“One…”

“Two…”

“Three!”

“Aw, dammit!” The guard yelled, throwing down his cards. “Every god damn time, Devon…”

“Hey, don’t get upset. You dealt the cards.” Devon said.

“That deck was rigged. Nothing about that game was fair.” The guard pointed out, standing back up. “You screwed with it somehow.”

Devon moped, as he stood up and leaned on the bars to his cell. “Aww, don’t be mean. I may be a charmer, and very good with my hands, but I don’t cheat at cards.”

Devon shrugged playfully. “You’re just lucky I don’t have any money to bet.”

“You could always steal some of mine.” The guard retorted, frustrating Devon. “That might just put you behind for another twenty years, huh?”

“You misheard. The judge said twenty minutes. I’ve been held here far too long.” Devon remarked, as the guard started to lose interest.

“You’re a riot.” He said, before walking off to continue his night shift.

“If you want to let me out, we could play slaps instead.” Devon encouraged, sticking his hands through the bars, and getting little reaction.

The guard continued on.

“Hey, come on, I know you’re bored too. Don’t leave me so lonely.” Devon insisted, waving through the bars. “One more hand. If you want, I can let you win.”

The guard turned around, before groaning and sitting back down. “It’s no fun if you hand me the victory.”

“It’s no fun if you keep losing either.” Devon reasoned, dealing another few cards. “…are you folding?”

“No…I’m good with this.” The guard said, as Devon briefly glanced at his, before nodding. “Okay. On the count of three.”

“One…”

“Two…”

“Thr-“

BOOOOOOMMM!!!!!

Just as they threw their hands down, the back of Devon’s cell flew open with a large explosion, with the cell now exposed to the elements.

It took a second for the rubble and smoke to settle, momentarily panicking Devon, before he spotted the silhouette of someone he recognised and was quickly assured of what was happening.

Before the guard had time to comprehend what was going on, Devon reached through the bars again, grabbed the guard’s collar, and banged his head into the cell’s bars, knocking him unconscious.

“Devon!” Cried the voice behind him.

Devon turned around with his arms out. “Alani!”

Alani ran into his arms and hugged him, before staring back down at him. “Oh, my poor, sweet Devon, what have they done to you?”

“I know. They’re standard issue here.” Devon complained, glancing down at his prisoner’s outfit.

“Well, lucky for you…” Alani said, fishing around in a bag that she’d brought, before pulling out a change of clothes.

“Oh, you’re an angel.” Devon said sweetly, quickly changing his outfit. “You truly think of everything.”

“Well, to be fair, not everything.” Alani admitted. “I don’t have much of an escape in mind.”

Devon grabbed his watch and strapped it back on, before polishing it up. “Well, let’s just go out the quickest way we can.”

“Oh, better yet, what if we don’t do that?” Alani suggested. “Let’s really make a meal of it.”

“I just love the way you think.” Devon said, grabbing Alani’s hand, right as the rest of the prison guards started making their way to the cell. “And don’t you worry, I’ve already got an idea of where we can go first.”

Devon held up his hand. “On three?”

Alani and Devon stood on the edge of the exploded back of the cell, before swinging their linked arms back and forth.

“One…”

“Two…”

“Three!” They cried, before jumping off the edge, just as the guards managed to get into the cell, seconds away from having caught them again.

———

The Flash-Rail bumped along the tracks to Detu City at high speed, as all of Team Valiant were now dead silent in their seats due to the recent news.

“…guys?”

No one budged.

“Guys?” Harley asked, looking to Sola for support. “Are you gonna say anything about it?”

Julia, Wess and Essex were still reeling, before Sola leaned forward and snapped her fingers.

“Hey!” She yelled, as Wess jumped in her seat.

“Goodness, I heard you, I just needed a minute.” Wess admitted. “This is…a lot to take in…”

“…I will agree.” Essex added, spinning her scythe handle in her hands idly. “I do not know how to react to this.”

“You guys…” Julia finally managed to say, before jumping forward from her seat and grabbing Harley and Sola into a hug. “I’m so happy for you!”

“Finally, THANK YOU Julia.” Harley drew out, as Wess and Essex sat at attention.

“Harley, Sola, I’m incredibly glad for you.” Wess finally said, her hand to her chest. “May Lelvow smile upon you with warmth and love.”

“A-As am I. My apologies for not congratulating you sooner.” Essex said, bowing in her seat. “If you are in need of anything in order for your relationship to flourish, you need only ask.”

“It’s…it’s just…” Julia said, sniffling to herself, before sitting back down. “It’s so lovely, and sweet, and I didn’t even, but now, and I…I just…”

Julia started to tear up. “I hope I have what you guys have someday…”

Julia tried to wipe at her eyes with her sleeves, as Wess rolled hers. “Oh, look at you. You’re a mess.” Wess commented, grabbing out her handkerchief to help Julia clean herself up, as Harley blushed a little.

“You don’t have to treat it like this big thing…” Harley insisted. “I mean, it only really started yesterday…”

“Yeah. We’re still figuring stuff out.” Sola explained, going to grab Harley’s hand. “But we’ll keep you in the loop.”

“I should hope so. Venators in relationships are nothing to scoff at.” Wess reasoned, before staring out the window. “But for now, let’s just enjoy some shopping in Detu City.”

The team chatted amongst themselves as the Flash-Rail carried on, before Sola spoke up.

“Hey, uhh, can I borrow some money from you guys?” She asked sheepishly. “I have some shopping plans, but I’m a little low on funds…”

“Yeah, that’s fine.” Julia allowed, handing over a couple tens of capitals. “What’re you getting?”

Sola looked away briefly. “I don’t wanna say…”

Quickly, however, she popped her head back up. “Hey, how do you guys get your money without working any jobs?” Sola asked curiously.

“Dad.” Julia answered bluntly.

“Dads.” Harley also answered.

“Smart saving.” Wess replied.

“My scholarship.” Essex added.

“Huh…” Sola let out, looking at the floor. “I guess that makes sense…”

“My dad insisted I focus on my studies.” Julia elaborated, laughing awkwardly. “I said it was fine if I got a job, but he wasn’t gonna hear it.”

“I didn’t even ask my parents…they just gave it to me as well…” Sola realised, just as the Flash-Rail pulled into the station, which threw her off like usual.

“You don’t have to feel bad. They probably just wanted you to focus on your degree as well.” Harley pointed out, as Sola nodded back somewhat solemnly.

“Our studies are very important at the moment. If we are to acquire funds in the future, then focu-“

Essex was interrupted by a passer-by knocking into her, throwing her off, before a few more ran by, chanting something to themselves.

“Wailing die, Venators fight! Wailing deserve better rights!”

