaded themselves into the car and drove to the center.

———————————————————————————————————————

Jane never really went to the DSO, she never really had a reason to. She wasn’t a real superhero, she never actually went into any battles. Sure she fixed Lina up, but she never did the actual fighting. Even wearing her uniform felt a little awkward, but not as awkward as the stares the three supers got while walking through the DSO center.

As soon as they arrived they were recognized and taken inside. Some random agent led them through the offices and to a meeting room in the back. The room was cozy, spacious, and most importantly, private. The agent assured them that someone would be here to help them soon enough, and left the three women.

Jane sighed and started looking around the room. Lina and Cathy made themselves comfortable on one of the couches.

“So how long you think we’ll have to wait?” Jane asked.

“It isn’t likely they’ll leave us for long. Any minute now,” Lina replied.

Just then Jane heard a woman’s voice from behind the door.

“There’s a whole training room here! Das ist so krank. I need to come here more often.” Then the voice laughed, and Jane felt her breath hitch.

Her voice is so pretty.

Jane only had a second to think before the door swung open, and the most beautiful woman she had even seen walked through. The woman was dressed in all red, a super too, and Jane could see the muscles through her suit. She looked up to the other woman’s face, seeing her staring right back at Jane. The woman in red smiled, and was about to start talking, before two other women walked in from behind her.

Then chaos broke loose.

———————————————————————————————————————

Whatever Anne was expecting when her, Anna, and Kitty were led into one of the DSO meeting rooms, this was not it. She had barely taken a step into the room before she was slammed against a wall.

“Ow! What the f—”

“You.”

That voice.

Anne knew that voice. She slowly looked up, meeting enraged eyes looking back at her. Eyes that were surrounded by a very familiar golden mask. A myriad of emotions went through Anne’s mind, but she schooled her face into a familiar cheeky smile.

“Missed me Queenie?”

Goldstorm growled in her face. “What are you doing here?” The superhero demanded, and Anne just shrugged.

“Dunno, probably the same as you. We were sent a letter.”

Before the conversation could escalate any further, the other four in the room seemed to realize what was happening and went to pull the two women apart. The room broke out into shouting, mostly Spanish from a certain gold superhero, but others were mixed in their as well. They only stopped when a voice from the doorway cleared their throat.

“Ahem, ladies?”

The six supers turned to see four other women, dressed in DSO uniforms, standing in the doorway. Once again the room broke out into shouts.

“Maria?”

“Maggie!?”

“Joan?”

“Bessie!”

The new ladies laughed, and one of them spoke up. “I know you’re all confused, but please, sit down. We’ll explain everything.”

Anne sat down, just because she was in shock from seeing her old friend. Seemed like the others did too, naturally splitting onto the two couches, but Kitty and the woman in blue looked more confused than anything.

“So, I guess we’ll introduce ourselves first. I’m Maria, an old friend of Goldstorm,” the woman, Maria, said, shooting a smile to the gold woman on the couch. The hero still looked in shock, but smiled back.

She has a pretty smile. Anne thought, before quickly shaking her head. That’s her old “nemesis.” She is not going down that track. Thankfully, another voice grabbed her attention again.

“Hey! I’m Maggie, friend of the Jade Speedster.” Goldstorm snarled at that again, seemingly remembering that Anne was in the room. The Maria woman shot the hero a look, and she stopped her growling. Anne snickered at the display and Goldstorm shot her a scathing look.

“Hi everyone, I’m Joan. I’m a friend of…uh…what are you gonna be called?” The woman turned towards the super in silver. The super shook off her shock and spoke softly.

“I was thinking, maybe…something like Archangel?”

Of course a super would choose such a pretentious name.

“You liked the one I picked for you!? You’re gonna use it?” The woman in blue says excitedly. The woman in silver, Archangel, nods with a smile at her friend.

Oh, her friend picked it out…I guess that’s kinda nice then.

“Well I guess I’m last. I’m Bessie, friend of…?”

“Iron Maiden,” Anna said simply. Anne shot a smile at her friend.

“Ok, well,” Bessie starts speaking again. “The four of us are the directors of a project that we’re calling…Operation Six.”

Well that checks out. There are six of us. Anne chuckles quietly to herself.

After making sure the supers were still paying attention, Maggie starts talking.

“The four of us chose you six for a very important mission. One that we think will work. We want to take down the Tudor Corps, once and for all. I know, I know, I see your disbelieving stares. But we believe it is possible, as long as one thing happens. You six become a team and work together.”

That seemed to be the last straw for the gold superhero. She sprang up from the couch and shouted, “Are you crazy! Us…working with them? With her!?” The hero pointed at Anne with malice in her eyes. Anne grinned back.

“It’s rude to point you know,” Anne said slyly, only infuriating the gold hero more.

Goldstorm let out a small scream and stomped out the room. Maria sighed and followed after her.

“Soooo, if they get to leave, mind stepping out for a sec with me Mags?” Anne said, gesturing to her friend. The woman nodded and stepped out. Anne took a quick glance at Anna, who gave her a small nod and scooted closer to Kitty protectively. Anne nodded back and stepped out after Maggie.

———————————————————————————————————————

Once they got to Maggie’s office, Anne wrapped her in a big hug.

“Ahhhh, I have so many questions! But first, how have you been!?” Anne nearly screamed. She hadn’t seen Maggie for almost a year, but she was one of the most important people in Anne’s childhood.

Maggie laughed. “I’ve been good Anne, I’ve been good.” They caught up for a few minutes before Anne finally got to the point.

“Ah so that’s how the DSO knew where to send that letter. You…haven’t told the rest of the organization anything right? I know I’m kinda known as a villain but like…”

Maggie shook her head. “The letter was written and delivered by only me. No one else in the organization knows your identity, except for the other three directors. But I promise they are good people and trustworthy, and before you ask, they won’t tell the other supers. To the rest of the organization I just said I know the Jade Speedster cause of an outside source. They were suspicious but it blew over. You’re safe Anne don’t worry.”

Anne let out a breath she hadn’t known she was holding. But then her mind shifted to the conversation earlier.

“Maggie what are you thinking!? Taking down the Tudor Corps!? And us working with the superheroes!? Me and Goldstorm?”

“Anne, I know what it sounds like. But me and the other ladies talked it out. It could truly work. Together, you six are powerful. You can do it.”

Anne frowned and pulled on her sleeves anxiously. “But Maggie, how are we supposed to work together?”

“You’ll get everyone to come together. I know you will. And Anne, this is going to be the fall of he Tudor Corps. The city will finally be free of its terrible influence. People can sleep at night not worrying that their children won’t be snatched away the next morning by a sentient robot.”

Anne grumbled. “You’re right. I just…let me think about it ok?” Maggie nodded, giving Anne another quick hug before heading back into the room.

———————————————————————————————————————

“Maria what the hell are you thinking!?”

Maria sighed. She knew it was a risk to include both Lina and the Jade Speedster, but she honestly thought that 4 months would be enough to quell a bit of her anger. Apparently she had thought wrong, judging by the lecture she had been receiving for 4…5 minutes now. She tuned back in just in time to hear the end of Lina’s rant.

“…because she’s a villain, Maria. We can trust her? Tell that to the hundreds of thousands worth of stolen possessions, and not to mention the costs of property damage. And…dios mio did you share my identity with the others?”

Maria stopped her there. “No, none of the others know your identity, just me. I never shared that Lina, you can trust me.” Lina visibly relaxed, but Maria could still see the worry behind her golden mask.

“Lina, we’ve done the calculations. I trust Maggie, and she trusts Jade. It’s been four months, she’s probably changed.”

“But what if she hasn’t?”

“That’s a risk we’ll have to be willing to take. But seriously Lina, it’ll work. You six working together, you’ll be unstoppable. Tudor won’t know what hit them. People can finally sleep safe at night, not scared that a loved one might be snatched away the next day. You’ll save people Lina.”

Maria seemed to know just what to say, and Lina seemed to be a bit more on board with the idea. She was silent for a few minutes, and then looked back up, eyes full of resolve.

“I’ll talk to the others about it.”

Maria nodded, that was the best she was gonna get. And with that, the two women headed back to the meeting room.

———————————————————————————————————————

Now Anna had been in awkward situations, but this one really had to take the cake. Bessie and that other lady, Joan, had left the room, apparently to fill out some last minute paperwork. Bessie left with no more than a stern look and a “get to know each other.”

That definitely wasn’t happening. Kitty was half hidden behind Anna on the couch, thankfully Anna recognized it was more out of shyness than fear. The two supers on the couch across from them were engaged in a whispered conversation. The silver one, Archangel, kept glancing over. After a few minutes of tense silence, she seemed to gather up the courage.

“So, uh, do you have day jobs?”

Anna almost laughed out loud at the expression the silver super made. You know the face someone makes when they feel like they’ve chosen the wrong dialogue option—thats the one.

Anna took pity on the embarrassed hero. “Yeah, I actually work as a barista. You?”

She could see Archangel relax, happy that Anna was returning the conversation. “I actually work as a schoolteacher, teaching middle school.”

Before Anna could respond, the door opened again, and a much calmer Goldstorm walked in, followed by Maria.

“I’ve been debriefed by Maria, we can discus the rest at home,” she said, speaking to the other two heroes on the couch.

In a surprising turn of events, the hero then turned to Anna and Kitty and simply stated, “I apologize for my outburst earlier, I…” she seemed to hesitate. “Have a good day.”

The gold hero then turned and left the room, the blue and silver ones close behind. But before leaving, the silver super turned and gave Anna a small smile, which she returned.

Anna and Kitty only had to wait a few more minutes for Anne to show up. The door swung open, and Anne skipped in.

“I got the deets, let’s talk at home?” Anne said, looking to the others. They nodded and left behind Anne, piling back into the car and going home to the apartment. Kitty was uncharacteristically quiet the entire ride home, responding to Anne’s questions with simple answers.

When they got back to the apartment, they all immediately gathered in the living room. They sat around room, each occupying a chair or couch. Anne started the conversation by quickly recapping what Maggie had told her.

“So yeah that’s it. Oh wait, I almost forgot the biggest part.” Anne cringed a little before saying this next bit. “They set up a house for us all to live in. They said it’d be easier than the apartment since they could send things to the house without compromising our identities, and also so we wouldn’t have to share our home address with the others. Also so we’d all be in one place for missions and whatever.”

“By all do you mean…” Anna started, and Anne nods.

“The heroes too.”

Anna sighed. She had no personal problems with the heroes, but she could tell that living in a house with both Anne and Goldstorm was bound to be chaos.

Also living in a house is more dangerous. More people around means more people I could hurt. What if something happens? What if I can’t control myself? What if I hurt someone? What if—

“I don’t think we should do it.”

Anna was startled out of her thoughts by Anne’s voice. She looked up to see the sad, small smile on her friend’s face.

“They already hate me for being a villain, and you guys for being around me. Not to mention that heroes are always pretty snobby and pretentious. There’s no way we could work together,” Anne said assuredly. She then gave them a smile, though it was a bit strained.

“Let’s leave the saving to the heroes, yeah?”

Anna nodded. That was it, time to move about her day. Maybe she could get a start on that new TV show—

“…I think we should help.”

Anna stopped herself from swinging around to face Kat, who sat on one of the armchairs. She had been so quiet during the conversation that her and Anne nearly forgot she was there. They just assumed she didn’t have a big opinion on the issue.

“Kit…but why?” Anne questioned. Anna was wondering the same question.

“It’s just,” Kat took a breath to compose herself before standing and starting again. “I know you and the heroes have your differences, but it’s for the safety of the city. We can learn to work together. If it means taking down Tudor, I’m in. We could save countless lives Annie. That would mean…it could mean…I—“

“I know Kit,” Anne said, smiling softly. She scooted over and wrapped her little cousin in a hug. After, she took a step back and sighed.

“Anna? What do you say?”

Anna took a second to think, but soon enough, she had made her decision as well.

“I agree with Kat. It’s for the city.”

Anne closed her eyes for a minute, then opened them again. Her face broke into a smile.

“Well then pack your bags I guess. We have a city to save.”

Chapter Text

Cathy was happy about the choice they had made. Lina grumbled about the Jade Speedster, but all three of them agreed that the safety of the city far outweighed any personal problems they had with the situation.

One thing Cathy was not happy about was moving into a new house. She quite liked the apartment her, Lina, and Jane lived in. It was nice, cozy, and most importantly, quiet. She could work on her novel in peace while Lina or Jane sat in the living room with her and their tea. Cathy had a feeling she wouldn’t be getting a lot of quiet time in this new house.

The benefits of living here made logical sense of course: they’d all be in one place for easy contact and it’d make it easier to become a team for missions. Cathy was nothing except logical.

After what felt like forever (it was 20 minutes), Maria stopped driving in front of a very large, very nice looking house.

Everyone, that being Maria and the three heroes in their suits, piled out of the car. Maria said that the rest of the ladies and the other three supers were already inside.

The house looked great from the outside. It was in a pretty secluded area, without many houses around. It was a 10 minute drive from the nearest city. It looked more than big enough to house 6 people.

Cathy turned to see Maria in a strict conversation with Lina. She couldn’t help but listen in; she was good at listening.

“And be nice. The Jade Speedster is getting the same conversation from Maggie,” Cathy saw Lina roll her eyes. Maria clicked her tongue and continued her speech. “Seriously, no more of that. She agreed to do this to help the city, just like you. The least you can do is be civil. Maybe, you’ll even become friends.”

“That won’t be happening,” Lina quickly interrupted. But after a second she spoke again. “But I guess we could try to be polite. Just for the sake of the mission.”

Maria smiled and nodded, then turned to Cathy and Jane. “Let’s go in,” she said, walking everyone over to the door.

Maria knocked and Cathy could see Lina tense in her golden suit. She stepped a bit closer to her godmother in support, and she swore she saw the older woman relax just a little. Suddenly, the door swung open. It was Joan, and Jane let out a happy little cry and gave her friend a hug. Joan led them inside.

As soon as the three heroes walked in, the room instantly quieted. Cathy looked to see the other three supers, also in their suits, in the living room with Maggie and Bessie. Everyone seemed tense, as if they were waiting for something.

Lina made eye contact with the Jade Speedster, and they looked at each other for a minute, and the room felt tenser. Suddenly, the villain broke out in a cheeky grin. Lina just huffed and looked away. Conflict averted. Everyone seemed to breathe a collective sigh of relief.

Soon, everyone was sitting around in the living room, the four ladies facing them.

“First of all, thank you. Just thank you for doing this. You all are truly doing this city a big favor,” Joan started, sending a smile at all the supers in the room.

“We’re not gonna lie, we know how dangerous this project it. Tudor is a dangerous organization, and if anyone wants to tap out now we won’t hold it against you,” Bessie said, doing a scan of everyone in the room. She was met with only hard resolve in people’s eyes.

She continued. “Thank you guys. So, this is the house the ladies and I have picked out for you. It’s pretty secluded, so you won’t need to worry about people coming out here and seeing you. That’s the codename we’re using for us four directors by the way…‘ladies in waiting.’ Just some historical jokes you know?” They laughed.

“We’ve already divided up rooms, just to make things go smoother. You guys made it easy by color coding your suits, so just look for the door with your color,” Maggie laughed. “There’s also the living room, kitchen, training room, a few offices for work, and some other rooms.”

“Did you say…training room?” The Jade Speedster speaks up, beaming. Maria nods.

“Yes. And groceries will be delivered by one of us whenever you run out. We can also deliver other stuff if you need, or you’re welcome to run back to your apartments for more things.”

“Groceries? How long will we be staying here?” The red clad super spoke up. Her voice was deep, but soothing, kinda like a river. Cathy found it calming.

“I mean, as long as the mission takes…” Bessie said. The supers seemed a little uneasy at that, but no one objected.

“Well, that’s all we had. We’ll come back tomorrow to check in again, and if you need us, we wrote our numbers on the fridge,” Maggie said, and the ladies started making their way to the door. The supers all started protesting but the ladies just kept on walking.

“Get to know each other! Have fun! Byeeee!”

And with that, all four ladies were gone. The six supers were left all alone in the living room. The air was tense, everyone was just waiting for something to break it.

Finally, the super in red, Iron Maiden, sighed, and gave a confident smile. “We’re gonna be living together. Might as well break the ice and get to know each other, ja?”

Cathy nodded, and it seemed like most of the others were on board as well.

“And maybe if we’re supposed to get comfortable around each other,” Jane starts. She takes a quick glance at Lina before continuing. “We should meet each other without the suits.”

Most of the group nodded, Cathy included. They were gonna be living in the same house, might as well rip the bandaid off. There were two noticeable exceptions to the agreement.

Lina had a hardened expression, and the Jade Speedster looked almost apprehensive. The others seemed to notice that as well.

“You good A—uh…Jade?” Iron Maiden asked. The Speedster seemed to snap out of whatever doubt she as feeling and shot a wink at Catalina.

“Yeah that’s fine, I was just worried Queenie here will be blown away by my natural beauty.”

Lina huffed. Jane shot Lina a questioning look, and Lina just responded with a nod. She took a breath, and then the gold superhero spoke.

“We will all go change out of our suits in our assigned rooms, unpack, and meet back here in 20 minutes. Understood?”

The Jade Speedster huffed out a laugh. “Jeez, bossy much? But don’t worry, I gotcha.” Then she sped away before Lina could retaliate, leaving behind only a green streak. Lina scowled, then took off in the same direction. Soon everyone was heading to the hallway, slipping into the door with their respective colors.

———————————————————————————————————————

Jane checked the clock in her new room, it had been nearly 15 minutes since the six supers departed from the living room. Jane had changed out of her supersuit pretty quickly and had just been sitting around, opting to unpack her suitcase later.

Well, there was no use just sitting around more, might as well make her way to the living room again for the meeting.

Walking into the living room, Jane noticed she was the first one there. She sat down gingerly on one of the lounge chairs. She was wearing leggings and a simple blouse. It almost felt weird to be without her mask.

She was so lost in her thoughts that she barely heard the footsteps. Jane looked up, startled, to see who entered the room. Once she saw who it was, she couldn’t help but stare.

The woman, who she recognized as the red super—Iron Maiden, was beautiful. She looked strong, but her face was kind. Jane blushed and smiled shyly at the new woman. She smiled back.

Jane almost missed the next person who walked in the room, half because she was staring and the second half because the newcomer walked as quietly as a mouse.

The young woman, the one that used to be in pink, walked in quietly. She kept her head down and sat down on the floor.

Soon, Catalina and Cathy joined them as well, taking a seat on the couch. It was almost weird to see everyone together, without their suits, and in normal clothes. Jane had seen Lina and Cathy like this nearly every day, but it still felt off in the new house.

Nearly everyone was here, all they were missing was…

“Hey! Sorry, you would not believe the amount of unpacking I had to…do…”

The Jade Speedster, now clad in normal jeans and a t-shirt, mumbled the last but of her sentence. Instead, she seemed to be focused on Lina, who was staring right back. They both seemed to be in a state of shock.

I guess that’s what happens when you see your long-time nemesis in everyday clothes. Wait…are those blushes I see.

The moment was broken when Lina huffed. “You have super speed and you still couldn’t make it on time?” The Jade Speedster just rolled her eyes and plopped down on the carpet next to her two friends.

“So…you wanna just go around and say names and aliases? Oh and powers too, that might be helpful,” Iron Maiden grinned. “We’ll just shout it out, summer camp style.”

They all nodded, and Lina spoke up next.

“Fine, I guess I’ll start. My name is Catalina de Aragon, alias Goldstorm. My powers include manipulation of the four elements, water, earth, fire, and air.”

“Like the Avatar,” Cathy chimed in. She then blushed like she regretted saying anything, but the people in the room just smiled. The shy young woman Jane didn’t know also gave a little giggle at Cathy’s comment.

“Guess I’m up next! I’m Anne Boleyn, don’t wear it out,” she says, giving a cheeky smile and a wink. “I used to go by the Jade Speedster, and my powers are super speed, which also allows me to phase through solid objects.”

Everyone nodded and smiled, then looked to Jane. Looks like she’s up.

“Hi, I’m Jane Seymour. I never really went in to battle but I think the name I’ll be using is Archangel.” She shot a smile at Cathy, happy she picked a good name for her. “My powers are that I can heal any wound, and I also regenerate really fast.”

The Jade Spe—Anne groaned, and turned to Catalina. “So that’s how you always healed so fast after our fights.” She turned to Jane. “I coulda really used your help sometimes,” she said jokingly, and Jane smiled back.

“Alright! Ich bin Anna of Cleves, pleased to make your acquaintance,” she said jokingly. “I also haven’t been in any fights, but I’m going to use the name Iron Maiden. My powers are super strength and invincibility.”

Anna smiled at everyone and they all nodded back. She then gave a little pat on the knee of the woman next to her, the shy one. She looks up at everyone politely.

“Hello, I’m Katherine Howard, but everyone just calls me Kat or Kitty. I’m new to this so I haven’t really decided on a name, but I was thinking maybe something like Solstice?” She took a quick glance over and Anne beamed back at her, which seemed to give her a bit more confidence.

“My powers are making force fields and turning invisible. So I’m basically Violet from the Incredibles.” She added that last part smiling at Cathy, referencing her Avatar joke from earlier.

Cathy blushed and cleared her throat. “So yeah I guess I’m last. I’m, funny enough, also Catherine. Catherine Parr, but I normally go by Cathy so that works out. I kinda stay behind the scenes, cause my power is enhanced intelligence and super senses.”

She shyly looked at everyone before suddenly remembering something. “Oh, and I was thinking my name could be something like Menrva…like the Etruscan goddess of war and wisdom and stuff…”

She kinda trailed off at the end, but then Cathy looked up to see Kat giving her a small smile. Cathy smiled back. Then suddenly Anne super sped over to lean on Kat.

“Also one last thing. Kitty here is my baby cousin, so if you touch one hair on her head, I will skin you.” Anne said this with a smile, but everyone could hear the steel in her voice.

Lina growled at the threat but wisely stayed silent. Jane decided to cut the tension before it got worse.

“Ok! It was extremely nice to meet everyone. How about me and Catalina try to start making dinner with the things in the fridge, and everyone else can go explore and relax a bit, yeah?” Jane said warmly, and everyone seemed to calm a bit.

Everyone nodded, and headed off in different directions, leaving Jane as the last one in the living room.

She could tell that this was going to be difficult, all six of them living in the same space, but she was optimistic. They were different, but they all seemed nice in their own ways. Jane believed with a little time and effort, they could become something great together. She smiled a bit to herself and then started towards the kitchen to help Catalina.

Thus begun the tense and awkward weeks of getting to know each other, and eventually, becoming a team.

Chapter Text

The four ladies in waiting did stop by the second day of living together, but only for a few minutes. They just dropped off some more groceries and other supplies, chatted for a bit, and then left again with a few words of wisdom.

“We’ll start planning and missions next week. Just take a week off work and get to know each other! Get comfortable being together, it’s gonna be helpful when you’re on the field.”

Then the four ladies left once again, promising to come back next weekend.

No one was particularly thrilled about it, but all six supers called in to take the week off. Coincidentally, it happened to be the first week of the winter break, so Kat was off from college for the month. Jane, a high-school English teacher, also had two weeks off.

Cathy was a stay-at-home writer for a newspaper, so she was fine. Catalina was a full time super (the government paid her for her services), which gave her a lot of free time but she refused to “take a week off.”

Anne and Anna had a bit of a harder time taking time off, but they both had enough vacation days saved up. The coffee-shop manager was a little pissed at them for both taking the same days off and on such short notice, but Anna was able to talk their way out of it.

Over the week, everyone fell into a fragile, sort of routine.

Upon the further exploration of the house, everyone immediately found rooms they loved. The house was big, and there was something for everyone.

Anne and Kitty immediately gravitated to the attic, which was set up as a game room/lounge area. Shouts could frequently be heard (mostly all from Anne) about whatever game they were playing on the video game console.

Anna frequently joined those two in the game room, but most of her time was spent in the gym/training room in the basement. Catalina sometimes was there too, but would barely talk to Anna. The German half suspected the golden superhero was just there cause it was the furthest place from the attic, which was where Anne was.

Catalina did enjoy her time training, she was a professional superhero after all, but whenever she wasn’t there she could be found reading in the office with Cathy or in the kitchen near Jane.

The office was Cathy’s haven. She barely came out, but every now and then she would wander the halls and give people a quick hello. She spent most the day typing away on her computer, but she never protested if another super wanted to just come and sit in there with her to enjoy some silence. Surprisingly, Kat could be found in there sometimes, both of them sitting in comfortable silence, working on things.

Jane was normally in the kitchen, completely by choice. She made meals and treats to keep herself busy, and also to hopefully entice people to talk to each other. The supers rarely ever ate together, but Jane was always there to serve someone up a meal around meal times. Her nice and caring aura made everyone comfortable.

———————————————————————————————————————

It was nearing dinnertime, and Jane was in the kitchen cooking up something simple when she heard someone wander in. She turned around to see Kat looking at her shyly.

“Hello Kat, are you here for dinner?” Jane said smiling. Kat nodded.

“I’m sorry darling, it’s not ready yet. But you are welcome to come sit, it’ll be done soon,” Jane said. She turned back to the stove, half expecting to hear the shy woman’s foot steps walking out of the room. Jane was a bit surprised when she heard Kat take a seat instead.

Jane turned around with a smile. “Lovely, well, as it’s cooking, wanna tell me a bit about yourself? I heard you’re in college?”

Kat nodded. Jane, noticing the woman probably didn’t want to speak, started talking about herself instead.

“That’s great! I’m a teacher, high school English, and I’m sure you know, but students are crazy! There was this time when…”

Kat listened attentively, nodding and smiling at the older woman. After a bit, dinner was ready and Jane placed a plate in front of Kat. To her surprise, the younger woman didn’t take it back up to her room. She just continued sitting there, and gestured to the seat next to her.

Jane smiled and sat down to eat dinner with Kat, telling her more stories from school.

The next day, Jane was in the kitchen making lunch. Once again Kat wandered in before it was ready.

“Hello Kat! I’m sorry, lunch isn’t ready just yet.”

“…could I help?”

Jane was startled by the reply, but immediately started beaming. “I would love nothing more,” Jane said honestly in response. She moved over and Katherine came to join her at the counter. They both stood side by side, chopping up vegetables. Once again Jane started talking, but this time Kat also chimed in with her own replies.

By the time lunch was finished, the two of them were chatting away. Anne and Anna walked into the kitchen to get lunch, and were pleasantly surprised. Kat was giggling and talking with Jane, who was also laughing. Anne and Anna were happy, seeing that their shyest friend was getting along with one of the other supers in the house. They announced their presence and joined the two for lunch.

After that day, talking and laughing could normally be heard around the kitchen. Kat and Jane made meals together, enjoying each other’s company. Sometimes the radio was on too, and the others could hear faint singing coming from downstairs.

The happy environment attracted more and more people, and soon they would have meals in larger groups. Groups of 3, 4, or 5 dined together, providing the opportunity for people to get closer.

Anne and Catalina could still never be seen together. They would join the group at meals, but never ate together. If Anne was at the table and Catalina walked in, she would just huff and glare before leaving the room. If Catalina was there first, Anne would just super speed in and set up a plate. Catalina would glare at her the entire time she got her food. Then Anne would do some sort of silly gesture behind the superhero’s back, like stick her tongue out, before super speeding back upstairs with her food.

Overall, although things were getting better for most, those two could barely stand each other.

———————————————————————————————————————

The next bond to form was basically inevitable. With both Anna and Catalina spending time in the training room, it would make sense for them to start talking eventually.

One day, Anna was on the treadmill when Catalina stomped in angrily. She stormed over to one of the reinforced punching bags and started launching fireballs at it, throwing punches in between.

It is a good thing the ladies super-proofed this room, Anna thought.

Anna couldn’t stop herself from turning off the treadmill and walking over. “Dang, what’d that punching bag do to you?” Anna joked, raising an eyebrow.

“Estupida. Fucking. Boleyn.” Catalina said, not stopping from her punches.

Ah, so Anne was being loud in the attic or did something to annoy Catalina so she stormed down here. Makes sense.

Anna suddenly had an idea, she left the superhero downstairs and quickly ran up to her room to grab something. When she returned, Catalina actually looked up from her assault on the training equipment.

“What’s…that?”

Catalina looked at Anna questioningly, but with an air of royalty. Anna just sat down on the ground and started setting up the checkers board she had grabbed.

“Well, training is easy for me, super strength and invincibility and all. But sometimes I find it better to practice calm and gentleness.”

So I don’t hurt anyone. One wrong move, and it could be bad.

Anna winced at the thought but continued while putting more pieces on the board.

“I like to play board games, to train the mind instead of the body. I thought, instead of taking out your anger on the training equipment, you’d fancy a game?” Anna said, looking at Catalina.

It was silent for a bit as Anna looked down and continued setting up the pieces. After a few moments, she saw the older woman sit down across from her. Anna smiled and moved her first piece, starting the game.

They played in silence for the first minute, but then Anna spoke up.

“Hey, you wanna hear a funny story about Anne?”

Catalina gritted her teeth at the name, but said nothing, so Anna just continued on with her story.

Anna was smart, she knew what she was doing. She knew the golden superhero hated the green super because of their shared past. But Anna also knew that the women across from her didn’t really know Anne. Catalina only knew Anne as the villain, but nothing about Anne as a person. Anna hoped that by sharing these little stories, she could start to break down the villain in Catalina’s mind and humanize her a little.

“…and that’s the story of how Anne got her hand stuck in the display case and had to help a customer for the entire 20 minutes.” Anna could almost see a small smile on the older woman’s face.

Score! Anna you’re too good at this, Anna thought, mentally patting herself on the back. The two of them finished up their game, and they both left, telling each other to have a nice rest of their day.

The next day, Anna walked into the training room in the morning to see that Catalina had gotten there first. Only this time, the superhero was sitting on the ground, right next to a chess board.

“I thought after yesterday, this could be enjoyable?” Catalina said, face neutral. Anna smiled and sat down to play. After the game, Anna stood up to leave, but Catalina stood up too and stopped her.

“Anna, this has been…pleasant. I enjoyed your presence,” Catalina said. Her words were stilted and cold but her face showed her vulnerability, eyebrows stitched together and eyes down on the floor. Anna could read between the lines.

Anna smiled. “Sounds to me like you wanna be friends,” she joked back.

Catalina stilled for a minute and looked up, but then a rare smile broke across the stern superhero’s face. “I think I do,” she replied, and Anna beamed back before taking her leave.

The two woman made a habit of bringing various games down to the training room, and after a while they just set up in the living room instead. “It’s comfier” Anna insisted, and Catalina huffed but agreed.

The others got used to walking into the living room to watch TV and see Anna and Catalina deep into some sort of game. Sometimes they were lightly chatting, other times they were in a comfortable silence.

That also brought people closer. Jane, Cathy, or Kat, would come sit in the room with them, content to just watch their game or do some work in their presence. Every now and then Kat would join them too if it was a game for more than two players.

One day, the impossible happened. Anna and Catalina were setting up the board game ‘Trouble’ in the living room, Kat joining them. Jane was there as well, knitting on the couch. Cathy was on one of the arm chairs typing away at her computer. Suddenly, Anne walked in.

“Ooooo, can I join?” Anne said, plopping down in between Kat and Anna. The room suddenly went still, and everyone seemed to hold their breaths.

Catalina glared at Anne from across the table where the board was set up. She stared up her for a solid minute, before letting out a sigh and looking down at the board with a scowl. Anne grinned, taking that as a yes and setting up her pieces.

