"Brian, have you seen this?" Cynthia asked dropping a newspaper in front of him and pointing to an article. It was titled "New Vigilante Group - Cause for Worry?"

Brian shook his head as he picked up the paper and began reading. The article talked about a spate of recent gay bashings including one against a female impersonator called Shanda Leer. It had happened just off Liberty Avenue. Brian was pretty sure that Justin had mentioned that he knew Darren. That was Shanda's real name. Justin had been quite upset by the whole incident, but Brian hadn't paid a whole lot of attention. Now it seemed there were groups of vigilantes calling themselves the Pink Posse patrolling the area around Liberty Avenue.

"What does this have to do with me?" Brian asked Cynthia.

"It's your city. Do you think the public is going to be happy with bands of roving vigilantes walking the streets?"

"But it won't have anything to do with the general population," Brian said. "What do they care? It's only fags."

Cynthia made a face. "Sometimes you are dense as a hunk of granite."

Brian shot her a look. "I know I fulfill the hunk part," he said with his tongue stuck in his cheek, "but why am I dense?"

Cynthia sighed. "You're a fag," she stated using his own words. "Don't you think people, and the press in particular, are going to want to know where you stand on this issue?"

Brian groaned. He could see the problem now. If he condemned vigilante groups and the violence they implied, he would alienate a lot of gays who felt it was time to stand up to gay bashings. He actually agreed with the vigilante group on some level, especially if it was used to protect someone who was being attacked. If he supported the vigilantes though, he was saying that the police didn't protect all of its citizens in Pittsburgh. He was admitting that his administration had failed in that area. He could also be condemned for favoring a violent solution to a problem. He groaned louder.

"I see you get it … finally."

"Yes, dear."

"So how are you going to handle it? You know the inevitable questions are coming."

"Fuck if I know! I need to think about it."

"Don't take too long," Cynthia advised as she went back to her own desk.

Brian wondered how he was going to find a middle ground on this issue … and if that was really what he wanted to do.

-----

When Brian arrived home Justin was not there. That bothered him. He wanted to talk to Justin about the whole vigilante business, get his take on it.

Brian rummaged through the fridge finding enough leftovers to make a sandwich. He wondered where the fuck Justin was. He had come to rely on Justin being there when he arrived home and having dinner on the table all ready for him. This evening was not going the way he wanted.

About an hour later the loft door slid back and Justin walked in.

"Hey," Justin said.

"Hey. Where have you been?"

"I went to take Darren something to eat. I stayed and had a sandwich with him."

"Are you his nurse and protector now?"

"What?"

"You heard me."

"Yeah, I heard you, but I don't understand the sarcasm. You should see him, Brian. His face is beat in, his arm is broken and he may have a permanent limp."

"I'm sorry for what happened to him, but why do you have to get involved?"

"I like Darren and he needs help right now. Do you have any idea how hard it is to do things with one hand, let alone with only one good leg as well?"

"No, and I don't plan to find out," Brian said snarkily.

"Darren didn't plan to find out either." Justin glared at Brian. Sometimes he could be so cruel.

"Do you want a beer?" Brian asked.

Justin knew that was Brian's way of saying he was sorry for the comment he had just made. If Brian felt he was right in what he said the argument would continue or he would walk away refusing to say anything further. If Brian realized he had made a mistake he would change the subject and make some minor concession. The offer of a beer was a minor concession. It had taken Justin a long time to figure out this change of subject and that it really was an admission of error on Brian's part.

"Sure," Justin agreed going to sit on the sofa.

Brian handed him a beer before joining him on the sofa. "Is Darren going to be all right?" he asked.

Justin shook his head. "Physically he'll recover, but it will be slow. He will probably have a limp. But it's his spirit that I'm worried about."

"Why?"

"The fight's gone out of him. He says he's not going to identify his attackers if they are caught."

"Why the fuck not?"

"He's afraid they'll be let off with a slap on the wrist…" Justin left the rest of that thought unspoken.

"Like Chris Hobbs?"

Justin nodded. "Yeah. He thinks they'll come after him again if he testifies against them."

"But they could be thrown in jail for a long time."

"The operative word is 'could'," Justin stated.

"If they're arrested for a hate crime, they would be put away for a long time."

"There's no guarantee of that, even if Darren testifies. The jury will likely be straight. And after all Darren's just a fag."

"Stop that," Brian ordered.

"Why? It's the truth. Look what happened at Chris Hobbs' trial. A lenient or homophobic judge and nothing happens to the guy swinging the bat."

Justin watched Brian cringe at his words. The whole prom thing and the bashing would always be there between them. He wasn't sure they would ever truly get over it. They didn't talk about it and they tried not to think about it, but it was always there. There was no escape.

