Interlude 1.x - Hannah
Her return to the headquarters of the Brockton Bay Protectorate found her filling the paperwork necessary to log and register the ornate paper flower that Taylor had given her for Master/Stranger protocols, on the off chance it was a trap. Hannah doubted it. Even the duty officer had given her a strange look when he had thought she hadn't been looking.
"Didn't know you liked flowers," a new voice drew her attention as she finished her form, adding a signature to it before she slid the clipboard across the counter to the on-duty officer along with the flower, who then took it to the back. That done, she met the gaze of Colin Wallis, better known by his cape name of Armsmaster.
"It's a gift from a new cape."
"And you are putting it through Master/Stranger protocols?"
"Because the cape created it out of paper that came from her body."
"Ah. And where is this cape?"
"Still at home," she held up a hand to stop Colin from asking why that was, "look Colin, I'm not one to tell you on how to do your job, so I'd appreciate it that you do the same. She would have never worked out with the Wards regardless of how we tried to spin it. She's been outed, and her powers are unique enough that it will only take a few moments for anyone to recognize them and start making connections. In public, she would be just as alone as she is now because the Wards would be unable to be around her without people starting to wonder. Then there is the matter of Shadow Stalker."
"She will be disciplined."
"That's not enough. That video? That was just a sample of what has been going on for the last year and a half. It's bad enough that the other Wards don't like working with her because of her attitude, but it doesn't stop there."
"And you believe this new cape?"
"She had no reason to lie to me," Hannah retorted irritably, of course Colin would fight her on this, "and because she specified that it started around the same time Shadow Stalker had been placed there."
"And you sure of this?"
"Would I be bringing this up if I wasn't?"
After meeting his gaze for a few moments, she watched as he let out a sigh and shook his head.
"Okay, I'll have disciplinary hearing preparations done. We really can't afford to lose any capes at the moment, Hannah."
"I know, but is she really worth it?"
He only answered her question with a grunt, and he turned to stride away. As he was about to leave earshot, she remembered something.
"Oh, and Colin," this caused him to stop, "I expect that flower back once it passes the protocols. I don't want to have to enter your workshop to retrieve it."
There was a slight nod from him, before he walked away, leaving Hannah with the next beast that she would have to slay: one that was honestly more difficult than Colin. Taking a deep cleansing breath, she walked over to the elevator and entered it, tapping the number for the floor she wished to go to before it rose up.
After about a minute, it reached its destination. The door opened, allowing her to disembark before she set her course for the Director's office. After a few minutes of wait, she found herself being ushered into the office and left alone with Director Emily Piggot.
If there was one word to describe the woman who sat behind the desk to those who knew her, it would be uncompromising. To those who didn't, Emily Piggot looked like the stereotypical caricature of a bureaucrat: overweight and beady-eyed. She very much resembled what the nickname that no one would be caught dead saying around her evoked - 'Piggy'.
Of course, that had not always been true of the Director, who had been one of only two survivors of unholy terror of Nilbog. Now, though, it was reality. The woman had become a battleaxe in her role as the Director of the Brockton Bay Protectorate, not flinching in the face of a nearly Sisyphean task to keep Brockton Bay from falling into chaos.
"Director," Hannah greeted.
Silver eyes flicked up to her for a moment, before they returned to the computer she had been working on. After a few more minutes, in which her eyes narrowed considerably in a tell that Hannah knew conveyed nothing too good for the source of the woman's irritation, the Director finally refocused completely upon her.
"I take it the recruitment did not go well," the Director intoned, the question more of a statement than anything.
"Unfortunately. It seems Miss Hess' actions today is not an isolated incident. According to Miss Hebert, there has been a campaign of harassment and bullying orchestrated by all three of the girls spanning a year and a half, coinciding to when we placed her at Winslow."
"Can it be proven?"
"With a thorough investigation more than likely. The indicators are there if you look closely enough. And it's doubtful that Miss Hess was anything but at the forefront at whatever it was that took place, she's never been much of a follower."
There was a soft sound that almost sounded like a hum of agreement, but Hannah immediately discarded it as the computer fan, considering who it was that would have made the sound. Instead, she chose to remain silent until the Director spoke again.
"Putting the Shadow Stalker issue aside, I would like your reasoning as to why you didn't attempt to recruit her regardless. We could always have moved her to a different city."
