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My head falls down onto the surface of the desk with a dull thunk. I am in need of three things, and three things only at the moment: a title for this chapter, a shower, and a massive dose of caffeine.
“MELANIE!” I yell, knowing where I can get a second opinion on the first of those concerns.
“What do you want, Kendra?” My roommate replies, sticking a ruffled head out of her bedroom, finger combing her hair. “Is that a new project for your English class? How is creative writing going by the way?”
Ugh, of course Mel would try to make this about school. For a fine arts major, she’s ridiculously dedicated. I swear, it’s insane how much time she spends in the studio at school. It seems like she’s out all night long. Not to mention her clumsiness. I never thought art was a dangerous gig, but she comes home with bruises all the time. I’d worry if she didn’t always seem so cheerful about it.
I guess I have no room to judge: Here I am, a creative writing major, doing creative writing during my spare time. But this is nothing I could ever submit for class…
“I need your help to come up with a title for the chapter I’ve been working on” I tell Mel, gesturing at the open laptop sitting in front of me.
“Hmmm, lemme see” she says, walking over. I turn the screen to her so she can read:
Frost leaned in closer, his cool breath fanning across her face. “Y’know Peregrine,I’m known for cooling things down, but what do you say that you and I… heat things up?” he said, a seductive smirk curling his mout…
Mel lets out a strange squeak, jerking back away from the screen. “Wha.. What is this?!” she asks, and I abruptly realize that I have never shared my hobby with my roommate.
“I guess I should’ve told you, in addition to my school work, I also practice story work by writing Peregrine and Frost Fanfiction” I say, and watch as Melanie turns a strange shade of purple-red.
“That’s a thing?” she squawks, staring wide-eyed toward my laptop “that people read?!” She sounds really scandalized, how did I not realize my roommate was such a prude? Geez, it’s not like she doesn’t have a boyfriend of her own. Tim seemed like a nice enough guy, though I wasn’t really sure how they’d ever crossed paths. Hmmm, maybe I shouldn’t have shown Melanie this… C’est la vie, I NEED to title this chapter.
“Yes, it’s a thing. Honestly Mel, we live in a city with superheroes, of course people are interested in it! And when people get interested in characters, they start writing about them! Do you not know how fanfiction works? Anyways, I need help coming up with a title for this chapter, what do you think of “Brain Freeze?”
Mel looks lost, but shakes her head and grabs her bag. “I don’t know what to say to that, sorry Kendra” she snatches her bag and makes for the door “I’m going to meet Tim, see you later!”
“Wait, Melanie!” I try, needing an opinion on the title, but she’s already out the door. Dang, she’s quick when she wants to be. Groaning, I head into my room to grab that shower, hoping the hot water and steam will give me some kind of epiphany on the subject. When that fails, I just pack up my bag and laptop and head to the best coffee shop on Harley street, ‘the Witches’ Brew’. It’s been heavily implied that at least one of the owners has the power of sorcery, but there’s really no way to find out for sure. I believe it though, their drinks are definitely magical.
I order my large latte and look around for a table. Gosh, the Brew is packed today, there are hardly any empty seats, much less tables. Honestly, the only place that looks reasonable is across from a dude in the back left corner. I set my shoulders and walk that direction. If I want a place to sit, looks like I’m going to have to make a new friend.
“Hi, would you be alright with it if I shared your table?” I ask, plastering a bright smile onto my face. The guy jerks bright green eyes up from the pile of papers in front of him, blinking bemusedly. His eyes widen and then dart away, color rising in his face and turning his cheeks a vibrant pink that clashes with his red hair.
“Y-yeah sure, if, if you want to” he mumbles quietly. I drag out the other chair, sitting down before pulling out my laptop. I retrieve my drink, then return to the table, opening my computer to get back to my personal project. Honestly, I shouldn’t be writing this right now, it’s not like I don’t have actual work to get done, but I’m struck with the Writer's’ Curse. When I have an idea like this, it just won’t go away until I write the dang thing.
I manage to bash out a few more pages, deciding to go with “An Ice Night” for the chapter title. I snicker quietly at the terrible pun, hoping it’ll get some laughs out of the people following this fic. That finished, I upload the new chapter, then open up one of the assignments I need to finish for my physics class. I quite like physics, it’s all just applied math. I’m much better at it than I am at bio: rote memorization has never been my style, so I’m very grateful to have Mel around to mooch biological knowledge off of. I swear, she could’ve been a doctor if she hadn’t wanted to be an artist.
The majority of the assignment gives me no trouble, entering the answers to the practice problems into the online server while scrawling my work into the notebook I’ve brought with me for this exact purpose. Every writer knows the value of keeping scratch paper at hand, so I usually carry at least one notebook around in my backpack. Mel’s similar, always having a sketchbook on her person somewhere. Though now that I think about it, never that red and white one, it’s always on her desk… huh, wonder why that is.
