One-Shot - The Little Witch That Escalated (Patreon)

A/N: Another old one-shot I wrote, that I posted on SB. You can also find it there. I recently went over it, corrected errors and simply cleaned it up. And now posting here too. Hope you guys like it!Summary: Taylor decides, after coming home from meeting Emma and Sophia after summer camp, that the only thing that could save their friendship is magic. Then she starts to read… and Brockton Bay is very confused. (Worm)

Taylor didn't really remember when she arrived home, or how, but by the time the tears stopped pouring down her face, and she had gathered herself enough to take a few deep, hopefully calming breaths, she was in her room, sitting in the corner, hugging a plush (a gift from Emma in the past) and rocking back and forth.It took her several minutes to extricate herself from the position, but eventually she was standing in the middle of her room. The sun shone cheerfully, yet everything still felt as if it were covered with angry black clouds, echoing the last parts of the "conversation" with Emma and the new girl standing behind her friend with a scowl on her face.Shaking her head, she let go of the plush, which fell silently to the floor, and began thinking. Her first reaction, as always when she had a problem, was not feasible, as her mother was not present anymore, so Taylor did the second-best thing to asking her mother for advice.Read books.Surely, one of the myriads of books calling this place home – books populating the shelves of their house – had an answer to her problem…

Hours later, illuminated by the slowly fading sun and surrounded by at least hundreds of books—some mangled, some stained by tears, some carelessly thrown aside – Taylor was on her knees in front of the last book she found, on the bottom shelf of her mother's bookshelf, caked in heretical dirt and dust.But at the moment, she didn't much care.She was just reading a simple line over and over from the old, tattered book that had once been a children's story about talking rabbits that used magic, aimed at little girls. When she first found it, she had wanted to ignore it, since such a simple book would not offer any actionable information that could help with her problem.But that second look she gave it was enough to dredge up a now bittersweet memory of Emma reading it on her bed while hugging the very same plush rabbits that appeared in the book.So Taylor decided to give it a read.At the end of the simplistic story was a sentence that managed to grab her attention:"…and in the end, they lived happily ever after, helped by friendship and the magic they used."The story was nonsensical, only enjoyable to seven-year-old girls who knew nothing about the world, but for some reason that sentence awoke something in Taylor.She stood up shakily, her legs still a little tingly after kneeling for so long, closed her eyes, took a deep breath, then, in the loudest voice she could manage without bothering the neighbors, Taylor exclaimed:"I will use magic to get back my friend!"The exclamation was accompanied by a very heroic pose.Taylor held it for a second, then suddenly noticed the chaos surrounding her, the sun nearly finishing its path across the sky, and the realization that her father would soon be home. It was enough to break her out of her sudden determination and funk.Looking around, she couldn't help but whistle softly. "But first, I need to clean up…"By the time she finished cleaning, her father was home, and she was so tired – both physically and emotionally – that she only had enough strength left for a quiet dinner with her depressed father, a quick shower, and then bed.As she snuggled into it, she mumbled quietly:"Magic…"The plush she had been hugging when she came home was left in the same corner she had sat in, with the very book that had given her the grand idea resting in its lap.

The next day, she was up and ready early, prepared for the arduous task of figuring out magic and then using it somehow to get Emma back.After bidding her father goodbye, she began once again to hunt through their family's prodigious and eclectic book collection.But in the end, Taylor only found a few fantasy books, a book that may or may not have been a kind of trashy romance novel that her mother definitely didn't like, a book about meditation, and half a dozen books about practical magic tricks in the section that held her father's books.Sighing at the meager pickings, she set the meditation book aside for a first look, as it was a logical place to start. Then she took a moment to page through the practical magic books, but while they all looked interesting, she simply returned them to their places, as they were not what she was looking for.The fantasy books went onto her nightstand instead; they looked interesting, and even if they contained nothing about real magic, she still wanted to read them.The lone book left behind was read through quickly – Taylor was a fast reader. She tried out its contents soon after, and while the activity was interesting and something she would definitely make a habit of, it was woefully inadequate for her purposes.So, with another quiet sigh, Taylor got up from the meditative position she had formed in the middle of her room for her experiments and began a reluctant trek toward the family's ancient computer, already mentally putting together a plan for how to convince her father to get a better one – and better internet.She had research to do…

