Holding Out for Heroes
Warren's eyes opened slowly. "Ow" he wheezed.
"Oh good, you're awake" a nurse said. She was just in view, Warren blinked rapidly to see her. "You're in Dove Memorial Super Hospital" she said carefully as she did – something – the nausea and aches were distracting the majority of Warrens focus. "You were brought in on Friday evening – Now – what's your name?"
"Warren Peace"
"Okay and how many fingers?"
"Three"
"Excellent – okay so, you rest here while I get the doctor"
Warren nodded and yawned. He felt strangely light and happy. Yup, that'd be the drugs.
"You up hotstuff?"
A snowball hit Warren on the nose. He opened his eyes. Eddy beamed at him. Natalie and Spencer were at the door. "So – what's the story?" Natalie grinned. "We got worried – you missed two days of Hero Torture. We got Penny, Gail and Corey all in a row – thanks to the pudding launcher that is"
"You know – Corey's been sniffing around your friend Layla – she didn't seem to annoyed when we doused him in pudding" Spencer said in his quiet voice. He was dressed in black and grey as always and fading into the background – shutting himself off from the world somehow.
"How are you?" Eddy asked gently
"I feel like I was hit by a bus"
"You look it too love" sighed Natalie. "No offense"
Warren laughed and winced at the shooting pain in his ribs. "Uh – I'd imagine as much…ow…how'd I get here?"
"Neela Narjami and Will Stronghold got you in here on Friday night" Eddy said meaningfully. "Your house got pretty badly burned. And several holes were left in it…what happened?"
"…nothing…" Warren mumbled.
"Are you sure?" Spencer said, walking forwards and looking Warren in the eye with his grey pupils. "There's something you're not telling us…who did this?"
Warren shook his head. "I can't tell you – there's nothing you could do anyway…"
Natalie shook her head. "We're stronger than we look – trust me"
"There's nothing to be done – but – thanks for offering"
There was a knock at the door. Will stood in the doorway – Spencer glanced at him coldly and put a bundle of magazines on the bedside cabinet. "We've got to get to practice. Principal Powers nominated Natalie as the singer for the Farewell Party so we're under pressure – if we make the cut we earn a get out of detention free card" Spencer said.
"Band Manager, keyboard player and lead singer" smiled Natalie indicating Spencer, Eddy and then herself. "We'll catch you on the flipside" she winked at him and headed out the door.
She looked at Will as she passed him by, her blue-green eyes flickered with an electric volt of silver and set his hair on end. She used her powers again and it fell straight down.
Eddy sighed. "Listen – I'll see you around" he headed to the door to catch up with his comrades. Will watched them leave and looked at Warren.
The firestarter looked away. "Thanks for helping me" he said slowly.
"Why wouldn't I?" Will said. He stood near Warren's arm, fighting the urge to touch the soft skin. "I mean – it's – I'd do it for – for any friend"
Warren looked up at Will slowly. "I treated you – badly…I'm sorry"
"I…it hurt…I tried to find other guys but -"
"I don't want to talk about this- please – I didn't mean to screw up our friendship"
"I did that…"
Warren and Will's eyes met. Warren couldn't stop staring into the blue eyes of the young Stronghold. "I'm sorry. Can we be friends again?"
Will nodded, disappointment clear on his face, try as he did to mask it. "Do you want anything?"
"Nah – I'm okay"
"The others are here…if you don't want to see them…"
"No I do…could you tell them I want to see them?"
"Yeah" nodded Will. He left Warren alone to mull things over and – think.
"Spencer!"
Spencer Zeikker didn't seem stuck for words at any time – he was always ready with a barb, quip or comment. But the sight of his sister froze him, caught him completely off guard.
"Myra" he said.
"No I'm Corey Timmons" she muttered. "You haven't been around – where've you been?"
"School, you see me"
Myra stalked towards him with the other "Little Heroes" behind her Zach, Ethan etc. "Yes and you see me and avoid me fast as lightening!"
"I have my reasons…"
"You are infuriating!" she growled. "I'm your sister and you ignore me!"
"It was never my choice..."
"Yes it was, grandpa and grandma-"
"Can make my life hell" Spencer shook his head. "I have to go…bye" he turned and walked away. Will looked at Myra who's eyes seemed a little misty but who maintained a cold composure.
"Are you-?" Layla began.
"Yes – now how's Warren?" she said with a tight sound in her voice.
Warren looked up – Eddy was in the door. "I doubled back – Spencer and Myra are having a talk…that should distract everyone"
"What's their deal?" Warren smiled as the white clad boy sat down at the foot of his bed. "Sibling rivalry?"
