[center][h1][img]https://see.fontimg.com/api/renderfont4/g105/eyJyIjoiZnMiLCJoIjo4MSwidyI6MTI1MCwiZnMiOjY1LCJmZ2MiOiIjQjY4QzI1IiwiYmdjIjoiI0ZGRkZGRiIsInQiOjF9/UXVha2U/blow-me-personal-use-regular.png [/img][/h1][/center] It was springtime, and Jamie barely had enough money to buy an Egg McMuffin. The superheroine known as Quake stomped out of the McDonald's with a scowl on her face and a breakfast sandwich in her hand. What did they [i]mean[/i], she didn't have enough money on her card for a McFlurry? There was no way that she could be that poor. It must've been a mistake, a miscalculation, she thought. An error. Maybe if she tried again, it would work! In fact, she turned around right there and went back in to try again. After all, third time's the charm. Surely that applied to debit cards, too. The glass door opened with a [i]whoosh[/i], letting in the chilly air of April. At the sound, the cashier turned to look, a smile on his face. But that smile quickly turned to an exasperated look at the sight of Jamie. He was a young man in his teens, all pimply and gross. It was the third time she had tried to buy a milkshake in 10 minutes, and he did not look like he wanted to try to run her card through the machine again. Even though she absolutely noticed his negative reaction, Jamie still sidled up to the counter, trying to look as casual as she possibly could. God, she really wanted this milkshake. [color=Goldenrod]"Hi, could I have the Oreo McFlurry, please-"[/color] Jamie started, putting on her best smile. "Ma'am, please." The teenager seemed to wilt as he tried to look anywhere but at her face. "Your card's been denied twice already. We accept all other forms of payment, you know." Jamie sighed, holding out her card. [color=Goldenrod]"Just run it again!"[/color] The cashier reluctantly took it from her hands and ran it through the machine. Jamie crossed her fingers, hoping hoping hoping and... declined. Her heart plummeted, and she scowled, ripping her card from the cashier's hands. Either this machine had a bias against her, or she was truly out of money. Her face went red as everybody in the store stared at her, some people mumbling words of pity or words of condemning. She seethed. She wasn't unemployed! She wasn't homeless, down on her luck! She was a superhero, goddamnit. As she stomped out of the McDonald's and back to her car, she wondered where she had gone wrong. She had gone on at least four jobs in the last two weeks, not even counting patrols! And, plus, that huge Ambleweed job- [i]Oh, shit.[/i] The Ambleweed job. The meeting this morning that Powers had held. That's why she didn't have any money. Now in the driver's seat of her car, she winced as she remembered the total of five buildings that she had collapsed, the streets that were destroyed. But... but she had killed the Ambleweeds! They were dead. Nobody had been able to get to to the big villain, but did that matter? So what, the buildings had been destroyed? She still should've been paid. But her paycheck had been more than halved- quartered. Which meant she was completely out of money. Unless she could figure out a way to make more... Having a good thought for once, Jamie pulled her cellphone from her pocket, opening up her Contacts. Who to call, who to call... someone smart. Someone who could handle a big job, one that would net them a lot of money. Enough money for her to be able to buy McFlurries again. Blake! She should text Blake. [quote= Jamie][color=Goldenrod]i need money wanna go on a job text me back pls[/color][/quote] She hit send, grinning. This would be so good! [@Hitman] [hr] [center][h1][img]https://see.fontimg.com/api/renderfont4/vY07/eyJyIjoiZnMiLCJoIjo4MSwidyI6MTI1MCwiZnMiOjY1LCJmZ2MiOiIjQUU0Q0M1IiwiYmdjIjoiI0ZGRkZGRiIsInQiOjF9/QXJpYQ/salikin.png [/img][/h1][/center] The worst thing in Patricia's life was, by far, algebra. Sure, being a superhero was hard, and dangerous, and exhausting, and so was having a dad that was a literal serial killer, but algebra just sucked on another level. It was just... so... boring! And hard. Why did she need it at all? She was a superhero, goddamnit, not planning to be an accountant. But dropping out would be a huge mistake, as she reminded herself nearly every day. If she ever lost her job for some reason, she'd need an education to fall back on. Didn't mean that it wasn't mind-numbingly boring. Patricia slammed her laptop closed and fell back onto her bed. She screamed into her pillow. she probably would've actually understood the course a little