"Taylor, honey? Are you sure you want to go to Winslow with Emma? Arcadia seems so much better…" her father asked, reading the pamphlets that had been delivered to them, while Taylor was immersed in her research on the newly refurbished computer.It wasn't the newest, but it was much better than the old machine – apparently puppy-dog eyes still worked on her dad.Frowning slightly, Taylor went over the pros and cons of Winslow and Arcadia. Ever since she started meditating and practicing the select breathing exercises she had gathered in the library, she had found that her thinking speed was somewhat faster.It was hard to measure, but it was evident that her experiments were working.So, barely a few seconds after her father posed the question, Taylor already had her answer."Arcadia. They have a better library."Taylor needed a better library if she wanted to get her friend back, even if said friend refused to pick up the phone or answer her emails.She didn't notice Danny sending her a queer look before he shrugged."Alright sweetie, I will contact them. Have fun with…""Aztec symbols used in Central America during the post-classic period.""Sounds fun, but remember: no blood rituals in the garden!""I know, daaad!"

"What are you doing, honey?""Carving Nordic symbols into driftwood, Dad."There was a beat of silence before Danny continued."Why?""Because I like them, Dad. Plus, if you weren't so nosy, they would have been excellent gifts," Taylor answered with a frown, critically eyeing the piece of driftwood she had specifically picked out for this purpose.Danny just chuckled and fondly messed up her hair."Alright, honey. This old man can take a hint. I will leave you to your crafting. But be careful, and call me if you need anything. Dinner at seven."Taylor nodded, not even taking her eyes off the artifact she was shaping. The last time she did that, she lost one of her eyebrows and had to shave off the other and tell her father she was experimenting.The laughter was a bit too much."'key, Dad!"The moment Danny reached the top of the basement stairs, Taylor placed the protective artifact she had crafted for the house down, scrunched up her nose, and slowly – but a little wobbly – lifted another piece of wood.This one looked like it had been burned quite thoroughly, as Taylor had found it after a harsh summer storm. It floated over to her hands. She grabbed it, smiled victoriously, and continued to carve the symbols.After all, every mage needed a secure place where they could practice magic in comfort.And secret bases that nobody knew about were badass.According to the internet, at least.

"Father! I require transportation!"Danny looked up from the newspaper he was reading, glanced at the weekend sun shining through the well-cleaned windows, and then at his daughter, standing before him and attempting to do something that once would have been puppy-dog eyes – but now just looked silly on his rapidly growing daughter. Especially with the odd, self-made garment she had decided to wear around the house. It reminded him of the capes in some of those old movies, but as it suited Taylor, and she visibly enjoyed making them, he said nothing."Daughter," he nodded, trying to smother a smile. "Where do you require transportation?""To the boat graveyard, Father!" came the enthusiastic answer."Why there?""I need scrap metal.""You need scrap metal?""Yes."There was a silence as Danny tried to figure Taylor out, while she impatiently squirmed in front of him, pretending to be calm and composed.Danny was almost one hundred percent sure she was hiding something."Why do you need scrap metal, Taylor?" he finally asked with a small sigh."For my art projects!" answered Taylor with a big smile."Like those statues made of wood you put everywhere in the house?"His response was vigorous nodding from his only daughter.While he found them odd, they did fit into the décor, and he was loath to gainsay anything Taylor did that was so harmless, as the happiness it brought her was more than worth the occasional odd item he found around the house.Or the ones she insisted he keep in his office.Or his car.Or even at his favorite bar.Looking deep into her eyes, his fatherly instincts still tingling, he lifted an inquisitive eyebrow.Taylor looked back, but in the end, she gave up, looked down with a defeated sigh, and mumbled something."What did you say, honey?""I said I wanted to get some ice cream!"Ignoring his daughter's glare, Danny put down the newspaper and stood up, heading for his shoes and coat.It was a beautiful day, and ice cream sounded good.Maybe while they were out, he would be able to get Taylor to admit why she really wanted that scrap…