"Far from it! It's complicated…listen sometimes life throws the perfect person your way. You get confused, it's like a jalapino pepper – you take a bite and for a second its nothing and then the heatwave rises like a tsunami and you're swept away. You can try to ride it out – follow it…or you can run and get crushed…"
Warren raised an eyebrow. "You're making no sense" he said with a slight smile. The fact was that Eddy was making a certain type of sense that frightened him.
"If you fight it, it'll crush you – don't let that happen. You and Will…" Warren shifted uneasily and Eddy frowned. "Don't pretend its not true, he saved you, he looked after you, he came here every day after school…sometimes before and then he flew to school…listen to me! You and Will – it's love"
Warren could feel the memories clawing at him. "I destroy everything I get close to! I'm fire"
"Oh get over yourself!" Eddy grunted. "If you don't let the Invulnerable guy in then who can you? Just – accept it. You're in love with a guy!" Eddy looked at his hands. "Like me…"
Warren's eyes bugged. "You're…gay?"
"yeah – and in love with a person I can never have…you can be with Will" Eddy glanced over his shoulder. "Who's on his way – so just – don't be afraid to take a leap – he won't hurt you on purpose."
Eddy rose and left – Warren sat in silence, smiling when the others came in well letting his lips curl a little which was a Warren Peace smile. He sat there – talked and smiled, tried not to keep sneaking peeks at Will.
When they left he lay in his bed – and thought about things.
Like Will.
And how his heart thundered when he thought about Will.
Speed and Lash. Zach froze, he watched as Lash nursed his bandaged arm. It looked like he was hiding bruises…could an eleastic guy get bruised? "Catch you guys later" muttered Zach.
Madge watched him leave and then followed. She had a feeling her ex was going through something – she didn't know what but she wanted to help him. Though she hated to admit it, Zach was sweetly likeable.
Plus he'd gotten a plus 3 on the cuteness factor since toning down the rapper talk.
Zach was following Lash and Speed at a modest distance, right to the apartment building. Zach looked around, it was a quiet area, there were high trees all around. He focused – two years and he still couldn't get it right…with utmost focus he grasped the drainpipe and shot upwards on it using his light field for propulsion.
He swung onto a balcony where he could see Speed and Lash. "Come on baby I took you to the hospital…you should thank me…"
"Speed – you – you burned my arm on the school furnace…"
"Hey baby – if you'd not been struggling so much it'd never have happened. It was your own fault – I'm the only one who loves you – remember?" the malicious tone crept into his voice. "Or would you like to go back to your outside of school job, back to the bedsit? Huh?"
"N-No Speed. Sorry, I oew you and your…your dad so much…I'm sorry"
"Good – now let's get playing"
"Speed – I…"
Speed roughly shoved the boy onto the bed. "I wanna play the leash game…"
"No – that hurts too much – please!" the panic was too much. The green energy rose around him in a crackling nimbus. "Plea –augh!" the steel band with a leather tie wrapped around Lash's neck. The boy sobbed, and tried to fight Speed off but he was unable to – for some reason he wouldn't use his powers.
The window exploded as the energy pulse from Zach's chest blew the balcony doors open. "Let him go"
Speed hurried to zip his pants back up. "What the hell are you doing here?"
"I won't let you hurt him anymore!" snapped Zach. "It's totally uncool!"
Speed rushed at Zach – Zach acted fast – the light pulse absorbed the impact for him so he only stumbled back. Zach focused, this was really serious – he pointed at Speed and a haze of energy burst forth, Zach released a powerful blast as he became a torch of light.
The pulses of light energy hit Speed but the super recovery of the young man let him charge at Zach suddenly. Zach crashed backwards into the cupboard. He threw an energy wave at Speed and knocked him trough a door.
"He's mine!" screamed Speed.
"He's, like…not property you freak" Zach said. He glowed, the image of himself launched at Speed and knocked him into the hall. Zach hurried and grabbed Lash, he used a small energy pulse to snap the lock and clasp on the collar, as he untied the cord he examined the whimpering boy.
Speed gave a shout and charged at Zach. The Cheetah pounced on him and knocked him down. The purple fur was a dead giveaway.
"Majenta?"
Majenta became human again. "Let's go Mr White Knight"
Zach held Lash like a delicate treasyre in his arms. He destroyed the balcony and dropped – he focused, the light energy glowed at his feet and slowed his descent. He landed – Majenta morphed back to normal from her eagle form. "Let's go" she said hurriedly, glancing up at the balcony where Speed stood angrily. "You – heroic…moron" she added.
