DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN ANY CHARACTER IN STATIC SHOCK. I WISH I DID, 'CAUSE THEN NO ONE WOULD SEE RICHIE AND VIRGIL EVER, EVER, AGAIN.

Summary: After her parents were killed in the first Big Bang, 16 year-old Lyla Moore has, figuratively, vanished off the face of the Earth… then again, to her peers at school she never existed. Then, after the second Big Bang, she inhales some of the gas as it blows in front of her and when she wakes up the next morning, she can hear the voices of animals and shape-shift (like Mystique, but can only shape-shift into animals/animal-type demons, kinda like Youko Kurama from YuYu Hakusho.) Her powers eventually cause her to collapse and because she doesn't want it to happen again, she seeks out Dakota's two heroes, Static Shock and Gear, for help. Read and follow along as she trains to control her powers, helps the dynamic duo out occasionally and eventually ends up falling for Dakota's number one hero. Story is rated M for Mature content, is Virgil/StaticxOC and contains romance, comedy, adventure, horror and tragedy. Story also contains yaoi in the form of HotstreakxRichie/Gear. Actually, the rating has been changed to T for Teen due to, well… you guys already know, so there's no point in my going into it.

"Animal voices"

"Lyla speaking to animals"

'Thinking'

"Lyla in animal form"

Time of Dying

Chapter Nine: I Will Not Die I'll Wait Here for You

~STORY START~

~NEXT DAY~

~LYLA'S P.O.V. ~

Monday morning; oh joy. NOT. Here I was thinking that maybe, just maybe, whatever God there was would take pity on me, but nope! First thing in the morning: woken up by Sharon shouting that breakfast was done at 8 in the morning; the hell was up with that?! Groaning, I turned over on my spot on the floor and buried my face in the pillow.

"Someone make her shut up." I growled and heard Virgil move on the bed.

"You're not much of a morning person, are you?" It was a statement in question form and I merely grumbled in response. Just then, someone knocked on the door and then flung it open.

"Hey, Virgil, my man, you awake?!" I groaned and just covered my entire body with my blanket; it was Richie. "Whoa, I didn't know you were sharing a room with her. Way to go, man!" Richie said and from the tone of his voice, he was grinning.

"Richie, if you don't shut up, I'll make sure that your jaw is wired shut." I growled from underneath the blanket and heard snickers.

"She's not much of a morning person, is she?" No shit, Sherlock.

"Give her a few minutes to wake up, Rich; Sharon woke us up yelling something about breakfast and Lyla wasn't able to fall asleep until somewhere around 2 this morning." Oops; I guess I kept Virgil up.

"Sorry." I said, pulling the blanket off my head and saw Richie standing in the doorway with… was that a duffel bag? "Um… is that a duffel bag you have in your hands or have you decided to carry a purse around?" I asked and Richie blinked while Virgil busted out laughing.

"Ha-ha, it does look like a purse!" Sitting up, I watched as Max slunk into the room and I blinked; who let him out?

"Hey Max. Did Mr. Hawkins let you back in?" Richie asked and Max sat down at my feet, shaking himself free from any dew.

'Yes, he did. The man was even nice enough to wait for me while I finished my business in the backyard. Don't worry, Mistress; I buried it, so there's no need to worry about anyone stepping in it.' Max replied and I cocked an eyebrow.

"Who let you out to begin with?" I asked, for Richie's and Virgil's benefit, and Max lied down.

'The woman called Sharon. She is a loud one, for a human; does she always speak that loud?' Max complained and I covered my mouth with my hands to keep from laughing. Of course, with Richie and Virgil looking at me odd, I knew that I would have to explain.

"He said… that Sharon let him out and… that she's loud… for a human. He asked if… she's always… that loud." I explained, having to pause between every few words in an attempt to stifle my laughter, and Virgil started laughing.

"Man, whoever said dogs were dumb need to meet Max!" He said, falling back onto his bed.

'What does the Brainy one have in that bag of his?' Max asked and I shrugged.

"I don't know, boy. Seriously Richie, what is in the bag?" I asked and he smiled as if he had a secret. Oh, wait… he did have secrets; several, in fact.

"Lady, gentleman and dog, I have brought with me clothes for Lyla's costume." He said, dramatically flourishing the bag and I merely cocked an eyebrow.

"Uh, Rich, having a third person to help us patrol is good and all, but… remember what happened with She-Bang?" Virgil asked, standing up. Of course, I'm guessing he forgot that he was only wearing a pair of boxers, showing off his muscles and I quickly closed my eyes to banish the naughty images that arose in my mind's eye.

