Chapter Text
It was seven forty-five, the second of January, in Logan's bedroom, and just forty-eight hours ago, Virgil's biggest problem was finding time to hang out with Logan.
"Alright, let's just go over everything from the top. Do you have your bullet proof vest?" Logan asked holding his clipboard.
"Yes." Virgil answered, double checking to make sure, despite being able to feel the weight of it. "By the way, where did you get this?"
"I have a stock of five which were afforded to me just this morning by a generous benefactor." Logan didn't look up from the clipboard. The phrase "generous benefactor" sounded really suspicious.
"Who?" Virgil asked.
"Just another superhuman I'm in contact with who occasionally has access to large sums of money that he uses to help out where he can." Logan said evading the question.
Virgil tilted his head slightly, peering at Logan, "How many superhumans do you know?"
"Present company excluded, four total, which I hope is all there is in this city."
"Damn, so that's Roman, Remus, Fae, and one more."
"Indeed. Do you have your running shoes?" Logan asked moving on quickly.
"Yes." Virgil said scuffing his shoe against the carpet of Logan's bedroom.
"Disguise?"
"Hold on, I've got it here," Virgil said with a smile. He had a whole plan for this. If there was anything he was good at it was establishing an aesthetic.
He pulled his hair into a messy ponytail with the hair tie on his wrist and kneeled to open his backpack. He pulled out a delicate crown of copper leaves. This shit had taken so long to make.
"What is that?" Logan asked, as Virgil adjusted the crown on his head in his phone's camera.
"I made it in that jewelry making class I'm in. I've been working on it for weeks, but I figured it would be useful. I can't just go out and be like 'Hey my name is Virgil and I'm here to fuck shit up' I need an identity. So I'm going with Deimos."
"Is there a reference I'm missing here?"
"Deimos is the greek god of slow creeping fear." Virgil said, honestly a little excited about being able to explain something to Logan for once. "He's a son of Ares. It's only fitting to pay respects to him since I'll be relying on Roman being afraid of me for this. I need to be at least a little intimidating."
Virgill pulled out a tube black eyeliner.
"You have a mask that covers your eye area. What is that for?" Logan asked sounding exasperated.
"Watch." Virgil started drawing black crescent moons on both sides of his face starting just above his eyebrows, disappearing where they met his hairline, and curling downward, coming to a point below his cheek bones. It would probably smear some but it wouldn't be the biggest deal.
He pulled his dark purple eye mask onto his face.
"I fail to see the purpose."
Virgil rolled his eyes, "The makeup will help to obscure my face shape and distract from it. Combined with the eye mask? No one will realize." Plus it looked cool. Like, come on, it did look cool.
Logan looked him up and down, "Very well the overall effect adequately disguises you."
"Aw adequate? High praise coming from you." Virgil smirked.
"Alright final item, weapon."
"Whoa whoa whoa whoa, weapon?" Virgil said holding up his hands. He hadn't agreed to a weapon, "I thought I could just be a shitty-Doofenshmirtz-level villain who has theoretically dangerous plans, but ultimately fails at executing them."
"It just for emergencies, calm down." Logan said as if those words had ever made anyone calm, "I have three options for you, there's a switchblade hidden in my sock drawer, a baseball bat in the back of the closet, or I have this set of brass knuckles that could be useful considering your abnormal strength."
"I don't know!"
"Just pick one. All are potentially lethal so that shouldn't go into your calculations. However, the bat has a longer range so it could keep people further away from you. The problem with that is that it's not easily concealed. It's your choice though."
Virgil didn't like the detached tone that Logan was explaining all of this in "potentially lethal" isn't a phrase that should ever be said with an air of boredom.
"I apologize, I understand that was likely disconcerting. I swear I do in fact care about whether or not someone could die, but please take into account that in the past six months, the average level of safety I have in my life has drastically plummeted. Many of my qualms with violence I've expressed previously have gone out the metaphorical window."
Virgil couldn't really blame him...
