Chapter 21: A Prank for Recovery
The air in Beacon Hills had a certain... pallor to it. It was the kind of lingering dread that follows a town-wide supernatural event that everyone's agreed to pretend was just a gas leak. You could see it in the way the students at school walked a little faster, the way parents held their kids a little tighter, and the way Sheriff Stilinski had a new, permanent tic in his left eye. It was a shared, unspoken trauma, and it was a real downer. My System, which had a knack for sensing the emotional state of a room—or, you know, an entire town—was giving me a low-grade notification. "Emotional Distress: High. Recommend: Prank." My System had a sense of humor. It was a good thing I had one too.
"Alright, so we need to do something," I said, a thoughtful expression on my face as I scrolled through my phone, a series of frantic, conspiratorial hand gestures accompanying my words. I was sitting in my absurdly large bedroom, and Stiles, a frantic bundle of nervous energy, was a blur of motion and chaos. He was pacing back and forth, a human tornado of sarcasm and pop culture references.
"We just saved the town from a homicidal lizard-man and his serial killer master," he said, his voice a frantic whisper. "I think we've done enough. My brain is fried. My social life is non-existent. My dad probably thinks I'm a serial killer. And my therapist has a permanent appointment for me."
"Exactly," I said, a small, knowing smile on my face. "We're heroes. We need a hero's welcome. A parade. A confetti cannon. A really, really big confetti cannon." I paused, a thoughtful expression on my face. "Or, you know, we could do something a little more... subtle. A prank, if you will. Something so ridiculous that it forces people to laugh. To forget their trauma for a moment."
Stiles's eyes, a blur of motion and chaos, lit up. "You had me at ridiculous. What's the plan? A flash mob? A town-wide treasure hunt for a fake pot of gold? A giant, inflatable rubber duck in the middle of the lake?"
"Unicorns," I said, a single, perfect word escaping my lips. "Holographic, dancing unicorns. And a custom-made soundtrack of cheesy pop anthems. We'll set up projectors all over town, and at a certain time, we'll turn them all on. The town will be filled with dancing, holographic unicorns and the sweet, sweet sound of 'Call Me Maybe.' It's a psychological masterpiece."
The plan, a convoluted, glorious plan, was a work of art. We spent the better part of the afternoon and evening setting up our masterpiece. We hid projectors in bushes, camouflaged speakers with leaves, and buried the sound system under a pile of dirt. It was a beautiful, ridiculous, and absurd work of art.
We were sitting in my car, a silent, predatory presence in the dark, and we were watching. The town, a blur of motion and chaos, was a mess. People were walking a little faster, holding their kids a little tighter. It was a town-wide case of PTSD, and it was a real downer.
"This is it," Stiles whispered, his voice a mix of nervous energy and pure, unadulterated joy. "They have no idea what's coming. It's going to be beautiful."
And it was.
At a certain time, we turned them all on. The town was filled with dancing, holographic unicorns and the sweet, sweet sound of 'Call Me Maybe.' The people, a blur of motion and chaos, stopped dead in their tracks. A look of confusion, then laughter, then pure, unadulterated joy, spread across their faces.
This is what being a hero is all about. It's not about fighting monsters and saving lives. It's about bringing a little bit of joy to a town that has seen too much darkness. It's about a well-timed holographic unicorn. And a perfectly timed pop song. It's about being a little ridiculous in a world that is a little too serious. It's a good thing I'm a professional at that.
But then, my System gave me a new notification. "Dormant Power Signature Detected: A student named Erica Reyes. Her powers, a blur of scales and rage, a flicker of something in her eyes, were a mirror of the Hale fire." The System also offered me a new ability. "Acquire: Empathic Mimicry. Ability to feel and mimic the emotions of others. A new, terrifying, and very, very useful power."
I accepted the ability, a silent, knowing gesture to a very strange, very confusing, and very, very dangerous world. The prank of misdirection was a success. I had outsmarted a town and its trauma, and I had done it with a series of holographic unicorns and a very, very good lie. Now, I had a new, terrifying mystery on my hands. And I had a feeling it was going to be a lot more complicated than a Rube Goldberg machine.
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