WE SURVIVED BUT WE'RE DEAD.

as dash came into sight, leo knew that his day was about to get a lot more interesting. he didn't know the kid well, and kid was used very lightly because there was only a few years difference between the. since becoming leader, leo felt like he had aged far more than his peers. having the weight of the world on your shoulders would do that to you. "just making sure," the slider held his hands up in faux defense. "depends on the day." an innocence he had melted as a hint of a smirk danced across his features.

leo was not someone who let things go easily. he was working on it! but, he had yet to master that art. he could hear his father's voice in his head telling him to walk away. leo was a stubborn turtle - one of his biggest faults, if he had to pick one. "that's the best thing i've heard all day." he gave the weird potions one more glance, glaring at the guy in the process to make him feel bad for his poor life choices, then walked in stride with dash. "if you're offering, of course. i'd love one."

"i'm gonna keep it a buck with you, brother," he said, slapping his hand down on leo's shoulder with a chuckle. "beer tap counts as open bar from 6 til close. i'm offering you an escort to the next one." to be fair, dash would easily buy his buddy a beer right now - that just wasn't the type of function they were at. thank you, miss ariel - ceo of event planning.

dash threw his empty cup in a trash can as they crossed the market, shoving his hands in his pockets as they walked. "what's up, boss? you been alright?" it was polite conversation, but dash really was interested in how leo was doing. dash's shift had changed at work recently and, as a result, he hadn't seen leo as much. he was realizing it in real time as he stood in front of him now. "it's been a minute!"

weekends had started to mean less to violet since she lost her job. she hated that this was one of the more unexpected results of losing a schedule like that; time could so quickly feel so limitless, but violet started to realise she needed those limits. she needed a schedule, expectations, commitments. she had just hated it when they were set by someone else, other than herself.

violet was coming to realise that maybe she didn't need to be working for 'the man', so to speak. people started their own businesses all the time, didn't they?

one such endeavour she had her eyes on, though not really a business, was displayed on her screen now. the voice of elias. violet adjusted her headband so her hair was out of her face. she had half a coffee cooling on the counter from much earlier in the morning. and at some point she'd put a pot on the stove for…something. but everything had stopped when she saw one of the page's last posts. a community patrol. did anything come of that idea? violet had been researching about patrols for about an hour, and then got stuck for the next hour, looking back at the original post. the idea of breakfast had well and truly escaped her mind, and now it was lunchtime.

she noticed her little brother walk down, figuring he was just going to go about his business and ignore her. one of them had to be enjoying their life. so when he actually spoke to her, she was mildly surprised.

"i, uh…no," she admitted, slowly processing the moment. violet looked around just in time to see him throw the poptarts, and she caught it. she double-checked the time on the clock and gave him a look. "you're up early."

finally looking away from her screen, she switched to another one. turning on the tv in the corner of the living room, it showed a rerun of their old favourite saturday cartoons. violet's mouth twitched to a smile. she unwrapped the poptarts and started eating.

"what are you doing today?" she asked, not turning to face him as she continued to watch. "mom and dad left to do…i dunno…avengers campus, or something. so you can — wait, have you started? did you start already?!" this time, she spun around, eyes fixed on him.

no matter the intention, he took the look and the comment as judgment. "i know it's noon. i was out late." it was no secret that dash had grown accustomed to the party scene at both learning institutions in the city and last night has been a typical display of such development. everyone was throwing one last rager before heading home for the summer, and dash had spent his time in his favorite sorority house - for old time's sake.

it just made his 9am workout stretch into the afternoon.

"i work 3 to close. gonna work out, shower, grab a bite, go to work ..." this was the stipulation to dash going to the avenger's academy, of course. he also had to get a job - because the fact that he was so behind his peers wasn't enough punishment. it felt like a humiliation ritual, the hand that helen parr dealt her son. hearing mom and dad made him scoff. "fuck mom and dad. don't tell them what i'm doing either."

he thought about the sobering conversations he had with older mentors at the academy, how his rush to get in for summer term felt premature to those who knew more than he did. it was so irritating - the acceptance with conditions. the buts and the not yets. but he didn't have the energy to explain to violet the hoops he had to jump through to even get here today. his plea to tony not to tell his mother, to let him do it, only for her to come back and say 'you're accepted but you have to do more than everyone else, twice.' dash was pissed and the words weren't there to convey it. "i'm prepping for fall," was all he said.

since school was now on the table for discussion, it seemed like as good of a time as any to bring up a decision he had been sitting on. he wasn't sure why he was nervous to tell violet - maybe because he was nervous to go through with it. he took a swig of coffee and allowed a beat to pass as he swallowed.

