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Sabine was drained. Classes were kicking her. She expected the workload, but it was something else at a school for superheroes. Not only that, but training with her team was expending her remaining mental energy. They just weren't gelling. And Nemo was doing everything in his power to try to kill them or take them on weird field trips or, perhaps worst of all, insist on meetings with tea in his office.

So when she was finally able to allot some free time, she wanted nothing more than to be with the two girls she cared for. 

[hider=@Leah, @April] [color=A2797E]-Allright bitches. Meet up in 10 minutes. idc what we do, but dear god get me away from this school for a while[/color][/hider]

Leah's team was the worst thing about this year so far. Vicky was cool, and Zarina at least had a few brain cells to rub together... But she couldn't get along with Diana for anything and she didn't trust Ed for anything as far as she could throw him- And she could kick the guy for a field goal if she wanted to. Still, that didn't mean things were going bad. Every year, when everyone else went home for summer break, Leah was still here as the only student who stayed. Not because she had summer school, but because this [i]was[/i] home for her. She trained and pushed herself even when everyone else took it easy. So ultimately, her team being annoying was as worse as it felt to her. The combat simulations were tolerable. Usagi's celebrity tier list bullshit was usually tuned out.

Even her ordinary assignments were fine, she just blasted through them since she wouldn't stress too much over Usagi's nonsense. Like a rock, she endured.

Especially when her girls were calling.

[hider=@April, @Sabine]
[color=ff9a4f]Earthbender: I'll be out front. I need to explain a thing to you anyway april. Bine already knows. Don't worry about it for right now.[/color]
[/hider]

The school year had gotten off to a bit of a rough start with April. While her Contest of Champions team wasn't her preferred line-up (there were a few key people missing) and she had her first real relationship, her mental health had been a bit all over the place. Things had gotten better when she told her parents about the broken phone situation and they sent her a new smartphone, allowing her to text at a speed faster than 20 words per minute, but a better phone wasn't enough to solve what ailed her. But instead of talking much about it, April did what she did best - she threw herself into her school work, her training, and her social life, all with a big smile on her face. 

[hider=@Sabine, @Leah][color=42A9FF]Omw rn! 💙💙💙[/color][/hider] 

She had been in the library, working on some homework for her astrozoology class. But it was definitely time for a break - April was starting to feel her eyes cross, as she read about the native habitat of flerkens and why they should [i]never[/i] be domesticated (she had sent a screenshot of that page to Diana, complete with the 👀 emoji). It wasn't too long for her to throw her things into her book bag, and then head on outside, making her way to the exterior of Stark Hall. 

Of course, she was immediately somewhat stressed about what Leah had to say. Even though Leah had said not to worry about it, April's mind immediately generated a list of terrible scenarios: 1) Leah was going to break up with her but not Sabine, 2) Leah was dying, 3) Leah was leaving the school, 4) April had done something problematic and Leah and Sabine were going to cancel her for it, and then break-up with her, 5) the Monster Mash had a rule against polyamorous couples and they had to decide who was going to go.

Sabine checked her texts, happy to see the both of them were on board. Now to decide what to do. They could go shopping? Perhaps she could buy each of them a gift, maybe give Leah an actual jacket to wear that looks good on her. Or maybe go out to eat? There were some nearby food trucks she had been meaning to try.

Either way, it was time away from school and with her girls. She would be satisfied as long as she was with them. It was funny, Sabine never thought she would be in a relationship at school, let alone with two girls, one she was roommates with (and they were roommates!) and was sure she hated Sabine and the other a girl she had seen around but had never much spoken to before recently.

Isn't it funny how life worked?

A few minutes later, Leah was outside the main building of the school, the place where everyone usually went when they first arrived at the school. Like usual, she was dressed in her trusty Carhartt jacket big enough for two people. She was checking her phone to see if the girls texted her before she got her, and was mentally preparing herself for the conversation she had to have to April. Sabine didn't seem to care, especially not with the "rock climbing" they that day, but April might be scared off... And that worried Leah.

Oh boy, here they come.

[color=ff9a4f]"Hey."[/color]

April was beaming, waving at Leah before hurrying up a little more to catch up to her. She was dressed pretty casually - a pain of light washed denim short shorts, a crop top she had fashioned out of Margaret Carter Institute spirit shirt, and white converse high tops. Her dirty blonde hair was pushed up into double buns. Her sunglasses were perched on her forehead like a headband. [color=42A9FF]"Hey!"[/color] April greeted, giving Leah a kiss on the cheek. [color=42A9FF]"You look nice today!"[/color] Her heart was pounding. Leah didn't seem mad? Maybe the worst wasn't about to happen? Or maybe Leah was just trying to figure out a way to spare April's feelings?

