Prologue and Epilogue:
The Beginning and the End
They never did find their remains.
Joshua had gone missing.
The fire department said they had been lost in the fire.
The funeral, despite Violet's wishes, had been made public.
It seemed all of Metroville missed her family.
But did they miss them as much as she?
She didn't say much, even though the cameras had expected her to. But mostly, she kept quiet because they were there. She wouldn't give them the satisfaction of seeing Invisigirl cry. Invisigirl never cried, not even now.
But when everyone left… Violet made sure to cry.
She couldn't bury her family.
She hoped they wouldn't mind.
Then, she reminded herself that they were dead, so of course they wouldn't mind.
Violet made sure to cry.
Violet wasn't old enough to live on her own. Social services were coming the next day to place her in a foster family.
She wouldn't go.
She told Buddy she wouldn't go.
He pulled a few strings, and as far as the government was concerned, Violet didn't even exist.
Moving her things out of her house had been the most difficult. The bank had been set on auctioning off her things. But yet again, Buddy pulled through and they managed to steal back her family's belongings.
One crime wouldn't hurt.
The move to his house had been swift, the transition intangible. His home had been her home for weeks. The only difference was that more of her crap could be seen in different places in the house, mostly in his room, in his closet where her clothes were placed neatly on their own side, opposite to his.
It looked like it should have been.
She didn't go back to school.
She didn't need to.
Violet didn't exist, after all.
Buddy promised to teach her, anyway. Who needed school when you had him?
Buddy was often busy now that he wasn't busy with teaching.
Mostly, he was busy because everyone knew he was a supervillain.
And because he was a supervillain, he was a threat.
The age of villainy was a promise. Superheroes began to disappear, or were being killed when they slept.
And Violet still lived.
And Buddy was so busy.
She knew he was hiding something.
But he was all that she had.
She never questioned.
Emily and Geoffry kept her company, but even though she loved them, they couldn't make her happy.
She never told them that. It would hurt them too much.
At least she was still polite.
Time seemed to hold no meaning for her.
Grieving was a long process.
Staring out the window one day from their bedroom, she realized that a year had already gone by.
When did she turn seventeen?
Months rolled on.
Buddy was still busy.
She was still alive.
Everyone else was still dying.
And the fire still burned.
On a wet, spring morning, Violet went out into the garden and sat on one of the benches outside. She stared up into the sky, watching the rain fall around her. It hit her face, caressed her cheeks, and soothed her in its sparkling life.
She decided, on that day, the day of March 16, she would live again.
Anniversaries were the best times for changing lives.
She didn't want to celebrate it at home.
And that day was particularly slow…
She went off to find Buddy.
He sat in his lab, leaning back in a large, comfy chair, watching the screen in front of him as it recalled the day's events. Just as he had promised long ago, breaking news poured through the airwaves; another bank exploded; two more missiles were launched in the ocean; another superhero was found dead.
NSA was after him.
They wouldn't get him, though.
He had been busy, after all.
He glanced over at his Gauntlet, hovering within a highly secured case, shimmering, speaking to him with silence.
Very busy, indeed.
He pressed a button, and the sound of a phone rang through the room.
It clicked.
"Yes, Monsieur Syndrome?"
Syndrome pushed himself out of his chair and walked forward, his eyes trained on the weapon before him. He folded his arms behind his back, staring contemplatively at the hovering metal as it slowly rotated in its anti-gravity space.
He hadn't touched it again since that night.
Blood still stained the metal.
He would never touch it again.
"If you don't mind," said Syndrome, "I would really like to know-"
There was a knock at his door.
"Buddy? You in there?"
He sighed solemnly to himself.
Never again.
"Yes, Vi. I'll be there in a minute."
He heard her leave.
He had been so busy lately.
She knew she missed him.
He wished he could tell her he was doing this all for her.
But he couldn't even tell himself.
"Monsieur Syndrome?"
His eyes slid back to the gauntlet.
"Yes," he said again, his eyes turning back to the television as images of death blazed across the bright screen. "There is something I would like to know."
"Anything, Monsieur."
He watched a family disappear into a house of flames.
He watched his butterfly's wings turn to ash.
Maybe… one day… She would see what he had given up.
And maybe… just maybe…
She would forgive him.
"Bomb Voyage," he said, "how does our favorite family fare?"
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A/N:
Oh my goodness, what a ride that was, huh? And I know I left you with a horrible cliffhanger, but don't fret! "Nevermore," the sequel to Nightshade Seduction, will make sure all loose ends are tied firmly together. So please… don't kill me. I am fragile enough!
This is the first Fanfiction I have ever finished… and I am so happy. I completed one of the billions of stories I stared! Yay for me! But I couldn't have done so without you, the readers. You guys kept me going, and I love ya for it. Hugs to all!
Big thanks to Apolianne. Your reviews are always filled with awesome feedback, and they made me super happy each time I saw them, even when you were critiquing me and telling me something was just plain off.
More thanks to crzysheelf. It's thanks to her that I discovered synlet and all it's goodness. You have changed my life forevah!
I hope you enjoyed this. I know I have. And while it is bittersweet to bring this to a close, I am happy that the story will still continue. All it takes is a little patience.
Adieu for now,
~TS