"Don't worry, I'm really good at it. Just ask the Wards, or the younger members of New Wave. It's too bad that Triumph graduated to the Protectorate now. You know his shout thing? Well, he could also do a really low pitched hum that made it feel like you were getting eaten out by a vibrator." She went on like that, extolling the "virtues" of the various teenage heroes in the city, for a few minutes while my face grew more and more red. "But anyway, gimme a bit to call in some help."

Madison stepped to the far side of my hospital room as she pulled out her phone and called someone. "Hey, Vicky, it's Mads. I'm good, but I need yours and your sister's help, when you get some time. I screwed up, and I need to make things right. Can you meet me at Brockton Bay General? Six is good. See you then."

* * *

I was sitting in the mall food court with Madison, Vicky, and Amy — they insisted I use their civilian names out of costume — preparing to start me on the path to perversion. Dad had arrived at the hospital just as Madison was bringing Panacea in to heal me, so we were able to get the paperwork filled out and go home only a little while later, but not before Madison had explained to Dad what had happened and how she would be making it up to me. I didn't go to school the next day, but the day after Madison basically dragged me to Principal Blackwell's office and confessed her part of everything as well as explaining what Emma and Sophia had done.

Which had led to Sophia being sent to juvie, since she had apparently been on probation for something since last September. And with Madison now trying to be my friend, or something to that effect, Emma was mostly alone on the bullying front. The other girls might try to fill Madison's place, but with the trio broken up, Madison claimed, they would find other ways to prove their place in the social hierarchy.

"So," Madison began, "The first step in enjoying yourself is to appreciate your self. That's where Amy comes in."

I had assumed that the plan for today was just a shopping trip, but apparently Madison had other plans.

Amy nodded. "I understand it may be embarrassing, but I'd like you to tell me what you would change about your body," she said.

I sighed. "I'm flat, and too skinny. I look like a frog standing upright. The only feminine thing I have going for me is my hair."

"Alright," Amy said. "Just so you understand what I plan to do, my power works by moving around what's already in a person's body. Getting rid of a disease or closing a wound is simple. Turning one type of cell into another is rather easy, and moving body mass around takes time, but isn't really a challenge. Regrowing limbs is the hardest for me, since the body doesn't usually have too much extra calcium floating around, and I usually do that in stages of a little bit of bone growth at a time."

I thought about what she was saying. "What does that have to do with me liking or not liking what I look like?"

"Most people don't realize that I'm not limited to healing. I can change someone from male to female or vice versa. Theoretically, I could turn a person into a dog, or have their limbs fall off with a touch. There's a lot that I can do.

"What I'd like to do for you comes in two parts. First, I'll modify your body's hunger and fullness response, and make your gastrointestinal tract more efficient and more flexible. This way you'll be able to eat more, and gain more calories from what you're eating. Most of this will be stored as fat, so I'll have more material to work with for phase two. Then, once you've gained enough, I'll turn the first set of changes back to normal, and use the excess fat to give you the body shape you want."

"If we do this now, we could probably head down to Fugly Bob's, get a Challenger or two, and have this done before it's time for you to go home." Vicky added.

"What if I wanted to be taller?" I asked.

"It would probably be best to take some calcium supplements before I make the change," Amy said. "I'm not completely sure how much you would need, but if you take more of them one or two at a time before I change your digestive system back, it wouldn't be too hard to get your bones back to as strong as they were before."

"Okay." I took a deep breath and let it out. "I think I know what I want to do."

Greg's "Mind Control"

(Автор: Subrosian_Smithy)

"What the fuck is that!?" Sophia whimpered at the sight of Greg's kludged-together taser-pistol.

Greg rolled his eyes at the bitch who had made Taylor's life a living hell. He almost didn't want to dignify her with a response, but the opportunity to screw with her was too good to pass up. "It's a mind-control ray. I've already used it on you and your cronies, and now I'll activate the subconscious conditioning!" He twisted a bolt on the side of the pistol for effect.

"No! Please, no, don't rape me!"

"...uh, I didn't say anything about raping you."

A steady dripping noise began and Greg suddenly noticed that Sophia had gone from zero to sopping wet in the space of moments. "Oh, please, don't, anything but that!"

What the fuck.