better had she actually been able to attend the live lesson this morning. Instead, she was stuck at a stupid mandatory hero meeting, listening to Powers lecture everyone about the disaster that had been the Ambleweed infestation. Safety and responsibility were good values that she tried her best to uphold, but, really, what was the point in lecturing everybody in the agency if most of them hadn't even committed the damage? She hadn't done anything particularly damning, after all. And ICOSA intervening? She fumed just thinking about it. What [i]assholes[/i]. At first, she had thought good of them, but, now, having seen the reality of hero work, Patricia couldn't help but think badly of them. A bunch of nosy, patronizing assholes, the lot of them. It was time for a break. Patricia hopped off of her bed and left her room, braving the minefield that was the living room. Sneak past her mother and her mother's boyfriend on tip-toes and take a left to inch her way into the kitchen. Open the pantry, take a look... [i]sweet[/i]! Chips' Ahoy! She ripped open the container, ready for sweet sugary goodness, only to find... nothing. It was empty. Who the fuck leaves an empty container in the pantry? Her face turned from hopeful to scowling in seconds, and she threw the container into the trash, making a loud noise. "Patti, is that you?!" yelled a loud, male voice from the living room. Oh, goddamnit. [color=MediumOrchid]"... Yeah!"[/color] she hollered back, wincing. "Be a sweetheart and get me a beer, will ya?" Patricia's scowl deepened, and she threw open the fridge, taking out a beer and marching over to the man. Larry. A fat, middle-aged guy that had been lazing around in their apartment for months. Just another asshole. As much as Patricia loved her mother, she had terrible taste in men. Probably the one who had left the container of cookies empty in the pantry. She dropped the beer in his lap and turned, speedwalking as fast as she could back to the sanctuary of her bedroom. Better not to talk to him. Patricia dropped back onto her bed, sighing again. So much for a snack. She could still take a break, though... Opening her computer back up, Patricia went to YouTube and clicked on one of her favorite playlists- the [i]Hadestown[/i] musical, one of the best things ever made, in her opinion. Eva Noblezada was a goddess among men. Pressing play, she laid back onto her pillows, contentedly listening. Then, the playlist was interrupted by a text. Patricia ground her teeth but pressed pause in the middle of [i]Wedding Song[/i], opening the message. It was from Brie, and... oh God. A [i]party[/i]?! At the absolute worst place possible? She gasped aloud. Okay, okay, she could fix this. Dissuade them. She could stop them! Angelica's house, Angelica's house... She opened up the H.E.R.O database, entering Wish into the search tab and crossing her fingers. Her address was... okay, that was kind of close to Patricia's own apartment. Just a 10-minute walk, plus time needed to go to the corner store and buy snacks. Brie never joked about snacks. Patricia stuffed her things into her backpack, swung it over her shoulder, and practically ran out the door, sprinting down the stairs and onto the street. The corner store down the street would probably be a good place to start. She pushed open the door, bell jingling as she entered. In a rush, she grabbed a bag of watermelon Sour Patch Kids and a bag of off-brand Cheeto Puffs from the shelves, and paid for them hurriedly. She was out of the store in less time than it had taken her to get there, and speed-walked all the way to Angelica's apartment building. As she walked into the building, Patricia noticed Tom by the elevator, looking a little confused. Of course- hadn't he been on the group message? At least he had a teensy bit of sense compared to some other people. Hopefully she would be able to convince Brie to not have this party, or, at least, to leave her out of it. As she brushed past Tom, Patricia said, [color=MediumOrchid]"Apartment #305."[/color] Hopefully he got it. Getting onto the elevator, she pressed the button for the fifth floor. Angelica's apartment building wasn't that bad. Maybe a little nicer than her own. When she got to the door of what she was 75% sure was Angelica's apartment, Patricia rapped demandingly on the door. [color=MediumOrchid]"It's Patricia Donnelly, Aria, from work? Brie sent me a text message to meet here?"[/color] Then, she ceased knocking and waited for the door to open. [@Danvers][@Amethyst][@KaijuBaragon]