"What are you making this time?"Taylor shrieked as a voice suddenly spoke up from behind her, causing her to drop what she was holding.She whirled around in her chair and glared at her snickering father."Dad! I told you a hundred times, don't do that! What if I was holding something dangerous?""I made sure you weren't," came the retort from her grinning father. Despite her anger, Taylor was still happy to see him laughing.It took her a hot minute to calm down her racing heart, but then she turned back to the work desk in the basement that she used for her projects.For the more dangerous experiments, she used a cave she had set up in the forest outside Brockton Bay.She raised the item in question and showed it off to her father. It was partially made of wood, thread, and feathers."A dreamcatcher.""For what?""For who.""Okay… for who?""For you. You know, for your birthday.""Oh."Taylor shook her head, but in the end, she didn't mind. While it looked like a dreamcatcher, she had designed it to help with her father's – and, of course, her own – mental well-being, specifically working through the trauma of her mother's passing.Coincidentally, it also offered defenses against Strangers and Masters, though she hadn't yet had the opportunity to test that aspect of the artifact.So it was a good thing her father was getting it early.She silently handed it to him, letting him examine it."It is beautiful, Taylor. Thank you!"Taylor nodded with a smile, then looked at her father a little impishly."You know, this means I have to figure out something else for your birthday. How do you feel about unicorns?""What?"

Officer Smith knew capes were batshit crazy.That was a given.But it wasn't until he was transferred to the Brockton Bay department and began attending more and more meetings with the resident Wards that he realized adult capes had nothing on teenage capes.On a good day, Vista was a very well-behaved young lady who was all gung-ho about cleaning up the Bay and looking fierce. On a bad day, Officer Smith expected Cthulhu itself – he really regretted reading those books – to emerge from the cracks in space she created just to hug her.So when the call came in that a young female teenager had been assaulted by several gang members, he turned on the sirens in his patrol car with a heavy heart and headed out, knowing that nothing pretty would be waiting for him, and his partner, who looked equally grim at the message.Smith had a daughter at home, so these cases always got to him.Thus, when they arrived at the scene, they expected a lot of things – but not a tall, cheery teenager in odd clothing (not a costume) standing next to a pile of groaning or unconscious (hopefully) gang members, who looked very much like a pile of disgusting rugs that had once been used to clean up residual oil from cargo ships that transported animals."Merchants…" Johnson murmured next to him, wrinkling his nose at the smell.Stepping carefully around the people on the ground, Smith approached the teenager, knowing deep in his heart that something weird was going on."Hello, miss. My name is Officer Smith. Are you the one who called 911?"She gave him a brilliant smile and nodded."Yes, Officer. My name is Taylor Hebert. And yes, I called you after these," she gestured toward the pile of human trash in front of them, "decided that I was to be relieved of my wallet. And a few more things."The distaste in her voice was clear to anyone listening."I see. And then?""Then I beat the ever-living shit out of them," came the immediate response from the girl, who was still smiling.Looking at the thin girl with arms that were only marginally thicker than noodles, Smith couldn't help but voice his confusion."But how?""With magic, of course!"At his hard look, she looked guilty for a second, which Smith filed away, but she immediately rebounded, smiling once again."I mean with my fist. Totally."Officer Smith knew it would be a long day…