'No! No, bad Lyla, bad girl, bad; do not even go there!' I mentally scolded myself and then opened my eyes to see Virgil holding up a bright pink half-shirt; my jaw dropped. What the fuck was that?!

"Uh, Richie, I really don't see Lyla wearing this." He said and looked at me.

"Dude, be glad that my cousin isn't here; otherwise that shirt would be in flames. Where did you find that thing?" I asked, inching away from the offending color, and Richie frowned.

"I found it at the Thrift store. They had a bunch of clothes on sale for like 50 cents apiece." He said and dropped the duffel bag onto the floor before walking over and sitting on Virgil's bed.

"So you got a bunch of cheap clothing. Are we going to mix and match them or what?" Virgil asked, stretching and I somehow managed to keep my eyes glued on the floor, of course when the bottom of his abs rose, showing off the outline of something else-

"So what's the plan for today?" I asked, quickly looking at Richie, trying desperately to get my mind off of Virgil.

"Well, we could head to the junkyard and practice your powers." Richie mused and then frowned at something. "Uh, V, you do realize that you're still in just your boxers, right?" He asked and it was comical to see Virgil glance down and yelp; I'm guessing he completely forgot about that fact.

"Lyla, is there any particular reason as to why you didn't say anything about me being damn-near nude?!" He asked, grabbing up clothes and dashing out of the room and I leaned back against the wall.

"Because then where would the humor be in that?" I asked, snickering, and Richie merely shook his head.

"What ever happened to the shy girl that you used to be?" He asked and I gave him a level look.

"I was never shy; I just kept to myself." I said, stretching my arms, and he gave me a weird look.

"Lyla… when Virgil was standing in his boxers, you could barely keep your eyes on his face. Do you like Virgil?" He asked and I froze; what? Did he just ask me if...?

"Um… what are you getting at?" I asked, looking at him a little weird. I guess there was something on my face because he gaped before grinning and pointing at me.

"You have a crush on him, don't you?!" He exclaimed and I blinked; talk about out of character for him. "You like Virgil!" He said, laughing, and I growled.

"Richie… shut up." I said and he snickered.

"Fine, fine, but consider this ammunition." He said and I could only blink in confusion as Virgil walked in, fully dressed; thank god.

"So what's the plan for today?" Virgil asked.

"Well, the plan is that we figure out how to help Lyla gain control over her powers. Then, we can decide what kind of outfit she'll have." Richie said and I narrowed my eyes.

"I will pick the clothing out, thank you." I said and Richie rolled his eyes.

"Okay, if you say so." He said and I cocked an eyebrow.

"Well, whatever we do, we'll have to swing by her old house first; she can't continue to wear the ratty clothes she's been wearing." Virgil said and I closed my eyes; dammit.

"Or we could practice her powers first and then go to her old house." Richie said and I opened my eyes.

"I like Richie's plan." I said, not really wanting to go home quite yet, and Virgil nodded.

"All right. As soon as you're dressed, Lyla, we'll head over to the Junkyard." He said and I nodded.

"Okay, so… no offense, but can you guys, like, vacate so that I can change?" I asked, hinting, and Richie nodded while Virgil turned red and both quickly left the room. Groaning, I grabbed the duffel bag and riffled through it, pulling out a pair of blue jean Capri's and a light red shirt. Eying them in distrust, I quickly changed into them, reached into my bag and pulled out my hair brush; it was falling apart, which meant that when I was done at the Junkyard with Virgil and Richie, I would have to swing by my old house and grab some stuff before heading back here to clean out the spare room. Hurriedly, I brushed my hair and then walked out of the room, to find that only Max was waiting outside the door; wait… when did he slip out of the room?!

"The boys are waiting for you downstairs; I believe that the boy Virgil will already have a plate of food for you, if I'm not mistaken." Max said, his tail wagging, and I nodded, stepping past him.

"All right, thanks Max." I said and he stood up, following me over to the stairs.

"I wouldn't be surprised if the boy Virgil turned out to be your mate; you two seem to hit it off quite well." I stumbled and almost slipped down the stairs… if I hadn't caught myself on the railing, that is.

"MAX!" I screamed internally, pretty sure that my face was heating up, before getting in control of my reactions and quickly hustled downstairs. Upon entering the kitchen, I saw Richie, Virgil, Sharon and Mr. Hawkins were all eating, but no Trina; there were two empty chairs: one between Virgil and Richie and one between Mr. Hawkins and Sharon.