"Fuck alright uh… brass knuckles?" He said not certain if it was the right choice.
"Alright," Logan dug in his bedside table drawer. "Here."
Virgil slipped the brass knuckles into his pocket and hoped he wouldn't need them.
"Then… am I ready for school dad?" Virgil said trying to lighten the mood.
The corner of Logan's mouth almost quirked up into a smile, "Indeed. I trust you'll be able to prepare by yourself from now on?"
"You got it man." Virgil finger gunned awkwardly at him.
"Alright, a few final notes. If Roman passes out with you, put him somewhere safe nearby where he won't be seen and I'll come pick him up. He agreed to let me access his phone location to check where he is in case he passes out, and doesn't make it home. So, I'll find him easily." Logan adjusted the black trench coat Virgil was wearing to hide the bullet proof vest.
He continued speaking as he fussed over Virgil's costume, "If he pulls out his sword, keep low, he has a preference for dramatic swipes that 'look cool' and they end up being high up and easily ducked under."
"Lastly," Here Logan paused with a hand on Virgil's shoulder, "remember from eight o'clock until one o'clock you are not Virgil Timor. You are Deimos, known supervillain. Don't forget that."
"Alright Lo, I'll be careful." He held out his arms. "Hug?"
Logan pulled him into a tight hug, "Thank you for the help."
Virgil held him just as tightly, "Thanks for letting me."
They pulled back and Logan said, "Okay, I am going to go make sure Roman has left."
Logan left the room shutting the door behind him. A few moments later he called "You are clear."
Virgil came out into the living room and went to the window, "Bye Lo, I'm gonna go try not to get stabbed."
"Good luck."
Virgil climbed out onto the fire escape and ran toward downtown.
***
Virgil as it turns out did not have great maneuvering skill when he went superfast and thus he slammed directly into Roman because he couldn't stop fast enough. Great opening bro, good job.
Roman fell backwards and his helmet gave a loud clang as it hi the pavement. Roman scrambled back to a standing position.
"What the fuck?!" Roman said flipping his cape behind him as it got caught on his helmet. He stood up and looked at Virgil.
"Sorr-" Virgil said on reflex, then stopped himself before he did anything unintentionally polite.
Shit shit shiiiit he didn't really plan his opening lines like he had planned to act like he was in danger and ask for help and lead Roman somewhere less populated, but he didn't really have a plan on how to do that.
"I'm sorry, who are you?" Roman asked.
Virgil decided to just let his panic show, "Please I really need you to come with me. If you don't they'll get me please."
This was technically true, if Roman refused to go to a place with less witnesses the police would probably catch Virgil, so Virgil did need Roman to go with him.
"Who is they? Do you need help?" Roman asked looking around to see who Virgil was talking about.
"Please just come on." Virgil pleaded grasping Roman's sleeve.
"Okay?" Roman said, walking in the direction that Virgil lead him. Virgil didn't lay any strength into the grip he had on Roman's sleeve, he wanted this to go quietly until they were away from people.
Virgil, still gripping Roman's sleeve went to a small side street where the lamp lights flickered and no one was walking.
Creepy shit. Good setting.
"What's wrong?" Roman asked looking around at the apartment buildings that rose around them.
"Mainly? The fact that it was so fuckin' easy to drag you away from all the witnesses. Seriously, like you don't even know me, I could be a murderer or something." Virgil was not sure how Roman was still alive if he was this trusting.
Roman pulled his arm away and back up a few paces, drawing his sword, "Who are you and what do you want?" Shit Virgil hadn't practiced this part either.
"I'm, uh, your new nemesis. You killed Fae, so... someone needs to keep you in line!" That sounded weeeeeeak, fuck, fuck, he couldn’t mess this up.
Roman shook his head seeming exasperated, "What are you like twelve? Go home kid, try a punching bag for all that excess aggression." Roman took off, ready to fly away from Virgil.