"I wanted to ask you something relating to what happened to Darren," Brian said seriously.

Justin wondered what was coming. "So ask."

"Have you heard of this vigilante group that's started up?"

"You mean the Pink Posse? I was thinking of joining."

"What?"

"I was thinking of joining," Justin repeated. Brian looked horrified. "I'm sick of nothing happening to the fucking assholes who beat up someone like Darren … and me."

"But you're not really going to join … are you?"

"I want to. Somebody needs to protect those who can't protect themselves."

"You think it's all right to take the law into your own hands?"

"The Pink Posse will only defend people who are being attacked. They're not going to take the initiative to attack someone."

"So that makes it all right?"

"As far as I'm concerned it does."

"How do you know that's all they'll do?"

"I checked them out," Justin stated flatly.

"What does that mean?" Brian asked with a frown.

"I talked to their leader. He's a reasonable guy."

Brian snorted. "You're serious about joining?"

"I really was."

"Past tense?" Brian asked hopefully.

"Past tense," Justin admitted. "I'm not going to join."

"Why? What changed your mind?"

"You."

"Me?"

Justin nodded. "I really seriously considered joining them. I think there's a place for what they're doing. The gay community doesn't have to put up with that shit. We need to stand up for ourselves." Brian frowned again at Justin's words. He knew there was truth in what he was saying. "But then I remembered how this would affect you. I decided not to join." Justin saw Brian let out a long breath. "I also realized that I have an in with the mayor." Justin grinned. "I thought the mayor might be able to do something to make the Pink Posse unnecessary."

"Like what?" Brian asked.

"I thought maybe you could bring the conditions that created the need for a Pink Posse to the forefront of public attention. You could take a stand about gay bashings. You could make it clear to the police and the legal system that you want gay bashers prosecuted to the full extent of the law."

"I could do that, could I?" Brian stared into Justin's eyes.

"I thought maybe you could, or was I wrong?"

"What would you do if I didn't stand up for our community?" Brian asked making quotation marks with his fingers around the last two words.

Justin knew that Brian always refused to consider himself part of any community, but he was hoping that attitude might have changed since Brian became mayor. "I would join the Pink Posse," Justin stated flatly.

"Fuck, Justin! Is this blackmail?"

"I'm not blackmailing you. You asked me what I would do and I told you. You do what you have to do and I'll do what I have to."

Brian knew he meant it. Justin didn't say things like this lightly.

"So what do you think?" Justin asked.

"I think I need to consider all sides of this question," Brian stated refusing to be forced into a quick choice.

"Fine," Justin said staring at him. He knew Brian had already made his choice. He always collected all the facts and used his gut instincts to decide. Justin hoped he would make the right choice, but this was Brian he was dealing with. Nothing was ever for certain.

"Want to call it an early night?" Brian asked.

Justin knew this was Brian's version of a peace offering. He was also testing the waters to see if Justin was going to hold his position or lack thereof on this issue against him.

"Sure," Justin said with a grin. "But know that I meant what I said," he felt compelled to add.

Brian gave a slight tongue in cheek smirk and Justin knew that he fully understood.

-----

Hours later Brian was still awake. Justin slept peacefully beside him. He studied the boy carefully. He watched the gentle rise and fall of Justin's chest, the way his mouth hung slightly open, the sense of warmth and security that he emitted. Brian's hand caressed the side of Justin's face. The boy shifted in his sleep and sighed.

It was still somewhat of a mystery to Brian why Justin was here, why he stayed and put up with all Brian's shit, why he loved him. He always marveled at Justin's commitment to him. However, he was grateful for the boy's faith in him. He never wanted to let him down.

This whole Pink Posse thing was a colossal pain in the ass. Brian thought he knew what he was going to do about it, what he was going to say. And he had no intention of letting Justin blackmail him into siding with the Posse.

Something had been nagging at him ever since he had read that article that Cynthia had given him. There was something familiar about the whole thing but he couldn't put his finger on it. These vigilantes saw themselves as saviors, protectors, guardian angels. That was it. In the eighties, when he had been a teenager, he had read about this group in New York City who called themselves the Guardian Angels. They were a group of people who wore berets and rode the subways protecting the riders and scaring off potential criminals or bullies. He remembered now. He had even admired them for taking action.

Was the Pink Posse the same thing? He couldn't remember what had happened to the Guardian Angels. He thought some of them had been arrested, but he also thought the group had spread to other cities. He hadn't heard anything about them in years. He wondered whether they even existed anymore.