"Uh… good morning." I said and Virgil looked over his shoulder.

"Hey! Took you long enough to get dressed." He said, smiling, and I blushed; fucking hormones.

"Yeah, well, I had to find some clothes that were to my taste and fit well enough." I said, shooting Richie a look that said 'stay-away-from-my-wardrobe' and then saw the plate and a cup of orange juice that was at the empty chair between Virgil and Richie; the hell?

"Virgil already made you up a plate, Lyla." Mr. Hawkins said and I looked at Virgil before slowly sitting down.

"Um… thanks, Virgil." I said and he nodded, taking a bite of egg. As I started eating, I saw Sharon's eyes darting back and forth between me and Virgil and a bad feeling slowly made its way through my veins; uh-oh…

"Daddy, don't you think that it was awfully nice of Virgil to get Lyla a plate of food ready?" She asked and Mr. Hawkins looked up; I couldn't help but be nervous.

"Yes, but there's nothing wrong with that; Virgil was just being a gentleman, that's all." He said and then resumed eating; however, I saw that that didn't satisfy Sharon one bit.

"Oh, come on, daddy! How cool would it be for Virgil to do that for Lyla because he likes her?" She asked, right as I took a drink of orange juice, and I couldn't help it; I choked on it as Virgil nearly gagged on his mouthful of food while his face turned a little red and Richie was trying not to laugh.

"I'm sorry, do what?!" I exclaimed after managing to swallow my gulp of orange juice and had to work to ignore Max's laughter, which was rebounding through my skull. "Wh-what made you ask that?!" I asked and Sharon rolled her eyes.

"Because Virgil did it for you, and not Richie! That must mean that he likes you!" She said and Virgil's already red face turned even redder. "Aw, look daddy! Baby brother's blushing!" She gushed and Max's laughter increased; I was barely able to hold back a wince. Shooting a glare at Max, I returned to my food when I saw Sharon staring at me with a sly smile.

"Um… yes?" I asked, unsure of what she was smiling about, and her smile merely widened; uh-oh; this can't be good.

"Tell me Lyla, what do you think of my brother?" She asked and I stopped my hand a few inches from my mouth holding a fork full of food; was that a trick question? Slowly putting my fork down onto the plate, I looked at her, showing nothing on my face yet my blood was surging as my nerves were on high alert.

"What do you mean?" I asked carefully, gauging her expression.

"I mean, what do you think of my brother? Is he cute, handsome, what?" Sharon asked and I imagined myself hanging above a giant man-eating flower with only a fraying rope as my lifeline; to my right, I saw Richie watching with an interested expression. Virgil, on the other hand, was listening with a reserved expression; I was afraid to know what his thoughts were.

"Well… he is good-looking. However, even if I was interested, last I knew, he's dating Daisy Watkins." I said and Sharon dismissed it with a wave of her hand.

"A minor detail. If he was single, would you date him?" She asked and that was it; by now, everyone was listening and waiting for my answer. How was I going to answer this without landing myself into a shit load of trouble and avoid hurting anybody's feelings?

"Well… if he was single, probably. However, it is too early to tell; first off, he would have to be interested in me. Second, I've never really spent much time hanging out with him and his friends, so I don't know him all that well. Third, I'm not really looking; I just want to graduate from high school." I said and Mr. Hawkins nodded with a smile on his face, Sharon looked surprised, Richie had a knowing look and Virgil… was that disappointment that I saw on his face? Suddenly losing my appetite, I looked at Mr. Hawkins. "May I be excused? I suddenly don't have much of an appetite." I said and he nodded, concern written all over his face. Ignoring it and pushing my chair away from the table, I wrapped my food up, placed it in the fridge and looked at Richie; for some unknown reason, I just couldn't look at Virgil, not with knowing that he was somehow disappointed. "I'll wait for you guys outside." I said softly and then snapped my fingers at Max, who obediently stood up and followed me out of the kitchen. I paused for a few seconds, trying to quell the quickly rising emotions that Sharon's questions had unintentionally roused. With just a few questions, I had realized that my parents would never get to see any grandkids-if I had any, that is-, they would never see me get married-if I was lucky enough to find someone-and they would never see me graduate from high school.

Walking upstairs, I quickly went to Virgil's room, grabbed my jacket and hat and slipped them on right as Richie walked into the room.

"Lyla, you okay?" He asked and I paused, thinking about what had just transpired.

