Chapter Text
If there was one thing a student from the top hero school worldwide shouldn’t be doing, it was robbing a bank.
The irony was not lost on Morgan, and if you asked them, they probably would say it was even intentional.
Currently, they are rewiring their third security pad of the night. While Morgan did understand the need for security measures, they personally thought this was a little excessive. Do people even know how hard it was to completely rewire one? They didn’t even have someone to hold the flashlight for them.
At least it didn’t take them too long to finish up the last one, and in the next few minutes, they were on their way to the main vault they had targeted for their first heist.
Morgan shivered with excitement, smiling against the hood that masked their face. Their first heist. They almost couldn’t believe it, after weeks of planning and preparation, they were finally doing it.
Even though they were raised by heroes- high-ranking ones, for that matter- there was always a part of them that knew they had a knack for this stuff. Unlike everyone in their family, Morgan saw no point in relying on showy powers, instead deciding to use strategy and tactics. Not that they had a showy power in the first place, but that was beside the point. There was just something so rewarding about making a plan and following through successfully without the help of powers.
Morgan’s family, however, thought differently. Their power was not a flashy one, and it was completely useless by itself. It was, in the eyes of their family, sidekick material.
Morgan clenched their fists at the thought. A sidekick.
Their family was wrong. They were more than just a useless, dependent sidekick.
And yeah, maybe robbing a bank in retaliation wasn’t the best idea, but no one could stop Morgan if they tried. Besides, it sounded kind of fun.
And it was.
Morgan was prepared for how difficult it would be, and they knew they would enjoy the sheer amount of strategy that would be needed in order to pull this off, but they never could have expected just how thrilling it was.
This was only going to be a one-time thing, to prove to themself they could actually do it, but now Morgan knew that they would do this for as long as they could. It was like they had found their calling.
Almost there, they thought as they glanced around the corner to check that the last camera they had to pass was facing the other way. Just a few more seconds…
Now!
Morgan had to time this perfectly, staying in the camera’s blind spot until it passed the vault door. After that, they would only have 15 seconds to open the vault until the camera had gone full circle. Any later, the security guards would notify the police, or worse, the heroes.
After several agonizingly long seconds, The vault was no longer in the camera’s line of sight, and they started the timer on their watch.
Now for the hard part. Morgan pulled out the lockpicks they’d been practicing with for the last several weeks and got to work.
Twelve seconds.
While they had never picked a lock this advanced, they were confident in their abilities. They had prepared for this.
Ten seconds.
If only they could stop the tremor in their hands, it was messing them up.
Six.
Their heart was pounding in their chest. They ignored it. Concentrate.
Five.
They were close. They could feel it.
Four.
The first click of the lock echoed in the hallway. They were running out of time-
Three
Another click. The lockpick deepened, turned to the side. Another click.
Two-
The last click. The door yanked open.
One.
The camera turned fully around. The vault door closed with a resounding clang. Morgan released a shaky breath they didn’t know they were holding, safely on the other side of the door.
They did it.
Morgan closed their eyes and leaned their head against the door, heavy breathing muffled through their mask.
They did it.
Their laugh echoed around the enclosed room, the warmth of pride filling them from head to toe.
“Could a sidekick do that? ” Morgan cheered, finally pushing themself off the door and reaching for the cliche black bag they brought with them.
They didn’t care much for the physical reward of this heist, so they didn’t take too much cash. Maybe a few thousand tops. Okay maybe they cared a little bit, so sue them.
Once Morgan was satisfied, they gathered up everything and prepared to leave. Getting out of the bank was a lot easier than getting in, the hardest part would be leaving the vault itself.
They looked back at their watch, six minutes and thirty-seven seconds had passed, so they had about eight seconds until the camera's gaze was past the vault, then they were basically home free.
Morgan's escape plan was pretty much just to do everything they did to get in, but backward. Their main goal was to do the entire heist without alerting any security, which they had accomplished thus far.
They made it through the vault’s hallway with no problems and continued past where they rewired the security panels, dodging the cameras they knew the exact position of as they went. Within minutes, Morgan was outside of the bank with a bag full of cash, not having alerted security once.
As soon as they felt the cool night air around them, they felt all tension leave their body, only barely restraining themselves from giving a shout of glee, just in case there were heroes on patrol.
Morgan pulled open the bag of cash, admiring their reward. They did it, no flashy powers necessary.
They still felt high on the adrenaline, what a rush. Morgan couldn’t wait to do this again-
“You know,” The voice cut through the dark so suddenly that Morgan nearly dropped the bag. “If I were to rob a bank, I wouldn’t stand next to the scene of the crime just to wave around what I stole.”