“Whoa!” Julia let out, as even more came charging down the street, causing the team to back up a bit. “What’s going on?”

Eventually, they spotted what looked to be a gathering of them, all chanting amongst themselves and holding up banners, as soon, a crowd of hundreds had started to build.

“Oh great, not these guys…” Harley let out, as Sola blocked her ears to drown out the chanting.

“What’re they doing?!” She yelled, as Harley leaned down to her.

“They’re just being loud!” She replied, as the crowd’s noise died down enough for Sola to unblock her ears.

“No, I mean, why’re they gathering?”

“Haven’t you heard of them? They’re this nonsense protest group vying for the rights of Wailing.” Harley pointed out. “They keep blabbing on about how Venators are the real villains…”

“The Wailing Rights and Non-discrimination Group.” Wess clarified, indicating to them with zero affection. “Also known as…”

“WRNG will not be silenced!” The protester heading the pack yelled again. “Wailing die, Venators fight! Wailing deserve better rights! Come on!”

“Oh, I’ve heard of them before.” Julia realised. “I thought they were a bit more mannered than this.”

“The crowd is certainly unruly.” Essex acknowledged, as a new leader for the crowd started to emerge out the front.

“Who’s this guy?” Harley asked, as the spindly guy with a megaphone stood out the front of the crowd, ready to announce.

“You all know me as Guy, the leader of this here wonderful protest!” He yelled out.

“Guy, apparently.” Sola remarked, as the yelling continued.

“For too long, the Wailing haven’t been given a voice and have been persecuted without reason!” Guy declared, getting voices of agreement from the crowd. “We won’t stand for that! We refuse to stand for that! We’ll make sure the government knows we can’t stand for that!”

“Were the Wailing being persecuted when they destroyed my home?” Called a random passer-by, as she quickly got the attention of Guy.

He leaned down toward her. “And who might you be?”

“Why should that matter? Nobody deserves that sort of thing. If they’re so innocent, why’d they go out of their way to hurt me?” She asked, getting the support of a further few onlookers, now gathering near WRNG.

“I don’t know, what did you do to provoke them?” Guy accused, getting backup from the rest of WRNG behind him.

“Now WRNG’s accusing some innocent woman? Really classy, guys!” Another onlooker yelled.

“Hey, what a surprise everyone, WRNG is wrong!” Someone in the crowd remarked, getting a laugh from the rest of them, as Guy looked to be pissed.

“Wha-stop undermining me! We’re not the villains here! At least we’re better than those so-called Ve…”

Just as Guy started to rile himself up, he looked back over the rest of WRNG and caught the top of Essex’s scythe poking out, before groaning.

“And the aggressors show themselves!” He yelled out, pointing his megaphone right at them. “Who else decides to show up but a team of Venators, wiping off the blood as we speak!”

“What blood?” Julia asked, before realising the crowd was starting to get hostile, as Harley managed to pull her away with the rest of the team, just out of sight of WRNG.

“That’s right, run away! Don’t confront your actions, just benefit from all the Wailing’s suffe…” Guy continued to spout on, as his voice started to fade out with the distance the team made.

“Phew…that was…a quick turn…” Julia said, catching her breath, as Harley checked around the corner to make sure they weren’t followed.

“I’ve known those guys for three minutes and I already hate them.” Sola expressed, pumping her fists. “Who goes and accuses people of those sorts of things?”

“They are of poor character.” Essex agreed. “And I, too, hate them.”

“If they changed Group to Organisation, they’d save themselves so much trouble…” Wess muttered to herself, before getting strange looks from the rest of the team. “Well, obviously, I don’t sympathise with their goals, but I think we can all agree, it’s a terrible acronym.”

“Why do they want to support Wailing? They’re horrible monsters who destroy people’s lives.” Sola asked, as Harley slung an arm around her.

“Stupid people are everywhere. If there’s room for a debate, then they’ll make themselves known one way or another.” Harley reasoned, as Julia clapped her hands.

“Well, there’s no reason this has to ruin our day in the city. Let’s just avoid them as best we can.” Julia pointed out. “So, what’s everyone’s plan for the day?”

“I’m…gonna do some shopping!” Sola quickly answered, raising her hand. “On my own. By myself.”

“I kinda thought we’d be shopping together…” Harley admitted, before giving a good-natured shrug. “I’ll just tag along with Wess then.”

Julia clapped her hands. “Easy enough. Wess, you said something about wine shopping?” Julia said, as Wess nodded in reply.

“I most certainly did. I can’t imagine a more pleasant shopping trip.” Wess said, with Harley beside her giving a thumbs up.

“Essex? Do you have plans?” Julia asked, as Essex efficiently shook her head. “Well, you can just accompany me. I’ve gotta sort a few things out at my bank. Maybe I can teach you about finance!”

Essex bowed in response. “If you believe it will be beneficial.”

Julia stood in front of everyone. “Everyone know what they’re doing?”

The team nodded back to her, before breaking out into their groups and heading off into the streets of Detu City.

———

“Wailing die, Venators fight! Wailing dese…”

“Ugh, I can still hear them from here…” Harley groaned, trying to cover her ears. “They’re like noisier Wailing we can’t beat up.”

“I know. They’re an awful pain.” Wess agreed. “Let’s just be fortunate we don’t have to deal with them at the academy.”

“How do you reckon they’d fair fighting an actual Wailing?” Harley suggested, getting a snicker out of Wess.

“Help! We were totally wrong!” Wess played up, waving her arms about, as Harley laughed hysterically.

“Who would have guessed? WRNG was wrong again!” Harley exclaimed, Wess laughing in response. “You planning on getting anything other than wine today?”

“Not really. Frankly, we’re in need of a few refills for the team’s collection. I’ve been eyeing up this particular bottle of Pinot Noir recently…” Wess admitted, looking dreamy-eyed, as Harley chuckled to herself.

“You sound like me when I’m scoping someone out at a bar.” Harley remarked, as Wess gave her a side-eye.

“…have you been thinking of buying anything?”

“Nah, probably just gonna window shop. I don’t really need anything right now.” Harley admitted, as Wess kept to herself.

“…and what about something for Sola?”

Harley looked confused. “Why?”

“Why? Because you two are dating now.” Wess pointed out. “You’re not going to signify that with anything?”

“I mean, we did kiss…” Harley mentioned, as Wess grabbed her forehead.

“You shouldn’t need a reason to get your partner a gift.” Wess said. “I wasn’t expecting to coach you on this…”

Harley pouted her lips. “Hey, how about you stay out of my business? I’ve had plenty of relationships before, and I’d like to think I know what I’m doing.”

“And I’ll have you know I have a vested interest in your relationship working out.” Wess rationalised, looking around for a store as they walked. “A fight or break up between you two becomes something for all of us to deal with. We can’t have you getting into an argument later down the line that divides the team.”

