Valerie Newmann | Ana Kestner
April 3, 2018 | noon | NYC—Ana's car en-route to the MET, the MET
collab with
@Huntress, Logan (
@LuckycoolHawk9)
John (@Astroblaze), Meghan (@Huntress), Samuel (@Astroblaze), Mystification (@LuckycoolHawk9), PW (@LuckycoolHawk9)
Valerie studied Ana's face for a moment as they approached what was apparently her vehicle, noting the myriad, painful emotions that crossed it. She knew very little about the metahuman who she currently accompanied, but her years of friendship with and assisting John had taught her how trying being an active meta could be. If you weren't as optimistic as he adamantly insisted on being, the stress of the responsibility could easily overwhelm you.
"I don't, but my dad does," she explained, adding a murmured thanks for the opened door as she ducked into the passenger seat. Fastening her seatbelt, she smiled to herself, touching the simply designed tags.
"He taught me everything I know. I thought about enlisting, but—" she hesitated a moment, smile replaced by a more troubled look—
"an incident that happened when I was a teen inspired me to pursue legal studies instead."
"...Oh," Ana stated simply as she glanced towards Valerie for a moment.
"I, uh- just saw the dog tags so I assumed. Sorry." Maybe she had hoped for someone she could talk to with some form of similarity. This obviously wasn't the case. Her attention turning back to the road as she took a shaky breath. Memories coming back for a flash.
"I served," she muttered, unsure why she thought she could tell this woman about this. If her father had been in the military, then maybe she could relate in some weird way. Ana clenched her jaw at how stupid her thoughts sounded. Meghan was the only other person that knew about Ana's military service... and her former squad, of course.
"Can I ask what happened that changed your mind?" The question was genuine: she was curious. She had always thought that Military ran in a family... or at least it was kind of true for her, in a twisted way.
"No no, it's alright," Valerie assured her with a slight laugh.
"If I didn't want to be identified as military, I wouldn't dress like, well—" she indicated the bomber jacket and dog tags—
"this."
She glanced up quickly at Ana's admission of military service, realizing in her tone and expression that she was opening herself in a major way. Did the harsh-toned metahuman perceive some common ground between the two of them? She certainly hoped so. She seemed a fascinating individual and Valerie hoped she'd get a chance to get to know her better. For the moment, however, she turned to Ana's own question, her brow furrowing slightly in thought as she considered how exactly to word her response.
"A very close friend of mine—a young metahuman with powers he didn't want and couldn't control—was nearly killed by another meta in a fight he didn't want, even tried to get away from but the other didn't let him. He was in the hospital for over a month, and for the first week or so we were all so scared he wasn't going to make it. When he finally woke up, he was... broken. He wasn't himself anymore. Skittish, closed-off, scared of everyone and especially wary of other metas, and can you blame the poor guy for being wary of someone who could hurt him that badly for no reason, just completely out of the blue, no way for him to see it coming and helpless to stop it-" She cut herself off, realizing that her voice had begun to rise with her agitation as she recalled what was done to her friend. She closed her eyes for a moment, releasing a steadying breath, then continued more calmly.
"And that's not even the worst part. He was still in the hospital when the calls started coming in—all the angry people demanding that he appear in court and reconcile them for all the things he accidentally broke with the wild gusts spurred on by his sheer terror, none of them having any idea or concern for the horror he'd been through, was still going through and would be going through for the rest of his life. The family was lucky that they had a sympathetic judge because otherwise there was no way they could have repaid everything that people were demanding, especially not on top of hospital bills. That whole awful incident opened my eyes to the injustice in the legal system, how everything is stacked to the meta's disadvantage for whatever twisted, control-oriented reason. I may not be able to fix the problem, but I can take the skills and knowledge that I have and fight for the equality they deserve. That's why I take commissions almost exclusively from metahumans. I might not have been able to help my friend, but I can try and make sure what happened to him doesn't happen to anyone else. And as for that friend that I've been talking about?" She paused, turning and affixing Ana with a piercing look.
"That friend is Samuel Alerio."
Ana scoffed towards the first small bit of Valerie beginning her explanation.
"How many people are born with powers they want? It's the most terrifying thing. Especially when you don't know what your limit is or how to control it." She kept her voice low as she didn't want to interrupt, her words sounding a little bitter as she kept her glare on the road. Glancing over at the woman as she heard her grow heated, Anastasia visibly flexed her jaw, teeth threatening to crack, the palm of her right hand rubbing hard enough against the steering wheel that it groaned. Had John set her up with a person who disliked metas? That wasn't very smart, especially when he chose to tell everyone that she wasn't a regular human.
Looking out her window, she swallowed back as the car had grown silent, a breath coming from the woman. In the tense silence, it had been almost explosive in Ana's ears. Nevertheless, it had been enough to gain the attention of the amber gaze. Valerie continued speaking, and Ana brought her attention back to the road as they were moving again. Ana laughed, an abrupt, awkward laugh.
"Been there done that," she stated simply as her left hand cradled her head after having run through her hair, fingers sliding through the dark locks and cupping her skull.