The room seemed to relax again, since no argument broke out. The game continued, Catalina barely speaking except for some scathing jabs at Anne. The green super too threw in some nasty jokes at the superhero every now and then.

At the end of the game, no argument had broken out and no one had started yelling. Anne just picked up her pieces, shot a wink at Catalina, and super sped out of the room. Catalina glared but picked up her own pieces and thanked Anna and Kat before leaving as well.

Everyone left in the room mulled over their thoughts. No yelling, cursing, or arguing resulted from Catalina and Anne in the same room. It wasn’t polite by any means, but it was better.

It seemed there was some hope after all.

———————————————————————————————————————

“Well fuck you, maybe if you actually tried to do better!?”

“I’m sorry everyone can’t be a fucking saint all the time. People make mistakes you know!”

“You make too many mistakes!”

“Your whole life is a mistake!”

Cathy sighed and picked up her computer. She had been trying to get some work done in the living room, but then Lina and Anne started another of their petty arguments. Cathy didn’t even know what it was about this time, all she knew was that it was getting too loud to work.

Cathy left the room, the other two continuing their screaming match without even noticing. She made her way upstairs to the office and slipped inside, setting up her computer on the desk.

With super senses, sometimes things got a bit too much. The office was soundproofed, which gave Cathy a nice break from the noise.

She had been working for a few minutes when the door cracked open. Cathy looked up to see Kat sheepishly standing in the doorway. “They were getting too loud,” she explained. Cathy just nodded and went back to her work.

Kat settled in on an armchair and took out whatever she was working on. The faint sounds of pencil scratching and typing filled the room. Cathy didn’t mind Kat sitting with her, in fact, she quite liked it. Both woman liked to find some peace and quiet, so more often then not they would come and sit together in the office, working independently.

Cathy was broken from her reverie from a small huff from Kat and the sound of a pencil being put down forcefully. The writer looked up from her computer and turned around. Kat blushed when she saw her staring.

“Sorry, it’s just…some of this work they gave us to complete over break is kinda stumping me,” Kat said, rubbing the back of her neck nervously.

Cathy surprised herself by getting up and walking over. “Lemme see if I can help.”

“Oh no, it’s totally ok! You don’t need to worry about me.”

Kat seemed to stop for a second and then start talking again. “You can’t be much older than me, right? Are you in college too?”

“Super intelligence. Tested out at a young age,” Cathy said as an explanation. Kat just nodded, a bit embarrassed, and Cathy gave her a smile. “But yeah, I think we’re about the same age.”

“Cool, cool,” Kat said, a bit awkwardly. Cathy came over to look at her paper, it was a math problem that Kat had started but stopped halfway through. Cathy noticed what was wrong almost immediately.

“You just forgot to put the negative right here,” Cathy said, pointing. Kat made a face of realization and Cathy smiled.

That’s cute, Cathy thought.

“Oh my gosh! You’re the best, thank you!” Kat said, jumping up to give Cathy a hug. What most of the supers realized as the young woman got more comfortable around them, was that Kat was super tactile. The woman was bright, cheery, and loved giving hugs.

Cathy blushed in Kat’s arms. When the pink woman let her go, she found herself missing the closeness. She surprised herself yet again by walking over to get her computer and coming back over to Kat.

“What do you say about taking a break, hm?”

Kat clapped her hands excitedly and patted the chair next to her. Next thing Cathy knew she was pressed up against Kat’s side, both of them on the armchair. They both decided on rewatching a Harry Potter movie, Cathy’s eyes lighting up with excitement at the choice.

That’s cute, Kat thought.

Right as they were settling in for the first movie, Anne came walking through the door. And she means literally…through the door.

Anne phased through the door, finding the two of them sitting in the chair with the computer on the table in front of them.

“Annie! We’re watching Harry Potter, wanna come join?” Kat asked excitedly. Cathy hesitated, thinking about how mad her godmother Lina would be if she was caught being friendly with Anne. Eventually, she made her decision and nodded at Anne. The speedster grinned and went to sit in front of them.

“Ooooo Goblet of Fire, good choice. It’s my favorite,” Anne said.

“No way, me too!” Cathy said, letting the excitement creep into her voice.

“Omg omg, wait, you know that part when…”

And that’s how Jane found them, 45 minutes later. She had wandered upstairs to see where Kat was and ask if she wanted to help make dinner. She quietly peeked into the office room, hearing excited voices from inside.

When she looked in, she smiled. Cathy was talking excitedly with Anne and Kat, her hand gesturing wildly. Anne and Kat were chiming in too, movie forgotten on the table besides them. Jane could hear enough to tell that they were all geeking out over some show they happened to all watch.

Jane was happy, she knew that Cathy only ever opened up this much to people that she felt comfortable around, and when she really enjoyed the conversation.

She slipped out of the room, content to make dinner alone tonight and let the three of them enjoy their conversation. She was delighted they were all getting along.

———————————————————————————————————————

Catalina didn’t get tired very easily. Normally she could fight whatever Tudor sent, come home to get fixed up by Jane, and go about her day. But the creations were getting tougher, and today she came home covered in bruises, tired to her bones.

“Tough fight.” Was all the other’s got out of her, before Jane started fussing over her bruises and cuts. Anne, Anna, and Kat watched in amazement as the bruises faded from her body with Jane’s warm light, as this was the first time they saw Jane’s power in action.

Catalina thanked Jane warmly, then walked over to the living room and collapsed on the couch.

“I can fix the pain and bruises, but she’s still probably pretty tired,” Jane said, and the others decided to give the golden superhero some time to rest. Even Anne steered clear of the living room for a few hours, opting to cause mischief somewhere else.

A few hours later, everyone had just finished dinner. Catalina had eaten her dinner on the couch that day, which was out of the norm for the normally poised superhero. She had just finished up dinner and put on a show when she heard a slight sound from behind her.

She turned around to see Kat standing in the doorway. She seemed a little surprised to be caught.

“I’m sorry, Miss Catalina, I just…wanted to know if you’re ok?”

Lina melted at the sweet words from the girl. She gestured for Kat to come over and she complied, coming to sit next to Lina on the couch.

“I’m fine cariño, thank you for asking,” Lina said. “Would you maybe like to stay and keep me some company? And please, you don’t need to call me Miss.”

Kat beamed and nodded at the question, settling in further in the couch. Lina put on some movie that she didn’t know the name of. They sat in a comfortable silence.

About 30 minutes in, Lina could see the younger girl start to yawn. Lina opened up her arms and gestured to her side. Kat hesitated, but her affinity for hugs won out and she crawled up and leaned against the superhero. Catalina wrapped the younger girl up in a hug and let her rest on her.

After a few minutes, Kat closed her eyes. “You give good hugs Lina,” she said sleepily, and after a few minutes, she was asleep.

Lina’s heart was glowing from the sweetness.

After a few minutes, Jane and Cathy wandered in too, taking a seat on the chair and other side of the couch. After a while, Anna walked in too and took the other chair. Everyone sat, watching the movie.

After a while, Anne walked in too, and looked tenderly at Kat sleeping against Lina. Catalina looked at the green super, the ex-villain. For a few moments they just looked at each other, staring.

Then Lina gestured to the ground right in front of her, and Anne smiled softly. She walked over and settled on the space on the floor in between Lina and Cathy, accepting the pillow Lina gave her. She whispered conversation for a bit with Cathy, but it was drowned out by the sounds of the movie.

In that moment, everyone was content. They were together, enjoying a movie. It wasn’t perfect, there was still a lot of unspoken tension, but that was for another day. Everyone was comfortable in that moment, sitting in silence. This was already better than the week prior.

With a little more effort, they could become a team in no time.

Chapter Text

Of course, peace couldn’t last long in this household.

“Would it kill you to eat with your mouth closed?”

“Chill out, my mouth was barely open. You on the other hand are sitting so stiff it looks like there’s a stick up your ass, oh wait, there is.”

“Excuse me? Well at least I don’t…”

The other four supers tuned them out, this was the last thing they wanted to hear at dinnertime. Ever since all six of them started eating together, it seemed like Anne and Catalina couldn’t go 5 minutes without arguing over something petty.

Sometimes it blew itself way out of proportion. This was one of those times.

A small argument turned into a screaming match. Both Catalina and Anne had stood up from their chairs, and were yelling at each other from opposite sides of the table. The other supers were just sitting there, trying their best to eat dinner and ignore them. But with how loud they were it was getting increasingly harder to tune them out.

“Fuck you Boleyn. You’re such bitch,” Catalina said, glaring at Anne.

“Ooo look at me, I’m a superhero so apparently I know everything about everyone,” Anne responded in a mocking voice.

Catalina grit her teeth and yelled back. “No, but at least I’m not villain.” She smiled cruelly. “How many people have lost their property cause of you Boleyn? How much has the government had to rebuild?”

Anne stilled, but responded in a steely voice. “I never hurt anyone. And the people whose property I damaged deserved it. Do you know what they did Queenie?”

“It doesn’t matter Boleyn! It’s not just them that you hurt. People had to rebuild what you broke!”

“Guys…maybe we should just take a breather?” Kat interjected, but Catalina just scoffed.

“Always having someone else clean up your problems, right Boleyn?” Catalina said, shaking her head.

Anne glared at Catalina and shook her head at Kat. “Thanks Kit, but you stay out of it. Just cause Queenie’s a bitch to me for no reason doesn’t mean that you need to deal with it too.”

Catalina laughs. “For no reason! Ha, that’s a good one.”

“Guys, Kat’s right. How about we settle down a bit? Lina, go take a walk. Anne, go calm down in your room,” Jane said in a comforting voice, trying to calm down the situation.

Instead, Anne just slammed her hands down on the table, too worked up by the argument to see reason. Cathy flinched at the loud noise and tensed up.

“Shut up Jane! You’re not my mum, stop acting like it!”

Jane stilled, and Cathy was still tense, closing her eyes. Catalina noticed both and turned on Anne with a new anger. The air around the table started to blow around lightly, a clear indication of Lina’s fury.

“Good going Boleyn, now you like to hurt your friends now huh?”

Anne stopped, the anger draining from her face. Something almost like fear replacing it. “No, that’s not what—I…”

Catalina just continued.

“You just hurt people! You take and take and don’t pay attention to the mess you leave. You are danger to the people who know and are around you. All you do is cause pain to everyone. You are just—"

“I KNOW”

Catalina stops her rant and looks up. Anne is tense and balling her fists across the table. Her eyes are closed tightly and her head is down. She opens her eyes and turns them on Catalina, and the superhero has enough time see the tears in them before she starts yelling again.

“I know I hurt people. I know I’m a failure. Why do you think I stopped going out as the Jade Speedster four months ago?”

“Well…I—“

“Because I knew that I was a danger. I knew that I only caused harm. All I do is hurt. Hurt and hurt and hurt and I can’t ever do anything right! I learned my lesson. Maybe if I was good, if I was better, I wouldn’t be such a problem. Maybe… maybe then I—“ Anne cuts herself off with a violent sob.

“Maybe then my brother would still be alive!”

The table goes silent except for the sounds of Anne’s quiet sobs. Even Catalina looks frozen in shock. She snaps out of it, and almost goes to reach in Anne’s direction before stopping herself.

Anne suddenly super sped upstairs, leaving only a green streak and silence behind. Kat and Anna were immediately spurred into action. They both stood up, but Kat shook her head at Anna, who got the message. Kat hurried upstairs after Anne, and Anna stayed downstairs.

The tension in the room was palpable. Anna looked at Catalina, who was still standing in shock. It wasn’t a glare, but it wasn’t friendly. It was a hardened look. Anna went to speak, but closed her mouth right afterwards. She took a few moments to think before speaking simply.

“She’s made mistakes, but she didn’t deserve that,” Anna said, and Catalina looked down at the floor. “Figure out the whole situation before you make assumptions.”

And with that, Anna left too, heading upstairs. Only Catalina, Jane, and Cathy were left in the kitchen. Jane and Cathy stood up, both gave Lina a hug, and too headed upstairs to their own rooms to get some silence after that emotion.

This left Lina alone, by herself, at the dinner table with only her thoughts and regrets.

She sat down, trying to think in the newfound silence. Hopefully this time, she’ll see the bigger picture.

———————————————————————————————————————

Anne ran into her room and slammed the door behind her. Her surroundings were blurred from tears but she found her way to the bed and launched herself at it, stomach down.

“Fuck!” She yelled. She was angry, sad, irritated, disappointed, livid, and just…

…just tired.

She was tired of the arguments. The ones that meant screaming at Catalina. Both of them trading insults.

She was tired of the fake smiles and laughs to try to convince the others that she was ok. She was supposed to be the fun one, carefree, full of energy.

She was tired of the thoughts. She’s not good enough. She’s a villain. She’s the reason George—

Anne sobbed again into the sheets. She lifted her head when she heard a faint knock on the door.

“Annie?”

Anne let out a breath. “You can come in Kit,” she said softly, her voice breaking a bit. But Kat heard her, and quietly slipped in a few seconds afterwards.

“Oh Annie,” she said tenderly, coming to sit by Anne on the bed. Anne looked up at her baby cousin tearfully, and Kat just wordlessly wrapped her in a hug. Anne sobbed into her shoulder. Kat just whispered reassurances in her cousin’s ears softly.

“It wasn’t your fault Anne. And you’re not a villain. We all love you,” Kat whispered. They sat there for a few minutes until Anne’s crying slowed down. The next few minutes were spent in silence, giving time for Anne to recollect herself.

“Thanks Kit,” Anne started after some time, her voice hoarse. “I love you a lot. You and Anna.”

Kat just nodded and smiled softly at Anne, letting her continue. “I think I’m ok now. Can I…have a bit of time to myself?”

Kat frowned at the question, but after searching Anne’s eyes she relented. She stood up quietly. “If you say so Annie. But please, come to me or Anna if you need something.”

Anne nodded and smiled, and Kat smiled back. “Love you cuz,” Anne said.

“Love you too Annie,” Kat replied, before leaving and closing the door lightly behind her. She sighed as she stepped into the hallway, but stopped when she saw another figure standing there.

Catalina was hovering awkwardly outside of Anne’s door, freezing when she was caught by Kat. Kat stared blankly at her for a few seconds. “Are you going to talk to her?” She asked the older woman.

Lina just nodded, and shuffled her feet a little. Kat kept the eye contact. “Apologize. Hear her side of the story. Listen this time,” Kat continued.

If Lina was put off by Kat berating her, she wisely didn’t show it. She nodded genuinely.  Kat accepted this and started walking back down the hallway.

She turned and said one final thing to the superhero. “I believe in you, don’t mess this up.” Then she gave Lina a small encouraging smile, and continued walking down the hall.

At the last second, Kat seemed to change her mind, and head towards a blue door instead of her pink one.

———————————————————————————————————————

After the dinner disaster, Anna had walked into her room and closed the red door quietly behind her. She sighed and sat on the bed. She should’ve known something like this would’ve happened. Catalina and Anne have been yelling at each other much more recently, and Anna had started to see the cracks in Anne’s facade.

She just didn’t think her breaking would be this sad.

Anne was broken from her train of thoughts from a muffled sob from the other room. At first Anna thought it was Anne, but Anna’s room was at the end of the hallway, and Anne’s was at the opposite end. This crying seemed to be right next door. But the person next door to her was…

Oh, Jane.

When Anna realized the silver super was crying, she sat up a little. She listened in for footsteps of Catalina or Cathy towards her room, but none came. They both must’ve been busy or still downstairs.

After a minute of decision, Anna found herself moving. Before she knew it, she was in front of a silver door, knocking.

The muffled sniffles inside the room stopped with Anna’s knocking, and a few seconds later Jane peeked out the door. She was hiding behind the wood, but even in the dark Anna could see her red-rimmed eyes.

“Oh, hi Anna. Do you need something?” Jane asked quietly, still hiding behind the door.

Anna smiled at her sadly. “Are you ok Jane? Wanna talk about it?”

Jane stilled. Anna could see the internal war being waged in her mind. Finally, Jane stepped aside and opened the door a little wider. Anna took the invitation and walked in. Jane led her over to the bed and they both sat down. Anna had to avoid sitting on a shoebox that was placed on the center of the bed.

Anna patiently sat with Jane, who was still silently crying. Jane broke the silence with quiet hurried words.

“It’s honestly not a big deal. I don’t know why it got to me so much. It was really sweet of you to come in here Anna but I’m fine, I promise!”

Anna looked at Jane, who was trying to give her signature warm smile, but the tears made it hard. Anna just shook her head and gave a small smile.

“If that’s what you really want, say the word and I’ll go. But if you want to talk mein engel, I’m hear to listen.”

At that, Jane looked surprised. She hesitated, but then launched a hug at Anna. The strong woman took it with grace and held the sobbing super. She just let the other woman cry for a few minutes, holding her gently.

Jane lifted her head. “It’s just, when Anne said…I wasn’t her mum—“ she cut herself off with a sob. “I know I’m not her mum! That’s not what I am upset about I promise! It’s just that, when she said that, it reminded…it reminded me o-of…”

“It’s ok, take your time. We’ve got all night,” Anna said gently, petting Jane’s hair while she cried.

Jane suddenly sat up, still crying but with resolve in her eyes. She grabbed the shoe box that was still on the bed and opened it up. She took out a small photo and thrust it in Anna’s direction.

“This…this was my baby boy.”

Jane immediately brings the photo back, and holds it over her heart as she starts crying again. Anna takes a second to process what Jane said.

Jane is a mother? That was her baby boy? Oh…oh scheisse. Was .

“Oh mein engel,” Anna said, pulling Jane in for another hug. This time they just sat there, for however long, resting with Jane’s head on Anna’s chest. Eventually, Jane’s cries finally evened out.

They laid there in comfortable silence for so long that Anna thought Jane had fallen asleep on top of her. That’s why she was slightly surprised when Jane started talking in a small, quiet voice. Anna listened to the other super’s story.

“I had him a few years after quitting my past job to become an English teacher. His father was never in the picture, but when I found out I was pregnant I immediately told Lina—we had been good friends since college. I moved into Lina’s apartment a few months before my due date, just so I didn’t have to be alone. She lived just her and Cathy, who is her goddaughter. Lina helped a lot, making sure I had food and keeping me company.

When my baby was born, it was the happiest moment of my life. He was my light, my Edward.

Raising a child was not easy, and it was definitely an adjustment, but every single moment was worth it. Even when the Tudor attacks started ramping up, and Lina came home getting more and more hurt, I cherished the moments with my sweet Eddie.

Then one day, a few months after he turned two, I took him out to the park, just me and him. He loved the outdoors, and it was a beautiful sunny day outside. I never knew that that day would strip the sunshine out of my life.

I was just sitting there Anna, with him in my arms, when one of those Tudor robots came out of nowhere. And…they took him. I’m not strong, I’m not fast. There was nothing I could do. They knocked me out, but I heal fast and I was up again only a few minutes later, but he…

…my baby boy was gone. Taken.”

Jane stopped then, once again crying into Anna’s shirt. Anna was crying now too, Jane’s story had brought her to tears. She stayed silent though and helped the blonde calm down. They laid together, nothing said between them, but comfort equally given.

Soon, Jane’s breaths evened out, and Anna realized she was asleep. The German tried to slip out from under her, but she stopped when the other woman grabbed her wrist.

“Stay?” Jane asked sleepily.

“Eh, I don’t know if I should. People tell me I’m too muscular, not a good cuddler you know?”

I don’t want to harm you Jane. I don’t know my own strength. What if I’m asleep and squeeze you too hard. What if I hurt you?

Jane, even in her half-asleep state, seemed to know what was going on in Anna’s mind.

“You’re an amazing cuddler love. And I want you here. I trust you Anna.”

Anna stilled at those words. Jane trusted her. She trusted Anna to keep her safe through the night. She trusted Anna not to hurt her.

Anna slowly climbed back into the bed, a smile on her face.

“Whatever you say mein engel. Good night.”

“Good night Anna.”

And cuddling together, the two woman fell asleep. Their hearts were full of warmth, and they cherished the feeling of closeness.

———————————————————————————————————————

Everything was too loud.

The yelling at the dinner table had already put Cathy on edge. Super senses are great, but sometimes super hearing can be a bit overwhelming.

Now she’s sitting in her room. Cathy can hear Anne crying down the hallway. She can hear Jane too, but she can’t find it in her to take her hands off of her ears.

You’re awful. Your friend is crying and all you can do is just sit here.

Cathy wanted to move, she really did. But everything was just too much. All she could do was sit on her bed, curled up, with her hands covering her ears.

It’s just too loud.

Cathy could faintly hear the sounds of doors opening. She heard Jane talk to someone, she could just make out the sound of Anna’s voice. They door closed again and Jane’s cries got quieter.

Cathy let out a sigh of relief, both cause it was quieter and because someone was there helping Jane. She still felt awful that it wasn’t her though.

Cathy sat there, rocking back and forth on the bed to sooth herself. Suddenly, she heard footsteps and a knock on the door. She nearly jumped but composed herself. It took all of her effort to go and open the door, not even sparing the other person a glance before walking back to the bed and curling her knees back to her chest.

The other person closed the door behind them, and stood kinda awkwardly in the middle of the room. Cathy looked up, and saw it was Kat. She gave the other girl a smile and tilted her head questioningly.

“I just…Catalina’s about to talk to Anne, and I think Anna is with Jane right now. Tensions were so high and dinner was just so much emotion. And I can totally go back to my room if you want me to, I don’t mean to be a bother. I just wanted to know if I could come sit here maybe for a bit? I just…didn’t wanna be alone…” Kat said quickly, trailing off a bit at the end.

Cathy just sent her a smile and patted the bed next to her. Kat squealed and came to sit next to her. Cathy flinched at the loud noise and put her hands over her ears. Things were becoming too loud again.

She could hear too much. Jane and Anna talking. The birds chirping outside. Kat calling her name. Crying. Anne and Lina talking. Humming.

Cathy focussed in on the last one. Humming? Where was that coming from?

She gradually drowned out the other sounds, pinpointing the source of the music. Kat had started humming lightly, also placing a hand soothingly on Cathy’s back. Cathy looked up and caught Kat’s eye.

The other woman gave Cathy a smile when she caught her looking, and began to explain. “You looked a little overwhelmed. Sometimes I get panic attacks, and humming is something that Annie does to help me ground myself. I thought that’d it’d maybe help you too?”

Kat said that last part as a question, and Cathy nodded with a faint smile. Kat leaned against the backboard, making herself comfortable, and Cathy settled besides her.

“Don’t feel like talking right now?” Kat asked, and Cathy nodded.

Then, she reached up towards Kat’s face with one of her hands. Cathy gently tapped Kat’s lips with two of her fingers. She could feel Kat start beaming.

“You want me to keep humming?”

Cathy nodded gratefully, and gave her a tender smile. Kat starts humming the tune again, something Cathy didn’t recognize. It was sweet and slow, and calmed Cathy down significantly.

Cathy found herself drifting closer, until her head was laying on top of Kat’s chest. She could hear and feel the rumble of Kat’s humming underneath her head. It was perfect, drowning out any other noise and replacing it with a musical tune.

Cathy wrapped her arms around Kat and closed her eyes.

“You have a pretty voice,” Cathy said, and soon after her breathing evened out and she was asleep.

Kat beamed, and wrapped Cathy up in a tighter hug. She got a little more comfortable in the bed, never stopping from cuddling the other woman. She placed her chin on top of Cathy’s head, so that the other woman was tucked into her neck.

Then, comforted by the soft breaths of the other woman in bed, Kat fell asleep too, smile on her face.

Chapter Text

Catalina stared in the direction of where she just saw Kat walk into Cathy’s room. She’d unpack that later, she had a bigger problem right now. She turned back to the green door in front of her.

Dios mio. Just knock on the door already, she berated herself. But for some reason, Lina couldn’t bring it upon herself to knock.

The had spent some time thinking about it in the kitchen, but the situation was just too confusing. Her views of the cheeky, annoying, sly Jade Speedster had been scrambled, and now Lina didn’t know what to think.

Of course, always one to take action, the Spaniard had marched up here ready to talk or yell or do whatever. But the something made her freeze.

Maybe it was the soft sobs from behind the door, or Kat’s whispered reassurances. All Lina knows now is that Kat was gone, and Bolyen was alone. She should be knocking right now.

Catalina took a deep breath, and moved forwards. She knocked on the door.

Whatever sniffles were inside stopped, and Catalina could only hear silence. She waited for some sort of response, but none came. She moved a little closer to the door.

“…Boleyn? It’s uh, me.”

Wow, very poised and elegant, Catalina scowled. She perked up when she heard shuffled from behind the door.

Anne didn’t open the door, so Catalina leaned against the door. Slowly sliding down until she was sitting on the floor, back and head against the door. She sat there in silence, until another thump sounded from the inside of the room, signaling that Anne had sat down too.

Dammit, start talking, Catalina told herself.

“I uh, I didn’t mean for it to get that out of hand.”

Wow, that was great and totally not vague at all, Lina thought sarcastically. She took a deep breath and started again.

“I…said some things I didn’t mean to. You…I never meant to say that you…you know…”

Catalina trailed off. Suddenly she balled up her fists and started again.

“Dammit, I’m trying to say I apologize! I apologize for what I said. You don’t just hurt everyone. I see how happy you make the others, you make them laugh. And you haven’t gone out as the Jade Speedster in multiple months. And you’re here working with us so that must mean you want to do good.”

Catalina was now speaking faster and faster.

“And I’m sorry I yelled at you. I’m sorry that I said those things. I know I don’t know the whole picture. I know that. And I’m here because if you wanted…you could help me understand?”

Catalina trailed off at the end. She was met with silence. That didn’t work. The ex-villain didn’t want to talk to her. Why would she? Catalina had failed to see her as anything but a villain for the entire time they had lived in the same house. She had shown so much anger towards the other woman and no understanding. To be fair, the green super had started her fair share of arguments and petty annoyances, but Catalina realized now most of those times were just jokes and general cheeky behavior.

She sighed and thumped her head lightly against the door behind her. Of course the other woman didn’t want to talk to her.

“…will you listen this time?”

Catalina froze at the small, quiet voice coming from the other side of the door. It was so unlike the cheery, bright voice she associated with the other super.

“I will,” Catalina said simply, and stood back up in front of the door. It opened and she slipped into the dark room.

Even with the lights off, Catalina could see Anne’s sad state. The shorter woman was disheveled, and her eyes were red from crying. Catalina turned away, weirdly moved by the sight.

She sat on the carpet, feeling awkward about taking the bed or chair. She moved to sit with her back against the bed. Surprisingly, Anne moved to sit on the floor next to her. Both of them sat close, not facing each other but instead staring at the wall. The darkness shrouded them in a protective blanket, making them feel like they were fully alone.

This silence continued, and Catalina kept her promise to not break it. She sat next to her old nemesis, and waited.

Finally, Anne began talking.

“I discovered my powers when I was really young, still living in France. My parents didn’t care about me, I know that now, and instead only cared about what I could do for them.”

Her voice was scratchy and broke every now and then, but Lina listened carefully.

“We weren’t rich by any means, and I was young, so when they told me to swipe things at the grocery store, I did. When they told me to quickly speed into a store and grab some stuff, I did. When that escalated to straight up stealing, I still did it.

I was young and wanted my parents’ approval. One day, I guess my labor had finally paid off. They decided to ship me off to go to college in London, here. I was sent away from them, away from by brother and sister, and they got to stay with the riches I pilfered for them. Haven’t seen them since.

In London, I stopped my stealing habits, at least for the first bit. Then I only started doing it for fun, maybe grabbing an apple here or there, messing with the papers on the professors desk, you know.

I had family here, Kitty and them, who I stayed with for breaks instead of going back to my parents. It was just Kit and her grandmother, but we grew close. She was such a small, shy child. She was always on edge, tense in a way that young of a child wasn’t supposed to be. I knew she wasn’t happy there, so as soon as I got my own place after college, I offered for her to live with me. Our grandmother was awful, didn’t even notice Kit had up and left until a few days later. And when she did notice, all she sent was an email saying a cordial goodbye. And email for god’s sake!

Me and Kit grew even closer. I got a job and she continued high school. It was at my first job, working at a bar, that I met Anna. It was also then that I started using my powers again more.

One night I had just finished my shift, around midnight, and I was leaving the bar. I heard faint cries coming from around the corner of the building, in an alley. He had her cornered there, and I could hear her saying no but he just didn’t listen. I yelled at him to fuck off and he ran away, but the girl was still sobbing.

She said that he’d been following her for a week, doing the same thing, but the police wouldn’t do anything about it. I walked her home, the entire time seeing red. When she was safe, I made the decision. It was impulsive, I know, but I couldn’t help myself.

I sped in the direction I saw him walk, and somehow I found his disgusting self. He was so drunk, no wonder he was slow to walk home. But I, I’ve always been too fast.

I pulled up my hood and approached him. I kicked out his knee and he cried out.  If he wanted to hurt innocent girls then he would be hurt too. I used my speed to grab his wallet and phone. Pickpocketing had become a skill I could execute easily. I threatened him, saying if he ever went near the girl again, he would pay. Then, I sped away, stolen possessions in hand.

That night was awful, and all I could feel was anger. Why didn’t the police do anything? How is it that people could get away with such an act? It just wasn’t fair.

A few weeks later, two things happened. My brother came into town. Me and George had always been close. He was the one to make sure I ate when my parents forgot to make us dinner. He’d help me with my homework and play games with me at night. Having him come to London felt like a puzzle piece being filled.

Finally, the Tudor attacks started. Robots stealing people away from the streets was something out of a movie. People were now afraid to leave the house. But you know the panic that followed, you lived through it too.

Me, Kit, Anna, and George tried to continue life as normal. Kitty continued going to school, me and Anna kept working at the bar, and George actually got a job there with us! It was wonderful. We had game nights and went for coffee and did other things with all four of us together.

For the first time, I had a family.”

Anne paused here, and Catalina could see the tears shining in her eyes. The story moved her, and Lina was also frowning. She felt something new towards the other woman, not animosity, but…something like protectiveness.

She placed her hand on top of Anne’s, which was curled up in a ball against the floor. To Lina’s surprise, Anne uncurled her hand. She didn’t curl their fingers together, but Lina’s hand warmed the back of Anne’s. Somehow that was enough, enough to show that the superhero was listening closely this time.

Anne continued.

“Then the Tudor attacks started getting worse.

I had heard of you before, of course, the city’s superhero. But now I saw you much more often, fighting against random robots or monsters. I thought you were so strong. Honestly, I still do.

Don’t look so shocked, it’s true.

The four of us tried to continue life, even with the increased fear and paranoia. We still went out as a little group, the four of us. We went to arcades and movies and other things. We foolishly tried to ignore the burning world around us.

Then one day, something happened to Anna because of Tudor. I can’t tell you what, that’s her story, but she got kicked out of her family home. She came to stay with me and Kit. Of course she was welcomed with open arms. But during those first few weeks, those were the most reserved I had ever seen her. She looked like she was carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders, and as strong as she is, she was cracking under the pressure.”

Once again, Anne paused, staring pensively against the wall. Catalina too took a moment to wonder. What could’ve happened? Well, that’s for Anna to tell, if she ever so chooses.

“George warned me,” Anne continued, voice breaking. The tears were back in her eyes. “He warned me that Tudor was dangerous. That I needed to be safe. But I was foolish and impulsive. I should’ve listened.

It was just another Saturday, and me and Kit decided to go to the museum. There was some old Elizabethan exhibit up, something that Kitty found interesting. We were just walking around, laughing like normal, when it happened.

I wasn’t fast enough.