Wess turned to her again. “And, as your friend, I want to see you two very happy together.”

Harley avoided looking at her, before touching her fingers together. “…that’s nice and all, but I’d feel weird just getting her a gift…”

“Oh, where’s your sense of romance?” Wess bemoaned, still searching for somewhere appropriate. “How have you had more relationships than I?”

Harley bumped her side cheekily. “Probably cause my boobs are bigger.”

Wess rolled her eyes and carried on. “Maybe it’s the Northern Waysider in me, but I can’t help but want this romance to flourish.” Wess expressed, now slightly lighter on her feet as she searched. “Ah, there we are.”

Harley glanced over at the clothing boutique and general goods store just across the road, before giving Wess a knowing look.

“Really?”

“You’re getting Sola at least one gift. Then we can head over to somewhere else.” Wess declared. “Alright?”

Harley pouted, before carrying on across the street anyway. “Fine, fine. I’ll just get her, like, a t-shirt or something. She likes those.”

“Sweet lord…” Wess groaned, quickly following behind her in a frenzy.

———

Sola wasn’t too familiar with the layout of businesses in Detu City, but even she knew it was odd that plenty of the stores around her had closed for the day.

“There’s barely anywhere to shop.” Sola acknowledged, pouting to herself. “How am I supposed to get Harley a new-girlfriend gift now?”

She kept wandering, hoping to come across something eventually, before finding at least one store that was still open.

She squinted at the sign overhead.

“The…Abandonal Shop?” Sola read aloud. “Sounds weird…”

To her surprise, after entering, it was surprisingly regular as far as stores went. There was a healthy number of groceries, clothes, knick knacks and all manner of other products on display, with a very light stream of customers bumming around here and there.

As the entrance bell rang above her, Sola looked around cautiously, before immediately stumbling upon boutiques of flowers by the entrance and getting quickly enamoured.

Just by the register, the clerk watched as she hopped from one flower to another, looking over her options thoroughly, before leaving the flowers all together to look at the clothes, only to go back to the flowers right after not finding anything worth getting.

After watching her display, the clerk decided to get up and check on her, as he slowly approached.

“…”

“…”

“…ahem…”

“…”

“…excu-“

“WHOA!” Sola yelled, jumping back, as the clerk started to panic.

“What?! What is it?!”

Sola let out a breath. “Sorry. You just really spooked me.”

“Oh.” He sighed. “That’s a relief…”

“I didn’t mean to spook you too…” Sola said, leaning forward to read his name tag. “…is your name really Virgil?”

Virgil adjusted his uniform a little. “Unless I stole someone else’s name tag, yes.”

Sola nodded, before going back to her flower conundrum, as Virgil raised a finger.

“What are you looking for?”

“…I wanna get my girlfriend a gift.” Sola said, scratching her chin. “We only just started dating, but she’s my first ever girlfriend, so I want to get her something special.”

Sola moped. “But all the stores are closed for some reason.”

“Oh, that would be because of the WRNG protests.” Virgil explained. “It’s not great for business if you’ve got shouting crowds just outside the store.”

“So, why haven’t you closed this place?” Sola asked, almost forgetting about getting a gift.

“Well, I’m my only source of income, so I can’t just close the store for the day.” Virgil reasoned, huffing out. “Even if it means putting up with WRNG marching down the street…”

Virgil jumped to attention, before reaching out for a boutique. “If I can make a recommendation, the Bosolom rose is considered a very romantic gift. It’s often seen as the flower of the heart, and they last a surprisingly long time without water.”

“I guess that would work. Flowers are pretty romantic and stuff.” Sola said, grabbing the handful of orange flowers. “Do you have any red ones? I think she’d like those more.”

Virgil snapped his fingers. “I’ll go check in the back.”

Virgil ran to the back of the store, ducking behind his counter, as Sola waited patiently for him to return, only to be interrupted by a loud clattering coming from the backroom.

She quickly rushed behind the counter to see what was going on, only to find Virgil on the ground of what looked to be a packed storeroom, rubbing his forehead, surrounded by fallen boxes.

“Oh geez…” He let out, dabbing at his head.

“Are you alright?” Sola asked, helping him up.

“Yes, I just knocked over a couple boxes. I’ve been meaning to clean back here.” He played off, before searching again. “Sorry, I meant to get you those flowers.”

Virgil kept looking around, as Sola stared at the boxes strewn about the ground, before picking them up and putting them back on the shelves while he searched.

Virgil turned back around, only to see the boxes that had fallen had been tidied for him.

Sola noticed him staring, before looking around her. “What are you looking at?”

Virgil smiled a little, before digging through some boxes again and finding the red Bosolom flowers.

“Ah, there we go.” Virgil let out, just as he heard the store’s entrance bell ring out suddenly, with him now noticing some customers coming in.

He frantically turned to Sola. “I’m sorry, but I have to take care of them. I’ll ring up the flowers in a bit, bu-“ Virgil said, before stubbing his toe on a nearby vase. “…ow, ow, ow.”

“Do you want me to clean up back here?” Sola asked out of the blue, throwing Virgil off. “It might help in case you need to come back here later.”

“Oh, no, I couldn’t ask you to do that. You’re a customer.” Virgil insisted.

Sola grinned. “Don’t worry, I’ve got plenty of time today. It’s no bother to me.”

Virgil turned his head between her and the customers, before reaching for his wallet and pulling out a few tens of capitals.

“Here.” He said. “I won’t have you clean up without compensation.”

Sola took the capitals, just as Virgil hurried out, greeting the new customers, before Sola went about clearing up the storeroom.

———

“Wailing die, Venators fi…”

“I can’t believe there’s people that actually think like that.” Julia let out, carrying on with Essex on their way to the bank. “I mean, alright, not all Wailing are horrible monsters, but there’s a reason the Wailing Conflict’s gone on for so long.”

“I would have to agree.” Essex added. “WRNG appear to be confused about many aspects of the conflict. I hope they will not be an issue in the future…”

“Well, I’m sure we can handle them.” Julia assured, only to realise Essex’s intention behind her line was far more serious.

Julia stopped her. “Essex, you aren’t saying we’ll have to fight them at some point, are you?”

“If it is to come to that, then we may have no choice.” Essex pointed out, as Julia shook her head.

“But we can’t do that. They’re people, and it’s illegal.” Julia reasoned, as Essex cocked her head.

“Illegal?”

“Venators can’t hurt people. That’s always been the case.” Julia said, confusing Essex even more. “We’re only training to fight Wailing, not each other.”

“But…what if we are to see someone doing something wrong?” Essex asked, still trying to comprehend what Julia was saying.