"Most people don't know how to be grateful, unless they face a truly life-threatening instance. And even then some of them still play the victim and want to claim something or get something in return." She spoke over Valerie slightly.
Catching movement from the corner of her eye, Anastasia glanced towards the passenger in the vehicle before casually returning her attention to the road.
"The guy who was with John?" Her question was rhetorical, she was bad with names sure but those were only a few minutes old, she could remember that.
"Sounds like a shitty situation." The coldness returned.
"I know getting over things like that is hard, but accepting what he is and what he's capable of is going to help him. I understand he's probably scarred for life, but he obviously has people around him that he trusts and seem to be willing to help. He has to open up to you guys and slowly take the steps he needs to better himself." She sat up straight and placed both hands on the wheel now.
"It doesn't mean he has to become a hero or vigilante or whatever. Don't misunderstand me, I do understand his reasons for being the way he is. I've seen death, life taken, innocent lives, people that had done nothing wrong; they just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. It's painful enough to witness that, but what's harder is being the cause of it. Some people are merciless, they kill and are unphased, others not so much, and that, that is probably the worst thing that can happen to someone." Ana sighed heavily.
"Imagine having the power of a god and using that power to protect others, then out of nowhere, death surrounds you. Those you've sworn to protect laying across the ground limp and cold, staring into your soul." Her eyes narrowed as she glared through the windshield.
"Then the ones who had once accepted you, cheered you on, praised you, knew you were there to save them, suddenly turn into a savage, unruly mob, their only goal to take you out." She clenched her jaw tightly again, knuckles turning white as she gripped the steering wheel as if hanging on for dear life.
"Betrayed by everyone, everything... Do you know what it's like to have the whole world against you?" Ana swallowed back and looked at Valerie as they halted again.
"Sometimes it makes the thought of disappearing or being dead sound more comforting," she muttered.
The thought of returning as Aegis terrified her. She didn't know what to expect, what reactions people would have, what they would say or do. Ana had never thought about returning, as thrilling as it felt last night to do something that seemed heroic. Ignoring the shots fired, obviously. That had been a small taste of what could happen. She had saved many lives and she had also put a lot away. Powerful people, vengeful people. They were more likely to cause harm and damage than she was, and resurfacing would only make them also start to show face again. Exhaling sharply, she shook her head slightly. Negative thoughts had been the most dominant in her mind for a long time, they were hard to get rid of, it was what she was used to.
Valerie's mouth tightened at what seemed like Ana disregarding the warning she had been trying to convey.
"What I'm trying to say is that what you said to Samuel really bothered me," she summarized, perhaps a bit more sharply than she intended.
"He's not hating: he's hurting. He has had to carry the scars and the trauma of what happened to him for his entire life, and you just spat in his face with no comprehension of what you were judging him for. Look, I'm not trying to scold or guilt you and I don't know why you act the way that you do—that's your story, and I'm not going to presume that I know it because I know that I don't—but treating anyone with that kind of contempt is never right, and one of these days you're going to seriously hurt someone." Her lips pursed in a thin frown.
"I completely agree with you that the best thing for him is to learn to accept who and what he is, but there are better ways to tell him such. I know a handful of people who react well to 'get over yourself'—he's not one of them."
Falling silent for a moment as she considered the rest of Ana's words, she released a quiet sigh through her nose, turning her gaze back to her hands, folded in her lap.
"I know how hard it can be for people like you. I've seen John at his worst, when he looks at me and I can just see the fear in his eyes—the worry that he's not going to be able to uphold the weighty responsibility he claimed upon realizing what he was capable of." She shrugged with a wry smile.
"I guess it's to the credit of his stubborn optimism and perseverance that it hasn't broken him yet. I've fought for the cases of heroes who ultimately decided to hang up their capes for good, unable to cope with the stress and frustration of never being able to do anything right in the eyes of the very people for whose lives and safety they were putting their own on the line every day." She huffed a quiet, ironic chuckle.
"I guess that's the best context I have to understand what you've had to endure."
"You wouldn't be the first person that was hurt or bothered by my actions or words." She shrugged and casually glanced at the other before looking to the road again, clenching her jaw as she sighed.
"He needs a wake-up call, that's why I said what I said. The longer he spends sulking the worse it'll get. If he doesn't snap out of it, it's only going to get worse and reach a point where he will do more bad than good, to himself and others." Ana swallowed back.
"He's hurt, I get it, but the more he holds it all in the more likely he is to have an outburst that's going to terrify him even more, and then he'll completely shut down," she explained.
"Reality and the truth hurt, if he can't take it then he's going to have problems. It's all I'm saying. I'm not here to judge how you guys choose to treat him. I'm just explaining my side and what I've seen and been through." She glanced at Valerie again.
"I didn't hang it up because the people reacted like pieces of shit, although that didn't help in keeping the suit out of a dusty old trunk shoved under my bed. I hung it up for myself. I had my reasons for donning a ridiculous suit and taking up a stupid name. Things didn't pan out and there was a big enough incident that was the final straw. That person disappearing has helped more people than I did when I was her," she explained.
