Your humiliation comes out in front of everyone

Five years ago, long before you came to Acropolis City and when you were just about to embark on your journey of higher education to build the skills and networks you would need to become a real crime-fighter like your mother before you, your seemingly perfect life had taken a sudden, dramatic turn for the worse. Just when everything seemed perfect - you had just gotten accepted to your dream school and a veteran hero, Bright Owl, had already expressed an interest in letting you get a start as his sidekick - disaster had struck. After the thrill of anonymously hooking up with strange men you'd met online in dark motel rooms had become addictive, you had indulged yourself in one more go of it before leaving town. That time, you had barely even said anything before getting right to business. Even though the online ad you'd posted had been for oral sex, you had ended up pulling off your pants and making the first move to escalate to intercourse without being asked.

And so it was that you didn't realize the man who'd responded to your post in 'casual encounters' was your own stepfather, Eddie, who you'd been living under the same roof with for over 10 years, until after the two of you had fucked.

Those had been some awkward weeks indeed. Instead of ignoring one another, you and Eddie made a show of trying very hard to pretend everything was normal, while still avoiding ever making eye contact. Your mother even commented that after the two of you had been distant and unfriendly for so long, it was wonderful to see the both of you making an effort to 'make some happy memories before Rikki leaves for college'. If only she'd known.

Weeks after the event, when you'd finally started feeling like yourself again, and gradually making peace with the fact that this was just something you and your stepfather were going to have to take to your graves... when you had, at last, some sense of hope that this was something you could someday forget... one morning you found yourself throwing up until you had dry heaves. Only then did you notice that your period was 10 days late.

And so it was that you found yourself hiking up your skirt and peeing on a stick in a **** store bathroom. When you finally mustered up the courage to take a look, your stomach did a quadruple somersault: Two blue lines. Pregnant. Out of all the times in your late teenage years when you thought you were invincible that crossing your fingers had been your birth control after a spontaneous date, internet hook-up, or weekend party, that had been the time when the odds caught up with you.

Your first thought had been to talk to your mother and stepfather, confess everything, and hope mom would forgive you. But the more you thought about it, the more you thought that her Catholic beliefs, though lightly worn and not imposed on you heavy handedly most of the time, might suddenly rise to prominence in her thoughts in a situation like this. With a career as a superheroine ahead of you, you couldn't afford to take the chance of having it all destroyed because of one careless mistake.

So, you went off to college six weeks later without having told her. And your jealous scumbag of a younger stepbrother had chosen exactly the wrong day to 'come visit you' in the hopes of finding some way to ride your coattails into heroing... and, thanks to a loose-lipped bimbo roommate of yours, walked in on you at the waiting room of the campus women's health clinic. That was all he needed to convince him he could **** you to get him to do whatever he wanted, and that started with getting Eddie to give him access to the money that he felt was rightfully his. And the rest is history.

Back in the present, you decide that the only thing to do in a horrible situation like this is to take it head on. If you had done anything aside from what you did, maybe you never would've gotten your start as the second Nightingale, and dozens... no, thousands of people might have died, and more than a few heinous villains would have gone unpunished... and the chance that you're earning yourself to finally bring justice to whoever murdered your father would have never been anything but a pipe dream.

It's time to own it. You take a deep breath and try to calm yourself. "Shut up, 'Shush', or whatever you're calling yourself. I may not be able to use my sound powers but I can still talk over you the old fashioned way! It's a short, simple story. Several years ago, there was a little case of mistaken identity, and I ended up in bed with someone. I didn't recognize him at first, but it turned out to be my stepfather. That would've been the video you saw, Dr. Rainbow, and it's why this waste of oxygen thinks he has something he can use against me now." you say. "Somebody recorded it, somehow, and because of that stool pigeon, now my sociopath of a stepbrother has his hands on the video. A couple of months later, after I'd moved away from home, I found out that I'd gotten pregnant. He found out that I was having it terminated, and thought that meant he could **** me into helping him embezzle a small fortune from our parents."

Red Balloon drifts backwards, losing her footing on the ground as she starts floating up off her feet as giddiness takes over. She makes a theatrically shocked face as if it's the most vile thing anyone had ever said. "Ooooooooh! Oooooooooooooh! Unbeliiiiiiiiiiiievable!" she squeals at such a high pitch it verges on ultrasonic. "She seduced her own stepfather, and then cheated to cover up the consequences! No wonder he's angry, if you killed his sibling!"

Your eye twitches, but you resolve to get even with her later; besides, Doc is listening. Dr. Rainbow gives a sympathetic coo. "Oh no! What a terrible misfortune. You've had such a hard life Ri- er, Night- um, I mean, Thunderbird! Thank goodness and gumdrops that those well-trained medical professionals were able to help you before it did any more harm to your family's happiness."

