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-1
Tony could barely comprehend it.
It had been no more than an hour since he had asked his crush out on a date—less than an hour!—and now, here he was, staring at her clad head to toe in spandex. Maskless and raging, she had turned around, obviously not expecting to see him there. Her anger dissipated in a second, transforming into awkward embarrassment. The stuttered apologies were lost in the crowd as Tony immediately stumbled backwards, running away.
Now, he was well aware that he should not have run. Violet wasn't at fault here. It wasn't her fault that she was a super. It wasn't her fault that supers were illegal. Heck, it wasn't even her fault that she was out there battling the Underminer! From what he'd gleaned, it appeared to be a family affair.
In his defense, it also wasn't everyday that you find out your date is a secret superhero. Shock was a natural first response. So was a hasty retreat. At least, that's what he kept telling himself. Especially in that situation, where a crazed supervillain could harm you at any moment! That would be his excuse later.
He hoped there would be a later.
He really liked Violet! The more he thought about it, the more he wanted to go back. Apologize. Promise to keep her secret. Ask if she still wanted to go out on Friday. Beg to stay friends, if nothing else.
When the action seemed to have died down, she wasn't where he had last seen her. He hung around the stadium for a little while, in hopes she would return. She didn't. He was about to resign himself to heading home when a van pulled up to him. Not ominous at all. He quickly strode away, not eager to be kidnapped today.
“Tony Rydinger?”
He froze as an older man rolled down his window, staring at Tony. Unimpressed expression, formal attire, tired eyes. He knows my name? The man stepped out of the van, looming over Tony, despite his hunch.
“My name is Agent Dicker. I'll need you to come with me.”
0
He didn't know Violet Parr.
There were snippets of memories here and there. Innocuous things, really. She used to be shy and almost... invisible. He had noticed her a bit more recently. They shared a couple classes. She was a good student. Attentive. Still quiet. Kinda a bookworm. Hung out with that awkward girl, Carrie. (Kari? Karen? Something like that.) Then, there was the one time her family came into the diner and she spewed water from her nose. They laughed about that now.
They were friends now. Since she had approached him, with a strange sort of confidence, saying he didn't know her. It was true, he hadn't. Not at the time.
Now, though? Now, he did know Violet Parr. Almost everything about her. They were close.
She liked movies. Her parents worked for the government. They moved houses a lot, due to their jobs. She appreciated strong female role models, like Elastigirl. Her favourite thing was escaping into other worlds via books. Justice was important to her. Super rights were too. She had a shy laugh that Tony liked. A lot.
He had a crush on her and he was 99% sure it was reciprocated. She had asked him to go to the movies with her. He said yes.
Tomorrow was their first date. His smile never wavered.
1
“I'll be back before the trailers are over!”
Tony was quizzical as his girlfriend (maybe girlfriend? He wasn't entirely sure yet.) and her family zoomed away down the street. He looked down at the money in his palm. Hm. He fingered the coins, letting the cool metal gain warmth in his hand. He looked at the theatre, then at where the car had headed, and the theatre again. He shook his head, shoving the money into his pocket and jogging down the sidewalk. He would be back before the trailers were over too.
He slowed when he was nearly a block away from the theatre. What am I doing? He should be back at the movies, buying popcorn and drinks and saving a seat for Violet next to him. What was it about her that made him want to chase after her?
Before he could turn around, he noticed her.
A girl—she couldn't be much older than him—in a bright red supersuit, chasing an apparent robber up the street. He watched in utter awe as, with a flick of her wrist, a force field captured the man. He collided with the solid bubble, falling back to the concrete, seemingly passed out. She smiled at her work. Tony's heart skipped a beat at that smile.
She noticed him at that point. He must've startled her because she disappeared. Literally disappeared. She didn't run away or crouch down to hide; her entire body simply... vanished. It was as though she evaporated, as water did into the air.
Tony raced back to the theatre, managed to arrive moments before Violet. He beamed at her, taking her hand in his own and exclaiming, “You'll never guess what I just saw!”
2
The next time he saw her, it was at the mall. He had been eating lunch with some friends when a supervillain (Bomb Voyage?) was throwing bombs around all willy-nilly. He darted towards the exit, tripping over a chair as he ran. He tried—so hard, he tried—to get up before more explosives were tossed, but he could hear screaming and one of his friends yelling his name and he knew it was too late. He squeezed his eyes shut tightly. If I die here, I hope Violet knows how much I like her...
The explosion was muffled and he felt no pain. One eye opening slowly, he could see black boots and red spandex in front of him in a defensive position. It was her! It was the girl he had seen before his date with Violet! The super!
She had encased the bomb in a force field, protecting him from destruction. The force of the blast took a toll on her it seemed, as she squeezed her eyes shut in pain, forcing herself to stay standing. Tony watched in awe as she created a new force field, this time around the villain. He cursed loudly when the bombs he had just thrown flew back at him.
She smirked, saying, “Well, there's a prison cell with your name on it, Bomb Voyage.”
The terrorist grumbled as the super dropped her force field just in time for the police to apprehend him. She said a few words to the officers that Tony couldn't quite hear. He was about to stand, to thank her for saving his life, and he stared at the space she had been moments before.
She had vanished yet again.
3
Tony was determined to thank this mysterious super. He kept seeing her—outside the bank, at the park, on a rooftop, always protecting the innocent—and had yet to have a conversation with her. He didn't even know her name.
“I just wish I could thank her,” he said, as he lay with his head in Violet's lap, her slender fingers grazing through his hair. “She saved my life.”