"I had considered it, Director," she admitted, "but she has been unmasked. Even if we were able to move her, which I think would be unlikely, her abilities are too unique for someone not to recognize her immediately considering the video. It's been plastered all over the boards. We would be placing an undue burden upon a girl who didn't ask for any of this, and who didn't have a chance to be able to hide her identity."
"That may be, Miss Militia, but if you had recruited her, she would at least be protected. Now she's a rogue, and we both know what happens to rogues."
"I recommended that she reach out to New Wave. That way even if she is not a part of the Protectorate, she will still working with us. And I felt, looking at her situation... I think she, and by extension the rest of us, would be better served if she had the Pelhams and Dallons there for her."
"And what if they turn her down?"
"Then I'll approach her again, Director. I know you don't care for catering to individual capes, and I agree it sets a dangerous precedent, but if New Wave doesn't work out, then making some concessions may go a long way to ensure Miss Hebert at least works with us."
She knew it was breaking decorum in this situation, but she felt that she needed to at least give a lay of the land to the Director before she made a definitive ruling on the matter. It was likely that Piggot was testing her rationale, but it was better to be safe to avoid possibly alienating a cape in a way that they turned villain.
"In my meeting with Miss Hebert, she showed several abilities that could possibly run the gamut of power classifications. Our Thinkers will have… fun trying to ascertain where she fits, I think. That aside, there are two abilities that I think you should know about immediately. The first is that she can create paper replicas of herself that can fully communicate—whether independent or controlled I am unsure—with further possibility that they can be disguised through a form of transformation; the second is during my talk with her clone, she was currently in the room watching me while having dispersed herself into paper that molded into the surroundings and blended completely in. If it wasn't for a lack of experience on Miss Herbert's part in using her powers, I have a feeling I would have never realized what she had been doing."
Her piece being said, she relaxed just slightly, knowing that what she had said would get through to the Director. Piggot, in all of the time she had dealt with the woman, was a hard, but mostly fair woman, who would look at the situation in its entirety and make the decisions that while they may not exactly be right, were the best for largely everyone involved.
Especially with a cape that, for all intents and purposes, would be an extraordinarily effective field intelligence gatherer. It was a role that didn't necessitate direct Protectorate oversight, as long as they got the information anyway. Hannah was far too experienced to dismiss how useful that was - and the Director was her senior there, too.
The associations with Nilbog were not insignificant—a cape with a Master ability capable of creating separate constructs—but there was a very big difference between the two situations, and Hannah didn't think the Piggot would ignore that either.
"I take it that you will be getting in contact with New Wave after this?"
"As soon as I leave here, I will be making the phone call. I hope that the Dallons will be visiting her within the next couple of days."
For a moment, she was worried that Piggot would insist that they take a more active approach to recruiting Taylor. She understood perfectly why Piggot would do so, considering the balance of power in Brockton Bay was shaky enough to where one or two incidents could devolve Brockton Bay into a warzone. It was risky letting an unaligned, unmasked cape 'simmer' on her own while you waited for a force that wasn't yours to make contact with her.
But Hannah had explained the situation as she saw it, including all her reasons, and Piggot knew that Hannah didn't make decisions she didn't think were justified.
"Very well, get in contact with the Dallons," Piggot finally declared, "if they decide to pass on her, I want you to go back and visit with Miss Hebert. Until then, I want you to share your observations with our Thinkers so they can get to work on at least providing us an outline of what she may be capable of."
"Understood ma'am. What about Hess?"
Piggot's expression darkened. "The only thing that will be able to save her at this juncture is if this turns out to be a one-time incident. Even then it won't be without repercussions. And if it isn't, I would like to know if she's been deliberately hiding it from us, or if somebody else has. I will make a determination once an investigation has been made. Until then, she will remain on the streets with additional supervision. I am entrusting that to you, Miss Militia."
If it was anyone else, she would have likely taken it as Piggot punishing her for not recruiting Taylor, but considering the situation, it was perfectly understandable. Piggot at least loosely trusted her to do what was best for the Protectorate, and keeping an eye on Shadow Stalker in the field would likely be beneficial, especially when Hannah knew to watch her closely.
Nodding in acknowledgement, she recognized the dismissal as Piggot turned back her computer and was already back to work on it, and so she made her way to the door.
"Oh, and Miss Militia… while I am not displeased with your reasoning in handling Miss Hebert, do not contravene my orders in the future without conferring with me."
