Work Text:
“I think I need someone to look in my head. Figure out who I am.”
Agatha resisted the urge to sigh in relief. After days of knowing Teen as, well, “Teen,” she’d be angling to get a chance to unpack who the young man she’d be travelling with actually was.
“Perfect!” she said. “Well, take a seat and I’ll get to work. It shouldn’t be that hard to -”
Teen physically recoiled, taking several steps away from Agatha. “Uh, no offence, but I was thinking I’d seek some help elsewhere. Not you.”
“Well, he still has some sense left in him,” Lilia quipped. Agatha adjusted her suit, trying not to look offended by the rejection.
“Fine. Then who?” she asked. “Please don’t say Doctor Strange…”
Teen chuckled at the suggestion.
“Honestly, he didn’t even come to mind.”
…
Of all the places Teen could have brought them, Agatha was not expecting a moderately-sized studio apartment in LA. Nico Minoru, a young witch wearing a frankly absurd amount of eyeliner, sat on her sofa, across from Teen, closing her eyes as she made a show of focusing on reading the young man’s mind. Her wife, a young blonde named Karolina Minoru-Dean, sat next to her, seemingly transfixed by the so-called show of power.
Agatha thought it was silly. Showboating. Her fellow witches, however, seemed to be falling for it.
They wandered around the apartment, inspecting her trinkets and set dressing as if they were actually powerful items.
“Is this the Staff of One?” Alice asked, standing in front of a magnifying-glass-looking staff contained behind a plane of glass.
“Yes,” Nico replied, not even opening her eyes to look at what Alice was pointing at.
“Don’t you need it to channel your magic?” Alice asked.
“Nope,” she replied. “I once did. Not now.”
“Impressive,” Alice replied, prompting Agatha to roll her eyes.
“Forgive my skepticism, but I don’t see what she will be able to do that we could not…”
“Well, I trust her to be honest, for starters,” Teen said.
“Good for you,” Agatha replied. “We'll see how well that goes for you.”
“Well, she must be a pretty good witch,” the woman’s wife chimed in, smirking mischievously. “As you’ve all been sitting in a room with an alien and haven’t even noticed.”
The Coven turned to face Karolina, confused expressions on their faces. The woman (alien?) maintained her confidant smile as she slipped her wedding ring off her finger. The moment it left her finger, a bright light flooded the apartment as her skin morphed into a mesmerizing blend of pinks, purples, and oranges. Her hair seemingly came as live as well, elongating into a beautiful long cape-like trail that wrapped around the apartment, shining out the familiar set of colours.
“A cloaking spell?” Lilia asked.
The alien nodded. “It hides my glow from everyone, but without suppressing my powers,” she explained, sliding the ring back onto her finger, returning her to her humanoid form. She closed one eye as she aimed her finger, pointing it at a dartboard across the room. In an instant, she shot a precise beam of light at the target, hitting the bullseye… and promptly incinerating the dartboard, reducing it to a heap of ashes.
Agatha stared at Karolina wordlessly.
Perhaps she slightly underestimated this young witch's power.
“An enchanted wedding band,” Rio said. Agatha’s expression fell. She knew where this was going. She didn’t want to deal with Rio like this. Not now, at least. “Bet you wish you thought of that, eh babe?”
“Oh, are you two together?” Karolina asked, beaming a smile almost as bright as the light of her powers.
“Absolutely not,” Agatha declared as Rio simultaneously said “Maybe!”.
Karolina grimaced.
“Uh. I hope you work whatever that is out then,” she said, before awkwardly turning back to her partner. “How’s it going, Nico?”
Nico hummed. Her expression was unreadable as she tried to poke and prod through the many thoughts, feelings, and experiences that made Teen who he was.
“I think… William,” she eventually said.
“William?” Teen replied.
“Your name is William. Billy for short.”
“And who is he?” Agatha asked.
“I’m not sure,” Nico said honestly. “The circumstances of his existence appear… complicated. I’m sorry. I can't see anything clearer.”
“Don’t apologize,” Billy said, smiling widely. He reached out and shook Nico’s hand. “You gave me a real name. That is plenty. Thank you. Truly.”
“Anytime, Billy,” Nico replied. “Good luck.”
“Best of luck with… whatever it is you are doing!” Karolina said, awkwardly smiling and waving. “Hope it works out for you.”
Agatha sighed.
Rio got to embarrass her in front of a surprisingly talented young witch and all they got was a first name out of it.
Things definitely could have been going better...
Still, she didn't let her frustration show. Putting on a smile in return, she placed a kind hand on Billy's shoulder.
“C'mon, kid. Let's go.”