Remy's laugh came out louder than he meant it to; a team of villains seeking reform? And they were on the payroll?

"—An' wait, you callin' me a villain?" He wiped a tear from his eye, composing himself after the fit of hilarity, "Actu'lly don' answer dat."

It wasn't lost on him that quite a few of his own associates were what one would call reformed villains—his wife included—and made use of their powers to do good in the world. It was just this concept being offered to him that made it so laughable.

THIS BITCH is choosing violence today, it seems.

for a second Flambae's whole jaw goes tight, tongue automatically pressing to the gap like he has to check it's still there. heat flares up his neck - it's the prickle of being looked at too close by this normie bitch. his ever helpful brain throws up the highlight reel: bar lights, cheap booze, that self-righteous, real hero's fuckin' takedown, teeth on wood, copper in his mouth. the rest is a blur. fucking hilarious.

he could've fixed it, sure, if he felt like selling a fuckin' kidney for decent dental, or letting some cheap hack grind him down. instead, he kept it. fuckin' ... owned it, turned it into a vibe. holds onto the, a little fucked up, kinda hot actually comments. on bad days, tells himself it's a choice.

--doesn't mean it doesn't sting like hell when a certain someone pokes it on purpose.

he snorts, shoulders rolling, like he's shaking it off, chin tipping up in wounded pride and defiance.

don't let him see it. "tch. premium, obviously," he drawls, baring it at him on purpose now, weaponising the flaw. like he does everything else; "you wish your mouth had this much fuckin' personality." his smouldering orange gaze drops, judgementally rude, then drags back up with a nasty little smirk. "--and while we're makin' small talk, how's your flat ass, Bob Bob?"

　　' 𝐈𝐓'𝐒 𝐀𝐋𝐖𝐀𝐘𝐒 𝐃𝐀𝐑𝐊𝐄𝐒𝐓 𝐁𝐄𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐄 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐃𝐀𝐖𝐍. at least, that's what i try to tell myself. '

"Please, I beg of you, eat the other half of my sandwich. You look like you're gonna get scurvy on gangrene or something."

i'm holding my world together with a bootstring .

There  is  a  soft  sigh.  All  of  their  lives  had  been  since  everything,  the  bright  side  was  she  actually  got  to  figure  out  who  she  was.  But,  she  could  not  confidently  say  the  same  about  Robert.  He  had  always  been  so  confident  in  who  he  was,  and  who  Mecha  Man  was  despite  everything  that  had  happened. 

To  be  honest,  Mandy  had  looked  up  to  that.  Robert  had  inspired  a  lot  at  SDN.  But,   the  heart  on  her  sleeve  ached  hearing  despite  how  everything  had  gone.  She  never  held  judgement  toward  him  or  the  Z-Team.  Some  of  this  had  to  be  her  fault  if  she  had  seen  it  coming  or  if  she  could  have  done  more.

Her  head  shook  the  thoughts  clear.  This  was  not  the  time  for  her  to  get  lost  in  her  own  emotions.  This  was  not  about  her,  it  never  had  been.  Robert  needed  a  sounding  board,  something  and  she  was  going  to  be  that.  She  had  to  be.  That  was  who  Blazer  was,  no…  that  was  who  Mandy  was.  They  could  share  that  trait.

❝I'm  so  sorry  Robert.  To  be  honest  I  think  I  got  more  caught  up  in  how  Z-Team  was  feeling  I  was  misguided  and--.❞

She  can  not  help  but  feel  the  obligation.  She  was  another  corporate  manufactured  hero  and  she  loved  to  be  a  hero  but  there  had  to  be  more  to  her  than  that.  Clearly  she  had  forgotten  that  despite  no  longer  even  being  able  to  be  a  hero.  She  was  just  Mandy  now  and  already  failing  at  that. 

This  whole  company  needed  someone  to  be  there  for  them.  All  the  things  SDN  made  them  do,  coffee  runs,  saving  cats  and  actual  emergency  events  was  a  lot.  But  in  specific  Robert  was  in  all  of  this  because  of  her  and  due  to  this,  he  deserved  at  least  a  fraction  of  her  attention.  He  was  here  because  of  her.  He  became  a  Dispatcher  because  of  her.  It  was  her  fault  the  cards  fell  this  way.

 So  much  had  been  dumped  on  her  plate  and  corporate  should  never  take  her  humanity,  she  just  wished  she  saw  that  before  deciding  to  let  Coupe  go  on  cut  day. 

❝There  are  no  excuses.  I  should  have  checked  on  you  as  much  as  I  did  with  them.  Between  what  we  thought  would  happen  for  Chase,  to  being  Mecha  Man  and  what  happened  with  Shroud  and  Visi.  I  will  be  more  available  now,  I  promise.❞

Not  to  mention  the  paperwork  for  whatever  she  was now.  Thank  god  for  Galen  taking  over  and  keeping  a  secret  to  protect  her  identity.  But  for  now,  she  was  just  another  dispatcher.  That  gave  her  an  opportunity  at  least  to  get  closer  to  those  she  called  upon,  those  she  cared  for. 

Figuring  all  of  that  out  should  not  be  an  excuse  for  neglecting  her  friendship  with  him.  The  weight  of  that  fight,  of  everything  that  had  happened  in  just  a  few  short  days,  a  few  short  hours.  Sometimes  the  extension  of  her  heart  and  her  ears  left  more  to  be  desired.  She  could  do  so  much  better  and  maybe  that  was  what  being  Mandy  was.  Maybe  that  was  who  she  was.

❝What  can  I  do  to  help  you?  I  might  just  be  Mandy  now  but--  I'm  here  for  you,  not  SDN,  not  anymore  at  least.❞