"What's your goal, Sara?" -Sage's voice pierced the silence nicely settled in the laundromat.-
It startled Sara, who gasped and turned around to face the person talking to her. It was a familiar face, despite never having met in person. Sara was certain she had already seen her somewhere, maybe on TV. As her mind tried to figure out the identity of the person talking to her, her eyes never left her. The woman before her was wearing a long grey T-shirt and a pair of khaki cargo pants. She seemed innocuous, but something sinister was pervading the air. Sara knew by then that people were always more than they looked. She addressed her by name and stood there alone, confident as if she knew something she shouldn't. As if she had figured Sara out. Being careful, the singer decided to play dumb at first.
"I'm sorry, have we met before? I don't remember you." She plastered a fake smile on her lips and decided to treat her like a fan of Unnamed Girl who had found where the megastar lived-
"We've never met; that's why. I think I haven't been clear enough before, so let me rephrase my question. What's your goal with Homelander, Unnamed Girl?"
Sara froze. How did she know her secret identity? Who was this woman? Her eyes grew wide, and she took a couple of steps back, hitting the washing machine with her back. The woman who was wearing dreadlocks had a pair of sunglasses on and seemed so nonchalant about everything that crossed the distance between the two of them, making Sara feel cornered. She could have left right now, but if she exposed her powers, it would confirm to the woman that she was Unnamed Girl, and that was something Sara didn't want.
"I am not Unnamed G--"
"Stop playing with me. I know that she's your alter ego, Sara. I also know that you're dating Homelander. Did you really think that it would go unnoticed by me? I get it; you started seeing each other before I was recruited. I get it. you wanted your relationship to be secret so you wouldn't have to deal with Ashley and her schemes or the press and their bullshit. I get it. But now? I need to know exactly what that relationship you have is about."
Sara panicked. She couldn't help but frantically start to tuck her hair behind her ears. She didn't know how to get herself out of that situation because she felt exposed. Even if that woman was bluffing, Sara's reaction betrayed the truth. She couldn't keep her hands off of her hair and couldn't pretend that this woman before her was talking nonsense. What did she want? Sara was starting to wonder if she wanted money or maybe power over her. Should she kill her? The laundromat was empty right now, but it only was a matter of time before someone came back in. It was too risky to try anything and she couldn't fucking focus on her powers to use them correctly. Instead, she was frozen on the spot and unable to tear her eyes off of the woman. Where did she see her again? Her face was way too familiar for her to ignore. Sara's eyes went from left to right and she looked up to her face. Sage! She was Sister Sage! She was the most intelligent person in the whole world, and lying to her was fruitless.
"I remember where I saw your face. You're Sister Sage!"
"Sage! Just..... Sage." She dryly said.
"Sage! I knew it!" She ran her hand through her hair and chewed at her bottom lip.- "Why are you here?"
"I am the one who asked you a question first! " she pointed out and crossed her arms above her chest. "So be a good girl, Sara, and answer me!"
"Why do you care?"-Sara defiantly asked, her black eyes slowly turning purple. Sage didn't budge. She expected Sara to try and show some bite, so it made her grin-
"I like to know things, especially about Homelander. I'd also want to know your end goal with him."
"My end goal?" -Sara scoffed and lifted a brow.- "My end goal? Not only do you come here, uninvited, but you start to spout my secret identity out loud because you fucking want to show off that you have a big brain? And you dare accuse me of having an end goal with the man I'm dating?? Sis, I'm sorry but I'm not giving you a pass because you're his right-hand man or whatever bullshit you're doing over there!" She straightened up, furious by the implication that she was not genuine with Homelander. She was, and she refused to be treated like a thief or a gold digger. Sage curbed a brow and then started to laugh-
"Am I supposed to be scared right now?" -Sara wasn't terrifying, at least not with the current display of emotions. If anything, it indicated that she had some spunk and an ego sufficiently big for her to react the way she did. Good! Sage could work with that.-
"Bitch, cut the crap! You think that I'm not a threat, that I'm a coward who would rather leave than fight, and in most cases, you'd be right! I don't like to get involved in bullshit and even less to put my life in danger. But here's where you're wrong about me! I don't play when it comes to kids, to Ryan, and to Homelander!" Her eyes flashed a bright purple light, and she pointed to the washing machines that started to shake. She was ready to use her powers against Sage if that could put that threat down. Sage didn't flinch, but she made mental notes about the whole situation-" You want to know what's the deal with Homelander and me? He's the man I love. He's the man I want to live with until one of us or both of us die. He's the man I will protect at /any/ cost! So let me make myself perfectly clear! You're not going to threaten me and get away with it! You're not going to threaten him with my life, and you're certainly not going to use me for whatever petty gain of yours!"