Any sense of victory left them in a rush, leaving them with dread colder than the nighttime air.
Morgan whipped around to face the speaker. Alex Anguine, the highest-ranking hero-in-training at their school, smirked back at them.
“That’s just my personal opinion, though.” Alex stepped forward, now within arms reach of them. “Regardless, the police are on their way, and I’m confident I can keep you here till they arrive. Please don’t try to escape though, this is a new shirt, and I’d hate to get it dirty.”
Morgan knew Alex well enough to know that he could kill them with a snap of his fingers, and they had no desire to flirt with death tonight.
Not that Alex would kill them. He was a hero. But that didn’t stop Alex from making people feel like he could kill you if he really wanted.
“Wait-!” Morgan ripped off the black mask hiding their features. “Please, I’ll do anything, you can have the money back, just please let-”
“ Morgan?!”
The look of shock on Alex’s face was almost hilarious, Morgan half wished the other student’s trademark sunglasses were off so they could take in his complete expression.
“Look, my parents will kill me.” They continued, words fumbling over their ragged breathing.
Alex stared at them open-mouthed for several awkward moments, and if Morgan didn’t know better, they’d say Alex’s expression had turned from shocked to impressed to something else they didn’t have the energy to interpret.
Thankfully, the police sirens seemed to shake Alex out of his stupor.
“Alright, Slighter-” Morgan cringed at their family name- “, get out of here.” Alex took a few steps back, and Morgan deflated with relief. “Drop the bag, though.”
Morgan did. “ Thank you, ” they half-whispered, glancing meaningfully at Alex, before sprinting past him. Alex was prone to changing his mind, after all.
“You owe me one!” Alex called out to Morgan’s retreating figure. Morgan didn’t turn back, only giving a short wave of acknowledgment.
They could deal with that later. First, they had to make sure their parents did not find out about this.
_______________
So here’s the deal.
Alex was a hero. A good one too. He knew better than to let thieves go just because they asked nicely.
Like, even before school today he had managed to stop some low-level drug deal. Or something. Honestly, he hadn’t really been paying attention. He just saw some shady trade going on and put an end to it, keeping them confined until the police showed up and arrested them. It was easy, he’d done it many times before and he’d do it many times in the future. It took two minutes, tops. You get the point. He wasn’t the kind of hero to just let someone off the hook.
But Alex was also… an idiot, mostly.
It wasn’t his fault he had this huge, stupid crush on Morgan.
Morgan Slighter. The child of two of the highest-ranking Pro-heroes in the country. Easily the smartest student in their school. Adorably attractive. Funny. The most kind-hearted person Alex had ever met.
And apparently, also a thief. A decent one, at that. Last night, they managed to break into one of the most secure banks in central, alone, without triggering a single alarm. The only reason Alex had caught them is that he happened to be on patrol and Morgan was just standing outside the bank with a bag full of cash.
Which was extremely idiotic, by the way. How could a genius like Morgan also be such a dumbass? Hell if he knew.
(And if that made him like Morgan even more, well..)
But Alex didn’t have time to worry about that right now, because his school counselor had been monologuing for the past fifteen minutes and Alex had been nodding along when in reality he was just zoning off about Morgan, which was totally not a bad habit he had fallen into in the last several months. Regardless, he wouldn’t be paying attention anyway. These dumb meetings really needed a TLDR attached to them.
Oh shit, she was looking at him expectantly now. Fuck. What did she ask?
“Sorry, what?” he asked, covering up his lack of attention with the gracefulness of a falling pigeon.
See? A TLDR would be so useful right now.
Ms. Meldinstein narrowed her eyes at him before sighing and sitting down behind her desk. “Alexander,” she started,
“Alex.” he cut her off. Like, seriously people, literally just Alex. On the birth certificate and everything. On top of that, Alexander was way too masculine.
“Alex,” she sighed again. “To summarize,” a TLDR! Alex subconsciously cheered. “Your grades are slipping, and if they continue to do so, you will be dropped from the varsity hero training program.”
Wait. What? His brain helplessly supplied.
“Wait, what?” he repeated. She couldn’t do that, right? He was too powerful to just be kicked out because of a few bad grades.
“I’m sorry, Alex, I really am.” she didn’t sound so sorry, especially as she began pulling out several papers from her desk. “I have compiled a list from all your teachers on what you need to catch up on. You have until next Friday. Until then, you are suspended from patrols without a partner and any after-school hero work.”