Sabine had seen the two and ran over. She was wearing a yellow mini-dress and white sandals. She wrapped the two of them in a hug. [color=A2797E]"Hello life savers! God, I need this day. So what are we in the mood for? Literally, anything to get me away from this place. Pick your poison!"[/color]

She eyed both of them, both looking every bit as nice as before. How had she gotten so lucky?

[color=ff9a4f]”Shit, I dunno. I never go anywhere except here and to bed. I’ll just pull a rock out of the ground and we can ride it like a plane. That’s faster than walking.”[/color] Shit… April looked so damn happy right now. Was this [i]really[/i] the time to bring her up to speed on everything? Leah started having second thoughts. If she did tell April about her dad, maybe she’d have the same reaction as Sabine, but what if she thought of her differently after? [i]Fuck[/i]

[color=ff9a4f]”Haven’t really been anywhere but here in a while.”[/color]

April swooned slightly, as Sabine pulled her and Leah into a hug. She pressed a quick kiss to Sabine's cheek - after all, she had kissed Leah's cheek, so it was only fair. She didn't want to play favorites among her girlfriends. The real reason, of course, was that her girlfriends were both incredibly hot and April desperately wanted to kiss them. It was a bit of a jumbled mess of emotions up in her head, but she hadn't imploded yet, so everything seemed to be okay? Maybe she had overreacted with Leah's message? Maybe Leah was just going to confess that sometimes she liked to hang upside down and pretend to be a bat? 

[color=42A9FF]"Well, we could go vibe at the mall, be in our mall era - or we could go to the beach, that's always fun - ooh or maybe go see a movie, I heard Barbenheimer II is supposed to be [i]super[/i] good, like amazingly good - oooh or we could go to the salon and get mani-pedis ooor we could go get bubble tea, there's a really cute bubble tea spot nearby that makes these adorable little pastries that look like teddy bears, they're sooo cute!!"[/color] April rambled. 

It was adorable how excited April was in her little ramble. Someone had to decide. [color=A2797E]"Well I really want to go to those new food trucks that were set up so let's go get bubble tea and some food then. And we can even eat on the beach. What do you think?"[/color] Sabine bit her tongue on her thoughts on the beach. If her girlfriends wanted the beach, she would damn well give them the beach.

[color=A2797E]"I can drive if you both want. Perfect day to drive with the windows down.[/color]

[color=ff9a4f]”That sounds nice. But what the hell is bubble tea? Never heard of that.”[/color] That wasn’t a joke, she genuinely didn’t drink tea enough to know what it was. [color=ff9a4f]”Oh, and your car might get shredded by me. Just saying.”[/color] Yeah, the talk could wait. She wanted this, and didn’t want to ruin it. If April cared like Leah knew she did, then it wouldn’t scare her off.

Assuming her “beach fit” didn’t do so first.

[color=42A9FF]"Yes! That sounds perfect!"[/color] April squealed. She could just picture the three of them, living their California fantasy, driving with the top down - well, the [i]windows[/i] down - their hair splayed behind them. It'd be just like in the movies. She wanted to swoon again at the thought of it. [color=42A9FF]"Oh! Bubble tea, is, well it's usually a milk tea with these, like, little squishy tapioca pearls at the bottom. But it can be also other things, like I really like the lychee jelly - oh and it comes in tons of flavors, and just overall, it's super aesthetic."[/color]

Sabine had nearly forgotten Leah's hair was like sandpaper. [color=A2797E]"Just....try not to rub your head against the seats. I can have the top down which will help. And yes, bubble tea is a must. Also the food trucks should have some good spots for pictures too. Shall we?"[/color] Sabine began walking to her car. 

[color=ff9a4f]"Yeah, let's go. I'll try not to vaporize the seats."[/color] Leah followed her to the car. Why the hell did this make her nervous? It's not like they were going on a first date. Well... Technically it was, but they were already a thing! And the old man definitely wasn't about to just appear out of nowhere and shoot everyone. What did Leah have to lose? [i]Nothing,[/i] she told herself. [i]Nothing bad will happen. Nothing will go wrong. Enjoy this.[/i]

April followed along, her heart pounding. [i]Pictures[/i]. Of course they were going to be taking pictures! Hopefully she looked cute in them. She didn't doubt that Leah and Sabine would look perfect, especially on the first take, but April tended to over-scrutinize images of herself. She usually demanded at least ten takes for every attempted photo she'd take with Danni and Dori. And even then ten takes usually wasn't enough. If she wasn't hyperfixating on one thing, she was hyperfixating on another. [color=42A9FF]"So, um, what was it you wanted to talk about, Leah?"[/color] April blurted, before she could stop herself. That was what she was currently trying not to hyperfixate on. And struggling. It was easier to voice the question as they walked, her eyes forward and not on either of her girlfriends - and their eyes not on her. 