"Look, there she is!""Who?""Crazy Hebert!""Don't call her crazy, Vicky!""But she is crazy, Ames…""No, she isn't. She just doesn't give a fuck what people think about her.""She still could be crazy, you know..."Amy looked at Vicky's beaming face, then glanced at the gangly girl sitting almost across the cafeteria, then back at her sister."Just because she believes her powers are magic doesn't mean she's crazy. Look at Myrddin.""But Myrddin is crazy. Everyone knows that.""The Protectorate wouldn't have named him leader of Chicago if he were really crazy, Vicky. He's probably just playing a role…""Maybe…" came the delayed response from Vicky as she started shoveling food in, in harsh contrast with Hebert, who always ate like she was in an etiquette lesson. "But at least Myrddin wears a costume. Hebert doesn't.""She doesn't need to."Vicky snorted, probably reminded of the same video where Skidmark, in his infinite and drug-fueled wisdom, decided that an openly unmasked teenage cape would be prime recruitment material. Nobody was really sure what Hebert's powers were, but everyone agreed she was some kind of Trump – evidence including the removal of Skidmark's powers, as well as transforming him into a hideous half-frog, half-man form.The most interesting thing about her was that she didn't play the cape, didn't care where she used her powers, and pretended that people didn't know she was a parahuman. Which the internet – and the people of Brockton Bay – somehow played along with gleefully. Granted, it helped that the girl was absurdly powerful, but still.Amy had personally seen Hebert walking around the Boardwalk, her purchases floating behind her in bags and boxes while she ate ice cream, everyone ignoring the odd phenomenon while still surreptitiously trying to record her.It was fucking absurd."So, why did you say she's there?" she finally asked after swallowing something the kitchen staff called meatloaf."I heard last night she fought Cricket.""But she doesn't patrol…""She was on a run…"That made sense.Aside from being a ridiculously powerful parahuman, the girl was a health nut and, according to her grades, a genius. Though many believed she had some kind of Thinker power, it wasn't too overt, so the school didn't much care.She won enough awards in competitions that they would turn a blind eye until she did something blatantly impossible in the classroom.Like levitating a book while reading it during lunch.Amy sighed and turned back to her sister, who was practically vibrating in place, desperate to share the rumor."And?""And they fought, and there were some terrible recordings, but she – Hebert – has some kind of metal spear and beat the tar out of Cricket.""What about Cricket's power?" she asked with a frown. Those sound attacks were rather annoying, according to several Protectorate members she had healed in the past."That's the best part! Hebert ignored it!""So?""That means that she really has some kind of Trump power!""I guess… But what happened to Cricket?"Vicky just shrugged."Dunno. She knocked her out, stood there for a second, then left."Suddenly, without warning, Dennis appeared next to them, holding up a phone with a picture on it."She didn't just leave. Someone who was rather stupid but brave went over after Hebert left and took a few pictures. Look!"Amy sent Dennis a glare for interrupting them, but she was honestly curious about what Brockton Bay's resident weirdo had done to the Nazi.And wasn't that a strange thought…The pictures showed Cricket in her usual costume, sans her numerous tattoos, which seemed to have been replaced by several lines of text in strange but familiar characters."What language is that?""Hebrew," Dennis answered gleefully. "Commenters said it's from the Torah…""Oh, Kaiser will definitely not like that."

"…and now, our last item is to talk about Sorceress, aka Taylor Hebert."After that declaration, an entire gamut of emotions ran through the faces of the people present in the meeting room.Emily Piggot looked up from her papers and tablets containing relevant information.Armsmaster scowled at the mention of the teenager. Some just shook their heads, but most were sporting smiles or grins, or were already chuckling and actively looking through their tablets to find what the young woman had done."As you know, last week Sorceress had an altercation with Cricket and somehow removed all her tattoos and replaced them with quotes from the Torah. We managed to pick Cricket up, and Panacea confirmed that the change wasn't cosmetic. Sorceress removed all pigment from Cricket's skin and replaced it with new ones.""Prisoner procedures for Cricket will be discussed in a later meeting. We are here to discuss the Empire's expected retaliation. Thoughts?"There was a general silence as everyone considered it for a moment before Armsmaster spoke up."Director, I once again recommend inviting Sorceress to the Wards. Leaving her alone to face the Empire's retaliation is unwise.""We tried that, Armsmaster," Renick said, speaking up. "The first time we became aware of her – and every time she did something since. We also sent an invitation after picking up Cricket, with a warning." He shook his head, exasperated. "She ignored every one of them.""Could we force it? Reckless endangerment or something?" came from somewhere in the room.Renick simply shook his head again."Too little evidence, and she's never been hurt enough. Plus, her following is big enough that the negative PR wouldn't be worth it.""I mean, why are we even talking about this?" Assault exclaimed with a grin. "The girl is powerful enough to bitch-slap Kaiser seven ways to Sunday. I say let them commit suicide via her, and just sit back and watch!""Thank you, Assault, for that useful comment," Emily said with a frown, then refocused on the rest of the room, where everyone was studiously avoiding eye contact.She couldn't help but sigh."All right. Here is what I want done. Miss Militia, make sure you 'meet up' with her accidentally and get a measure of her response to the Empire and reiterate our invitation. Otherwise, we have better things to do than to worry about a crazy teenager.""Yes, Director!""Meeting adjourned!"

