Possessive Behavior

"Here they are." Davison said as he presented me with a pair of gloves. Sleek, black....soft.

"These are Eternal Gloves? Don't feel all that sturdy."

"Well, they are. Created with magic, and can only be torn with magic. Should be heat resistant too. Try them out before you take'em if you don't believe me."

I put one glove down and the other on. It was a few sizes too big, but it immediately shrank down to fit me when I slipped it over my wrist.

"Neat."

I reached down into my waist bag and fumbled for the halo, but I couldn't find it for the life of me.

"Hot damn, don't tell me I lost it." I murmured and reached deeper, sinking almost up to my shoulder when I felt it.

The scorching, unbearable heat.

I had not been able to feel it with my gloved hand, but the other parts of my arm were not as protected.

"I guess it works, at least partially."

I grabbed the sharp trinket carefully and pulled it out.

"Oh jeez..." Davison said as the shining object quickly increased the room temperature to uncomfortable levels once it was free of the bag.

"I only saw it the once in person, but last time it wasn't that damn hot, was it?"
.

I shook my head.

"No, definitely not. But my hand is nice and cool."

I looked it over. Not only was it hotter, it seemed less bright than before too.

"The thing has been getting steadily hotter and sharper. If it's gotten this sweltering, I'm kinda interested to see how well it can cut now. You have anything hard lying around you don't need anymore?" I asked.

The supplier crossed his arms, thought for a bit, reached under his desk, and produced a briefcase.

"Mage Iron. The cheapest of the magically produced alloys. It ain't the most secure but it does reflect bullets and can withstand most explosions. I have a better one now. Was planning to have it taken apart anyway. You know, to sell the metal separately. "

He placed the case on the desk in front of him.

"Be my guest. But afterward, put that thing away, please. Nothing worse than a hot office."

I gripped tighter, feeling nothing through the gloves.

Slowly, I lowered the halo down until it made contact.

There was no resistance. It cut like butter.

As Davison whistled, I couldn't help but smirk.

"Thanks." I said and dropped it back into my bag.

With increased flourish, I put the first installment for the gloves on his desk.

A good investment.

Looked like the Master Controller had found a new signature weapon.

Now, I could concentrate on taking the trash out.

-----------------------------------

"Gerald. I have a heads-up for you." I said as I lazily licked the salted caramel ice cream scoop.

"Shoot, MC." the gang member replied as he prepared the plum ice cream I was planning to take back home for Jess.
.
Cozy Creme Daydream was one of the better-hidden Fimbulwinter fronts. A store in an out-of-the-way little nook staffed by people with no criminal records or official association with criminal organizations of any kind. And since the members ate the product it was actually of good quality, though exorbitantly expensive for anyone not in the know.

"Tomorrow, a girl named Laura will come here with a friend. Laura is an associate of mine. Can you give her the discount?"

"Sure thing." he said as he added two drops of Cold Preserver.

"The girl she's bringing is a Hero. So don't freak out when she shows up. The White Cape has no idea about this place. It's all part of a plan."

He nodded.

"Okay.....And...which hero is it?"

I held back a second or two before muttering it.

Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

"Honeybadger.

Gerald froze as he wrapped the cup in its paper packaging. His left hand wandered up to pinch the bridge of his nose.

"Of course. Of course, it's Honeybadger. You're killing me sometimes, MC. You really do."

In response, I flashed him a grin.

"I try my best."

-----------------------------------

"So....I looked you up." I....or rather, Laura said as we sat at the cozy corner table, Ice Cream before us. I stuck my spoon into my two-scoop lemon-cinnamon sweet treat and began eating.

As Mallory I usually ordered this plus an extra scoop of Coffee, for Lu's sake, to share. Should be enough to trigger some memories. Today I needed her vulnerable and nostalgic or it wouldn't work.

Before I could proceed any further I needed to get her to at least consider the possibility of dating someone again. Considering the mental blocksge, this would take drastic measures. For anyone who didn't know her inside and out this would have been an impossible task. But for me....well, it was still risky. But, keeping in mind everything I knew about her this was the plan with the largest likelihood of success.

As planned, Luisa sat across from me, staring at my cup, her own single-scoop coffee Ice Cream almost forgotten.

"You want a bite?" I asked.

She shook her head.

"No, I just......You looked me up?"

I gave her a curt nod between bites.

"Honeybadger."

With great difficulty, I tried to whistle, but it seemed Laura wasn't really built for that.

"Excise that from your memory, please. Anyway, after the alley I expected you to be a cape of some kind, but I never once thought you'd turn out to be an Enlightened. The best of the best. I mean, I could've assumed, with your glowing personality and all, but..."

Lu rubbed the back of her neck, clearly uncomfortable.

With some hesitation, she finally took her first bite of Ice Cream.

"Yeah, well....I don't like to make a big deal out of this. Honeybadger is my work. Right now, I'm just Luisa. Just...just don't treat me any differently. Please."

I chuckled.

"No can do, old lady. Now that I know you're a big shot I'm not gonna hold back my teasing anymore. I know you can take it."