"WHAT?!" Elliot looks shocked, having been listening in on your communicator. He brings a communicator of his own on his wrist up to his mouth and speaks into it, breaking into the conversation. "You can't be serious! Doctor Rainbow, aren't you bound by the Hippocratic Oath? To save lives, and all of that? Doesn't that go against your code? For her to go and do something like that... and it wasn't even real blood-related ****. She just wanted to avoid getting embarrassed or inconvenienced! How can you be okay with that?"

You clear your throat. "Well, that's only partly true. If it had actually just been a random forty-something man off the internet whose lap I ended up bouncing on, I probably wouldn't have done anything differently when I found out he'd knocked me up."

"Oh," Dr. Rainbow is back to her usual sweet and generous voice. "When I first started learning life magic I would have agreed with you, it does seem wrong. I wouldn't have done it that way myself - oooh, I'm so sorry Thunderbird, that was insensitive of me to say, I'm just providing context - but when I went to university I learned that I'd been really narrow-minded about a lot of things! In the words of a great man, 'At the heart of liberty is the right to define one’s own concept of existence, of meaning, of the universe, and of the mystery of human life.' I hope you don't take this the wrong way, Mister Shush, but you probably should have gone to college instead of running off to try and become a supervillain, in my humble opinion. It's important to get some perspective for things like this!"

He looks very irritated by Doctor Rainbow's words. "Never mind that, never mind your rationalizations! Yeah, sure, you'll let her get away with it just like everyone always gives her the benefit of the doubt," Elliot spits, "but that isn't all! I know the laws just as well as you do. It was one thing when she was just a college student, but now she's a... a...." he grits his teeth as he says the word, "superheroine! And that means a different standard applies. Don't you see? She did it again! Ducked all the consequences AGAIN! I don't even need to tell reporters, I can just go straight to Maiden America with this, if you decide you don't want to play ball, 'Thunderbird'!"

You blink and pull up your tinted visor so that you can look him in the eyes. Your expression is completely flabbergasted. "What the hell are you talking about? 'Different standard'? 'Again'? I've come clean about everything that happened, because I'm not ashamed about any of it. Now you're just making up bullshit. Birdshit. Whatever."

Shush/Elliot looks like he's been waiting for this. He pulls open a pocket in his trenchcoat and pulls out several large color photographs. "Did you forget? I've been in this city the entire time, Ri... Thunderbird. I've been watching you, and I've been watching a certain place. I knew you'd slip up again when you started feeling like you own the whole world, just like last time. Not only did I count about twenty different guys going into your apartment before you even started being Nightingale, but everyone knows about what you did on your VERY FIRST patrol!"

You grab one of the photographs. In it is a side-on picture of a woman about your height, with the same hairstyle in the same shade of red, wearing casual civilian clothes, visiting the nearest women's clinic to your apartment here in Acropolis City. The numbers on it date it to a little over 3 months ago, right when you were starting out as Nightingale. Elliot shakes his fist, looking vindicated.

Sighing with contempt and a little relief, you toss the photographs over your shoulder. "That isn't me, you idiot. You got so damn excited to finally 'get' me that you didn't look very closely. Yeah, she has the same body type and hairstyle, but look at the face. Her cheekbones are higher, she has a heavier jaw than I do, her nose is a little bigger... and I don't own any of those clothes. You just took a picture of some random girl and assumed it was me." 'Thank God that morning after pill worked', you silently add in your mind.

"More brazen lies!" Shush says, his voice dripping venom as he jabs his finger at you. "She lied about it to her mother's face before, why wouldn't she lie about it now? The only reason a woman that early along would get turned away is if she was in the database of registered superhumans! She... she expects us to believe that there was ANOTHER superheroine who looks almost exactly like her who just happened to need an abortion at the clinic a few blocks from her apartment, just a few months after she'd moved to Acropolis?"

"Uh," you say, folding your arms over your chest. "...yeah? I do expect you to believe that, because it's the truth. Whoever this girl is doesn't 'look exactly like me', just kind of vaguely similar. If I'd worn my hair a different way you wouldn't even have looked twice at her, I bet. And there are over 200 active superheroes in this city alone, plus dozens and dozens of outside heroes who pass through on any given month chasing villains, attending conferences or catching up with fellow capes. Like Dr. Rainbow said, you should have stayed in school, little bro, you might've had an opportunity to take a class on statistics." Something bothers you and you frown, stopping in mid sentence. "...turned away if she was in the database of registered superhumans? What? I've never heard of that. Doc, do you have any idea what this psycho stalker is talking about?"

