Fanfic: Behind the Facade: Chapter #4
****
"Well, he did get the cape like he wanted," Wayne laughed, "The bad news was that his boosters somehow managed to set it on fire when he tore it off me."
Amazingly, Layla had given him a second chance, and things seemed to be going much smoother this time. At the moment, they were sitting in the park, enjoying the sunset. He was worried about screwing it up, but at least he wasn't worried about giving away his secret identity; she already knew. A good thing, considering that almost all of his amusing, interesting stories had to do with fighting Megamind.
"How would that happen?" Layla said, raising an eyebrow, "I thought your suit was invulnerable like you."
"Well, the suit pretty much is for reasons I don't get. I mean, it's just suede and spandex. But my capes tended to take a pretty bad beating."
His phone went off, startling them both. With a light laugh, he pulled it out of his pocket and glanced at the number. Roxie. Sorry sweetie, not now. Wayne just turned it off and put it back in his pocket.
"Who was it? ….Sorry, none of my business."
Wayne just gave her a winning grin, "No one important."
Layla flashed him a smile, and he started to answer, only to hear-
"WAYNE! STOP IGNORING ME! I NEED TO TALK TO YOU DAMNIT!" Roxie was a good ten miles away, but with his super-hearing that didn't matter much. He realized he was tilting his head like a dog that's heard a whistle, and did his best to shake it off.
Layla frowned at him, "Is something wrong?"
"Er, she decided to skip the phone and is now using the 'yell really loud' technique. Anyone nearby is probably looking at her like she's a loon."
She just narrowed her eyes at him a bit, making him immediately wonder what he'd said wrong. With a sigh, Layla sat up and grabbed her purse, "Sounds important. You should probably go."
****
Roxanne was waiting not far from Megamind's lair when he showed up, tapping her foot impatiently. "Oh, good, you were actually listening."
"What is it?" Wayne said, looking more irritated than she'd seen him look in a while, "I was kind of in the middle of something important."
"Megamind turned himself into a kid."
Wayne stared at her for a beat, "He what? Why? Never mind, 'on accident', right? How?"
Roxanne just gave a little shrug. Hell if she knew how half of Megamind's stuff worked, "Some crazy invention? Hopefully it'll wear off, but there's a problem."
"'Magically make him grow up' isn't one of my powers."
"That's not what I'm asking for," Roxanne replied, a slight edge to her voice. This was a big deal, and now was a really annoyingly inconvenient time for Wayne to be copping an attitude with her. What had gotten into him?
"Then what do you want?"
Keep it cool, Roxanne, she said, catching herself, Remember, you're trying to get a favor out of him. "Do you know the deal he has with the city?"
"Not.. really. Just that he's the new defender."
"If he doesn't respond when the city asks him to, or if they decide he's just not 'fulfilling his duties', they'll throw him back in jail. He can't be off fighting crime when he's six years old, and Minion needs to watch out for him until this wears off, so Minion can't do it for him."
"Oh, come on, Roxie. I qui-"
"Wayne, there isn't anyone else that can do this."
He heaved a sigh, giving her a long look, "And he is working on fixing this, right?"
"Of course."
"I'll need one of his disguise generators."
A wave of relief washed over her, and she nodded, "I don't know where he keeps them, but I'm sure Minion will give you one."
"Okay, great, I gotta go."
"Tha-"
But he was already gone. Roxanne shook her head a little, and pulled out her phone. She was going to call Minion to let him know, and then she was going to go home and get some sleep.
****
Much later that night, Minion swam slowly, his fins slicked back and his bioluminescence dimmed, so as to make him invisible in the dark water. He shut his eyes for a moment, feeling every current and ripple against his lateral line, reading the message that the moving water was whispering to him.
There, up ahead, by that rock. He opened his eyes. The betta was picking at the gravel, quite oblivious to his presence. For a long minute, Minion stayed where he was, creating a plan. Right now, the betta was under the filter output, so as long as he stuck to the base of the plants where their shadows would help break up his outline, it probably wouldn't notice his approach until he was about six inches away. By then it would be too late, and he'd have a nice tidbit for Sideways.
Smiling a bit, Minion started his deadly approach, but froze, noticing a blinking light on the control panel. He swam over to the side of the tank to get a better look;
[INTRUDER ALERT]
He glanced back over at his prey, only to see that the betta was swimming up in the open water again. Damn! Oh well, he'd check out the intruder real quick, and then get Sideways something to eat. She wouldn't mind waiting a little longer, right? He swam through the connector and into his suit, and went to check out the darkened lair to see if he could find what had set off the alarm.