Once in the car, Sabine began the drive, noticing some tension. What [i]did[/i] Leah want to talk about? [color=A2797E]"Whatever it is, now is the time to do it. Unless you don't want me in the conversation, which fair enough. But we are going to be surrounded by a bunch of people where we are going so this is the safest space to talk about whatever."[/color] Sabine could even extend the drive for a bit to allow the conversation to happen. Wasn't like the food trucks were going anywhere. Plus, Sabine thought, April needed this also. Girl was not hiding her nerves as well as she'd hoped.

[i]Fuck.[/i]

Of course April's hyperaware ass wouldn't let that slide... And Leah couldn't be mad. But she still felt fucking [i]nervous[/i] about it. Leah stared out the window, absentmindedly as she thought about how to bring this up. Sabine didn't give a shit, so there was that. [i]Okay, just start speaking.[/i]

[color=ff9a4f]"My dad's a supervillain... I already told Sabine about this a while back, so it's only fair that you know as well. I don't talk about it much, but before I showed up and met you two, he killed my mother, and I tried to kill him. And up until I walked into Agatha's weird magic tent, I thought he was dead. And... He's alive, still. And he's looking for me, and he's really, [i]really fucking dangerous."[/i][/color]

Leah paused for a moment, hesitating and feeling afraid of what April might say. 

[color=ff9a4f]"One day, he's gonna find me. And when he does, he'll do absolutely anything in his power to drag me away to some place where I'll never see the light of day again. He'll kill everyone around me if they try to stop him. That's why I thought you should know, because I don't want you to be surprised if he flies out of the sky and carpet bombs the place-"[/color] [i]And I'll understand if you don't want to be around me anymore.[/i] She almost said that part out loud.

April was in the back-seat of the car, directly behind Leah. It probably wasn't the best spot to be in, given that Leah's hair was lethal and deadly, but she hadn't really thought things through. She usually sat on the right side of the car anyways when she was a passenger, so it was just a force of habit. It also meant that no one could really see her face, as Leah dropped the BOMB. And maybe April was a bit ill, but rather than feeling horrified or scared... she felt [i]relieved[/i]. This wasn't a break-up speech. She hadn't done anything wrong. She had nothing to be worried about. 

Her girlfriend's dad was a supervillain. Who might try to hurt and/or kill them, in an effort to hurt and/or kill Leah. April could handle that. 

[color=42A9FF]"Oh!"[/color] April said, sounding a bit more chipper than she meant. [color=42A9FF]"Oh,"[/color] she then said, more neutrally, spiced with a bid of sorrow on Leah's behalf. [color=42A9FF]"That's really rough,"[/color] she said, unknowingly channeling Prince Zuko - at least she hadn't called Leah [i]buddy[/i]. [color=42A9FF]"But we've got this. When he shows up, we'll take care of him, it'll be easy! We're all superheroes, right? In training, but that's fine. This is just your super heroic origin story, where you'll beat your dad, and we'll be right by your side. But also... I guess if we're disclosing stuff, then I should mention that there're some supervillains in my family tree too... Namely Magneto. He's my grandpa. Not to steal your thunder, I'd feel bad if you shared and I didn't share, because that wouldn't be, like, fair or right to you two."[/color]

Sabine was happy Leah got this off her chest. And it seemed April had her own fucked up family. [color=A2797E]"My step-mom is a bitch, but that's about as far into my family as evil beings go. Like I said, he comes after you I will turn his brain into literal mush. Same with your grandpa April. I can revert them back to literal babies if I wanted to. Fry their brains so badly steam comes out of their eyes and ears. Say the word and I got you."[/color]

Holy shit. [i]Magneto.[/i] Leah took a moment to grasp that. April “Cascade” Flynn, the resident Golden Retriever of Margaret Carter, was the grandkid of Erik fucking Lensherr. Wow.