Lu chuckled back.

"Now that...that sounds like the kind of preferential treatment I can accept."

"And anyway, big girl. Listen to me. There's not going to be any 'just Luisa' talk with me, alright? You're not 'just Luisa', you're Luisa. Honeybadger is great, but she can't survive without you. Whereas I'm pretty sure Luisa could do just fine without Honeybadger."

She blushed a bit.

It was just so damn easy.

"I...I didn't mean it like that."

"I'm sure you didn't intentionally. But stuff like this is subconscious. Don't worry. I'll make sure Luisa gets enough love that slip-ups like those don't happen anymore."

Her blushing intensified.

"Metaphorically speaking, of course." I added.

"O-of course."

I reached out over the table and gently grabbed her hand.

She pulled back immediately.

I had held her hand before, but I guess grabbing it to drag someone along and holding it tenderly evokes different emotions.

"I'm sorry. It's just.....I'm not ready yet."

I nodded.

"Is it because of Satori?"

I said.

"The girl you left to be tortured for 5 years?"

I didn't say.

She looked up at me, her mouth hanging open, barely.

"Told you I looked you up."

My tone was somber, only a hint of Laura's usually jovial character left.

"I read about you two."

Luisa nodded slowly and looked down.

"Yeah. She was...very important to me."

I took a deep breath. This was my riskiest gamble yet. When Luisa's favorite Aunt died early in our relationship I gave her a lot of space and tried to mince my words. This didn't help at all. Her uncle then had a stern discussion with her at the funeral and that had worked a lot better.

Still....I was a bit nervous. This had the potential to ruin the build-up, but on the other hand it could also massively speed it up. And maybe it was because Laura was bleeding into me, but I liked those odds.

"Lu. What happened to Satori was tragic. But it was half a decade years ago. You can't let it keep you down forever."

She shook her head.

"I know, but...l can't just forget about her. Pretend nothing happened.

You better not.

"No one expects that of you. Listen, I read a lot about your relationship. Satori sounded like a great woman. You know her better than me, but I'm sure she wouldn't want her memory to keep you from being happy."

What she really wanted was her memory driving you to jump off the tower, but life isn't fair.

I took her hand again and this time she didn't pull back.

"You don't have to forget her. Or pretend nothing happened. She was a big part of your life. Your relationship shaped and defined a large chunk of you, and made you the amazing woman you are today."

Amazingly dense, that is.

"You should keep her in your heart always. But use that love and passion you shared to make your life as happy and fulfilling as possible. Don't let it stop you from finding love again."

I took a deep breath.

"The reason I'm bringing this up isn't because I want to get in your pants. I mean, I have been flirting, but that's all in good fun. The reason is....I....I can relate to your situation very well."

I forced some tears.

A+ acting.

Maybe I was in the wrong field.

"I lost my fiance. A Villain attack. He was my light. My prince. My everything. And I carry him with me always. But I know he would hate it if I spent the rest of my life alone because of him, so I try. I try every day."

I wiped my eyes with my free hand.

"This new love, it doesn't have to compete with the old love. I'm sure no one could live up to Satori in your mind, just like no one could live up to Takumi in mine."

Takumi was the name of the protagonist of the very first title of my favorite video game franchise. Whenever I was around Lu, all I could think of was the past.

"But you have to give yourself a chance to love again. It doesn't have to be right now. It doesn't have to be with me. But I would hate to see you live a loveless life forever. And I'm sure Satori would too."

I could feel it. The cracks were widening! Yes! That dumb bitch fell for it!

God.

All these stories I consumed over my lifetime preaching about how revenge is never worth it....none of them accurately portrayed how good it feels.

Ripping Angelica's undeserved halo off her smug, hypocritical head had already felt amazing, but this trumped it by a mile. And I wasn't even done here yet.

I hadn't even really started.

Luisa wiped the tears from her own eyes and pulled back.

"You're right. I....I can't promise anything, but....but that I'll try. She was such a big part of my life. Of my plans for the future. Our plans. But yes....she would probably kick my ass if she could see me right now."

You have no idea how right you are.

Now for the final part of today's operation. A good tactic to switch Luisa from somber to joyful was proposing some kind of silly challenge. She loved competing, even for very low stakes.

I looked down at our cups. I had finished one of my scoops and Lu had taken one spoonful of hers.

"Enough mushy stuff for today. I bet I can finish my Ice Cream before you finish yours."

She looked at me and cracked a small smile, eyes still brimming with tears.

"If you want to lose, go ahead."

I smirked back.

"Ready, set, go!"

Halfway through I pretended to have a brain freeze and let her win.

In the end, I would say this little outing turned out to be a full success.

---------------------------------------------------

That evening I got a message on my phone.

It was from The Haunting Nightmare.

Master Controller. You are hereby formally invited to your initiation Dinner. It's tomorrow evening, 9 PM. Don't be late. The whole team'll be there to welcome you, so you can get to know your fellow freaks. Looking forward to a long and productive partnership.

I sighed.

Alright.

I guess it's time.