"Abort!""What? What happened?""She is there, Grue!""She? Who is she, Tattletale?""Taylor Hebert…"There was a beat of silence on the radio channel, then it crackled to life again."What is she doing at a jewelry store?""How should I know?""Well, you do have a Thinker power, Tats…""Thank you, Captain Obvious.""You're welcome!" came the cheerful response from Alec.Lisa frowned and took another look at the screen showing feeds from the jewelry store that was their target, per Coil's instructions.As to why, she only had guesses.But it was easy money – nobody would really get hurt – so she didn't much care.Until Taylor Hebert showed up.When she first appeared on everyone's radar, she had immediately been sent out by Coil to gather intelligence on the girl, which was both easy and hard at the same time. Gathering information in the usual way was child's play, as the girl didn't really hide anything. They had her entire genealogy and financial situation in five minutes.But when Lisa turned her attention to the gangly teenager for the first time, her power literally paused for an entire minute – blessing her with rare silence - then gave her something that still haunted her nightmares.Human, female.Around five feet nine inches, almost sixteen years old.Listening to music.Music is good.Music lyrics are as follows:This is the song that never ends.It just goes on and on, my friend.Some people started singing it, not knowing what it was.And, they'll continue singing it forever, just because–This is the song that never ends…And so it continued for almost twenty-four hours, only disappearing when she finally fell asleep from exhaustion. And to her chagrin, every time she looked at the girl, the same lyrics started up again, originating from her power, rendering it – and thus her – useless for the rest of the day. It had even forced her to build a tracking app using PHO and other internet data just to know when Hebert went out so she could avoid her.And sure enough, the moment she glanced at Taylor Hebert, it started up again.Swearing under her breath, cursing the world, Coil, and Taylor Hebert in no particular order, she called out to the others."Abort, guys. My power is useless for the rest of the day…"There was some swearing from Rachel, but what annoyed her the most was that Alec was actually humming along with the song in her power somehow.

Taylor inspected the spear lying in front of her and couldn't help but feel proud.After mastering magic somewhat, she realized that every good mage, sorcerer, sorceress, wizard, or witch had a focus.But she didn't really want a wooden staff or wand, because that was too old-school. She also really liked Armsmaster's halberd – but didn't want to be a copycat – so in the end, she decided to collect some metal, melt it down, and craft and enchant a nice spear that looked cool and that she could use as a casting focus – or, if necessary, stab people with.She held both hands over the metal spear and began channeling her magic, rhythmically breathing while focusing on the desired image of the enchantment she wanted the spear to have.After all, there were so many things – and people – to stab…

