The morning sun filtered through the grimy windows of the abandoned warehouse that served as the protestors' headquarters. Zoey had shed her panda head for this meeting. The spy life was behind her now and she received a grade F in being a spy. Something that neither Peter or Jelena was happy about it seems. She wasn't happy either. She thought she would be a kickass spy.
"You made a deal." Peter's voice was flat, his piercing blue eyes fixed on Zoey with something between disbelief and anger. "You were supposed to destroy them."
"My mission was to stop them from enslaving humans," Zoey corrected. "They can't do that anymore. Roy made a Heart Oath."
"A Heart Oath." Jelena laughed, but there was no humor in it. The petite woman with her stylish glasses and wavy chestnut hair looked exhausted, weeks of organizing protests and dodging corrupt Peacekeepers had taken their toll. "And you just... believed him? Took his word for it?"
"Heart Oaths aren't words. They're binding. If he breaks it, he dies." Zoey shrugged. "Seemed like a pretty good guarantee to me."
"But the MLF is still out there!" Peter pushed off from the wall he'd been leaning against, his well-tailored suit rumpled from days without proper rest. "They're still operating. Still recruiting. Still-"
"Still fighting the OM. Still exposing corruption. Still freeing magji creatures from slavery." Zoey met his gaze steadily. "All the stuff you actually wanted them stopped for? Off the table. Everything else?" She shrugged again. "Not my problem."
"Not your-" Jelena cut herself off, visibly struggling to contain her frustration. "Zoey, we brought you here to end them. Prometheus's plan-"
"Prometheus's plan worked." Zoey pulled out her phone and held it up. "Want to call him? He'll tell you the same thing. The MLF was a threat because of what they wanted to do to humans. That threat is neutralized. Mission accomplished."
Peter and Jelena exchanged looks. The kind of look that said they were having an entire conversation without words, the sort of thing that came from working together for years.
"She's right." The voice came from above. Zoey looked up to see Tink descending from the rafters, their tiny form glowing faintly with residual mahna. The fairie's long blonde hair was tangled, and there was a bruise on their cheek that hadn't been there before.
"Tink," Zoey said. "You look like shit."
"Thanks! I feel like shit too!" Tink landed on Zoey's shoulder with practiced ease. "There was a thing with some Peacekeepers last night. Nothing I couldn't handle."
"You handled Peacekeepers?"
"You taught me how to fight," Tink said proudly. "Also how to run away really fast when there are too many of them."
Despite herself, Zoey felt a small smile tugging at her lips. She'd missed Tink. The little fairie that had been with her since that stupid trial.
"Anyway," Tink continued, "Zoey's right. The whole point of this was to protect people. If Roy can't hurt humans anymore, then you won. Different than you expected, but still winning."
Jelena's jaw tightened. "It doesn't feel like winning."
Another long silence. Peter ran his hand through his dark brown hair, then let out a heavy sigh.
"Fine. Fine. The MLF is... neutralized. The slave auctions are exposed. The Peacekeepers are in disarray." He ticked off the points on his fingers. "I suppose, objectively speaking, we've accomplished more in the past few weeks than we managed in the past two years of organizing."
"So take the win," Zoey said.
"It's not that simple."
"It can be, if you let it."
Peter stared at her for a long moment. Then, impossibly, he laughed. A short, sharp sound that seemed to surprise even him.
"You really are as aggravating as the rumors said." He shook his head. "Alright, Zoey Winters. We'll take the win. But what happens now? The protests, the movement we've built, where does it go from here?"
Zoey considered the question. Politics and long-term planning weren't exactly her strengths. But she'd learned a few things from watching Prometheus work.
"You keep pushing," she said. "The OM in Dhara is exposed. The auctions are public knowledge now. The Peacekeepers got humiliated by two masked criminals in broad daylight." She gestured vaguely. "Use that. Keep the pressure on. Make them actually change, not just pretend to."
"And if they don't?"
"Then you call me back and I'll punch them until they do." She lied. She probably wasn't coming back here anytime soon.
Jelena snorted, an undignified sound that seemed to catch her off guard. "You can't solve everything with violence, you know."
"Not everything," Zoey agreed. "But more than you'd think."