"Coming back might cause more problems than it might help solve." 'But I have to,' she told herself.
"I don't know what the world will think when they see her again... I'm rather confident that she won't be the same person though. But that may be subject to change…" She muttered the last bit.
It had been a few minutes that the two had been going at a steady pace in the vehicle. Ana was hopeful that more traffic wouldn't appear out of nowhere. They had spent enough time bumper to bumper. This was urgent enough that Anastasia had considered flying to the damn MET if she was able to hide her face.
She was right, of course. Valerie had been concerned about the unpredictable and uncontrolled state of Samuel's abilities for years, but she also knew how he was and that any talk of learning about his powers would only scare him more.
"I know," she agreed quietly, resting her elbow on the door and her chin on her hand as she watched the city whip past.
"I've been worried about him for almost as long as I've known him for that very reason. He's a sweet kid but more stubborn than a mule." She laughed a bit to herself at that, the sound devoid of actual mirth.
"There's no pushing him to that conclusion: he'll have to come to it on his own. I'm just worried that he'll hurt himself or somebody else before that happens. We try to keep him around metas in the hopes that he'll acclimate himself sooner rather than later, but nothing seems to work. I don't know how to get through to him." She sighed, shaking her head, and fell silent for a moment.
"Maybe what he needs is a good example," she finally muttered, half to herself.
Considering Ana's overview of her own scenario, she looked back to the other woman curiously, wondering if she would recognize the name.
"Who were you as a hero?"
"I don't know what sort of example you can show him, but if it'll help him, then I would say try to show him sooner or later," Ana stated towards Valerie's muttered words as she briefly glanced at her. Clenching her jaw at the question, she remained silent for a moment as she kept her eyes on the road.
'You set yourself up for that one,' she told herself, unsure if she wanted to answer that question.
Nobody knew about that identity, not even Meghan. Could she just blurt it out to this stranger that she just met? Anastasia didn't know the truth to who Valerie was. Who she knew, what sort of connections she had. It made no sense for her to tell her anything, even if all the things she had said about herself were true.
"Nobody important," she muttered as she looked out her window then back to the road.
'You don't usually lie,' Ana's internal voice spoke up. That was something that looked like it was about to change, big time. It all started with Meghan last night, and it seemed like Ana would have to start keeping her mouth shut about things in general. Whoever ended up being in the exclusive circle of this whole ordeal would find out... in time. Once she got her new suit settled and was mentally prepared to take that final step of donning it all... again.
Valerie generally had a pretty good sense for when people were lying—a helpful skill in her line of work—but also for when it wouldn't help her to prod, although she did cast the woman beside her a suspicious glance that surely let her know she had spotted her bluff.
"You don't really trust me, do you?" she noted, returning her gaze to the side window. She shrugged.
"That's alright—I mean, we've only just met. I don't expect total transparency this early. Just remember—" she turned her head back to Ana, keen dark eyes studying her face—
"we're all on the same side here. You don't need to feel like you have to hide things from your allies." Her lips quirked in an encouraging smile.
"You've gotta have somebody watching your six."
Even as she spoke, she realized why the guarded, anxious look in Ana's eyes was so familiar: it was the look she always saw in Samuel's eyes. Perhaps she needed to look no further for that good example she mentioned only a moment ago.
Ana looked towards Valerie and raised a brow at the gaze she was being given. Another clench of her jaw and she was looking back to the road as she flared her nostrils with an exhale.
"Don't take it personally, I don't trust anyone easily," she explained to the woman simply. Her reasons didn't need to be revealed to anyone, she had them, they existed, and that's all that mattered.
"When the time comes for me to reveal things I will. In the meantime, I'll try not to be a downer. Does that sound good enough? I'm going to assume that if you say yes, everyone will say yes." Ana spoke casually as she carried on with the drive. They shouldn't have been too far now.
Chuckling at Valerie's statement, Ana shook her head.
"If she comes back it's gonna be more than my six that I'm gonna need watched." Her voice was low. Why she had this gripping feeling that something bad was going to happen, she didn't know, but she couldn't shake it and it wasn't helping her make this decision anytime sooner... if she chose to make it at all.
"Look, you and John seem like good people, don't get me wrong and those siblings seem like good people too, although there should be caution with them. Sam, with his anxiety and fear leading to a potential outburst, is dangerous, and his sister, Felicity, sometimes she seems too eager and excited, it could get her in trouble." Ana glanced towards Valerie.
"You all do what you do for your reasons. You haven't given up on the people yet and kudos to you. I didn't want to give up on them either, but that was my safest option." Another clenched jaw.
"Just give me time, don't fuck me over and we'll be fine. My trust is hard to earn, but once you have it, you're solid in my book. Just don't betray it and I won't have to hunt you down with a vengeance." She smirked at her comment as she glanced towards Valerie.