Tudor robots burst in. I acted immediately, grabbing Kit and trying to super speed out. But I wasn’t trained, and I sped right into the body of a metal robot. I think I had a concussion, cause I dropped Kit and fell to the floor.

The robots reached for people around the museum, all the rich old men and women. And you know what they did? They grabbed Kit and pushed her at the robot, shriveling and crying while they fucking offered her up like she wasn’t another human being!?”

Anne was crying now at this point, angry tears falling down her face. Catalina leaned in a little closer, not knowing how to comfort the other woman. Suddenly, Anne broke out in sobs. She continued her story, nearly yelling through her tears.

“And they took her. The robots just grabbed her and left the cowards behind!

I ran after her, speeding towards the robot. But I was impulsive, and dumb, and concussed. The robot was strong, and I wasn’t. I fought, oh my god I fought with everything I had.

But it wasn’t enough.

They…they got me too. And both me and Kit were taken away to the Tudor labs.”

Catalina gasped at this point. She could barely stop her tears before, but this was the last straw. She was crying now too, sitting next to the sobbing Anne. This woman was so far removed from her idea of her ex-nemesis. It hurt Lina to see her this sad.

So she pulled Anne against her, wrapping an arm around her shoulder. Anne leaned in too, laying her head on Catalina’s shoulder. And together, they sat, until Anne’s sobs quieted down. She continued her story in a small, hoarse voice.

“I barely remember my time there. After we got out I found out we spent a week in there. Everything was so dark, and they had me in some kind of cage. They knew about my super speed, so the doors were never opened. I think they were trying to develop some way to deal with my powers before starting the experiments.

But I heard it all. The screams from labs, the cries. It was…horrendous. I sat there, in my cell, for hours on end. I never saw Kit though. They never had us next to each other.

I spent too much time thinking in that cell. And experimenting. It was there that I discovered that if I move my body fast enough to vibrate, I can phase right through the molecules of solid objects.

That right there, my powers, were the only reason I ever escaped.

After what felt like months but was probably just two days, I discovered I could phase through solid objects. I practiced in secret, whenever there wasn’t a guard roaming around. And finally, when I was confident in my power, I executed the escape.

I phased through the bars of my cell during the night. I sped through the halls, as quietly as possible and looked for Kat. On the way I swiped a key from a guard. My years of pickpocketing finally paid off. Thankfully, I found where Kat was fairly fast.

She looked awful Catalina. She was already a small teenager, but huddled up there, sleeping in the corner of this dark cell. It took all my power to not just curl up and cry right there.

I took out the keys and quietly opened the door. She immediately opened her eyes and threw herself backwards in the cell. She let out the saddest whimpers. I approached quietly and slowly, letting her see who I was.

She said my name with such relief.

She ran into my arms and I half carried her out of there. We made our way silently through the halls, Kat limping. I worried what they had done to her. Finally, we saw a door labelled exit.

We were so close, but just at that moment a guard shouted out behind us.

Me and Kat spun around, just in time to see him shoot right at us. Out of nowhere, a forcefield sprang up in front of us. I had no time to question it, and I took advantage of the guard’s confused state too super speed to him and knock him out.

When I turned back around, Kat was nowhere to be found. I panicked, and started whispering her name frantically. Out of thin air, she appeared again. I was shocked.

It was then that I realized that Kat’s powers had shown up in the time that she’d been here. I made up my mind to ask later and once again grabbed her and walked out.

Stepping outside was magical. The moon was high and the stars were bright. It was everything I ever needed. But I had no time to enjoy the fresh air. I made Kat get onto my back, piggy back style, and I sped in a direction. We were in the middle of nowhere, but after enough time in the same direction, we encountered a bus stop.

It took some vague threats, that I’m not too proud of, but the bus drove us back to London. The time on the back of that empty bus gave me and Kit time to talk.

She told me what they did to her there. Catalina, I can’t even begin to tell you. I didn’t say Anna’s story and I won’t tell Kit’s, but what they did to her sparked her powers. She discovered she could make force fields and turn herself invisible. Both defensive powers…that should give some indication of what happened.

When we got back to London, we made the long and hard trek back to our apartment. Coming home, Kit tucked into my side, was the greatest feeling in the world.

I obviously didn’t have my keys, so I knocked. It must’ve been close to 4am or something at this point. But after a minute of wait, a tired Anna opened the door. When she saw us, she froze and cursed lightly in German. I think that was the second time I ever saw her cry.

She hugged us, but was mindful of her strength and our injuries. She ushered us inside. On the couch, fast asleep, was George. He awoke to the sounds of all of us crying. He too froze with shock, but then ran over to sweep us in the biggest hug ever.

I felt so safe in that moment. For the first time in a while.”

Anne took a pause here, and stared up at the ceiling. Catalina stared too, overwhelmed by the story she had heard. Without warning, Anne leaned over and lay her head on Catalina’s shoulder. The Spaniard was surprised but said nothing. Any comfort she could provide was needed right now, and she found that she didn’t mind at all.

Anne continued, this time anger seeping into her voice.

“A few days later, when we were fairly recovered, all four of us went down to the police station. We told them what happened, to me, to Kitty, but they didn’t believe the story.

When we were taken, the man who did ‘experiments’ on Kit told her his name. Thomas Culpeper. She, with a lot of bravery, told the police the name of this man. The man who…took advantage of her.

But this man was apparently very wealthy and respected. He was a big business owner. The police didn’t believe Kit, and they swept it under the rug. We went home, alone, saddened, and without any help.

That night I was furious as I sat in my bed. I thought about all the things that had happened. That man at the bar who tried to take advantage of that woman, the people at the museum who offered up Kit to the robots, and the man who…to Kit…he…

I was livid. Why did those people get to get away with it? The police do nothing, and they get to keep living their rich lives scot free. Especially Culpeper, that bastard.

I made my decision, threw on a hood and mask, and sped out of the apartment at midnight. It was easy to break into the police station and find his address. I super sped over, his pretty little mansion in front of me, gleaming in the moonlight.

And I robbed him blind. I phased in, took whatever valuables I could, and sped out. I left a nice message too, warning him what happens when he tried to take advantage of girls. Finally, I set his outhouse on fire. Not enough to be dangerous but just to cause some damage.

The next morning it was on the news. I felt so proud. It wasn’t much, but it was a bit of retribution. And I liked it. I liked the feeling of power over someone I deemed awful. He deserved it.

That was the first time, but it wasn’t the last.

I made myself a suit, I bet you know it well. I started going out more, not just in the night. I always researched beforehand, who I was going to go after. They were awful people Catalina, and property damage and theft is not all they deserved.

But, I have to admit I got a bit carried away by the power and fun of it.

When you started to pursue me, I treated it like a game. Kit, Anna, and George knew of my expeditions, and they warned me to be careful, but I was having fun. Banter and sly jokes was easy in my costume, especially against you. It was so fun to rile you up.

And of course you know how things went. I went about my supervillain expeditions, punishing people who deserved it, and sometimes you would catch me in the act. We would fight, throwing punches and banter, and I would escape. It became a game for me.

And that’s how months of my live went.”

Anne trailed off, and for the first time looked over at Catalina. She had a small, sad smile on her face.

“I’m sorry. I thought I was doing something right. It was my version of punishing people. The sick, disgusting, bastards who think they can have anything they want without repercussions. I just—“

“It’s ok.”

Catalina finally spoke, whispering to Anne. But the other woman heard it, and looked up with a pained expression.

“I hurt so many people, you were right. I got so deep in what I thought I was doing right that I lost sight of what I was actually doing to the world around me.”

“No no, I was wrong,” Catalina started. Anne opened her mouth to keep arguing but Catalina cut her off.

“No, let me finish. I was wrong, and I see that now. You never meant to hurt anyone, and your actions had good intentions. As much as I think it could’ve been done a different way, I understand why you did it. But I have been horrible to you, not just when we fought but in this house too.”

Catalina continued, taking Anne’s hands into her own. Anne stared up with a bit of wonder in her eyes. “I saw everything as black and white. I thought you were the villain and that was it. I never thought you were so…human.”

Catalina stared into Anne’s eyes. “What I mean to say is…I’m sorry Anne, for how I’ve treated you.”

Anne stayed still for a second, before smiling up at Catalina. She squeezed the other woman’s hands and placed them back down.

“Thank you. That…means a lot to me,” Anne said honestly. Her face then turned grave.

“There is one more part I want to tell you though, why I stopped going out about 4 months ago.”

Catalina nodded and settled back down, getting comfortable on the floor again. Anne also sat back against the bed and continued her story, the ending this time.

“I got used to going out at the Jade Speedster. It made me feel powerful and proud. I thought nothing could stop me, not even you. I started going out more and more, sometimes leaving work early to go break into someone’s house or steal something.

Like I said before, Anna and George knew, so whenever I left early they covered for me. Albeit reluctantly, always sending me off with a worried look.

One day, around the afternoon, I did just that. It was a Sunday, so it was just me and George working the shop. The customers were really light that day so when no one was ordering I told George and left.

I don’t even remember what I did that day. I probably broke into some old bank and stole some politician’s tax fraud money or something. Whatever it was, it wasn’t worth the consequences.

I sped back to work, speedily changed in an alley, and walked back through the front door. But then I stopped in my tracks.

The place was trashed, tables upside down, holes in the wall, and more. Customers were hiding under the rubble, and I looked around but…I couldn’t find George. I yelled his name, desperate, but no one answered.

A customer took pity on me and explained everything. It was Tudor. Robots had come in and started trying to grab people for his sick experiments. George had kept from behind the counter, ushering people to safety. He was…so kind. So noble. He saved many, but couldn’t save himself.

They took him Catalina.

I was frozen in shock, but fear motivated me. I ran out of the shop and sped to the apartment. Kit and Anna were there, safe, and just enjoying their Sunday. When I was sure that they were safe, it hit me. He was gone.

I started sobbing right there on the floor of our apartment kitchen. Kit and Anna ran over and asked what was wrong. I told them everything. That day was rough, for all of us. He was Anna’s friend, Kit’s cousin, and…my brother. And he was gone.

I mourned, we all did. But me and Anna put on a strong front for Kit you know? She’s young, and after everything with Culpeper…she didn’t need anything else bad happening. I’ve had time to think about it, and it’s getting better. Slowly. But every day it still hurts.

Anna and Kat never blamed me. But I blame myself. If I had just been there with him in the shop. If I didn’t decide to go out after my twisted form of punishment. If I had just stayed—“

Anne cut herself off with a low scream, hands balled into fists. She was angrily hitting the floor besides her and Catalina grabbed Anne’s hands so she couldn’t hurt herself. Anne looked up with watery eyes.

“I messed everything up. That’s why I decided right then and there, I would stop. I would stop delivering ‘justice.’ I would stop leaving and speeding on the streets. I would stop going out as the Jade Speedster. Being a supervillain hurt people, it hurt my family. It was not worth it.

I got super overprotective of Kat and Anna for a while, never letting them out of my sights. They were annoyed, I’m sure, but they understood. With time I got better, my anxiety lessened a bit, and we tried to return to life.

Kat went back to school, her senior year. Me and Anna started working at a new coffee shop. I tried to heal, all three of us did, and we were there for each other. They supported me through everything, and I’m so grateful for them both.

I love my little family, they are everything to me. And I think, with time, I can add a few more into it.”

At that she looked at Catalina, both with a few tears streaming down their faces. Anne gave a soft smile to Catalina, who returned it. Catalina stood up, offered her hand to Anne, and pulled her up too. Then when they were both standing, Catalina pulled Anne into a hug.

Anne wasn’t expecting this physical affection from the normally stoic superhero, but she melted into the hug. They stood there, just enjoying each other’s presence, until Anne spoke again.

“Thank you for listening.”

“Thank you for telling me.”

Catalina smiled after her response, and started making her way to the exit. Something flashed inside of Anne and she reached out and grabbed the superhero’s arm to stop her.

“Wait. Would you maybe want to…stay tonight?”

Catalina just stared at Anne for a minute, in shock, so Anne starts quickly backtracking.

“Sorry sorry, that was stupid. Just cause you listened to me for the last half an hour doesn’t mean we’re friends, I know. You can go back, don’t worry about little old me. I’ll just be here—ah“

Anne let out a noise of surprise when she was pushed backwards onto the bed behind her. She noticed Catalina start crawling in besides her. Anne then got comfortable on the opposite side of the big bed.

“You talk too much Boleyn,” Catalina grumbled, but Anne could hear the softness in her voice. And the fact that she was currently under the blankets in the bed betrayed her stance on the situation.

Anne smiled to herself and got comfortable in the bed. Just as she was drifting off, she heard Catalina say one more thing.

“…and maybe, we could be friends. Buenos noche Anne.”

Anne fell asleep with a smile, comforted by the words and presence of the Spaniard besides her. They didn’t cuddle by any means, and stayed awkwardly far apart on the bed, but they were together. That fact made them both fall asleep happy.

Chapter Text

Cathy almost laughed out loud when she quietly stepped into the hallway the next morning. She was tiptoeing out of her own room to not wake Kat, who was still fast asleep in Cathy’s bed. It took all of Cathy’s willpower to get out of that bed, as Kat looked adorable snuggled up to Cathy’s side. The only reason she was able to leave was because her heart was beating so loudly in her chest she was afraid she was going to wake the girl next to her.

But the sight that met her when she stepped into the hallway was almost making it worth it.

Cathy looked up to see her godmother, also sneaking out of a room. Cathy looked a bit closer to see a familiar green on the door. Her eyebrows shot up to her forehead. Catalina turned and stilled when she realized she had been caught.

The glare that Lina gave Cathy simultaneously made her want to laugh as well as sink into the ground with fear. Cathy could hear Lina whisper, “Not a word.” Cathy just smiled and mimed locking her lips. They walked downstairs together.

Cathy didn’t get a chance to ask Lina why she was in the supervillain’s room, because a few minutes after the coffee was made and Lina said her morning prayers, Jane and Anna stumbled down the stairs, together.

“Good morning you two,” Lina said, raising an eyebrow. Cathy greeted them too, also with a questioning look.

They both went red but Jane shot them a little glare and shook her head. Lina and Cathy relented. Jane and Anna returned their greetings and sat down with them. Anna and Lina started talking about something random, like the news, when Jane got up to start making breakfast. Cathy offered to help but Jane told her it was no worries.

Almost like magic, lured by the prospect of cooking with Jane, Kat came downstairs a few minutes later, bouncing happily. At the bottom of the stairs she met Cathy’s eyes and smiled shyly. Cathy blushed but smiled back.

Kat insisted on helping Jane make breakfast, so Cathy watched the two of them in their element, soothing sounds of Anna and Lina’s conversation besides her. After a bit, a breakfast of pancakes was finished, and Jane put the stack on the table.

With perfect timing, Anne stumbled down the stairs.

“Mornin’ good fellows!” She said in a silly voice. Everyone froze. After last night’s dinner, no one knew what it would be like to have Catalina and Anne together. They all waited with baited breath.

“Good morning Boleyn. Jane and Kat made pancakes,” Catalina said, and everyone seemed to open their eyes wide in surprise.

Anne sat down at the table, and Catalina made no snide comment. Anne also did nothing to deliberately annoy Lina. Everyone tentatively started to make conversation again, waiting for the other shoe to drop.

“Hey Catalina, can you pass me the syrup?” Anne said, pointing at the bottle near Catalina. Everyone was shocked at Anne’s use of Catalina’s actual name instead of the nickname ‘Queenie.’ They thought that for sure this was when the argument would start.

“You’re gonna get diabetes,” Catalina said, but with no real bite. She flicked her wrist to send a gust of wind to pick up the bottle and land it neatly next to Anne.

“Thanks!” Anne said cheerfully, and that was the end of the interaction.

The other four supers dropped their mouths open in shock.

“Close your mouths, you’re gonna catch flies,” Catalina rolled her eyes. Anne snickered at the superhero’s joke. This had the opposite effect and made their mouth’s open wider, flabbergasted.

Everyone just kinda sat there for a few seconds, until Anna voiced everyone’s thoughts. “Now, I can’t be the only one thinking this, but what happened between you two!?” Jane, Kat, and Cathy nodded fiercely, showing their agreement.

Anne grinned and stood up, speeding over to Catalina. She leaned on Catalina, using her shoulder as an arm rest.

“We talked last night,” Anne started to explain, beaming. “Catalina here just couldn’t resist my charm.”

Catalina rolled her eyes, but everyone could see the hint of a smile. “No, there was no charm in our conversation. We talked about…things. I listened to Boleyn’s story and saw the previous errors of my ways. I was wrong in how I treated her.”

Cathy was shocked. Lina admitting she was wrong? Next thing you know she’s gonna say she apologized to Anne. Hah! That’d be something.

“Yeah, and I was wrong too. I tried to annoy her on purpose sometimes, and my past actions weren’t exactly…great…” Anne said, frowning a bit to herself.

And Anne having a serious talk? The world is upside down today.

“But we’re better now! We’re working on it. We’re sorry for the trouble we caused you all before this,” Anne said genuinely. She then turned to Catalina and gave her a little nudge.

“Yes, I apologize for the arguments you had to witness.”

This was the end to the conversation, as Anne sped back to her chair and dug into her pancakes. Everyone was smiling, full of relief from this new change of developments. Cathy was especially relieved. Maybe she could spend more time in the living room with everyone now, the loud arguments no longer hurting her ears. And maybe that would allow her to see more of a certain pink haired super…

Breakfast was wonderful, finally the first time all six of them ate together without any argument. They were all talking, laughing, and eating. Tension was still there, but bonds had been formed as well. Sunlight streamed through the windows, lighting the room in a happy glow.

They were fully enjoying each other’s presence, not because they were forced to, but their choice alone.

———————————————————————————————————————

That afternoon, Catalina got a call from a panicked Maria. She was used to Maria calling her whenever the DSO needed her help, whether that be Tudor robots or superhuman creations. It was the ladder today, but Maria was more panicked than usual.

“Lina we need your help. Another Tudor superhuman creation.”

“Ok, give me five minutes to change and fly over there,” Catalina said, already rushing out of the living room to her room to grab her supersuit.

“Wait wait, listen to me,” Maria said urgently. “The DSO sensors picked up on not only one creation, but two, together. Tudor sent out both at the same time. Thankfully, the sensors picked up on them while they’re still on the way. We have about twenty five minutes before they reach the city.”

Catalina took a sharp inhale. She was a great superhero, but Tudor’s creations were getting stronger. She had been coming home with more and more bruises that Jane had to fix. Catalina was fairly confident she could beat one creation in a fight, but two? That might be too much for her to handle.

“I was thinking,” Maria started, and Lina tuned back in. “What if you told the others? They can help. It’s time to finally go out as a team.”

Catalina stilled and thought about it for a moment. She had always fought solo, since Jane and Cathy’s powers weren’t really offensive. They helped her from the sidelines, but she was always on the battlefield alone. But this time, Catalina couldn’t do it alone. It was time to form the team.

“Alright, I’ll tell them. We'll be there in 20 minutes.”

Catalina hung up, took a deep breath, and marched into the living room in her supersuit.

Thankfully, everyone was already gathered, basking in the sun and lounging in different areas. They all looked up when she walked in with her suit on. Catalina could see Anne tense up. Her supersuit probably brought up bad memories. She had to ignore that for now and started talking.

“Everyone, Tudor has sent out two superhuman creations at once.”

She waited for their gasps to stop before starting again.

“Maria called and we’ve decided it’s time for all of us to work together. There is no pressure, but I could use your help on the battlefield. Jane, Cathy, you two should stay here since your powers aren’t offensive, but please don’t think that is any less important. But for the rest of you, will you join me? It is high time we all become a team, together.”

Catalina looked around the room and was met with only hard resolve. Everyone nodded their heads, and Catalina internally shone with pride. Suddenly, Cathy’s eyes lit up and she shouted out.

“Oh! I have something for this moment. Anne, will you grab the blue box sitting on my desk?” Anne nodded and sped away to get the box. In a few seconds she was back and handed it to Cathy.

“Thank you. I have been working on something for a while now…” Cathy trailed off, opening the box. Inside were six identical gadgets that almost looked like hearing aids. Cathy took one out and put it in her ear. It fit snugly and wrapped around the back of her ear as well, providing stability.

“They’re a communication system, so we can all hear each other in battle. They also monitor your health so me and Jane can keep an eye on you. I thought this could help?”

“Yes, this is wonderful mija!” Catalina said, gingerly taking one of the gadgets and putting it in her own ear. It fit snuggly so she knew it wouldn’t fall out while fighting. Everyone else followed her lead and put in their own as well.

“Wow Cathy, these are comfortable. I don’t even notice its there. That’s awesome!” Kat said, and Cathy smiled her thanks.

“Now, everyone get dressed. We have about 15 minutes before the creations get to the city. You all will take the van but I will fly ahead,” Catalina said, turning to the others.

“Me and Jane will set up in my room. I will tap into the security cameras around the area so we can get a visual as well,” Cathy said. Lina nodded.

“Let’s do this ja? We’re gonna kick some Tudor ass,” Anne exclaimed, which got everyone laughing.

“Thank you, all of you. We’re going to make an amazing team,” Catalina said genuinely, looking at the other women.

“Now let’s go, we’ve got some superhuman creations to beat.”

———————————————————————————————————————

Catalina was seriously regretting all of her life choices right now. One of Tudor’s newest creations seemed to be made of metal and have the power to manipulate the metal around him, and the other was some sort of shapeshifter. Catalina groaned and got up after being punched into a nearby wall for the freaking forth time.

I should’ve just waited for the others in the van to get here.

Catalina was currently trying to fend off the two creations, who were not making it easy for her. On top of that, the news reporters had shown up. Catalina heard their shouts in the background.

Suddenly, she saw a flying piece of metal go straight towards the reporters. She quickly planted her feet and made a wall of earth arise to protect them. Unfortunately, that left her vulnerable to an attack from her side. A particularly hard punch from the shapeshifter sent her careening to the floor.

She grunted, and tried to get back up off the concrete. Suddenly, she was yanked upwards by the metal creation. She braced her arms in front of her face, preparing for impact.

Out of nowhere, a green streak collides into the creation holding Catalina up, sending him flying and releasing the superhero. She turns in the direction of the streak.

“Wow, I didn’t think it was possible but y’all have gotten uglier in my four month absence.”

Catalina tensed a bit at the familiar voice and suit, almost like her body was expecting a fight. She reminded herself that was not the case, and this was Anne, on her side now. Catalina heard the gasps of the reporters behind her, and the frantic shutter clicks of their cameras. Seems like everyone was surprised at the return of the city’s ex-supervillain.

“A—Jade Speedster. Why aren’t you with the others?”

“I ran ahead to help,” Catalina heard Anne reply, clear as day through the earpiece. “Couldn’t let you have all the fun now, could I Queenie?”

Catalina scowled at the familiar nickname, but she was quickly occupied when the shapeshifter launched themselves back at Catalina, swinging an oversized fist at her head. Catalina dodged and threw a fireball in retaliation. She risked a quick glance over to see that Anne was also wrapped up in fighting and dodging the metal creation. She turned her attention back to the fight at hand.

However many minutes later, Catalina saw familiar red and pink suits out of the corner of her eye.

“Anna and Kat are there Lina, and Jane and I can see you guys from the cameras,” Cathy said from the earpiece.

“Great,” Catalina said, running away from the creation. “Anna, use your strength to take down the metal one. Me and Anne will deal with the shapeshifter. And Kat, you go use your forcefields to protect civilians.”

“Yup!”

“On it.”

“Gotcha Queenie!”

Catalina saw Kat run over to the reporters, flashing them a sweet smile before throwing up some forcefields to protect them from debris. Anna ran over to where Anne was fighting the metal creation. The red super jumped in, grinning when a punch from the metal monster had no effect on her. Her invincible body actually dented the metal hand. She smiled and started exchanging punches with the creation, pummeling him.

Anne ran over to Catalina, and they both nodded at each other. They circled the shapeshifter and expertly dodged. Both of them moved like dancers, jumping around both each other and the creation. They had fought for so long that they were attuned to the other’s fighting style, and they worked together like a well oiled machine.

Finally, Anne found an opening and kicked the shapeshifter’s legs out. Catalina quickly made a cage out of earth and trapped them in the road, adding a stone muzzle for extra protection. Catalina looked at Anne, who was breathing deeply. She gave the green super a small nod, and Anne returned it shakily.

Catalina looked over just in time to see Anna deck the metal man in the face. The creation was knocked unconscious, and Anna stood over his body, frowning. She looked over to see Catalina watching and quickly schooled her face into her familiar easy-going smile. Catalina filed that information away for later.

For now, she turned and walked towards the reporters, stopping close to them. Kat put her forcefield down and all the cameras faced the golden superhero. She raised her hands to quiet the news reporters.

“Hello, everyone. I have an announcement.” Catalina waited until they were fully silent before continuing.

“In light of recent events, the Tudor creations becoming stronger, we have decided to form a team of superheroes to help protect the city and its civilians. It consists of me, Goldstorm, of course.”

Catalina gestured over to Kat, who perked up and waved shyly. “This is Solstice, she will mostly be helping protect civilians.”

Lina then motioned over to Anna, who had walked over next to the superhero. Anna gave the reporters a confident smile, though Catalina could see it was a bit strained. “This is Ironmaiden, our true muscle.” Anna flexed her muscles which made some people laugh.

“And finally…” Catalina motioned for Anne to come over. Lina saw the way she faltered, before putting on a cheeky smile and bouncing over to stand next to the others.

“You all know me. The Jade Speedster, at your service!”

The crowd was silent, processing the return of the ex-villain. They could hardly believe the woman was back, and much less standing next to their city’s superhero. The air was tense, and Catalina could see the way Anne shifted slightly from foot to foot, a nervous reaction. People were still silent, pondering the new development.

“Get her out! She’s a villain!” Someone yelled from the crowd. There were murmurs of agreement. Catalina saw how Anne flinched, but somehow Anne’s smile never left her face.

“Enough of that! The Jade Speedster hasn’t attacked the city in four months. That is no excuse for her past actions, but she is committed to repenting for her past harms. I ask that all of you give her one more chance.”

Catalina lowers her voice and speaks softer. “Just like I have.” Anne turns to her, giving the gold super a softer smile. No one speaks up after that so Catalina assumes her message was well received.

“And we also have two supers on the sidelines. Archangel, our healer, as well as Menrva, our brains.” Catalina could practically hear Jane and Cathy's smiles from over the comms.

“Together, us six supers are committed to protecting this city from Tudor and its harms. London, you can count on us.”

Catalina was met with applause. She turned away from the reporters and saw a DSO truck had driven up. She saw the government agents loading up the shapeshifter. Catalina turned to Anna.

“Can you help bring the metal body to the DSO truck?”

Anna mock saluted. “Ja, you got it!” Catalina gave her a smile and Anna went to pick up the unconscious body.

Catalina turned to Anne and Kat, about to start congratulating them on a job well done. Suddenly, she heard Jane gasp and Cathy start talking frantically over the comms.

“Catalina! Don’t let her—Anna, wait wait wait—“

BOOM

The metal creation exploded. Anna went flying. She hit the ground with a sickening crunch.

And then there were screams.

Chapter Text

Anne didn’t know where the screaming was coming from. It could’ve been any one of the other supers on the comms. To be honest, it was probably Anne.

It was definitely Anne.

“ANNA!” Anne screamed, and sped over to her friend’s unconscious body. She was splayed out on the pavement. Anne could see the blood dripping from her head.

She picked Anna up gingerly, cradling her head in her arms. Anne hesitated, before putting her hand near Anna’s mouth.

She exhaled in relief. “She’s breathing.”

“Anne! Help me get her to the van!” Anne heard Catalina yell. Anne was so struck by relief that she nearly forgot  that Anna still needed help.

Catalina grabbed Anna’s top half, while Anne lifted her legs. Slowly, they lugged the red clad super over to where their van was parked. Kat had already opened the back door, and was silently sobbing.

Anne and Catalina practically threw Anna into the backseat, Kat climbing in hurriedly after her. Catalina went to drive and Anne got in the passenger seat. Catalina quickly sped away from the city, in the direction of their shared house.

“Kat, keep pressure on her head. Jane, please be ready, we will be back in less than ten minutes,” Catalina barked.

The drive back to the house felt like two hours to Anne, but in reality it was probably 5 minutes with how fast Catalina was driving. They pulled up at the house and Jane and Cathy were waiting at the door with grave expressions.

“Help me bring her to my room,” Jane said, immediately snapping into action. Catalina and Anne nodded and carried Anna up the stairs and into Janes room. They laid her gently on the bed.

“That’s great, now leave, I have to work,” Jane said quickly, voice harsh from worry. She paused and said again softer, “She’ll be ok.”

Catalina and Anne nodded and walked out of the room. They could hear Kat’s sobbing from downstairs, but Cathy’s whispered reassurances told them she was in good hands.

As soon as they left that room, the adrenaline and shock wore off. Anne collapsed to the floor, crying quietly. Catalina went stock still, unmoving and staring straight in front of her.

For a few minutes, they sat there, Anne crying in the floor and Catalina frozen standing up. Suddenly, Catalina said, almost robotically, “I’m going to go train.”

Anne stared at her incredulously through her sniffles, but Catalina just turned her head and walked right downstairs, moving like a machine.

Anne didn’t have the strength to follow her, the weight of her friends injury keeping her down. Instead, Anne stayed on the floor, crying and completely alone.

———————————————————————————————————————

“Fuck, finally,” Jane said, collapsing into a chair. She had been working for a good ten minutes, using her powers to heal the wounds on Anna’s head and rest of her body. She finally let the warm light of her powers reside, and sat down.

Jane only had to wait a few more minutes before she saw Anna stirring. Jane quickly ran over to her side and helped her sit up.

“Au Scheisse, alles tut weh. Scheisse, mein kopf,” Anna says, clutching her head in pain. She opens her eyes and stares at Jane with a bit of wonder. “Wow, wunderschön.”

“Anna, honey, I can’t understand you,” Jane says, giving the German a small smile. Anna looks at her quizzically before realizing.

“Oh, sorry Jane” Anna says, in English this time. “What happened?”

Jane tensed, but then started to recount what happened. “Well, Tudor must’ve installed some sort of bomb in his creation. It exploded and you…got hurt. The others rushed you back here and I used my powers to heal you. I think I got most of the injuries, but you’ll still probably be a little sore, sorry.”

Anna just looked around the room. “Where are they? The others I mean.”

“Well, they’re probably just right downstairs,” Jane said.

Anna stilled, which made Jane frown in confusion. Then, Anna gave a sad, disappointed smile.

“Oh, I see.”

Jane looked at her quizzically. “I can go get them if you want?” She asked, but Anna shook her head.

“No it’s ok, I get it.”

“Get what,” Jane asked, still confused.

“They don’t want to see me anymore,” Anna said, sad smile still on her face. Jane had no clue what she was talking about, but Anna just continued on. “They saw the way I fought…no…pummeled that creation. Now they know I’m—“

Anna cut herself off with a shaky breath, Jane could see the tears threatening to fall.

“They know I’m just a monster. Freakish strength and all. Scheisse, ich bin ein Monster.”

Jane finally snapped out of her stupor. “No, no Anna that’s not it at all. They just—“

“No Jane, I understand. Thank you for making me feel better but any more of your kindness and I don’t think I can bring myself to leave,” Anna said, turning to look at Jane sadly.

“Leave?” Jane asked.

“Well yeah. They probably brought me to you so I could be fixed quicker and then I can pack up and leave faster right? No one wants a monster living in their house. Thanks Jane, you truly are lovely. I’m going to miss you all,” Anna said, and she tried to get out of the bed.