…
The goodbye with Illie was harder. Zoey found the young Viperian in one of the mansion's smaller rooms, practicing the basic grappling stances Zoey had shown her during their brief training sessions. Her pure white scales gleamed in the morning light, and her serpentia, the mass of snakes that served as her hair, abnormally large for her small body, writhed with concentration as she moved through the forms.
"Panda!" Illie's face lit up when she saw Zoey in the doorway. Then it fell as she took in Zoey's expression. "What's wrong?"
Zoey stepped into the room, closing the door behind her. She'd removed her mask for this, Illie deserved to see her real face, even if she couldn't know her real name.
"I have to leave," Zoey said.
"Leave?" Illie's serpentia went still, their tiny eyes all fixing on Zoey at once. "But you just got here. You said you'd teach me. You said-"
"I know what I said." Zoey crouched down so she was closer to Illie's eye level. The girl was small, even for a Viperian child. Small and vulnerable and far too young to have already experienced the horrors she'd been through. "Something came up. I have to go home."
"Then I'll come with you!"
"You can't."
"Why not?" Illie's lower lip trembled. "I can be useful! I'm learning to fight, just like you showed me. And my venom is really strong, Millie said so. I could help you!"
"It's not about being useful." Zoey reached out and placed a hand on Illie's shoulder, careful to avoid the serpentia. "You have a home here now. People who care about you. Gork and Millie, they look after you, right?"
"But I want to go with you." Illie's voice cracked. "You're my teacher. Heroes don't abandon their students."
The words hit harder than Zoey expected. She thought about her own students back home, Dylan and Clementine, Jack and Cindy... She'd never abandoned any of them. Had always been there when they needed her. But Illie wasn't like them. Illie was a Viperian child with white scales worth more than most people made in a lifetime. Taking her out of the MLF's protection, dragging her across the world to a city where she'd stand out like a beacon, that wasn't protecting her. That was putting a target on her back.
"I'm not abandoning you," Zoey said firmly. "I'm leaving you somewhere safe. There's a difference."
"It doesn't feel different."
"I know." Zoey squeezed her shoulder gently. "But here's the thing about being a hero, Illie. Sometimes the heroic choice doesn't feel good. Sometimes it feels terrible. But you do it anyway, because it's the right thing to do."
Illie sniffled, her serpentia drooping. "Will you come back?"
"Yes."
"Promise?"
Zoey hesitated. She didn't make promises lightly. Too many things could go wrong, too many variables she couldn't control. But looking at Illie's face, the desperate hope warring with the fear of abandonment, she found herself unable to refuse.
"I promise," she said. "I'll come back someday. And when I do, I expect to see how much you've improved. Keep practicing the stances. Keep training. Get stronger." She managed a small smile. "And when I come back, you can show me what you've learned."
Illie nodded, tears streaming down her face. Then, without warning, she launched herself at Zoey, her small arms wrapping around Zoey's neck while her serpentia coiled around her shoulders in a secondary embrace. It was awkward and uncomfortable and Zoey could feel the tiny snakes flicking their tongues against her skin. She hugged Illie back anyway.
"Thank you," Illie whispered. "For saving me. For teaching me. For everything."
"Don't thank me yet," Zoey said. "Thank me when you're a hero yourself. And if you want to know more about me, look up Zoey Winters. But that's our secret, okay?"
"Our secret!" She mimicked.
…
Tiffany was waiting outside Illie's room when Zoey emerged, her purple hair pulled back in a messy ponytail and a travel bag slung over her shoulder. She was wearing civilian clothes instead of her usual combat gear, a simple sundress and sandals that made her look almost normal. Almost.
"Ready to go?" Tiffany asked brightly.
Zoey stared at her. "You're really doing this."
"Doing what?"
"Following me. Leaving the MLF. Everything."
"Yup!" Tiffany bounced on her heels. "I already said goodbye to everyone. Selena was really mean about it, but I think that's just how she shows she cares. Roy was nice, he said to take care of myself and not to kill too many people without a good reason. Gork cried, which was kind of adorable for someone that big."
"Tiffany." Zoey pinched the bridge of her nose. "You can't just follow me home. I have a life there. A normal life. With normal people."