“But-”
“No buts. Next Friday.” She at least had the decency to look somewhat remorseful now. “This is for the best. It’s high time you learn that being a hero is not just about how powerful you are. Now, get to class. Try not to get further behind than you already are.”
He glared at her- not that she could see behind his heavily tinted glasses, but he glared all the same.
He could kill her. Right now. It would be so easy. Nothing but a blink of the eye and he could snap her neck. Rip out her heart. Tear her apart limb from limb and make it so no one could hear her scream-
The drastic decrease in temperature he hadn’t realized he caused snapped him out of his… thoughts. He squeezed his eyes shut, tight enough that he almost saw stars, before opening them and nodding to the councilor as he stood up.
These thoughts are getting out of hand, He thought as he walked through the office door, They are no way for a hero to think.
________
"Damn," Mav replied to Alex's recounting of the councilor meeting. "That's rough, bro."
Alex huffed in response, shoving his- ehhhh she was feeling like her now- hands into her jacket pockets.
She and Mav were on their way to the only class they had together, just a general English class. Mav wasn't on the hero track like she was, so Alex didn’t see him much during school hours.
“It’s bullshit.” She sneered, her expression causing the other students in the hall to duck out of their path. “I’m better than all the other wannabes in this school, none of them stand a chance against me.”
She could feel Mav roll his eyes next to her. “Yes, yes, all hail Alex, future A tier. You’ll be the strongest of all of us, heh,” Alex glanced over to see Mav sporting his typical cat-like grin. “Hero or Villian.”
She narrowed her eyes. “Don’t”
Mav just shrugged.
She had known Maverik Gibbleton her whole life. He was pretty much her only friend, and as such, she trusted him enough to tell him about the… Dark thoughts that sometimes entered her head without her consent. Years after the fact she still didn’t fully regret it- still confided in him when the thoughts could be a bit much - though that didn’t stop Mav from teasing her about it in true best-friend fashion. And also attempted to convince her to get a therapist every other week.
She wouldn’t become a villain, though. She wouldn’t.
She and Mav turned the corner and she was forced out of her thoughts as something-no, someone- ran directly into her. Books fell to the ground and papers fluttered around them as she and the other student steadied themself.
Immediately, she looked at them with a glare that could stop a hurricane.
Oh. Morgan. Oh.
“ Watch where you’re going, dickhead. ” Morgan snapped as they picked up their books, somehow still not seeing Alex nor their now bewildered and somewhat awed expression.
Several gasps surrounded them- everyone knew better than to risk offending Alex. When Alex knelt down to help pick up Morgan’s scattered papers, the gasps turned to murmurs and almost everyone in the hallway stopped to see what would happen next.
Morgan looked up to see Alex handing them a small stack of their papers. The blood drained from their face at the sight of her, much to Alex’s amusement.
“Alexohmygodimsosorryididn’tseeyou-”
She gave a light chuckle at that. “It’s fine. It happens.”
Morgan just stared at her. “..right,” They said after a few probably very awkward moments. Not that Alex would have noticed. All she was noticing right then was Morgan.
God, their eyes were so pretty. The soft brown provided an almost comfort for her, she could stare at them all day. She had done that actually, being allowed to wear sunglasses at all times had its perks. She had almost managed to count all of the freckles that spattered across their face once, but the class had ended when she got to 143. One day.
She wasn’t creepy.
Okay, maybe a little.
Morgan cleared their throat. “Well. See ya,”
And then they walked away. Alex blinked out of her stupor, turning her head to see Morgan joining their best friend Barnaby across the hall, and sighed.
Then snapped the coldest glare she could manage at the moment to everyone in the hall who continued to stare at her like she had grown a second head.
She could do that, actually. Maybe she should, if not just to mess with all these annoying extras.
Within moments, everyone in the hallway broke their trance and all but ran to wherever it was they were supposed to be going.
Alex stood up and brushed off her spotless pants before turning to look at Mav, who had yet to say anything about whatever the hell had just happened.
“..holy shit.” He said as he and Alex started walking again.
“What,” She said, not really wanting to know.
“I mean, I knew you were in deep, but damn. ” Mav sounded a little awed like this was some otherworldly miracle that only God and Alex herself could perform.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Alex, babe,” Mav started in the most unimpressed voice they had, “you’re literally blushing right now. You never blush.”
“No, I’m not. Shut up.” She used the excuse of them at last walking into the classroom as a way to end the conversation.
Unfortunately, Maverick was like a wrecking ball when it came to his curiosity. He will not stop swinging until your walls crumble. It was very annoying.
