A/N: Hi everyone! I'm not really familiar with Fantastic Four canon, but I'll do my best. The fist chapter is short, but the next will be longer.

Chapter One

It was Friday evening, and Reed Richards's flat of the Baxter Building was unusually still. Ben and Alicia were out for the evening and Johnny had been gone all day. Everything was set for a quiet, romantic evening—that had almost nothing to do with science. Out on the patio there was a table for two set, with candles lit—that was a combustion reaction, producing carbon dioxide and water vapor—and a bottle of champagne was set on ice—that's 273.15 Kelvin, or perhaps closer to 272 Kelvin, as it was staring to melt. But chemistry and physics notwithstanding, all that was left to do was hold a non-science related conversation:

"So Sue," Reed asked his fiancée curiously as he poured them both glasses of champagne. "Where exactly did Johnny go for the weekend?" He took a heavy breath, relishing the piece and quiet.

"Whitewater kayaking in Pennsylvania," Sue Storm offered with a slight laugh.

Johnny paddled hard as he approached the short falls. He had already tipped once, and had no desire ever to be that cold again. He let out a hoot of excitement as the one man kayak went soaring off the small cliff before hitting the water at the bottom with a slight thunk and a splash. He paddled through the calm pool below the falls, before heading off towards a small eddy in the calmer section of the lower Youghiogheny for a quick break.

However, there was already a group resting in the eddy—an attractive young woman with four smaller girls and a blown up raft. Three of the girls had bandanas tied around their heads. He pulled the kayak up to the sandy shore and let himself out, before heading over to the rock where the young woman was sitting.

"What're we doing here?" One of the girls asked in a nasal eight-year-old voice.

"We're waiting for Ms. Bev and Ms. Mickey to get here with the rest of the troop," the young woman with a pair of burgundy braids running halfway down her back replied, taking a drink of water as the girl ran off to play in the sand with the others.

"I hate to sound cliché," Johnny began, perching himself on the rock besides the young woman. "But what's a pretty thing like you doing in a place like this?"

"Chaperoning mah' kid sister's girl scaht trip," the woman offered with an obvious accent, looking over to him. Johnny laughed, taking note of the light freckles dusted across her nose and gentle cheekbones.

"Sound's exciting," he offered with a hint of sarcasm.

"It's 'baht as 'citing as class two rapids will ever be," she agreed. "Ah'm Stella Black." She offered him a hand as her muddy green eyes caught the sun.

"Johnny," he said valiantly. "Johnny Storm, you might have heard of me…" Stella shook her head. "Out in San Francisco." Stella laughed.

"Sugah," she began. "I 'us born an' breed in Pennsylvania. Th'only thing I get from California are raisins. Yih' some type of movie star or somethin'?"

"No, not quite," Johnny offered with a charismatic smile. "So what do you say you ditch these kiddies and we go find some real action?" He began as he helped her up.

"Ladies," Stella announced, addressing the small girls. "Can anybody tell me what 'dis is?" She motioned to Johnny.

"A...stranger," one of the girls piped up, questioningly.

"Exactly," Stella agreed. "And what do we do when we meet strangers?"

"Don't...talk to them," another of the scouts offered.

"Precisely," Stella answered, turning back to him, and adding teasingly, arching her pale eyebrows delicately. "So sorry Johnny, I've got to set an example for 'dah kiddies. Now yih' might want to skedaddle before d'other two leaders show up and pull some grandma kung-foo moves on you."

"Oh," Johnny moaned, recoiling backwards towards his kayak. "Harsh." Stella smiled, revealing the straight teeth behind her full lips. 'Killer smile,' he decided.

"But tomorrow, after 'dah kiddies go home," she continued. "I'm going to canoe down 'dah Upper Cheat, and get some rock climbing in. If ya' want to come, just meet me at the diner about a mile north of Fossil Falls, at eight." Johnny smiled victoriously. "We'll get some breakfast…your treat."

"My treat," Johnny noted, slipping back into his kayak and pushing off.

"Of course," Stella replied as he started to paddle off. Johnny pondered the situation to himself as he prepared for the next small set of rapids before his pickup point.

Stella didn't know who, or what, he was. And to Johnny, that seemed like the perfect opportunity to prove to Sue...and himself...that he didn't need to be The Human Torch to get the girl. He could just be Johnny and the ladies loved him. Hell, it had worked once with wannabe Playboy playmates, so why not some hick-chick from Pennsylvania.

A/N: That's pretty much all you'll be seeing of Stella's accent, except for a few words here and there. So you can pretty much use your imagination on the rest of the th's and ou's.