Legend hated rain.Mostly because nowadays, when he was rained on, it meant he was preparing to defend an almost certainly doomed city from Leviathan. And looking around at the gathered heroes and villains, he was fairly sure they all felt the same.He was about to fly up to the improvised stage when a loud voice cut through the indistinct murmur of the assembled parahumans."Excuse me! Excuse me! Let me through, please!"Looking toward the voice, Legend saw the crowd part to let through a tall young woman with long black hair and a dress that wouldn't have looked out of place in a stage play about witches in a high school."Legend!" she called out, waving frantically.Recognizing Brockton Bay's eminent Taylor Hebert, aka Sorceress – or the person who believed in magic even more than Myrddin – he floated down slowly toward her, curious about what she wanted."Yes, Miss?"She paused, looked him over in a way that felt oh so familiar, then gave him a bright smile."I want to go ahead and prepare something for Leviathan. Is that okay?"Now even more curious, Legend looked her over, taking in the clearly well-made cape, accented with small silver symbols that seemed to glint faintly even though the sun was hidden behind the dark clouds heralding the arrival of an Endbringer.He also noticed, only now, that the rain seemed to stop a few inches from her body, sliding down to the ground without touching her, leaving her bone dry."Doing what?""I got a cunning plan!" she replied, which didn't really help."And that is…?""I'm going to stab Leviathan!""I see," he said, even though he didn't understand anything. "Do you need any help with that?""Nope! Just wanted to warn you! It might get loud!""All right, Miss. Then go ahead and prepare…"She nodded, gave him another smile, then sprinted forward, pushing off the ground and launching into the air. She ignored the wind and rain entirely as she headed toward the improvised seawall being built to defend Brockton Bay, a very well-made and lethal-looking spear now in her hand.Legend shook his head but said nothing.Taylor Hebert was a little too young to be participating in an Endbringer battle, but when he saw her eyes, he knew there was nothing he – or anyone else – could say that would change her mind.And he didn't particularly want to start a fight to force her to leave.He was about to call everyone together for his speech when he heard an enormous tearing sound, followed by metal being crunched.Instead, he turned toward the noise, his hand already glowing with rainbow light.From there, he saw metal from the ships in the infamous Boat Graveyard begin to separate and rise into the air, including from the giant vessel blocking the bay, all of it drawn toward a point high above the water.While confusing, he didn't have to wonder who was responsible.The sound of that much metal moving was only eclipsed by the demented, maniacal laughter of Taylor Hebert as she stood atop a building near the shore, pointing her spear – now shining blue – at the mass of metal being gathered into one enormous sphere, striking a very theatrical pose.Legend felt the well-timed lightning strikes were a bit much, but it still looked good.He – and pretty much everyone else – was about to ask what she was doing when the mass of liquid-yet-solid metal began to bubble and deform.They watched in real time as it gathered into a shape. First, they recognized a body – a very tall, very large body.According to Dragon's quiet report, it was at least forty feet tall.Then came the arms, the head, a giant spear resembling the one the girl wielded, and a shield.Details followed, and the mass ultimately resolved into a giant metal knight, standing on the sand so still it looked like a statue.Then the blue glow from Taylor's spear spread across its entire form. It shuddered – and suddenly came alive.It looked at its hands in what Legend assumed was confusion, then turned toward the now-silent young woman.It executed a salute with its spear, then turned toward the churning ocean.A beat of silence passed as everyone processed the enormous golem – at least, that's what it seemed to be – that Taylor Hebert had created.Then more metal began to rise from the Graveyard, again converging on the same point.Once more, it began to take shape.Then another, and another, and another…In the end, the Boat Graveyard – and the giant ship blocking the bay – were gone.In their place stood dozens of forty-foot-tall golems facing the sea, ready to protect the city, while Taylor Hebert stood proudly on her perch, waving at people with a bright smile.Legend wondered what Leviathan's response to this would be…

A/N: So basically Magic!Taylor, who, through sheer willpower and determination, figures out how to do magic.On the way, she kinda forgets about Emma, as magic is much more interesting, plus she was kinda an ash-hole when they ran into each other. She goes around doing magic things, not really caring about the cape life, as she obviously is not a cape, while still running into things that happen in Brockton Bay.Of course, everyone thinks it is the funniest thing ever, so they play along, pretending that they didn't see when she cleaned herself up after a car splashed her, or levitated a book to read while eating at a coffee shop.Taylor is having fun, and everybody is confused about her goals as Magic!Taylor is a little different in her thinking than the rest of Shard!Parahumans.Her power is pure magic, no Shard shenanigans, she has no Corona. She can do standard magic stuff, cantrips, healing, illusions, shattering reality at whim, creating artifacts, enchanting artifacts, summoning things, the usual suspects. She is not instantly good at them, but with practice, she gets stronger and stronger.