Minion hadn't gone too far when he heard it. That voice. That sweet, cloying, horrible voice, speaking in a soothing, friendly tone. "It's okay, sweety. I'm not going to hurt you. I just want to see you better; no need for a handsome little fellow like you to hide in the shadows."
Oh no. Minion ran towards the voice, his heavy metal footsteps shaking the floor, "Sir! Stay away from her!" He arrived just in time to see Megamind retreat several steps from the kneeling Tailor, who he had apparently been walking right up to.
The hooded figure straightened up, turning to look at Minion; she was between him and the kid, and they both knew it. When she spoke, though, her tone of voice was still light and friendly, "Hello there, Minion. Who is this?"
"Someone you're going to stay away from," he growled, taking a step towards her.
The Tailor took a step back, putting her just a bit closer to Megamind, who was watching the adults with mingled fear and confusion, "Really? And here I'd been thinking that Megamind was the last of his kind…"
He continued his approach, fins flared to make himself look as big and threatening as he could inside the helmet, "You leave him alone."
She simply backed away more, "Oh, calm down. I'm not even here for him."
That gave Minion a moment's pause, "Then why are you here?"
"Actually, I came to retrieve some property of mine that seems to have ended up here by mistake."
"What?"
"My fish and my cat."
"We don't have them. Go away."
"Why are you pink?" she asked, taking another step back.
That was it; she was way too close to the cast- to Megamind. Minion charged, extending his arms to get a grip on her. Oddly enough, she made no attempt to dodge or escape; just allowed him to pick her up. There was no fear in the Tailor's gaze as she stared at him; just curiosity and the faintest trace of amusement.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Megamind start to approach them. "Stay right there, sir. I have some trash I need to take out."
The Tailor allowed herself to be carried to the door, only murmuring something about him wrinkling her lab coat. Minion proceeded to hurl her outside, and watched her land in a heap. Doing that to anyone else would have made him feel bad, but seeing her crumple was surprisingly satisfying.
The Tailor let out a slight groan, then picked herself up and started to dust herself off, apparently unharmed. After a moment, she turned to look back at him, "I'll be back for them later, then."
"If you come back, I'll make sure you regret it," Minion growled, the harshness of his tone surprising even himself. She just let out a light laugh, and started to walk off, limping a bit. He waited until she was well out of sight, then turned to head back inside. Megamind was waiting right where he had left him, looking frightened.
"It's okay, sir," Minion said, "She's gone now."
Megamind tilted his head, green eyes troubled with an unspoken question.
"That was.. a very dangerous woman, not like Miss Ritchi at all. …What are you doing out of bed?"
Megamind just bit his lip, and looked down at his feet.
"Nightmares again?"
He nodded.
"Come on, let's get you some warm milk. That should help." Megamind had been well into his teens before they'd stumbled on that particular cure, so this younger version of him just stumbled along after Minion with a confused look in his eyes.
As always, it worked like a charm. Halfway through the glass, his master's nictating membranes were half-covering his eyes, and his eyelids were drooping.
"Ready to go back to bed, sir?"
Megamind shook his head, drinking more of the milk.
"Really? You're not even a little bit tired?"
The child shook his head once more, then his mouth stretched in a wide yawn. Minion couldn't help but smile. He walked over and picked up his young master, who immediately snuggled his face into the fur of the suit. "I think you've had plenty of excitement for one night."
By the time Minion had carried him up to his room, Megamind was sound asleep in his arms. Being careful not to wake the little tyke, he tucked him back into his bed. The child stirred a little, then settled back in, slipping into a deeper sleep. What if Minion hadn't noticed the alert? Or hadn't gotten there as quickly? If the Tailor had gotten a hold of him… he couldn't finish the thought, and a shudder ran down his lateral lines. He settled in to watch over Megamind; for the rest of tonight, at least, he wasn't going to let the child out of his sight.
****
Downstairs, one very hungry little royalfish still kept watch over her nest, fanning her eggs with her fins to be sure they got enough oxygen. She hadn't slept since they were laid, but fatigue didn't seem to be a problem now. It was the fact that she hadn't eaten that was starting to wear on her.
She darted to the castle entrance for a few seconds, looking for Minion, but he was nowhere to be seen. Maybe.. maybe he was just camouflaged under some of the plants, waiting to catch one of the others unawares. That had to be it. He wouldn't just leave.
Sideways zipped back over to continue fanning her eggs. Minion would bring her something to eat soon. He had to.
Chapter #5: Home Alone
If you read, please leave a comment letting me know what you liked and what you didn't. :) Constructive criticism is how I improve. Short, fluff comments are also appreciated; :) I'm always happy to know I've got another reader.
