“...How did I end up here, anyway?”

Cassidy watched Apollo Justice give up on holding up his sign and rest it on the ground.

Kay grinned next to her and said, “Because Cassidy needed two people, and you were at the courthouse.”

Apollo flopped.

Cassidy felt a little bad, given Kay’s tendency to completely miss people’s boundaries and accidentally run headlong through them. It was such a relief, though, to see her making friends with people her age, even if the kid seemed disgruntled about it. He was awfully bitter for a 15-year-old, anyway. Maybe Kay would be good for him, too.

Then she thought about Franziska, and realized that maybe Kay had a penchant for finding acerbic people. Then again, the situation with Franziska was kind of different, anyway.

Kay rested her elbow on Apollo’s shoulder, even though she had to reach up a little to do it, and held her, “With a contaminated creek, our future is bleak” sign up high.

“But we’re just standing here holding signs. It’s not like anyone’s going to listen to us or anything,” Apollo grumbled, shaking off Kay’s arm.

“Shhh!” Cassidy glanced around to make sure no one is listening and then quietly said, “If you’re going to say something like that, at least be surreptitious about it.”

Kay smirked. “Yeah, calm down your Chords of Steel, dude.”

Apollo made a face, but quieted down when he asked, “Why?”

“As much as I love this group… sometimes they can get a little riled up. And when that happens, it gets really messy, really fast.”

The two kids nodded, and Apollo said, “Okay then. But really, why are we even here?”

“This company… well, it’s always been a little shady. There’s been suspicions of fraud and a couple scandals. And now, it’s been taken over by this reprehensible CEO. The pollution in the creek has been the last straw for a lot of us, especially the environmentalists.”

“And the signs…?”

Cassidy sighed. “Honestly, I don’t think they’re going to do a whole lot. This guy clearly doesn’t care a whole lot about public image, and there’s just no reasoning with him. But I have to do something.”

Kay had gently rested her sign on the ground, and now crossed her arms and frowned. “I know you’re passionate when it comes to change… but aren’t you becoming a Congresswoman so you can do something? Because this clearly isn’t gonna get you anywhere.”

Cassidy frowned and sighed. “That’s the problem. Right now, our Congress doesn’t want to listen either. Government only works when the people in control are the citizens, not corporations.”

Apollo nodded. “I see what you mean, now. Even though I still think the signs are dumb.”

Cassidy shrugged and raised hers higher. “Ha ha, I guess that’s as good as it’s gonna get, right?”

Kay smirked and said, “Yeah, Apollo’s as stubborn as a rock.”

“Hey!” He looked like he was about to say more, but suddenly froze instead.

Kay raised an eyebrow at him. “You alright?”

He gulped, and his eyes followed something in the air. “There’s a bee.”

“Wait, what?”

Cassidy saw it just before it landed on Apollo’s face. He closed his eyes tightly and seemed to be trying not to shake.

“Oh.” Kay paused. “Wait, you’re scared of a little bee?” Apollo didn’t move, so she shooed it away.

He relaxed, but kept his eyes closed. “Is it gone?”

“Eh, it’s over on the other side of the crowd.”

He slowly opened his eyes and saw Kay’s smirk. “I-- I’m allergic, okay?” His face turned bright red.

She shrugged. “I guess that makes sense then. Though you’re so red right now you might as well have hives already.” She snickered, and Apollo flushed even more.

They had a few more minutes of peace before the bee came back and Apollo stiffened again. “Please get rid of it. Please tell me it’s gone.”

“It doesn’t wanna leave you alone. I bet it thinks you’re a yummy flower.” Kay grinned.

“Please, Kay.”

She frowned, pulling her gloves on tighter. “Alright. I’ll take care of it.” She followed the bee with her eyes for a moment and then clapped, hard and loud. Heads turned. “Ha! Got it!”

Cassidy’s stomach sank when Kay opened her hands, the bee smushed in her palms.

“Kay, remember what I said about these guys being ready to fight?” Cassidy whispered.

“Yeah?”

She was about to respond when a girl a few feet away who was carrying a smaller sign spoke up. “

“Sorry, did you just kill that bee?”

“Uh, yeah. Why?”

