Vivainne clutched the paper envelope to her chest, unable to stop smiling even as she stared up at the ceiling in her bedroom, emotions soaring. She'd made it in. She'd never exactly doubted, but having that confirmation in her hands… She couldn't let it go.

When she awoke with it crinkled in her arms, she decided it needed a more permanent home where it couldn't get hurt. Once she bought a picture frame for it and hung it on the wall, she could focus again. And there was a lot to focus on. Training. Figuring out what to do with Monet Industries now that it was hers. Spending time with her sister, and her friends.

"You got your acceptance letter?" Pip all but screamed from the video call.

Vivainne glanced up at it on the wall and smiled. "Yeah, a few weeks ago now."

"And you didn't say anything?" Pip jumped up from her bed, disappearing out of view, though her voice was still audible. "This isn't fair."

"Calm down, Pip," Florence said. He lounged on his bed, unbothered despite starting their conversation, mentioning he'd received his acceptance letter the night before. Vivainne found it odd she received hers first, despite him submitting his application long before her. And hadn't Pip submitted hers right after? "You still have until May to find out whether you got in or not."

She flopped back onto the bed, making the video bounce. "What if I didn't get in?"

"I'm pretty sure that's impossible," Vivainne commented. In the hero world, Pip was basically royalty. It would be akin to treason not to let her into the program. Plus, her aunt ran this one. There was no way Pip wouldn't be admitted. "Your family is probably planning a party for you or something."

"I just want to know," Pip wailed. "Why would they keep me waiting?"

A knock sounded at the door.

Vivianne glanced up from the computer, the other two not reacting. It must be her, then.

She muted the call and slid off the bed, moving silently over to the door. Cracking the door, she found Charles on the other side, run ragged. She hadn't realized he was off work yet. How late was it?

"Can I talk to you real quick?" he asked, keeping his voice low.

"Sure." Vivainne stepped out into the hallway, wrapping her arms around herself. This couldn't be bad, could it?

"I want you to know that it's okay to react however you want to this," Charles said, and the preface only made Vivainne's stomach squirm.

"What is it?" she asked impatiently.

"Word came down from the lawyers," he began. "Your mom wants to talk to you."

"No."

"Okay."

"Tell them no."

She spun around, grabbing the door when Charles spoke up again.

"Okay. Dinner in ten, all right?"

Vivainne nodded and slipped through the door, not bothering to open it. She materialized on the other side, slumping against the door. Why would her mother want to see her?

Vora couldn't possibly imagine that Vivainne would say yes, could she?

She crawled back onto the bed, unmuting the call. "I have to go," she said, interrupting whatever conversation Pip and Florence had fallen into. Something about giant worms? She didn't care enough to ask. "Dinner's ready."

"Have fun!"

She exited the call, sitting on her bed in the dark, silence around her. She glanced back up at the acceptance letter, her power allowing her to make out the general image of it through the darkness. In just a few short months, she would leave this all behind and never have to think about or deal with her mother again. She'd be a hero.

Or, a baby one, at least.

*****

Vanya shivered on the beach as Vivainne wrapped a thick towel around her, drying off her shorts as quickly as she could.

"That's cold!" the little girl complained, her lips turning blue.

"I did tell you not to step in the water," Vivainne said, doing her best to keep the chiding tone out of her voice. The weather was sunny and warm, but it was still March, so the water was still freezing. Maybe it hadn't been a good idea to take Vanya to the beach, but she'd been trying to take the little girl places she hadn't been before over the past few weeks. Vanya spent so much of her time at the hero tower, which was great for being around people, but Vivainne wanted to be sure she spent time in the wider world as well.

That, and she wanted to spend time with her sister before leaving for training.

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She pulled Vanya into her lap, sitting back and staring out across the ocean. "When it's warm, I'll try and bring you back here," she said, hugging the little girl close. "Then you'll be able to get in the water all you want, and it won't be cold. At least not this cold."

"Can we go inside?" Vanya asked, still shivering. "I don't like it."

Vivainne sighed and pushed Vanya off her, rising to her feet. So much for spending time at the beach. "Fine, let's go."

She walked up the beach, feet shifting in the loose sand. Soon, the path grew more solid, transforming into a paved sidewalk all the way back to the parking lot. She loaded Vanya into the car, getting sand everywhere in the process, then tucking the towel in around her to keep her warm on the drive back.

Vivainne slid into the front seat, hoping Charles wouldn't be too upset about her getting sand in his car. It wasn't like he used it all that much anyway.

Pulling out onto the road, Vivainne made a quick decision and changed lanes. The detour wouldn't be that bad, and they should still be able to get home in time for dinner, unless the traffic was especially bad.