* * *

Approximately seven hours of enthusiastic fucking and uncountable orgasms later, Greg finally collapsed to the bedspread, utterly spent. Taylor and the trio had already petered out and fallen asleep in a loose group hug. Knott and Blackwell were still pawing at each other over in the corner. The latest arrival to the orgy — a cute blonde girl with a smattering of freckles, who had come with Taylor — eagerly swallowed Greg's last release before curling up in bed next to him.

"I don't think they actually bought it, you know. I mean, a tinker-tech mind control ray? That was your story?"

Greg mulled it over before shrugging. "It was good enough for them."

Saving The World With Dubious Summons

(Автор: SamPardi)

Scion turned to silently regard the new existence. The form was idealized for the locals, but held both male and female features. Had it not studied the local culture thoroughly before manifesting itself?

[QUERY?]

[NEGATION. QUERY: PARTNER?]

[NEGATION. SORROW.]

[QUERY PURPOSE?]

[CONFUSION. EMPTINESS.]

The other was next to his avatar in a moment and then enveloped it with their arms. For the first time he felt something from his avatar and it felt... warm.

[PURPOSE! ENTERTAINMENT! ENJOYMENT!]

He contemplated the other's message.

[EXPERIMENT] He cautiously replied.

[EXPERIMENT!] It agreed. [PRIMARY! SPECIFICATIONS!]

Scion reviewed the avatar design sent. It would be of the opposite sex to his current avatar but such things didn't matter to the WARRIOR since it was beyond gender. Data input was also increased enormously, especially in touch. It was not sure it understood the purpose but it had agreed to experiment.

It made the necessary adjustments but was unprepared for the strength of the stimulus. The feel of the other's body, the wind against its skin, a small nip of the other's mouth against its neck. Involuntarily its avatar back arched and it screamed loud enough to shatter every window in the nearest 23.245698765 meters.

[PLEASURE!]

[CONTINUATION?]

[AGREEMENT!]

* * *

Taylor panted as the stranger in the fedora wiped the pussy juices away from her mouth. "And... And you're certain this will save the world?"

The woman nodded, "Mirror, incense, silk pillow spread, lesbian sex between an older woman and a fifteen year old girl. The ritual is correct, she has been summoned."

"And how exactly is summoning a hermaphroditic sex goddess supposed to save the world?" Taylor asked.

The woman grabbed a cell-phone from the pocket of her pants and quickly navigated to a video site. She turned the screen towards Taylor as the video started playing.

"Oh god! Is that Scion!? With a..." Taylor trailed off dumbfounded.

"I'll be going now. I bet Rebecca two years on a nude beach in the Bahamas if I could save the world before noon. I intend to collect." The woman told her. "Door me."

Family: Prologue

(Автор: Angush)

So I did a little bit of a prologue for the Taylor-and-Amy-as-step-sisters thing.

Fair warning, there's no sexy times, it's mostly meant to be a combination of sad and heartwarming. It's also a totally unedited brain dump, so there's almost definitely some inconsistencies and things I left unfinished. But whatever.

BTW, this takes place before the Brockton Bay Brigade went public, and it's (obviously) a slight AU in regards to Mark and Annette's deaths.

* * *

Part 1

I didn't know what to do.

The sun was setting now, headstones casting their long rectangular shadows onto the grass, still wet from the rain. A cheap imitation of tranquility, like someone had missed the memo. Graveyards weren't supposed to be sunny.

The gravestone itself was granite, smooth and clean-cut. The design was simple: a rectangle, gently rounded at the edges. Nothing fancy. They couldn't really afford it right now. Not that it mattered. He wouldn't have cared, anyway.

The inscription was just as simple. Mark Dallon. 1971 to 2003. Beloved father, husband, and son. Taken too soon. Etcetera. He wouldn't have cared about that, either.

That was sort of the point. He hadn't been meant to care. That was a known quantity. Something that had always been accounted for, right from the start.

His apathy was part of the plan. His death wasn't.

A sound escaped my lips.

The plan. Like there was one.

A hand dropped on my shoulder and squeezed, firm but gentle. I turned and looked at my sister. She looked back, but didn't say anything. I sighed, turning back to the gravestone.

We stood in silence for a while longer, her hand on my shoulder, a reminder that she'd always been the strong one. That I was never good enough.

"That's not true," Sarah said, her voice soft. I glanced back at her. Had I said that out loud? Damn. "Everyone has their moments of weakness. You know I have. There's no shame in that."