Sara's anger was palpable. The washing machine at the extreme right of her started to crumble into itself, crushed by the supe's telekinesis. Sage realized that she had struck a nerve rather than intimidated Sara, which made her reconsider her approach to the young woman. She put her hands up, in a clear sign of surrender, and shook her head. No. She didn't want to threaten Sara when she came there. She wanted to see how the woman would react under pressure, and she also wanted to know how serious this relationship with Homelander was. Sara answered both her questions with her reaction, and in a bid to calm the supe down, Sage tried to appear harmless to her. She was bothered a little bit because, despite her beauty, Sara was far from being an airhead. She clocked her act rather quickly, and that could prove to be bothersome in the future. Could it be that her time at the orphanage helped Sara see past the smoke? Her reflection would have to be paused to calm Sara first.
" Calm down. I didn't want to offend you. It's just that Homelander has been really secretive regarding his relationship with you. He has not said a thing to the seven and has not said a thing to me. I figured it out by myself, and I wanted to know exactly what was going on between you two. I'm not Ashley, I don't care about PR, and I don't want to get in the way of your relationship. But you have to be prepared, Sara. Our enemies aren't a walk in the park. Butcher and the Boys, if they learn about your existence, they are going to use you as a pawn. They'll turn you into a bargaining chip for Homelander."
"Do you think I don't know that? Even without Homelander, I already had my fair share of enemies. Some I even dated. I'm not so blind or naive to think that the most powerful man in the world doesn't have enemies who would want him dead. I know, Sage. I know about the boys, and I know that I have a target on my back because I love Homelander. I even started training more seriously just in case."
"Impressive.... But that's not enough. It's a cruel world, Sara, and if you aren't careful, you'll be swallowed whole." -She sounded almost sympathetic, but Sara felt nauseous upon hearing the woman talk. Nothing she said was genuine. Nothing she said was meant with actual care for her. She did perceive some condescension and that pissed her off-
"Oh! Here you go, lecturing me about the evil of the world as if I didn't know that already. Do you think I was born with a silver spoon in my fucking mouth? Do you think I don't know how cruel that world is already? Quit with he fake concern! I know you don't care! You come here and judge me because what? Girl, I was given Compound V at 3 years old! I survived that shit! My powers manifested at 5! I relentlessly trained because my parents wanted me to become their cash cow. Did you think they loved me? Mom was too enamoured with money and dad with fame to give a shit about me. My family? They are a bunch of hypocritical religious nuts. They abused me and refused to take me in when my folks were killed by Vaught. I won't even give you the joy to know what happened to me from the moment I stepped into that orphanage up until today! But I have seen up close and personal how cruel this world can be, and I refuse to let it stop me from being happy! So cut the fucking crap and tell me exactly why you're here."
The washing machine she crushed crumbled again, leaving nothing but a flat blob of metal on the floor. The electric surge made the lights flicker, and the other machines kept shaking. Sara wasn't joking anymore, and Sage realized that if she lost complete control of the situation, perhaps Sara would actually hurt her. So she took a deep breath and kept her hands up.
"Touché! You're far clever than I gave you credit for, and I apologize for underestimating you. You're right. I wanted something when I came here. At first, I wanted you to stop seeing Homelander because I thought you were a liability to him. but after meeting you, I changed my mind and wanted to see if you were ready to face the ugliness lurking in the dark."
"And what do you think, Sage?" -Sara emphasized her name as if to tell her that she wasn't scared of her. Sage grinned and put her hands on her waist-
"I think you have some spunk. You are determined to protect Homealnder, and it was what I wanted to see. I do have to warn you though, Butcher has lost his freaking mind and if he gets his hands on you, you're as good as dead."
"I will give him hell then." -Sara's response was almost immediate. She then narrowed her gaze and pinched her lips together- "I am not convinced that you've been really truthful with me. It's fair; nobody ever bares their soul to anyone. I wouldn't blame you for wanting to protect yourself. However, Sage, if I see that you're using Homelander and you would not hesitate to throw him under the bus, I will make sure that you won't be able to use that brain of yours for the rest of your life. So be careful, sis.... Thread carefully." -Sara grabbed her bag of clean laundry and walked past Sister Sage.- "And one more thing. If there is a leak about my true identity, I would know it is you, and I will come for you. So you better keep your mouth shut!- She said before she left the laundromat in a hurry.
Sage curbed a brow and shrugged. This whole exchange really went sideways, didn't it? She thought she had the upper hand and had managed to scare the singer, but it backfired on her. In truth, Sage was a bit flabbergasted at the reactions she got out of Sara Richardson, but she also learned new valuable information. Sara was genuinely in love with Homelander, given how far she was ready to go to protect him. She also was far more cunning than Sage gave her credit for, which meant that if she wanted to use her as a pawn, she had to change the way she went about it. She had to plan better. Sara was quite a traumatized person, which she could exploit for her benefit. After all, she lacked love and, given her career of choice and determination to keep her private life protected, it was clear that she didn't want to disappoint anyone. A people-pleaser? Much certainly! She had some bite, but Sage was the smartest person, and she knew exactly how she could use it to her advantage. It was a little challenge, which brought a smirk to Sage's face.
-TBC-
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