Disclaimer: Megamind belongs to Dreamworks-not me! But this particular story and idea are mine.

Epilogue: It's Wayne Scott

From his vantage point on the balcony, Wayne could see Metro Tower. It was under construction as was the majority of the city. They had a long way to go—years probably—before Metrocity was running at full capacity, but it looked better than ever. Graffiti had been erased. The scent of lumber and fresh paint was in the air. The mountains of trash that used to line the streets were gone. The police department patrolled with new confidence. Crime had dropped to an all-time low. People were actually coming outside again, smiling and laughing.

The city had made a complete turnaround and it was all because of Megamind. But only a very small group knew the truth. The citizens thought Wayne had saved the day all by himself. Just because he'd been in that car with Megamind didn't make him a hero. He would never have stood up to Mayhem were it not for Megamind in the first place. He never would have found his courage were it not for his twin.

Wayne absently rubbed his chest, looking for a binky that wasn't there. It had been difficult adjusting to his life without it—more than he'd thought. Sometimes he'd search for it, having forgotten that he gave it away. A dull ache would settle in his chest when he felt the need for it. He missed the comforting presence it had provided since childhood.

Yet, he did not regret the decision to pass it on to Megamind. That had been the right call. Megamind had sacrificed a lot to help a city that wasn't his. Giving him a chance to make it home was the least Wayne could offer him in return. Wayne knew that Megamind had made it back to his timeline. The space time continuum rolled along without interruption. The universe hadn't imploded after all. But it was more than that proven theory. He knew how Megamind thought. They shared the same intellect and determination. That fact alone was more than enough proof that his counterpart had made it safely back.

He smiled when the brain bots floated past. Megamind had not taken them. They were the best assistants for any inventor, able to lift twice their own weight. The added security was good too because curious people, mostly reporters, had been camping out on the street below, eager for an interview and a photo. Once or twice, they'd climbed up the side of the brick building to his balcony. The brain bots always appeared from nowhere and whisked the intruders away. He wasn't sure where they took everyone. Maybe he should look into that. When he had the time.

Most of Wayne's days were so busy anyway that he could forget the binky didn't hang around his neck anymore. Minion was always close by, ready with a cheerful smile and positive attitude. Plus, his girlfriend was always there with a smile, a kiss and any other distraction she could think of to ease his hurt.

His girlfriend.

Boy did that sound weird! He had a girlfriend. Wayne was the typical nerd. He had lived in his parents' basement, played video games and worshiped Spock with something akin to fanaticism. Now he lived in his own apartment and had a girlfriend whom he adored. He couldn't believe it had taken him years to figure out that such an amazing woman had been under his nose for so many years.

Janeen was on a flight back to Metrocity from Seattle. She wanted to continue her role of personal assistant for his software business and had flown there for a meeting. Wayne had been a hermit for most of his life. That basement had been a safe zone. He had always skipped the business trips in the past. He'd really wanted to go with Janeen to the Pacific Coast city, but the mayor of Metrocity had been monopolizing his time.

The sudden shift from troglodyte to the city's favorite son was exhausting. This morning was the first he'd had to himself in a long time. He missed his best friend and roommate, Minion. Janeen had taken him with her. His entire life had been confined to a fish tank in the basement surrounded by souvenirs that Janeen had brought back to him. Now he was able to go with her anywhere in the world and collect his own souvenirs. That robotic ape suit was incredible. Wayne had already started working on a spare, which he planned to surprise Minion with on his birthday.

The Scott mansion was a total loss. The sinkhole created by Mayhem was so deep that nothing from inside the home could be recovered. Wayne had lost hundreds of thousands of dollars in equipment and fanboy collections.

He didn't care. That was the old life and he never wanted to go back.

His parents had two other vacation homes and had settled into one of those. To his surprise, his mother had called to check on him. He'd always assumed that his parents didn't remember he'd been living in the same house as them since infancy. By the end of the conversation she'd made plans to visit him this weekend. To say he was surprised would be an understatement. Even more surprising was that he was looking forward to it a tiny little bit.

The lock in the door turned and his girlfriend walked in followed by Minion. With a big smile he went to greet them, taking her suitcase. Janeen kissed him over and over. He felt his cheeks heat up when Minion winked at him. Even though he wasn't used to attention from people, especially girls, he'd taken to the whole kissing thing pretty fast.

"Hi," she said, looking up at him.

Her glasses were slightly crooked, which he'd learned, was something that happened a lot. He straightened them. "I missed you," he said, looking down at the floor. Some of that shyness was still hanging on.

"You did?" she said, pleased.

"Yeah."

Her smile grew, but immediately morphed into shock. She grabbed his chin. "You've got stubble!"

"Huh? Oh! Yeah I forgot about that."

