The Aberrations of S.I.D.E.

No. 52: Love Like You

The weeks after Augustus—no, Auggie (that was going to take getting used to)—was rescued felt almost mundane compared to the rest of the year. After he went back to Boston with Jules, it was like nothing had ever happened... at least according to Janus. Virgil might not have wanted to help the guy himself, but it was still really weird to go through the rounds of preparing for finals, the play, and Remy and Emile's wedding without even acknowledging the rescue mission that Patton and Logan had probably risked their lives to undergo.

At the very least, everyone ended up knocking it out of the park during Chicago, and Virgil was pretty damn proud of Persephone and Pam for deciding to end their final dance with a kiss every single night. In his opinion, they were already starting to beat out Masquerduke as "the Academy's cutest couple."

Remy and Emile's wedding, however, was enough to make Virgil forget about the issue that Janus was so stubbornly avoiding. Any student who wanted to come came, which meant that the entire queer population of the Academy showed—Virgil and his friends included. The subtle She-Ra theme was honestly a delight, especially when you were overhearing Remy's relatives asking how he and Emile settled on the color schemes for their suits (Emile was in white and gold with a billowing cape and a small gold headdress, Remy was in red and black with a tailcoat and a red headdress similar to Catra's).

Also, Virgil learned the hard way that he was dating the kind of person who cried at weddings. Not that he minded, he would've just preferred it if Roman hadn't gotten snot all over his shoulder.

During the reception, Virgil actually relaxed a little for the first time in a bit. He'd honestly been holding his breath for something to go wrong for weeks, but now he had the comfort that at least if something did go wrong, there were plenty of trained and professional ops at the wedding—Remy's uncle included. And speaking of which...

"Hello, Mr. Hayashi."

Virgil nearly spat his drink all over the tall, broad-shouldered man who had seemingly materialized in front of him.

The man raised an eyebrow. "Are you all right?"

"Totally fine, you just startled me." Virgil smoothed down his tie. "Uh—Andre Adrien, right? My friend talks about you all the time, he's the one in the pinstripe suit and glasses—"

"I am already acquainted with Logan Jacobi, thanks to my nephew being kind enough to introduce us." Andre held out his hand. "He also tells me that you are quite powerful."

Virgil shook it. "Uh, yeah, I had a cult chasing after me for, like, six months because I've got cool shadow powers."

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but you have only attended this school for two years, have you not?" Andre asked. "You're an Aberration who was discovered late?"

"Yes, sir."

"And yet you are already at your age level?"

"Mm-hmm."

Andre gave him an impressed nod. "Most Aberrations who are discovered at fifteen tend to graduate later than they normally would due to needing to fulfill their requirements—my grandfather included, God rest his soul—so it truly speaks to your ability that you moved up so quickly. I hope you intend to be a professional operative after graduation, any agency would be lucky to have you."

"Hope you said the same thing to Logan," Virgil cracked.

"Oh, I did," Andre said. "God knows we need more Jacobis who aren't ridiculously prejudiced, and he is a very bright young man. I think he may be a little unwell right now, though, he nearly passed out when I introduced myself."