Turning her attention back to the road, Ana advanced forward into the intersection to make the left turn required. Keeping her eyes on the speeding vehicles busting through the green light, she sighed as she waited for an opening to continue on. She just wanted to get this meeting at the MET over with so the next step could be figured out for this whole situation.
With little to add in response to Ana's words, Valerie just nodded in agreement and understanding. Her mouth broke into a grin with a quiet laugh at Ana's final remark, the young woman ducking her head slightly. Being able to take an almost teasing air even with such a serious issue seemed a good sign that the two of them were on the right track.
When she returned her attention to the road ahead, that smile vanished immediately in favor of a horrified gasp as she realized that an old lady had just darted into the road right in front of them. She stiffened in her seat, hastily blurting,
"Ana, look out!"
As the light flicked yellow, Ana started to advance her turn. Glancing over through the passengers window to make sure nobody chose to speed through the warning sign of the traffic light, she pressed a little more on the gas pedal. Catching a hint of Valerie's reaction, her head whipped around and caught a glimpse of the red-haired woman. Tires screeched as her foot was quick to switch to the breaks, the two women jolted forward in their seats as the car halted. Baring her teeth, Ana slammed her hand against the horn as she had barely caught the woman falling to the ground from the sudden halt of metal.
"Jesus fucking christ! What's your problem, lady?!" She called out as she went to roll the window down.
"She's like a hundred years old, why would she-" Ana glanced towards Valerie in very apparent frustration. Her breaths quickened as her eyes grew wide. She ignored the honking from the surrounding vehicles as she unclipped her belt, worry coming across her features as she watched a truck come rolling towards them.
"Out! Valerie, OUT!" she screamed toward the woman as she clambered over her and pressed her back against the door in a rather awkwardly spread out and uncomfortable position. Reaching for the top of the woman's seatbelt, she snapped it off the siding of the car and forced her against her body.
"Just trust me, okay! Stretch your legs over the middle console ca-"
Before she could finish her words, the screeching and honking of the large truck consumed them. The man had attempted to avoid the car stuck in the middle of the intersection but had ended up swerving. The car of the truck had hit a small section of the passengers side of the vehicle and had blown in the back side. Jagged metal pressing against Ana's lower back, thankfully she took most of that blow and not the woman she had somewhat wrapped herself around. The force had been enough to cause the car to skid sideways towards the old lady. Overloaded trucks were heavy and Ana was starting to feel that weight as the box trailer toppled over on top of them. Grunting against all the weight, she pushed up with her legs, taking all the force across her neck, shoulders and upper back. Hissing in further annoyance, she bared her teeth against the weight, metal groaning as she slowly brought her arms up and placed her palms against the roof of the vehicle.
"Valerie?" she called out.
"Are you okay?" she asked, her only option was to look down towards the woman.
"Can you move?" There was another grunt as she pushed up a little harder, more metallic groaning, muscles tensed and flexed.
"I need you to move towards the driver's side, if you can. I don't think the door's gonna open but maybe you can fit through the window?" She clenched her jaw.
If she pushed up any further the roof of the car would come off. Ana wasn't sure how big the trailer was and where her positioning had her. If she chose to lift any further, she would either topple it backwards or forwards, both weren't very good options for anyone surrounding the scene.
Having met Ana's incredulous look in kind at the lady's stupidity, Valerie witnessed the frustration turn into horror. Although perplexed at first, she was galvanized into action by the woman's scream and the explosive blaring of the truck horn, quickly stretching out her legs as instructed as she pressed her body into Ana's and braced for impact.
Once the cacophany of squealing tires and crunching metal had died down, Valerie just barely picked up Ana's worried query through the ringing in her ears. The dark-skinned woman released a slight groan through gritted teeth as the ache of rapidly forming bruises spread throughout her body.
"I'm a little banged up, but otherwise I'm alright."
At Ana's instruction, she got her legs under her and crawled across the car, rolling down the window the rest of the way and scrambling out feet-first. Backing away from the vehicle enabled her to observe the extent of the damage, her eyes widening with a whispered
"Oh my God..."
"Back, everybody back!" she shouted at the onlookers, some of whom had begun creeping forward as if to help and she wasn't sure where that trailer was going to end up. She pulled out her phone to call John, but the surety with which Ana was holding up the trailer on top of her made her hesitate.
"Ana, are you okay?" she called into the vehicle.
"Spectre would be here in an instant if I called him."
Watching Valerie manage to get out of the car was a relief. Anastasia was thankful that the woman wasn't hurt badly. She didn't need to get into any sort of issues with John over this. She listened more than watched. Valerie muttered words of surprise and asked others to move away.
That was reassuring. Ana scoffed at herself, now she hadn't the slightest idea of how bad things were outside. Clenching her jaw and swallowing back, she was cautious of her footing as she stepped over the middle separator with her right. Hands travelling across the roof of the vehicle as she moved. Her left foot came over the center console and sunk into the driver's seat as she pushed up against the slightly crushed roof. Reaching the door finally she tried to lower her head to the window as she had heard Valerie's words from a moment ago. Her response was delayed as she had been slightly distracted.