"Well, he did get the cape like he wanted," Wayne laughed, "The bad news was that his boosters somehow managed to set it on fire when he tore it off me."
Amazingly, Layla had given him a second chance, and things seemed to be going much smoother this time. At the moment, they were sitting in the park, enjoying the sunset. He was worried about screwing it up, but at least he wasn't worried about giving away his secret identity; she already knew. A good thing, considering that almost all of his amusing, interesting stories had to do with fighting Megamind.
"How would that happen?" Layla said, raising an eyebrow, "I thought your suit was invulnerable like you."
"Well, the suit pretty much is for reasons I don't get. I mean, it's just suede and spandex. But my capes tended to take a pretty bad beating."
His phone went off, startling them both. With a light laugh, he pulled it out of his pocket and glanced at the number. Roxie. Sorry sweetie, not now. Wayne just turned it off and put it back in his pocket.
"Who was it? ….Sorry, none of my business."
Wayne just gave her a winning grin, "No one important."
Layla flashed him a smile, and he started to answer, only to hear-
"WAYNE! STOP IGNORING ME! I NEED TO TALK TO YOU DAMNIT!" Roxie was a good ten miles away, but with his super-hearing that didn't matter much. He realized he was tilting his head like a dog that's heard a whistle, and did his best to shake it off.
Layla frowned at him, "Is something wrong?"
"Er, she decided to skip the phone and is now using the 'yell really loud' technique. Anyone nearby is probably looking at her like she's a loon."
She just narrowed her eyes at him a bit, making him immediately wonder what he'd said wrong. With a sigh, Layla sat up and grabbed her purse, "Sounds important. You should probably go."
****
Roxanne was waiting not far from Megamind's lair when he showed up, tapping her foot impatiently. "Oh, good, you were actually listening."
"What is it?" Wayne said, looking more irritated than she'd seen him look in a while, "I was kind of in the middle of something important."
"Megamind turned himself into a kid."
Wayne stared at her for a beat, "He what? Why? Never mind, 'on accident', right? How?"
Roxanne just gave a little shrug. Hell if she knew how half of Megamind's stuff worked, "Some crazy invention? Hopefully it'll wear off, but there's a problem."
"'Magically make him grow up' isn't one of my powers."
"That's not what I'm asking for," Roxanne replied, a slight edge to her voice. This was a big deal, and now was a really annoyingly inconvenient time for Wayne to be copping an attitude with her. What had gotten into him?
"Then what do you want?"
Keep it cool, Roxanne, she said, catching herself, Remember, you're trying to get a favor out of him. "Do you know the deal he has with the city?"
"Not.. really. Just that he's the new defender."
"If he doesn't respond when the city asks him to, or if they decide he's just not 'fulfilling his duties', they'll throw him back in jail. He can't be off fighting crime when he's six years old, and Minion needs to watch out for him until this wears off, so Minion can't do it for him."
"Oh, come on, Roxie. I qui-"
"Wayne, there isn't anyone else that can do this."
He heaved a sigh, giving her a long look, "And he is working on fixing this, right?"
"Of course."
"I'll need one of his disguise generators."
A wave of relief washed over her, and she nodded, "I don't know where he keeps them, but I'm sure Minion will give you one."
"Okay, great, I gotta go."
"Tha-"
But he was already gone. Roxanne shook her head a little, and pulled out her phone. She was going to call Minion to let him know, and then she was going to go home and get some sleep.
****
Much later that night, Minion swam slowly, his fins slicked back and his bioluminescence dimmed, so as to make him invisible in the dark water. He shut his eyes for a moment, feeling every current and ripple against his lateral line, reading the message that the moving water was whispering to him.
There, up ahead, by that rock. He opened his eyes. The betta was picking at the gravel, quite oblivious to his presence. For a long minute, Minion stayed where he was, creating a plan. Right now, the betta was under the filter output, so as long as he stuck to the base of the plants where their shadows would help break up his outline, it probably wouldn't notice his approach until he was about six inches away. By then it would be too late, and he'd have a nice tidbit for Sideways.
Smiling a bit, Minion started his deadly approach, but froze, noticing a blinking light on the control panel. He swam over to the side of the tank to get a better look;
[INTRUDER ALERT]
He glanced back over at his prey, only to see that the betta was swimming up in the open water again. Damn! Oh well, he'd check out the intruder real quick, and then get Sideways something to eat. She wouldn't mind waiting a little longer, right? He swam through the connector and into his suit, and went to check out the darkened lair to see if he could find what had set off the alarm.