I looked back at the gravestone. "Where's Victoria?"

Sarah said nothing for a moment, then sighed. "She's with Amy." I flinched. I couldn't help it. "Neil's looking after them."

Silence.

"How is she?"

"They were asleep when I left. They shared Crystal's bed. She says they cried themselves to sleep."

"Hmm."

More silence.

"How are you holding up?" Sarah said.

"I should be with her," I said.

"You need to grieve, too."

"She's more important."

"No she isn't."

I looked at her again, my fists clenched hard. "How can you say that?"

Sarah sighed. "She has Amy. They'll support each other."

"I should be doing that!"

"You can't. Not the same way."

"I... What?"

"They're sisters, Carol." No they're not. "Yes, they are. They can cry on each other's shoulders. You have to be strong for them. You can't do that. Not yet."

"Why not?"

"You haven't cried."

"So? I didn't... I don't..." I trailed off. The fight left me, and I looked back at the gravestone.

Silence.

"I..." Dammit! "Did I ever tell you why I married him?"

"I guessed," Sarah said.

"But did I ever tell you?"

"No."

"He... he was safe," I said. "Easy. Something I could... control."

Sarah didn't speak.

"He never... started anything. He never wanted anything. He never argued. He always did what I told him to. I... He... Whenever we had sex, it was me. I initiated it. I was in control. It started when I said so, and it ended when I said so.

"I... I had everything planned out. He wasn't supposed to be a husband. He was supposed to be a tool. A means to an end. He gave us an edge in fights. He... he gave me Victoria. And that was it. T-that was all I wanted him for. I d-didn't love him. N-never. I — "

Sarah spun me around and wrapped me in her arms.

"Sa — W-what are you doing?"

"Hugging you, stupid," Sarah said. Her voice was shaky.

"W-why?" I raised my hands to her shoulders. "Y-you don't..."

"You're crying, Carol." She pulled back a bit and looked me in the eyes, tears streaming down her face.

"N-n-no I'm n-not," I said. Why was I stuttering? "W-why would I be c-crying? I d-don't..."

"It's okay, Carol."

"I — " I tried to stop my arms from trembling.

"It's just us here. Just you and me."

"I — I wasn't — "

"It's okay." She pulled me back into her embrace and squeezed hard, one hand pushing my head down into her neck, stroking my hair.

I wasn't supposed to love him.

"It's okay."

For the first time in fifteen years, I cried.

* * *

Sarah carried me to her house. She kept above the clouds for most of the way, so nobody could identify us, and floated through the window of her bedroom under cover of darkness.

She put me down, then left for a minute. When she came back, she lay down beside me and wrapped me in her arms again.

I don't remember falling asleep.

* * *

Sarah woke me the next morning with breakfast-in-bed. Bacon and eggs, with a glass of orange juice on the side. We ate together, and made an even bigger mess of her bed, but she didn't care.

"How are you feeling?" she asked when we'd finished, smiling softly and putting an arm around me.

"I'm fi — " I stopped myself. "I don't know. But I'm... It's better than it was yesterday."

Sarah squeezed my shoulder. "That's good." She stood and grinned mischieviously. "Now, what do you want to do today? Watch a movie? Or maybe go window shopping? Y'know, some good-old-fashioned sisterly bonding?"

I smiled. "Maybe some other time. I... I think I should go back."

Sarah's grin faded. "Are you sure?" she said. "You know you can stay here as long as you want."

"I know," I said. "But you were right, earlier. I have to be strong. For... for them."

"And you know you can call any time. I'll come. Always."

"I know."

Sarah looked at me for a moment, then nodded. "I'll get the girls, then."

"No," I said, grabbing her arm. "I'll do it." I walked past her, to the door, and stopped. I looked back at her. "And, uh... Sarah..."

"Yes?"

"I... Thank you," I said. It shouldn't have been so hard. "For everything."

Sarah smiled, and stepped forward to hug me again. "You're my sister, Carol. I'll do anything for you. I love you."

I smiled into her hair. "I love you, too."

* * *

We walked out into the kitchen, Sarah taking our dishes to the sink. Victoria and Amy were sitting at the dining table opposite Crystal and Eric, poking absently at their breakfast. I stopped behind them. Neil was attempting to entertain them with some story of his, but only Eric seemed to be paying attention. He stopped talking when he saw me.