A few days after Janeen and Minion left, a beard spontaneously burst onto his face. He had stared a full ten minutes at it in the bathroom mirror, amazed to see so many coal black hairs poking through the skin. Rather than shave, he let it grow. It probably wouldn't be too long before he had a jaw full. He wasn't planning to trim it exactly like Megamind's, but he couldn't help but look to his twin for inspiration.

"Yeah, I decided to just run with it, see where grows." He looked at her nervously. "Do you like it?"

She bit her lip, stroking the fine hairs, which really tickled. "Yep! Well, I need to unpack the computers I brought." And with an appreciate glance at the growing beard, she picked up her bags and headed for his office.

"I missed you too, Sir," said Minion, digging through a sack he'd brought in, "but I'm not going to kiss you."

Wayne laughed. "Thanks for that."

"For the record, I like the beard too, Sir," said Minion. "Do you remember your father? What he looked like?"

"Of course. I was eight, not a newborn." That was the only thing he remembered about his parents—what they looked like.

"Well, if you let your beard grow like that, you'll be the spitting image of him," Minion said fondly. He pulled out a variety of items from his sack and set them on the kitchen countertop. "I think I may have gone overboard with the souvenirs."

There were half a dozen keychains, magnets, coffee mugs, Space Needle pens and figurines, and a tee-shirt for Wayne. Everything was emblazoned with Seattle. Minion handled each one with tender loving care. Wayne had installed a series of shelves in Minion's room complete with display cases in all shapes and sizes to protect his treasures.

"Don't be silly," assured Wayne. "You've got a lot of catching up to do."

"I really hope you can go with us next time. We'd have so much fun together!"

"I promise I will."

Janeen came out of his office. "Don't forget we've got plans tonight."

He snapped his fingers. "That's right. Dinner with Roxanne and Bernard."

"Did you finish her present?" Minion asked, turning a Space Needle snow globe upside down.

"Yep, it's all taken care of. He's charging right now."

"Okay, fellas," said Janeen, shouldering her travel bags. "I'm going home to clean up and rest a little."

Wayne walked with her hand-in-hand into the hallway. As they waited for the elevator, Janeen stroked the little hairs around his mouth and jaw. "This is a pretty good look for you."

"Really?"

"Sexy even," she said, smiling like she had a secret.

Sexy? Him? He cleared his throat. "Then I'm never shaving again."

Janeen giggled, stretching up on her toes to give him a kiss. Once the elevator arrived, he followed her inside.

"Going to walk me out?" she asked.

"Nope." He pressed the stop button and the elevator came to a halt.

She looked at him in surprise. His boldness surprised even him.

He shrugged. "You've been gone all week and it'll be a few more hours until we're alone again so I thought…"

Janeen linked her arms around his neck. "Wayne, I love the way you think."

Roxanne washed and chopped the vegetables up for the casserole she was prepping for tonight's dinner. Cooking was always something she had enjoyed, but her occupation left little time for home-cooked meals. Putting a dinner together gave her time to think. Work had been so crazy for the past few months that she'd had very little time to herself. She had put in for the night off and was enjoying every minute of it so far.

Bernard had made a full recovery, but he walked with a significant limp in his left leg. He was a pretty determined guy though and hadn't let that interfere with his life. He was an expert researcher and historian. He ran the public library like a general ran an army. Piles of books littered their apartment. Subjects ranged from world history to mathematics to the mating habits of crickets. He was a career student and had reenrolled for classes at Metro City University a few days ago.

Knowledge was his favorite subject, which was one of the things she loved about him. His passion for learning had led to many interesting conversations. When he got going on some topic or other, he talked about it nonstop—as hard as that was to believe. It was one of the few times his eyes lit up.

Lately, he'd spent a lot of time with Wayne Scott, whom no one really knew all that well due to his extremely private life. Bernard had made it a personal goal to learn everything he could about the man. He was even planning to publish a research paper on the city's resident alien. They'd been discussing space travel and alien races. She laughed quietly to herself, shaking her head. When Bernard latched onto a new subject, only the Jaws of Life could pry him away.

She poured the raw casserole fixings into the dish, sprinkled shredded cheese on top and put it in the oven. After setting the timer, she moved to the stove to check on the sides and pondered Bernard's newfound subject matter. Wayne had spent many evenings in their apartment. He and Bernard had hit it off, which was strange in itself. Bernard didn't have friends of his own. His blunt manner was off-putting to most people. Wayne's group of friends was limited to Minion. She was thrilled that they'd made a connection.

She didn't mind seeing Wayne so frequently, but every time his face appeared in her doorway…she saw Megamind. He'd been letting his facial hair grow and it made him look more like his counterpart. That was when everything came back tenfold. Her feelings raged within, sometimes to the point that she had to excuse herself from the room.

What had Megamind done to her heart?