Minion hadn't gone too far when he heard it. That voice. That sweet, cloying, horrible voice, speaking in a soothing, friendly tone. "It's okay, sweety. I'm not going to hurt you. I just want to see you better; no need for a handsome little fellow like you to hide in the shadows."
Oh no. Minion ran towards the voice, his heavy metal footsteps shaking the floor, "Sir! Stay away from her!" He arrived just in time to see Megamind retreat several steps from the kneeling Tailor, who he had apparently been walking right up to.
The hooded figure straightened up, turning to look at Minion; she was between him and the kid, and they both knew it. When she spoke, though, her tone of voice was still light and friendly, "Hello there, Minion. Who is this?"
"Someone you're going to stay away from," he growled, taking a step towards her.
The Tailor took a step back, putting her just a bit closer to Megamind, who was watching the adults with mingled fear and confusion, "Really? And here I'd been thinking that Megamind was the last of his kind…"
He continued his approach, fins flared to make himself look as big and threatening as he could inside the helmet, "You leave him alone."
She simply backed away more, "Oh, calm down. I'm not even here for him."
That gave Minion a moment's pause, "Then why are you here?"
"Actually, I came to retrieve some property of mine that seems to have ended up here by mistake."
"What?"
"My fish and my cat."
"We don't have them. Go away."
"Why are you pink?" she asked, taking another step back.
That was it; she was way too close to the cast- to Megamind. Minion charged, extending his arms to get a grip on her. Oddly enough, she made no attempt to dodge or escape; just allowed him to pick her up. There was no fear in the Tailor's gaze as she stared at him; just curiosity and the faintest trace of amusement.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Megamind start to approach them. "Stay right there, sir. I have some trash I need to take out."
The Tailor allowed herself to be carried to the door, only murmuring something about him wrinkling her lab coat. Minion proceeded to hurl her outside, and watched her land in a heap. Doing that to anyone else would have made him feel bad, but seeing her crumple was surprisingly satisfying.
The Tailor let out a slight groan, then picked herself up and started to dust herself off, apparently unharmed. After a moment, she turned to look back at him, "I'll be back for them later, then."
"If you come back, I'll make sure you regret it," Minion growled, the harshness of his tone surprising even himself. She just let out a light laugh, and started to walk off, limping a bit. He waited until she was well out of sight, then turned to head back inside. Megamind was waiting right where he had left him, looking frightened.
"It's okay, sir," Minion said, "She's gone now."
Megamind tilted his head, green eyes troubled with an unspoken question.
"That was.. a very dangerous woman, not like Miss Ritchi at all. …What are you doing out of bed?"
Megamind just bit his lip, and looked down at his feet.
"Nightmares again?"
He nodded.
"Come on, let's get you some warm milk. That should help." Megamind had been well into his teens before they'd stumbled on that particular cure, so this younger version of him just stumbled along after Minion with a confused look in his eyes.
As always, it worked like a charm. Halfway through the glass, his master's nictating membranes were half-covering his eyes, and his eyelids were drooping.
"Ready to go back to bed, sir?"
Megamind shook his head, drinking more of the milk.
"Really? You're not even a little bit tired?"
The child shook his head once more, then his mouth stretched in a wide yawn. Minion couldn't help but smile. He walked over and picked up his young master, who immediately snuggled his face into the fur of the suit. "I think you've had plenty of excitement for one night."
By the time Minion had carried him up to his room, Megamind was sound asleep in his arms. Being careful not to wake the little tyke, he tucked him back into his bed. The child stirred a little, then settled back in, slipping into a deeper sleep. What if Minion hadn't noticed the alert? Or hadn't gotten there as quickly? If the Tailor had gotten a hold of him… he couldn't finish the thought, and a shudder ran down his lateral lines. He settled in to watch over Megamind; for the rest of tonight, at least, he wasn't going to let the child out of his sight.
****
Downstairs, one very hungry little royalfish still kept watch over her nest, fanning her eggs with her fins to be sure they got enough oxygen. She hadn't slept since they were laid, but fatigue didn't seem to be a problem now. It was the fact that she hadn't eaten that was starting to wear on her.
She darted to the castle entrance for a few seconds, looking for Minion, but he was nowhere to be seen. Maybe.. maybe he was just camouflaged under some of the plants, waiting to catch one of the others unawares. That had to be it. He wouldn't just leave.
Sideways zipped back over to continue fanning her eggs. Minion would bring her something to eat soon. He had to.
Chapter #5: Home Alone
If you read, please leave a comment letting me know what you liked and what you didn't. :) Constructive criticism is how I improve. Short, fluff comments are also appreciated; :) I'm always happy to know I've got another reader.