Vidya put on her suit carefully, but it was pointless to treat it like it was fragile: the suit was made to be flexible and durable. The designer had followed every guideline she'd given her, sleeves, color, mask and all. Still, it didn't feel like hers until she put it on and stood in front of the mirror to look at Frostbite for the first time.

She smiled.

Her supersuit had a short, blue-and-white, long-sleeved dress as a top, with black leggings underneath and dark blue boots. The teal cape came to a stop behind her knees, and she had to admit it looked good. No gloves, since powers like cryokinesis were best controlled bare-handed. The mask was the perfect size, and it conformed to her face without needing a strap around her head to keep it in place. She took it off, noticing how it wasn't flimsy enough to fall off, but it was easy enough for her to remove it without prying.

Vidya paced around her dressing room. She'd been so caught up with the ceremony preparations that she forgot the most important thing: she was a freaking superhero. The excitement hit all at once, leaving her giddy and nauseous at the same time. Unable to be alone in the silence any longer, she left the room, letting the door close behind her.

Backstage, crew members were flurrying about, preparing for the induction ceremony. Vidya kept her head down, holding her mask. Celestro's employees, even the ones who saw her maskless face but didn't know her name, were legally bound to keep everything about her identity a secret, but she felt awkward among them.

Next to her room was a door with a temporary nameplate. It said LM. Vidya stood in front of it with her hand raised, hesitating. First impressions mattered: she didn't want to be forever known as the "chip girl," and here was her first chance to change that. She knocked once, softly, and then again.

The door swung inward, and Lady Marvel stood there, surprised, like she'd been expecting someone else. "Do you need something?"

Only half her hair was brushed. Her skin looked damp, and her suit was on but not fastened all the way; it hung loose where it shouldn't. There was eyeliner swimming in her left eye. Here was someone getting ready at the last possible moment, but she still looked every bit the awe-inspiring hero Vidya had looked up to for years.

Vidya stuttered. "No—I don't, I just—"

Lady Marvel raised an eyebrow. "Nervous? You should've seen Phase before his ceremony, he almost threw up."

Vidya glanced at the bathroom down the hall, the knots in her stomach tightening. She hoped she wouldn't find herself in there later, bent over the toilet.

Lady Marvel opened the door further. "I need to do my makeup. Do you mind fixing my hair?"

They had only five minutes to go before the induction, but if Lady Marvel asks you for help, you do not say no. Vidya followed her inside.

Lady Marvel handed her a hairbrush and sat down in front of the mirror. "Just brush it. I don't need anything fancy."

Vidya brushed, and Lady Marvel leaned close to the glass, putting on eyeliner like she was defusing a bomb. Her hair was damp, too—she must've just hopped out of a shower. Only four minutes to curtain. It struck Vidya as funny that, yes, even superheroes could be running late.

"Were you going to say something?" Lady Marvel asked.

Vidya met her gaze in the mirror. "I'm nervous."

"Stage fright?"

"Not exactly. The publicity, I think I can learn to get used to, and I have faith that I'll master my powers...but how do I know I'll be any good at the saving the world part?" It was a loaded question, because Vidya was also asking, how do any of you know?

"Are you excited?" Lady Marvel replied, not missing a beat. "Do you truly want to make the world a better place?"

There was a noise somewhere outside or next door; it sounded like a laugh. Vidya ignored it and nodded. "Yes."

"Then that's all that matters." Lady Marvel shrugged. "Don't be nervous, just be cautious. You'll do great."

Vidya was done untangling the knots, and she set down the hairbrush, smiling. "Thanks."

"You're the one who helped me." Lady Marvel laughed. "So what are you thanking me for?"

"For believing in me."

_______________________

There was a knock on the door, and Frostbite was being called to curtain. Lady Marvel thanked her for her help, but the grin slipped off her face as soon as the door closed and she was alone again. Lady Marvel shook her hair loose, fastened her boots, redid the hooks and zippers in her suit, and looked at herself in the mirror, her real self. Not the one who'd been smiling like an older sister just a moment ago, but the perpetually irritated, uncaring person she really was. Maybe she should've finished her training at Quantico and worked for the FBI—she would've made a fantastic secret agent. Or an actress.