Sometimes she was so angry she could have broken everything in sight! Being angry with Megamind was easier than wallowing in the sadness his absence left behind. The logical part of her mind said that leaving was what he was supposed to do. He couldn't have stayed here. She slipped between anger and grief on a daily basis. This timeline existed because of Megamind. Her pain existed because of Megamind.

She didn't even know if he'd made it back to his home. He could have encountered engine failure and been killed. Or he could have made it safe and sound without a scratch. She went from being angry with him one moment to worrying for his safety the next.

Work had been her salvation. It kept her occupied. Now the pain was a dull ache. She wondered if it would ever completely disappear. Taking care of Bernard had kept her distracted too. Luckily, she'd been able to hide her bouts of misery from her husband. It wasn't his fault. Her poker face was a skill she'd learned while interning for the local news station in college. That was why she was the most sought after reporter in the nation.

She moved onto setting the table. She did miss the old one that her parents had given her as a present. Mayhem had reduced it to a pile of splinters. Bernard found an antique table online that was similar and immediately purchased it for her as a 'just because' gift. The gesture was oddly sweet for her husband. He wasn't exactly a thoughtful guy.

"Roxanne?" Bernard called as he came from their bedroom. He was freshly shaved and wearing a white button down shirt and black pants. She smiled appreciatively. He cleaned up nicely.

"Yes?" she answered, reaching for the cabinet door that contained all the dishes.

"I think we should have a baby."

Roxanne smacked herself in the face with the door so hard that she stumbled. Bernard rushed over as quickly as his limp would allow and steadied her.

"You okay?"

Rubbing her cheek, she stared up at him. "No one could accuse you of not getting to the point. A baby? Are you serious?" He opened his mouth to reply, but she interrupted. "Never mind. That's a dumb question."

"Do you want to?" he pressed.

"You want to talk about starting a family right now when company will be here any minute?"

"Yeah, I've been thinking about it for a while."

She straightened up, not bothering to hide her surprise. "You have? How long is a while?"

"Since I was in the hospital." He shoved his hands in his pants pockets. "We almost died. It put things into perspective."

Bernard was never one to beat around the bush. He always meant what he said.

"I'm really busy with work right now," she hedged.

"So am I." Disappointment flashed in his eyes and he turned away. "Okay, so you don't."

He moved to leave, but she caught him and wrapped her arms around his middle. "Let's talk more about this later after everyone leaves."

Light reflected on his glasses as his head tilted down to look at her. "So you do want to talk about it?"

"Yes, very much. You just caught me off guard. I was thinking about the casserole, not having a baby."

Bernard was a lot of things—affectionate wasn't one of them either. So it surprised her when he leaned down for a kiss that lingered. This was not like her husband at all! As they kissed, she recalled that he'd been more attentive, thoughtful and complimentary. He'd found a new table for her because she'd been sad about the loss of the other one. He'd even told her she looked beautiful the other day. Now he was talking about babies.

What kind of 'perspective' were they giving out in that hospital?

The doorbell rang, interrupting the quiet moment of intimacy.

"That'll be them," she said, using the reflective oven door as a mirror to smooth her hair.

He frowned at the door. "They're early."

"You've always admired the punctually inclined," she said with a laugh.

"Yeah, but not right now," he grumbled, heading for the door.

Roxanne kept laughing as she pulled the salad out of the fridge. Bernard looked through the peephole.

"Uh…it's not them. It's one of those floating brain things."

"A brain bot?" she said curiously.

"It looks different than the other ones. It's got all these jagged knives and razors all over it."

Roxanne looked up from tossing the salad. "Knives…razors…" She gasped and ran to the door, throwing it open. "Seven!"

"Mommy: mine."

The weaponized brain bot hovered over and wrapped its razor appendages around her waist, snuggling close like a puppy. Wayne, Janeen and Minion appeared in the doorway. She squeezed the little cyborg into a big hug and flooded his dome top with kisses. The energy ribbons followed her fingers as she lovingly stroked the warm glass.

Wayne was smiling. "Good evening, guys."

"You fixed him, didn't you?" she said, grinning at Wayne.

As they filed in, Wayne said, "Yeah, Minion fished him out of the news van. I had to replace most of his frame, but his CPU wasn't damaged. I constructed the arms and teeth out of titanium. He'll last a lifetime plus a lot more."

She looked fondly at her friend. "Wayne, this is just…thank you."

He looked down at this feet. "You're welcome."

"I missed you, Seven," she cooed.

Bernard was looking at her strangely. "It's a robot."

"He saved my life. Didn't you, Seven? Seven is Mommy's good boy."

The bot's optic dimmed to a soft red glow. "Directive: protect Mommy."

