The Squad

8.0

Skipper sat in the old warehouse that her and Stormbit had been in for the past few months, watching the sun rise through a broken window.

"Do you remember the time we put sticky notes all over Jay's room for her birthday?" Skipper said suddenly, and Stormbit looked up at her from where she was reading a book in an old armchair.

"What?" asked Stormbit. Skipper looked down.

"Right, you don't remember anything." she muttered, a sad look on her face.

"Remember what?"

"Before you where Stormbit." said Skipper, her eyes watering.

"Nope." Stormbit looked down at her book, not expecting Skipper to cary the conversation any further.

"Your name was Temperance. Everyone called you Temp though."

"Mhmm." said Stormbit, acting disintrested. But, in reality, she kind of wanted to know who she was.

"You were a triplet. The odd one out. Ryft and Ronald were twins, and you came along being - well - different. You were always excluded, and had no friends." Skipper closed her eyes, picturing a young Temperace eating lunch alone as a 2nd grader.

"We met because I was excluded for beinf different. I started sitting with you in 2nd grade, and we began to talk." she contenued.

Stormbit put down her book, marking her spot with her finger.

"We became the best of friends, never leaving each-other's side. We refused to go to different schools, and we hated having seperate classes. We spent every minuite of free time together." Skipper smiled.

"We grew up together, sharing a small apartment near the edge of Paradox as soon as we were able to get jobs. Over time, I met other people. We all became close, forming The Squad. I asked you to join countless times, but you refused. I never knew why. You became distant, pulling yourself away from me. I was so scared, so I stopped working with The Squad as much just to not loose you. My friends didn't agree with my choices, so I grew distant from them yet closer to you." As Skipper spoke, Stormbit listened in suprise. 

"One day, on a tech run for Ryft, I was driving and you were on the passenger side. I was teasing you because you never wore seatbelts, and a drunk driver ran straight into you." a single tear fell down Skipper's face, and a small part of Stormbit wanted to hug her.

"You were dieing. I didn't know what to do. So I got Raven to put you in a work in progress project, which was to keep you alive. It succeeded. I snuck a half of the Storm Gem into your shoulder, and gave you powers. I didn't know where Ryft had hidden the other half, but I vowed to find it for you. I knew you would want the full power. But when we began to talk to you, we realized that you forgot... I was devastated, but I promised I would rebuild that friendship. Yet I have never seemed to keep what I used to have." Skipper began to cry quietly, and Stormbit just watched her in shock. She suprised at how much Skipper had cared, and the part of her wanting to hug her began to grow stronger. But she fought it back. Skipper was merely an ally, not a friend. Let alone a lover, as they must have once been.

Skipper shook her head. "You don't care, do you? Temperance is gone, you're just using her body." She stood, wiping the tears from her face and sniffling. "I should probably go home. We have every gem except for yours, and I can find it alone."

Before Stormbit could say anything, Skipper climbed out the window and ran away. Stormbit watched her in suprise, and for once in her life that she could remember she felt a strong urge to call for her, chase after her, and cry for her.

Stormbit shook her head, picking up the book and trying to distract herself from the mess that was her thoughts right now.

Maybe Temperance is still there. 

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ooo a backstory

fun

fun fun

look another messy chapter...

hehe okay im sorry