[color=ff9a4f]”…Wow. Fuck. Does- Does he know you’re here? Magneto doesn’t sound like the kind of person to let his grandchildren go to a school where humans and wizards are. Do I need to snap an old geriatric motherfucker in half?”[/color] Leah asked, stealing Sabine’s term for Imperator from not long ago. [color=ff9a4f]”Because I will shatter him like glass if he tries anything funny. Fuck, all three of us got shitty family, huh? Fuck, man…”[/color] Despite this revelation, Leah felt relieved. Relieved that April wasn’t put off, or saw her differently. That was a monumental weight off her chest.

April furrowed her eyebrows slightly, thinking. [color=42A9FF]"I don't know if he does?"[/color] she admitted. [color=42A9FF]"I'm not really in touch with my dad's bio family - he was adopted,"[/color] she explained. Biology was really the only connection she felt with Erik Lensherr - and the only connection she wanted. She knew some people saw him as a savior - maybe just as many who saw him as a villain. Then most of her aunts and uncles from that side of the family turned out to have psychotic breaks that caused them to become villains. If anything, that was what April was worried about - what was lurking inside of her DNA, waiting to hurt her and everyone else around her. 

[color=42A9FF]"I'm sorry about your step-mom, though,"[/color] April said genuinely, frowning slightly. She wished her girlfriends had better home lives. They deserved better than what they had gotten. 

Sabine shrugged. [color=A2797E]"She's nothing. Some woman who latched on to my dad when she could. Obvious gold digger. And her two spawn are so annoying. I ignore them, they ignore me. Works fine all around."[/color] Her fingers clenched on the steering wheel as she drove. [color=A2797E]"Anywho, point is if either of them come for either of you I will explode their mind. Literally. I've been practicing."[/color]

[color=ff9a4f]”Yeah. We don’t need our families. We’ve got each other for that. We [i]are[/i] our family now. Everyone else who threatens that will suffer the consequences. If Magneto or your worthless stepmom try anything with any of us, I will [i]personally[/i] grind them to dust with my bare hands.”[/color]

With that intense thing being said, Leah paused for a moment, staring out the window.

[color=ff9a4f]”I’ve been telling myself for a couple of years now that he was gone for good. That I’d never see his face again, or hear his voice again. The reason I never talked about him was because I thought I had actually killed him. Sabine saw a memory of him fighting me-“[/color] That was what she called it, not [i]abusing[/i] her, [color=ff9a4f]”-And she saw how fucking [i]menacing[/i] he can me. I’d take Magneto over him if I had a choice. If he did that to either of you… I took out my whole house and everything around it for [i]miles[/i] back then, trying to kill him. The school, and the whole city probably wouldn’t be left standing if he showed up, by the time I was through with him.”[/color]

April was mildly uncomfortable with Leah's declaration that they didn't need their families - she liked her family, her parents, even her irritating little sister - but she didn't raise this point. She knew what Leah was trying to say - or at least, April thought she did. She listened as Leah explained why she'd never mentioned her horrible father before, not that April felt like that needed an explanation. It was definitely a sensitive subject, even if Leah's father had actually been dead. She reached forward, putting a hand on Leah's shoulder. [color=42A9FF]"You don't need to worry about him. We've got this,"[/color] April promised. [color=42A9FF]"Sabine can delete his mind, you can bury him alive in rocks, and I can fill his lungs with water until he pops. It'll be fun! And emotionally satisfying, I think."[/color] 


Sabine let the conversation hang as she pulled into a spot by the bubble tea place. She turned the car off and sat for a second. When she really thought about it, she had it pretty good. Sure her step-mother was a monster and her children were annoyances, but her father, through his many faults, loved her. Though he went about it the wrong way (and it wasn't like she was about to complain when he footed the bill). But she didn't have family that actively wanted to hurt or kill her (though she was sure her step-monster would take the first opportunity). 

[color=A2797E]"Girlies, we are here, so I am calling an end to this conversation other than to say that if they mess with either of you I will see they never have a good day ever again. And I can make that happen. Literally, make them never forget trauma or pain whenever they close their eyes. Now, who wants bubble tea?"[/color]

It wasn’t the most logical thing, and probably made Leah look a little dumb, but she felt like she was about to start tearing up. Leah wasn’t used to being this emotional around people. Being connected, letting the walls down like this and feeling like she was genuinely cared about was… Nice. It was cathartic in a way, to feel loved. Leah stepped out of the car, and waited for April and Sabine to get out too, before suddenly wrapping both of them in a loose bear hug. Normally, Leah was the stone cold, bulletproof personality who didn’t particularly [i]like[/i] hugs, but this was different.

[color=ff9a4f]”…I fucking love both of you.”[/color]