There were mutters and glares, now, and Cassidy realized it was already too late. They had to get out of there before things got worse.

“You do know that Los Angeles is home to a severely endangered species of bee that’s vital to the pollination of our crops called X Tink? And there’s a possibility you just killed one of them.”

Cassidy grabbed Kay’s arm and tried to pull her away, motioning for Apollo to join them.

Kay crossed her arms, pouting. “Dude, it was just a bee.”

And now they were screwed.

There were gasps from the crowd -- before they could blink they were surrounded.

“Just a bee!? Just a bee!?” The cry echoed from around them.

“No! It’s much more than just that!” Some other person from the crowd jumped at them with a punch. Kay jumped out of the way just in time.

“Hey! What the heck?!”

“Bees are the foundation of our livelihoods, our food -- nay, our existence on this Earth!” He swung at them again, and this time Kay couldn’t dodge. It looked like she would have a nasty bruise on her shoulder later.

Cassidy winced in empathy, but had to quickly turn her attention to dodging a few of her own attacks. Apollo seemed to be in the same situation, but he picked up his sign and tried to hide behind it, with mixed results.

She had to do something… they couldn’t stay like this forever. She took a deep breath, and with all the authority she could muster, said, “Hey! This needs to stop.” The fighting continued around them; the noise of the scuffle had covered her up. She tried again. “Hey!” A couple people turned to look, this time, so she took a deep breath and tried again. “She made a mistake. Cut the kid some slack!” More people seemed to notice this time. "If conservationists think the proper way to educate a child on environmental issues is to beat her up, it's no wonder the US withdrew from the Paris Agreement!"

And then all hell broke loose.

(O)

“So. Uh, hey, Franziska.”

Kay had the phone up to her ear, but the response was loud enough that Cassidy could hear the, “Spit it out, Kay Faraday,” from the other end of the line.

“We… may be in the detention center.”

“You’re where!?” Cassidy could practically hear the glare on Franziska’s face.

“We were at a protest, and I guess the company was happy to have a reason to kick us out, because they called the cops as soon as this guy started trying to punch me.” Kay paused. “So we got arrested.” She said that like the group hadn’t gotten violent. It was probably a good thing that the police had been there, actually.

There was the sound of a whip in the background. “You are lucky that the judge has just called a recess. I will be there when my trial is over.”

“Heh heh… Thanks.”

“Do not get into trouble in the meantime.”

“I’ll do my best.”

“Do better than that.”

Franziska must’ve hung up then, because Kay pulled the phone down and sighed.

When they made it back to the holding cell, Apollo perked up. “How did it go?”

“I mean, it could’ve gone worse.”

He flopped again. “Great.”

There was a pause before Kay said, “Aren’t you going to call anyone?”

“No way. If things go well, my foster mom will never hear of this. Besides, you got me into this mess, so you can get me out.”

Kay crossed her arms. “Fair point.”

And then they waited. Apollo claimed the bed, exhausted, and eventually fell asleep, while Kay sat on the desk reading The Great Escape in 80 Days and Cassidy sat in a chair towards the other side of the room.

The last time Cassidy had been in a detention center had been years ago, when she was 13. It’d been different, of course -- just her and her best friend, sitting there waiting for their parents and terrified of whatever punishment they were going to receive. It hadn’t been intentional, so they were hoping that would help their case. They’d just wandered a little too far when they’d been hanging out at the park. Then they’d gotten caught digging up a flower to take back home, and promptly taken into custody.

She’d tried so hard to take charge back then; her friend had anxiety, and had completely shut down in panic. She’d just wanted everything to be okay. Eventually, it had been -- they’d gotten back home and survived their punishments -- but in that moment, she didn’t have the confidence to reassure her friend.

Now, of course, she was older and wiser. She’d seen so much more and experienced things that were far worse than that. Still, being in the cell, she felt so young again. There wasn’t a whole lot she could do to help Kay or Apollo. She was the oldest one here, and yet Kay was the one telling them that everything would be alright in her own, goofy way. Cassidy hated not being able to give advice or even help them in any way at all.

The feeling of uselessness she felt, plus the few bruises she’d sustained, made her exhausted.