Jane immediately stopped her.

“Mein Engel, I’m trying to—“

“Anna stop!” Jane said franticly, and Anna stopped due to shock. “No one thinks you’re a monster. No one wants you to leave. We all care for you so much. I don’t want you to leave. Why would you even think that?”

Anna stopped trying to move, and instead sat back in the bed. “Are you sure?” She asked, sounding more vulnerable than Jane had ever heard from the German.

“Of course love,” Jane replied, wrapping the other woman in a hug. Anna returned it, sighing into the embrace.

“My parents,” Anna said simply.

“What,” Jane asked, lifting her head.

“You asked why I would think that…my parents is the answer,” Anna said softly. Jane softened with sadness.

“I used to live with them you know, we all moved from Germany together after I finished high school. I’m an only child, so I got all my parents’ love. I thought it would stay that way…”

Anna trailed off, and Jane went to speak. “You don’t need to explain to me love.”

“I want to,” Anna said honestly, looking up at Jane. Jane’s heart started beating faster at the look in Anna’s eyes.

“I got a job after college at a coffee shop, that’s where I met Anne. Soon after, the Tudor attacks started. I never thought it would affect me and my life, so I tried to continue on as normal.

One day, me and my parents were out at lunch. We were a close enough family that we did that nearly every weekend. We were laughing, and talking, as families do. Suddenly, out of nowhere, a Tudor robot attacked the restaurant.

It was pure chaos. People started running, me and my parents ran too. But I think I tripped over something. I remember hitting the floor and my father yelling my name. Then, I was lifted by a cold metal arm. Then, all I could remember was strength. My powers activated at that moment, when I needed them most.

I punched the robot clean through, breaking it into pieces. I fell back to the floor and scrambled up to stand. I ran over to my parents, who were frozen in shock. I remember calling out their name, and they didn’t respond.

I stopped in front of them, and they just stared at me. I moved to take my mother’s hand, to try to get them to say something. I guess I didn’t know my own strength, powers newly activated. I heard a crunch, and then my mother’s screams.

I backed away, horrified. My mother was crying and my father was holding her back protectively. Protecting her from me.

‘Du bist ein Monster.’ He told me.

You are a monster.

I’ve never felt like one more than in that moment. They left me standing there, alone, and told me never to come back.

Finally, as it was getting dark I took out my phone. I held it gently, careful not to break it. I dialed Anne, my best friend, and asked if I could stay with her for the night. I showed up to her place, still crying. She was understandably confused, and when I explained what happened, she offered to let me stay with her and Kat for however long I needed."

Anna stopped, and Jane could see the silent tears flowing down her face. Jane leaned into Anna’s side, trying to provide comfort. She gently rubbed Anna’s back soothingly.

“That’s why I was worried,” Anna started again. “I thought, last time someone saw me use my powers, I was kicked out. If it’s gonna happen again, at least I’m prepared this time right?”

Anna gave another sad small smile to Jane. Jane immediately pulled her into a hug. Anna started crying a bit harder, her arms hanging by her sides as she refused to hug Jane.

“Shh, I’ve got you love. I’m so sorry they did that to you. We will never leave you. And no matter what anyone else says, you are not a monster.”

Anna looks up, staring at Jane tearily.

“Don’t worry darling, you can’t hurt me,” Jane says with a smile. “I trust you.”

Anna finally smiled at that and pulled Jane into a hug. This time, Anna squeezed just a little bit tighter. Jane squeezed her right back.

———————————————————————————————————————

Anne stormed down into the basement where the training room was. Her sadness had subsided a few minutes ago and in its wake was a burning anger. Fury that Catalina was so composed after that mess, that she took this time to go train, that she left Anne there, alone.

She stomped into the room, hearing the sounds of Catalina punching the punching bag. When she entered, Catalina stopped and turned to her.

“Hello Boleyn,” Catalina said simply.

“Just ‘Boleyn?’ We’re back to that now?” Anne spat. “And why are you down here training, Anna is hurt for gods sake!”

“Yes, I know that, but Jane is doing what she can right now,” Catalina said, still not smiling or showing any emotion.

“God Catalina it’s the principle of the thing! Our friend is up there hurt and you don’t even look like you care,” Anne says, glaring at the superhero.

Catalina bristles. “Of course I care.”

“Well you don’t show it! Instead you’re down here, training like it’s just another day. The others are shaken. Why don’t you feel bad?”

Catalina murmurs something, but Anne didn’t hear. “What was that?” Anne asked, unkindly.

“Of course I care! Of course I feel bad. It’s all my fault anyways,” Catalina shouts, facing Anne. “I don’t need you coming over here and telling me I should feel bad. I feel plenty bad enough. I’m why Anna got hurt after all.”

Anne took a step back, anger melting away for genuine confusion. “…what?”

“God Anne, I’m the superhero. I’m the one who’s supposed to fight these things. I never should’ve brought you guys out there. I’m supposed to keep people safe. And Anna got hurt because…If I was just stronger!” Catalina shouted, turning to shoot another fireball at the punching bag.

Anna just watched as Catalina shot more and more fire. The room got hotter. Anne could see Catalina’s breaths getting shorter.

“Catalina. Catalina! Lina! LINA STOP!” Anne shouted, and somehow Catalina heard her. She stopped shooting fire, but her breaths were still short and shallow. Her eyes were closed tightly and her fists were balled.

Anne moved closer, recognizing what was happening. She took Catalina’s hands and unfurled them. She placed one of the Spaniard’s hands over her own chest.

“Hey, try to breath with me ok?” Anne said gently, slowly breathing in and out. Catalina had her eyes closed, but Anne saw how she started to mirror the green super’s breathing.

After a few minutes, Catalina’s breathing evened out. She opened her eyes and Anne saw a mixture of wonder, confusion, and fear in the other woman’s eyes.

“Kat gets panic attacks too sometimes,” Anne says as an explanation. She slides down against a wall to sit on the floor.

“I don’t get panic attacks,” Catalina huffed, but she sat down next to Anne.

Anne just smiled softly. “It’s ok if you do. Want to talk about it?”

Catalina just huffed again, and turned her face away from Anne. Anne didn’t miss the way that she scooted just a bit closer.

“That’s ok, you don’t need to talk. But let me tell you, you are an amazing superhero,” Anne started. She stared straight forward, but Catalina looked at her with a look of wonder.

“You are so strong, the strongest person I know. You work so hard and protect everyone. But you put too much pressure on yourself, Lina. You’ve been doing great, but we’re here now. You don’t need to carry the weight of the world on your shoulders. Let us help.”

Anne kept her eyes forward, knowing Catalina probably didn’t want to be stared at. She felt the Spaniard’s head lay on her shoulder. Anne didn’t comment on the feeling of tears staining her shirt sleeve. She knew the stubborn woman besides her rarely broke down, and would probably leave if Anne acknowledged it in any way. Instead Anne sat with her, murmuring random stories under her breath until she heard Catalina quiet down besides her.

“Thank you,” Catalina finally said, smaller than Anne had ever heard her.

“Of course, anytime,” Anne replied, sincerely.

Neither one of them felt like leaving at that moment. So instead, they stayed with each other, soaking up the feeling of comfort.

———————————————————————————————————————

Anne and Catalina did eventually make their way upstairs. When they walked into the living room they saw the others splayed out around the room. Anna was propped up on the couch, with Kitty tucked into her side, hugging her like the German is about to fly away. Jane and Cathy were on two armchairs, and all of them were talking lightly.

“Anna!” Anne shouted, and sped over to her friend. She stopped and hovered a bit over the woman, afraid she might still be injured.

Anna laughed. “I’m not broken Anne, just sore. Jane fixed me right up!”

Anne immediately launched herself at Anna to pull her into a hug. Anna let out a grunt but smiled at her friend’s worry. Catalina walked up to the couch as well.

“I am very glad you’re ok Anna,” Catalina said sincerely. She placed her hand on top of Anna’s shoulder and gave her a warm smile which Anna returned.

“Thank you,” Anna said to the both of them. “Now, I think today is a great day to eat on the couch with a movie. Pleease Jane?” Anna turned her puppy eyes towards Jane, who just sighed and nodded, but everyone could see her smile.

They ended up ordering takeout and eating from the containers in the living room. They were all splayed out around the couch, chairs, and floor. They put on some movie that no one was really watching, everyone was mostly just talking.

In the middle of talking, Anna grabbed her fork from the table. It bent straight in half from the force of her grab. She immediately tensed, but put on a fake smile. “Oops, I guess the injury messed with my powers a bit.” Everyone could see the bit of fear in her eyes, and the way she loosened her grip on Kat who was laying next to her.

Everything went smoothly for the rest of the movie. When the movie was over, they all moved to pick up their dishes. Anna went to pick up her water glass but the cup shattered in her hands.

Most of the pieces went on the floor, but one large piece flew to where Jane was sitting on the floor. It cut her across the cheek, leaving a large red gash. She let out a little cry but it was quickly drowned out by Anna profusely apologizing.

“Jane, I’m so sorry. I don’t know what happened. I just—It was an accident I promise. I’m so sorry—“

“Anna, love, I’m ok. Look,” Jane said, grabbing Anna’s hands to make her look up. Jane’s cut was already beginning to heal. In a few seconds, the cut closed itself and it looked like nothing had ever happened.

Anna still looked like she was on the verge of tears.

“I’m ok, truly,” Jane said, placing her hand on Anna’s cheek. She turned to the others. “Could everyone please pick up the dishes for us? And maybe someone get a vacuum? When you’re done come back here…I think we all need to have a talk.”

Everyone nodded and went about their tasks. Anne hesitated for a moment, wanting to be there if Anna needed her. Anne saw the way Anna leaned into Jane’s touch and smiled. Anne left the room too, content that Anna was in good hands.

After everything was picked up and vacuumed, everyone went back and got comfortable in the living room. Anna looked better now, and waved off all of their concern with a smile.

Jane decided to start the conversation. “I was thinking, if we are getting closer as a team, we should feel comfortable around each other. Let’s go around and say why we are doing this.”

“So essentially, let’s share our trauma and shit from Tudor?” Anna said, which made everyone chuckle.

“If you want. No one has to say anything if you aren’t comfortable. This is only if you feel it would help and bring us closer. No pressure in the slightest,” Jane said, making sure to emphasize that point.

Everyone around the room nodded, and it went silent for a minute. Catalina sighed and started talking.

“I’ve been fighting Tudor for years, and this man, is pure evil. His creations are there to just spark fear, and it seems like he does everything for his own twisted sense of pleasure. He hurts people, people that I love, and that’s why I joined the team,” Catalina said assuredly. “I want to take him down.”

“I…I agree,” Cathy starts, and everyone turned their attention to her. “He hurts people. He makes people scared. I myself would’ve been—if Madrina hadn’t—“

She took a few shaky breaths. Everyone waited patiently for her to finish.

“I was almost taken by Tudor too. I was just at the library, and robots busted in. I was grabbed, but Lina made it just in time. She saved me, but that might’ve been the scariest moment of my life. I don’t want anyone to have to go through that experience, or anything worse. Tudor needs to be stopped.”

Everyone looked sad at Cathy’s story. Cathy leaned into her godmother for comfort. Kat placed her hand on top of Cathy’s knee. Cathy smiled at the gesture.

“I was nearly taken too,” Anna started, a hardened look on her face. “My powers kicked in just in time. But…my parents didn’t see it as a blessing. They kicked me out.”

Both Catalina and Cathy gasped, never having heard this story before.

“Lo siento, Anna. You didn’t deserve that,” Catalina said, and Cathy nodded in agreement. Everyone was quiet for a bit, processing what they had heard. After a while Jane decided to speak up.

“Tudor took my baby boy.”

Anne and Kat looked heartbroken. Jane continued shakily. “He was only two, and…robots took him right from me.”

“We were just at the park,” Jane said sadly, tears in her eyes. Anna leaned over and rested her hand on top of Jane’s. Jane gave her a sad smile.

“I guess we’re next huh?” Anne said, gesturing to herself and Kat. She had a smile on her face but everyone could see the fear behind it. Kat leaned over and whispered something in Anne’s ear, and Anne nodded.

“I’ll tell the story for both me and Kitty, it’s connected anyways.”

“Only if you want to, there’s no pressure at all,” Catalina said, looking worriedly at the cousins. Anne just waved her off with a sad smile and turned to face everyone.

“Both me and Kat were taken by Tudor.”

Jane and Cathy gasped, and the rest looked at the cousins sadly, already knowing the story. Anne continued on.

“We were kept there for about a week, in cages. They knew about my superspeed so they never did any experiments on me. That gave me time to discover my ability to phase through objects. I somehow got me and Kit out…thankfully.”

Anne took a few breaths, her normal smile falling into something sad as she stared at the ground.

She continued. “In there, Kit’s powers activated, both being defensive powers. When we were there, they…the experiments…”

“They raped me.”

Kat spoke in a small voice, but everyone heard her. She was staring blankly at the floor. Everyone else went silent.

“Every day they would take me out of the cage. The researcher, Culpeper, would put me on a table. He said he was experimenting to make me better, to make me super. But I know now…that was rape.”

Kat took a few shaky breaths and shuddered. “I think, Tudor himself came down sometimes too. He ‘experimented’ on me as well. When my powers activated he was so mad. I tried to stop them, to protect myself. But I…I couldn’t—“

Kat cut herself off with a sob. Anne and Cathy both immediately moved to her side. Anne whispered things to Kat while Cathy just held her. Everyone realized that was a stopping point to the conversation. Someone snuck out and got some blankets, and someone else grabbed some ice cream and passed it around.

Kat was snuggled up in the middle, everyone else providing silent comfort. They had put on some Disney movie in the background that was playing softly, a warm glow painting the living room

“We’re gonna take him down,” Anne said. “He won’t be able to hurt anyone else. He will finally what he deserves.”

“Tudor won’t know what hit him,” Anna agreed. Everyone gave various nods or sounds of affirmation.

The movie played softly in the background. All six women felt lighter after the conversation. They felt more open, more connected to the women around them. Their shared experienced made them stronger.

Tudor had unleashed a fire, and soon, he will be the one burning.

Chapter Text

The next day was a day of rest and recuperating. It was a Sunday, which gave everyone time to relax and heal from yesterday: both from the physical fight and the taxing emotional talk. Jane had already made her way around to everyone last night to heal the wounds from the fight, so now everyone was spending a day taking it easy.

Cathy was doing just that, working on her novel in the office, when Anne burst in.

“Cathy! Have you seen Kit? I can’t find her anywhere. Her phone and keys are here so she hasn’t left the house. But I’ve looked all over, she’s literally gone—“

“Anne, slow down,” Cathy said, spinning her chair to face the speedster, who was practically vibrating. “I’ll go look for Kat, you go rest. You must still be sore from yesterday, and you don’t want to face Lina’s wrath if you go speeding around the house disturbing people.”

Anne hesitated. She thought about it for a minute before nodding. “Fine, you’re right, but let me know immediately when you find her, ok?”

Cathy gave her a nod and Anne left. Cathy saved her work before closing her computer and walking downstairs. The house was quiet, everyone preferring to spend the day alone in their rooms. Even Jane was out of the kitchen. Cathy wandered around, relying on her enhanced senses to try to locate Kat.

She made her way into the living room and paused. She heard almost minuscule sniffles coming from the couch, and her eyes picked up on a small, person sized dent in the couch cushions. Cathy thought about it for a minute, then made her way over.

Cathy sat in the middle of the couch. She heard the breathing hitch besides her. Cathy got comfortable and faced forwards, trying to seem as inconspicuous as possible. She slowly unfurled her left hand and placed it face up on her knee.

“One tap for yes, two taps for no,” Cathy whispered. “Is that ok Kat?”

A brief moment passed, and Cathy held her breath. Then…

Tap. Yes.

Cathy let herself smile slightly. “Do you want me to get your cousin? She was looking for you,” Cathy whispered again.

Tap tap. No.

Cathy frowned a bit at that. “Can I at least text her that you are safe and I found you?”

Tap. Yes.

Cathy nodded and sent a quick text to Anne. She told her that Cathy had found Kat, she was invisible but safe, and Cathy was with her. She put her phone away.

“Do you want me to leave?”

A pause. Tap tap. No.

“Are you sure?” Cathy asked quietly. “…you want me to stay?”

A more firm Tap. Yes.

Cathy had to stop herself from smiling wide. She kept her focus on the invisible woman besides her. “How do you feel about touching right now?”

A quick Tap tap. Definitely no.

“Ok, no touching. Would you…like me to talk to you?”

Tap. Yes.

Cathy paused to think. “Well, I’m not a very interesting person. The things I talk about would probably be boring. People don’t really like—“

Tap tap. No.

Cathy let out a little chuckle. “Ok I hear you. I’ll talk, but don’t say I didn’t warn you. And stop me at any point if it gets boring or whatever,” Cathy said, biting her lip. “I was doing some research for an article that I was doing, and did you know that in the Middle ages, after a great battle, local women would count the dead bodies by chopping off soldier’s hands and putting them in a bag to count later. The bag was commonly called a ‘handbag’, leading to the name we have for women’s bags today…”

Cathy paused when she felt a head lay in her lap. She hesitantly placed her hands in Kat’s hair, giving her time to refuse. Kat just stayed in Cathy’s lap, and Cathy could feel the other woman give a small nod. Cathy slowly ran her fingers across Kat’s scalp soothingly, starting to talk quietly again about random topics.

Cathy talked for several more minutes. At one point, she looked down to see a fully visible Kat looking up at her. Kat was smiling softly.

“Hey,” Cathy said, smiling tenderly.

“…hey,” Kat replied.

“You wanna talk about it?” Cathy said, giving Kat a worried look.

Kat just turned away, sitting up from Cathy’s lap. “It was just…you know, talking and everything yesterday brought up bad memories. I just wanted to, escape for a bit, and I found myself falling into old habits.”

Kat looked at Cathy a little sheepishly. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to worry you all.”

“No Kat, it’s not your fault at all. You did nothing wrong. We just…want you to be safe,” Cathy said softly. Kat gave her a smile, and launched a hug at Cathy. Cathy was not prepared for this and fell backwards onto the rest of the couch.

They ended up laying down, Kat on top of Cathy, across the living room couch. Cathy looked up, surprised, and blushed hard at what she saw. Kat was holding herself up by her hands, over Cathy. The afternoon sun illuminated her features. Cathy stared at Kat’s face, memorizing her hair, her eyes, her pretty blush that was so similar to Cathy’s.

“You’re beautiful,” Cathy said in awe, using a hand to brush some fallen strands of hair out of Kat’s face. Kat looked down in pure wonder.

Cathy immediately caught herself and slapped a hand over her mouth. “I mean! The sun makes you look really nice right now. Not that you don’t always look nice! You are always so pretty. I don’t mean that in a weird way though! I—“

Cathy was cut off from her rambling by Kat giggling. The sound made Cathy stop and smile too. Kat laid her head down on Cathy’s chest, and brought a finger up to silence her.

“Shhh, no more talking now. Let’s rest,” Kat said, closing her eyes. Cathy smiled down at Kat who was tucking herself under Cathy’s chin.

“And I think you are very pretty too.”

Cathy smiled wider, bringing her hands up to hold the girl on her chest. She settled into the living room couch, letting Kat’s weight and soft breaths lull her into a peaceful sleep.

———————————————————————————————————————

In the following days, Kat realized two things.

First, she definitely had a crush on Cathy.

It had been building for a while, but that moment on the couch finally helped Kat realize it. Cathy was so sweet, and kind, and caring. She knew exactly when to give Kat space, and how to be comforting and present without crowding.

Cathy was gentle, she spoke softly. Her words were beautiful, like spoken art. Kat was both mesmerized and soothed whenever Cathy spoke.

But Cathy was also passionate. She talked animatedly about things she was interested in, like science and history, and Kat loved listening to her. She loved the way Cathy’s eyes lit up when talking about something she liked. Kat loved the way she would use her hands to explain things.

And she was beautiful, oh so beautiful. Kat loved her soft dimples when she smiled. She loved her beautiful brown eyes that held so much spark. She could watch Cathy for hours.

The second realization was a bit less joyful. Kat realized Cathy was definitely avoiding her.

In the days after Kat and Cathy fell asleep on the couch, Cathy had started acting weird. She would get up and leave the room quickly when Kat entered, and Kat swore she saw the other woman blushing. Cathy stopped and stared at Kat whenever they passed in a hallway, before quickly shaking her head and ducking into an open room. Kat didn’t know what was happening.

The final straw was a morning a few days later. Kat was up and reading in the living room before breakfast. Cathy walked into the room, fully dressed, halting when she saw Kat.

“Hey, are you going somewhere?” Kat asked, closing her book.

“Um, yeah. I was just gonna go to the library,” Cathy said a bit awkwardly. She paused and then stuttered out the next part. “You are welcome to come with and join me, to like go out—hang out! You can hang out…with me…”

Cathy trailed off and then gave a little exasperated grunt. “Nevermind! You probably don’t wanna do me—THAT! You probably don’t wanna do that! I’llseeyoulaterbye—“

“Cathy wait—“ Cathy was gone before Kat could finish her sentence. “…I would love to hang out with you…”

Kat just stared sadly at the front door until Jane walked in a few minutes later.

“What’s got you looking so glum,” Jane asked.

“Cathy’s acting weird,” Kat said simply, pouting as she slid down further into the couch. Jane came over to sit next to the sulking woman.

Jane had a knowing smile on her face. “Well, have you asked her what may be wrong?”

“No, but it doesn’t seem like she wants to talk to me,” Kat said sadly.

“You don’t know that. Cathy is a very smart person, but she doesn’t always show her emotions well. Give it a chance and talk to her, you’ll probably be pleasantly surprised,” Jane winked at Kat, before getting up to make breakfast. That just left Kat more confused than anything, but she resolved to have a conversation with Cathy later.

———————————————————————————————————————

Cathy returned from the library a few hours after lunch, and she immediately went to her room. Kat decided to give it some time and wait until the evening to confront her. Jane and Kat made dinner, and everyone ate together except for Cathy.

“I can bring her up something?” Kat volunteered after dinner was finished. Everyone around the table smirked a bit.

“I think that is a wonderful idea,” Jane said, quickly making a plate and handing it to Kat to give to Cathy. Jane sent Kat off and gave a quick wink to the other supers, who returned it with knowing smiles.

Kat just shook off their weirdness and headed upstairs to give Cathy her dinner. She walked through the hallway slowly, her heart beating a little faster for no other reason than getting to see Cathy.

She got to the blue door and knocked, and after a few short seconds the door swung open.

“Oh, thank you Kat,” Cathy said, taking the plate from Kat. She gave Kat a smile before closing the door. Kat was left standing there, reeling from the short conversation.

She didn’t know what went through her during that moment, but the intense emotion of hurt filled Kat’s body. She knocked again, harder this time. The door opened again.

“Oh, hello again Kat. Did you need somethin—“

“What is your problem?” Kat said angrily, pushing her way into the room. Cathy just stared, confused, and shut the door behind her. The lack of response just made Kat more angry.

“Why are you acting so weird? A few days ago we fall asleep on the couch together, and now you can barely say a few words to me? Don’t think I don’t see how you leave the room when I’m in it. You are avoiding me, I know it. Did I…do something to upset you?” Kat said, hurt seeping into her voice.

“No no, that’s not it at all,” Cathy said quickly, putting up her hands complacently.

“Then what is it! Why won’t you talk to me!”

“Because I—“ Cathy started, before stopping herself.

“Because you what?” Kat pushed, curious and waiting for her answer.

“Because I have a crush on you!”

Kat just stared, dumfounded. Cathy…crush on her…she liked Kat back? Kat was taking a while to gather her thoughts, but Cathy continued on.

“I like you Kat, so much. I love the way you brighten up any room with your smile. Your laugh is like music, melodic and joyful. You know just what to say to bring a smile to anyone’s face. You are so pretty, I just don’t have the words to describe how positively radiant you are.”

Kat was struck silent with awe. Cathy continued. “And I love how soft and sweet you are. I love staying up and watching cartoons, or when we read together on the couch. I love how you listen to my rants even though they probably bore you.”

Kat shook her head, Cathy never bores her. But Cathy didn’t see that and started speaking faster. “And now you probably think I’m a creep and crazy. I’m sorry, I’ll just go away and hide in my room forever and you’ll never have to see me again and—“

“Cathy!”

Kat interrupted the other woman’s spiraling. She walked up slowly to Cathy, who had her eyes closed. Kat placed a gentle hand on Cathy’s cheek. Cathy opened her eyes and stared into Kat’s.

“I like you too,” Kat said simply, smiling softly up at Cathy.

“You…like me too?” Cathy asked, furrowing her eyebrows a little. That made Kat giggle.

“Yes, I do.”

“As in…like like me?”

Kat giggled again. “Yes, I also have a crush on you Cathy.”

Kat could practically see the gears turning in Cathy’s superpowered brain. Finally, it all clicked together, and Cathy’s entire face lit up.

“We like each other!” Cathy said, launching a hug at Kat. They ended up falling on top of Cathy’s bed, giggling. They were tangled together, laughing as they both felt the high of being in love.

“In that case, Katherine Howard, would you do me the honor, of being my girlfriend?” Cathy said, sitting up and smiling tenderly at Kat.

“Why of course, Catherine Parr. Nothing would make me happier,” Kat replied, smiling at Cathy. They both dissolved into giggles again and fell back onto the bed. They tangled together, resting on top of the sheets. Their hearts were full and dreams had come true.

———————————————————————————————————————

“You never got to eat dinner.”

Kat was resting on top of Cathy’s chest. Cathy pouted a little, Kat reminding her that she hadn’t ate. Suddenly, her stomach growled, making both women laugh.

“Come on,” Kat said, standing up. She pulled Cathy into a standing position as well. “Let’s go see if we can swipe some of Jane’s cookies.”

Cathy nodded and they both left the room, holding hands. They both crept down the dark hallway, careful as to not wake anyone up. They giggled a bit as they tiptoed down to the kitchen, entering the dark room.

As soon as they entered the kitchen, the lights turned on.

The two young women waited a few seconds for their eyes to adjust, and then looked around. All four other supers were sitting at the kitchen counter, all wearing amused looks on their faces. Kat and Cathy dropped each other’s hand with a blush.

“Well well well, what do we have here?” Anna said, smirking at the two blushing women.

“I don’t know what you are talking about,” Kat said, still blushing and looking away.

“Come on, just tell us. Who figured it out first?” Anna asked again. Kat and Cathy just looked confused.

“Figured what out?” Cathy asked.

“You know…” Anna prodded.

“That you both had huge crushes on each other but were too scared to talk to the other!” Anne blurted out.

Kat and Cathy went still. They took a glance at each other and wordlessly communicated. They relaxed and Kat spoke up. “It was me.”

“YES!” Anne shouted, and the others groaned. “Pay up.”

“You made bets on us?” Kat asked incredulously.

Jane just chuckled. “Don’t look at me, I didn’t participate.”

Kat and Cathy watched as Anna and Catalina pulled out various bills from their pockets.

“Oh my gosh Madrina, you bet on us?” Cathy asked. Catalina just grumbled and reluctantly handed the money to Anne.

Anna laughed and handed her money over too. “Well she had faith in you Cathy. To be fair, I bet that neither one of you would realize until later this week!”

Anne sped over to Kat and wrapped her arms around her baby cousin. “I knew you could do it Kit! That’s them Boleyn-Howard genes right there.” Kat just laughed.

“So everyone knew but us?” Cathy asked, still dumbfounded.

“It was so clear, but you two were totally oblivious” Anna pointed out, making the others laugh.

“But seriously mija,” Catalina said, walking over to pull Cathy into a hug of her own. “We are all so happy for you. If you find happiness in each other, we support you completely.”

The other supers murmured their agreement, and soon they all shifted into a big group hug. Cathy and Kat were in the middle, holding each other’s hands again. They felt complete, finally together and surrounded by the love and support of their friends and team.

Chapter Text

“Bye Jane have a lovely time!” Anna said, waving as she watched Jane get in her car to drive to the grocery store. Anna watched the car go all the way down the street before heading back inside and closing the door.

She walked back into the house, pausing when she heard sounds from the living room. Anna walked in to an interesting sight. Cathy was standing in the middle of the room with Anne right in her face, speaking harshly about something. Catalina was on one of the chairs, looking bored but also vaguely amused about the situation.

Anna could just make out what Anne was saying. “—and if you hurt her, I swear to everything you will be out of this house faster than you can take your next breath. And another thing, if you make her cry, I’ll—“

Anna started chuckling, which turned everyone’s attention to her. “Oh sorry, ignore me. You can get back to what you were doing,” Anna laughed.

“No, don’t go anywhere. We’re finished, just as long as Cathy understands,” Anne gave one last glare to Cathy, who looked a little disturbed but quickly nodded her head and assured the protective cousin that she would not do anything to hurt Kat.

Anne held her position for a few seconds before abruptly switching to a smile. “Nahh, you’re a good kid Cathy, I know you wouldn’t hurt her. Anyways, speaking of Kat, where is she? KIT? ANNA IS HERE, COME DOWNSTAIRS!”

Everyone was left reeling from the sudden switch in personality, but soon Kat came barreling down the stairs. Anna went to make herself comfortable on the couch, but everyone else in the room took their seats facing her.

She felt just a bit disturbed, and curious too. She wondered if this was an intervention. A small part of her worried it was worse, maybe she was finally being kicked out, but she pushed those thoughts down.

Kat stood at the front of the room, beaming. She faced Anna and started her speech.

“So, I guess you’re wondering why we’ve gathered you here today.”

“Cause Anne finally wants to admit she doesn’t know how to use the toaster,” Anna piped up with a cheeky smile. Anne made a noise of indignation and pouted.

“No, but maybe she’ll finally ask for help later,” Kat said, which made people laugh. “We’ve gathered you here for something more important.”

Anna tensed up as Kat paused for dramatic effect. Finally, she spoke.

“We want to help you and Jane get together!”

“…WHAT!” Anna quickly shot forward in her seat. “Me and Jane? Together? Nah that’s crazy. Verrückt! Abosulutely—“

“Anna, we know you like her. You two seem to spend a lot of time together. You both help each other, calming each other down and giving reassurance. And, we’re pretty sure Jane likes you back,” Catalina softly explains.

Anna took a deep breath, seemingly pondering something. She took a minute before speaking again. “So, if I did like Jane…you guys want to help us get together? How do you know she even likes me back.”

“I mean, it’s pretty obvious. The heart eyes between you two are pretty noticeable,” Anne snarked. Anna blushed.

The German loosened up a little but was still wary. “So you guys are ok with it? Me and Jane possibly…you know?” She asked, mostly directing it towards Lina and Cathy.

“Of course we are ok with it Anna! You and Jane would make a wonderful couple,” Cathy said, and everyone murmured their agreement.

Anna smiled, at both her friends’ support and what Cathy said. Her and Jane as a couple, now isn’t that a wonderful thought.

She took another minute of two to think, before a smile spread across her face. “Ok, I think I can do this! Thank you all for believing in us. What’s your ideas?” Anna asked, pulling out her phone to take notes. She sat down, everyone could tell how seriously she was taking this.

“Start with something subtle,” Catalina says as Anna hums and starts typing. “Get her flowers, chocolates, something to show you care and think of her.”

“No you gotta go bigger!” Anne interjects. “Write her a song, make her a mural, buy a car, something big to show you really care!” Anna laughs but writes it down anyways.

“Well if you really want to show her you care, you should do something sweet,” Kat says thoughtfully. “Take her somewhere you know she likes, it shows you truly know her.”