"I… don't know. It just suddenly occurred to me that I've never dated anyone. I've never really had much of a social life all because people think that the way I look is weird. My dad found nothing wrong with it, but that's because it's in his genes. Apparently, I look exactly like his great-great-grandma or something along those lines, so neither my parents had anything wrong with it. Peers at school, or people my own age… saw me as some kind of 'abomination'." I said and saw Richie open his mouth to say something. "You may have never said it, but those words have been spoken by others and their parents. Why do you think I kept to myself when we were I school and always hid whenever I wasn't at school?" I asked, a little harshly, and Richie snapped his mouth and looked guiltily at the floor; ah. Someone he either knows or is related to have said that same thing about me. "The only people that helped me out were my cousins, Francis and Tammy, but then they became bang babies and my parents were killed during the Big Bang… I just decided to vanish off the face of the planet. Not literally, of course; I just faded into the background. Living, but not really living; surviving but only just. I found a job, ran away from my childhood home because the memories hurt just being there and became homeless. What money I didn't use to buy food for me and the other homeless people in the building where I was currently staying went towards school." I said zipping up my hoodie and Richie looked up at me, his blue eyes remorseful.

"Is… that why you never went on field trips with us?" Richie asked softly and I nodded.

"Because I didn't have enough money, I stayed behind at school and avoided any of the students that stayed behind as well. I mean, my parents would've signed the permission slips of course, but I never showed them any permission slips because I had no intention of going on a field trip." I said and Richie nodded before frowning.

"I'm sorry to ask this, but… what brought this on?" He asked and I sighed, scratching the back of my head.

"Sharon's questions. I know that she didn't mean any harm, but… her asking me those questions just drove it even further home that… my parents won't see me graduate. If I do get married, my dad won't be able to walk me down the aisle. If I ever have kids, neither of my parents will be able to see, hear or even hold their grandkids. My father never had to scare any boy off; my mom never had to take me shopping for a dress, so… once you think about it, it's really quite depressing." I said and Richie shook his head.

"Man, I can't imagine… anyway, I came up here to grab the duffel bag full of clothes." He said and I nodded.

"Yeah. We should probably head on over to the junkyard; Virgil is probably getting pretty anxious." I said and quickly walked out of the room, walked down the stairs and saw that Virgil was waiting by the front door, his eyes trained out the window. Remembering the look on his face earlier, I grimaced before stopping a few feet behind him. "Hey… you okay?" I asked softly and Virgil spun, causing me to jump back a couple inches.

"Whoa! Oh, hey Lyla. Yeah, I'm fine. I was just wondering the same thing about you, though. I mean, you did kinda look upset when you left the kitchen." He said softly and I slowly nodded.

"Yeah, well… let's just say some unwanted memories rose up. Anyway, are you ready to head out? Richie should be down anytime now." I said and then looked down at Max. "Max, can you go get him?" I asked mentally and he woofed quietly before turning and darting up the stairs.

"Um… where's he going?" Virgil asked and I leaned against the wall next to the door.

"To get Richie who, by the way, is upset that you didn't make him a plate of food this morning. I mean, isn't that what you're supposed to do for the people you care about?" I said a little loudly and he gave me a weird look. I motioned my head and he understood: Sharon was on the other side of the kitchen door, listening in, and I decided to mess with her a little bit. Grinning, he shrugged.

"Eh, I guess it slipped my mind. I'll have to apologize to Richie for it when he gets down here." He said, playing along, and right on cue, Richie walked down the stairs and over to us. "Hey, Rich, sorry that I didn't make you that plate of food this morning; I forgot that you had asked. My bad, man." Virgil said and Richie quickly caught on.

"Yeah, man! I mean, come on, V! We're supposed to be brothers; how could you not make me a plate of food?!" He cried comically, pretending to cry a little, before he ruined it and exploded into laughter. Virgil joined him while I snickered and Max sighed while shaking his head.

"I will never understand humans and their strange ways." Max said and I flashed him a small smile.

"All right, we've got things to do, so lead the way, o mighty ones." I said sarcastically and both Virgil and Richie nodded. Following them outside, I placed my hands in my jacket pockets and followed them to the junkyard; the walk took a while because animals were constantly coming up to say hi.

When we finally reached the Junkyard, Max found a shady place to lie down while Virgil and Richie hid behind some cars to get changed; I whistled while pacing and looked everywhere BUT the cars where they were changing. Hey, I have morals! Just because I'm 16 doesn't mean a damn thing! I just do a really good job of ignoring my hormones… sometimes. When they finally walked out as Static and Gear, I stopped my pacing and faced them with my arms crossed.