“Well, we call law enforcement, or someone else that’s meant to deal with that.” Julia pointed out. “People can’t just hire us to hurt, or...worse, kill people. At that point, we’d just be assassins.”

Essex shook her head. “That does not seem like an appropriate response to wrongdoing. If we witness something wrong, we should intervene, as we have the capability to do so.”

“Not if we have access to weapons. We’ll only escalate things.” Julia argued. “We don’t get to make those calls, Essex.”

As they walked, Julia spotted the Gold Lelvow bank in the distance and started heading to it.

“…so, Venators are to only intervene in situations where Wailing are a threat.” Essex asked for clarification.

“Yes.” Julia answered, heading up the decently packed stairs to the entrance.

“But not if a person were to do something similar?” Essex asked, as a security guard posted by the entrance approached them.

“I’m sorry, but you’re not allowed to carry that in here.” He said, pointing to Essex’ scythe. “I’m gonna have to take it until you leave.”

Essex growled as the guard approached, before Julia stepped in. “Can she please keep it? We’re training to be Venators, and it’s part of her cultur-“

“If she wants to keep it on her, she has to wait outside. We’ve had problems with this kind of security before.” The guard insisted, as Essex breathed out heavily and handed off her scythe to the guard, eyeing him up as he stored it away.

“Anyway, it’s different. Wailing have been trying to kill us for centuries. We know they’re bad.” Julia reasoned, stepping in line to the front counter with Essex. “But people are complicated. If we start calling the shots on severe punishments, we’ll be just as bad as the criminals we’re punishing.”

“Then how are Venators meant to act as peacekeepers?” Essex asked aloud, getting the attention of the couple in front of them.

“I’m sorry, did you mention Venators?” The woman asked, swinging her head back. “Oh, they’re absolutely dreadful!”

“Truly dreadful. We just lost our summer home to a couple no good thieves a few years ago.” The man brought up, dabbing at his eyes. “It’s a true tragedy. And when we ask for help from some Venators, they turn us away!”

“This is meant for the police, they say!” The woman bemoaned, as the line moved up. “We don’t handle domestic crimes!”

“The last people we’re going to for help is the police.” The man pointed out, as Essex turned to Julia with a knowing look of validation.

“That’s a really specific example…” Julia muttered, as the couple reached the front counter.

“Hi, how can I help?”

“First of all, quick question. Is the vault door there just decorative?” The woman asked, as the clerk chuckled awkwardly.

“I’m sorry, but I can’t go into specifics. We had an incident a year back, so that information’s not available to the public.” She replied.

“Alright then. Well, we’re just here to make a withdrawal.” The woman said, leaning on the counter. “Let’s say…one billion capitals?”

The clerk looked a bit surprised and chuckled again. “M-Ma’am, we don’t hold that much on site.”

The woman rolled her eyes. “Fine, less than a billion.”

The clerk looked visibly confused, as the man stepped ahead, before pulling out a gun from his side, causing the clerk to scream out in panic.

The rest of the bank quickly took notice, including the security, who all went for their firearms as well, before realising they were missing.

“Ahem.” The man said, now spinning a couple pistols around on his fingers. “You need to keep better care of these.”

“So sloppy. You think they would have improved since last time.” The woman said, before taking one of the guns and pointing at the guards, who despite their best intentions, had no choice but to kneel to the ground.

As Julia was slowly stepping away during the panic amongst the crowd, Essex went to pick up one of the nearby bollards, changing her skin to iron with her Whil, before taking a swing at the man.

“Essex!!!” Julia cried out, terrified she might get hurt, as Essex went for a finishing blow, only for the bollard to float out of her hands and toward the man, followed by her iron hand flying toward him as well, getting stuck to his chest.

“Nifty Whil.” He said. “Unfortunately, mine’s a good counter.”

As Essex desperately tried to pull herself off of him, the woman quickly tied up Essex’s legs with rope, before moving to her arms, knocking her to the ground.

“What a brave and stupid thing to do!” The woman said, before addressing the rest of the bank with her gun in the air. “Calm down, everyone! We’re not going to hurt you!”

“We’re being very courteous towards your needs!” The man added.

Those who were panicking slowly stopped themselves, freezing in place.

“That’s better.” The woman said. “Alright, introductions! I’m Alani, and you’re going to love me!”

“And I’m Devon, a gift from heaven.” Devon declared, sitting up on the front desk. “Now, with that out of the way…if this seems a bit familiar, it’s because a year ago, we pulled off a similar heist at this very bank.”

“And after not getting to steal anything, we decided to come back after all this time.” Alani pointed out, going off to tie up everyone else present, starting with a terrified Julia. “Because we are nothing if not loyal customers.”

“Of course, last time, my dear and wonderful Alani here managed to escape, and tragically, I was locked away, never to be seen again.” Devon played up, casually waving the gun at the clerk. “So, apologises if you didn’t mean to get caught up in this. We’ll try to be quick.”

He leaned into the clerk, while still making the pistol very noticeable. “Hey, quick question.” He smirked, pointing to the large vault again. “Real talk, is that vault still in use, or is it just decorative after last year’s little skirmish?”

The clerk was having trouble holding it together, before managing to blurt out the words in a panic. “U-U-Unfortunately, it’s just decorative…t-there’s no more money in there. Now.”

Devon gave her a thorough once over, noticing the sweat build-up on her forehead, before smiling to himself and calling out to Alani. “It’s still in there! Just like last time!”

“Really?” Alani let out, having finished tying up the guards. “It’s like you wanted to be robbed again.”

Julia and Essex sat back helplessly, watching as Alani and Devon slowly took over the situation.

“Oh geez…don’t panic…just breath…” Julia repeated to herself, as Essex tried desperately to break out of her constraints, to no avail.

Julia did her best to maintain her composure, before noticing Essex struggling more and more. “Essex…please don’t waste energy like that.”

Essex heard her out and stopped herself.

“We’ll…get a better opportunity later.” Julia reasoned, trying to calm herself. “If we can get your scythe…we might get out of this…”

Essex watched as Alani analysed the vault door, before pulling off her glove and using her Whil to create a small jet of flame from her finger, directing it at the door to slowly cut a hole through. Devon kept an eye on everyone else, before locking eyes with Essex and smirking.

“I will remove these constraints…” Essex declared. “…and they will pay for this.”

———

“Wait, who’s paying for this?”

“You are. It’s your gift.”

“But you made me get it!”

“You’re welcome, by the way.” Wess corrected, as Harley reluctantly handed over her card to the very confused cashier.

“Hey, if you wanna date Sola for me, go ahead.” Harley remarked.

“I should only be so lucky.” Wess replied with a sly smile. “I’d treat her to much more gifts than you would.”