"i also, um, decided to move into the dorms. when i start."

Joking aside, she knew; clocked him faster than she could blink. There was something in his eye that gave away he understood she knew, long before he made it clearly obvious. Kate watched as he smirked and leant in, immediately gauging that she was losing ground in this. Not badly. Not catastrophically. Just enough to get under her skin a little. And she didn't mind it.

His question made her want to laugh, this time she was the one to lean in a little. Their curated bubble now somewhere she didn't want to escape from. "I've seen some things, for sure." She started, not giving away anything on her part, the corner of her lips turning upward into her own smirk. "Never met someone using Ferraris as a benchmark for their personality, though." And look that good doing it. Kate held his gaze for a second longer than she meant to. Then immediately looked away like that fixed it. It did not.

She took another sip of her drink instead, like it could physically reset her brain to something more normal and less aware of the fact that she very well was getting caught up in him right then. His next question caused her brows to raise in amusement. Her mouth opened only to close as he left her there as quickly as he asked the question. She shook her head, further amused despite herself. Her gaze fell onto him across the way, watching him like she was deciding whether he was going to be a problem or a story she’d tell later.

When he came back and admitted it wasn’t strawberry, she narrowed her eyes immediately. Suspicious. “Right.” She took the drink when it arrived anyway, because she was not predictable due to faulty genetics. Kate stared at it for half a second before taking a sip. Her expression stayed carefully neutral for exactly one beat too long.

“…Oh.” The raven-haired woman took another sip, smaller than the last. Her brain registering the grenadine before looking at him again. “You are...” She clearly hated what she was about to admit, "dangerously good at this.”

“So now I’m curious,” She said, voice softer but sharper at the edges due to her teasing tone, “is this your usual strategy? Or did I just get special treatment because I looked like I might actually call you on your nonsense?”

"look, a hypercar can go over two hundred miles an hour. that's all i'm saying. i'm not counting physics as a personality trait." dash smirked into the rim of his cup before taking another sip of his beer, finding humor in the way she poked fun at him. setting the cup down, eyes locked on hers as he added, "sue me for knowing about cars." he laughed then.

the bartender came back with their next round and dash watched closely as she tried the new concoction - simple enough, but way better than whatever else she had been drinking. waiting patiently for her review, he grinned at her eventual approval. it was going to be really awkward if she had thought it was nasty.

"it's just pomegranate," dash said with a shrug, only mentally patting his own back. "but if you like that, you should see what else i'm dangerously good at." he wasn't really sure what he meant by that - but it wouldn't be the first time dash spoke before he thought about the words coming out of his mouth. maybe that was the nonsense she spoke of.

"you think i'm strategizing?" it was kind of funny - dash was the opposite of somebody who was willing to beat around the bush if what he was trying to do was strategize. not even for the love of the game, but for the opposite. when he wanted something he was just going to ask for it.

with that in mind, he pulled his phone out of his pocket, opened up the contact app to a new screen, and slid it on the bar between the two of them. "how about you throw your number in there real fast?" he asked. "your name, too, since i was rude and didn't ask sooner."

he winked. how was that for strategy?

hopper let out a short, dry laugh, shaking his head as he glanced over at him. “yeah, i think i’ll pass on the piggyback escape plan,” he muttered, though there was a flicker of amusement there despite himself. “last thing i need is to look like i’m fleeing the underland.” his gaze drifted back out over the crowd, jaw ticking slightly like he was still deciding how much of this he could tolerate.

he huffed, rolling his shoulders before looking back at dash. a reluctant shrug. “but… how am i to deny a beer? sounds better than standing here brooding like an asshole all night.” his brow lifted slightly. “so yeah. lead the way, speed racer..”

dash couldn't help but laugh at that. "you think someone would see you hop on some guy's back and assume that's your plan to flee?" he paused. "dude, come on..." it was a funny image though, a fleeting moment of humor between strangers. and shit, if this guy had to deal with a crowd he didn't want to deal with, the least dash could do was show him to a corner of it that was a little more quiet.

he tilted his head in the direction of the beer tent, indicating for his new friend for the moment to follow him. hands shoved in his pockets as they weaved through the crowd, he looked to his side as they hit a clearing before the entrance. "so you're not in love with the idea of celebrating our community business owners?" he asked with a smirk, directly quoting a speech from miss ariel earlier in the day.

semra was almost disappointed that the person beside her didn't put up much of a fight. key word almost. as much as she would have loved to get into some sort of scuffle herself, she didn't want to take away from the true entertainment at hand.

then again, semra was just antsy to get back into action. since arriving, she hadn't be able to sink her teeth into the city the way she wanted to. drakken was still getting oriented to all that was expected of him. until there were concrete plans in place, semra was a bit of a free agent. depending on who you were, that could be considered either a good or bad thing.

