"Shit!" Cecilia exclaimed as her little virtual car was exploded by a blue shell. 

    Jason just laughed, speeding past her. "Payback! See you at the finish line!"

    Meanwhile, Matthew was hanging low at twelfth place, trying to stay on the road and not fall off the cliff or go the wrong direction. He had no idea how to play Mario Kart, which was infuriating, but listening to Cecilia and Jason's banter made the experience a little more enjoyable.

    "Matthew, Matthew! Use the catch-up cannon! You have it!" Jason said, trying to focus on both their portions of the screen.

    "The what?"

    "The cannon thing!"

    "Oh! How do I use that?"

    "Press the A-button!"

     Matthew looked down at his remote and accidentally drove off a cliff. "Are you kidding me?!"

    Cecilia laughed. "Keep your eyes on the road, little thief!"

    Thankfully, as he was pulled out of the gully by a turtle floating on a cloud, it gave him time to figure out what button Jason was referring to. And, when he was set back on the course, he spammed the button as many times as he could. His car shifted into a cannon and shot past a princess and a turtle-like character before it shifted back.

    "Woah! I jumped to tenth!" Matthew exclaimed.

    "Oh boy, he's gaining on us." Cecilia teased.

    "Hey! This is my first time playing this stupid game!" Matthew shot back.

    "Eyes on the road, eyes on the road!" Jason interrupted.

    Just then, Matthew drove into a bed of flowers, which slowed his car down and left room for those two same characters to speed past him and leave him in the dust. He spat a curse. He was back in last place again.

    Cecilia gasped. "Oho! Did the little thief say a bad word?"

    "I think he did," Jason laughed.

    Matthew tried to cover it up, embarrassed. "W-what? No?"

    "I've trained him well, Jace. Because of me, he's learning all kinds of new vocabulary." Cecilia boasted, jumping back to second place.

    "I... wouldn't pride myself with that, but okay," Jason replied, unaware of Cecilia's approach.

    She smirked at the screen as she hit a mystery block and obtained a red shell, throwing it forwards. "Why not? I'm expanding his vocabulary."

    "Not in a good way. He's fifteen, he shouldn't be saying such foul—"

    But before Jason could finish, his Wii remote began to vibrate. He yelped as Cecilia's red shell connected with his cart, leaving enough time for her to pass him on the final stretch, placing first. She erupted from her seat and celebrated, making an 'L' out of her thumb and pointer finger. "Ha! Loser!"

    Jason looked up at her with a teasingly-exasperated expression. "Really? You always win, Cecilia. Couldn't you let me have that for once?"

    She sat down and pulled him into a hug, kissing his cheek. "Nope, my ego couldn't take it."

    A few minutes later, the race ended for Matthew. He hadn't even crossed the finish line. The race just deemed him too far gone. He sighed. "Well, remind me to never play video games ever again."

    Cecilia, who now sat between Matthew and her boyfriend, nudged him. "Aw, Matthew, don't be a sore loser."

    He looked over at her with a slight smirk. "Don't be a sore winner, then."

    Cecilia shrugged. "Hey, I can't help that I'm naturally gifted at Mario Kart."

    "And I can't help that I'm not as naturally gifted on my first time playing."

    "I was," she lied.

    Jason called her out on it. "Um, no you weren't, Cici. I was the reigning champion for the first month of us dating. You just obsessively practiced whenever you weren't working or fighting and caught up to me."

    "Yeah, exactly, I caught up to you in a week. Don't you think that's natural talent?" She laughed.

    "No, I don't believe in natural talent."

    "Pessimist," she scoffed.

    "Optimist," Jason combatted, trying not to laugh.

    "Oh, you want to go, asshole?"

    "Yeah, I wanna go, you prissy, privileged little girl."

    "Ouch!" She laughed. "You're pulling out those insults?"

    "Yeah, I do," Jason said with a slight smirk.

    "Alright, dirty little street thug."

    "I saw that coming."

    "That's what she said," Cecilia snorted.

    "What? That wasn't even a good time for one of those jokes."

    "It's not my fault that you have no sense of humor."

