Well she's no Picasso (Aki)

Mia was one of the few heroes in the area that wasn’t a teacher, and with more and more quirkers who thought they could use their powers however they wanted, that came with a lot of responsibility. For one her daily patrol routes, while sometimes fruitless, were incredibly important for cementing the idea of heroes in the mind of the public. Seeing a giant woman with a horn dressed in a fancy costume could be a ridiculous part of some people’s days, but for the growing fans of the hero community it was important for them to recognize for better or worse that heroes were a part of the culture now.

Of course it wasn’t all just daily routines though. Being on call at night could definitely weigh on Mia’s shoulders. Her mutations meant she had a lot more stamina than most but no one liked being woken up in the middle of the night, or worse, staying up all night just waiting for a potential call to action that may never end up coming. Still, there was a sense of satisfaction on being able to help in those situations, and Mia wouldn’t think about switching her line of work for a second. Especially when it came to the larger cases.

Yeah, the final aspect of her work as a hero. The big fish. The criminals and organizations that were smart enough to slip their work under the radar, or more generally, just big enough threats that no single hero could be expected to take them on safely alone. They were the ones Mia lived for. Sure, stopping some street thug came with an audience and a sense of accomplishment, but the big fish where what Mia lived for. Storming a compound or facing an actual challenge? Who wouldn’t be ecstatic at the chance to show off their strength and really cement themselves as a hero like that!? Of course, it wasn’t all straight forward. The big fish came with a lot of attention and a lot of build up. They were usually smart enough to cover their tracks, or wise to the tricks of the trade as far as police work went. They required a careful approach, gathering information from witnesses, long stake outs, the works, and those parts weren’t so favoured by Mia.

Least of all, the communicating with witnesses…

Now don’t get her wrong, Mia was more than her fair share of a people person. She loved to rile up a crowd or help people enjoy themselves, but when it came to those in a vulnerable position her people skills definitely needed work. She wasn’t good at knowing what to say without hitting a trigger word or touching a raw nerve, but it was still part of the job and an important one at that. A part of the job she had to do today.

Over the recent months the Painter had become more and more central in the eyes of the media. Their work was loud and flashy, hardly hiding it, and as such they’d gotten a bit more attention than they maybe deserved…well they were a killer, they deserved a lot of attention, but still there were no real signs of how big a player they were yet. Not in Mia’s eyes at least. She had yet to see any examples that really shouted that the odd neon this person left behind was particularly powerful, but all the same they’d become a big threat. They’d left their mark on several occasions, killed a fair handful of supposedly innocent people, and now, presently, had caused harm to a member of UA>

Mia admittedly was almost disappointed it was one of the kids she’d already met. Not because she wanted them to get hurt, but because she was pretty sure none of those kids would have let this punk get away without a fight.

Back to the present however, all this had lead to Mia’s assignment for today, a part of her job she dreaded but recognized the importance of. As one of the few active heroes outside of the school she’d been put in charge of some of the hero work behind tracking down the Painter. An important step was getting the witness statement of the Painter’s stabbing victim. Least the kid wasn’t killed she supposed, but still. Hurting a kid from that school ruffled her feathers something fierce, and even as she walked down the hospital halls she needed to make a conscious effort to calm herself with slow and deep breaths.

Heck, even stopping before the door, thinking about the fact some shitty little punk had the audacity to just attack an aspiring hero…well. She’d learn more as the day went on. For now she calmed herself, her muscles shrinking down from her usual beefy state to something a little softer. Still toned as hell but more natural even for a woman her size. She entered the door, a private hospital room prepared so she and the victim of the attack could discuss matters in private without any prying eyes or ears.

Spotting the girl (likely in her bed but feel free to correct me) Mia raised her hand with a somewhat nervous and cautious approach, not sure if the girl had received any trauma from the assault. “Hey…Aki right? Mind if I pull up a seat kid?”

If given the opportunity Mia would indeed take a seat. For this approach with the kid Mia had dressed in more casual clothes. A sweater given the weather and some cargo pants for the leg room. Again if allowed she’d pull up a hospital chair, feel if it was sturdy enough by pushing down on it a little with her hand, and twirl it about to sit on it backwards. She rested her arms crossed along the back of the chair that was now infront of her, leaning over towards the young red head with a faintly unsure smile. She hated dealing with potentially vulnerable people, she never felt she had the right thing to say. She could open with how she was assigned to the girl’s case, how she was the hero red horn…but it felt best to start soft.

“So…I need to talk to you a little, but first I just gotta ask how your recovery is goin. If this is a bad time I don’t mind comin’ back later.”