"I'm okay, don't worry," she called out.
"No! No, don't call him. He has other things to worry about. Just try to clear the area please," she said as she kicked the driver's side door off its hinges. Metal creaked and groaned before skidding against the pavement with a loud screech. Her left foot came out first. Pushing up against the container again, she caught the sound of groaning metal and stopped with a sigh. Letting the weight rest on her right arm and shoulder, she slipped her left arm out of the car and pressed her palm against the trailer. Pushing up just enough to move, she got herself out of the car, both arms stretched up and holding the box. Exhaling sharply as she lowered her head, she turned her gaze to the right, over her shoulder, glancing towards Valerie.
"If I let this drop, the truck cab is going to topple over too. Is the driver okay? Can you get him out?" she asked before looking towards the point of impact and the front of the truck, the left wheels slightly off the ground.
Amber irises glared at the trailer. She could fly and set it straight, but crowds were gathering, the distant sirens signaling the arrival of emergency responders shortly. It might save Meghan's car too. Fewer things for the woman to worry about. She hoped this string of bad luck would end soon. She hoped they could deal with this Myst person quickly so that all this can be shoved back into the past and away from their future lives. Flaring her nostrils, she exhaled heavily.
"Fuck it," she muttered. Gently pushing up off the ground, the metal siding she had been pushing on bent inwards slightly as she slowly and carefully pushed the box up until all the wheels were touching the ground. Gritting her teeth at the sound of of mutters and gasps, Ana was quick to drop to the ground and keep her head low, hair covering her features, fists balled up, knuckles white as she stiffly walked around the truck cab, only looking up upon climbing the steps.
The driver was unconscious, head resting on the airbag. Opening the locked door, she reached over the man and undid his seatbelt. Taking hold of him over her shoulder, Ana lowered them to the ground. Kneeling down next to him, she looked at the man. He was breathing, heart beating clearly in her ears. There was a cut across his left brow. Tapping him gently on the cheek, she tried to wake him up. Piercing sirens exploded in her ears as she winced. Looking up, she saw hurried footsteps approach as her ears continued to ring loudly. Amber eyes came up to see EMTs running towards them. The momentarily deafened woman stood up and stepped back. Dropping her head, she stepped back further, fists clenched tightly again. Closing her eyes, she turned her head to the left as she waited for the ringing to stop. Opening her eyes, she stared at the ground, her breaths heavy, not from exhaustion, but from fear, worry, nervousness and anxiety. She continued to slowly breathe as her heart raced.
Perhaps this wasn't the smartest choice in actions, she told herself. Looking up through her hair, she watched the scene continue to unfold almost in slow motion as the painful frequency ringing in her ears started to fade.
"Sure thing." Slipping her phone back into her bag, she turned back to keep waving people away, but the onlookers seemed to have gotten the message. Glancing back at a painfully loud screech of metal to see how Ana was holding up, Valerie did a double-take and watched in amazement as the brunette cautiously made her way out of the vehicle, continuing to support what had to be several tons of metal and other material stored within the trailer with only one hand without breaking a sweat. Adding that to the door currently lying on the pavement after evidently being blown off its hinges and how it was now evident that she hadn't a scratch on her despite taking the full force of the impact, Valerie was beginning to gather an idea of exactly what her companion was capable of.
When Ana asked about the truck driver, Valerie looked to the trailer cab, squinting with a frown as she attempted to make out its details from where she stood.
"I can't tell. The cab doesn't seem to be damaged too badly, though."
She started over toward the cab, limping slightly on aching legs, but stopped as the entire vehicle shifted with a groan. Looking back to see what Ana was doing this time, she stood again transfixed in awe as the woman, now floating several feet off of the ground, carefully shifted the trailer back onto its wheels. Okay, so apparently she can fly. Of course she can. As Ana moved to check the driver herself, Valerie turned to ensure that the old lady who they had almost hit was okay. Except she wasn't a lady anymore, neither was she old. Valerie pulled up short, staring in surprise at the young man sitting frozen in shock on the pavement—a shapeshifter?
Glimpsing in her periphery a folder lying on the pavement near the apparent shifter, she approached it and picked it up, careful that nothing fell out. Her brow furrowed with a suspicious frown at the solid black lettering spelling an unmistakeable 'REDACTED' stamped across the front of the light tan manila envelope.
"Ana." Joining her companion near the truck cab, she held the folder out to her.
"The lady had one of the stolen case files. 'She' is also a guy now." She paused, the furrow in her brow deepening as she recalled what John had recounted to her about the incident at the bar the previous night.
"Spectre mentioned there was a shapeshifter at the incident last night. Could this be him?"
Finally looking up to Ana's face, hidden behind her hair, she noticed that her shoulders were rising and falling much faster than they should have been.
"Hey." Reaching up, the lawyer patted the brunette's near shoulder reassuringly.
"Don't worry about this. You weren't at fault for this accident. We would've been out of this guy's way if not for the idiot shapeshifter running across our path. If anyone tries to fault you for this, we've got about two dozen witnesses saying you weren't responsible. And hey—" her smile turned fierce—
"I'm a freaking lawyer."