"smart boy," she remarked. "raise it to twenty if that one leaves with a broken bone and a nice black eye and you got yourself a deal."

dash considered this for a moment. considered her, considered the fight. sure, he had twenty bucks to spare - but he didn't think the guy's opponent was capable of breaking a bone and socking an eye, either . easy money as long as he wasn't underestimating anybody. he held out a hand, smirk on his face. "sure," he said. "deal." even though that smart boy comment forced him to pause.

he had a feeling this would be quick anyway, out in the daylight and everything. they might sit back and watch but that didn't mean everyone would - he heard miss ariel even hired security. could be interesting, could be uneventful - but dash was almost too restless to find out. "let's say, after the fat lady sings, you and i pop over to the other side for a drink."

milo jumped slightly when he finally realised dash was sitting next to him, coughing in surprise before he could get any words out. “wait, were you here the whole time?” he takes his glasses off for a moment and hums. “maybe i should look into getting my prescription checked.” there’s a beat of silence as he considers the question, picking up his cup and looking at its almost empty contents. “a beer, or at least it’s what they’re calling it. but i’d feel a little guilty asking for a drink when i haven’t introduced myself. i’m milo, and you are?”

there was something about the roof of the tent that made gaston's the perfect checkpoint, unlike the rest of the booths and stalls along the market. sitting at the end of the bar automatically put dash at ease - the music was muffled, there was a roof over his head, and it was easier to hold conversation. it was like dash could let his guard drop a little more, strange as it were. "nah, i just sat down. kinda just--" he tsk'd and slid his hands together. "bolted over here before someone took the spot."

dash smirked and shook his head before looking to the bartender to get his attention. "you didn't ask. i offered." the nuance was important - no need for politeness here! when the bartender popped over, he finished his beer and ordered two more. "i'm dash, it's nice to meet you. are you from around here?"

he should be more careful in public because he had a reputation to uphold. he wasn't scared of running into anyone, but jinu was concerned about the way people viewed him no matter what. he'd grabbed something that looked like an alcoholic beverage from the tavern because he wasn't really in the mood to drink yet wanted people to think he was. "um, hello?" he looked over at the stool that had been unoccupied only seconds earlier. "just a club soda with a lime wedge."

one thing dash understood well was party etiquette. any social function, bar, or party was going to hold mixed company and this guy could be sitting in the beer tent without a beer for any number of reasons. "hello," he replied simply, smiling, purposefully ignoring any indication that this wasn't a perfectly normal exchange and that he didn't just speed run through the tent. "you say 'just' like that's not a solid fuckin' order, my guy. one club soda with a lime wedge coming right up."

he stood up on the footrest of his stool and waved to the bartender to get his attention across the bar. he held up his beer, pointed to the guy next to him, and held up two fingers - this, to dash, indicated another round. when the bartender seemed to understand what he was asking for, he stuck up a thumb and sat back down. "we're cool," he confirmed.

"i'm dash, by the way. thanks for letting my hijack your spot. i know i didn't give you a choice or anything, but you're being a really good sport about it."

sitting on a bench, she watched all the families and friends sitting on the picnic benches eating or chatting. there were a lot of kids running around. normal things. happy people. but she saw some faces that were too tired, trying to relax, and more like the people she saw back home. after everything that happened this year so far, sylvie didn't know how to feel about it. she was curious. she had her own problems to deal with, not the ones that were going on here.

she was alone at her table and jumped at the voice. her eyes drifted over to the line. "i've been here a while. people keep going up to it and ordering from them," the princess shrugged. "i think it's probably just not a busy time."

dash nodded as he contemplated the woman's words. straight, to the point, and not much to argue with. sure, some of these food trucks looked dead in the water - but maybe that was what he got for judging a moment in time as a constant. he had a bad habit of doing that in several aspects of his life. he watched as people walked up, ordered their food, and walked away all looking as satisfied as one would expect. consistent to anyone with eyes. "fair enough," he agreed, deciding his preconceived judgment was unwarranted.

that didn't help his decision making, though. equal playing ground meant all shots were fair, all choices were good - the bane of the existence of anyone with decision paralysis. "well, what do you think?" he decided to push - an attempt at furthering the conversation, too. "have you tried any of these?"

Kate narrowed her eyes at him immediately, though the grin threatening at the corner of her mouth ruined any real intimidation factor.

“Oh, you definitely ran over here.”

She pointed accusingly with her cup in a teasing manner.