"All right, now what?" I asked and Static shrugged.

"I dunno. Any idea on how you changed shapes last time?" He asked and I shook my head.

"No; all I felt was immense pain. It felt like literally every single animal within 10-miles of me started talking all at once and I couldn't get them to stop, no matter how much I pleaded with them." I said; Backpack climbed down from Gear's back, made his way towards me before extending his red eye and seemed to eye me from head to toe; Gear looked thoughtful.

"What kind of emotion were you feeling when it happened?" He asked and I gave him a weird look; what did that have anything to do with my powers?!

"Just listen, Mistress. He may be onto something." Max advised and I sighed before thinking back to what happened when I transformed into a wolf.

"I felt… anger towards Max, because he wasn't listening and then despair when I couldn't get the voices to quiet down." I said and Gear smiled.

"So, all we have to do is get you angry, kinda like with the Incredible Hulk!" He exclaimed and Static gave him a weird look.

"Uh, Gear… you don't want to get the Hulk angry. Remember what happened with Thomas?" He asked and Gear nodded.

"Yeah, but I'm over 100% positive that Lyla will be able to control herself! So… how do we get her angry?" Gear wondered out loud and I shrugged.

"I don't know, but I'm up for anything as long as it involves me not getting beat up." I said and Gear gave me a sly look.

"Anything?" He asked slyly and my hackles instantly rose; what was he planning? "Hey, Static, I know a sec-ret!" He sang and I could only give him a weird look; the hell?

"What secret is that?" Static asked, looking at Gear, who grinned at me.

"You see, Lyla has a crush and I know who it is." He sang and horror-quickly followed by anger-rushed through my veins and I growled as I felt my canines sharpen and lengthen.

"Gear… don't you do it." I warned and Static looked at me.

"Wait, you have a crush Lyla?" He asked and then quickly looked back at Gear. "You know who it is? Who is it?" Gear smiled and his blue eyes locked on mine.

"I know him, you definitely know him, as does everyone else in the school." He said and I took a step forward as a snarl escaped my mouth; how dare Gear even think about sharing that information; it was suppose to stay confidential!

"Everybody at the school knows him? Well, who is it?!" Static asked and as Gear opened his mouth to answer, I finally snapped.

I leaped and knocked the man behind the mask down, as I snarled, rage flowing through me. How dare he take me from my pack, from my family?! I bared my fangs at him as I growled in anger; take me home, human! I demand it!

"For what purpose have you brought me here, human?! Why am I away from my pack's territory?! Is this part of some sick game for your amusement?!" I snarled.

Suddenly, I felt teeth grab my scruff and I was yanked off the human. Ripping free, I spun and found a dog-probably one of the humans' mutts-growling at me, brown eyes narrowed. I responded with a snarl and bared my teeth in defiance as I lifted my tail in dominance.

"Mistress Lyla, you must calm down and think; you are human, not a wolf." The dog said and I crouched.

"Me, one of those useless humans?! Have you lost your senses, mutt?! Do I look like one of them?!" I responded and heard footsteps; swinging my head towards the sound, I watched as Dreads slowly walked up, his face covered by a mask and his gloved hands held up in a non-threatening manner. I narrowed my eyes and watched him suspiciously; what did this human want?

"Lyla, I need you to calm down. You're not thinking rationally." He said slowly, acting as if he was speaking to a cub, and I bared my teeth warningly.

"Stay away, human! You've done enough damage by removing me from my pack; I will lose my position as female alpha!" I snapped and then I watched as the human reached up and removed his mask slowly.

"Static…" The man in green said and when the mask was gone… I saw a young human male with dark skin and chocolate brown eyes. The eyes were warm and kind and there was something… familiar…

All at once, images began flashing through my head and I howled in agony. As I went to lunge at the human who had caused my mental agony, the dog grabbed my scruff and pinned me to the ground. I could only snarl, growl and howl as image after image played through my head.

Once the last image had been played, I merely lied there, panting, as Max kept me pinned against the ground, making sure that I couldn't do anything, while shame filled me. Dammit; I lost myself! How could I have forgotten that I was a human and not a wolf?! How could I have attacked Richie almost attacked Virgil?! All at once, horror flooded me at the thought of me injuring one of them and, with a surge of strength, hurled Max off. Leaping to my feet, I spun and ran out of the Junkyard, ignoring the frantic yells and shouts.