What she'd just done was a mistake. She'd acted like a friend, like she actually cared, when all she was really doing was being polite before the claws came out and they ended up tormenting each other like everyone else at Celestro. Beautiful lies were easier to swallow than painful truths, but she was afraid she'd given Vidya too much false hope.

Lady Marvel stepped out of her dressing room, ready to run to the stage because she was probably late, but she stopped short. Juggernaut was leaning against the wall just outside her door, arms crossed, and she nearly ran right into him.

He looked at her sideways. "You're such a hypocrite."

"You heard all that?"

"Thin walls."

"Leave it alone," she snapped, walking past him.

"You say you don't want Vidya on the team," he said, following at her heels, "and then you're all sickly sweet. Any reason behind it?"

"Can't I be nice for the sake of being nice?"

"Coming from Phase, I would understand that. But you, and the rest of us?" He shook his head.

She turned around sharply. They stood in the middle of the hallway, facing each other. One of Celestro's crew paled and hurried away. Lady Marvel and Juggernaut, arguing again—a rare sight for the public eye, but so common on the inside that everyone tried their best to stay out of it.

"Look," she said quietly. "I just want her to enjoy it a little before she—"

"Before she what?"

Lady Marvel paused, trying to word it nicely. "This job is definitely not what she expects it to be, and she'll be shocked when she realizes what it's really like."

"She'll get used to it."

"I know that, but she's brand new to all of this, and who knows how she'll react. Remember what happened last time?"

Juggernaut took a deep breath at the mention of last time.

She crossed her arms over her chest. "You know, all you said was that he'd gone dangerously ambitious, and I believe you, but you never actually told me, or any of us, just what it was that he did."

"And I never will," he said. "That secret stays between me, upper management, and the people in charge of cleanup. It's in the past, and we don't need to talk about it."

"I just hope Vidya doesn't end up the same way."

"She won't. She's nowhere near as stupid as that lunatic."

"Maybe, but she's young. A novice."

"A novice who accepted the position of her own volition," he said dismissively, "and who is welcome to leave whenever she wishes. Anything that happens is her own fault."

Lady Marvel agreed, but still she added, "Just promise me you won't give her assignments that are...difficult."

He shook his head, smiling. "One conversation with her, and you've gone soft."

"I'm serious. And it isn't only for her, it's for everyone. I want to minimize the bumps in the road."

"Fine. I promise. And I'll never pair her with Flamethrower, either," he admitted. "That's a disaster waiting to happen."

"Thank you."

Emika had crept up nearby, and when their conversation stalled, she tapped her watch to get their attention. "It's time!"

The crew were at their stations, headsets on, tablets clutched. Juggernaut and Lady Marvel caught up to the others, standing at the corner of the stage where the curtain hid them. The auditorium was alive with excited chatter and eager press, waiting for the afterparty for a chance to get the first word with Frostbite. The new hero herself was peeking through the curtain, smiling in the harsh glow of the stage lights.

Lady Marvel leaned toward Juggernaut and whispered, "I still think this is a bad idea."

He acknowledged her with a little nod but didn't say anything.

__________________

"I'm proud to say," Fox said, her voice booming across the auditorium, "that since their debut, the Marvels have maintained their position as the top superhero team in the world. That ranking won't be going anywhere anytime soon, but what good is the future without a little change? We've seen heroes come and go, and tonight, we've asked you to join us as we welcome an addition to our team."

The audience erupted into applause. Every news outlet that could fit inside was here. There were Senators and Representatives and city councilmen, and there were heroes and business partners and even international diplomats. Vidya scanned the crowd for familiar faces. She saw Teddy in the back, standing with other junior reporters. Her parents sat in the middle instead of the front row to draw as little attention as possible to these seemingly random guests, and even though she wasn't up yet, they were grinning and holding each other's hands, beaming with pride.