“Like, concerningly fast. ‘Golden retriever who heard the treat bag open from three rooms away’ fast.”

Still, she was laughing by the end of it, shaking her head before taking another sip of the drink she already regretted ordering.

At his comment about coffee, her brow lifted.

“That feels less like a personality trait and more like a warning label.”

The raven-haired woman shifted slightly on the stool, turning more toward him now as the noise of the bar swelled around them. Somebody near the back cheered loudly at absolutely nothing, and she glanced over briefly before looking back at Dash with amused disbelief.

“See? This is exactly what I mean. Everybody here’s either falling in love, starting a fight, or making decisions they’ll apologize for tomorrow.”

A deflection.

Then her gaze dropped briefly to his empty glass before returning to the wink he threw her way.

And unfortunately? That was effective.

She hated that a little.

“Oh, so now you’re rescuing me from my bad choices?” She asked, dramatic enough to place the palm of her hand lightly against her chest. “Very noble of you.”

A moment passed before she leaned one elbow onto the bar.

“Okay, but if you order me something horrifyingly sweet, I will judge you for it.” Her eyes narrowed again, though it was more playful this time around. “And I need you to know that my trust is both fragile and deeply conditional.”

Then, after the smallest pause: “…Also probably a vodka strawberry lemonade. Which feels embarrassingly on-brand now that I’m saying it out loud.”

his eyes narrowed in tandem with hers, masking any concern with her realization. dash was a couple too many beers deep to truly gauge her response, but he knew as well as anything that it didn't necessarily matter. he had shown his hand and she saw it - there was no hiding after that. he smirked, leaning in. "what? you never see a man outrun a ferrari before?"

immediate banter, no introductions - it was this type of interaction that dash found himself regularly chasing. he turned, both his body and his full attention, to the woman next to him and inquired. "so, what's your verdict? are you trying to cuss me out or owe me an apology?" he got up before she could answer, question rhetorical, and waved down the bartender at the other side of the tent. he'd need another local brew and a vodka lemonade with grenadine for the lady. "it's not strawberry," he admitted once the bartender walked away. "but i think you'll like it."

Kate glanced over as the stool beside her was suddenly occupied, one brow lifting slightly before a grin tugged at the corner of her mouth.

“Wow. Aggressive commitment to securing bar seating. I respect it.”

She shifted her drink in her hand, eyeing him briefly before looking back toward the crowded beer tent ambiance around them.

“This place is like the Hunger Games for stools. You hesitate for half a second and suddenly you’re drinking standing up next to a guy named Craig mansplaining craft beer.”

At his question, she lifted her cup slightly. “No idea. I asked the bartender what tasted the least like regret and he laughed at me, so this is where we landed.”

She took another sip, considering it.

“Actually, no, this definitely tastes like regret. Just expensive regret.”

Kate leaned one elbow against the bar, amused.

“So what’re you drinking, besides apparent confidence?”

aw, fuck. did she see how fast he ran over here? did it matter? it wasn't like he was doing anything illegal. dash had to remind himself that he wasn't in metroville anymore. appearing out of the ordinary may garner a few looks from people, but no one was about to throw him in jail for running too fast.

he smirked. "what, that? child's play. you should see me after a coffee."

eyes scanned the bar and fell on the familiar face of the bartender, a chuckle passing his lips at her words. "seems like, down here, they love a little regret." dash looked down at his almost empty beer, downed the rest, and shook his head. "you don't want this either," he told her - it would be regret number two. "what kind of juice do you like? i'll order you something sweet." he winked at her like he was punctuating the end of a sentence.

Semra was certain the event would end in disaster. in fact, she was hoping for it. a little entertainment never hurt anyone, and she was all for free entertainment. if she didn't have a hand in it, even better, sometimes a girl didn't want to have to do all the work. she wanted things to come to her freely. someone must have been listening to her because a fight broke out between an underland vendor and merchant. their bickering was loud enough that a crowd was starting to form. someone beside her looked like they were about to play hero when semra put a hand in front of them to stop them "don't try anything," she warned. "i want to see who wins."

it was getting to that point in the night where people were starting to get rowdy. celebration was encouraged, entertainment was showing itself in plenty of indulgent ways, and a certain crowd was starting to get restless. dash had a feeling the sun didn't set on the gloam market the same way it did everywhere else. he took a step to intervene with a bubbling conflict when a hand flew in front of him.

stopping then, his eyes went from the hand to the woman attached. admittedly, she was beautiful enough that he probably would have went along with anything she had to say. dash was a simple man.

"alright, i'll play," he said with a smirk, zeroing in on the stall where chaos would soon ensue. "five dollars says someone flips the other into the table."