Since inheriting the business her mother started, Vivainne had learned more about Monet Industries than she thought was possible. She'd met with their lawyer, and promptly fired him, hiring someone who wasn't associated with the business previously. She didn't trust that the old one hadn't somehow known about her mother's research, and didn't want to have him around. From there, she'd gone through mountains of paperwork, searching for anyone who could have a connection to that side of her mother's work, and getting rid of them. She would need to hire more scientists eventually, apparently, but that could wait until the lab was finished being rebuilt.

Vivainne pulled off the highway, quickly making her way back to the lab. Construction material filled much of the parking lot around it, huge pieces of machinery and piles of materials. Last she spoke to the new CEO, a woman Charles had recommended, the construction would be finished around April. By then, she'd need to have a decision about what she wanted to do.

She didn't, and would never have, her mother's expertise when it came to Monet Industries, but she couldn't just let all of it go to waste. As far as anyone could figure out, Vora's work on prosthetics and medical implants had been entirely above board, and those had helped thousands of people. Vivainne couldn't take that away.

The simple answer to her problem was to just allow continued production and work on the prosthetics and implants, enough to keep up with the market and continue to help people.

But there was an ache in her chest that told her she could do more.

She pulled away from the lab, back onto the road and made her way home. She released Vanya from the car, unable to stop her from running through the house and tracking sand everywhere.

"I'm sorry," Vivainne said, leaning up against the kitchen counter. "I took Vanya to the beach. Turns out she doesn't like it."

Vanya popped back into the kitchen, trailing the towel around her shoulders like a cape. "Water's cold!"

"Well, she probably would have liked it better if it wasn't freezing," Charles pointed out. "Why don't you go give her a bath before dinner?"

"Fine," she sighed, slinking away from the kitchen. It was the least she could do after bringing Vanya to the beach, even if it sucked.

She managed to make it through the bath only partially soaked, and then quickly showered herself before joining the family for dinner. He cooked something different every day, often experimenting with different cuisines, though just as often, he whipped up something simple and southern for them to eat. As it turned out, homemade biscuits were incredible, and she couldn't imagine not liking biscuits now that she'd tried them.

It turned out, she did actually like food, especially when she was running or training or lifting weights everyday, and eating more than she ever remembered doing before. And putting on muscle, too, at least a little bit of it. She still couldn't do a pull-up.

After dinner, Vivainne helped clean up and get Vanya settled down before making herself a cup of tea and joining Charles in his study.

She sat down across from him at the chess table, studying the pieces without touching them. He never seemed to play with anyone, though the pieces were rarely in the same position as they were the last time Vivainne looked at them.

"Can I ask you a question?" she began, wrapping her fingers around the warm mug.

"I believe you just did," he said, shooting her a look. She rolled her eyes pointedly as he looked.

"I want your opinion on something," she said. "And maybe your help. I don't know."

"Okay?" He sat back, no longer studying the pieces, his full attention on her.

"Do you think it's a bad idea if I have the lab continue research into prosthetic cores?" She placed the mug on the table, freeing her hands. "My mother went about it all the wrong way, but… She proved it is possible to make functional prosthetic power cores."

"By hurting people."

"Yes, but there has to be a good way to go about it," Vivainne said. "And if we could figure it out, that would mean helping hundreds of supers, wouldn't it?"

Charles nodded. "It would. You can't use her research, though."

"I know, but…" She opened up her palms, motioning at herself. "We have me."

Charles nodded slowly, reaching out and moving one of the pieces on the board. "You understand what that might entail?"

"I'm assuming it would be invasive and uncomfortable," she said with a nod. She didn't expect it to be comfortable, but what did that matter? Her power core had been stolen from another super. This was the least she could do to help right her mother's wrongs. "But is it a bad idea?"

"No," Charles said. "In fact, I've had the same thought, and so have others at Unity."

"Wait, really?"

"You didn't expect that they'd just sit back and let something that useful go to waste, do you? No, they're going to use it, if they can. I've been waiting for you to make the decision yourself, though. I didn't want the decision to be made out of guilt or obligation. It needed to be yours alone."

"Would it be Unity tech, then? Or would it be Monet Industries?"

"It could be a joint venture," Charles said. "Especially considering Monet Industries already had a solid base for prosthetic and implant work, it would make sense."

"I want to do it."

"I'll let the Unity system know." He sat back and smiled. "I'm proud of you, you know."

"I'm just doing what's right," she said even as warmth crept up her cheeks. "And really, this could help me too, in the long run. You never know what might happen to my core."

"You will be okay."

"Has my mom asked to see me again?" she asked, the question jumping to the front of her mind before she could think better of it.

Charles nodded slowly. "She has. You said you didn't want to see her, so I didn't bring it up again."

Vivainne considered it for a moment before deciding on her answer. "I'll see her. Once. To say goodbye, I guess. I just… don't want this following me to New York."

"I'll arrange the visit."

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