April and Angelo, backdated

[xp_skin]

During the District X floods, April and Angelo go out in a boat looking for people who need help, and talk.


Angelo had apparently decided using himself as a paddle was less strenuous than working the oars, so with the aid of some thick rubber gloves - because God only knew what was in the water - he was doing just that, propelling the boat along at a leisurely pace while watching the buildings they passed.

April eyed the floating debris in the water, nose wrinkled at the smell. "Sewage and mold, two of the worst offshoots of flooding," she remarked, two tendrils unfurling into the water to grab a sharp bit of metal sticking just slightly out of the muck and dropping it at the bottom of their small boat. "I'm taking a bath in antiseptic when we get back." It was mostly a joke, but she was definitely considering a wash similar to the ones ducks got after an oil spill.

"A long hot bath does sound like a pretty great idea", Angelo agreed wholeheartedly. "Even the birds aren't coming near this water."

"Maybe a decontamination shower and then a soak, although Boris will probably interrupt any bath." She grinned at the idea. "Maybe I get someone to watch him for an hour, so we don't both take a bath." Hands waving at them from a building caught her eye. "Think we should go see what they need?"

"Even if you managed to shut him out, a dog whimpering outside the door the whole time isn't very relaxing." He nodded and turned the boat in that direction. "'s what we're here for."

"True, he hates being shut out for more than a few minutes. What about you, ask your husband nicely to start the tub? Or is he out in this mess somewhere too?"

"He's out here somewhere. Hopefully someplace cleaner than this", Angelo said wryly. "His powers don't mix with water so much, so he might be in the rest center."

"Boosting the generators?" They reached the open window, and after a few moments of talking back and forth April was handing over a pack of water and some shelf-stable food to the occupants. "The breadth of powers people have access to is honestly fascinating, even if I'd rather not be at the other side of ones like that."

Angelo nodded. "If you can imagine a power, chances are somebody out there's got it, for better or worse. We've got a pretty good range even just at the mansion."

"We really do. I'm eternally surprised." She scooped up another bit of metal partially sticking out of the water. It looked like a cage of some sort, a flap of some sort hanging half off what she assumed had been the front. "I hope there was nothing in here," she said, giving it a dubious glance. "Or that it was very good at swimming."

He winced. "Well, it's not dead in there, so...let's go with the hopeful version."

"Good plan. Or a sewer rat. When we... well, when May was young, Dad would scare her by saying the sewer rats were gonna take off with her if she was misbehaving." April grinned at the memory. "Benjy too, and then I got to hear them first hand. Only way to get him to eat his peas, sometimes."

Angelo grinned back at her. "Every parent's got their go-to boogeyman to scare kids out of misbehaving. I think my mom tried to use La Llorona for a while."

"I'm not familiar with that one. Maybe we should do a boogeyman story night, it's the right time of year for bonfires and vaguely scary stories. Even if it is after Halloween."

"It's a Mexican thing. Legend about a woman who killed her kids in a moment of madness after her husband cheated, and now walks as a ghost looking for them." He nodded. "That would be fun!"

"That could scare me into behaving, yes," April replied. She looked around, not seeing anyone else in need of immediate help. "Want to go drop off this metal and grab more supplies?"

He nodded. "Sounds like a plan. We can check out a different patch next time."