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Ken has classes. Lessons he should be resting up for. He should be at school, not back in Bellwood with his heart in his throat.
His cousin is dedicated to sleeping on a hospital room floor. His sister is hurting, scared, again. He can’t just stay away.
The house is quiet when he pulls up and he doesn’t bother with the honk he’s been doing to say he’s home ever since he got his car running. Just slips out and for the door, key already in his hands. Beelines upstairs, only barely hesitates to knock.
“Bratlet?”
She’s tense when she opens the door. Trying to be strong, like she’s not barely sixteen. Like he doesn’t look at her and still see the snot-nosed little mess that had to get dragged home under their mom’s arm after her first day of kindergarten. He holds out his arms and before he can breathe she’s latched onto his torso, face buried in his shoulder.
“It’s okay,” he says softly, patting her back as he leads them both into her room. Settles them both on the edge of her bed. “Tell me what happened.”
Gwen tries to pull back, sit straight, be strong again, but he keeps her pressed securely, safely against his side. She swats at him, but smiles for a heartbeat before licking her lips. Gathering her thoughts.
“Elena came around needing help,” she says, and he needs a second to place the name. Ben never had as many friends as Ken felt he should, but at least it made the few more notable. “There was, her dad got taken over by nanites. She needed help saving him, stopping them.” She took a shuddering breath. “Grandpa wouldn’t- he wouldn’t help her, didn’t trust her, wouldn’t listen even when we backed her up.”
He loves his grandpa dearly, but that is not going to stop him from killing him. It’ll be the best Christmas present his mom’s ever gotten, and he’s counting his sister.
“So, the guys and I did. We-” Another breath. “A lot happened. Eventually the problem got big enough, and other Plumbers were calling in, Grandpa couldn’t ignore it.” She laughs, just a little hollow. “I thought Ben was gonna hit him when he tried to blame the Validuses for everything, claim things were under control before they got involved. But then it was already-”
Gwen goes quiet at that point. Ken tightens his grip as she leans against him.
“The nanites were taking people over,” she eventually says, so quiet it’s almost hard to hear her. “Puppeting their bodies around, trying to take over the world. Using Elena’s dad as a, as a production factory… They got to Grandpa...”
Oh. He squeezes her even tighter. Half because he knows the pain she reliving, losing their grandpa all over again. Half because the memories of his own time captive claw at the back of his mind. Neither experience is one he would wish on anybody.
“We fixed it,” she continues, as much like she’s trying to convince herself as him, “we saved everybody, the victims are all okay, Grandpa’s okay, and- Elena’s dad is in the hospital getting treatment, she won’t leave him and Ben won’t leave her.” He was such a good kid at heart.
Slowly, Ken nods. Pulls away just enough to look down at her.
“And how about you, are you alright?” Gwen takes another shuddering breath and he hates it. This is his baby sister, she’s a kid, they’re all kids, they shouldn’t be-
“I could really use a hug.” Forcing a smile for her, he pulls her back in, holds on like she might vanish if his grip isn’t tight. Wishes there was something, anything he could do to protect her, Ben, Kevin, Elena now, from the bullshit they were so wrapped up in. He’s the adult, he should’ve been-
Later. Later, he’ll go check on Ben and his friend. See if he can track down Kevin too, shit must have been rough if he’s left Gwen alone. Go give Grandpa Max a piece of his mind and hopes he chokes on it.
Until then, he has his little sister to take care of.