Anna nodded at this and typed it up. She stared thoughtfully at the list when Cathy spoke up.

“All of that is great, and I do think it’ll show that you care, but honestly, what you two need is to talk it out. Jane likes you back, I’m sure of it, but she’ll probably disregard all the other things as just friendship cause she doesn’t want to get her hopes up. Just sitting and telling her your feelings is the best option, we would know,” Cathy says, wrapping an arm around Kat.

“Oh that’s too hard. What if she doesn’t like me?” Anna worries. Cathy just raises an eyebrow at her. “Ok fine, I’ll put it on the list.”

Anna finishes typing everything and then stands up with a smile. “Thank you everyone. I’ll start going down the list and try everything until something works. Truly, thank you for all your help and support. I promise I will treat Jane like the queen she is.”

That got a few “awww’s” from around the room. Anna waved to all of them before heading to her room, ready to prepare to woo Jane.

———————————————————————————————————————

Anna decided to just go down the list, starting with Catalina’s suggestion. Subtlety, flowers, chocolates…she could do that. Anna quickly drove to the market to get everything she needed.

When Jane got home later, she was immediately greeted by Anna at the door. The German was smiling and holding some flowers out in front of her.

“Oh, hello Anna!”

“Hello Jane, these are for you,” Anna said, thrusting out the flowers in Jane’s direction, a blush prominent on her face.

“These are lovely darling! Thank you,” Jane said, taking the flowers with a happy smile. “I’ll go put them in a vase.”

Anna ran upstairs and came back when Jane was done putting the flowers in a vase.

“I got these as well,” Anna said, shyly holding out a box of chocolates. Jane walked slowly forward.

“Oh Anna, these are wonderful,” Jane said, gingerly taking the box. She stopped and stared at them for a bit. “Hm, are these white chocolate? I think Anne loves these, they’re probably for her right?”

“Well, not exactly—“

“I’ll call her down so you can give it to her directly!” Jane said excitedly. “Anne!” She shouted.

“Yeah Jane?” Anne said, speeding into the kitchen. She saw the box that Jane was holding and shot Anna a soft smile, knowing what Anna was doing.

“Anna got white chocolate, your favorite!” Jane said, holding the box out to Anne.

Anna watched as Anne’s smile slowly turned to a devious smirk.

Oh she better not…

“Oh that’s so sweet Anna, thank you!” Anne said cheekily, taking the box of chocolates.

That traitor, Anna thought, glaring at Anne who was eating the chocolate smugly.

Oh well, guess that plan was a bust.

———————————————————————————————————————

Ok, next up was doing something big, Anne’s plan. But what was big enough to show that Anna is serious about Jane? Anna was up late at night brainstorming when it came  to her. She grabbed all her supplies and went downstairs.

She spared a glance at the clock, “1am.” Wow, she was up later than she thought. But too late to back out now, she was already on the side lawn.

She turned on the speaker and connected it to her phone. Then she took out the bluetooth microphone and turned it on too. She finally chose the song, “Love Story” by Taylor Swift, and Anna was ready.

She picked up a few pebbles and through them at the window on the second floor. She  saw a lamp light go on so Anna pressed play on the song.

“We were both young when I first saw you—“ Anna sings, practically yelling at the window. She hears shuffling and vague sounds from inside. She continues her song.

“Romeo, take me somewhere we can be alone

I'll be waiting, all there's left to do is run

You'll be the prince and I'll be the princess

It's a love story, baby, just say—“

“HAHAHAHAH”

Anna looked up at the window to see Kat and Cathy cackling at her. They had opened the window and were dying of laughter watching Anna sing. Anna paused the music and slowly looked at the side of the house she was on. She counted the windows and realized…

Oh my god, she’d thrown rocks at Cathy’s window. Jane’s room was the next window over.

Anna was mortified, and Cathy and Kat were still laughing.

Mein Gott, this can’t get any worse.

“Anna!”

Anna looked up from her sulking to see another window open. Of course, this time it was Jane’s window.

“Are you locked out? Is that why you are making all this ruckus in the dead of night? Don’t worry, I’ll come let you in,” Jane said out the open window.

“Wait, Jane no I’m—“ Anna starts, but Jane had already closed the window and left. Anna pouted.

Kat and Cathy cackled harder at this. Anna just glared up at the happy couple. Finally they started to stop their laughing.

“It was a good try,” Cathy yelled down, still wiping away laughing tears.

“Better luck next time,” Kat smiled. The couple waved down to Anna and closed their window, heading back to bed.

After Anna made it back inside and waved off a very concerned Jane, she headed back upstairs. She made a pit stop to Cathy’s room and opened the door. When she peeked in, Kat and Cathy started giggling at her frustrated face.

“Never say a word about what just happened,” Anna said, glaring at them. There was no real malice though, just like how the couple’s laughs were purely playful, not mocking.

Kat and Cathy just giggled some more from where they were cuddling in bed. They mimed zipping their lips. Anna just smiled and shook her head at them.

“Goodnight Turteltauben,” Anna said, closing the door quietly behind her.

As she went back to her room and got in bed, Anna thought some more. That plan definitely didn’t work. On to the next.

———————————————————————————————————————

Anna was ready to try Kat’s plan. She had everything prepared this time, nothing could go wrong.

Anna found Jane in the kitchen cleaning up after dinner. Everyone was lightly chatting and milling around so Anna decided now was a good time. She waited for a minute, watching the way Jane worked fluidly with a smile. Anna found herself smiling as well. After a few minutes she cleared her throat to get Jane’s attention.

“Oh, hi Anna. I didn’t see you there,” Jane blushed.

“Hi Jane, so, I was wondering…they have this little festival at the garden tomorrow night, would you like to go?” Anna asked, wringing her hands together nervously.

“Anna that sounds amazing! Is anyone else coming with us—“

Kat interrupted her. “Me and Cathy are uh…”

“Going to the movies. Date night, you know?” Cathy jumped in to save her girlfriend.

Kat gave her a thankful smile before turning back to Jane. “Yeah, so we won’t be able to make it.”

“I have…a meeting to run to. And some paperwork to fill out. I also can’t make it,” Catalina says simply.

They all turn to Anne, who was busy drying dishes. Catalina conjured up a pebble and flicked it in her direction.

“Hey what give—“ Anne turned around to see everyone except Jane glaring at her. “Oh yeah, I uh…I’m also busy.”

Everyone shrugged and turned back to what they were doing, trying to seem like they weren’t eavesdropping. Anna faced Jane again. “Yeah, everyone’s busy. And also I was thinking it could just be us…alone…together…”

Jane smiled softly. “That would be lovely darling.”

Anna beamed happily. They quickly finalized the plans before Anna ran away to make sure everything was perfect for the next night. This time it was going to be just her and Jane. No other supers, no mistakes, no distractions.

———————————————————————————————————————

The night was wonderful. The garden was beautiful, and Anna and Jane spent the entire night just enjoying the scenery and the company they were with. They talked about everything and nothing, never sharing an awkward moment.

When they finally got back to the house, Anna quickly hopped out of the drivers seat and ran around the car to open Jane’s door. Jane blushed at the chivalry, and then quickly giggled at the little bow Anna gave.

They walked side by side, stopping on the porch. Anna turned to face Jane, taking the blonde’s hands into her own.

“You know, I had a great time tonight,” Anna said, blushing a bit.

“I had an amazing time as well,” Jane whispered back, smiling.

“I was wondering, if you’d maybe wanna, do this again?” Anna asked quickly. She looked up to see Jane looking at her tenderly.

“That would be absolutely wonderful darling,” Jane breathed. It seemed like one of them was leaning in, maybe both of them were. Anna glanced down to Jane’s lips. They were so close to her own. It almost seemed like they would just touch—

BANG

“Ow!”

Both Anna and Jane whipped back and turned to face the house. From their position on the porch, they could see a window into the living room. In fact, all four of their friends were backwards on the couch, pressed up against the living room window. Well…three of their friends.

Anna just sighed when she saw Anne on the floor, rubbing her nose. Deducing from the loud noise, the speedster had probably leaned over too far and fallen off the couch, smacking her face into the window.

“Do you maybe wanna…” Jane awkwardly spoke, making vague gestures towards the front door.

“Yeah,” Anna sighed. They both walked inside and wished each other goodnight before Jane walked upstairs to her room. As soon as Anna heard Jane’s bedroom door close, she turned on the other people in the room.

“Anne Boleyn,” Anna growled out. Everyone else stood there sheepishly, but Anne looked a little scared. Then, she started laughing. Without any warning, Anna lunged at Anne.

The next few minutes were spent with Anne dying of laughter on the floor, one of Kat’s pink forcefields keeping her safe from Anna’s attempts at an attack. Catalina and Cathy were trying to calm her down, but everyone was pretty amused by the whole situation.

The night ended with an apology from Anne, and the others for spying on them. Anna assured them she wasn’t upset, and they all gossiped about Anna and Jane’s outing for some time.

While Anna was heading up to her room, she realized one thing. There was only one person’s plan left. Time for Cathy’s plan: just straight up confessing her feelings to Jane.

———————————————————————————————————————

Anna steeled herself, taking a deep breath outside the silver bedroom door. She had just gotten a pep talk from the other supers and now it was time. She was doing Cathy’s plan.

Anna braced herself and knocked on the door. After a minute, it opened up, revealing a smiling Jane. Jane welcomed her in.

“So, what brings you here tonight Anna?” Jane asked innocently.

Anna starred at her for a minute, before deciding to just rip off the bandaid. “Well, Jane I—I have been thinking. Over the past few months we’ve been getting closer and…I just wanted to tell you, I—oh my god I can’t do this.”

Then, suddenly, Anna collapsed into a fit of laughter. She was laughing so hard she dropped to the floor. Jane dropped to her knees right next to Anna.

“This is so dumb,” Anna got out in between her laughter. “I can’t believe we agreed to this.”

“Its ok love, you honestly held it out for longer than I was expecting you to,” Jane giggled. “I mean, the singing outside of the window was some true dedication.”

That sent Anna into another fit of laughter, this time Jane started laughing right with her. Anna wiped away some laughter tears before speaking again. “I know! I mean, I can’t believe the others didn’t know we were already dating this entire time—“

“WHAT!”

Anna and Jane spun around to face the bedroom door. Both of them heard the indignant squak from outside. Anna shook her head. “Lauschers,” she muttered.

Jane gave her a questioning look so she translated. “Eavesdroppers.”

Anna and Jane stood up and walked over to the door. Anna quickly pulled in open, laughing when she saw all four of the other supers outside of the door. Catalina was just sitting against the hallway wall, reading a book. Cathy was reading over her shoulder.

But Kat and Anne were pressed up against the door. They were so close that they fell over when Anna pulled it open.

“Told you you would get caught,” Catalina said, closing her book.

“Oh mien Gott, all of you get in here,” Anna said with a smile, showing she wasn’t really mad. All the supers piled into Jane’s room and took their seats in various places.

“So, seems like the gig is up,” Anna joked. She took Jane’s hand in her own and squeezed it lightly, getting a little squeeze back.

“What in the world is happening!?” Anne yelled out.

“Wait wait wait, go back to the beginning! Tell us everything,” Kat interrupted. Even Catalina and Cathy leaned forward, extremely interested in this new turn of events.

Anna and Jane laughed and sat down next to each other. “Well, like you’ve heard, we’ve already been dating for a month or two,” Jane started.

The couple just laughed at the shocked faces. “I know, crazy right? Who knew I could land this beauty,” Anna laughed, almost tackling Jane in a hug. She peppered the blonde with kisses, making Jane giggle.

Eventually Anna went back to sitting upright. Jane continued, “We wanted to keep it secret, just for the first bit. It’s not that we didn’t trust you all! It’s just that we already have so little privacy as it is, all living in one house. We wanted to figure each other out and how to work our relationship first.”

Everyone nodded at that. Anna piped up. “Yeah that’s why I was pretty panicked at first when you suggested the plan. I thought you all might’ve already figured out me and Jane were together. Then when I realized you wanted to get me with my girlfriend...that I was already dating, I decided few could have some fun with it.”

“She came and told me almost immediately, and I agreed of course. Just for some entertainment you know?” Jane giggled.

“We were going to tell you after the ‘plan’ was over, but I guess you all couldn’t help but eavesdrop,” Anna teased. “So yeah! That’s our story.”

Everything was silent for a few moments. Anna and Jane started to worry that they did something wrong. Suddenly, Kat squealed and jumped at that.

The pink-haired girl engulfed both of them in a hug. “We’re so happy for you!” Kat exclaimed.

Soon, all the others came to join their little group hug, all showing their own support. Anna and Jane hugged back, joyous to have this finally off their chest.

“Oh my god, I can’t believe I’m one of the last single ones in the household. I mean, Lina is expected, but me!? I’m a catch!” Anne joked. Lina glared but everyone, including her, laughed. They were all just grateful to be together and happy, celebrating the couple that wasn’t really new but just newly revealed.

Anna met Jane’s eyes and gave her a soft smile. Jane smiled tenderly back. They grabbed each other’s hands, giving a soft squeeze. All they felt at that moment was warmth and love.

Chapter Text

Jane was truly content for the first time in a while.

The six supers were getting along better than ever. They regularly had movie nights or just all worked in the same room. Cathy and Kat were adorable, and Jane was always so joyous to see them snuggled up on a couch together.

Of course, there would always be a hole in her heart, one that would probably never be filled. The loss of a child is something that haunts a mother forever, but Jane is getting better.

And of course, she has a beautiful girlfriend for support. Anna is everything Jane could want in a person. She’s kind, strong, gentle, cool, and so many other words. She makes Jane laugh so effortlessly, and seeing her always brighten’s Jane’s day.

But not everything was getting better. Tudor was getting even stronger now, and more risky too. He was sending out creations more and more often. The four offensive supers were spending more time in the gym, training to defeat the more destructive Tudor creations.

They claimed it was fine, but Jane saw how exhausted and bruised they were coming home from each fight.

Today was a Sunday, and the four offensive supers decided to spend the morning training. That left Jane and Cathy to go out and get groceries for the week.

“You sure Janey? Want one of us to come with you?” Anna asked, coming over to hold one of Jane’s hands in her own.

“We’ll be fine love” Jane replied, giving a quick kiss to her protective girlfriend. “We’ll call you if anything happens.

Anna nodded and gave Jane another kiss. Jane just laughed and kissed her back. Over her shoulder she saw Kat peppering Cathy’s face with kisses as well. Our of the corner of her eye she could see Anne make a fake gagging face at Catalina, who just snickered.

“Ok ok we get it, you all are dating,” Anne rolled her eyes, a smile planted on her face. “But they’re going to the store, not off to war.”

Everyone laughed at that and Jane and Cathy said their goodbyes. Anne and Lina wished them safe travels as well and then the two left.

“What do you say we walk today? It’s probably about 20 minutes, and it’s a nice day outside!” Jane said to Cathy.

Like the simps they were, Jane and Cathy talked about their girlfriends for nearly the entire walk to the grocery store. They also caught up too. It was nice to talk one on one again. The actual shopping was average. They grabbed everything they needed, checked out, and started walking back. Surprisingly, it was’t a lot to carry.

Leaving the grocery store, Jane and Cathy were laughing about something or another while walking through the streets. The sun was shining and it was a nice day, they barely paid attention to their surroundings. But Cathy’s super senses picked up on something strange.

When passing one of the side alleys, Cathy paused. She turned to Jane quizzically. “Do you hear that?” She whispered.

Jane quieted down and listened. Faintly, she heard something from the alley. It seemed like sniffling and whimpering. Jane shared a look with Cathy. They both nodded and went tot investigate, their heroic instincts kicking in.

Jane and Cathy creeped through the alley, the walls so high it nearly blocked out all the sun. The darkness was stifling, almost like a fog. At the end of the alley, they could see a woman hunched over on the floor like she was crying. Jane reached out.

“Hello, are you alrig—“

Jane never got to finish her sentence because the woman turned around and lunged at her. Now up close Jane could see the scales all over her skin and her forked tongue. She pinned Jane to the ground, the blonde super unable to move.

“Jane!” Cathy said, running up to help her. But Cathy was talked by a man who was hiding in the shadows…or rather, was the shadows. The man had morphed literally out of the shadows in the alley. Cathy too was pinned to the floor.

“Well well well, what do we have here?”

Cathy and Jane both look up, steel in their eyes. A man was standing in the entrance of the alleyway, light framing around him. He stood menacingly.

“Who the fuck are you?” Cathy spat. Jane was a bit surprised, knowing Cathy didn’t use such language often.

The man didn’t answer her, and instead just walked over wordlessly. He stopped in front of Cathy, who was stretched out like a starfish with the shadow man pinning her down. Cathy was still struggling to glare up at the man.

Suddenly, he brought his foot down hard on Cathy’s outstretched hand. Cathy cried out in pain. Jane screamed as well, fearful for her friend. She saw the way Cathy twisted in pain, body struggling under the weight of the shadow man. Her hand was probably broken.

The man just laughed. He motioned upwards with his hands and both Jane and Cathy were pulled up into a kneeling position, their captors still holding them down with their hands behind. The man walked up to them both and squated down.

“I’m who they call Tudor, but you can just call me Henry.”

Both Jane and Cathy gasped. The man gave them a wicked smile and stood back up, dusting off his hands. He peered down at them and gave the two supers a patronizing stare.

“I was watching you two leave the supermarket. I stationed my two creations in this alley here. The whimpers that one was making were super quiet, no normal person would’ve heard it so easily.”

He sneered down at Cathy. “You must be that super.” Cathy tried steeling her gaze, but the tears and fear mixed in her eyes gave away the answer.

The man, Henry, then turned to Jane.

“And you,” he said softly. “If my suspicions are correct…”

He walked over and slapped her quickly. Jane cried out, her head shooting to the side, but the scaled creation still kept her in the kneeling position. Jane felt a cut on her cheek, but after a few seconds a warm feeling replaced it.

“I knew it,” Henry smiled. “You’re the healer.”

Jane kept her mouth shut. On one hand, she knew that whatever she said could be the wrong thing and possibly get her and Cathy hurt. She had to stay quiet for both of their safeties. On the other hand, she was terrified. They were in the face of Tudor himself, and both Cathy and Jane’s powers were non-offensive. What could they do?

“It’s a good thing you’re so beautiful darling,” Henry said, reaching a hand out to stroke Jane’s cheek. Jane flinched a bit when his skin met hers. “It makes up for the fact you’re a super.”

He smiled condescendingly, twirling a piece of her hair in his hand. “You’re so nice and quiet, unlike those other supers. They’re so brash and loud, especially that speedster girl,” he sneered. Jane kept quiet and tried to look down.

Henry moved to pick her chin up so she would look him in the eyes. “And you listen so nicely. You’re so compliant, so durable.” He punctuated that by digging his fingers in her chin, watching the way her wounds healed themselves.

“Yes, I like you darling. You’ll do just splendid,” he whispered, an attempt at being charming. In reality, it was slimy and wrong. Jane wished she was back at home, being held by Anna and watching some Disney movie with the others. Anna would hold her tight, and she could be wrapped up in nice blankets and—

Jane was snapped back to the present when she felt Tudor’s hands rubbing her arms. She looked up fearfully. He was smiling down at her, leaning in closer.

“You have two minutes.”

Both Jane and Henry’s heads snapped to where Cathy was kneeling. She had just spoken. Now looking at her, they could see that the creation that was holding her was knocked out on the ground. Her phone was in her hands, a police call clearly visible.

“They heard everything that happened and they have a police car on the way. You have two minutes,” Cathy said, staring at Henry.

"What...How!?" Henry spluttered.

"Easy, I calculated the reaction time of your creation here when he was grabbing me. Turns out he's quite slow. A quick kick to the temple, you can thank my godmother for that, and he was out cold. Then it was easy to call the police and have them listen in," Cathy explained simply.

Jane felt relief flood her body. That girl was so smart. Jane could see the bit of pride shining in Cathy's eyes. Unfortunately, it seems like Henry could see it too.

Henry let out an enraged yell and stood up quickly.

"You think you're so fucking smart huh?" He yelled. The man marched over and punched Cathy in the face, knocking her to the ground, unconscious. The siren sounds could be heard faintly in the distance.

Henry gave a withering glance to the knocked out creation, turned to the creation holding Jane. “Get me out of here,” he said. They let Jane go and stood up. Jane collapsed to the floor and quickly crawled over to Cathy, who was still unconscious on the floor.

“Goodbye darling, I’ll see you again sometime,” Henry said, smiling at Jane. Then, his creation picked him up and jumped high over the alley wall, disappearing into the London streets.

“Cathy,” Jane breathed out, focussing on the battered woman besides her. She focused on healing the wounds Cathy had as the sirens got closer. She was so focused on using her powers on Cathy’s head and hand that she almost didn’t hear the footsteps of the police.

“Ma’am, are you ok?” Jane heard, an officer running towards her. Jane just now felt the tears that were streaming down her face. “Do you need me to get you two to a hospital?” The officer asked.

“No I…” Jane started. She stared weakly up at the officer. “Just get us home, please.”

———————————————————————————————————————

It was about fifteen minutes later that Jane and a still unconscious Cathy were dropped back off at the house. The officer left after Jane reassured them that the two women were ok. Jane held Cathy in her arms and walked towards the front door.

She kicked the door to knock and waited for it to open. Finally, Anne opened the door with a smile.

“Finally! You both took so long to get the grocer—wait, what happened?”

Jane immediately collapsed to her knees, making sure Cathy didn’t hit the ground. She heard the other supers all run up, wondering what happened. But Jane was so tired, all she did was kneel there on the floor.

She felt Cathy be picked up from off her lap, probably by Kat from the sounds of her worried voice. Then Jane herself was picked up, familiar arms wrapping themselves around her.

Anna.

Jane started to cry again, wrapping her arms around her girlfriend.

“Shhh, I’ve got you mien engel. You’re safe now,” Anna said soothingly, bringing Jane over to settle on the couch. They sat together, Jane wrapped up in Anna’s arms, crying into her shoulder. She vaguely realized the other supers were in the room too.

She finally stopped crying after a few minutes, settling down to just occasional sniffles. Besides her on the couch, she could hear groaning.

Cathy whimpered, and Kat immediately wrapped her in a big hug. They all sat in silence for a few more minutes, letting Jane and Cathy fully recover and settle before asking their questions.

“What the hell happened!?” Anne started, looking incredulously at the two women.

Both Jane and Cathy shrunk a bit, startled by her loud voice. Lina quickly shushed the green super, but the question still hung in the air. Jane looked over at Cathy, who was still silent. Jane gave the other woman a questioning look. Cathy responded by pointing to her throat and shaking her head as a no.

Jane gave a nod in understanding. Jane and Lina have lived with Cathy for a while, and all three of them know each other pretty well. Jane knew that sometimes if Cathy got upset enough, she couldn’t speak for a while. Jane look a few deep breaths and decided to tell the story alone.

“We were attacked on the way back from the grocery store,” Jane starts. The other supers gasp, and Anna tightens her hold around Jane’s waist.

“It was Tudor.”

At that the other supers break out in louder gasps. Everyone looked terrified, especially Anne and Kat. Lina and Anna also had hints of anger present in their expressions.

“A…Are you sure it was him?” Kat asked, shrinking in on herself.

“Yeah, he had two creations with him. They listened to his instructions,” Jane said, looking down at her feet. Everyone went silent for a minute, processing the new development.

Jane continued. “The three of them cornered us in an alley, he knew we were supers. He hurt Cathy. He…took a liking to me…” Jane shuddered and leaned back, feeling Anna against her back. “We only got out because Cathy called the police sneakily. He…he had us trapped there and there was nothing we…I couldn’t do anything.”

Jane cut herself off with sobs. Anna leaned into her, wrapping Jane up in a bigger hug. Jane turned around to hide herself in Anna’s shoulder. She could hear the shuffling of the other supers around her, presumably leaving her and Anna to have some privacy. She felt a hug from behind, probably Lina, and whispered reassurances before the other four left the room.

Anna held Jane tightly, letting her know that she is safe, and she is loved.

———————————————————————————————————————

Kat felt awful.

Tudor was close, he was close enough to hurt Jane and Cathy.

God what if he…what if he found her again?

Kat shook her head to try to expel those awful thoughts, but they still swirled around her mind. The memories of his hands on her body, of his lips on hers, of him pulling her hair. She could feel it all, like he was actually there with her. Kat shuddered.

She quickly changed clothes and left her room, heading towards a blue door. Her and Cathy had spent most nights sleeping besides each other since they had gotten together, so it wasn’t weird when Kat knocked on the door.

“Kat!” Cathy exclaimed. A bright smile lit up Cathy’s face at the sight of her girlfriend. She led Kat into the room and pulled her into a hug.

“Are you ok?” Cathy asked quietly, still wrapping Kat in the hug. She could feel how tense the pink-haired girl was.

“I should be asking you that,” Kat said, leading them both over to the bed where they sat down. “He didn’t…hurt you did he?”

“Well, a little. He broke my hand, but Jane fixed it up,” Cathy said, nervously rubbing her hands on her knees.

“But he didn’t…take advantage of you did he?” Kat asked again, looking down at the bedsheets rather than Cathy’s eyes. Cathy paused in confusion for a second before realization spread across her face.

“No, no he didn’t. But I’m so sorry he hurt you Kitten,” Cathy said, wrapping Kat up in another hug. Kat melted into the hug, received her girlfriend didn’t have the same experience she did. The two women slowly laid down, tangling up together.

The lights were off, it was late, and they were cuddling. This would normally be the perfect environment for Kat to fall asleep in, but her thoughts were still racing a mile a minute.

She kept thinking of him.

Of his hands, of his lips, of his smell, his feel, his everything. She could feel him on her now, phantom hands grabbing her where she didn’t want. She didn’t want this, she said no, she wanted him off of her—

Kat suddenly kissed Cathy, hard.

Cathy made a noise of surprise but kissed her back. Kat shifted the position until she was on top of Cathy, kissing her deeply. She couldn’t feel him, all she could feel was Cathy’s lips. All she wanted to feel was Cathy.

Kat sat up, straddling Cathy. It was dark but Cathy could see the way Kat quickly removed her shirt. Kat quickly leaned back down to keep kissing Cathy. She started tugging on the other girl’s shirt as well.

“I want to feel you,” Kat said breathlessly, breaking off their kiss. Cathy stared surprised, reeling from the speed of this development.

“Kat, wait—“ Cathy started, but she was quickly silenced by Kat kissing her again. Kat tried to lead the other girl into a sitting position to take off her shirt, but Cathy just pushed her away until they were both sitting facing each other, Kat still on Cathy’s lap.

“Love, what’s wrong?” Cathy asked softly.

“I want you, I want to do this now,” Kat said, trying to reach for Cathy again. Cathy stopped her.

“No you don’t” Cathy whispered, bringing up a hand to brush away Kat’s tears. Kat didn’t even know she was crying until that moment.

“What’s really bothering you Kitten?” Cathy tried again. This time, Kat just started sobbing, She collapsed on top of Cathy, crying into her shoulder. Cathy wrapped her in a hug, her arms feeling warm in contrast to the cool air on her mostly bare skin.

“I just…” Kat started when she was ready to talk. “Everything that happened today with him reminded me of…” Kat’s breath hitched but she continued on. “I didn’t want the memories, I didn’t want to feel him, I didn’t want it—“

Cathy comforted her crying girlfriend, whispering reassurances. Eventually, Kat quiets down again.

“Now please tell me honestly love, do you want to go that far tonight? Truly?” Cathy asked, pulling Kat back until both of them were looking in each other’s eyes.

Kat stopped to think about it. She wanted his ghost hands off of her. She wanted to feel close to Cathy. But…did she want her and Cathy’s first time to be like this? Did she want it to be because of these memories? Did she want him to still have that control over her life?

“No,” Kat said firmly. “I don’t really want that. But…I do still want to be close to you.”

Cathy smiled. “I have an idea for that.” Cathy also pulled off her shirt and threw it on the floor next to the bed. She laid back down against the mattress and gestured for Kat to lay down too. Kat did, and they cuddled again, both of them shirtless. Cathy pulled up the blanket around them.

This was perfect. The feel of Cathy’s skin against her own grounded Kat and gave her the sense of comfort she needed. The hands her gone, the fear was gone, the memories were gone. Kat snuggled up against her girlfriend, warmed by her and the blanket covering them both.

“Is this ok love?” Cathy asked the girl laying on top of her.

“Perfect,” Kat said, emphasizing it with another kiss. A sweeter, softer one this time. She tried to pour all her love, all her thanks into this kiss. Cathy was amazing, she always knew exactly what Kat needed.

It was perfect. Kat couldn’t have asked for a better girlfriend than her Cathy.

Chapter Text

The next morning, Catalina woke up knowing it was probably going to be a quiet day. The two couples of the household were probably going to want to relax after the scare Jane and Cathy had yesterday. They would most likely spend most the day cuddling in their respective bedrooms.

Catalina was fine with that. She wandered downstairs. That meant the only one left in the household to hang out with was Anne. To be honest, she didn’t mind that. Anne and Lina had been getting a lot closer recently, forgoing their past negative experiences and building a new friendship.

Catalina reached the end of the staircase and walked into the living room. Surprisingly, Anne was already awake and sitting there. When she saw the other super walk in, she immediately stood up.

“Lina Lina Lina,” Anne said, bouncing over to Catalina. The ex-villain was beaming.

“Anne it’s not even 9:00 yet, let me have my coffee before I have to deal with this ruckus,” Catalina rolled her eyes. But nevertheless she smiled fondly at the other woman.

“But I had an idea!”

“Oh no.”

Anne hit Catalina on the shoulder for that little quip. Catalina just laughed.

“Meanie. Anyways! I was thinking, the couples upstairs probably want a chill day right? Why don’t we make breakfast for all of them so Jane can relax after yesterday’s events,” Anne said.

“Wow, that’s actually really considerate of you,” Catalina said, which earned her another light slap. “But yes, that sounds great. What were you thinking of making?”

Anne put her finger up to her chin to think. Catalina briefly noted how cute she looked bu quickly dispelled the thought. “Hm, how about pancakes. Seems simple enough,” Anne said. Catalina just nodded in agreement.

That’s how Anne and Lina found themselves in the kitchen making pancake batter. Hey had the radio on in the background, but were also just chatting lightly. Of course, not everything went smoothly.

“Ok great, I just finished the dry ingredients,” Anne said, standing there with a proud smile.

“Perfect timing, I have the wet ones,” Catalina said, bringing her bowl over to Anne. Catalina carefully poured the contents of both bowls together. She watched as Anne excitedly picked up the whisk.

“Lina, Lina, you wanna see how fast I can mix this?” Anne said, bouncing a little on her toes.

“Anne, that’s not gonna end well—“

Anne completely ignored Catalina’s warnings and immediately started mixing as fast as she could, throwing a bit of superspeed in there as well. Of course, the pancake batter flew everywhere, getting all over the counter and the two women.

Catalina and Anne just stood there in shock for a few moments before Catalina spoke.

“I don’t like saying ‘I told you so’ but—“

“You don’t? It’s your favorite phrase!” Anne said cheekily. Catalina growled and then lunged at the speedster, smearing pancake batter all over her cheek. Anne just laughed and collapsed to the floor, taken off guard.

Catalina lost her footing and landed on top of her. They both stopped laughing. At this level Catalina could see the brown specs in green of Anne’s eyes. Anne’s eyes went down to Catalina’s lips, watching the way she bit them and finding herself mirroring the action. For a second, it seeming like Catalina was leaning in…

“Sorry sorry,” Catalina said, quickly standing up. Anne looked almost…disappointed, from her spot on the floor. She quickly hopped up and put a smile on her face.