Bernard took a step closer to Roxanne for a better view of the floating robot. Seven hissed a low warning. The optic peered at him over Roxanne's shoulder, growing brighter red by the second. Wisely, Bernard stepped away from his wife, hands raised.

"I'm not going to hurt her!" he protested.

The optic scanned him. "Intruder. Directive: kill intruder."

"What?" he cried, alarmed as Seven's jagged razors pointed menacingly towards his face.

Unconcerned, Roxanne laughed. "No, silly. This is Bernard. He's not an intruder. He's…." she looked at her husband with a smirk. "He's your daddy."

The optic swiveled menacingly in Bernard's direction. "Intruder: negative. Directive received: Bernard Daddy. Mommy: Mine."

"Glad that cleared things up," Bernard said, warily eying the knives this thing had for legs.

Seven let go of Roxanne long enough to let her get dinner on the table. He floated in the middle of the room, watching over the scene. She was thrilled to have her little body guard back. Every time she passed him, she gave his dome a soft pat. Minion hovered eagerly at her side, soaking in everything she did. He'd brought the dessert, a chocolate cake filled with cherry ganache and covered in chocolate frosting with a hint of cayenne pepper.

Wayne and Minion volunteered to do the dishes, herding Roxanne away from the sink. Janeen and Bernard had moved to the living room to discuss a book they'd both just finished reading. Roxanne sat at the kitchen countertop with Seven. He curled up in her lap and went into some kind of stasis mode, like a dog taking a nap.

It was inevitable that the discussion turned to Megamind.

"Do you think he made it back okay?" she asked softly, stroking Seven's dome.

"Yes, I do," said Wayne, sounding more confident than she felt.

"How do you know?"

"I don't, but I know Megamind," he said, putting the plates in the dishwasher. "And so do you."

Roxanne thought about that. If going to a black hole didn't scare him, then neither would time travel. She wished there was a way to know for sure, but that was impossible. One thing she knew without a doubt, was that Megamind's determination was one of his strongest traits. Some of the worry that had been hanging over her like a storm cloud dissipated.

"Did you ever tell Bernard the truth?" Wayne asked, wiping his hands with a towel. "About the time travel?"

"Yes. He thought it was you that pulled him into City Hall out of the line of fire," she replied.

"What did he say?" asked Minion, grabbing dessert plates for the cake.

"'Huh, okay'," she said, mimicking her husband's infamous drawl. "He's a man of few words."

"True, unless you get him going on the subject of world history. Then he never shuts ups," said Wayne, pouring a cup of coffee for everyone.

"Wayne, I'm so happy that the two of you hit it off. Before he met you, Bernard didn't have many friends."

"Me either."

"Funny how everything worked out, didn't it, Sir?" said Minion, smiling at his best friend.

"Yeah…how often does that happen?"

No truer statement had been made. Anything bad that could go wrong had been going wrong for a long time in Metro City. With Mayhem gone now, it was time for everything to go right for a change.

"For the record, Wayne, I love the goatee." She took in his appearance. Not quite as nerdy as before. He wore gray pants and a navy pullover. The blue material against his skin made his complexion seem richer. In fact, he looked older—in a good way.

"Thanks," he said, looking pleased.

It was difficult for her to look away. Wayne and Megamind were very different, but also the same. She glanced over her shoulder and found Bernard watching their conversation curiously. Janeen had gotten a phone call. She smiled at Bernard. She got up to join him on the more comfortable couch. She sidled up to her husband with Seven promptly spreading out over their laps. He kept that optic trained on an uncomfortable Bernard.

"He's not going to sleep with us too is he? I mean, I think he's actually plotting the best way to remove my intestines."

"Where else would he sleep?" she said, tone serious. "I'm his Mommy."

Bernard spluttered, unable to form a coherent thought.

"I'm just kidding," she snickered.

"Thank goodness," he said with a relieved sigh.

"He'll probably just hover over you in the middle of the night to make sure you behave."

She knew she was having fun at Bernard's expense, but she couldn't help it. The look of horror on his face was hilarious.

All in all, it was the best evening Roxanne had experienced in a long time. Dinner was wonderful. The conversation was light. Everyone was happy and laughing. Seven was home safe and sound. It was hard to believe that just a few short months ago, the city had been under siege from a psychopathic supervillain. They'd gone from looking over their shoulders to sleeping peacefully at night.

This group of friends had become family along the way. How could they not after everything they'd survived together? She did miss Megamind and realized that she always would. Because of him everyone had a smile on their face. Because of him the city had been reborn. Because of him they lived to enjoy a nice night like this one.

They owed him everything and living their lives was a good place to start.

THE END

A/N: I can't believe it's over! Thank y'all once again for all the reviews. I'm sorry it took a while to get the prologue out. I've been working on a lot of different things and haven't had much time for writing lately. I have another idea and can't wait to flesh it out! I've got the best reviewers! :-)