The voice had been distant sounding as the ringing had grown more subtle. Ana could still hear her breaths loudly, and her heart. The outside world was distant and at the sound of her name she had sighed, slightly raising her gaze about to look for where she was being called from she stopped as a folder was placed before her by Valerie. Big, bold capitals that read 'REDACTED'. Clenching her jaw, she flared her nostrils with a hard exhale before looking towards the woman. Pushing her hair back she looked away from Valerie. Raising a brow and looking back at Val with narrowed eyes, Ana turned to look over her shoulder.
"Is he still there?" Her voice may have been too loud or too quiet she wasn't sure as in her head she sounded just fine. Closing her eyes with a sigh she shook her head, as if it would help the ringing go away, she could hope.
Folding her arms across her chest she leaned in closer and turned her head slightly to listen to the woman's words.
"It makes sense for it to be him. What did he look like?" She met the dark irises opposite her.
"Actually nevermind... he probably looks nothing like what he did at the bar." Catching the movement of the officers approaching the EMTs and them, Ana dropped her eyes again and shuffled backwards some more. Swallowing back, she clenched her jaw, a shaky breath escaping her. Nostrils flared for a moment as she quickly glanced up before looked back to the asphalt and dropping her arms. She felt the cool touch for a moment and looked towards the hand on her shoulder before glancing at Valerie. It was a hybrid of a scoff and a chuckle as her gaze lingered on the woman before dropping to the street again.
"Doesn't matter if I wasn't at fault or did something wrong or right. They'll find something to pick at or say." Another shaky breath.
Glancing up at the dented trailer and then remembering the locked door of the truck, she almost snarled at herself.
Collateral damage. Meg's door and roof.
Collateral damage. Nothing right could be done with these laws. Everything led up to what you would have to pay for using your abilities. That was pretty much it, how it worked. If you were born with unnatural abilities you were born into a life where you had to literally pay money to use something that was a part of you. Whether to help or hurt others it didn't matter. Money mattered. Anastasia agreed with Valerie, she didn't think she had done anything wrong. Could she have avoided denting the side of that trailer,
yes, at the cost of letting it cause more damage to Meghan's car and maybe even to others that were around the area. Could she have not broken the truck door?
Yes, but that driver would've been dangling sideways in the cab and possibly dealing with different types of injuries in comparison to just a cut on his forehead and whatever else may have happened in the crash.
A shake of her head followed by a heavy sigh came from Ana as she looked towards the officer who cleared his throat. She
could ignore the authorities and go after that shapeshifter, but that would only cause more problems, despite how much more important it was to catch him than deal with this
bullshit. She
couldn't, she
wouldn't. As badly as she wanted to.
"Ladies, I understand you were involved with this incident?" The officer spoke. Hands on his waist, right hand lingering just above his side arm.
"Care to explain what happened?"
Ana clenched her jaw. She could understand his uncaring demeanor towards her, she was unscathed, but Valerie had clearly suffered some cuts and bruises in the accident. Not even a question if they were okay? Or if
she was at least?
"I was making a left turn when a lady decided to run across the street. I was forced to stop in the middle of the intersection and that's when the truck hit us." She swallowed back, her words were spoken quietly.
The officer folded his arms across his chest and nodded slowly.
"From what I gathered, you are a metahuman, correct? Is that how you two managed to get out of a wreck like that unscathed?" He raised a brow.
Ana's response was a simple nod.
'Here come the legalities...' she told herself.
"Last I saw, he was still there, yeah," Valerie affirmed.
"I didn't get a good look at his face—I was distracted by the document." As she spoke, she tucked the folder in question into her bag for safe keeping until they could read through it with John and the others.
Looking up as the police officers joined the rapidly expanding group, she listened quietly as Ana discussed the details of the crash with one of them. Before he could continue his train of thought about her being a meta, however, she stepped forward almost in between her clearly anxious friend and the accusatory officer, standing tall with her arms folded confidently.
"Yes it is, and if she weren't, there would be at least three more people in the hospital than there are." She smiled, a bit thinly.
"Hi. I was her passenger. I'd most likely be dead if she hadn't intervened. There's no need to threaten her, officer," she added, noting his earlier reach for his weapon.
"If my friend had evil intentions, she wouldn't have rescued the driver or even stopped from hitting the pedestrian in the first place. Speaking of whom—" she glanced to where the shifter was sitting—
"I'm quite certain that the shapeshifter who we almost hit is of significantly more concern to you than a meta doing what she can to protect life as much as possible. I have reason to suspect that he is the same who murdered two people at the Manhattan jewelry store last night. My friend here is actually one of the metas who apprehended him."
Look out: Valerie Newmann has gone into lawyer mode.
Ana's eyes came up as Valerie stepped in front of her and between herself and the officer. Clenching her jaw, Ana leaned to the side slightly as she watched listened and remained quiet.