That tangent of thought leaves me however, as I come to final problem of the assignment. Eyes widening in dismay, I stare in horror at this monster of an equation I’m expected to solve. Attempting to steel myself for this, I throw back the last of my latte, but in doing so, I notice the papers that the guy who’s table I’ve commandeered is working on. Notably, that one of them is the printed version of the exact physics assignment I’m doing. And he’s already done the final problem!
“Dude!” I say, hastily stifling a laugh as he jumped nearly a foot in his seat. Those green eyes meet mine, fleetingly. “You’re in Doctor Alvarez’s Physics class too?”
“Yes, I love his class! I… don’t think I’ve seen you before? Are you in the afternoon section?” he asks, stuttering slightly over the first word.
“Yeah, I am” I smile in return. “Hey, is there any chance you could help me out with problem 16? I ask, hoping that I wouldn’t have to put the what-will-be-hours of work into this that it’ll take if he doesn’t help. Suddenly the discomfort in his posture melts away, a glowing smile appearing on his face.
“I’d be delighted to help you!’ He exclaimed, sitting up and pulling my notebook over to his side of the table. “So, you just have to reconfigure the integral…”
A few minutes and a lot of division later, we’re finished, and have managed to make each other laugh over jokes about various professors. He introduces himself as “Inias”, and we exchange majors.
“So, mechanical engineering,” I comment, peering over my laptop at the schematics he has in front of him now that we’ve put the physics homework away. “Is that what those blueprints are for?”
“Um, not exactly,” Inias mumbles, rubbing at the back of his neck with a slightly sheepish smile. “These are more for my… hobby”, he says, although his inflection on the last word makes it seem almost like a question.
“Sweet dude, what’s your hobby?” I ask excitedly, “It’s neat to find someone else whose hobbies are so correlated with their career goals. My roommate constantly asks if I’m doing class work when I’m just goofing off” I laugh, rolling my eyes.
He laughs as well, looking ever so slightly nervous as he slides the blueprints over to my side of the table. Looking at them more closely, I can now see they’re the design specs for a… pair of boots?
“I’m a big sci-fi fan, so… I use what I learn in ME classes to try and make weapons and tools that are out of this world. Case in point are those rocket boots” he says, a flush spreading across his face and staining the tips of his ears a brilliant red. “Seems like it evens the playing field a little, with all these people in Beldegard suddenly becoming superhuman.”
“That’s awesome dude!” I enthuse, and he looks up at me in surprise. A sharp pang of sympathy shoots through me at his bafflement: I get what it feels like to have people be disinterested by your hobbies at best, and repelled by them at worst. I usually live in a happy medium with the folks that really matter, though I do worry that’ll change after Mel’s reaction to my fic-writing. We really do need to have a talk about that. “Have you considered designing, like… specific stuff for the heroes to use when fighting the bad guys?” I ask, trying to keep this topic of conversation going, and figure I’ve taken the right tact when Inias lights up like a kid on Christmas. I get comfortable in my chair as he launches into a spiel about his ideas.
***
“We spent a while trading ideas back and forth, beginning with weapons and eventually devolving into super-villain story lines and schemes. God, Mel, I don’t know if I’ve had that much fun in ages!”
“That’s awesome Kendra! I’m so happy you made a new friend! Gee, why didn’t you tell me about this guy sooner?” Mel says, a bright smile on her face. It dims abruptly, as her cheeks gain a pink tinge. “Um, did you two talk at all about that… thing you asked me about?”
Seeing the opportunity to make my dear roommate squirm a little, I plaster on an innocent smile. “Thing?” I ask, as much saccharine as I can inject into my tone.
“You know”, Mel replies, eyes narrowing even as her blush darkens. “You know exactly what I’m referring to Kendra, don’t play dumb. That… thing you were writing. About Peregrine and... Frost.”
“Oh relax Mel”, I reply, rolling my eyes. “It’s not like there’s no relationship between those two. He came to the light side for her! There’s clearly something going on!”
“That doesn’t mean they’re together!” she hisses back. I don’t know why she’s reacting so strongly to this, but man is it fun.
“C’mon Mel, lots of people read and write fanfiction!”
“Yeah I know Kendra plenty of folks write about like, Harry Potter, sure, but these are real people! You’re invading their privacy by making this stuff!” Mel exclaimed, yanking her phone out of her pocket as it sounded a text message.
“It’s not like it’s really about them, Mel, not like I know anything about the person behind the mask! Just the way they appear together in public. First when they were fighting against each other, and now fighting with each other. It’s the characters of Peregrine and Frost, not the people.” I explain, and notice that the tension drains out of Mel’s shoulders as she reads the message off her phone. She sighs, before giving me a brief nod.
“Fine, write what you want. Just please, don’t ask me to read it again. I don’t… mind, but it still makes me a little uncomfortable. Now, will you help me clean up the living room? Tim’s coming by, and I’d like for you two to meet each other.”
“Ah, your mystery man! I look forward to finally meeting him, I’d begun to suspect you were making him up” I teased, gathering up my stuff from the living room and moved it to my room before pulling out the vacuum. I run it quickly over the rug, and organize Mel and my extensive collection of pillows and blankets on the couch. I’m barely finished putting the vacuum away when a knock sounds at the door. Mel dashes over and pulls the door open. I turn around to find myself staring at one the most beautiful male specimens I’ve ever laid eyes on. Yeesh, where on campus did Mel find a hottie like this dude!