Seriously all this work and he was blowing Virgil off like this? Nuh-uh that's some bullshit.
Without thinking, Virgil's hand shot out grabbing Roman's ankle. One tug and Roman was sprawled on the ground. His sword skittered out of reach.
"What the fuck?!" Roman demanded.
"Look," Virgil said placing his foot in the middle of Roman's chest (not hard just like enough to be intimidating you know?).
"You're right." Virgil agreed channeling all the anger he could muster into his words, "I do have a lot of aggression. I work a job, I go to school, and I haven't spent any real time with my best friend in months. And oh yeah, on top of all that normal person shit, I have superpowers. So yeah, I am dealing with a lot of excess aggression, and it just so happens that you, and this city, are my punching bag."
The truth was he wasn't really as much of the angry type as the moody sulky type, but he must have communicated convincing enough rage, because Roman seemed to be taking him seriously now.
"Why?" Roman groaned, trying to wrestle Virgil's foot off of him. "Why this city? What the fuck made you angry with a whole city?"
"Well the city is just a necessary evil. My real problem is you." Virgil pressed his foot down as punctuation. Roman let out a small noise of pain.
He was gonna be okay, Virgil was carefully monitoring the pressure.
"The city is just gonna be collateral damage in making you look bad and slowly crushing every last bit of spirit you have. " Virgil bent over and grabbed Roman's sword off the ground. Probably better to not risk Roman getting a hold of it until Virgil was ready.
"What," Roman grunted, tugging on Virgil's foot, "did I do to you?"
"Nothing personal, my employer however, you've made his life very… stressful. I was sent to deal with you because you were getting in the way of his goals. Me dealing with you from now on… well that just benefits everyone involved." It was true, he was literally doing this because Logan was stress and needed to focus on schoolwork.
"Who's your employer?"
"Wouldn't you like to know weather boy?" Virgil said automatically.
"Vine? You're quoting a vine right now? Are you fucking kidding me?!" Roman said as if he was allowed to judge with how frequently he said "yeet".
"Ah ah ah, manners." Virgil said pressing his foot down further briefly then letting it up a little.
"Let me up!" Roman said struggling.
"Fine." Virgil said releasing him. He had gotten Roman's attention by this point so it wouldn't hurt to let him up.
"Who are you?!" Roman demanded.
"You may call me Deimos," He said with an ominous growl in his voice.
"And what do you plan to do?" Roman demanded, his voice seeming less and less confident as this interaction continued.
"Distract you so my employer can get some Work done," Virgil answered with a smirk, putting unnecessary emphasis on the word "work".
"You better warn your employer that I'm not easily distracted."
"Oh yeah?" Virgil tossed him his sword, better make it a fair fight.
"Yeah." Roman said, catching it.
Virgil leaned forward in a stage whisper, "Then why are you here?"
***
Virgil was fucking Floating!
Who knew that that was gonna be so fun?!
The fist fight had been interesting, Virgil had never been in one before and honestly the only reason he won was because he was super fast but hey that wasn't the point.
Sure it started out kinda shaky, but he liked to believe that it worked in his favor, because Roman wasn't expecting him to get all scary and shit.
Like Virgil sure planned the part where he lured Roman away from the crowds. He didn't want to do their first meeting in front of everyone because he figured it was gonna go really badly and he didn't want anyone to see that. Beyond that? Virgil had no fucking plan.
Then Roman tried to blow him off like he wasn't even scary (And he insulted his height, so fuck him! Virgil was way taller than a twelve year old) and a switch like, flipped in Virgil's brain.
Which is good because it's important for Roman to be afraid of Deimos. If he isn't, he would move on to what he considers bigger threats. And it was so cool, like Virgil literally just explained the situation with Logan to him, he didn't even lie during that! And it sounded all menacing and shit, like wow!
There was an awkward moment with the vine reference, but it was his first night, he'd get better.
It was a shock for him to realize that he really believed that. He genuinely believed he had potential to get better at this.
That was something new for him.