“Seems like you’re already falling for me,” Anne winked. Catalina just rolled her eyes, turning away to try and hide her blush.

“Whatever Boleyn, I’m going upstairs and grabbing some wet towels. You start cleaning up the mess you made,” Catalina said pointedly, a little flustered. Anne just shot her a thumbs up.

Catalina went upstairs to the bathroom, washing her face to clear her thoughts. She zoned out for a few minutes, berating herself for slipping up downstairs. She was supposed to be steadfast, not showing her emotions clear on her face like a middle school boy. It’s not like she could help it though, Anne’s eyes were just so…

No, that kind of thinking got her into this mess in the first place. Catalina threw some more water on her face. She had just grabbed the towels to clean up the mess when Anne came speeding up the stairs.

“We have a problem…”

“Let me guess, you caused it?” Catalina raised her eyebrow questioningly.

“You know wha—Just come with me,” Anne said quickly, running back down the stairs. Catalina quickly followed her. She was not expecting the sight she saw in the kitchen.

Anne had apparently tried to start cooking the pancakes instead of cleaning up, because the batter was still on her and the counter. But what was much for concerning, was that the pan on the stove was on fire.

“Anne what the f—You set a pancake on fire!?”

“Just help me put it out!” Anne yelled franticly. Catalina quickly summoned a ball of water and guided it over the fire, putting it out. A hiss of steam followed and then the kitchen was silent.

“Oh,” Anne said simply. “I could’ve just used the sink water…”

“Do you ever use your common sense?” Catalina said, rubbing the bridge of her nose in exasperation.

“Common sense is boring!” Anne said, all earlier worry gone and a bright smile stretching across her face once again. “Ok great, now lets get back to—“

“ANNE BOLYEN AND CATALINA DE ARAGON! What the HELL happened to my kitchen!”

“Oh shit,” Anne whispered. Both her and Catalina slowly turned around to face the doorway. All four of the other supers were standing there, with a very, very, angry Jane in the front. Anne and Lina smiled sheepishly at them.

“Heeeeeey Jane. Hey guys. Um…we made pancakes?” Anne tried. Jane just seemed to glare even more.

Kat and Cathy looked like they were about to collapse into giggles. Thankfully, they kept it in to not get Jane’s fury turned on them. But Anne and Lina were certainly a funny sight to see. They stood there, with pancake batter on them as well as all of the counters, and the remains of a burnt pancake on the stove.

What made it even funnier was that this was semi-normal behavior for the green speedster, but the eldest superhero was normally way to stoic to be seen in such a predicament. Nevertheless, she was standing right next to Anne, twin expressions of horror and embarrassment on their faces.

If looks could kill, Anne and Lina would be dead be now. “Now what made you two think this—“ Jane started.

“Jane, mein engel, they were just trying to be nice,” Anna tried, placing a hand on her girlfriend’s shoulder. “And of course, they’re gonna clean it up right now, right?”

Anna shot them a look, and Lina and Anne quickly nodded their heads. Kat and Cathy let out a snort at their expressions. Jane seemed to calm down a bit at that. She took a deep breath and tried again.

“Thank you, but next time leave breakfast to me. I enjoy it, truly. And obviously you two can’t be trusted in the kitchen” Jane said flatly, before turning on her heel and leaving the room. Anna gave them an apologetic smile and followed her out. Kat and Cathy left right after them.

Anne turned to Lina with a smile. “I think that went fine, don’t you agree?”

“I’d agree with you but then we’d both be wrong.”

Anne pouted.

———————————————————————————————————————

Nearly half an hour later, they had finished cleaning up the pancake batter from the counters. At some point, Jane and Anna had come in the kitchen to cook their leftover batter. Jane thanked them for the thought and apologized for snapping.

Anne and Catalina apologized too, Kat and Cathy joined them, and the whole household had a late breakfast together. It turned out the batter they made wasn’t bad at all.

“Hey, seems we’re pretty good at this! I guess it’s just our skills with the cooking Parrt that were subParr.”

Everyone groaned at Anne’s puns. After breakfast Anne and Lina took much needed showers, taking the time to get the batter off. This left the other four supers to talk in private.

“Come on, so we’re all thinking it right?” Kat started, leaning over the counter.

“How everyone in this household is so very gay?” Cathy deadpanned.

Kat lightly slapped her on the shoulder. “Yes! But also no. How Anne and Lina would be so good as a couple!”

“They do seem to be really into each other. I mean, Anne seems happier around her. More free and less weighed down by the past,” Anna said, thinking a bit.

“Yeah, and Lina seems to like Anne too. As much as she rolls her eyes, we can all see that she smiles more around Anne. Anne makes her laugh, that’s good for her,” Jane adds in, smiling happily for her two friends.

“Yes!” Kat shouted. “Where do we start?”

“Let me run upstairs and grab a piece of paper first,” Jane said, quickly standing up and walking up the stairs. Jane went to her room and got the paper, but as she was walking back down the hallway towards the stairs she heard some noise from one of the bathrooms.

She creeped up, leaning to see into the bathroom since the door was cracked open. Inside was such a sweet sight.

“You know, you’re old enough to do this yourself,” Catalina said, softly brushing Anne’s hair. Her words were harsh but her tone was light, joking. She also had a tender smile on her face.

“Yes, but it’s so much nicer when you do it,” Anne whined. She was leaning backwards against Catalina. Her eyes were closed and a peaceful smile was upon her face.

Jane had to stop herself from giggling out loud at the cuteness. She did sneak a photo though and ran downstairs. She relayed what she saw to the other supers and showed them the photo.

“Now it’s official,” Kat said, quietly slamming her hands on the table. “Those two are adorable and we have to get them together. Any ideas?”

“Well, they could always just talk it out. That’s what worked for us,” Cathy said, squeezing Kat’s hand. Kat squeezed back and gave her a tender smile.

“True, but both of them are so stubborn they would never have that conversation willingly. And that’s assuming they even realize that they like the other,” Anna countered.

“We should give them a chance. Let’s see if they will talk it out willingly before we take any drastic measures,” Jane said.

“Ok, we see if they’ll talk on their own first. But if they don’t…then it’s time for Plan B,” Kat said menacingly.

“W—What’s plan B?” Jane asked worriedly.

“I’m so glad you asked…” Kat smiled deviously. She explained her backup plan so everyone was on the same page.

Thus marked the start to Operation Araleyn.

———————————————————————————————————————

Later that day, the first plan was set in motion.

Jane and Cathy wandered into Catalina’s room, finding her sitting on the bed reading a book. She smiled when she saw them.

“Jane, Catherine! What brings you two here?”

“Do you have a few minutes to talk?” Cathy asked, walking over to her godmother’s bed. Catalina just nodded and scooted over, making room so that Jane and Cathy could also come and sit on the bed.

Jane decided to just spit it out. “Do you like Anne? Like, have a crush on her?”

Catalina immediately paled. “NO! W—Why would you say that? Did she tell you that? I don’t have a crush on that Boleyn girl—“

“Madrina! Please, slow down, it was just a question,” Cathy giggled. Catalina paused her rant and took a deep breath.

“But from that it does seem like you view her as a little more than a friend,” Jane teased. Catalina immediately hid her face in her hands.

“I see that blush!” Cathy laughed triumphantly. “Come on Lina, ask her out! Lord knows someone needs to keep her under control.”

That got a small laugh out of Catalina, but a sad smile overtook her face. “No, I couldn’t do that. There’s no way she’d feel the same. I’m probably just some stuck up superhero to her.”

Jane and Cathy gave each other a look, knowing that was very much not true. “That can’t be true, we’ve seen the way she acts around you. She looks happier Lina. You look happier,” Jane tried.

Catalina smiled to herself. “She always has such a bright smile, lighting up the room. I can let my guard down around her and just have fun. Even if she can be an annoying little twat sometimes, she does make me happy. But she’d never say the same about me…”

“You never know for sure until you try!” Cathy said, a last ditch attempt to make Lina see reason.

“No, that won’t be happening. There is no way that Anne Boleyn will ever hear about my…feelings for her” Lina said firmly, blushing a bit at the last part. “Now, since your here would you two like to watch a movie before dinner with me? It’s been a while since it was just us three.”

Jane and Cathy looked at each other and shrugged. Oh well, they tried. If Anne doesn’t agree to confess then they’ll try Kat’s ‘Plan B.’ For now, all three of them got situated in Catalina’s bed and turned on a movie, comforted by the friends around them.

A similar but much less calm conversation was happening a few rooms over.

“ANNIE!”

Anne fell off the bed where she was playing some games on her phone. The sound of her bedroom door slamming open surprised her. She peeked over and saw Kat and Anna walk in and close the door behind them.

“Kittyyyy, I was just about to beat the boss,” Anne whined. She stood up and flopped back on the bed.

“You have a crush on Catalina!” Kat stated deviously. Anne sat straight up, back as straight as a board.

“Whaaaaa? Who said that? I certainly didn’t say that?” Anne laughed nervously.

“You like Liiina! You like Liiina!” Kat said sing-songy. Anna just sighed, watching as Anne got up to start chasing Kat around the room. Kat put up a forcefield, so Anne was speeding around trying to punch it from different angles. She was not having any success. Anna could still hear the muffled taunts from inside Kat’s forcefield.

The German chuckled, hoping that the others in the room down the hall were too engrossed in their own conversation to hear the banter these two were having. “Ok ok, Katzchen, drop the forcefield. Anne, don’t kill your cousin.”

Kat stuck her tongue out at Anne one last time before dissipating the forcefield. Anne let out a little “Aha!” before tackling Kat onto the bed. She started tickling the younger girl, who let out squeals.

“That’s what you get!” Anne yelled over Kat’s laughs.

“Dog pile!” Anna yelled before jumping on the bed with them. Anne let out a yelp before she too was pinned on the bed. All three of them started laughing before shifting to a more comfortable position, deciding to stay tangled together.

Kat hummed as Anne brushed a hand over her scalp. “Sooooo, do you like her?” Kat asked, quieter but still cheekily.

“And tell us the truth,” Anna smiled. “We might give you a hard time sometimes but we really are just here to help.”

Anne sighed. She closed her eyes for a minute before speaking quietly. “Yeah, I like her. I really like her a lot.”

“Why?” Anna said, not to be rude but purely to hear Anne’s answer.

“She’s just so…” Anne started, a bright smile lit up her face. “She’s so pretty, and brilliant, and smart, and regal. There’s so many words to describe her. Whenever I’m around her I feel like I’m floating on air.”

Anne’s smile turned a little sad. “But she probably doesn’t feel the same about me…”

“Annie that’s crazy! Of course she likes you back, you’re you!” Kat exclaimed, drawing a laugh from Anne.

“Thanks Kit, but she’s so…everything, and I’m just not. It wouldn’t work out.”

“So you wouldn’t even just try to ask her out?” Anna said, raising an eyebrow.

“Nope,” Anne said firmly.

“Just try—“

“Nuh uh.”

“But—“

“No.”

“Ugh fine,” Anna shrugged. She looked over Anne’s head to meet Kat’s eyes. Kat gave her a little nod so Anna decided to drop it.

Kat took pity on her cousin and started a new conversation. “Well since Anne’s to chicken to ask Lina out—“

“Hey!”

“—how about we watch a movie!” Kat finished.

Anne pouted at the jab but quickly replaced it with a smile. They quickly decided on what to watch and got comfortable in the bed, still tangled together. “Feels just like old times,” Anne said softly from her place in between her two friends.

Kat smiled to herself. Seems like it was time for ‘Plan B.’

———————————————————————————————————————

Catalina hummed to herself as she walked down the hallway towards the pink door. Kat had asked the older superhero for help with something, and when the pink-haired girl asks for something, Lina can’t help but oblige.

When she got to her room, she was greeted with a bright smile from Kat. “Come with me here!” Kat rushed out, running up to the third floor. There wasn’t much up there besides from that hang out place with the video games, but Lina followed anyways.

Kat led her up the stairs and to another door. She stopped in front of it. It was the laundry room. “Just go in there, I’ll come in right after,” Kat giggles. Lina frowned at the weird behavior but went in anyways.

She walked in the small room, it was dark but she could faintly hear some whispering. She squinted and made a super tiny flame on her fingertip for some light. In the dim light she could see…Anne?

Anne was facing the corner with her hands over her eyes. Lina leaned in a bit more to hear what she was murmuring.

“76, 77, 78, 79, 80!”

Suddenly Anne turned around with a smile. “Ready or not here I—“

SLAM

The door to the room slammed shut. Catalina could hear faint giggles outside before a few more thumps followed.

Lina shared a look with Anne before they both lunged towards the door. Not like they were far though, the room was about the size of a janitor’s closet. They tried to open the door but felt it was blocked on the other side.

“What the hell!” Anne yelled out, trying to push open the door.

“Nope! You two have to talk it out now. I know you know what I’m talking about Annie,” a voice that sounded suspiciously like Kat said from outside the door. Lina glanced at Anne to see the other woman blushing.

Catalina also tried to push open the door, finding that it wouldn’t budge. “What did you even put outside Kat!?”

“It’s a table! And maybe a set of drawers…or two.” Now that was definitely Anna. The strongwoman had helped Kat trap them in here. But why?

“Share Lina, talk to her,” a softer voice said. Jane. Now Lina finally understood. She snuck a peek at Anne. The Spaniard’s face took on a similar hue.

“Now we’ll leave you two to it. Talk,” Kat demanded. Lina could hear the retreating footsteps. Suddenly, Anne leaped at the door and started banging, angrily yelling at Kat to come back and let them out.

Catalina thought by herself for a minute. Talk. The others wanted her to talk to Anne about her…feelings. No. No no no that’s way too hard. Lina huffed out loud. She turned to Anne who was still yelling at the door.

“I’m gonna text Cathy, maybe she’ll help us out,” Lina sighed. That seemed to quiet Anne down.

Lina shot a quick text to Cathy: Hey, will you come up to the laundry room? We need some help.

She almost immediately got a reply: No. Talk.

“Ugh, seems like everyone in the household is in on it,” Catalina growled. That seemed to reignite Anne’s fury and she started lashing out at the door again. Anne banged a few more times before trying to pull at the doorknob.

To both of their surprise, the doorknob came right off in Anne’s hands.

She turned to Lina a bit sheepishly, albeit still very tense. “On a scale of 1-10, how bad do you want to kill me right now?”

“I’m thinking somewhere around the high thirties,” Lina huffed out. But Anne didn’t respond with a cheeky laugh like she normally did when they bantered. Instead, Anne just ran her hands through her hair, frustrated and stressed.

That made Catalina worry. “Hey, what’s wrong? Don’t worry, they have to let us out of here eventually.”

“It’s just…” Anne bit her lip as she turned to Catalina. “Ever since, you know, getting captured and put in the cage, I’ve never really liked small spaces. Especially being trapped in them.”

Catalina exhaled slowly, now she got it. Anne was scared.

“I’m sorry Anne. How about a distraction? Come sit,” Catalina said, moving to sit against one of the walls. She felt Anne sit down next to her, the limited space in the room meant they were touching sides, but neither of them seemed to mind.

“So how’d they get you in here?” Anne questioned lowly.

“Kat said she needed help,” Lina shrugged. “You?”

Anne blushed a bit. “Kat wanted me to be seeker for hide and seek.”

Catalina laughed out loud. “Of course you would get tricked by something so childish!” Thankfully, that got a laugh out of Anne. Catalina smiled, happy to see the other woman was feeling better.

“Well at least my story was fun!” Anne countered, smiling more freely now.

“Mhm, sure. Cause you definitely didn’t count all the way to 80 before realizing something was wrong,” Catalina teased. Anne giggled in that way that made her nose scrunch up. Catalina couldn’t help but stare.

When Anne stopped laughing, Catalina spoke up. “Feeling better?”

“Yeah,” Anne smiled, leaning a bit more into Lina’s side. “I realized it might not be so bad in here, as long as I have you with me.”

Catalina froze for a minute, hearing the sincerity in the other woman’s voice. Of course, Anne began to tense up again after, so Lina broke the tension. “Aw you sap!”

“Am not!” Anne laughed.

“Are too!”

“Am not!”

“I am not doing this.”

“Aw you’re no fun,” Anne pouted, but a hint of a smile was present. She perked up, Catalina reveled in the fact that she looked almost back to her normal, cheeky, adorable, annoying personality.

Wait, did she just say adorable? She didn’t mean adorable she just meant like—

“Did you just call me adorable?”

Shit, was she speaking out loud.

Anne laughed. “Yes, yes you were.”

Catalina sputtered. “So what? What if I think you’re cute, and silly, and you make me laugh, and I am happier around you, and—“

“Lina you need to breath” Anne laughed. “And for the record, I think you’re pretty cute too.” Anne winked.

“You…do?” Lina questioned.

Anne ducked her head shyly. “Well yeah. And I think you’re very strong, and kind, and you make me happy too. I just…didn’t think you’d feel the same about me.”

Catalina reached down to guide Anne into looking up at her. “Anne, I know your history, but I also know how you’ve changed. Of course I see the good in you, anyone would be a fool not to.”

Anne looked at her with wonder. “So you…” Anne cleared her throat and tried again, this time smiling brightly and looking up at Lina with shining eyes.

“Would you like to try it out? You and me?”

Lina laughed and pulled the other woman into a hug. “Nothing would make me happier Anne.”

Anne leaned into Catalina’s side. The older hero could practically feel the wide beaming grin spread across Anne’s face. She couldn’t talk though, because Lina too had a huge smile on her own face. They settled against each other, just basking in the glow of their new relationship.

“Wait, I just realized something,” Anne spoke after a few minutes. Lina hummed for her to continue. “I can phase out of the door right now. I can phase through solid objects.”

Lina stared at her for a full minute, before bringing a hand up to pinch her own nose. “Oh my God I can’t believe we didn’t think of that earlier. Wait but how do I get out?”

Anne stood up, a bright smile on her face. “It’s ok, I have a plan.” She gave a tiny salute to Lina before speeding right through the locked door.

Lina listened closely by the door. What could Anne possibly be doing—

“ANNAAAAAA.”

The shout was followed by a crash and yelps from someone who was presumably Anna. Lina just sighed at the sounds, knowing that she is going to find a whole mess from her gremlin’s ‘plan.’

She wasn’t as mad however when the door opened a few minutes later to reveal Anne’s proud smile. “So, what do I get as a reward for getting you out of here?” Anne asked cheekily.

Lina raised her eyebrows but nevertheless stepped out of the room to hug Anne. “My dashing hero, how can I ever repay you? How about cuddles and a movie with your new girlfriend?”

Anne snuggled closer to Catalina. “Sounds perfect.”

Chapter Text

“Uh, guys. I think we have a problem…”

Cathy sighed as she heard Anne’s voice come over the comms. She shot a look at Jane who returned it, both of them wondering what the speedster had gotten herself into this time. The team was fighting another Tudor creation that was shooting random beams, the purpose of those beams was unknown.

“Yeah so I think I found out what happens when you get hit with those beams,” Anne said sheepishly.

“Please tell me you didn’t get yourself hit,” Catalina said, annoyed. Everyone already knew the answer.

“Sooo, I’m not gonna answer that. But…I think I’m in Rome.”

Everyone gasped, and Cathy just shook her head. So those were teleporting beams, and Anne just got teleported from London to Rome. Well, it could be worse.

“Oh my god Anne,” Jane said, a bit of humor and exasperation entering her tone.

“Don’t worry! I’m running back.”

“Oh my gosh Annie, get me a baguette when you pass France!” Kat said excitedly. Cathy shook her head, smiling at her girlfriend’s excitement.

“But Kattt, I passed France like two minutes ago.”

“Pleeeease Annie.” Cathy could hear the puppy dog eyes in Kat’s voice.

“This is really not the time guys,” Catalina seethed.

“Wait I want a baguette too!” Anna chimed in.

Anne laughed. “Ok, don’t worry, I’ll turn around and grab some.”

“Oh my God, you all are insufferable,” Catalina groaned. Everyone laughed at that. After a few more minutes of fighting, the Tudor creation was defeated.

“Anne, take your time getting back, we have contained the creation,” Catalina said. She hesitated a second before continuing. “And…I would like a croissant…please”

Everyone could not keep it together after that. They all started laughing, Catalina included. Anne promised to be back at the house in ten minutes, with authentic baguettes and croissants from France for everyone.

“Got it, see you soon everyone,” Cathy said smiling. She took off her comms and her and Jane headed down to the living room to wait for the others.

———————————————————————————————————————

Cathy laughed as she closed the door to her bedroom behind her. She smiled as she lay face up on her bed, reminiscing about the fun morning the six of them had. She couldn’t help but think of how far all of them had come.

When moving in, most of them had been complete strangers. Cathy and Kat would basically never talk to anyone, afraid and shy. Now both of them were close to the others, and especially each other.

Anna and Jane were crumbling under the weight of holding everyone else up, not to mention their own insecurities. Now they’ve found comfort in each other.

And the biggest change, Anne and Catalina could barely stand each other, starting fights and arguments nearly every day. Now they understand and love each other. Truly this household has come a long way.

Not to mention that everyone has grown into a sort of role in the team and the household.

Catalina was undeniably the leader of their superhero team. It made since because she had been doing this for the longest. She had the best sense of what to do on the battlefield, and most everyone took her orders and advice, leading them to swift and clean victories over whatever Tudor sent their way.

In the household, she had a very similar place. Whether it was because of her place on the team or just her general demeanor, Lina’s presence commanded a sort of respect. She helped delegate chores, made sure everyone was safe and present, and helped with anything people might’ve needed. She was there to help with her strong yet comforting presence.

Now Anne had started off as a wildcard on the battlefield and in the household. On the field, she had experience. She had a fighting style that was vastly different than Catalina. Quick and nimble, she was their cannon, their soldier.

In the household, she was definitely the jokester. She had a knack for making people laugh, whether it be cracking jokes, witty one-liners, or just getting into general mischief. Anne kept things light, she kept smiles on everyone’s faces when it seemed like there was nothing else to smile about.

Jane’s role on the superhero team made sense because of her powers. She wasn’t on the battlefield, much like Cathy, but Jane was their healer. She was vigilant and ready after every fight, nursing them back to health with warm words and powers.

Jane’s healing personality extended past superhero activities too. She was definitely, and with zero doubt, the mom of the household. She did menial tasks like cooking and cleaning, solely because she liked them. Not to mention that she cared for each of the other supers, making sure Kat never forgot her lunch, Anne tied her shoes before leaving, and other little things like that. Her comfort and warmth felt protective, healing the minds of the entire house.

Anna was their muscle on the field. Her super strength and durability helped her pack a punch. She was there to clear rubble, push aside large boulders, and knock out a creation or two. She was stable and grounded, pushing her way through any obstacle.

At home, she was just as level-headed. She was their rock, their calm person who anyone could go to if they just needed a shoulder to cry on. Anna was there to calm the others, her strong presence bringing a sense of serene protection.

Kat’s powers were defensive, which meant she was mostly on the field to shield civilians. That didn’t mean she didn’t get in on the action too, and every time Cathy watched her girlfriend go out there, she had to hold her breath. Kat was great at her job, and a fan-favorite too. Her sweet smiles and warm voice when ushering people to safety was just a fraction of the brilliance that was inside her heart.

Now, how was Cathy supposed to describe Kat at home when Kat was everything to her. The only word she could possible use to describe her is light. Kat brought a light to their household. Being the youngest (not far from Cathy but still) Kat had an uncanny ability to cheer people up on even the saddest day. Her natural kindness and warmth are what attracted Cathy in the first place.

But Cathy herself…

She knew her role on the team. She was their engineer, eyes, and computer. She helped with the tech aspect of being a team, making gadgets, improving supersuits, and things like that. She stayed behind with Jane during missions, watching the cams and telling the others on the comms if she caught something dangerous with her super senses.

But at the house, what did Cathy bring? She was quiet, reserved. Yes she and Kat were dating, and they were very happy thank you very much, but did that matter to the others? What if they only kept her around for her brain? What if she didn’t bring anything useful to this household…

A door opening broke through Cathy’s spiraling thoughts. Cathy looked up to see Lina joining her by sitting on the bed.

“What’s wrong querida?”

It seemed like her godmother had a sixth sense for knowing when Cathy was stuck in her head. The younger women just sighed and laid down, her head in her godmother’s lap. It made her feel so small, yet so comforted at the same time.

“Yo no sé Madrina. What if…what if you all don’t need me?”

Catalina didn’t respond, just humming lightly. And before she knew it, Cathy was filling the silence with all the worries she had built up. She was rambling, but Lina caught every single word. Lightly stroking her hair, Lina followed along until Cathy finally trailed off.

“Well, I think you bring something extremely special to this household,” Lina whispered. Cathy peering up at her from her lap.

“We have many big personalities in this household, and everyone is amazing, but sometimes it gets too much,” Lina continued, staring down with a smile. “That’s where you come in. You listen Cathy. Haven’t you noticed how much people talk to you, come to you with their problems. Menial things, like how someone didn’t have a good day at work.”

Lina kept going. “It’s because you listen, you make us feel heard. That’s something that you do, and that everyone appreciates greatly.”

She wraps a teary Cathy into a hug. “And who cares if you’re needed querida. What matters is you are wanted. We want you Cathy, and don’t ever doubt that.”

“There you two are, Kat was getting antsy,” Anne laughed as she walked in the room. The speedster walked right over to the bed and draped herself over Lina’s back, the older woman just rolling her eyes.

“We’ll be right there,” Lina replied, turning her head around to give Anne a quick kiss on the cheek.

“No need, we just came to you,” another voice said from the doorway. Cathy turned to see Jane and Anna also standing in the doorway. They made their way into the room, Jane sitting on a chair and Anna messing up Cathy’s hair teasingly before sitting next to her girlfriend on the floor.

Now everyone was here, they were only missing…

“Cathyyyy!”

Cathy laughed as her girlfriend practically tackled her onto the bed. “I missed you,” Kat whined, snuggling into Cathy’s shoulder. Everyone in the room laughed at the two youngest women.

At that, Cathy squeezes her girlfriend into a tighter hug, trying to pour all her love and appreciation into that moment. For now, her worries and doubts were gone, chased away by the love of her family.

They spent that day together, enjoying the company and warmth. Whatever comes next, they know they have people looking out for them. All six of them know they aren’t alone. They now have each other, they have people they can call family.

Chapter Text

Cathy woke up feeling completely refreshed. She chuckled lightly and kissed a snoring Kat on the cheek. The older super slipped out of bed and padded downstairs, finding that Jane and Lina were already in the kitchen.

Lina was quietly praying and Jane was lightly humming while cooking up something on the pan. Cathy smiled at both of them before sitting down at the countertop, lightly skimming a newspaper. When Jane saw her, she wordlessly handed her a cup of coffee.

A few minutes passed like that, the morning filled with domestic sounds like quiet prayers, humming, and pages being flipped. Lina finished and sat down next to Cathy, and Jane handed the older woman a cup of tea.

Jane came to lean on the table and smiled at the other two. “Good morning. We haven’t had a quiet morning like this in forever, haven’t we?”

All three of them chuckled, knowing all too well the chaos their respective girlfriends brought to the household.

“Oh, before I forget, I found this for you Lina,” Jane blurted, picking up an envelope. “It was just sitting on the porch this morning.”

Lina took the envelope in her hands and quickly opened it. On the letter inside she saw the familiar insignia of the DSO. She read the letter outloud so the other two could hear it.

“Dear Superheros,

We have gotten information that Tudor might be planning something at the following address. It is not dangerous, so do not worry. Please come and bring everyone if you can.

Thank you,

Department of Supernatural Operations (DSO)"

There was also an address at the bottom of the page. Cathy felt a little suspicious, it didn’t seem normal that the DSO would call upon the supers to deal with something that wasn’t dangerous. Why couldn’t the government organization deal with it themselves?

“I mean, if Maria and the others say we should go then we should probably go. Should I wake the others?” Lina asked. Cathy just shrugged off her earlier confusion.

“No. If it’s not dangerous it should be fine if only us go!” Jane suggested. “Cathy can use her senses to detect danger, and if we hear anything then we’ll just call in backup. Let’s let the others sleep in for a bit.”

Lina considered it before nodding. They looked at Cathy who just shrugged. And with that, all three of them quickly got on their suits before heading out in the van to the address on the letter.

The three of them pulled up to the address on the letter, double-checking that they were in the right place. The building certainly looked like somewhere where something sinister would be happening. It looked like an abandoned warehouse.

The three women hesitantly stepped out of the van. Lina gestured to Cathy. Cathy understood and closed her eyes, trying to listen in to detect any danger.

She opened her eyes, confusion swimming around them. “All I hear is…jazz music?”

“Hm,” Jane said simply. Lina also looked wary. She motioned for the other two to stay behind her, and Cathy could see the way fire danced around her fists. With a little wave, they went through the front door.

Cathy tried to tap into her senses, but the whole place was dark. She listened, but the jazz music was drowning out everything else. She glanced quickly at Lina and Jane, seeing if they spotted anything. Both of them also were looking around diligently.

Then, her world went black.

———————————————————————————————————————

Kat woke up with a smile, stretching her arms out. She noticed that Cathy wasn’t in bed with her, but that wasn’t too strange. Her girlfriend had a habit of waking up early to finish whatever book she was reading at the time with a cup of coffee.

Kat quickly glanced at her phone, finding that she had slept well into late morning. She bounced down the stairs, finding Anne and Anna inn the kitchen.

She ran over to her cousin and gave her a hug from behind. “Good morning! Where are the others?” Kat beamed.

Anne just laughed and reached up to mess with her hair. “What? Can’t be away from your girlfriend for more than a few hours?” She affectionately rolled her eyes when she saw Kat’s pout. “Fiiiine, Lina left a note that her and the others had went somewhere to deal with some DSO thing or whatever. I’m sure they’ll be back soon.”

Kat didn’t miss the small frown Anne gave to herself. Ha, she also missed her girlfriend.

“Guten morgen kätzchen!” Anna called from the stove. “It’s nearly noon and I am nowhere as proficient as you or Janey in the kitchen, so how about you join me and Anne for sandwiches.”

Kat agreed and joined them at the table. The three woman enjoyed the first part of their day trying to make sandwiches together.

Anna laughed at Anne sticking her tongue out trying to place pickles on hers, and how Kat somehow got mayo on her nose. And Kat giggled right back when Anna tried to do a trick shot and throw her bread on top of her sandwich and somehow hit Anne right in the face.

After lunch the three of them passed time watching TV and playing video games, but as the hours passed they got more concerned for their missing girlfriends. Finally, nearing 4pm, they heard the door creak open.

The three of them bounded down the stairs and jumped into their respective girlfriend’s arms. Kat vaguely noticed how Cathy didn’t hug her as tight, but she pushed that to the back of her mind.

“Where were you guys!?” Anne questioned loudly. She grabbed onto Catalina’s wrist and shook her.

“Be quiet Anne, we just went on a mission,” Catalina replied flatly. She then prompted shook off Anne’s hold and walked away. Anne’s face fell and she looked longingly in the direction Catalina walked away in.

“I’m sorry, it was just a long drive and not a big payoff. It was a false alarm and we’re all just tired, so if you’ll excuse us,” Cathy explained with a small smile. She withdrew from Kat’s hold, shooting her a small smile before also walked upstairs. Jane just followed her without a word.

Anne, Anna, and Kat looked around in confusion, a bit saddened by the disappointing return. Nevertheless, they agreed to let the other three rest. They went back to playing video games, albeit Anne was a lot more quiet than before.