"Oh, um," her voice comes over the comm again, "yes... Maiden America said it's a long story, and that there isn't anything she or the League can do about it at the moment, since it's a matter of constitutional law and justice department policy. I think I can clear this up, though. I don't think Thunderbird has ever worked in the infirmiry, but during a routine checkup a few weeks ago, I was dealing with a brave and powerful new heroine who, now that I use my noodle and think on it, did look a bit like she does. I remember I felt terrible about it, because I told her congratulations on her pregnancy, and she got really, really upset about it. I sure won't make that mistake again! Her name was... um, what was it, so many super names to keep track of... Fire...? OHNOsomeone'scomingIgottabequietnow,hugsandkissesThunderbird." she suddenly speaks fast and then her communicator goes quiet.

Elliot looks even more aggrieved than usual. "I... I see how it is! You've got your claws into that colorful fool and the two of you got your story straight ahead of time. Well, it won't work this time! It's not just that she broke the League's rules, she broke criminal law! Look at her!" he points to your flat stomach, easily visible along with your navel through the square-shaped cutout in your yellow costume. "She clearly got it done at some back-alley unlicensed place! Otherwise she'd definitely be showing by now." He points at you and glares hard. "You have 48 hours, Thunderbird! Either you agree to my demands and vouch for me for a place in your precious League, or I turn over everything! To your mother, to the Big 7, to the tabloids, to anybody who'll listen!

Pursuing your lips, you hold up your right hand, with the bulky boxing-glove like device that focuses your sound powers into devastating blasts up close. "So I should just go ahead and kick your ass now then, is what you're saying? I guess we'll find out if that expensive soundproof underwear of yours does anything against fists. Look on the bright side, when the paramedics show up, your stupid choice of costume means they'll have plenty of bandages to use on your face. And they are gonna need them."

"Ooooooooh waiiit a second, Thunderbird," Red Balloon says. "I wouldn't want you to get in troooooooouble or anything! Don't you know that we aren't allowed to go after suspects of non-violent crimes unless we clear it with someone from the Big 7 first? I mean, I would gladly help you take down this evil, evil man. But it's important to always follow the law, or else what do we stand for, right?" she giggles.

Elliot is already backing away down the alley, not taking his chances. You shout at him: "Yeah, well guess what? I'm on my way to meet with none other than Green Streak right now! In fact, I'll probably tell him I want to be his lover, now! You've just reminded me that I could do SO MUCH WORSE than him, 'Shush'! Either way he'll do whatever I ask him to, and beating down the likes of you is nothing compared to what he routinely gets away with! If you've got half a brain, you'll stay out of my sight! Because if I see you creeping around me or my team again, rule or no rules, your stupid bandage costume is getting upgraded to a full-body cast!"

He turns and takes off running, but shouts back at you as villains are wont to do even as he goes: "You'll slip when you're trying to cover this up, I know it! And when you do, I'll be there!"

You sigh. Without a word, you march right into the secret entrance elevator. You still need that shower.

"Is something wr-" Julia starts to ask when you come out of the shower, a towel wrapped around your alluring body.

"COFFEE." you rumble to her in an unnaturally deep voice. "NOW. AND LOTS OF IT."

It's a small mercy, but Red Balloon is quiet on the ride to the next stop, the apartment where you're supposed to meet Green Streak's contact. Sweat is beading on your brow despite the mild coastal weather and air conditioned van interior. You feel like you got the best of Elliot there, and you're 100% certain that the pictures of some hapless heroine trying to procure an abortion he has have nothing to do with you. But even so, he has enough to be dangerous. Mom is currently acting as Nightingale again, a veteran heroine... what if she denounces you? Starts a whisper campaign? You don't put it past her. Your team could crash and burn before it even really gets off the ground. And what is all this stuff about these special laws for superhumans? You didn't know anything about that. Apparently you've been dodging bullets more narrowly than you even realized. For that matter, judging by what she said after seducing Griffineagle yesterday, Snowflake doesn't know about any of this either. You'd better clue her in soon before she ends up needing to go shopping for gender-neutral maternity clothes marketed to "pregnant persons".

Getting to Green Streak is the important thing now. You pull up in front of the apartment Raven Woman's map led you to.

"Well, Red Balloon," you say, projecting confidence, "your little friend took his best shot and failed. So how about you just focus on doing what I tell you now, and let's get this mission taken care of so we can rescue Dr. Rainbow and see about getting **** on... well, it's getting to be a long list at this point, but Hot Cross Bunny and her gang are at the top of it."

"Photobomber." Red Balloon says, more quietly than usual.

"Yeah," you shrug. "Him too, I guess. I have no idea if he has something to do with all this or if he's just causing random mayhem, but-"

"No, no! There!" Red Balloon says, urgently, floating up out of her seat and pointing.

There, walking out of the entrance of the apartment building, is a man in a Hawaiian t-sirt, with an old polaroid camera around his neck, and with a bomb-shaped mask covering his head. In his hand, he's carrying a small device with a big red button, which his thumb is hovering over.

"No no no no no no no NO NO NO NO NO," you start chanting as you fling open the door of the van and break into a run, trying to close the distance.