"Great! I've got a normal life too! Or had before I ran away and became like an assassin mercenary."
"That's not-" Zoey cut herself off, recognizing a losing battle when she saw one. "Fine. But there are going to be rules."
"Rules?"
"Yes. Rules." Zoey held up a finger. "One: no killing anyone without my explicit permission."
"That seems reasonable."
"Two: you can't tell normal people about the magji world."
"Obviously. I was born in the normal world despite being a magjistar."
"Three: no sneaking into my bed."
Tiffany's face fell. "That one seems unnecessarily harsh."
"Those are the rules. Take them or leave them."
Tiffany appeared to consider this for approximately half a second. "I'll take them! Can we modify rule three later once we're better friends?"
"No."
"What about once we're dating?"
"We're not going to be dating."
"What about when we're married?"
Zoey sighed heavily. This was going to be a disaster. She could feel it in her bones. But there was also something... not unpleasant about having someone so determined to be at her side. Tiffany was unstable and obsessive and probably a little bit crazy. But she was also loyal and powerful and had proven more than once that she'd fight for Zoey without hesitation. There were worse qualities in an ally.
"Come on," Zoey said, turning toward the mansion's exit. "Let's go find Tink."
"Who is Tink?"
"A fairie."
"You own a fairie?!"
"Not own. She's my friend."
"Friends with a fairie?! You really are super duper interesting!!! I never heard of anyone being friends with a fairie!"
…
Tink was waiting for them at the edge of the city, perched on a street sign with their tiny legs dangling over the edge. The fairie's expression brightened when they saw Zoey approaching.
"It's time to go home?" Tink asked, fluttering down to hover at eye level.
"Yeah. Time to go home." Zoey glanced back at the city skyline, at the distant spire of the OM headquarters, at the neighborhoods she'd fought through, at the plaza she'd torn apart just yesterday. "It's been... eventful."
"That's one word for it." Tink landed on Zoey's shoulder, their familiar weight a comfort after weeks of separation.
"Peter and Jelena are going to try their best," Tink continued. "They said they'll keep pushing the OM for reforms. Keep the pressure on. Maybe things will actually change here."
"Maybe."
"You don't sound convinced."
"I've learned not to expect much from the OM." Zoey shrugged, jostling Tink slightly. "But who knows. Maybe Dhara will be different."
"Maybe." Tink was quiet for a moment. "Zoey?"
"Yeah?"
"I'm glad you're okay. When I heard about the fight in the plaza... I was worried."
"Worried about me?" Zoey raised an eyebrow. "I can handle myself."
"I know you can. Doesn't mean I don't worry." Tink's tiny hand patted Zoey's cheek. "You're my friend. My first real friend. I'm allowed to worry."
Something warm bloomed in Zoey's chest, a feeling she still wasn't entirely used to, even after all this time.
"Thanks, Tink," she said quietly.
"Anytime." Tink's tone turned mischievous. "So... who's the purple-haired girl making heart eyes at you from ten feet away?"
Zoey glanced back at Tiffany, who was indeed watching them with an expression of rapt fascination.
"That's Tiffany. She's... coming with us."
"Coming with us?"
"It's a long story."
"Is she your girlfriend?"
"No."
"Does she want to be your girlfriend?"
"...Yes."
"And you said no?"
"Multiple times."
Tink hummed thoughtfully. "She seems nice. A little intense, maybe."
"She killed three daemons with a single sword swing yesterday."
"Okay, a lot intense. But still nice!"
Zoey shook her head, but she couldn't quite suppress a smile. This was her life now, collecting dangerous people who inexplicably wanted to be her friend. There were probably worse fates. Hopefully she wouldn't turn out like Hayato.
"Come on," she said. "Let's go home."
She walked away from Dhara without looking back, Tink on her shoulder and Tiffany at her heels. Behind her, the city continued on, oblivious to the deals that had been struck in its shadows and the oaths that had been sworn in its midnight hours. Ahead of her, home waited. And whatever problems Prometheus had hinted at. Zoey tried not to think about that too hard. She'd deal with it when she got there. That was how she dealt with everything, after all. One problem at a time, one punch at a time, until there was nothing left standing in her way. It had worked so far. She hoped it would keep working.