Chapter 3 - Mason

Based on her reaction, I feel no one has ever treated this girl with respect and common decency.  And that perturbed me. No person should be mistreated, and I don’t care what their station in life or if they were born with abilities. I also don’t care that’s it’s not a popular opinion amongst those of what is considered my peerage. I released my hold on her, and the most she’d done was turned to face me fully.

Smart. She wasn't trying to run from us. “Adder.” she said. “That’s not a name.” Ashton rolls his eyes.  “Like the snake?” I question. It made sense. Now that I was closer, I could see the scales along her neck and cheekbones. I could properly look at her eyes and see the pupils were more like that of a snake than a human. 

“Yeah, like the snake. And it is my name. Or at least the only one I know. So, what’s a couple of socialites like you doing on this end of town at this time of night?” Adder questions looking only at me and ignoring Ashton. I can tell Ashton is getting impatient. He wants to get to these fights.

“Well it, is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Adder. We are heading to a fight down by the river.” I explained, seeing no reason to hide it. I see Ashton rolling his eyes as he groans. “We don’t need to give her our life’s stories. Let’s carry on, mate.” he tapped his watch for emphasis. “Wait, you two are going to the fights? To watch, right?” she blinked, looking between us.

“Not that it’s your business, but to fight.” Ashton grumbled, getting restless. Adder looks at us skeptically. Her copper snake eyes looked between us, sizing us up. “Oh, that I’ve got to see. Silver spoons aren’t generally much in a scrap.” her lips quirk just a little. 

I laughed a little. “She doubts us.” I smile. Adder shrugs her shoulders a little. “Right, well, we aren’t like most silver spoons. Come along, and you’ll see for yourself." I suggest as I start to walk again.

“Finally, let’s go, Mason. I have been itching to knock some heads for weeks now.” he said, punching his left hand into his right. I nodded, glancing over my shoulder to look at her one last time. I’m not sure she'll follow. Right now, she seems dumbstruck as she watches us walk away. 

“Do you think the little urchin is going to follow us? And Mason, you don’t need a pet. So, I don’t see why you were bothering with the formalities and being polite.” he said, shaking his head.

“As my father has always says, we meta-humans need to look out for each other. Also, you never know when someone will come in handy. And someone who can sneak around like that girl, because I’m sure she was probably behind us longer than we realized, could come in handy in the future. Also, you know, I believe all people deserve fair and equal treatment.” I smiled at my best friend. 

"Oy, wait for me!" I heard Adder shout as she ran to catch up to us. Ashton softly shook his head, hearing her too. "Great, you've got a new pet." Ashton commented. I simply chuckled and shrugged. "What can I say? I have a certain effect on girls." I joked.

"I ain't no pet. And ya both can stop talking bout me like I'm not here." Adder snapped. I laughed and glanced back over my shoulder at her. "Duly noted." I stated, turning my attention forward again. 

“It doesn’t really matter what we call her. We should just ditch the kid. I’ll never understand your soft spot for strays, Mason.” Ashton sighed, shaking his head. “I’m a humanitarian, I suppose., And I’m also a big brother to a girl about Adder’s age. So that might be a factor too.” I shrugged as we reached the warehouse.

"I ain’t following ya for the hell of it. I was coming here anyways. I'm in the fights. Ya two nancys are gonna get trounced." Adder said, pushing past us heading inside. I couldn’t help but chuckle. "You really shouldn't judge a book by its cover. There's more to us than meets the eye." I said as we walked inside. 

“We’ll see.” she waved a hand, walking away from us to the betting counter. I watched as she dug into her pockets, pulling out what little funds she had to place bets.

I wonder who she was betting on. Ashton and I walked over to the fighter check-in and made sure we were all set for our fights later. I headed to the bar while Ashton went to place bets. I’m not particularly eager to gamble, so I never bet. "I can't believe that little bird bet against us." Ashton complained, walking up to me. I laughed and handed him a beer. 

"She doesn't know us, so let her pass her judgment. Just be that much more fun when we win our fights." I said, taking a sip noticing her fight was first. “Come, let’s see how she does.” I nodded to the fighting square, making my way through the crowd. “I can’t wait to see her lose this fight.” Ashton grumbled, following me.

She didn't have any set style and was all over the place with her method, but it was effective. She was getting hits in though she wasn't always able to dodge the punches from her opponent. The match went on for a bit till she hit a final blow which knocked the man down, and this time he didn't get back up. 

"Bloody 'ell. Now I'm out twenty quid." Ashton complained. I laughed and patted him on the shoulder. "That, my friend, is why you don't judge a book by its cover. Now I'm up. So here." I said, taking out my gold pocket watch and handing it to him. "Hold this for me." I said before removing my sex pistols shirt, not wanting to get blood on it.