Do you ever imagine any of Jinx's other former teammates switching sides too? I do like the idea of Mammoth at least turning neutral (MAYBE joining the Titans) since he seemed the most hurt by Jinx's changing sides. Maybe Jinx is able to reach him to help him at least give up crime. Besides, the joke of Mammoth actually paying for food is pretty funny. It being a sign he's not as bad as other villains is cute.
so i briefly touched upon this a short while ago here but i'll try to explain a bit more thoroughly. in which i already did write paragraphs hours ago but Tumblr app sucks so much i changed tabs for one second and it refreshes the page and i have to rewrite the whole thing again SMFH i'll keep it shorter.
anywho, personally, and in my AU too i prefer for the remaining HIVE to stay villainous on their own terms, or at least unaffiliated with anyone.
mostly because, and this is just how i view it, Jinx and remaining HIVE5 are different approaches to dealing with trauma.
not everyone wants to take the first daring step, improve on themselves, heal, and be a better person. some just choose to stay the same because they're more comfortable with what they already know and have, and some others start anew and repress the bad things. (and two latters are "fine" as long as they're not hurting anyone, which HIVE is doing because they're a bunch of bullies who likes having power over people lol)
one can only imagine what they went through in the academy: being severely punished for not sticking a landing, being told what to do by some old geezers, cult-like activity shenanigans, and a toxic environment.
i can understand why Billy was so opposed and actively dismissed the idea of working under BoE like Jinx proposed in Lightspeed. they'd have to do the same thing again under some new management? please. and i'm imagining myself in those delinquents' shoes, what if they chose to be part of the good guys instead? eh, it feels like another toll taken; with other taxing stuff to deal with i wouldn't wanna bother.
becoming a Titan means you have to answer to authorities like cops, do your time, take responsibility, restrain yourself, and help others. for a group of misfits who finally taste freedom, that sounds like a bad deal lol. (my AU's Pied Piper is in similar situation, but more so because he's anti-cop than anything.)
rather rob a candy store or the local art exhibit and scam people with counterfeits, who cares about some world domination? or saving the world? sounds like a lot of work and trouble to get mixed up in.
(as seen in issue #49 when asked about who'd be part of the Fearsome Five, particular details being See-more, Billy, and Kyd didn't raise their hands. i headcanon the reason is the very same reason as in Lightspeed + last time they decided to get tied with BoE it blew up on their faces regardless.)
however, because of these temporary highs and playing "safe" (to their standards), the HIVE5 are seemingly aimless in what they're doing.
they have no leader(s) with a clear motives or goals anymore, which they used to have in their headmaster or Jinx or briefly BoE, now its as if they're school dropouts who don't know what to do years down the line but don't even bother with the idea of potentially doing stuff that takes too much work and isn't fun for them. resorting to just doing criminal stuff for the love of the game, at times even seen not as a team but alone by themselves.
and so i can definitely imagine some of them choosing to retire instead.
they can't be kids forever, they'll have to grow up and look back at some point. leaving the hero vs villain world and being a normal civilian under a new identity to make ends meet, perhaps. repressing the trauma they had back in HIVE and staying off the grid like what Terra is doing.
its a more likely outcome to me than changing sides entirely or choosing to stay in hiding and be busy with their LAN server gaming party until they get that spark back lol.
i always believed Jinx, and even HIVE5, always had a choice to change their lives if they wanted. didn't need some charming hero to swoop in and take care of their problems, really; if anything it shows one's dedication and willingness to change and improve if they're willing to work hard on themselves if it's to have a good, much preferable future.
initially for her own self-worth, Jinx still took those potential hurdles and worked on herself to be good about herself and later for others too; her ex-allies, however, chose not to.
Jinx chose to change sides because she's an overachiever with big dreams and internalized insecurities of wanting to have purpose in life. (as shown in Lightspeed, her wants was to be respected and to feel she's enough and worthwhile, and later in issue #43 seemingly proven herself to not be useless by being an intellegence and double-agent), she's the type to want to work her way up and be proud of herself and not stand still and have others drag her down.
the remaining HIVEs, at least her ex-allies, despite needing a leader don't share that ideology.
and its not something out of pocket, its how those boys choose to cope with their predicaments after HIVE, enjoying freedom while it lasts.
now as for Mammoth, i can imagine him being neutral or grey, as he did forward the invitation intended for Gizmo and him to Jinx instead. (albeit to convince her to come back)
he definitely has the heart, even if he chooses to stay misguided for now. though in my AU, what prevents him from turning a new leaf entirely is his long-lost twin sister, Shimmer, a character that would replace Jinx's role as the later called Neo-HIVE FIVE leader haha.