    Matthew just blinked as he watched them, a slight smile on his face. But, he couldn't shake the discomfort of feeling like he was encroaching on their time together. It had been a day since Cecilia had returned from the hospital, and she was almost healthy enough to start her hero work again whenever she wanted. However, today had been deemed "family day", a day in which they would spend together with no fighting, no violence, and no talk of the past.

    He was just thankful that neither Pardus nor the incident had popped up in the conversation. It had been almost three days since he had applied to TAFAH, and a million things to stress over were brewing in his mind. What if the other students found out who he was? His past? What if they looked at him differently, even hated him for it? He knew he was going to be the black sheep either way, but maybe he could eventually blend into the flock?

    Cecilia's voice shook him from his thoughts. "Matthew? You okay?"

    He nodded. "Yeah, why?"

    "You kind of... zoned out."

    "Oh, yeah, it happens."

    "That's okay. Whenever you're lost in thought your brows wrinkle a little. It's cute."

    His cheeks heated with embarrassment. "W-what do you mean?"

    "I said what I meant. I can tell when you're worrying or thinking deeply about something whenever your brows wrinkle and you just... stare off at something random. So, what are you thinking about? I thought today we weren't supposed to worry about anything."

    "Yeah... well, It's hard." He admitted. "I don't know how TAFAH is going to contact me or how long it will take for them to contact me."

    Cecilia went quiet for a moment, probably because his concerns were reasonable. "Well, don't worry about that right now. You'll be taken care of here."

    "I know, I know." He did know that he was in good hands, but it felt uncomfortable staying here with two people who were barely able to sustain themselves. It felt wrong, like he was widening an open wound.

    "Speaking of which, you're going to need some new clothes."

    "Oh, don't worry about that—"

    "No, no, it will be fun. We should go shopping tomorrow. Even when you get shipped off to TAFAH, you're going to need casual clothes."

    "But—" Matthew began to protest.

    "No, buts. You saved my life. The least I can do is get you some stupid clothes."

    Alright, fine, Matthew thought. But he didn't say it aloud.

    Cecilia's eyes trailed down to his shoes; his red Converse that were now stained beyond repair and falling apart. "Oh, and some new shoes."

    Matthew, too, looked down at his feet. He felt a pain in his chest. He had bought those shoes with his own money after wanting them for months. He didn't feel ready to part with them, but perhaps by ridding himself of them it would help him move on.

    "Can I just get a new pair?" He sheepishly asked. "I, uh, really love these shoes."

    "Yeah, for sure. I like them too." She paused, frowning as she examined them. "But are they supposed to be...red?"

    "Yeah." Matthew let out a little laugh.

    "Eek, yeah, I'll definitely get you a new pair. I couldn't tell what color they were supposed to be at first glance."

    "Thank you."

    "Can we order some food?" Jason interjected. "I'm starving."

    Cecilia rolled her eyes. "You're always starving, fat ass."

    "I can't help that I have that great AEM metabolism."

    "Hey, don't complain about it. Sometimes I wish I had that kind of metabolism."

    "Don't," Jason quickly said. "It's a curse."

    Matthew knew about what he was talking about. He remembered how exhausted Micah would get after overusing his idio; how he'd always crave sugar or, above all, caffeine. That boy had a serious coffee addiction, something Matthew never really understood. To him, coffee tasted like dirt.

    "Maybe so," Cecilia said. "But luckily for you, you have a girlfriend who is a pretty great cook. I'm just kind of lazy and crave pizza twenty-four-seven."

    "Mood," Jason snorted. "Speaking of which, that sounds like a pretty good lunch to me."

    "Same, what do you think Matthew?"

    Matthew smiled and nodded. It was hard to say no to pizza. "Sounds great."

    "Alrighty," Cecilia said. "Just let me get my phone and I'll place an order. What kind of pizza do you want, boys?"

    "Uh..." Matthew started.

    "Pepperoni and ham," Jason quickly said. "Ooh, maybe add bacon on that."

    "So...the meat-lovers one?"

    "Uh, yeah, that one."

    Cecilia turned to Matthew. "And you?"