"I've threatened no one, ma'm. I am sorry if it seemed that way. I'm simply trying to do my job, make sure everyone is okay and make sense of this whole situation. I'm not pointing any fingers or accusing anyone of anything. Assuming that the truck hit you, I cannot do anything to your friend." He motioned towards Ana.
"Should the company that the trailer of this truck belongs to or the driver wish to pursue anything further for any potential damages caused, then I can do something. Right now as it stands, she's done nothing wrong and has fully cooperated so far." The officer spoke calmly as he kept his eyes on Valerie. He continued to listen to her as he raised a brow towards her next comment.
"How would you have information on an investigation that is still in progress?" he wondered and glanced towards Ana, who remained where she was and simply met the officer's gaze.
"Is what she's saying about this shapeshifter true, miss?"
Swallowing back, Ana nodded and muttered a
"Yes."
The officer didn't seem pleased with this.
"Please allow the paramedics to inspect you before leaving the scene. Do you intend to pursue any legal actions against the driver, m'am?" He asked as he stepped to the side to look at Ana fully.
"No, sir." She spoke in a rather military fashion.
"Your vehicle will be towed, from there it'll be up to you and your insurance company to deal with the situation," he explained and looked at both of them before walking past them to investigate the potential murderer.
After the driver was in the ambulance, the two were approached by two paramedics. Ana attempted to wave them off and state that she was okay, but the man insisted that she allowed him to do his job. Sighing, she chose not to argue as she was checked. They had to go, how they would get to the MET she wasn't sure, but this was just causing further delay.
Coming to the conclusion that Ana only suffered from a torn shirt, the brunette waited as they finished with Valerie. Placing her hands on her hips, she tucked some hair behind her ear as she sighed, eyes coming up to look at the other woman as Ana had begun pacing while she waited.
Valerie nodded thoughtfully at his analysis.
"I understand. Thank you for your diligence," she responded politely, her smile warmer now that she understood his intentions.
"A close friend of mine was present on the scene as well," she added in explanation to his query, deciding to leave Spectre anonymous for the moment.
With no further concern for her friend's safety, she stepped aside to passively listen again as the officer continued to speak to Ana. When the paramedics approached her, she submitted more willingly to examination due to having actually sustained injuries, even if only bruising and a couple of minor cuts which were quickly bandaged. Once released, she rejoined Ana, checking her watch nervously.
"We need to get going," she noted, keeping her voice low so only the other woman could overhear.
"PW won't wait forever."
"I know we do. This whole situation was just bullshit." Ana turned around and looked at the mess of dented, bent and snapped metal that surrounded them, the collision so severe that she was grateful for the fact that she had whatever powers she did.
"So you're okay then? They said everything was fine," she asked and stated.
"I eavesdropped. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have," she explained.
"Can you walk for a bit?" She raised both brows in question, remembering that Valerie had been limping around throughout this whole thing.
"I just need you to walk for a little. If not, I can carry you." Ana spoke casually as she looked from Valeria towards a row of small buildings. It was very close to the scene but it was their best option right now. Her face was stern, jaw clenched as she sighed heavily. There were two choices in her mind and one was the much faster one, also what she was leaning towards, as much as she didn't want to.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Don't worry about the limp, my legs are just bruised. The soreness has mostly faded though, I think. I don't mind that you eavesdropped, it's kinda hard not to," she added with a slight laugh. Following Ana's gaze to the secluded space, she had a feeling she knew what Ana was thinking of.
For the first time during this whole ordeal and since meeting Valerie, a small,
genuine smile spread across Ana's lips.
"Well, still. I'm sorry. It's rude," she explained and began leading them towards the set of buildings. Stepping through an alley that was next to a chinese restaurant, Anastasia pushed Val ahead of her as she looked around cautiously.
"Okay. Here we go." Taking hold of Valerie's arm, Ana placed it around her neck. With one arm behind the woman's knees and the other wrapped around the middle of her back, Ana looked down at the woman and swallowed back as she clenched her jaw.
"Make sure your bag is shut. We don't wanna lose that file." She looked up.
"Hold on tight." Her attention came back to the woman in her arms.
"Oh, and by the way. Thank you." A wider, genuine, true and thankful smile came across her lips. Looking back up, Ana bent at the knees and pushed up through the air, the sound barrier shattering against the force as she flew up high enough to not be seen by pedestrians before looking towards the direction of the MET and launching them that way.
Valerie returned the smile, following Ana into the alley. She was caught a bit off guard by the other woman suddenly sweeping her off her feet but pressed herself against Ana's body as much as she could to help with her grip, hooking her fingers over Ana's shoulder. Patting the flap of her bag to ensure it was fastened, she responded to Ana's query with a single brisk nod, pulling the bag onto her lap and securing it there with her free hand.
As she made sure she had no loose pieces on her person that could fly off in the air, she lifted her head quickly to meet Ana's eyes at her final comment, narrow eyebrows slightly lifted in surprise before she responded with a soft smile and a quiet
"You're welcome."