“I'm sure she knows,” Violet replied, but Tony wasn't satisfied with that. He needed to tell her. Face to face, verbally express his gratitude.
The next day, he saw her again; there didn't appear to be a crime scene or impending danger, yet there she was, surveying the park. This time, she noticed him. She didn't disappear.
“Thank you,” he said dumbly. She smiled politely, cocking her head inquisitively. He elaborated, “You saved my life. At the mall. Bon Voyage?”
“Bomb Voyage,” she corrected gently, “and I think I remember you.” She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “No thanks necessary. It's my job. I like doing it.”
“Still.” Tony took a hesitant step forward. He didn't want her to disappear again. “What's your name?”
Her eyes widened. “My name?”
“Yeah. I mean, I just want to be able to say who my favourite superhero is,” he said, cheeks heating with embarrassment, looking at his shoes.
“Uh, I'm, uh... I'm invisi... girl,” she replied awkwardly, fiddling with her gloves.
“Invisigirl?” he asked. “Like, Elastigirl?”
“Yeah! She's my mo—um!” Invisigirl—it was so nice to have a name to go with the face—stammered, coughing and clearing her throat and restating, “She's my mentor. That's it.”
“Well. Invisigirl,” Tony said, stretching out his hand with a grin, “I'm Tony. Thank you for everything.”
Invisigirl shook his hand with a shy smile. “You're welcome, Tony.” They stood for another moment, before she glanced away. “I need to go, but... I'm glad you're okay.”
Tony watched as she vanished into thin air once again, this time with a lifting sensation in his chest.
4
He was working the next time he saw her. He had just brought food to a booth of rambunctious theatre kids when a gunshot rang out. He jumped in shock, spinning to see a masked man at the door, wielding a handgun and a large sack. The gun had been fired at the ceiling, but it was clear that he wasn't afraid of shooting a person. He beelined for Tony, grabbing him by the collar. Tony's breath was quick, holding his hands up in surrender.
“Show me where you keep the money and I'll let everyone live,” the gunman spat, saliva sprinkling Tony's cheeks. Tony couldn't nod fast enough, thinking about Violet, who was sitting in the back room, waiting for his shift to be over. He couldn't let her get hurt.
“How about you drop the gun, sir? You might hurt yourself.” Tony's eyes lit up as he saw Invisigirl, standing heroically by the door. “Is there a child lock on that thing? Geez.”
The criminal aimed his gun at her before she could say more—but not before she could conjure a force field around his hand that held the pistol. He didn't fire, grunting angrily as he realized what she had done. If he fired now, the bullet wouldn't go anywhere, only causing the gun to explode, injuring himself in the process.
“How about you drop that waiter and let me take you into custody?” Invisigirl suggested, stepping closer. “It'd be easier than fighting at this point.”
Tony was released and the police were called. He watched Invisigirl detain the man, keeping him from harming anyone. She caught Tony's eye at one point and grinned at him. He gave her a shy wave, turning away before she could see his reddening cheeks. It was then that he was struck by a sudden realization.
He had a crush on Invisigirl.
5
He felt awful. He was in a relationship! Sure, having a crush on a super who had saved his life (twice, now!) wasn't exactly cheating on Violet, but it felt dirty. Wrong. Especially since he was fairly certain he still really really liked Violet?
Maybe it would pass.
He told himself it would—and he kept saying it for weeks. It would pass. It would. It was a silly crush—an infatuation due to her preventing his untimely death—and it would pass.
The next time was on his way to school. He was tired, walking sluggishly along the sidewalk. It was too early and he was yawning and not really paying attention and—
Someone shoved him aside.
He blinked at the car that had nearly crushed him against the building. He was definitely awake now. He looked up to see Invisigirl on top of him.
“You okay?” she asked, standing up and helping him to his feet as well. “You're luckily I was patrolling nearby and saw that runway car.”
“I have a crush on you!” Tony didn't realize he had blurted it out until he did and suddenly he was vomiting out all of his thoughts. “I have a crush on you but I'm in a relationship—a really great relationship!—but I can't help it? You're so cool and strong and brave and nice and—and—incredible! I feel like I'm cheating on my girlfriend for even thinking it though and I don't know what to do!”
She blinked, then burst into peals of laughter. Really cute laughter. He was in big trouble.
“Tony...” she said, taking his hands in her own. “Trust me when I say you are definitely not cheating on your girlfriend.” She examined his expression, smiling. “I can't say more now, but... maybe you should ask Violet later. She might give you some interesting insight.”
“Okay,” he said dumbly. Then his brow furrowed. “Wait, how do you know my girlfriend's name is Violet?”
But she was gone.
+1
Tony Rydinger smiled as he saw his wife's face appear on the news.
“Invisigirl! Why haven't we seen you as often?”
Violet's eyes sparkled, looking at the reporter with a smile. “Ah, I just had some downtime to spend with family.” She looked into the camera and Tony knew that look was meant for him. “They mean a lot to me.”
“You have a family?”
“Of course,” Violet laughed. That perfect cute laughter. “I don't think I could do this without them.”
He beamed, so proud of the woman he married. He couldn't believe, only a few years ago he thought that Invisigirl and Violet Parr (now, Rydinger) were different people. As soon as Violet had revealed it to him, it made so much sense. Of course, they were the same person! How could there be two girls like her? She was truly one of a kind.
And he was proud to be the husband of the one and only Violet. Or Invisigirl—whatever you wanted to call her. She was his, he was hers, and he couldn't be happier.