“Uhuh.” Harley let out, as they promptly left the store. “Do you think she’ll like it?”

Harley held up the mug with a tired cat saying ‘Rough Meow-ning’ on it, as Wess scoffed a little.

“She’s going to love it.” Wess assured. “Remember, it’s not about price point, it’s about how much the person receiving it will like it.”

“Yeah, easy for you to say when you’re not payi…” Harley muttered under her breath, only to be interrupted by a few police cars blaring past, heading just around the corner to join up with the growing commotion.

“What’s going on?” Wess asked, as her and Harley quickly jogged over to see a giant crowd and police barricades surrounding the Gold Lelvow Bank.

The confusion was hard to make out, as Harley tapped the shoulder of a nearby crowd member.

“Hey, what’s this all about?”

“Oh, apparently, some people are holding up the bank and taking hostages. Real serious stuff.” He insisted. “I swear, it’s the worst luck. This exact thing happened, like, a year ago.”

Harley’s eyes widened, as she turned to Wess suddenly. “Weren’t Julia and Essex planning on going there?”

The realisation pierced Wess, as she stumbled back, before charging through the crowd toward the officers on duty.

“Excuse me! Excuse me, sir!” She cried, leaning over the barricades set up. “Who was taken hostage?! Do you have any idea what’s happened to them?!”

“Hey, hey, back up.” He said, readjusting his megaphone. “We’re doing what we can, but we know just about as much as you do right now.”

He pointed it at the bank and turned it on. “We ask that you leave peacefully and let the hostages go. If not, we’ll be forced to take action.”

There was no response.

“If you give yourselves up now, this can all be over with.”

Devon popped his head out from the front door. “Oh, you’re no fun!”

He quickly ducked back inside, as the officer pulled out his radio.

“We have an ID on one of the suspects. Devon However, recent escapee of the Kaikojo prison. Possible accomplice, Alani Bytheway.” He declared, only worrying Wess further.

“S-So, they’re known criminals.” She stammered, frantically grabbing for her tablet. “I’m messaging them. I-If we’re lucky, they may not be in there. Please please please…”

“Hey, hey, calm down.” Harley encouraged, grabbing Wess’ shoulders. “We don’t need to panic. It doesn’t sound like things have gotten violent. And we know them, they wouldn’t endanger themselves needlessly.”

“…I know.” Wess agreed, brushing Harley’s arms off. “But I’m making sure.”

Harley nodded in agreement, as the noise around them only seemed to pick up. “It sounds like everyone’s a bit on edge.”

Wess lifted her head to see what Harley meant, only to spot the real reason for all the noise.

She pointed right at it, as Harley let out a belaboured groan.

“Wailing die, Venators fight! Wailing deserve better rights!” Cried out WRNG, marching just beside the blockade and stopping right in front of it.

“Oh, for the love of…” The officer let out, before blocking off WRNG as best he could. “Hey, move it out of here! This is a hostile situation!”

“Wha-oh, it’s a hostile situation all right!” Guy spoke up, turning to the officer. “WE’RE on our way to the Senator Carmichael's office, and you’re right in our way!”

“This is an active crime scene. You can’t just charge through here.” The officer insisted. “Redirect yourselves.”

“Redirect, he says.” Guy spat, now announcing to the rest of WRNG behind him. “Tell me, comrades, what is it we never do?”

“NEVER BACK DOWN, NEVER BACK AWAY!” The rest of WRNG cheered, with Guy continuing to rally them, as the officer grabbed his forehead.

“Should we move them out of here?” Another lower-rank officer asked, as the higher-rank shook his head.

“We can’t focus on them yet. We get the bank under control, then we can take care of WRNG.” He ordered, before turning back to the more immediate threat at the bank, as WRNG continued to chant beside the other crowd, annoying most of those who were gathered around the bank.

Harley and Wess decided to put up with it, if only to keep an eye on what might be happening to Julia and Essex, as Wess kept glancing back her tablet for a reply.

“Please be okay…

———

“…oof!”

Sola let down another large box of office supplies, before leaning on a nearby shelf to cool off.

“Wow, there’s a lot of stuff in here…” Sola remarked, before acknowledging the large amount of space she’d managed to clear. “Guess the training with Harley’s already paying off…”

During her break, Virgil re-emerged from outside of the shop with a few empty boxes, before setting them down and whistling.

“You’ve done a great job.” He praised. “I can actually see the floor now.”

“I guess…I really earned those flowers…” Sola joked.

“Five times over. Take as many as you want once we’re done here.” Virgil insisted, as Sola jumped up with a newfound energy.

“Really?!”

“It’s the least I can do.” Virgil admitted. “Love’s an important thing, and showing it’s just as important.”

“Yeah, it is!” Sola agreed. “Thanks!”

“No problem.” Virgil said, before staring off forlornly into the distance. “You know, I had a love once…”

Sola stared at him curiously. “Did you?”

Virgil snapped back to reality and dipped his head. “Oh. Daydreamed a little there. Sorry, I tend to lose focus sometimes.”

Sola smiled back at him “Same here!”

Sola quickly went back to moving things, before grabbing the base of a giant vase and struggling to lift it.

Virgil noticed and hurried over. “Do you need help?”

“Yeah, but I think we’ll have to rol-“

Before Sola could finish her thought, Virgil had already grabbed the base and picked it up seemingly effortlessly, before expertly moving it to a free shelf with a few other vases.

He wiped his hands and turned back to Sola, who was enamoured with what she’d seen.

“Whoa!” She exclaimed. “I didn’t know you were secretly buff!”

Virgil blushed a little. “Well, I wouldn’t describe it like that. Working back here tends to build up some muscle.”

Virgil touched his fingers together. “Actually, there is a reason for it…”

“Yeah?”

“Well, you see…” He prefaced. “…I’m training to be a Venator.”

Sola’s mouth was left agape, as Virgil tried to hide some embarrassment.

“Don’t be weird about it.”

“I’m not, I’m just surprised!” Sola let out, grabbing his hands. “That’s so cool!”

“Oh geez. H-Hold on!” Virgil exclaimed, pulling himself away. “I-I’m not actually training…yet. I haven’t been accepted by the Venator Academy. I’m stuck on the waiting list.”

“Oh.” Sola said. “Wait, waiting list?”

Virgil nodded. “If you don’t quite meet the academy’s standards during the physical or interview, you get put on the waiting list in case a spot opens up. Fortunately, if a team needs an extra member to make it to five, they tend to bring some from the list, but that’s only a couple every semester or so.” Virgil explained, as Sola was left shocked.

“I didn’t even know that was a thing.” Sola said, sitting against one of the empty shelves. “So, why’re you on the list?”

