Des Moines, IA | Wednesday morning

[defenderofdesmoines]

Annie had come straight here from Fandom, feeling a weird sort of calm now that she'd talked it all out a little.

She'd spent a lot of time since yesterday thinking about her parents. What they'd known. What her dad had known. She'd even brought his pipe with her, which she had kept under her floorboards for years, and then took to Fandom with her...and then to New York, too.

He hadn't left because of bad investments. She knew that now, no matter what her mom said.

She needed to know what her mom had to say for herself. Annie was burning with anger -- she had been since yesterday, when she'd shaken off those bullets from Hughie's bearded asshole friend and booked a portal to Fandom -- but right now it was just smoldering quietly in the background.

Donna	"Oh, Annie." Her mother was clearly surprised, drawing her robe around herself as she emerged from the bedroom. "You scared me. You didn't say you were coming."
Annie	Annie managed a little half-smile up at her mom as she turned the pipe over in her hands. "I hid this under my floorboards right after Daddy left. I thought that maybe he would come back for it, but...." She trailed off, sad. "Still smells like him."
Donna	"It was a bad habit," Donna replied dismissively, bustling over to start the coffee. "His father smoked a pipe, so you know."
Annie	Annie waited until her mother had turned her back before she said it. "What's Compound V?"
Donna	"Uh, Compound V?" Yep, Donna's footsteps absolutely faltered there. "I don't know, sweetheart. Should I?"
Annie	Annie got up from the table, crossing directly over to her mom. She had said she was done taking any more shit, and she was done taking any more shit. "How old was I?"
Donna	"Hmm?" Donna was very busy with these coffee grounds, you see.
Annie	"How old was I when you let Vought pump me full of drugs?" Annie's voice was ice.
Donna	"Annie, I honestly don't -- "
Annie	"How old when you let them turn me into a freak?" Annie continued, her voice breaking on the last word.
Donna	"You're not a freak," Donna replied immediately, coffee forgotten as she turned her full attention on her daughter. Her eyes were wide and intense. "Never say that."
Annie	And in a way, that was the confirmation Annie had been looking for. She gasped, the weight of it all really hitting her, and she found herself holding onto the kitchen counter for support. "So it's true."
Donna	Donna watched her, silent for a long moment. "Annie...."
Annie	"Oh my God." Annie was going to throw up. Annie couldn't breathe, or couldn't get enough oxygen to her head, and she turned away from her mother to lean over the table and take a few harsh breaths. "Oh my God."
Donna	"Did...Vought tell you all of this?" Donna asked, clearly at a loss.
Annie	"No." No, and they never would have. "No, a friend told me." And as Annie looked over her many, many medals and the various Starlight accolades that adorned their home, she rounded on Donna again. "How much did they pay you?"
Donna	"It wasn't about money," Donna started to say, until a look from Annie silenced her. She paused, clearly deciding how much to say, before offering a quiet, "There was no money. They -- they just paid for the medical bills, that's it." She took a step closer to Annie, desperate for her to understand. "I did it because they promised that you'd have a chance at an extraordinary life. To be strong and successful and special." She reached a hand out to touch Annie's cheek. "I mean, who wouldn't want that for their -- "
Annie	"You made me think I was chosen by God!" Annie exploded, slapping her mother's hand away.
Donna	"You were!" Donna insisted. "God brought Vought into our lives! He made this possible."
Annie	"Bullshit!" Annie yelled, breathing hard and ignoring the tear that had fallen from one eye. This had been coming for a long time, and now she couldn't stop. "You did! And then you controlled every single minute of it. You woke me up at five AM to train for those stupid pageants, and the tap dancing, and the tae kwon do."
Donna	"I gave up every moment of my life," Donna told her, relatively calm. "And I was happy to do it. This was our dream -- "
Annie	"This was your dream!" Annie shouted, sending Donna backing up against the closest wall. "I never got a chance to choose my own dreams!" She stared at her mother for a long moment before throwing her hands up, adding, "No wonder I don't know who the fuck I'm supposed to be."
Donna	"Annie." It was an admonishment of her language, even now.
Annie	Annie blew out a harsh breath, her eyes falling on her father's pipe sitting on the table, still. "Was it really bad investments?" she asked, quieter than she had been.
Donna	"What?" Donna was clearly confused by the change in conversational track.
Annie	"You told me Daddy left because he'd lost all our savings." She'd never really believed the bad investments line, but -- now there was an answer available that she'd never even considered, because she hadn't known to.
Donna	The regret was etched into every feature on Donna's face as she took her time to answer. "He agreed to all of it. And then, one day, he didn't. So he walked out on us."
Annie	Annie swallowed around a lump in her throat, looking down before offering a response. "Maybe he didn't want to lie to me."
Donna	"So I'm the monster?" Donna asked, clearly getting a little defensive. "You have a good life. People would give anything to be what you are."
Annie	Annie...had her answers. She didn't need to stay here. She needed to get out. She turned to go, eyes wide with disbelief at how Donna was trying to defend what she'd done.
Donna	"I thought what I did was right," Donna tried, grabbing Annie's arm before she could go. Annie just silently looked up into her mother's face, wrenching her arm free and turning to leave. "Annie. Annie -- " The sound of her mother calling her name followed her all the way back to New York.

[taken from The Boys 1.08, 'You Found Me.' warning for language, NFI/NFB/OOC/BLAH BLAH]