The socially awkward villain's furry superpower

Sienna jogged to the side of the station and peeked around the corner. She hoped she was quick enough that if anyone looked this way, they wouldn't notice her before she pulled her head back.

"Is it safe?" Sam asked quietly from behind her.

"Why are you two acting so suspiciously?" Teddy asked loudly, his voice anything but quiet.

Sienna turned to face the bear-like girl. "We just don't want to be noticed."

Teddy stared at her for a while, then looked around the street. "Big sister, there aren't many people here, no one will care. If you want to sneak around in public, the best way is not to be sneaky at all."

“Teddy is right,” Athena said. “The key to sneaking around in public is to act as normally as possible. Look how good we are at acting normal.”

Athena pointed to herself, then to Trinity, who was picking her three noses at the same time, and to Teddy, who was yawning with his hands in his pockets as if he had long since passed bedtime.

“I think so too,” Sienna said.

“Yeah, I’ve heard of things like that before, but it still feels pretty weird,” Sam said.

Athena shrugged. "Looking sneaky is suspicious. You can only do that when no one can see you sneaking around."

“Yes,” Teddy said. “Come on, big sister, just follow me, okay?” With that, she strode past Sienna and around the corner.

Sienna thought it was a bad idea to barge into the building from the front; the area was right next to the road and completely exposed, meaning anyone on the street could see them.

So she decided to go around to see if there were any other entrances.

"There really is one. There's a door," Sam said. "But, well, I don't know if we can pry it open."

The side door is a flat iron gate with a lattice platform next to it. There are only two creaking metal steps leading to the door. The only conspicuous thing on the door is a rusty sign with the words "Employee Only" written in bold black letters.

Sam grabbed the doorknob and pulled, but the door didn't budge.

"Do you think you can pick the lock?" Sienna asked.

“I can give it a try. I think it might take a minute or two.”

Sienna hesitated; she could have stopped there and canceled the whole operation. She wasn't even sure what she expected to find in this old subway station.

But then again, they're already here, and she has no idea how busy the next few weeks or months will be.

If we can find another safe house now, it might come in very handy in the future.

“Give it your best. Trinity, go check both ends of the alley to see if anyone comes. Athena, Teddy, stand around Sam; we don’t want anyone seeing her unlocking the door here.”

Before her sisters took their places, she heard a series of responses: "Okay, big sister" and "Yes, ma'am."

Sam opened her small lock-picking kit on the ground, then took out her phone and looked at the lock. "What are you doing?" Sienna asked.

"Look up this lock online. You know, there are websites that explain how to pick locks and things like that."

“Oh,” Sienna said, realizing she’d asked a bit silly. Nevertheless, she stood behind Sam, leaning against the railing, so she could see him working.

Sam fiddled with it for a full five minutes, muttering things Sienna really hoped her sisters hadn't heard, but finally, with a click of the lock and the door opening a crack, she cheered, "It's done!"

“Well done,” Sienna said. “Really, that’s amazing.” She reached out and pulled the door shut, making sure it didn’t close and lock itself again, that would be terrible. “Come on, girls, let’s assemble.”

Teddy peeked into the room behind the door, then came back with a frown. "It's so dark in there."

“I can see quite well in the dark,” Athena said. “If you wish, I can lead the way.”

Sienna nodded. "You go first, then Trinity, me, Trinity, Sam, Teddy, and Trinity brings up the rear." Sienna took out her phone and turned on the flashlight. "Sam, do you have anything to light your way?"

“I have a keychain light and a cell phone,” Sam said.

This is one more lighting tool than Sienna has.

They quietly entered the subway station and arrived at what was clearly an office and maintenance area inside the building that was not open to the public. The corridor was long and narrow, illuminated only by their flickering lights, with doors on both sides leading to even darker rooms.

“Animal Family: Athena,” Sienna whispered.

She felt a sharp pain in her eyes and head, and when she blinked again, the shadow had changed. The shadow hadn't completely disappeared, but the blurry shapes in the darkness had become clearer. Even without light, it was easier to see things in front of her.

Animal Family

You have acquired the Owl trait!

Your sensory abilities have been enhanced!

"What's that?" Sam asked.

“Well,” Athena said proudly, “it’s my eldest sister’s newest and most powerful skill. She can borrow our animal characteristics, and of course, mine are the best.”

Sienna decided not to get involved in the topic and instead offered her own relatively objective explanation. "I can acquire animal traits from my sisters. Athena's traits come from owls, so mainly her eyesight and hearing have become better."

“Oh, that’s interesting,” Sam said. “But it doesn’t sound like a particularly impressive ability.”

"I don't think it was ever a superpower. It's more about giving me more ways to react. I think my sisters are my main source of strength."

“That’s pretty cool,” Sam said.

They peered into each of the rooms they passed. Most were unfinished office spaces, containing only desks and virtually nothing else.

There weren't even light bulbs on the ceiling, some rooms weren't even painted, and the floors were just bare cement.

“This place has never actually been used,” Sienna said as she walked out of another empty room.

“Yes, taxpayers’ money has just gone down the drain,” Sam said.

“We can turn this place into our base,” Athena suggested.

Sienna considered it for a moment. "I think this place is too conspicuous, with windows and such. If we come here often, people might get suspicious. Besides, I don't think there's electricity here, and I doubt there's running water either."

"That's true. It would be great if we had one."

They continued to the end of the corridor, then went down a flight of stairs and through another ordinary metal door. This door led to one side of the main lobby at the front of the building.

There is a large staircase leading deeper into the building. The staircase is made of ordinary tiles and has boards on both sides for displaying advertisements, but no advertisements are ever displayed there.

The girls spread out a little and walked deeper into the area. A row of revolving doors came into view; they were all rusty, unused, and covered in dust.

Sienna could imagine people passing through these gates to catch the train to the next station, to... anywhere this station was supposed to connect to.

The boarding area itself is nothing special; it's just a place with a few benches next to the ditch where the railway tracks are located.

“Looks like everything’s almost ready here,” Sienna said, looking around. A stack of benches was piled against the wall, and several piles of materials were on wooden pallets.

“I guess it was a project that was canceled at the last minute,” Sam said. “I don’t really remember much about it. Maybe it was only a few weeks away from being launched.”

“It’s actually quite a pity.” Sienna walked toward a map on the wall, a map of the city of O’Claire, but a smaller and older version.

The subway line stretches and circles through the city, marked with two existing stations—one where they are now, and another near her school. Three more stations are marked "Coming Soon!", one of which is outside the city.

“Hey, big sister!” Teddy called out, her voice echoing in the empty room.

"What's wrong?" Sienna asked.

She saw Teddy standing by the tracks, squinting into the darkness. "I think there's something over there," Teddy said, pointing to the dark tunnel.

“Uh,” Sienna said, “I don’t think we should go that way.”

“We shouldn’t have come here in the first place.” Sam sat on the edge of the ditch, then jumped down. “Come on! Let’s go take a look. No train will hit us here.”

Sienna bit her lip and frowned as she watched Trinity step off the edge and fall into the ditch. "I'm alright!" Trinity called out.

“Alright, let’s go see… what’s hiding in the darkness. I’m sure it’s a brilliant idea.”