“I…don’t have enough time to train.” Virgil confessed. “Running the shop takes it all out of me, and without impressive physical results or a Whil, I just can’t compete with most of the other students…”

Virgil sighed out. “I’ve been on the waiting list for five years.”

“Wow. Sorry to hear that.” Sola admitted, scratching her neck. “I guess I took getting accepted in for granted.”

“Wait, accepted in?” Virgil asked, as Sola nodded. “To the Venator Academy?”

“Yeah.”

Virgil jumped over to her excitedly. “Y-You’re training to be a Venator?!”

“Yeah!”

“No way!” Virgil exclaimed, hopping on the spot. “I-I’m so jealous! You must be really strong! What year are you in?”

“Second-yea-“

“You’re going into the tournament soon, then?” Virgil let out, struggling to hold back his excitement. “Oh man, I’m definitely going to watch your matches!”

Virgil realised that Sola had backed up, and that he was coming on pretty heavy, before he pulled himself back and cleared his throat.

“S-Sorry, I’ve never met an actual Venator before.” Virgil admitted. “At least, one that I know personally. I guess the waiting’s kind of gotten to me…”

Virgil sat down on one of the boxes and rested his head in his hands. “It’s just…even when they say I might get in, I know they mean no. I just have to wait around for it to come along, but I don’t think ever will. I feel so unwanted…”

Sola looked back at Virgil forlornly, before going back to packing a few more things up. “You know, I kinda felt the same way back at the orphanage I grew up in. A bunch of adults that I thought would adopt me would come through, and then they never did. I remember at the time, it felt like my parents were never going to come along.”

Sola struggled to push a box onto a higher shelf. “And then…there we go! And then, when I was eight, Wayne and Maxine showed up and took me in, and they’re awesome. So, I’d say the waiting was worth it.”

Sola stepped back down with her hands on her hips. “And the time at the orphanage wasn’t bad either. I made a ton of friends there, and I’m still really close with Sister Magen.”

Sola went to make another point, before tripping over one of the last few boxes still on the ground, which got a guilty laugh out of Virgil.

“Ow…” Sola let out, as Virgil helped her up. “What was I saying?”

“I get it.” Virgil replied. “The waiting makes it worth it.”

“…yeah, that’s it!” Sola said.

Sola waved her hands. “I’ll finish up in here. You go handle the front desk.”

Virgil smiled. “Okay. But join me for my break. I’d appreciate the company.”

“Will do!”

———

“…and there…we…go!”

Devon chucked the last of the bollards into one of the offices connected to the main bank floor, before locking it and pocketing the key.

“All done.” Devon said, turning to a still helpless Essex. “Can’t have you breaking out and going for my head again.”

Essex growled, as Devon found himself getting comfortable, watching the ring of hostages around him while Alani cut through the rest of the vault door.

“You know, funny story, I was planning on doing that anyway due to a prior incident in our last heist.” Devon explained, as Alani perked her head up.

“My elbow still hasn’t recovered.” Alani moped. “I hope that guard got fired.”

“…do you see an opening?” Julia asked Essex quietly, as she reluctantly shook her head.

“They have planned for this well.” Essex admitted. “Without my scythe, we are without means. Once it’s returned, I wish to make them pay thoroughly…”

Julia’s pupils shrank. “Essex, what are you planning on doing?”

Essex grit her teeth. “If they wish to capture us, then I will not go down without fighting.”

Julia shook her head. “But they haven’t hurt anyone yet.” Julia insisted, scooching over to her. “Please don’t make this worse. We have to consider the safety of everyone here. If you start attacking the-”

“This is an action that needs to be punished.” Essex demanded. “How else do we deter their wrongdoing?”

“By making sure they can’t do this again, or changing their ways. If we go straight for the violent option, that’ll only encourage them to start throwing punches too. If we’re supposed to be the peacekeepers, then we wouldn't be doing our job right, would we?” Julia pointed out. “We’ll get your scythe, break out and get them to the authorities. That’s it.”

Essex huffed out, trying again in vain to break the ropes around her arms, as Julia sighed to herself.

“…I wish the others knew we were okay.” Julia mumbled. “They must be so worried…”

“Did I overhear something?” Devon let out, as Julia and Essex noticed he was now right above them.

They shot back, as Devon looked over them curiously.

“Did you say you wanted to talk to someone?” Devon asked, as Julia weighed up her options and nodded her head. “I thought someone here might.”

He quickly got back up and trotted over to the locked office, unlocking it to dig around for a bit, before pulling out a tablet. “Is this yours?”

Julia nodded again, as Essex started to take interest, with Devon now trotting back over and sitting on the nearby counter with the tablet in his hands, now noticing the message already on the screen.

“Seems like they were worried about you too.” Devon said, waving it about. “I’m assuming ‘Wess’ is the one you want to message?”

Julia quietly nodded her head, as Devon noticed the other group chat with the rest of the team and whistled. “Hey…you guys are Venators, huh? That explains why she had a scythe coming in. Alright, what do you wanna say?”

Julia’s eyes lit up, as she turned to Essex hurriedly. “J-Just that we’re okay, and that we’ll be out of here soon. A-And that we aren’t hurt!”

“Okay, okay, easy enough.” Devon said, typing it out, before showing it to Julia for confirmation. “You know, we may be criminals, but we’re not heartless.”

Devon raised his hand to the side of his mouth. “To be honest, though, I was just a little bored.”

Devon perked up and yelled to Alani. “Oh yeah. Hey, Alani! These two are Venator trainees!”

“No kidding!” Alani let out, briefly stopping her cutting to join them, confusing the rest of the hostages present as to their motivations.

“You know, Alani and I were gonna become Venators earlier in life.” Devon admitted, as Alani nodded along.

“Not enough excitement.” Alani confessed. “You’ve seen one Wailing, you’ve seen them all.”

“That is not tr-“ Essex started, before Julia stopped her.

“Honestly, we really like you guys. You’re doing a great service for everyone in Daysend.” Devon said, as Julia felt a surprising kinship.

“R-Really?”

“After all, it’s nice to know you won’t be gunning for us what with only attacking Wailing. Makes our work a lot easier.” Alani clarified.

Julia’s feeling was immediately ripped away, as Essex finally decided to speak up.

“That will not prevent us from bringing you to justice.”

Devon turned to Alani. “Justice?”

“Justice, she says.”

“Wowee.”

“That’s a concept.” Alani said, leaning in. “But we haven’t done anything wrong.”

“You are stealing capitals from Detu City’s people. They need that to live.” Essex clarified.

“And so do we.” Alani said. “We buy our bread from the store just like anyone else.”

“And then we get a really flashy car.” Devon added. “For fun.”