    "I'm fine with anything," Matthew said. "Honestly."

    "Pineapple?" Cecilia asked.

    "On pizza?" Matthew frowned.

    "It's a sin," Jason muttered. "Fruit does not belong on pizza."

    Cecilia frowned in his direction, as if she was offended. "It's not a sin, Jace. It's good."

    Jason made a faux gagging noise, pretending to stick his finger down his throat. "Disgusting."

    "Hey, well, I'm not the guy who eats ranch and eggs!"

    "Ew," Matthew gasped, looking over at him. "Tell me she's joking."

    Jason laughed, shrugging. "You haven't tried it, so don't judge."

    "Jason does this thing that he calls 'Gross Chief', where he mixes strange foods and tries them. He's tried peas and ketchup, too."

    "Hey, when you grow up where I did, you get pretty creative with the food you are given. One time I ate brown sugar and unsalted butter for lunch."

    Matthew blinked at Jason, unfortunately understanding his position. Only, In his situation, there had been plenty of food at his disposal. Pardus had just often punished him with starvation, and Matthew had been too scared to steal food from the kitchen. For a while, at least. As he grew weaker and weaker, he learned to shake that fear pretty quickly.

    "Well, now you live here, In a modest apartment with a modest life," Cecilia said. "A life that can at least afford pizza."

    "Thanks to you." Jason mustered a smile.

    Cecilia smirked in return. "Hey, you'll be helping soon enough. All you need is to be a legal hero."

    Jason was about to respond, but there was a sudden knock at their apartment door. All three of their heads shot up and simultaneously looked over.

    Cecilia set down her phone, her fists protectively balling. "That's odd. Usually, when we have a visitor, they radio-in from the intercom at the front entrance."

    "It could be the landlord," Jason suggested nervously.

    "But why would the landlord be here? I paid off the rent the day we got home."

    "Maybe there was money missing?"

    Cecilia shook her head, carefully approaching the door. As she drew closer and closer, the more her voice dropped into a whisper. "I made sure that I was paying everything off when I gave him the money."

    "Then, who is it?" Matthew carefully asked, now standing behind the couch.

    He doubted the three of them would ever let their guard down again after what they had endured with Pardus.

    Cecilia crept closer to the door, peeking through the peephole. There was a beat of silence before she gasped and reached for the door, throwing it open. "Bobby!"

    "Bobby?" Jason frowned, moving around the couch so he could see who was standing at the door. Though, the tension left his face when he saw who was standing there.

    Slowly, Matthew followed, and when he saw Platinum standing there, he was blessed with a similar reaction. Of all the people, he hadn't expected him. Though, perhaps he was here to give him an update about his application.

    "Oh my God!" Cecilia enthused, throwing her arms around him. "What are you doing here?"

    Platinum laughed, a little thrown off guard by her embrace. Matthew would be lying if he didn't admit that it was still weird seeing him out of costume. Platinum hadn't worn it on their mission together, but it was still hard to get used to. Today, especially, he was wearing a simple one-toned tee, jeans, and looked like he was in need of a shave. Something about him gave Matthew the impression that he was... stressed, anxious even.

    "I'm so glad that you are okay." Platinum said as she pulled away, setting his hands on Cecilia's shoulders. "When Jason and Matthew came to me, I was worried about you."

    "Nope, you're still stuck with me." Cecilia winked. "But is it okay if I ask why you're here?"

    Platinum's pale eyes lifted, meeting Jason and Matthews'. "I bring news for all of you. Good and bad. May I come in? It will only be a second."

    "Yeah, yeah," Cecilia said, ushering him inside. "Can I get you anything?"

    He nodded. "That would be great, Cecilia, thank you. Just water, please." Then, he paused. "Actually, I'll come with you. We'll get the more unfortunate news over with first."

    Panic flashed across Cecilia's face, but it was only for a moment. She ushered him to follow into a little kitchen, one that was separated from the main room by a wall. From there, Matthew could've eavesdropped, but he chose not to. Instead, he turned to Jason and tried to start a conversation.

    "What sort of news do you think he brought? For us, I mean."