The Marvels walked onto the stage, leaving her behind to wait for her cue. Juggernaut took over the podium from Fox, and the others fanned out behind him the way they sat at the table: Lady Marvel and Echo at his sides, Phase and Flamethrower at the edges, Fox standing nearby.

"Thank you all for coming tonight," Juggernaut said, his eyes expertly moving between the cameras and the audience. "It is my absolute pleasure to welcome the newest member of our team. We hope that you'll love and support her as you did us, and we promise she won't let you down."

He stepped back and held out an arm in her direction. "Let's have a warm welcome for Frostbite!"

Flamethrower smirked. Maybe the pun had been her idea.

Vidya held her breath as she walked into the spotlight. People clapped, people cheered, and some raised quizzical eyebrows, clearly expecting more than a young, five-foot-five girl who looked like she could be knocked over by a strong gust of wind. She took the podium and gripped the sides loosely, adamant to appear cool. This many eyes hadn't been trained on her since the fifth-grade talent show, and back then she was showing off a landscape finger painting, not herself.

She waited until it was quiet to start her carefully rehearsed lines. "My name is Frostbite," she said, "and as of tonight, I'm the newest member of the Marvels. If you're wondering why you've never heard of me before, it's because I'm a natural born super who manifested recently, at seventeen."

There were some surprised gasps. Good or bad, she didn't know.

"Celestro saw my potential and believed I could do this, and I do, too," she continued. "In the days to come, I hope you'll consider me a worthy addition to the team."

That was it—that was the end of the speech she'd co-written with Celestro. Fox inched forward, ready to take over, but Vidya gently grabbed the podium microphone to show she wasn't done. She had something spontaneous to add.

"And I want the Marvels to know," she said, looking around at them, "that I'll do my very best to live up to their expectations, and I hope we'll become good friends."

Flamethrower's smirk deepened, but at least she was smiling. They all were.

Vidya released the microphone to Fox, who looked pleased with the addition to the speech. The rest of the ceremony went by quickly, and then the auditorium doors opened to let the audience out. Before they left, her parents caught Vidya's eye and waved. Vidya was paranoid that someone would notice, so she didn't wave back, but she allowed herself a smile.

She followed the other Marvels to the afterparty, in another one of Celestro's grand rooms for hosting events. It was exclusively for certain press and some hand-picked members of the audience; her family wasn't included because they couldn't risk having 'random nobodies.' People would notice and wonder why they were there, and that would be a shoddy way to blow her cover so quickly.

As the only underage person, she held a glass of non-alcoholic apple cider while everyone else sipped on champagne. The Marvels went their separate ways, pairing off the way she'd gotten used to seeing—Juggernaut with Lady Marvel, Phase with Echo, and Flamethrower on her own—but Fox stuck by her side, introducing her to the important guests. She showed off her power by chilling a Senator's glass, and he laughed, genuinely amused. Vidya impressed a Senator—how was that for a Friday night?

When Fox was done parading her around, she left Vidya by herself, free to talk to whoever approached. Vidya swirled her glass nervously, taking her time with the apple cider because once it was empty, she didn't know where to get more or where to put the glass down, and walking around with an empty glass would look stupid.

A delicate finger tapped her on the shoulder, and she turned around. Vidya recognized the woman right away. There was no mistaking the dazzling smile or the bright green eyes that shone like emeralds.

"You're Fade," Vidya said.

Fade smiled and turned her hand invisible, making it look like the glass was floating. "Natalia Roberts. Call me Talia."

Vidya couldn't help but look around. Talia was the most popular of Celestro's non-Marvel heroes; she must be if she was invited, because she was the only non-Marvel hero at the afterparty.

"I'm surprised you recognized me without the suit," Talia said, gesturing to her classy civilian clothes.

Fade didn't wear a mask, and she was too beautiful to not recognize. "I'm a huge fan, really," Vidya gushed. "Thank you so much for coming."

"Of course. It was compensation, and I couldn't pass up the chance to meet you."

Vidya went still. "Compensation for what?"