As such, the moment the two sat down, he asked “So… when are you going to ask them out?”
Alex scoffed, refusing to look at him in favor of pulling out her textbook and noticeably incomplete homework. “Never. Can I copy you? I was busy on patrol last night.”
“Awe, why not? I’m sure they’d say yes.” Mav paused for half a second, grimacing. “And no, I didn’t do it either.”
“Well, fuck.”
Alex stared down at the homework. It looked easy, but easy in the way you know it wouldn’t take long to learn how to do it, but the assignment was due in two minutes, and you would need a little more time than that. And while Alex could teach this to herself and have time to spare, her parent would literally kill her if she used her powers for school work.
Mav gave a small tch. “Maybe you should get a tutor or something.”
“As if.” She said. No, she was too prideful to stoop so low as to ask her classmates for help on homework. Maybe if-
“Wait,” She said, getting an idea. There was maybe one person she’d be willing to ask for help, and that person owed her a favor. “You might be onto something.”
___________
That had been so awkward.
Morgan was barely listening to Barnaby ramble about some new mystery book he was reading- they felt kind of bad, but in their defense, Barnaby has a new mystery book almost every other day. And their mind was elsewhere at the moment.
They couldn’t believe they called Alex Anguine a dickhead.
God, they were such an idiot. They already owed her a favor, and she was literally the most feared and respected person in the entire school, even as a junior.
By some miracle, they had managed to survive the situation, even if they almost died out of embarrassment regardless.
Luckily, it wasn’t long before they and Barnaby made it to their first class together- History of Sidekicks 301. Both of them had been forced into the sidekick program by their families and had found a sort of kinship in their Freshman year at Lighthouse Academy. Now the two of them were best friends and were going to graduate together at the end of the semester, both with a lovely certificate telling the whole world they were meant to be sidekicks.
Ugh. What a load of bullshit. Morgan would rather become a villain than being stuck as a sidekick their whole life.
“Morgan,” Barnaby called out, waving his hand out to get their attention.
At this point, the two of them were both sitting at their desks and waiting for the teacher to start class. Which was usually pretty late, since the teacher gave as much of a shit about this class as they did.
Morgan blinked, turning to look fully at their best friend. . “Sorry, did you say something?”
Barnaby sighed, though didn’t look surprised. “‘I asked where you were last night? You didn’t respond to any of my texts.”
Ah. That would be because Morgan purposefully left their phone at home last night, not wanting to risk any information of theirs getting leaked in case they got caught.
“Oh,” They said casually, giving Barnaby a sheepish smile. “Sorry. I opened up the text but then got distracted and forgot to respond.”
Not even technically a lie. And also a frequent occurrence for both of their ADHD asses, so it seemed realistic enough.
Barnaby clearly bought it, as he nodded his head and turned back to face the front of the classroom, the teacher finally bothering to make an appearance.
Hands slammed down on Morgan’s desk out of nowhere, the loud noise startling them badly enough that they almost fell out of their chair. Looking up to see what the fuck had just happened, they saw Alex standing in front of their desk with some maniacal grin on her face.
“W-what the hell?”
“Miss Anguine,” The teacher scolded from the front of the class, not that anyone paid her any mind. Everyone’s eyes were on Alex.
And Alex’s eyes were on Morgan.
“You owe me one,” She said, low enough that only Morgan could hear her, though that didn’t make her tone any less intimidating. “Yes?”
Morgan nodded, not daring to say anything otherwise.
Her grin widened. “Good.” She reached into her jacket pocket and pulled out a paper, placing it onto Morgans’ desk. “Call me after class.”
She raised a finger poised to snap, and before Morgan could do anything to stop her, she was gone.
The class stared at them in silence for almost a full minute before the teacher cleared her throat and began taking roll once again.
_
“You are telling me,” He said, the coldness in his voice clear with every word. “That this kid has managed to stop ninety-eight percent of all of our trades? In the last month? ”
The shaking henchman in front of him nodded. “Ah, y-yessir. That is correct, sir.”
He snarled, pulling out his barely concealed gun and shooting the henchman point blank without a second thought. The unlucky man crumpled to the floor and would not get up anytime soon. Or, ever.
Not even sparing a glance at the body, he turned to face the other underlings in the room. “Find out everything you can about this kid. Kill them if you get the chance. Understand?”
Everyone nodded.
“Good,” He said, voice calm yet threatening. “I want this wannabe hero- this…” It was only now he turned to the body, before reaching to grab the paper the man had been holding. “This
Alex Anguine
dead.”