Coldsnap: Harbinger of Ice

Chapter 5: Keena's Admiration

Keena walked over to the door handles and dulled the heat on them enough for her and the rest of the Mage Aspects to get out of the food court safely, then they all regrouped outside. 

While she checked on Leo and Firebird to make sure they were okay, Coldsnap checked her phone and saw that she had received a text from Alexis. 

"Hey. Dad checked the house and the other car's not there. Did you....go somewhere?" 

She sent a quick reply, not wishing for her sibling to be worried. 

"Yeah, went to go hang out with some friends at the mall. I'll be back by the end of the day, though. Just enjoy the campus! :D" 

Alexis got back to her within the minute. 

"Alright. You have a good day, too, sis!" 

With that, she rushed back towards the others. 

"Why didn't you three do anything?" Keena asked Leo, Firebird, and Coldsnap. "Hydraxus didn't initially plan on sending me in when he saw you guys, but after he realized you weren't taking action, he didn't have a choice but to send me in to fix things." 

The rest of the Aspects traded shameful, embarrassed glances. 

"Umm...." Firebird muttered, at a loss for words. 

Leo breathed heavily. "Yeah.....about that....." 

"We don't exactly have our mage outfits on us at the moment," Coldsnap answered. "To everyone else, we're just regular humans. And plus.....people don't exactly react well to 'normal' people displaying superpowers." 

"What are you talking about?" Keena inquired. "Have you heard of the other superheroes running around lately? The Viper? Nightclaw? Powerhouse? They get by just fine, so why can't you guys do the same?" She looked at Coldsnap. "And weren't you the one who had that whole spat with Alpin two years ago about how the Aspects needed to be more open with humanity?" 

Coldsnap's eyes widened. "You heard about that? How?" 

"Firebird told me about it during the time gap." 

The ice mage took a deep breath. "If the three of us had our Aspect attire on us right now, maybe that would've been better. For the most part, at least for right now, The Viper, Nightclaw, and Powerhouse only use their abilities when they're transformed, not when they're their 'normal' selves." 

Keena raised an eyebrow, so Coldsnap elaborated further. 

"The humans know us as Coldsnap, Firebird, Leo, and Keena, right?" 

"Yes...." 

"They don't know 'Cassie' or 'Kat', though," the ice mage pointed out, cringing on the inside as she realized she still needed to come up with something to clear the name confusion. 

"'Cassie'? Is that the name your Earth family gave you? .....And I assume you gave Firebird the name 'Kat' as well, when she came to visit?" Keena asked. "Not too far from your callsign, Coldsnap....I'll give you that....." She paused. "But....very well. I can see where your worries would stem from. Perhaps if you kept your outfits on you and had some way to change on a dime, you'd be able to respond to things like these more easily." 

Leo raised his hand. "So wait, are you really Hydraxus's pupil? If I'm being honest.....I wouldn't have noticed it. He's such a goofball, and you're so hardened and straight-laced....." 

Keena chuckled. "Yes.....his dynamic and mine clash a lot, don't they?" 

"Yeah. He speaks in rhymes, and you don't. He's eccentric and out there, but you're not. .....You seem to be quite capable, though.....not doubting your skill in the slightest."