    He could tell Jason was trying to hear what Platinum was telling his girlfriend based on the long moment it took for Matthew's question to register. "O-oh, uh, well, I dunno. I hope it's about your application and my request to have a mentor. It would be really great if we were both at TAFAH at the same time, huh?"

    "Yeah, it would." Matthew smiled but didn't know how else to branch off of that. He could think of several benefits entailing Jason's presence, but at the same time, he knew that those benefits would only stretch so far. He wouldn't be a friend. He wouldn't be a peer. He'd only be a familiar face. Jason would have other things to worry about.

    "I think you'll like it there," Jason added. "I always wanted to go to TAFAH, but because my family couldn't afford it, I couldn't. And I certainly didn't have the grades or the skills required to get in on a scholarship."

    "Oh..." That scared Matthew a little. He didn't know if he had the grades or the skills, either. One thing was for certain, though, he definitely didn't have the money. Not unless Pardus cracked open his coffers and paid for it. But that was impossible.

    "Cecilia wanted to go to TAFAH, too, but her family wasn't so supportive of it." Jason continued. "That's her story to tell, though. What I mean to, um, say is that if you make it in, don't mess it up. Enjoy every moment, even the tough ones."

    Matthew nodded, understanding. But, his attention was quickly pulled away from Jason as Cecilia emerged from the kitchen, her usual mischief, spunk, and fire drained from her face. She looked grey and sad.

    Jason tensed. "Cici?"

    "Bandit— she's dead."

    Matthew looked over at Jason, watching as the same expression appeared on his face.

    Bandit. He didn't recognize that name, but whoever they were seemed important to Cecilia.

    "Oh, Cici..." Jason said, crossing the room to pull her into an embrace. "I'm sorry."

    Matthew wanted to help, to console her, but he had no clue what was going on. Was Bandit one of the heroes he had frozen? Were they one of the first ones? One that he had forgotten the name of? No. He usually remembered their names. He had forced himself to. But still.. .a part of him wondered if he really had forgotten this hero and wondered if he played a part in their death.

    As Cecilia sobbed into Jason's shoulder, Matthew looked over at the shadow of Platinum that had emerged from the kitchen. He beckoned Matthew over, and after a moment of hesitation, Matthew obeyed, stepping with him into the kitchen.

    "What... what's going on?" Matthew nervously asked. "Who is Bandit?"

    Platinum sighed, sitting down at the small, rectangular table that was pushed up against the wall. "Take a seat for a moment, Matthew."

    Matthew obeyed, his pale eyes sweeping Platinum as he waited for an answer; for anything.

    "Bandit... was a dear friend of mine and Cecilia's childhood idol." Platinum said with a sigh, scratching his chin as he spoke. "She was one of the few heroes found dead at the scene. Pathologists predicted that she had been frozen for somewhere around thirteen years."

    A selfish, guilty part of himself was glad that he hadn't been responsible for her death. But now, Matthew was realizing that there was more to this story. Pardus's crime had stretched long before Matthew was a contributing member of society.

    The face of the woman he saw in the body bag came sprawling back into his head. He remembered how simple she was dressed, how normal she looked. It made him wonder how long this had been continuing, and what had inspired it. Hell, he even wondered if Micah had known about this all, if he had somehow been swept into it too.

    "Matthew? Are you okay?"

    Matthew came sprawling back into reality. "Huh? Yeah. I was just thinking."

    "Yeah... I'm sure it's a lot to think about." Platinum nodded. "But, I don't just bring bad news. I bring good news, too."

    Matthew blinked, his hopes rising. "Yeah?"

    "I'm going to be mentoring Jason."

    A fragment of hope dwindled, but nevertheless he was happy for his friend. "Oh? You are?"

    "Yep, I've been thinking long and hard about it. Cecilia is like a daughter to me. It would be an honor to mentor someone so dear to her, especially after we both lost someone important to us." He paused. "I took care of all the credentials, and Jason is on track to start shadowing me whenever he is ready."

    Matthew worked up a smile. "Have you told them yet?"