After a bit, Kat realized it was getting close to when her and Jane would start making dinner. She excused herself and padded up the stairs to knock on Jane’s door.

The door swung open and Kat was face to face with Jane, who was smiling sweetly. “What’s up love?”

Kat smiled back. “Would you like to start making dinner with me?” Kat asked hopefully.

Jane paused for a second, smile still present on her face. “Make your own dinner for once,” she responded, still talking in her normal sweet voice. Then, she closed the door in Kat’s face, leaving the younger girl gaping at the silver wood.

Without knowing, her feet had brought her back downstairs to Anne and Anna.

“Kätchen, what’s wrong!?” Anna said, quickly springing to her feet. Kat didn’t even realize she was crying until Anna softly wiped her tears. Kat recounted what just happened with Jane, her voice sounded hollow even to herself.

“That…doesn’t sound like Janey,” Anna frowned to herself. “I’ll talk to her about it. How about for now I’ll order everyone take-away and we can all just cuddle on the couch. Ja?”

Kat nodded meekly and joined Anne on the couch. She wrapped herself in her cousin’s arms, Anne holding her tightly and without a word. Kat heard Anna ordering something before she joined the two of them on the couch.

When the food arrived, Anna made them all plates and brought it to the couch. She left the rest on the kitchen counter for if the other three came downstairs. They ate quietly, some movie playing softly in the background. After finishing, all of them went upstairs, bidding each other a good night.

———————————————————————————————————————

Anne walked into Catalina’s room, planting a smile on her face. She found her girlfriend laying on the bed, reading from a book. Anne came over and climbed into the bed besides her.

“Hi Lina,” Anna said softly, leaning her head on Lina’s shoulder.

“Hello Boleyn,” Catalina replied, not looking up from her book. Anne just frowned, the hurt from earlier coming back full force.

“Why are you treating me like this? What did I do!” Anne questioned, sitting up and glaring at Catalina. The older woman just sighed and placed her book down on the bedside table.

“Like what, if I may ask?” Catalina raised her eyebrow.

“Like that!” Anne cried. “So…you know, cold. Did I do something to hurt you Lina? I thought we’d moved past all our…history.”

“Who said anything about that?” Catalina jeered. Anne was taken aback. She swore she saw a flash of purple light come from Lina’s eyes, and she jumped back in fear. But before she could say anything, the purple was gone.

Catalina sighed again, breaking Anne from her thoughts. “Don’t worry Anne, I know we have made amends, and I don’t mean to be harsh. Come here.” Catalina opened her arm, and Anne crawled inside to cuddle with her girlfrend.

“But you know Anne, just because I accept you doesn’t mean that changed what you truly are.”

Suddenly, everything felt suffocating. Catalina’s words weren’t comforting, they brought up feelings that Anne thought she was finally safe from. She was a better person, she had changed. But had she?

Anne disentangled herself from Catalina. “I’m going to sleep in my own room tonight,” Anne quickly forced out. As she was leaving, she saw a flash of purple from the woman behind her. But as she close the door, her thoughts were too loud to focus on anything else.

Anne stumbled into her room and threw herself on her bed. She sobbed into her pillows, feelings of worthlessness and self-loathing coating her thoughts. All she wanted to do was run into her girlfriends arms, but she was the reason the ex-villain felt like this tonight.

So Anne sobbed by herself in her room. Unknown by her, all six women would spend the night alone that night.

———————————————————————————————————————

Anna stared pensively at the silver door in front of her, lost in her own thoughts. Eventually, she summoned her strength and knocked on the door. Jane opened it with a soft smile and let her in.

Anna let out a breath as she came in to sit on the bed. This was just her girlfriend, her sweet, kind girlfriend that probably didn’t even mean to hurt Kat’s feelings. She would just tell Jane to be more careful next time and everything would be fine.

“How are you my dear?” Jane asked, coming to sit next to Anna on the bed. Anna smiled and leaned into her.

“I’m doing ok mean engel, but I have something to talk to you about,” Anna started. Jane just hummed so Anna continued. “Earlier, Kat was very hurt by what you told her.”

“Oh! That was never my intention at all!” Jane said with a gasp. Anna smiled, she knew her girlfriend had a kind heart, she didn’t say anything maliciously.

“But, she’s a big girl, she can learn to do things on her own for once,” Jane continued, still talking sweetly.

“Oh, I mean,” Anna added. “I guess that’s true, but I think the way you said it might’ve been a little…you know?”

“But you agree?”

“Yeah but Janey, I—“ Anna went to grab one of the bedposts so she could move herself to face Jane. Unfortunately she grabbed it with a bit too much force and a bit of the wood splintered in her grip. Not enough to damage, but enough to be seen by Jane.

Anna watched as Jane’s eyes shot to the bedpost. The kind smile she always wore immediately dropped from her face, instead turning into something more disapproving.

“Be careful.”

“W…what?” Anna shakily murmured, a bit fearful of the other woman’s reaction. But as soon as she’d seen it, Jane’s face morphed back into her normal disposition.

“Be careful dear, we don’t want you breaking anything.” Jane said it with a normal soft tone, but Anna could hear the bit of bite underneath those words.

“I haven’t broken anything in weeks, I’ve gotten better!” Anna quickly babbled. Jane’s words were bringing up memories that she did not want to deal with right now.

“Yeah, but we both know you may be more…prone to harm.” Jane said in an icy voice. Anna swore she saw something almost like purple flash through Jane’s beautiful blue eyes, but that would be impossible. She blinked and the purple light went away.

Suddenly, Jane wrapped her in a hug, smiling once again. The changing emotions was giving Anna whiplash.

“Let’s get ready for bed love,” Jane said, but Anna just sat there, numb. She felt the way her body thrummed with excess strength, now all too aware of it.

“I think…I’ll just sleep in my own bed tonight,” Anna mumbled, standing up and walking towards the door.

“If you say so, just remember,” Jane called after her. “I love you Anna.”

Anna nodded at her and left, closing the door behind her. She walked to her red door on autopilot, not realizing she had gone through her entire bedtime routine until she fell onto her bed.

Then, she cried. She let out the tears that had been building since her talk with Jane. She curled into a ball on the bed, wrapping her arms around herself. She hugged herself tightly, not trusting herself to touch anything else.

———————————————————————————————————————

Kat slouched as she walked into a blue door, finding Cathy diligently typing away at her desk. When her intelligent girlfriend saw Kat, she sprang up with a large smile. Cathy rushed over to give Kat a hug and lead her over to the bed.

Kat smiled and let her worries subside. No matter how weird Jane and Catalina may be acting, her girlfriend was completely normal.

Kat and Cathy got ready for bed, lightly chatting about random topics. Finally they crawled into bed together, cuddling up close to each other.

“I’m sorry you had a bad day,” Cathy whispered in Kat’s ear. “But I’m here now.”

Kat nodded her affirmation and snuggled closer to her girlfriend. But Cathy just came closer again, pressing a little kiss to Kat’s cheek.

“Want me to make it better?” Cathy whispered with a smile. Kat giggled and nodded. Cathy immediately pressed kisses all over Kat’s face, resulting in laughs from Kat. Cathy swung her leg over until she was startling Kat, still pecking kisses everywhere.

Kat craned her neck up to kiss Cathy back. Cathy just gasped jokingly and pushed Kat down so she could kiss all over her face again.

Kat was so busy laughing from the kissing she almost didn’t notice Cathy’s hands wandering down her sides. She laughed a bit awkwardly and grabbed Cathy’s hands to stop her.

“What are you doing,” Kat asked, puzzled.

“Making you better,” Cathy replied. She shook off Kat’s hands and continued exploring Kat’s body. Kat gradually got tenser under her girlfriend’s wandering touches. She tried again to grab her girlfriend’s hands but once again she was shaken off.

“Hey Cath, I’m not sure if I wanna do this tonight,” Kat whispered, trying to sit up. But Cathy had here pinned underneath her body.

“You love and trust me right? Cathy asked, a bit of steel entering her voice. Kat just gulped and nodded hesitantly.

“Then let me do this.”

Kat looked up to see her girlfriend’s eyes a shade of purple, glowing in the otherwise dark room. Immediately she closed her eyes again, purple fading from her mind as Cathy’s hands explored lower down her body.

“You’re so perfect, you know that right babe?”

Even Cathy’s voice, normally so calm and comforting, was making Kat uncomfortable. She doesn’t want this. She never wanted it. She didn’t want this now. She didn’t want it then. This is bringing up those memories. She didn’t want it, she didn’t want it, she didn’t want—

“Stop!”

Kat used all her strength to push Cathy off of her. She rolled off the bed and stumbled to her feet. She risked a glance back at the bed, expecting at least something from Cathy.

On the bed Cathy looked almost…bored. “You could’ve just said no,” Cathy frowned. But Kat had said no, right? She didn’t want it, she didn’t agree. Did she?

“I’m gonna go,” Kat breathed out. Cathy just sent her a sweet smile.

“I love you Kat,” Cathy replied, and Kat saw the faint purple in her eyes.

She ran out the door and rushed into her own room, pushing the door closed. She had never had to lock her door in this household, but tonight she did.

The hands were back, ghost hands all over her body. They were on her body, on her lips, in her hair.

She wanted them gone.

She wanted them to stop.

She wanted them off—

Kat lay in her bed, staring at the ceiling. Her body felt wrong, like it wasn’t hers. She wished someone was here with her, like Anne or Anna. She wished she could be held by Cathy, but the thought of Cathy’s touch made her body violently flinch.

Instead, Kat sobbed in her bed, staring straight up at the ceiling, wishing the hands would just stop touching her.

Chapter Text

This morning was quiet.

Not the nice calm type of quiet. An eerie, uncomfortable silence. Anne could hear normal cooking sounds coming from downstairs, but she couldn’t bring it upon herself to come out of her room.

It had been a few days since the incident or whatever Anne called it. Approximately five  days ago, Catalina, Jane, and Cathy went on that mission and came back acting different. Things were tense around the house, but no one said anything.

Anne has slept alone in her room for the past five nights.

After that first night, the three supers seemed to mostly return to their normal personalities. Lina became less cold and regained her dry humor. Jane went back to her kind and caring persona. And Cathy was just as quiet and calm as ever. But the other three women in the household were still on edge.

Anne was still uncomfortable. She didn’t know what but something seemed wrong. Anna was the same. Anne noticed how her friend was trending carefully around the house, almost like she was afraid of being there. Something that was so strange for the normally carefree and strong woman.

And Kat, Anne couldn’t help but worry for her younger cousin. The girl had barely come out of her room in the past few days, and when she did she normally stuck close to Anne, saying very little. Anne didn’t know what happened but she wouldn’t push Kat to tell her.

Anne groaned and rolled herself out of bed, steeling whatever nerves she had and walking downstairs.

I’m sure a few days ago was just an off day for them, they were just tired from the mission. So why do I feel so tense?

Anne walked into the kitchen to see a seemingly normal scene. Jane was at the stove cooking some sort of breakfast. She was lightly chatting with Catalina who seemed to be helping. Cathy was at the counter engrossed in some novel. And Anna was also sitting at the table, staring directly into her cup of coffee and stirring it slowly without a word.

“Good morning Anne,” Lina murmured, coming over to rest a hand on Anne’s back. Anne tried to force out a smile, but she couldn’t help but tense a little where she was touched.

I’m a terrible person, this is my girlfriend! I have nothing to be afraid of.

“Good morning,” Anne repeated. She took her seat wordlessly at the counter, thanking Jane when she was handed a plate of breakfast.

“No worries love, it’s my pleasure,” Jane comforted. Anne just nodded and went back to staring at her plate.

The sounds of chatter continued in the background and Anne kept thinking to herself. She only tuned in when she heard Jane and Catalina talking about something specific.

“…yeah, I guess we’ll go this afternoon,” Catalina said.

“Again? You guys have been going nearly every day,” Anna interrupted. Catalina, Jane, and Cathy had been going out on missions every other day for the past few days. Whenever Anne or thee others would offer to accompany them, they would just be waved off.

“I’m sorry love, but the DSO says it’s important!” Jane smiled at Anna, who returned it shakily. Anne finally came to a conclusion.

“I’m gonna go play video games, thanks for the food Jane it was great! Anna, wanna come with?” Anne blurted out, surprisingly cheerfully for the way she was actually feeling. Anna also nodded and followed Anne up the stairs.

Instead of going to the video game room, Anne led them both over to Kat’s room when she was sure they weren’t followed. She knocked quietly and Kat let them both in.

“Something is wrong,” Anne started, and the other two quickly agreed.

“The others aren’t acting right,” Anna chimed in. “I feel like something bad happened a few days ago.”

Kat quietly added her own comments. “I agree. It seems like they’re trying to act normal but they’re just…not.”

Anne nodded along, quickly devising a plan in her mind. She turned to the others with resolve in her eyes.

“Anna you still have your motorcycle in the garage right?”

Anna looked confused but nodded.

“Perfect,” Anne said assuredly. “All of us will get suited up around noon. Anna, you and Kat ride the motorcycle, I’ll run. Let’s follow them today. We’re gonna find out what’s really going on.”

———————————————————————————————————————

Around 2:00, Anne was sitting in the living room when she heard the distinct sounds of the van starting up. She quickly sent a text to Anna and Kat who were waiting in the garage.

Anne, Anna, and Kat, all suited up, followed from a good distance away. They ended up at some abandoned warehouse where they watched their girlfriends all walk inside.

Anne turned to the others. “You sure you want to do this? I trust the others, but we don’t know what’s going on in there.”

“I don’t know either, but it can’t be good,” Anna starts, staring in the direction she last saw her girlfriend. “Let’s go get our girls.”

Anne turned her worried eyes onto her cousin, wordlessly asking her the same question. Kat nodded. “We have to go see. I have to make sure…that wasn’t my Cathy. It couldn’t have been…”

Her eyes filled with steel resolve behind her pink mask. “We have to figure this out.”

Anne nodded and motioned for the others to follow her. They creeped up to the door of the warehouse. Anne took a deep breath to steady herself before she pushed open the door quietly.

The inside was dark and cavernous, a huge room but with very little able to be seen. She looked around but couldn’t find Lina, Jane, or Cathy anywhere. She could sense Anna and Kat’s confusion as well.

The three of them crept further into the room, trying to discern the whereabouts of the others. Then, they heard a click.

The lights of the warehouse shone brightly, and Anne was blinded for a few seconds. When she could see again, she heard clapping. She looked to where the slow claps were coming from. On a balcony overlooking the rest of the warehouse, she saw the figure of a man.

Then her heart dropped.

“Well done! I didn’t think you’d figure it out so fast. You never were the smartest, were you Boleyn?”

No, no, no, no, no.

It can’t be him. He’s here, it the room with them. He has something planned, this was a trap. Fuck—

Anne took a step back, bumping right into Anna. The strong woman used one arm to hold her protectively. Anne noted that the other arm was wrapped around Kat, who was near hyperventilating.

“H…Henry,” Anne shakily breathed out.

The man just laughed. “Oh come on, you can do better than that.”

“Henry Tudor! What the fuck do you want!?” Anna shouted out, coming out more like a growl. She pulled the two cousins closer to her chest, glaring at the man on the balcony.

“Oh you know, power, money, world domination. The usual,” Henry sneered out. The amused look on her face was really making Anna mad.

“…Where’s our friends?” Anne forced out. She stood a little straighter, trying to steel herself under the man’s gaze.

He snorted and then let out a booming laugh. “What an amazing question! Why they are right here.” He took a step to his side and waved behind him.

Out from behind him stepped Catalina, Jane, and Cathy. They all wore blank expressions and stood stock still, unnatural. Anne, Anna, and Kat all let out gasps at the reveal.

“What did you do to them!” Anna shouted out.

“Oh just messed with their minds a little bit,” Henry boasted. “And now they’re all mine.”

He walked over to the three frozen supers and languidly ran his hand across all of their shoulders, one by one. When he touched them, their eyes lit up in an unnatural purple color. Anne had flashbacks to that one night when she thought she saw Catalina’s eyes flash purple. It all made sense now.

She was broken out of her thoughts by Henry speaking again. “Oh and what lovely things they’ve told me about you three.”

He looks down. “The ex-villain who is haunted by her past and so desperately wants redemption.

Anne curled in on herself, pushing back into Anna’s embrace.

“The superhero afraid of her own super strength, afraid of being a monster.”

Anna flinched and Anne felt her loosen her hold on the cousins.

“And my darling Katherine,” Henry sneered. Kat tensed up hearing her name from his mouth. “I hear you still remember our time together.”

Kat tensed more, pushing her head further into Anna’s shoulders. Henry laughed out loud. The three supers on the ground were unnerved, shaken by the weight of this man’s words. They tried to stand tall, but his gaze seemed to strip them of the facade and reveal their weaknesses underneath.

“Anyways, I’ve enjoyed our chat but I guess it’s time for me to go,” Henry joyfully cheered.

“Oh but one last thing,” he started, his face hardening into something more malicious. “I don’t care who kills who, any amount of dead supers is good for me. Toodaloo!”

Anne’s heart dropped, but before she could say anything she watched as Henry turned to the three mind-controlled supers next to him on the balcony.

“Kill them. Make it fun.”

Anne had just enough time to watch Henry walk out the back door before she was picked up and slammed into a wall.

———————————————————————————————————————

Anne coughed up blood and slipped helplessly to the floor and sat in a slump. She could tell that more people had started fighting but all she was focussed on now were the footsteps getting closer.

Anne looked up to see her girlfriend standing in there in all her gold superhero glory. Catalina looked down at Anna with a face of disgust.

“Pick yourself up Jane Speedster. Fight me. I know you want to,” Catalina seethed, faint purple eyes staring down at Anne.

Anne let out a tired chuckle. “My days of fighting you are over Lina. I know you don’t remember it, but we’re on the same side now.”

Catalina just ignored her and picked up the speedster with a gust of wind, pushing her back up against the wall so Lina could get in her face. “Fight back. I will kill you today but at least make it a bit of a challenge for me.”

Anne just gave that tired smile again. Catalina visibly growled.

“If I kill you now, who’s gonna stop me from going after your darling cousin next?” Catalina mused wickedly. “Or your best friend. And after I kill them both I’ll just kill myse—“

“Leave them alone.”

Anne’s face was now as hardened as stone. She glared up at the golden superhero. “I won’t let you hurt my family. I’m doing this for us, for you Lina. I’m protecting you.”

“But don’t you see?” Catalina laughed crazily. “Henry promised that after all of our deaths, the world would be a better place. If he was in charge, all of the suffering from robot attacks and creations would stop!”

Anne let out a harsh laugh. “Wow! How incredibly noble of him,” she snarked. “So you’re saying if we die and he becomes an all-powerful dictator, he’ll stop the robots that he sends to protect society?”

Anne just glared in Catalina’s direction, staring hard into her girlfriend’s purple-tinted eyes. “You’ve gotta be kidding me.”

Finally, Anne used a burst of superspeed to launch an attack at Catalina, sending her careening to the ground. Catalina chucked darkly as she stood back up, wiping blood from her nose.

“You haven’t changed at all,” Catalina seethed.

Then an all out fight broke loose. Anne swiftly dodged fireballs and earth attacks. She leaned into muscle memory and used her superpowers to evade all of the elemental attacks. She aimed a few back at Catalina but as angry as she was, she didn’t want to hurt her.

Throughout the entire fight, the banter kept up.

“Don’t you get tired of being a villain Boleyn? Just give up and the suffering will end!”

“I won’t let you do this Lina, I know you’re still in there somewhere.”

“I’m doing this for the good of the city. Choose the right side this time Jade Speedster.”

Anne smirked. “I am on the right side this time, maybe for the first time in my entire life.”

Unfortunately, that brief moment of hesitation was all Catalina needed to throw Anne back into a wall. She got up in the ex-villain’s face, holding her against the wall and speaking quietly.

“Doesn’t this feel like old times Anne? Bantering and fighting like before? When will you realize you can’t just follow your gut. You’re a villain Anne, listen to the good guys here.”

Anne pushed her off and slid to the ground, trying to catch her breath. But now she was thinking. What if Catalina was right? What if Anne really was messing it all up again?

Anne looked up just in time to avoid a fireball to the face. It was so close she could feel the heat on her cheek. She stood back up and sped over, trying to get a good hit to knock Catalina out.

What if she’s right?

Anne kept fighting, both Catalina and the doubts in her head.

What if I’m doing it again? Being the villain?

Anne was getting hit more and more now, and getting back up was getting progressively harder to do. Blood was seeping from her nose and she had cuts everywhere.

Nevertheless she kept dodging and throwing punches, and Catalina kept launching fireballs and doubts at her head. Anne didn’t know if she could keep fighting for much longer.

———————————————————————————————————————

Anna watched helplessly as Henry walked away after giving the kill order to their mind-controlled friends. A second later, Catalina jumped off the balcony and flew down like a rocket, ripping Anne away and slamming her into a wall.

The force of the attack knocked Anna and Kat over too, but when Anna got up, Kat was no where to be seen. The younger girl must’ve gone invisible.

Anna was so wrapped up in looking around for Anne and Kat that she didn’t even see Jane and Cathy run down the stairs to join the rest of them on the floor. That is, until she was face to face with Jane.

“Hi my love.”

Anna whipped around, finding her girlfriend standing right in front of her. Jane looked just as beautiful as she always did, standing complacently in front of Anna. The only thing that threw the German off was her eyes.

Jane’s eyes were a faint purple.

Mind-controlled Jane took a step closer. Anna almost found herself wrapping Jane up in a hug, her sweet smile luring Anna in. That was until she saw what was attached to Jane’s belt.

“Oh. I see you’ve found my new gift,” Jane smiled, unclipping the handcuffs from her belt. The were a bit bigger than normal handcuffs, definitely Tudor tech. “Henry gave them to me, I would like for you to put them on, Anna.”

It hurt to see Jane acting so sweet when she knew that it was a trick. “W…what do they do?” Anna asked quietly.

“They take away your powers. Isn’t that great? Then you no longer have to be afraid. You can hug me as hard as you wish! You’ll be normal again Anna,” Jane exclaimed.

Anna took a shaky breath, shaking her head no. She realized what was going on, and it broke her heart to have Jane doing this.

“You need my powers gone so you can kill me,” Anna forced out.

“Will you put them on for me, my love?” Jane asked again, ignoring Anna’s earlier words.

“Stop calling me that! You’re not yourself right now! No, I won’t put on the handcuffs. I know you Janey, you wouldn’t be able to live with yourself if you killed me now. I’m doing this for you,” Anna shouted, holding her head up high.

Jane’s kind smile dropped, and she started clipping the handcuffs back to her belt. “Fine, then you brought this all upon yourself.”

Anna had only a second to react, because Jane jumped forward with a slow punch aimed straight at her face. Anna easily caught her hand, keeping Jane’s palm away from her.

“Jane, I’m invulnerable, you won’t be able to hurt me with just your fists,” Anna seethed, releasing Jane’s hand.

Jane flexed her hand once, then twice, before blinking innocently at Anna. “Who said I’m trying to hurt you physically?” She grinned an unnatural smile. “Who said I’m trying to hurt you?”

Once again, Jane lunged forward, and once again, Anne brought up her invulnerable hand to block the attack. This time, Jane put a lot more force into the punch. When her fist collided, Anna heard the shatter of Jane’s bones.

Jane cried out, kneeling over to cradle her hand. Anna nearly started sobbing seeing her girlfriend hurt on the floor. She kneeled down, trying to wrap Jane into a hug. But the other woman just took her other hand and aimed a punch at Anna’s face.

This time Anna didn’t try to block it, but Jane’s hand still shattered against Anna’s face. Anna could hear it, but what was worse was she could see the pain on her girlfriend’s face.

Anna sobbed, trying to back away from Jane. “Please mein engel…please don’t do this.”

“You could stop this,” Jane said, tears streaming down from her purple tinted eyes. Anna saw that her hands had now fully healed. “Just put on the handcuffs Anna.”

Anna sobbed more as Jane walked closer, aiming another punch, knowing that it would only hurt Jane. There was nothing she could do, blocking it with her hand or just letting Jane punch her face would have the same results. Her whole body was solid.

Anna tried a new method. Next time Jane lunged forward, Anna dodged and wrapped Jane squarely in a bear hold. Jane struggled for a bit but Anna held tight.

Then, Jane started moving more erratically. Anna could only watch and listen as her girlfriend dislocated her own shoulder, screaming out in pain.

“Anna,” Jane cried in a broken voice. “You’re hurting me.”

Anna immediately let her go with a gasp, stumbling backwards. Almost immediately after being free, Jane’s shoulder healed itself and the super launched herself back at Anna, armed with another punch.

Once again, Jane’s bones cracked and she cried out. Jane’s screams echoed in Anna’s ears. Within a few seconds, she was healed and punched again.

Anna could only sit there, trapped in a vicious cycle of her girlfriend hurting herself over and over, using Anna’s body to do so. And there was nothing she could do to stop it.

———————————————————————————————————————

No no no no no no nononono—

He’s here. He was in the building with her. He was too close.

Kat couldn’t breathe. She vaguely realized that Anne and Anna were talking with him. She saw Cathy up there, the fact that she was being controlled by him made Kat feel both relief and utter despair. But now all her emotions were swirling around and she couldn’t quite feel anything.

She couldn’t breathe. She felt herself get swept away by the force of an impact. Fighting broke out around her but it seemed distant. Kat immediately went invisible, her method for protecting herself.

She couldn’t breathe. Her breath was coming out faster and faster. Her heartbeat was beating in her ears. She felt herself scotching slightly away from the main fight but that felt far away.

She couldn’t breathe. It was too much. She felt too much and it was too loud and there was too much going on and she couldn’t breathe and its was just too—

“Boo.”

Kat screamed. Tears streamed down her invisible face as she whipped around to find the source of the sound.

There, with her hands behind her back, was Cathy. Kat’s girlfriend wore a calm smile and tilted to look in Kat’s direction. Kat’s breaths were coming out shakily, and she realized right now that even though Cathy couldn’t see her, she could hear her.

“You’re a bit loud you know,” Cathy pondered, scrunching up her face in the same cute way she always does. Except in this situation it made Kat’s heart break. She tried to slow her breaths.

“Aw don’t do that,” Cathy pouted. Then she just shrugged nonchalantly. “Oh well, I guess it doesn’t matter. It’s no use anyways.”

Then Cathy laughed forward. Kat screamed and put up a forcefield, accidentally stopping her invisibility under the forcefield. Cathy paused and stared complexed at the forcefield, just like it was another puzzle to figure out.

Then she met Kat’s now visible eyes underneath the forcefield. Cathy smiled unnaturally. “There you are Kitten.”

“D…Don’t call me that,” Kat shivered. Logically she knew that this wasn’t really her girlfriend. Cathy was being controlled by Tudor, evident by her girlfriend’s purple-tinted eyes. But that fact didn’t make the situation any less jarring to Kat.

“But you’re so cute,” Cathy whined. Her pout soon turned into a mocking grin, unnatural on her sweet Cathy’s face. “aaaand small and powerless and weak. You’re pathetic Katherine.”

Kat flinched, forcefield wavering. Cathy came closer and pressed both hands against the forcefield, peering through like a window.

“You truly are useless. Even me, someone who has no powers, nearly took advantage of you. I mean, how many people have used you now?”

At that something in Kat broke. Those words coming from her girlfriends mouth hurt more than any other sentence ever. She fell to her knees with a cry, releasing the forcefield.

“That’s a good girl,” Cathy said, walking over slowly. “One day in the future you have to learn to fight for yourself. Oh wait, there won’t be a future for you.”

Maybe it was the mocking voice, or something about the rude jokes that so wasn’t Cathy. At that moment, Kat was reminded that this wasn’t her girlfriend talking right now. Her girlfriend was trapped, and she needed help.

Kat rose to her feet, making not-Cathy stop in her tracks. Kat took a deep breath and raised her fists. “I’m not gonna let you hurt her.”

She looked right into Cathy’s purple eyes and said that straight to the man behind all of this: Henry Tudor.

Then, Kat swung a punch.

Cathy expertly dodged. Kat tried again, sweeping her foot underneath too, but Cathy just dodged both, smirking the entire time. Kat kept trying, but Cathy seemed to always know her next move. Kat was slowing, her energy dwindling.

“You know,” Cathy smirked. “You tilt your head sideways when you’re about to swing a right punch.”

Cathy dodged again and then used her feet to trip Kat. Kat landed one her back on the ground. Before she knew it, Cathy was on top of her. The mind-controlled villain used one hand to hold both of Kat’s hands down.

She used the other hand to run her finger slowly down Kat’s cheek.

No no no this is wrong I don’t like this I don’t want this I don’t—

“I know everything about you love,” Cathy said in this voice filled with malice. This voice that was not hers. This voice that was his.

Kat felt her breath getting shorter. She felt his hands all around her, holding her down. She couldn’t move, she couldn’t escape. And all the while her girlfriend’s purple eyes stared down at her.

No no no no nononono—

Kat couldn’t breathe.

Chapter Text

Kat had grown tired of the fighting. Cathy evaded her every single hit, somehow knowing where Kat was going to punch before she even swung her fist. After getting hit more than a few times Kat just decided to put up a forcefield and hide inside.

She could hear the battle sounds from outside. Her girlfriend was still banging on the forcefield, but everything sounded distant. Kat tucked her head into her knees and put her hands over her ears.

She didn’t want to do this anymore. She was tired.

Then, the worst happened. The forcefield broke. Kat was so worn out from the fight that she couldn’t keep it up any longer.

“Ah, there you are,” Cathy smirked, walking slowly towards Kat on the ground. Kat scrambled to stand up and get into a defensive position which just made Cathy laugh mockingly.

“Come on, you know that isn’t gonna work.” Cathy lunged forward and Kat just managed to dodge. They started their deadly dance again, Kat’s mind going haywire looking for any idea to get out of this mess.

Come on, I have to think! Wait…

She had an idea.

Kat turned on her feet and swung wildly at Cathy. Cathy ducked easily.

She laughed. “Now that was weak even for you Kat.” But right as she was turning back around, she was bombarded by Kat.

Kat pounced at her girlfriend, managing to bring them both to the ground. Kat was on top of Cathy, pinning her down. She had Cathy right where she wanted and then she…kissed her.

Kat kissed her girlfriend, ignoring the struggling beneath her.

“I know you’re still in there Cathy,” Kat whispered, breaking the kiss. She saw Cathy’s eyes flash purple. “Come back to me.”

Kat kissed her again, and Cathy finally stopped struggling. Kat sat back up, curious. Suddenly, Cathy screamed and rolled over, clutching her head. Kat jumped out of the way but looked on in worry.

Cathy struggled, grabbing at her own head until she let out a final scream. Her eyes opened and a bright flash of purple came from them before she collapsed back onto the ground.

Kat ran up to her, taking her tired girlfriend into her arms. “Cathy? Cathy!?”

Cathy weakly opened her eyes. Kat couldn’t stop the bright smile that came with that sight. Cathy’s eyes were miraculously not-purple.

“Kat?” Cathy whispered weakly. Kat just shushed her and held her tighter.

“I’m so sorry,” Cathy forced out, before collapsing once more in Kat’s arms. Kat cried out but quickly checked and discovered she was just unconscious. Kat let out a breathless sigh of relief, sadness, and exhaustion all at once.

She took Cathy into her lap, gently petting her hair, and turned her attention to the fight in the rest of the warehouse.

———————————————————————————————————————

Anne was quickly losing ground in this fight. Even with her superior speed, the mind-controlled golden superhero was not making this easy at all. Everywhere Anne ran it was soon showered in rocks and fire, quickly making her find another option.