“Hi, you must be Kendra. I’m Tim”, tall dark and dreamy says, extending a hand to shake. I take it, but barely resist tearing my hand back since good night this guy’s hands are freezing. Boy needs to hold hands with Mel more often, maybe it’d save him from his poor circulation.
“Kendra!” It takes Mel screeching for me to realize I had said that aloud, but Tim just starts laughing.
“It’s fine, Melanie, I certainly don’t disagree with her”, he snickers, reaching out and pulling my roommate's hand toward him, kissing the back. Like some 18th century gentleman. Where the hell did these two meet.
“So, Tim, what’s your major?” I ask, trying to solve this new mystery.
“Ah, engineering”, he says, a small smile developing on his face. But it drops abruptly, as his gaze catches on the TV that had been playing, muted, in the corner. “Melanie” he says quietly, snatching up the remote and turning the volume on.
“-ew player has appeared downtown, a new super operating under the alias “Anti-Hero”. Powerbolt and Captain Crush are on the scene, but this new character has weapons allowing him to counteract both of them. While neither the VOBS nor the HOBS has made a statement, we can only assume that Anti-Hero’s actions will have him entering into the former.”
I don’t even notice Mel and Tim running into her bed room, too busy feeling petrified. Because I know that name, I know those weapons, and I know who’s behind that mask.
***
Dashing into the museum, “Anti-Hero’s” current target, I stumble past the unconscious forms of assorted superheroes. On my way, I spot the mentioned Captain Crush (stuck against the wall with some form of sticky fluid), and Powerbolt has her hands encased in something that looks an awful lot like rubber cement. I stop my staring at the downed heroes and speed up as I hear shouting up ahead.
I burst into the central atrium to find “Anti-hero” facing off against Peregrine and Frost.
“Why don’t you two love birds cool off!” he shouts, in an all-too-familiar voice, before pointing his gun at where the two of them have gotten close together in their maneuvering. A net of cold-resistant material shoots from the end, tangling them together, before releasing an electric shock that puts both of them out.
“Inias!” I shout, and my suspicions are confirmed when “Anti-Hero” spins around, surprise making his green eyes widen enormously before a shy smile appears on his lips.
“K-Kenda!” he cries,in a tone of delighted surprise. “I, I wasn’t expecting you to be here!”
I stare around in slightly numb disbelief at all of the knocked out supers scattered through the room. All at the hand of that gun in his hands. The one I came up with the idea for.
“Why…. what are you doing, Inias? What is all of this?”
He came towards me, apparently not noticing the mounting tension in my shoulders. “Isn’t it incredible? Just like we came up with in the coffee shop the other day! The perfect weapon, that can counteract any powers it opposes.”
“Yeah, I… wasn’t actually, you know, expecting you to use those ideas we came up with.” I say, a slightly weak smile spreading across my face as I wonder exactly what sort of person I’d been flirting with in that coffee shop. And what exactly he’d do if I didn’t seem in favor of this.
“I wasn’t’ sure it would work either, but it did! With this, we can be unstoppable!” he says excitedly, practically bouncing on the heels of his feet in a way I’m struggling to categorize as “manic” as opposed to “adorable”
“We?” I ask, quietly, a wave of something sweeping through me. I try to pretend it’s anxiety, but I always was bad at lying to myself… and I know anticipation when I feel it.
“Yeah! I mean, only if you want to, of course!” he corrects himself quickly, pulling off the mask we’d designed together to reveal the flush spreading across his face and turning the tips of his ears bright red. “I actually came to the museum with the intent of making a statement, and maybe grabbing one of the Wallace manuscripts that are on display right now. You said she was your favorite, so I thought it would be a nice gift.”
Anticipation turns to warmth, and I can’t help the smile blooming on my face. “But, why?” I ask, as confusion mingles with the happiness. What on earth did my favorite author have to do with any of this.
“You’re the most brilliant woman I’ve ever met Kendra, and… I think I like you a lot” Inias responds earnestly, cheeks now stained a vibrant crimson. “I, I wanted to ask you if you’d be my… p-partner in crime, so to speak? Both literally, and… f-figuratively. Kendra, I-I would l-love to design a gun of your own... m-maybe over dinner?” he manages to stutter out, looking like nothing so much as an excited, though bashful, puppy.
Excitement and worry in equal measure sweep over me, before remembering how things work in Beldegard. It’s not like we’d go to jail or anything, just be assigned some heroes to do battle against. Heroes who we could clearly hold our own against, if Inias’ performance today is anything to judge on.
“I… I think I would like that a lot, Inias” I say, and a look of glee appears on his face. Maybe, I think, being a villain of sorts would be fun. Not half bad at all. And maybe, I’ll even pull on Peregrine on my sweet and adorable Anti-Hero…. Be villains for a while, and then make a change. It’ll certainly keep things interesting.
Interesting indeed.