Talia's head tilted ever so slightly, and she smiled. "They really didn't tell you much, did they?"

The words sent a chill through her. It wasn't hostility that radiated off Talia, it felt more like...pity. It wasn't friendly, that was for sure. Vidya gestured behind her at nothing, grasping for an excuse. "I have to...go."

"No problem," Talia murmured, clearly not buying it. "It was nice meeting you."

Vidya stared at her for a moment, utterly confused, before leaving and raising her pathetic glass of cider to her lips. Suddenly the party was overbearing—it was too busy, it was too loud, and there were too many people not-so-subtly watching as she speed-walked toward Phase, desperate to latch onto the only person she was truly comfortable talking to.

"How goes it?" he asked.

"What's Talia's problem?" she asked quietly.

He didn't even ask for context. "Oh, that. She's been in the talks for a while as an addition, and she thinks you stole her spot on the team."

Was that why Celestro invited her? As an apology? Vidya cringed at the thought. "Did I?"

"Did you what?"

"Steal her spot?"

Phase froze, lowering his glass from his mouth. "I think that, maybe, if you hadn't come along, she might've eventually joined the team."

That was a yes. Vidya made a small noise of defeat, resting her free hand on her face. It was nice of Celestro to give a new hero a chance, but Fade undoubtedly deserved to be a Marvel more than she did. This was an injustice, and Vidya was on the wrong side.

"Should I apologize?" she asked.

Phase shrugged. "It's your choice. Talia's ambitious, but not hateful. She'll get over it."

Vidya took a deep breath and blew a strand of hair out of her face. He was right. There was a difference between fair jealousy and actual hatred, and if the latter was what Talia felt, then she would've done more than be scathingly polite.

"Okay," Vidya said, more to herself than to him. "Okay. This is going well, right? Everything's going well?"

"Of course it is!" It was Echo, sidling up next to them.

There was something in that grin that made Vidya think he was being sarcastic, but she refused to let it get to her. She raised her glass. "A toast to the new team?"

Phase raised his glass. Echo was still for a moment, the grin stretching wider, and now she was sure he had doubts.

"To the new team," he repeated, clinking his glass against theirs with a wink. "Let's hope it keeps going well."

___________________

Vidya opened her front door to have blue and white confetti launched in her face. Then she was pulled into a bone-crushing hug that left her gasping for breath. Their little huddle shuffled into the house and closed the door so she could take off her jacket, and Amber pretended to swoon at the sight of Frostbite.

There were six blue balloons and an Elsa cake, which was Amber's idea. They were having their own hero induction celebration party, just the four of them: Mom, José, Amber, and the new hero herself.

There were no songs to sing, no likening a superhero induction to the tune of Happy Birthday, so they cut the cake right away. Amber plucked the Elsa figurine off her buttercream snowflake and presented her to Vidya like a hard-earned trophy, complete with her parents' applause and a princess wave from Vidya.

"I can't get over how awesome you look," Amber said, picking up the cape and rubbing the fabric between her fingers.

"Neither can I. And look at this." From the pocket of her dress, Vidya pulled out something that, at first glance, looked like an off-brand cell phone. It was a thin rectangle, a little smaller than phones were nowadays, with a white back and a touchscreen. "It's my pager."

"It's not a watch?"

Vidya shook her head. Only Juggernaut had his pager as a smartwatch, and it was because he had to check it constantly. She'd rather have her phone-lookalike if it meant she didn't have to use it all the time.

Amber whistled. "So. This is how they call you."

Vidya nodded. Right now it was on silent. The others were full-time heroes, but this was a part-time gig for Frostbite since she still had school. Celestro had generously allowed her a silent option if she didn't want to be reached.

Another reason why they should've picked Talia—she's already a reliable hero.

Vidya froze with her fork in front of her mouth, lowering it slowly. That...was not what she wanted to think about right now, not while her parents and best friend were beaming with pride. She shook her head and tucked her pager into the pocket of her backpack. Out of sight, out of mind. Tonight wasn't for hero work, it was for celebration, and the cake wasn't going to eat itself.