    "No, not yet. But before I did, I thought I'd pull you in here and give you something." Platinum said, sticking his hand into the pocket of his jeans. What he procured was a folded letter.

    Matthew's eyes widened. "What's this?"

    Platinum held the letter out to him. "See for yourself."

    Matthew looked between him and the folded envelope before carefully taking it. Then, with equally careful fingers, tore open the seal and pulled out a piece of nice paper. He gasped. "It's from TAFAH."

    "Yes, give it a read." Platinum smiled.

    Matthew started at the top— the big calligraphic letters that read "The Academy for Adolescent Heroes"— then began reading the paragraph below it, his eyes widening. "I— I've been accepted?"

    "Keep reading, keep reading."

    His heart was already racing as he continued to read. Better yet, TAFAH had agreed to give him a scholarship due to his inability to pay for anything They'd pay for his tuition and his boarding. Everything was going to be paid for. All Matthew had to do was show up.

    Tears pricked at his eyes. "Is this—" he sniffed, "This can't be real."

    "It is, Matthew." Platinum smiled, reaching out to set a hand on his arm. "It's time you get the care and education you deserve. TAFAH would be honored if you decided to come to our school."

    "Yes!" Matthew said, tears now streaming down his cheeks. "I want to come!"

    Platinum laughed. "Then, welcome aboard, Vulpus."

    "I—I've got to tell Cecilia and Jason." Matthew stood, the chair screeching as it was quickly pushed back.

    "You do that." Platinum nodded. "I'll come with you."

    From there, Matthew didn't wait for him. He turned and trotted back into the living room, finding Jason and Cecilia sitting in silence. Both their heads lifted when he entered, even Cecilia's, who was still red and puffy from crying.

    "I—I made it into TAFAH!" Matthew choked out, throwing his arms out wide. "I'm going to school and they're paying for it."

    Life returned in Cecilia's green eyes. She shot to her feet. "What?! Really?!"

    A huge smile spread across Matthew's face as another stream of tears dampened his cheeks. "Yes, really! Look!" He waved the letter at her.

    Cecilia crossed the room, but when she did, she didn't take the letter. No. Instead, she threw her arms around him, squeezing her eyes shut as a wave of now happy tears burned in her eyes. "Matthew... you did it."

    "I'm going to school." He repeated over and over again, as if the words would properly sink in if he continued to say them. He still couldn't believe it. His life was finally looking up.

    Platinum cleared his throat from behind them, and both Cecilia and Matthew lifted their heads and looked over. "I also have good news for you, Jason."

    Jason, who was standing behind Cecilia and Matthew, blinked. "Yeah?"

    "I'm going to be your mentor." Platinum announced, smiling big. "I'm going to make you into a professional hero, and a popular one at that."

    Jason's eyes widened, his knees wobbling. "Wh—what?"

    Cecilia let out a choked, but happy, sob. "Bring it in, Jace." She said, gesturing him into her embrace with Matthew. "I'm so proud of my boys!"

    Jason covered his eyes with his hands, wiping away fresh tears as he stepped into their embrace.

    "So many tears!" Cecilia laughed as she threw her arms around "her boys". "You both are so amazing. You deserve every minute of what your future brings."

    Matthew laughed along with her, his eyes now red and puffy. It had taken so long for him to realize it, for him to finally be confident in himself, but now... he couldn't agree more. He deserved happiness, comfort, a safe place to live. Finally, after all this time, he would have it.

    And for a moment, as his friends held him, he forgot about all his sadness, his worry, and everything bad in the world. He forgot about Pardus. He forgot about the estate.

    The one thing he'd never forget about was Micah. And now, as he stayed in his friends' embrace, with the prospect of living a happy, healthy life hanging over his head, he imagined Micah's arms wrapped around him, telling him how proud he was of him. How he wanted nothing more for him than to be happy. How he loved him and watched over him from above, in a sky full of stars.

    "'Cause you light up the path..." Matthew sang under his breath before burying his face in their embrace.

    Suddenly, they were all jostled as two strong arms joined them. "Let's celebrate!" Platinum laughed. "A toast! To bright futures!"

    "To bright futures!" They all cheered.