He knew he wasn't going to sleep any time soon so he slid out of bed and went to the computer. He typed in Guardian Angels and hit search.

Sure enough, they still existed. The red beret was the symbol of the group. He remembered that now. Apparently the Angels had become legitimized over the years and were now a credible volunteer organization found in schools, business and even homeland security. They also had an internet component called Cyberangels which scrutinized activities on the web. Curtis Sliwa who had founded the group in the Bronx had wanted to build self-esteem in his volunteers and make them proud members of their community. No weapons were allowed and volunteers never initiated trouble. They were there to help and protect. Brian ran off the pages of information.

He went back to bed where he studied Justin's sleeping profile a little longer. Finally he managed to get a couple of hours of sleep.

-----

When Brian arrived at the office the next day Cynthia informed him that he had two requests for interviews about the vigilante group.

"They sure as fuck don't waste any time," Brian said.

"I warned you."

"Set up a press conference for this afternoon."

"Are you sure?" Cynthia asked with a frown.

"I'm sure," Brian replied and he was.

Cynthia raised her eyebrows, but she went back to her desk to start arranging things.

At two pm. Brian entered the conference room that they used for press briefings. The room was not packed, but certainly full. Brian glanced around. He wondered how his statement would be received.

He cleared his throat and began. "I have had requests for interviews about the Pink Posse phenomenon. I can only assume that you think I have some inside information about them because I'm gay." That got the required chuckles. "Well, I don't have any connections with this group." He could say that honestly knowing that Justin had not joined, at least not yet.

"I do not condone vigilante activities." There was a little buzz at that statement. "But…" He waited to regain their attention. "I'm not sure if this group should be classified that way." Several reporters had their hands up and some called out questions.

Brian raised his hand. "Please let me finish." When the audience settled down he continued. "Most of you know that my partner, Justin Taylor, was the victim of a bashing … which I witnessed. In fact I took a baseball bat to the … culprit's knee. At that moment I wanted to stop him from escaping but I would have liked to use that bat on his head just like he used it on Justin's. I thought that justice would prevail and the basher would be punished. Instead, he got 500 hours of community service and Justin got brain damage and nightmares."

Brian could see the audience squirm. "The reason I'm bringing this up is because I want you to know, and I want the gay community to know, that I understand why the Pink Posse has come into existence. Some of you may remember the Guardian Angels from the 1980's. They came about for the same reason - in response to a feeling of powerlessness and a need to do something to improve their community. They had a very bad rap at the beginning. They were called thugs and vigilantes, until people gradually realized that they were safer riding the subways with the Angels there than they were without. The Angels never used weapons and they were never the instigators. If the Pink Posse adopts the same philosophy, I have no problem with them."

There were rumblings from the press. "But…" Brian silenced them. "I truly wish there was no need for such a group. That could be accomplished if the legal system would enforce the hate laws. In the case of gay bashings they are often bypassed and as a result the basher is charged with simple assault and gets off with a slap on the wrist. I'm calling on our police force and prosecutors to start putting some teeth into the hate laws. When this happens, we may no longer need the Pink Posse, but I won't be holding my breath."

The audience looked ready to explode. "I have one final thing to say," Brian added. "I checked on the Guardian Angels on the internet last night. They still exist and have evolved into a respected volunteer organization. I would have thought they would be long gone, but things don't change nearly as fast or as much as we might like."

And then the questions began.

-----

It was late and Brian was tired by the time he got home. He pulled back the door to the loft wondering what awaited him tonight.

He immediately found his arms full of Justin.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you," Justin said between kisses.

"What?" Brian asked appearing bewildered but smiling inside.

"I saw your press conference on the news," Justin grinned.

"Oh that? Did you approve?"

"I so approve. You did exactly what I hoped you would do. You're so smart."

"I thought you were the one with the 1500 SAT's."

"I am, but you're brilliant."

"Jesus, it's taken you long enough to figure that out," Brian said his tongue in cheek.

"I got it … and so did you." Brian raised an eyebrow implying he needed an explanation. "You listened to me and you understood … about the bashing, about how I was feeling, about why the Pink Posse is important."

"I was there too, Sunshine."

"I know. It was hard for both of us. Maybe what you said today can start to make some of it right."

Brian frowned. "Don't get your hopes up too much. Did you hear what I said about the Angels?"

Justin nodded. "They're still needed. I understand that we can't fix everything, but it was so important to me that you tried. You started something today."

"I hope so," Brian said still doubting how effective his speech would be.

"Come to bed and I'll show you how much I appreciate your efforts."

Brian leaned down and gave Justin a long, slow, excruciatingly sweet kiss. Then he dragged his blond twink up the steps to claim his reward.

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