“And we still work hard for our money! Robbing a bank is very difficult, after all.” Alani explained, before jumping on the spot. “Which reminds me, back to it!”

She headed over to the vault and continued cutting, as Devon closed in.

“And even if we steal this money, you guys are unhurt. We haven’t shot anyone.” Devon pointed out, as Julia recalled her previous remarks. “If we’re talking about justice, that would only mean we have to pay back the money we stole.”

Devon tapped Essex on the nose. “And you don’t get to touch us.”

He started walking away, as Julia raised her voice. “Th-That doesn’t mean you can get away with this! Y-You’ll get captured again!”

“And we’ll break out again!” Devon bragged, watching as Alani reached the bottom of the vault door. “Oh, how sweet it is!”

Having cut a large enough hole in the vault door, Alani pushed against the metal to move it, only to find it far too heavy, before she stepped aside and let Devon pull it back with his magnetic Whil.

And then, the vault was theirs.

“Oh, Alani, look! They still have those little bags for all the money.” Devon let out, as Alani used her Whil to burn the lock off of one of the many deposit boxes.

“And it’s still in cash! I was really worried it would be digital. This is so much more aesthetically pleasing.” Alani confessed, grabbing a handful and chucking it into one of the bags. “Let’s get to work.”

Alani and Devon broke open each of the vaults with their Whils, pouring the excess money into each of the bags, before grabbing as many as they could and heading back into the main room.

“Now we need an escape route.” Alani admitted. “Drat. I guess we should have thought of one…oh well, let’s go out guns blazing.”

“Oh, better yet, what if we don’t do that?” Devon insisted, slinging a couple of the coin bags over his shoulder. “Let’s duck away into some nearby alley and figure things out from there.”

“Ooo, that’s way more fun!” Alani cheered, setting down some bags. “I’ll go look for a back exit.”

“I’ll throw off the police.” Devon added, as he sprinted to the main door, opening it briefly to pop his head out. “We’re almost there, guys! You’re getting sloppy!”

He excitedly hurried to catch up with Alani down the back of the bank, as a small clang rang out in the main room, ringing out right near the security guards tied up by the entrance.

Julia and Essex’s ears perked up, as they spotted the glint of a single capital, lying on the ground, having fallen out from Devon’s bag while he was running.

The guard nearby quickly spotted it too, before getting an idea, whistling to grab Julia and Essex’s attention, along with the rest of the room.

Manoeuvring as best he could, he spun himself around and managed to grab the coin with his tied-up hands, before rolling it in the direction of Essex with as much energy as he could muster.

A glimmer of hope broke out on those present before it started to slow down after reaching halfway.

Instinctually, Julia reached out a finger and used her Whil, speeding up the coin’s velocity, before it managed to reach Essex’s feet, exciting everyone in the room.

Essex performed the same manoeuvre the guard had to grab it quickly, before using her Whil to change the hand touching the coin to copper and cut through her rope binding with her metallic fingernail.

She loosened her restraints, causing a noticeable rise in energy in the room, as she unbound her feet, then went to free Julia as well, before suddenly hearing footsteps coming from back down the hall and ducking underneath the front desk.

“…at seems doable. We’ll grab as much as we can an-“ Devon managed, before getting clocked in the face by Essex, knocking him to the ground. Devon grabbed for his face, as Essex was drawn to a whistle down the hall.

“Yoo hoo!” Alani taunted, swinging a bag of capitals while halfway through an exit door. “Catch me, justice girl!”

Essex set her sights on Alani, trudging in her direction, only to be pulled back suddenly through the air, colliding her metal fist with the wall behind her, as Devon had managed to get back up and use his magnetic Whil to pull her closer, before stepping out of the way.

He grabbed what bags of money he could, using Essex’s weakened state to his advantage, before meeting up with Alani by the exit and ducking out.

Essex found herself on her feet again, still recovering from the shock and pain of hitting the wall, as she charged at the exit door, only to find the lock melted from what looked to be Alani’s Whil.

She grabbed the handle and turned her shoulder to iron before busting through the door, before finding an empty alley way, closed off, but with a recently used fire exit running up toward the roof.

They’d gotten away.

———

“…those vile robbers.” Wess expressed, still staring intently at her tablet. “If I ever meet them, I’l-“

“Grace!”

Wess lifted her head, as someone from the bank joined up with a woman in the crowd and hugged them. Eventually, more and more people started flooding out, overwhelming the existing crowd, leading to a mass of confusion and excitement amongst everyone present.

“Essex?!” Harley called out. “Julia!!!”

Her voice fell silent over the crowd, before a hand shot out from the rush of people, revealing itself to be Julia waving at them, quickly followed by Essex, now with her scythe returned.

“Julia!” Wess let out, running up to check on her. “I’m so glad you’re okay…”

Essex quickly followed, as Wess grabbed her hands as well. “You’re both okay, right?”

“Yeah. Fortunately, the criminals held their punches.” Julia admitted, as Essex quickly pulled her hands away from Wess, now searching amongst the large crowd.

“You alright, Essex?” Harley asked.

“The assailants have escaped. I failed to detain them…” Essex admitted, grabbing her still stinging arm, while staring out in the direction they had headed. “…why is WRNG gathered here?”

“Uhh, cause they have, I guess.” Harley admitted, before double taking. “Wait, escaped?”

“Well, they can’t have just gotten away.” Wess pointed out. “They’re known criminals and surrounded on all ends. They would be too recognisable.”

Harley thought about this, before snapping her fingers. “Unless they’re somewhere the police aren’t checking.”

It took the others a second to connect the dots, before they all looked back at WRNG, bunched up together while the police focused on the hostages, before the team spotted two members just out the back, heading in the opposite direction of the protest.

“They’re in the WRNG crowd!” Julia cried out, before realising how it sounded. “I mean, they’re hiding inside WRNG!”

Julia, Wess and Harley went to circle around WRNG, skirting the edge of the protest group to catch them on the other end, as Essex immediately broke into a sprint, heading right into the middle of WRNG, straight toward Alani and Devon.

“Wailing die, Venators fight!” A crowd member cheered, before Essex ran right by, squeezing through members as she ran. “Hey, it’s what’s-her-face from earlier! The Venator!”

The crowd started booing Essex, trying to shove her about, which only caused her still pained arm further pain, slowing her down, as she spotted Alani and Devon further in the crowd, attempting to blend in.

“Lousy Venators! Never liked them!” Devon cried, trying to incite more anger.

“Venators fight, Wailing die!” Alani chanted while pumping her fist. “What’s the reason? Don’t know why!”

Essex tried to hold herself back against the crowd while still forcing her way through, as the others caught her from the sidelines, running to catch up with her.