Zach looked down at Lash who was sobbing into his green Hawaiian shirt. "Yeah – back to the hospital…"
Corey was at Layla's wall. "Here's your chance" hummed Will. "He's here to ask you out!" Layla glanced at Corey and shrugged.
"He's kinda cute"
"Believe me, physiology is no problem to him" sighed Will. "He's your dream man if you specify it just right…"
"I suppose" Layla glanced at the boy who's cool car was parked just a few paces ahead. "But – won't it be awkward if you're here…Will?"
Will Stronghold had just run past Corey and entered his home. Layla walked towards Corey. He beamed at her.
"Hey" he smiled. "Uh – I asked around for your address – I didn't think you were home so I just waited…gave me time to rehearse"
"What?" Layla asked, cocking her head to one side…Corey had nice white teeth.
"Well…I was wondering if you'd like to go to a concert with me. The Star Spangled Six Shooters are playing downtown and I thought that: "Layla has a poster so maybe she'd like to come with me". So would you?"
Layla smiled, nearby three tulips bloomed and turned luminous red, glowing in the falling dusk light like beacons. "I guess so. I love the Six Shooters"
"Great…uh…great – yeah…so – I'll pick you up at 7 on Saturday?"
"Seven it is - okay" Layla smiled, giving a little bounce. Corey headed for his car, smiling like an idiot. Layla waved him off. She glanced up; the trees were telling her to check for Will. Sure enough he was there, in the biggest tree in her lawn. "I assume you heard that Mr. Eavesdropper"
"Eavesdropping? Why I was simply - - eh - - pruning"
Two days later…
Natalie read over the sheet music, her narrow glasses perched on her nose. "…I like to make you feel…" she hummed. "Spencer? Where are the other two?"
"Jack and Shelley are tuning up, he nearly sat on her violin again"
Jack Stokes and Shelley Redstar were in their first year of college, Jack was Natalie's cousin and the drummer of the band. Shelley played the electric violin.
They were former students of Sky High. Jack was able to create a gravity vortex and Shelley had superhuman hearing that gave her perfect pitch so she could put her voice to the ideal note in order to shatter glass or knock people off balance – she even had sonar.
The last member of the band was Eddy but he wasn't around and his keyboard was being unpacked by Spencer. "Great – clumsy nitwit" Natalie sighed. She looked at Spencer who was rubbing his forehead. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah - fine" Spencer said. "Just a migraine…"
"You've been having them more and more frequently"
"It's nothing…they go away when I de-stress so we'll prank a few heroes at school and I'll be ay-okay"
"If you say so" Natalie said. She took her guitar from the stand and looked at Spencer again. "But let's not pretend everything's peachy, kay?"
"it never is" Spencer muttered. He was swirling the two silver metallicstress balls in his hands subconsciously as he sifted through some sheet music subconsciously. They'd been a birthday gift from his sister...he didn't normally use them unless he felta headache coming on, though most people knew to stand clear of him in school if he had them out. It was a clear sign his temper was short.
They were a ragtag band, thrown together by fate. They'd united a week before beginning Sky High when things got ugly. They'd connected over their hatred for the ideals of Superhero-Sidekick Culture.
Natalie was aloof and alone, she maintained that she was independent and needed no one to get ahead in life.
Eddy took things in his stride but was introverted to the extreme, hiding away deep within himself.
And Spencer…Spencer was afraid and ashamed and angry and just…human. Too human he felt too much, he hid it down, his mind bored with the rigmarole of the "individuals" that copied each other. He could see what they really were and it made his skin crawl, so he stirred up trouble for them to let their true, horrible, cowardly natures rise to the surface.
"Hey! I'm here! Powers forced me to see the guidance councillor for an "alternate identity" careers talk"
"What did they give you? Wholesome Ward of a Multibillionaire?" Natalie yawned as she warmed up with a few notes.
"No – weirdly he started outlining the importance of religion"
Natalie put on a Valley Girl stereotyped voice: "But, like, atheism is soooooo in right now!"
"Everyone wants to be one" Spencer yawned. "Anyway – let's go, if we wow Powers she may overlook the exploding chicken curry incident in the cafeteria" Spencer sighed.
"What chicken curry?" Eddy asked.
"Oh that's tomorrow" Spencer smirked.
He rubbed the bridge of his nose as the badn warmed up…he froze – the trickle of blood was making its way down his upper lip from his nostril. He quickly wiped it away and glanced at the others.
Eddy was staring at him, a puzzled look on his face…Spencer checked his nose again and then set about operating the lighting.