I ran, wanting to forget the images of Richie under my paws and leaping at Virgil all because he had helped me remember my true-self, even thought it had hurt like a bitch. I ran past people and their kids, hearing shouts of shock. When the screaming of child reached my ears, I stopped and turned my head towards the sound; a few feet away, a group of four men were fighting to shove a three-year old into the back seat of the car, while the child screamed for his mother.

Changing direction, I hurtled towards them before sneaking up behind them and then snarling. The men jumped and I crouched, my teeth bared in anger, as growls left uninterrupted. The first man drew a gun and aimed it at me. As his finger pulled the trigger, I dodged and jumped on the man, knocking him to the ground before leaping for the next one. As my paws met his chest, I felt a metal baseball bat meet my left shoulder, knocking me to the ground. A pained yelp escaped me, but I forced myself up, embedded my teeth into the next man's leg and, with a jerk, ripped him off his feet before dodging another strike from the bat and bit that fourth man-the one with the bat-in the arm that held the weapon. I squeezed warningly, and when he went to throw me off with his arm, I brought my jaws together, breaking his arm; he yelled out in pain and dropped to the ground. Suddenly, a loud bang went off and I felt something bite into my side; it felt like buckshot. Spinning, I saw the first man that I had knocked down had regained his feet and withdrew a knife with his other hand. Snarling, I leaped at him, as he swung the knife, which sliced through my right shoulder as I landed on him. I bit him shoulder to the point to where he could only grasp it and cry as my teeth fractured his shoulder blade.

Stepping away from the man, I stopped when I felt small arms lightly touch my neck. Turning my head, my eyes met the eyes of the three year old little boy.

His small hands smoothed my fur as his light green eyes shimmered with tears, his brown hair was messed up and his sun-kissed face was covered in dirt, while his clothes were torn here and there from the men ripping them as they tried to kidnap him.

"Doggy… takes me to mommy at the park, please." He said and I gently lowered my battered body to the ground, allowing him to climb on.

Once he was on my back, I turned and limped back towards the park, my body screaming as blood trailed behind me from the buckshot. Ignoring it, I didn't stop my march until I reached the park. There were a few police cars parked there, with a few officers standing off to the side as a young mother, with tears streaming down her cheeks, talked to a female office.

"Mommy!" The little boy on my back screamed, and the officer turned, causing me to almost falter in my steps; it was Trina.

The boy's mother saw him, and ran towards us, crying at the sight of her son. I stopped, allowed the little boy to climb off and watched as he was reunited with his son. I stood for maybe a few seconds before my legs crumpled underneath me and I crashed to the sidewalk, landing on my side.

"Mommy, doggy saved me!" I heard the boy say and I managed to roll over onto my stomach as the boy and his mom approached me. The boy ran up and lightly touched my head and I wagged my tail, letting him know that I enjoyed it, before forcing myself to my feet. "Doggy, are you hurt?" He asked and I shook my body-regardless of the fact that now that my adrenaline was gone everything was screaming in pain-and lightly licked his hand before turning. I took a couple steps before falling again; only this time a pair of blue shoes met my sight.

Rolling over onto my side, I stared up at the concerned face of Static and I blinked before sighing and then forced myself to sit up. He crouched and lightly placed a gloved hand on my head, rubbing it lightly.

"We don't blame you, Lyla. It's all right; Gear thought that what happened might occur, since you were basically becoming a wolf. We just didn't think to tell you. I'm sorry." He said quietly and I whined before falling into his chest and licked his throat.

"Excuse me Static, but is that your dog?" I pulled back and turned to look at the mother-with her son in tow-who was looking at me. Static chuckled and shook his head.

"No; she's actually one of my friends. She just recently gained her powers and wanted to help protect the city." He explained and the mother looked at me.

"Is there anything I can do to repay you for saving my son?" She asked and I heard a quiet exclamation from Static. My vision darkening, I closed my eyes briefly before lying down and taking a deep breath, trying to ride out the pain.

"Yeah; take me to the nearest vet's office. I have buckshot embedded in my side and it hurts." I said before the black abyss swallowed me whole.

I am SO sorry for not having been able to update! I've been looking for a job, helping people out with their animals and waiting for my settlement check to come in that I haven't been able to work on my stories! That, and Writer's Block is a BIG FAT BITCH. Just like Kyle's mom! Lol

Anyway, as of now, I would enjoy it if I got at least 5 reviews before my next update; it lets me know that people are actually READING my stories! Also, please leave constructive criticism so that I know what to fix or what I can do to make my story better!

See you later!