“Essex!” Julia yelled out, to no avail. “We’ve got to help her, right?”

“On it.” Harley said, charging in to help break her out, as Wess pulled out her tablet again.

“I’m texting Sola. We need as much help as we can get.” Wess said, watching as Alani and Devon finally made their way to the back of WRNG, slipping out as best as they could.

Virgil watched as a few more police cars drove by the store, blaring their sirens loudly.

“Sure are a lot of cops today.” Sola let out, leaning against the store counter with him.

“I hope the WRNG protests haven’t gotten violent.” Virgil wished, before Sola felt a buzz in her pocket, pulling out her tablet.

“Oh, it’s the team.” Sola said, as Virgil inquisitively popped his head over.

It took them a second to read it, before they both reeled from how much they’d missed.

“They’ve been doing what?!” Sola cried, as Virgil went for the front door.

“The Gold Lelvow Bank’s just a few blocks from here.” Virgil explained, looking back at Sola. “They said it’s two criminals, right?”

Sola nodded, as they both stepped out of the store, only to find a few figures on the horizon running toward them, a couple frantically carrying bags and a couple just behind them.

The couple ahead dropped a bag behind them, tripping up one of their pursuers, before high-fiving and continuing their sprint.

“I think we might be in the clear.” Devon said, keeping up pace with Alani.

“I think so too.” Alani added, jumping in the air slightly. “We actually did it!”

“What a redemption!” Devon cried, holding his arms out. “Freedom’s never felt so good!

“I’m buying a yacht first!” Alani announced. “Then we can go and rob some cruise ships!”

“Oh, I love the way you think!” Devon declared. “Next stop, Myvo-“

Before he could say anything else, Virgil charged out onto the street, sweeping Devon’s leg out from under him and tripping him over.

He pulled off a similar manoeuvre with Alani, catching her off guard, as he pinned Devon’s hands together.

Just as he got him to the ground, Wess arrived behind him, trying to make sense of the situation, before Virgil pointed to Alani frantically.

“Hold her arms together. Sola!” Virgil yelled, as Wess did so. “Grab some wire from the back! You should know where it is!”

“Okay!” Sola called back, ducking off to do so, as a banged-up Julia slowly approached, followed by Harley and Essex.

Sola hurried back with the wire, just as Alani came to consciousness and realised Devon was knocked out next to her.

“Devon!” She cried, before using her Whil to burn away the wire holding her and getting back up quickly, only to come face-to-face with a pissed off Essex.

Alani looked to the side awkwardly. “Ahe…come on, we haven’t done anything wrong.”

Essex grabbed for her scythe.

“I mean, sure, we robbed a bank, but who hasn’t?”

Essex looked like she was about to swing with the scythe, before she merely held it by Alani’s head, indicating for her to go back onto the ground.

“You will not cause a fuss when returning to prison.” Essex insisted. “Reflect on this when considering your next move.”

Alani rolled her eyes and muttered what Essex said under her breath, before complying and laying back down, taking her due punishment.

———

“It was fun though, right?”

“Until we got captured again.”

“Well, yeah, but we’ll just avoid that next time.”

Devon smiled back at Alani. “Next time indeed.”

Alani and Devon were moved to the back of a station wagon, as the officers closed the doors and drove off, leaving Team Valiant and Virgil to their own business.

“Wess, it’s fine!”

“It’s not fine, I can see it.”

Julia tried to stop Wess from cleaning her wound after falling against the road, as Essex approached from the side, looking somewhat solemn.

Essex bowed.

“I am sorry for my earlier suggestions.” Essex said, grabbing at the stinging arm she’d used to bash the door down. “…my violence caused me to lose them. If I had detained Devon when I had knocked him down instead of chasing Alani, this would have been avoided. I wished to punish them both, and it only punished me in the end.”

She stood back up. “There were peaceful solutions, but I didn’t take them.”

Julia scratched her neck awkwardly. “To be honest…we wouldn’t have gotten them anyway without some force. They were going out swinging, and while we shouldn’t be hurting people whenever we feel like it, we can always help out…”

Julia sort of bowed as well. “So, I’m sorry for insisting we had to do less than we could.”

Essex held her scythe out proudly, still feeling a residual sting in her arm, before strapping it to her back. “These points are not so easily argued.”

“Yeah…” Julia agreed, before hugging Essex suddenly. “I’m just so glad we’re okay…”

The hug kept up until a loud noise landed beside them, as they noticed Sola dropping off a giant box of flowers in front of Harley, stunning her into silence.

“W-Wow…” Harley let out, as Sola beamed at her.

“Surprise! I got you a start-of-dating gift!” Sola exclaimed. “I worked a ton to get you all of these!”

“R-Really?” Harley said to herself, digging through the box, as the mug behind her back started to feel pretty heavy.

Sola noticed it quickly. “Whatcha got there?”

“Oh…” She said, looking to Wess for support, before tentatively holding it out. “I got you a…start-of-dating gift too.”

Sola squeed in delight and grabbed it, before taking a second to read it and laugh.

“The cat’s saying meow-ning!” Sola laughed. “That’s so good!”

Harley turned to Wess subtly and gave her a thumbs up, as she gave one in return.

“Well then.” Virgil spoke up, before bowing similarly to Essex. “Thank you for letting me help with those two. It’s…pretty wild to put a face to the people Sola’s been describing all day.”

“Yeah. No problem…?” Julia said, stepping forward to shake his hand.

“Virgil.”

“Virgil, got it. You’ve got some great skills.” Julia complimented, as Virgil blushed a little.

“W-Well, I’m just fortunate to see you guys in action. I…hope I can join you someday. At the academy.” Virgil admitted, before turning back to his shop. “I should probably get back to running things. It was nice meeting you all.”

The team and Virgil started heading their separate ways, only for Sola to break off and join up with Virgil again.

“Wait! I have an idea!” Sola admitted, as Virgil turned to face her. “What if I work here in my spare time? That way, you’ll have enough time to train and get accepted into the academy.”

“R-Really?” Virgil quivered, shaking his hands. “I-I-I couldn’t force you to do that, a-and there’s no guarantee more training wi-“

“I’m insisting.” Sola said. “It’s the least I can do.”

Virgil looked back at Sola, then to the rest of Team Valiant, then to the barely visible peaks of the Venator Academy’s buildings in the distance.

“…you can start next week.” Virgil said. “I’ll send a more detailed schedule later, but I insist you get paid for your work. You’re not working for free.”

Sola nodded. “Great! I’ll see you soon then!”

Sola hurried off to join back up with Team Valiant, as Virgil headed back into his store, but not before looking back at the outline of the Venator Academy, letting out a relieved sigh as the afternoon breeze started to come in.

“We’re almost there…”