“Give up Boleyn!” Catalina thundered, managing to hit Anne with a boulder and send here flying into a wall.

“Do you want more people to die?” Catalina yelled, faking hurt. “If Henry takes control he’ll stop the robot attacks!”

Anne didn’t have time to respond, instead ducking out of the way of a fireball aimed right at her face.

She might be right…

Anne shook her head. She couldn’t afford doubt right now. She tried to tune her girlfriend out, instead focusing on putting one foot in front of the other. That was getting increasingly harder the more she got hit.

God she could really use some of Jane’s healing powers right now.

The brief moment when she lost her concentration was all that was needed. Catalina launched a rock right at Anne, and the speedster didn’t have time to avoid it. The rock sent her flying into a wall.

She crashed into the wall, sliding down into a heap at the bottom. Breathing hurt, and she was pretty sure multiple things were broken.

Anne lifted her head weakly when she heard footsteps coming towards her. She stared up at her girlfriend’s purple, sympathetic eyes. Catalina leaned down to softly brush a strand of hair out of Anne’s face.

“I’m sorry Anne, but this is for the best,” Catalina comforted. She stood up and took a step back, aiming her outstretched hand right at Anne’s face.

Anne saw the fire building around Catalina’s arm, quickly growing hotter. She knew what was coming next. The crumpled speedster chuckled and brought her eyes up to stare at her girlfriend.

“I may be wrong a lot, and I know I haven’t made the best decisions,” Anne coughed out. She mustered all her resolve to glare proudly. “But I know this isn’t you. So fight him Lina. Fight for me.”

And with those words, Anne closed her eyes tightly. She felt the heat around her blazing hotter. But just before she was sent to her fiery death, she heard a scream.

Anne’s eyes flew open to see Catalina clutching her own head. She was kneeling on the floor, clearly in pain. Fire was crawling up her arms. Anne tried to scoot over but Catalina put up a hand. Whether it was to threaten her or save her, Anne didn’t know. Nevertheless, she stayed where she was.

Catalina screamed again, fire blazing brighter. The flames got bigger, encompassing her whole body. The orange turned to blue and the heat nearly burned Anne as well. Finally, the flames stopped and Catalina collapsed, spent.

Anne quickly crawled over, taking her girlfriend into her arms. Catalina was passed out, burn marks scorching her arms.

She spent so much power that she burned herself. She did this to…protect me?

Anne let out a wet laugh, painful with her broken body but still so full of relief. She hugged Catalina closer to her chest and turned to see the rest of the battle.

———————————————————————————————————————

Anna vaguely realized that the battle sounds around her had gotten quieter, but all she could really hear now were Jane’s screams echoing in her head. Anna was now on her knees on the floor, just as strong as ever but still completely powerless.

“Are you ready to listen now, my love?” Jane questioned, slithering over to wrap herself around Anna’s back. Anna just let out a harsh breath.

“I know, it’s hard. But it’ll all be over soon,” Jane soothed. Anna risked a glance over her shoulder and saw her smiling girlfriend, purple eyes. Jane smiled wider when she saw Anna looking.

“Anna! You’ve gotta stop her!” Anna turned back to hear the other voice. She recognized that it was Kat yelling at her, but still Anna couldn’t find the energy to move.

“You have to Anna! It’s for both of your protection!” Now that was Anne.

“I…I can’t,” Anna whispered. Not loud enough for the others to hear, but Jane definitely heard her. Jane released her hug and gave Anna a pat on the back. Anna heard shuffling from behind her and risked a glance over her shoulder.

When she saw Jane pull the handcuffs off her belt she knew what she had to do.

Anna stood up, turning slowly to face her girlfriend. Jane’s face shifted quickly from shock, to a brief flash of anger, before settling on hurt. The hurt and fear pained Anna’s heart, even though she knew it wasn’t real.

“Anna…you’d fight me? You’d fight your own girlfriend?” Jane pleaded, looking at Anna with pained purple eyes.

“Anna, that’s not really her,” someone shouted, Anne or Kat. Anna slowly approached Jane, backing her up against a wall. Jane looked like a cornered animal until she couldn’t back up any further.

Then her expression turned to that of pure disgust. “Wow, I guess you truly are a monster.”

Anna hesitated and nearly crumpled under the weight of those words. She stared at the anger in her girlfriend’s eyes. She truly was a monster. Her fists unclenched and fell to her sides. Jane gave her a look of approval.

I can’t do this. I can’t…

The war in her head was strong. She was a monster, thinking about hurting her own girlfriend. What was she doing?

“Anna! You have to, to protect her! You are not a monster!” Anna opened her eyes, her friend’s words giving her a new purpose.

To protect mein engel.

Anna closed her fist and swung, being mindful of her power but still using enough. Jane fell, knocked out immediately. And with that, Anna crumpled too, hugging her girlfriend while sobbing.

She vaguely registered two bodies coming up behind her. Anne and Kat. They wrapped her into a hug from behind, silently offering their support. Anna just cried.

———————————————————————————————————————

After who knows how long, Anna picked herself up off the ground, cradling Jane in her arms. She was no longer crying but still looked miserable. Anne and Kat were both besides her, but she could tell they were itching to go back to their own unconscious girlfriends.

“Anna can you carry Lina too? Me and Kat can take Cathy, let’s see if the van is still outside,” Anne suggested. None of her usual humor was in her voice, only exhaustion. Anna just nodded.

The three awake supers carried their girlfriends outside, seeing their van still there. Anne made a joke about how Henry wouldn’t need to add automobile theft to his list of crimes and that got a few chuckles out of the others.

They piled into the van, carefully putting the unconscious supers into the back seat. And with that they drove away, back home.

They got back to the house and inside without fanfare. They put the unconscious supers around the living room and then went to the kitchen to talk.

“So uh, what if they’re not themselves when they wake up,” Anne voiced nervously.

“Well Cathy’s eyes flashed purple and then went back to their normal brown, so I think she might’ve broken out of it,” Kat mused. If anyone could break mind-control, it would be her girlfriend and her incredible brain.

“Yeah Lina set herself on fire, but no purple flash. And I didn’t see anything from Jane, right Anna?” Anna responded to Anne’s question with a quick shake no. “It seems like Cathy’s our best bet. Let’s see if we can wake her.”

The three of them went back to the living room, creeping over to where Cathy was slumped over in a chair. They approached cautiously, slowly tapping Cathy to see if she’d wake up.

Cathy awoke with a gasp, scrambling to stand up from her chair. Once she realized where she was and who was in front of her, her face crumpled.

“I’m so sorry,” Cathy whispered. She hung her head, ashamed.

“Hey, it’s not your fault Cathy. It wasn’t you,” Anne comforted. She tried to go in for a hug but Cathy seemed to tense up. She looked up briefly to send a sad look at Kat, before she turned her attention to the other two unconscious supers.

“Are they free from…it?” Cathy asked. The others shook their heads no.”I can make something for that. Give me 15 minutes, I can help.”

With that, Cathy quickly ran upstairs, leaving behind some very confused friends. Kat in particular stared sadly after her girlfriend. She turned to see Anne and Anna staring at her curiously.

“She needs time to process, alone probably. She’ll be ok,” Kat said, sounding like she was trying to convince herself just as much as the others.

After 15 minutes, Cathy came back downstairs holding some strange machine. It was shaped almost like a taser. She handed it gently to Anna before walking up to Kat. She looked her girlfriend in the eyes, and Kat could see the tears pooling.

“Kat I’m so sorry. I…I remember everything. I—I didn’t mean to—“

“Cathy it’s ok, it wasn’t you,” Kat said. Cathy was crying now, curling into herself and hiding her face. Kat approached slowly and took Cathy’s chin in her hand, guiding her face to look into her eyes.

“Cathy, I forgive you.”

Kat wrapped Cathy into a hug and Cathy squeezed her back, crying into her shoulder. It felt right, to be held by one another again. Just the two of them, no man in between them. Kat let herself smile.

When they broke apart, Cathy was smiling too. She turned and told Anna how to use the device, apparently just by pressing a button and aiming it at the other two on the couch.

Anna nodded and did just that. A short small sound was emitted and then a bright flash. Jane and Catalina both let out a gasp and their eyes shot open. Purple flashed from their eyes and drained out, leaving only their natural eye color. Everyone held their breath.

Then Jane let out a heart wrenching cry. Anna immediately ran over, wrapping the sobbing Jane in a hug. Anna muttered soft apologies and forgiving words, trying to calm down her hysterical girlfriend.

Catalina on the other hand was quiet. Deadly quiet. She stared into space, not saying anything. Anne approached slowly, kneeling down to look Catalina in the eyes. Catalina stared back sadly.

“I’m sorry Anne. I’m so sorry.” Anne just pulled Catalina into a hug, feeling the golden superhero melt into her girlfriend’s embrace.

From the other side of the couch, Jane was calming down enough to talk. She was streaming out apologies and other words, but one thing stood out to Anna.

“He has him. Oh Anna I’m so sorry. I can’t believe this. Oh my god he has him—“

“Jane, what do you mean? Who has who?” Anna prodded gently, pulling back to look Jane in the eyes. Jane seemed to halt for a minute, freezing where she was. She gave Anna the most heartbroken look. 

"Tudor has my baby. He has Eddie.”

Everyone gasped, but it was drowned out by Jane’s sobs. Anna’s teeth clenched in pure anger, but she held Jane as gently as possible. She rubbed her girlfriend’s back, shooting glances at the others in the room. Everyone wore twin expressions of shock.

A warm light flowed through the room. Jane was healing them even through her breakdown. All the women huddled closer, offering their support and unity. There was no way he was getting away with this. Tudor was going down.

Suddenly, the door swung open.

All of them jumped into defensive positions, ready to take on the intruder. But then the room flooded with robots. There were too many, too fast. They were taken down and quickly subdued, multiple robots holding them in place.

Anne screamed and fought, but the robots still managed to catch her. She could only watch as one by one her friends were knocked out and held by the robots. They held her so she was facing the door, and she had a front seat view to watch him walk in.

Henry walked in laughing. “Now wasn’t that a cute reunion! Too bad it was cut short.”

“What the fuck,” Anne yelled, trying to lunch at the evil man. Henry just laughed and walked up to her, standing too close. Anne growled at him and he just chuckled.

“Come on now, you should’ve known I asked them where they lived. I thought you’d be at least smart enough to realize that,” Henry admonished. Anne screamed and fought harder, trying to go for his throat.

“Well, just as belligerent and dumb as always Boleyn,” Henry sighed, turning to walk back out the door. Anne watched as he stood by and one by one her friends were taken out the door.

“You won’t get away with this,” Anne screamed. Henry’s face fell into a snarl. He leaned down until he was eye level and glared at her.

Then, he stood back up and smirked. “We’re gonna have a lot of fun Boleyn. You and all your friends are mine now.”

The last thing Anne heard was his maniacal laugh, echoing in her ears before she was knocked out, everything going black.

Chapter Text

When Catalina awoke, all she saw was white.

She sat up quickly, taking in her surroundings. She was in an all white room, almost like a doctor’s office. She had a bed, a toilet, and there was a small slit in the wall. She tries to remember how she got here and then in all made sense.

She was captured by Henry Tudor.

She growled and punched the nearest wall with her fist. She needed to get out, and fast. Who knew what he had done to the others. And also, she still needed to truly apologize to Anne.

Her thinking was interrupted by a low laugh. “Hah, for a superhero you seem to have a lot of anger built up. How about that Goldstorm?”

Lina jumped up and got into a defensive position, trying to determine where the voice was coming from.

“Ooooo you’re quick. Launch one of your little rocks at me, I dare you.”

Lina turned to see him standing right behind her: Henry Tudor. Without thinking she threw a boulder at him. To her surprise, it went right through his body. It bounced off the wall behind him and flew right back into Lina, knocking her into the wall.

“W-What!?” Lina sputtered, quickly standing back up. She was disoriented, and Henry was no longer standing there.

She could hear Henry laugh. “You supers truly are dumb. That was a hologram darling, and these walls were made specifically to reflect your earth powers.”

Catalina whipped around and he was right behind her again. She logically knew it wasn’t real, but instinctively she still used a gust of wind to try to knock him back. Instead, she found herself blown into the wall by a torrent of air that came from the wall.

“Hahaha this is too good! I made it so that every time you use your wind powers, the fans in the walls will send you flying,” Henry’s voice boomed over the speakers. Catalina picked herself back up and growled.

Henry appeared in front of her again, but this time she just glared silently. He pouted like a child, “Come on, don’t you wanna see what else I have for you?”

Catalina just spit in his direction. The hologram of Henry glared back. “You know what,” he seethed. “Just for that you can see what will happen if you use your water powers.”

Suddenly, the whole room was flooded. For a second Catalina couldn’t breath, the water was everywhere. It was going up her lungs. Then as soon as it was there, all the water was drained out, leaving Catalina soaking wet and sputtering on the floor.

Henry laughed over the coughing superhero. Catalina sucked in heaving breaths, still managing to glare up at him.

“Fuck…you…” she forced out through her gasping breaths.

“You know, that probably would’ve had more emphasis if you didn’t look like a dying cat,” Henry sneered. “But of course, what’s the fun in having all these cool tricks if you don’t even use your powers. So I’d like you to meet my little friend.”

Catalina could only watch as the ceiling opened up and down dropped a robot. It was deactivated, but Catalina could see the mechanics whirring underneath its metal body.

“Every four hours one of these guys will drop down. Fight it off or it will kill you,” Henry said, smiling unnervingly. “You can use your powers but there will be consequences. I hope you have fun during your stay!”

With that, the hologram left. Catalina stood up on shaky legs, putting her hands into fists. In front of her, the robot slowly came to life.

Catalina stared into its red eyes before launching a punch.

———————————————————————————————————————

Anne woke up to darkness.

She quickly stood up, squinting through the darkness. Her eyes slowly adjusted to her surroundings.

She was in a room. A very, very small room. The ceiling was only a few inches taller than her, and she had enough room to extend both her arms but that’s it. Once it began to set in, just how small the space was, Anne started panicking.

Her breaths came shorter, and her eyes darted around for an escape. She stumbled back into a wall, sliding down until she was hugging her own knees. Tears pricked her eyes, and she closed them tightly.

Henry’s laugh broke through her shaking breaths. Anne looked up, seeing a speaker on the ceiling.

“Wow Boleyn, not looking too good right now,” he teased. Anne composed herself enough to shoot a glare in the direction of his voice.

“Your little girlfriend told me a lot of fun things when I had her controlled,” he mused. “Turns out you still have some hang-ups from our time together.” Anne could hear the smile in his voice. She mustered up the strength to glare in the direction of the speakers. Henry just laughed.

“Well, I’ll see you later, have fun!” Henry exclaimed joyously.

Anne heard the click on the speakers that must’ve been him stopping the microphone. Anne slowed her breaths, focusing on breathing in and then out. After a minute she stood up shakily. She had to get out and go find Lina and the others. Who knows what he had done to them.

Henry’s words reminded her, she had gotten out before, and she could do it again. She widened her stance and paused, before running straight into the wall, aiming to phase right through it.

Instead, she was racked with pain. Electrical currents shot through her body, lighting up her nerves. She fell to the ground, convulsing. When she was able to focus on something other than the pain, she heard his laughing.

“You really are dumb Boleyn! Of course I learn from my mistakes. You’re not getting out this time.”

Now Anne was really freaking out. She curled up into a ball, making herself as small as possible to make the room seem bigger. The speaker clicked again, leaving her all alone, only the darkness surrounding her.

—————————

Anna woke up and immediately tried to jump up.

She stood quickly and looked around her. There were bars in place of walls and the ceiling, making something resembling a cage. And in the corner there was a…dog bowl of water? Anna tried to take a step closer but was stopped.

She then realized something was around her neck, a metal collar. It was attached to a chain that was attached to the ground. She tried to pull at it, but it wouldn’t budge or break.

“It’s a metal so strong that even you can’t break it. I made it myself.” Anna looked up to see Henry standing outside her ‘cage.’

“What the fuck is all this,” Anna growled, gesturing to the chains and dog bowl. “I’m no fucking animal.”

“Are you sure? I saw the way you hit your own girlfriend. One that posed no threat to you since she has no offensive powers,” Henry mused, making Anna shrink back. “You’re dangerous.”

Anna flinched, curling in on herself a bit but still glaring at Henry. Suddenly she lunged forward, reaching for his throat, but the chain around her neck stopped her. Henry jumped back and that made Anna smile, even if her attack didn’t work. Her smile soon dropped when his eyes turned murderous. He took a step forward, producing a small device from his pocket.

“Bad girl,” he growled and then pressed a button on the device. Anna cried out as the collar around her neck sent an electrical current through her body. Somehow she was still standing.

“Get on your fucking knees bitch,” Henry yelled out, and Anna stayed standing. Henry pressed another button and Anna felt herself get yanked to the floor.

The chain reeled itself in, becoming only maybe two feet in length. Anna hit the ground hard and then tried to get back up, finding that she couldn’t even stand with the amount of chain given. She was left on all fours, glaring up at Henry as tears pricked her eyes.

“That’s better,” Henry said calmly, dusting off his shirt. “We’ll teach you how to behave in no time.”

Henry turned away and started walking into the darkness beyond the cage. After a few feet her turned back. “Fucking monster,” he spat, before walking away again, leaving Anna alone.

Anna was supposed to be strong, but she had never felt more ashamed than in that moment.

———————————————————————————————————————

Kat woke up but didn’t open her eyes.

She knew where she was. The sounds of the lights were familiar, and she could remember days counting the seconds in between the clicks to distract herself. She remembered the metal table against her back. But the feeling of her hands and legs being bound were new.

“I know you’re awake Katherine dear.”

Kat didn’t respond. She didn’t want to hear him. She didn’t want to be here. She wanted to be home with Cathy in their bed. She wanted Cathy. Where was Cathy? She needed—

“Come on doll, open your eyes. You should know that trick won’t fool me anymore.”

Kat squeezed her eyes closed tighter. Then, she felt his hand. It felt like all her memories and nightmares. He was on her hip, his touch felt like needles on her skin. She flinched away and he laughed.

Finally she opened her eyes, revealing the familiar room. Her breaths got shorter as the familiar man got closer.

“I’m so happy to see you again,” Henry murmured, reaching out to touch her hair between his fingers. Kat was frozen, petrified in fear.

“We’re going to have so much fun together, remember our last times?” He taunted her. She was shaking, trembling like a leaf in the wind. Her mind was running wild, searching for an out.

His hand went downwards and she immediately went invisible. That move served it’s purpose and made him pause, but instead he brought his hand swiftly across her face in a harsh slap.

“Let me see you,” he growled, and Kat became visible again, tears stinging her eyes.

“Please, I don’t want to…” Kat whispered. Henry just smiled gleefully.

Then he leaned down to kiss her. Kat’s brain went numb, falling back into a place that she thought she escaped from. She didn’t fight back, knowing it would only make things worse. Instead, she was limp as he invaded her mouth.

Her only conscious thought was how different he felt from Cathy. Kissing Cathy was warm, safe, loving. He felt possessive and uncomfortable. He took and took and barely noticed Kat wasn’t reacting.

Finally he pulled away, smiling softly. “I’m glad to have you back love.”

Kat could only stare back, empty.

———————————————————————————————————————

Cathy woke up, opened her eyes, and immediately took in her surroundings.

She was in a room, a cell to be more specific, which had grey stone walls on each side. She took in the ‘furniture’, simply a small bed, toilet, and there was a door. The door had a slot where someone would give her food presumably. She bet that if she took the screws out of her bed and stuck her hand through the slot she could probably pick the lock and go find Kat and tell her—

Suddenly the most blazing siren sound ripped through the room. Cathy cried out and fell to the floor, hand’s over her ears. The sound was everywhere, pushing through her ears into her brain, making it hard to think.

Finally, after what seemed like half an hour, it stopped.

“Wow, only a few minutes and you’re already a mess.”

Cathy looked up to see a hologram (she recognized the slight flickering of his body) of Henry Tudor staring down at her. He looked at her gleefully, like a child on Christmas.

“And just you wait, that was only one part,” he exclaimed happily. Cathy shakily got into a sitting position, schooling her face into one of practiced calmness.

“According to the humidity and air quality we’re close to a body of water,” Cathy said calmly. Henry paused to look at her. “And judging by your reaction to those words I must be right.”

Henry glared at her, and Cathy continued on. “You’re going to be defeated, it’s just a matter of time. No matter how smart you think you are,” Cathy smirked slightly. “We’re smarter.”

Henry snarled and turned away from her. He turned back, a smile now dawning his face.

“I thought a lot about you, ever since you hit me in that alley,” Henry mused. “I had to think long and hard, what kind of punishment would suit a bitch like that?”

Cathy was unsettled by his slow, calm tone. He continued speaking. “And then it hit me! She thinks she’s so smart, super brainpower and all that. She thinks ‘oh my God supers are the best oh yaaay we have superpowers we’re gonna save the world.’” Henry mocked in a high pitched voice.

“Why don’t I show her, exactly why she’s wrong. Why don’t I show her why superpowers are actually your biggest weakness,” he smiled. “Why don’t I show her how very not smart she really is.”

Cathy glared up at him, unperturbed.

“Suffer bitch,” he said simply before clicking a button and his hologram went away. Everything was silent for a few seconds.

Then it all exploded.

The sound was back, even louder than before. Cathy fell to the ground with a scream. It seemed like the room was now filled with a scent, overwhelming and sharp, like citrus. Also, her skin was being brushed by…feathers? Somehow the room was filled with them.

Her senses were going haywire, she couldn’t fell she couldn’t hear she couldn’t think she couldn’t do anything it was just too much and she needed it to stop and she wanted Kat she can’t take this it’s all just too much—

Cathy passed out, the overstimulation finally getting to her.

———————————————————————————————————————

Jane woke up in a bed.

A very nice, soft, cozy bed.

She immediately sat up, confusion filling her body. She took in the room around her, it seemed like a very nice, albeit old fashioned, bedroom. Everything was cushioned, there were bookshelves, and the room was quite spacious.

“Ah, you’re awake.”

Jane’s eyes shot to the foot of the bed. He was standing there, watching her with a smile. When he saw her awake he came to sit on a chair next to the bed.

“Hello love, how did you sleep?” Henry asked, quite calmly.

Jane was frozen with confusion and fear, she didn’t know what to do or where the others were.

What would Anna do?

“What do you want?” Jane tried to force out. Instead of Anna’s protective tone, Jane managed a shaky yell. Henry just stared at her, something almost like pity filling his gaze.

“I just wanted to know how you slept, and if everything was alright?” Henry tutted. Then his expression hardened a bit. “But I would watch your tone. You don’t want to end up like the others.”

Jane gasped. “What did you do with them?” she demanded. Henry laughed at her eagerness, treating her almost like a child.

“They had to be punished dearest, they aren’t as soft and docile as you,” he said, standing up and moving over to Jane. He leaned close to whisper in her ear. “They needed to be taught a lesson. But you, my love, you already are mine.”

Jane shivered. “Now I’ll ask you again,” he mused. “How did you sleep?”

Jane couldn’t be like Anna. She couldn’t be like any of the others. “I slept fine.”

“Wonderful!” Henry exclaimed happily. He started walking towards the exit and paused right before the door.

“I have to go now, but there are robots stationed right outside your door if you need…help…with anything.” Jane could hear the implications in his voice. Even though she may be more free, she’s still being watched. She’s still captured.

“I would advise against any…bad behavior. You wouldn’t want to force me to do something to your little friends,” he threatened. “And maybe, if you’re good love, I might let you see your son.”

Jane gasped. Her son, her Edward. Henry had him here, and she could have the chance to see him. She could see her baby again, her baby boy. But he’s being held as a bargaining chip, a mere tool to keep her in line. She nearly started crying with both happiness and hopelessness.

Henry paid no attention to her reaction. “I will be having dinner shortly, would you care to join me?” He asked, his question hung in the air heavily.

Jane felt torn. She knew what the others would do. They were strong, they would fight. They could resist and yell and rage back at him. But she wasn’t like that. Her heart was heavy, solid, stone.

Any move she made would get people hurt. She couldn’t afford to hurt her friends. She couldn’t hurt her baby boy. She couldn’t hurt Anna…She knew what she had to do, even though it would kill her inside to do it.

“Sounds lovely,” she forced out, fake cheer filling her voice. “I can’t wait to spend time with you, darling.”

Chapter Text

“Eddie, want the red car or the blue car?”

Edward just babbled from his place on the floor. His chubby little 3 year old hands hit the floor happily. He smiled widely.

“Silly boy, how about we play with both?” Jane smiled at him.

She wrapped him up in a big hug, cuddling him close as he happily played with both toys. They were alone, Henry finally trusting Jane enough to be with her son without him. Of course, the robot guards with still stationed outside the door.

Jane had been counting the days. 12 days since her and her friends has been captured. 9 days since she had been allowed to see Edward. 3 days since Edward had first called her mama.

When Henry first brought the little toddler to Jane’s room/cell, Jane took one look at those big blue eyes and immediately started crying.

“What, you don’t like my surprise darling?” He asked sleazily. Jane quickly wiped away her tears, trying to smile at him. She knows it came out twisted and sad.

She reached out wordlessly towards Eddie, nearly forgetting Henry was there. Edward looked at her, wrapped around the vile man. He stared at her, her breath hitching as she realized he probably didn’t remember her. Finally, he reached out too, letting Jane hold him. Jane took him into her arms, sobbing into his hair and holding him close.

Of course, Henry couldn’t let her be happy for too long. “That’s enough for today. Keep being good and I’ll bring him back tomorrow. I love you darling.”

Then he moved towards her. Jane had been through this enough to know what he wanted. She quickly pressed a quick kiss to his cheek and he hummed happily. Jane watched in despair as he turned and took Edward out of the room. Then, she broke down crying.

Of course, that had been 9 days ago, and ever since he had allowed her to see Edward every day. That brings her to today.

Over the past few days, she had been allowed to spend all her days with Eddie. Every hour, everything except for when he was sleeping. She didn’t know where Henry took him at the end of each day. She was finally able to care for him, play with him, love him like a mother.

And when he first started calling her mama, she sobbed, her dreams for the past few years finally coming true.

But she wasn’t happy here. The guilt stabbed in her heart constantly. Here she was, enjoying her time with her son, when her friends were in who knows how much pain. She knew logically there was nothing she could do, she had no powers. And she also didn’t know where they were being held, or how to get past the robot guards.

At night, Jane would lie in her bed. The vile, disgusting man decided to lie with her. She would let him hold her while she fell asleep, but once she heard his deep breaths she would move as far away as possible. She silently cried, wishing for her friends. Wishing for Anna. Her strong arms felt so much better than his wandering hands. She cried, guilt wracking her ever bone.

Jane was snapped back to the present when she heard the door open.

Henry walked in, a big wide smile on his face. He sauntered over to where Jane was sitting on the ground with Eddie. “Good morning beautiful family,” he crowed, putting out his hands to hold Edward.

Jane stood up and very reluctantly held our Edward. But the little boy just grabbed on tighter around Jane’s neck, refusing to be handed off. Henry’s smile dropped and he turned to Jane with anger in his eyes.

“What’d you do? What’d you tell him about me?” Henry roared.

“Nothing! I-I promise,” Jane stuttered out. Henry advanced on her and Jane moved to shield Edward. Henry slapped Jane square across the cheek and she cried out, but didn’t fall. Edward made a small noice of surprise too and that made Henry pause.

“Oh well, I guess he’s just a mama’s boy,” Henry laughed. Jane exhaled in relief, silently reeling from the quickly change in emotion.

“But I have something to show you love, that’s why I’m here,” Henry said, pushing a piece of Jane’s hair behind her ears. She had to use all her willpower not to flinch backwards.

“But first, I have to take him back,” Henry pointed at Edward. Jane knew what was coming now. Henry would take the little boy back to wherever he was hiding him, specifically so Jane didn’t know. This time though, Jane was ready.

“But honey, why don’t I just come with you so you don’t have to walk all the way back?” Jane sweetly offered.

“No no, it’s quite alright,” Henry dismissed, trying to once again pick up Eddie.

“But he wants to be with me right now, and you know, I am his mother,” Jane tried. Henry narrowed his eyes at her, and for a second Jane thought she was going to be in trouble again, but then he just smiled and shrugged.

“Alright, let’s walk.”

Henry led Jane, who was holding Eddie, down a long hallway. She was conscious of the robots stationed at key points. After a few turns that Jane made sure to memorize, they came upon a plain door.

“Through here,” Henry murmured. They opened the door to a very plain room, barely any light, furniture, or toys. Edward almost immediately started crying.

“Be quiet boy, don’t cry,” Henry scolded. Jane rocked and bounced the sobbing toddler. She put him in the crib and whispered some words of reassurance for a few minutes. She held him until he stopped crying and then promised to be back. Eddie stared with teary eyes but slowly reached for a little wooden train to play with in the meantime.

“Come love, now for the real surprise,” Henry pulled Jane will him out the door. She was once again led through multiple hallways. He finally stopped next to a plain black door with a gleeful look on his face. He pushed it open and Jane gasped.

Inside were monitors everywhere. There were keyboards and buttons and it looked straight out of a pilots cockpit, or some sort of spy movie.

“It’s the control room,” Henry exclaimed. Jane could only look around as he pointed to various computer screens.

“…and that’s where I monitor the robots. And that button controls them all. And that computer shows the defense systems. And yeah. But for my actual surprise…” Henry paused, calming down.

“Since you have been so good love, I have decided to reward you. I will let you see your friends on this monitor, not interact, but you can see them.”

Jane gasped again, hardly believing it was true. Henry immediately turned and started typing away. Jane’s mind went rampant with worry. After what felt like forever, the screens flickered to life. All 5 of her friends were shown on the screens, and Jane went through each of them.

First was Catalina. Tears were brought to Jane’s eyes when she saw how utterly defeated the oldest superhero looked. Lina had always been so proud and strong, but on the screen she laid there on her bed, unblinking and unmoving.

If Catalina unnerved Jane, Anne and Kat made the tears start falling. Both of the cousins were pressed into the corners of their own respective rooms. They were hugging their knees and burying their heads. Kat in particular seemed to have multiple scratch marks down her arm, but Jane didn’t know if that was from herself or someone else.

Cathy seemed almost unresponsive. She was sitting blankly in her cell, eyes forward and unblinking. She seemed to be dissociating extremely.

But Anna. Seeing Anna made Jane start bawling. Her beautiful, strong Anna was chained by the neck, and she looked so utterly defeated. Anna was on the floor, unmoving but still alive according to her slow breaths. The sight made Jane cry out harder.

“What, you don’t like my surprise?” Henry sneered.

Jane quickly tried to wipe away her tears, it didn’t work. “No, it’s lovely dear,” she forced out, still sobbing.

“Well when you finish with the waterworks, I have one more thing to tell you,” Henry said, moving to open the door. Jane followed him through the hallways, working to stop her flowing tears. Finally, they made it back to Jane’s room and went inside.

“I will be leaving for a few days, I trust that you will continue to behave. If you don’t, there will be consequences.”

Jane was so stunned that she barely registered Henry leaving the room. But when she did, her mind went in to overdrive.

This was her chance, she finally had everything she needed. She knew where Eddie was being kept, she knew where the controls for the robot guards were, and even though she didn’t know exactly where her friends were, she’d search the whole place if she had to.

This was it, the time had come. She would finally get to see her Anna again.

But Jane couldn’t help but worry. She was a healer, but did she have what it takes to heal all the suffering her friends had to endure?