She fell asleep watching Kay smile to herself on the desk.

(O)

She woke up to a low growl, which she could tell was Franziska because of the whip cracks that periodically sounded.

“There are no charges to be placed on any of them. Release them, and take me back there.”

“But Ms. von Karma, if they’re being released, there’s no reason to -- ow!” There was a pause. “O-okay. I’ll take you back right away, Ms. von Karma.”

“Perfect.”

Apollo had stirred as well, and sleepily said, “What’s going on?” The click of her heels echoed down the hallway, and the moment Franziska’s face appeared, he bolted awake and yelped.

“At least you have managed to stay out of trouble while you waited.” Franziska glared at them all in turn, and then lingered on Kay. “Kay Faraday, why are you reading a book about escapes while sitting in a holding cell?”

Kay grinned, putting a hand to her face. “Because it was in here, and I figured I’d brush up on my Great Thieving skills while I’ve got some time.”

“That seems like an extraordinarily foolish idea.”

“Hey, they provided the entertainment.”

As they were talking, Franziska seemed to calm down. Her grip on the whip loosened, and her glare relaxed.

Apollo grumbled in the corner as they continued to banter, and a guard strode over to unlock the cell.

Kay bounded out and playfully elbowed Franziska, earning her a glare. She brushed it off, though, and threw her arm around Franziska instead as they made their way down the hall, still talking about the book.

Cassidy said, “Thanks,” to the guard, and then followed them. She smiled watching the pair; it was clear that Franziska was quite fond of Kay, as much as she seemed to be annoyed.

Apollo caught up to her and sighed. “Sometimes I can’t believe those two.”

Cassidy grinned. “Hey, at least you didn’t get whipped into oblivion this time.”

“Ack! Yeah, that’s definitely a plus.”

Kay and Franziska rounded the curve, still talking, and Cassidy looked at Apollo. She sighed. “Hey.”

“Yeah?” He looked back at her.

“Thanks for hanging out with her. I know she’s a little much sometimes… but she really appreciates it. She talks about you a lot, when she’s not talking about Franziska and their latest case.”

He started. “Wait, really?”

“Yeah!” Cassidy chuckled. “I mean, a good amount of it is her making fun of you, but it’s because she likes to be around you.” Apollo had raised his eyebrows at that, so she laughed and added, “I promise! Really, though. Thanks.”

She smiled and, as much as Apollo looked skeptical, he smiled back.

(O)

That night, Kay padded into the living room in her pajamas, hair loose around her shoulders. “Hey. So, I’m really sorry about today.” Cassidy tilted her head. “I should’ve paid more attention to what I was doing and saying and I feel really awful about getting you arrested. I mean, I couldn’t really care less about myself, but I know that if this goes on your record, then it’ll be harder for you to get elected in the future and--”

“Hey.” Kay stopped rambling and looked back up. “It’s alright. I talked with the guard on the way out; he said that since there weren’t going to be any charges, we’d be released with no record.”

Kay relaxed. “Oh, that’s good.”

She was still frowning, though, so Cassidy said, “Something’s still bothering you.”

“Ha ha, yeah.”

“What is it?” Cassidy patted the couch next to her, and Kay sat down.

“I, well…” Kay looked away and sighed. “I don’t want to be a burden on you. I’m already here mooching off of you and making a mess of things, but getting you arrested is totally different.”

“Ah…” Cassidy leaned back into the cushions and rested her hand on Kay’s leg. “First of all, you’re never a bother to me. I’m so happy to have you here, and it’s not so much making a mess of things as it is making my life more interesting.” She grinned. “No matter what you could do, I’ll be here for you. Arrested, hurt, betrayed… it doesn’t matter.” There was a pause. “Okay, maybe if you framed me for murder, I’d have a problem.”

They both laughed. “You’re sure, though? That I’m not a bother?”

“Of course.” Cassidy smiled and Kay turned to look at her again. “Hey.” She met Kay’s eyes. “I love you.”

Kay smiled back and threw her arms around Cassidy. “Thank you. I love you too.”

It was so good to have Kay around, and despite the craziness, Cassidy wouldn’t trade it for the world.