"Clap, clap, clap... clap."
Applause rang out abruptly, then ended just as suddenly.
Everyone's eyes drifted silently to Black Noir, their barely concealed expressions strange and complicated, as if they were all asking the same thing:
Are you serious?
Black Noir shifted in his seat, growing uncomfortable again.
"Adam!"
Homelander pretended not to notice the awkward atmosphere. As if nothing had happened, he sat down and called to the director.
Adam jumped and promptly replied, "I'm here, sir."
"You heard what the people had to say. Go back and collect everyone's 'good' suggestions, then revise your script."
"Off you go."
Adam looked as if he'd been granted a reprieve. He was just about to hurry out of the suffocating room when a child's voice rang out.
"Wait!"
His gaze fixed on Ryan, and his face instantly put on a public display of a flower blooming.
First bitter, then sweet, with the utmost obsequiousness.
Ryan didn't look at him. He pressed his lips together, then protested to Homelander with a touch of indignation. "Dad, you can't do that. You haven't let the director hear my ideas yet."
"You said it yourself. This movie is being made for me."
"Homelander, I also think we should hear Ryan's ideas. Sometimes a child's wild and wonderful imagin—"
A pointed glare shot across the room before she could finish.
Starlight fell silent, swallowing the rest of her words under Homelander's gaze.
Homelander had hoped to brush the matter aside, but now he had no choice. He softened his tone and said, "Then tell us your ideas. I might not agree, though."
Then he remembered the cameras—and that just a moment ago, he'd said everything was about making his son's dream come true—so he quickly added, "You're still too young, son. A lot of your ideas aren't very impor—uh, they're not very mature."
Maeve rolled her eyes.
Of course, Homelander didn't see. He continued in the manner of a father who only wanted what was best for his son. "Maybe we can work some of your ideas in, but we'll need the professionals' approval."
"Adam, what do you think?"
"Of course, sir. I agree with you one hundred percent."
"Go ahead, son."
With permission granted, Ryan lifted his eyes slightly. A burst of joy flickered in them.
In an instant, his delight spread across his face and lit him up from head to toe.
He smiled at Homelander. "Dad, I knew you were the best."
Ryan finished, then pretended not to notice Homie's mouth twisting crookedly as he was strung along by the boy's expression and praise. He looked straight at the director instead.
He spoke eagerly. "Director, I... uh..."
Ryan's little face flushed red, as if he were embarrassed.
He paused, hesitating until everyone's attention was fixed on him. Then he delivered his line with a flourish.
"With great power comes great responsibility!"
"..."
The meeting room fell silent.
Everyone stared at him, apparently waiting to hear what he'd say next.
Ryan froze for a moment.
That line was supposed to be a killer. Why hadn't he gotten the reaction he'd expected?
The result caught him so off guard that his mind went blank.
"With great power comes great responsibility," he mumbled again.
Homelander played along. "All right, with great power comes great responsibility. Is that the line you want? Not bad. I'll have Adam put it in for you."
"Thanks, Dad!"
Ryan rallied. He hadn't gotten the response he'd wanted, but that line wasn't the point. He'd only meant to make a strong first impression.
If he couldn't get them on board with that, he'd give them something real.
He gathered his thoughts and spoke slowly. "Director, I don't want to grow up on a farm. I'm a small-town kid."
"That's what I thought!"
Ryan emphasized the last words.
A child trapped in Truman's fake world and one raised in a laboratory had something in common, but they were bound to be different, too.
"Then Dad found me and told me what the real world was like."
At that, Ryan paused and said to Homelander, "Dad, Mom agreed to let those bad people do that because she wanted to protect me. I know that."
"Of... of course."
Homelander answered hesitantly.
Instinctively, he wanted to badmouth Becca, but when he met his son's earnest gaze, he held back.
Ryan continued, "Director, do you know what I was most afraid of when I was little?"
Adam: What about me?
He quickly played along in a quiet voice. "I'd guess... Oh, that's much too hard to guess. Why don't you tell us, Ryan?"
Ryan's eyebrows twitched. You really think I'm a kid... Oh, I'm acting well. Never mind.
"Lizards!"
"Lizards? Hmph, I thought it was going to be something serious."
Through Super Hearing, Stormfront's scornful comment came through in a soft voice. Ryan couldn't even be bothered to look her way.
Director Adam couldn't hear her, of course. As soon as he got the answer, he cried out, "Good heavens, a lizard! That's absolutely terrifying."
"So, Dad, I want a supervillain who can transform into a Lizard Man in my movie. And then..."
Homelander was listening intently.
The night before, he'd only heard a few more scattered ideas. They hadn't been nearly this concrete.
Now that he'd heard the full pitch, he was surprised to find it sounded pretty good.
Hearing Ryan's request, he naturally picked up the thread. "Then I show up and take over the fight!"
"Exactly. I think so, too," Adam agreed.
Homelander didn't even bother looking at him. He let his imagination run wild. "Even though you're Homelander's son, Ryan, you're too young, so your superpowers aren't strong enough. Naturally, you can't beat the Lizard Man."
"Dad..."
"At this critical moment, I, Homelander, show up."
"Wait, I mean..."
"I beat the Lizard Man with ease. What could that piece of garbage, that scumbag, possibly do against the invincible Homelander?"
Homelander spoke with shining eyes. The story really did have something to it.
He shot director Adam a disdainful look. Did the man have shit for brains?
If all I had around me were yes-men like you, how was I supposed to handle my relationship with my son?
No wonder Ryan didn't want to use your script. Should I get someone else—
"Dad!"
"Oh, of course, son. No problem. I agree to add a Lizard Man."
Homelander snapped out of it and hurriedly agreed to his son's request.
Ryan, however, spread his hands and said listlessly, "Thanks, but none of the stuff you came up with is what I had in mind."
"Hm?"
"Isn't the Lizard Man the worst one?"
"He is!"
Before Homelander could ask anything else, Ryan explained, "The Lizard Man is the worst one, but..."
He looked at Homelander and posed the ultimate question. "Dad, have you ever thought about what you'd do if you lost your superpowers one day?"
Before you continue