Then they were off. Valerie couldn't help how her smile widened into an excited grin as the wind of their ascent whipped across her skin, forcing her eyes mostly shut and testing the strength of her hold on her companion. She had flown a couple times with Spectre in the past, but the sensation never lost its luster. The thought reminded her of her friend and she craned her head to see if she could spot the park from their location, but her angle was wrong. She was sure he'd be alright, though, whatever happened there.
Ana had smirked in response to Valerie's
'you're welcome'. She hadn't been used to anybody standing up for her really, not since she had a squad in the army. Anything she had done upon coming back home had been on her own, she had to stand up for herself, deal with everything that came at her by herself. She had no friends, nobody to lean on, until she had met Meg, and when that happened she wasn't in the field of heroics, and more often than not the brunette was standing up for them, not the other way around, that didn't mean that Meghan hadn't stood up for her when needed but that wasn't often the case. It was nice to see that not everyone was an asshole just because she
wasn't human as most people liked to say.
"Looking for something or just taking in the view?" Ana asked casually.
"You should see it at night." She said with a chuckle.
As they got closer to the MET, Ana began to descend, staying high enough to be out of view as she tried to spot a secluded enough spot to come down quickly and avoid curious civilians. Spotting a dead end alley, she swept in quickly, a thunderous sound following them, that aspect didn't really help with the whole stealth approach but Ana would rather be a blur than someone who could be identified. Once they were low enough to be covered by the surrounding buildings, she slowed down and brought them into the alley with a soft landing. Exhaling through her nose, she looked at Val and cautiously put her down. It hadn't seemed like her first time flying, but better safe than sorry. Keeping her arm around the woman's back, she met her gaze.
"Are you okay to walk? Or do you need a moment. I know that flying can be sudden and disorienting, although it didn't seem like that was your first time. Which is a good thing." Ana chuckled before letting go of Val completely.
Once they were ready to go all they would need to do is get out of the alley, cross the street and walk to the corner and they were there. Let's hope this meeting was worth all the crap they had just dealt with. Adjusting her ruffled and hiked up shirt, Anastasia cleared her throat before pointing towards the mouth of the alley.
"After you," she spoke casually.
"Both," Valerie responded simply, having to raise her voice a bit to keep her words from being swept away in the wind. Her mouth split in a smile.
"I believe it."
Adjusting her clothing and bag when Ana set her back on her feet, she affirmed,
"Yeah, I'm alright." She glanced up to the other, smile fading for a more serious look as she turned her eyes to the alley and mind to their destination.
"Let's see what PW wants," she muttered half to herself as she set off, stride confident and purposeful.
Ana's response was a nod as she followed Valerie and let her lead them along to the MET. Hopefully there wouldn't be anymore issues for them today. They had dealt with enough and Anastasia's stress level was constantly rising at the thought of that file sitting in Val's bag.
"Hopefully this is something that we can get over with quickly," she stated simply, eyes and ears open and studying their surroundings. She stayed behind Valerie, looking around like a spooked woman, as if everyone was out to get them. Opening the door to the Metropolitan Museum, she held it for the woman and waited for her to get in. Clenching her jaw tightly, Ana continued to scan their surroundings.
"Agreed," Valerie murmured in a voice low enough that only Ana would be able to hear her as the two of them entered the museum. Noting her nervous expression and posture, she added in the same tone,
"Act natural. We don't want to attract unnecessary attention. Just two ladies looking at art. PW probably already knows we're here and why, but the rest of the passersby don't need to." As she spoke, she nodded a brief greeting with a friendly smile to a stranger who randomly met her eyes.
Walking to the front desk, she retrieved a pamphlet with a map from a stand and opened it, scanning the legend until she located the Medusa exhibit.
"This way," she confidently told Ana, heading into the midst of the museum. She kept her stance and gait casual, frequently glancing from her map to their surroundings and occasionally drifting to one side or another to seem less directed.
"There are a lot of things that are preventing me from acting natural," she spoke simply and continued to follow.
"I know that he knows we're here, he asked me to come." Ana clenched her jaw.
"I just hope it's not a stupid set-up." She sighed. Anastasia did her best to keep herself seemingly calm, it was hard as she allowed her senses to open up, trying to focus on the park if she could, the sounds of the museum overloading her ears every time there were whispers or footsteps. Another deep exhale escaped her as she looked around, keeping only a few steps distance from Val.
"This feels awfully specific," she muttered to herself. The relation between
Medusa and
Aegis was enough to worry her. Hopefully they wouldn't be getting the same redacted file from him. Ana was trying to keep that on the down-low. For now she was okay, but later she'd have to put it all on the table for everyone involved. If these cases were going to be recreated to exact details of how they had happened,
this one was going to be a hassle. Did that mean there was someone else who was capable of exactly what she was or did it mean she would somehow get sucked into recreating that life-altering event?
Valerie nodded in understanding and agreement to her muttered response. She was curious what about the scenario felt "awfully specific" to Ana but figured she'd have to ask or find out later.
Turning a corner, she started up a flight of stairs that would lead them into the exhibit.