Warren left the ward his mother was in (the Richards Ward for Cosmic Irradiation and Illness). He paused at the desk when he saw Will standing at the door. "Hi" Will said slowly.
Warren blinked and mumbled a hello.
"My Mom and Dad wanted to give you a room" Will said. "Because your house is…scorched and smashed…so they said that maybe you'd want to stay with us because you're welcome to and I'm rambling"
Warren nodded. "Yeah you are…and thanks…but…"
"Before you say no it's not a pass at you, my Mom really wants to make sure you're okay. She was on some team with your Mom and she's been worried sick about her – I – I didn't know she was sick"
Warren shrugged and turned to the nurse for his discharge forms. He wanted to stop staring at Will's lips…"How could you?" he mumbled. "I didn't talk about it -"
"Mom wants you to stay with us. Dad doesn't mind…I want you too…"
Warren signed his name slowly. "I guess – I mean – where else can I go?"
Will beamed. He looked so bright he could replace the sun. "Great! Great! Okay, come on, Mom's outside!"
Gwen lowered her laser gun as the blast destroyed the dummy. "Stitches – reset the dummies!" she snapped. "I want more target practice before I start shooting at things with my Subjugator!"
Stitches bounced over. "Sure thing! Sure thing!"
Gwen narroed her eyes at him. There was a bleep coming from her Compaq, she snapped it open. "What is it?" she snapped.
"Hey boss…we heard you're going for a test drive on superheroes…"
"Yes tomorrow most likely – I can't think of anyone who'd be out tonight"
"We just saw someone…a big time here. Warhead"
"Warhead? Really? He has the ability to turn into a flaming comet – right?"
"Yup – and he's just flown over the park, his energy signature's hardly subtle, anyone could see it"
"Excellent. Follow him and alert me if he stops moving, I'll be with you soon" Gwen smirked as she snapped her Compaq-Com closed. She turned and stalked past Stitches, shoving him into the shooting range where he was knocked down by a speeding dummy.
"So Warren – how's Fiona – I mean your mother"
"She's fine Mrs Stronghold" Warren said slowly, he waseating the roast with the family in an awkward manner. He sat beside Will, thinking about how this could be more awkward. So far the only thing that could be worse than this was if he and Will were naked, on top of each other and the Strongholds having just walked in.
With a news crew.
That had just made him hard.
Crap.
"Fiona? I thought she was Gwenyth Peace…"
"She always hated that name" Josie explained as she spooned more vegetables onto Will's plate and offered them to Warren who graciously accepted. "So she went by her middle name. Fiona."
Warren nodded.
"So – how's school for both of you?" Steve Stronghold chimed in.
"Good" they chorused and said no more.
It was awkwardly quiet for a while. Finally Will and Warren excused themselves they were as relieved as the two parents were and headed upstairs.
"Thanks for letting me stay" Warren said from the doorway of his bedroom. "I know I was a jerk…before…"
"You're not a jerk -you must have had a reason…I can respect that"
Will was so earnest and sweet… before Warren could stop himself he leaned in and kissed him. Will tasted sweet – he was everything Warren remembered and more. Will wrapped his arms around Warren and held him tightly but not too tightly…
"Goodnight" Will said as the kiss broke for air time. "Sweet dreams…and all that…" he was breathless and flushed and his lips were puffed from kissing.
"Yeah" Warren smiled as he shut the door, Will walked to his own room and leaned back against the door. He gave a little laugh and jumped onto his bed, the legs gave way and it crashed to the floor.
"Will! Don't jump on your bed we're not repairing the floor again!" Josie shouted up the stairs.
Warhead soared through the sky. The glowing blue light caught his eye, he swept down to investigate… there were four figures on the roof. One of them raised a weapon – the blast of light hit Warhead and he crashed onto the roof of the building.
Royal Pain laughed as one of the glass cylinders around the top of the gun filled with glowing blue light. "Power in a bottle – how efficient" she laughed. Warhead struggled to his feet. He rushed forwards – a blast of electricity knocked him down and then two of the other figures kicked him in the ribs.
He was lifted off his feet and knocked to the ground
"Excellent work, that's why I chose you from the Potential Heroes of Sky High" Gwen laughed. "You have so much to give to the cause"
She lifted Warhead up by the throat. "Pathetic" she sneered and tossed him to the concrete corner. "Let's go – the Subjuror works"
Warhead groaned in the corner…his body was drained…he couldn't move…
TBC
A/N: Review me...you know you want to...do it...my mind control commands you...and bring me some orange sheeeeehhhhbeeeeehhhhhht... Kudos to the people who get that