Penn Zero Fanfiction
Author's Note
Alright. So about this chapter.
So it took a completely different turn than what I had originally planned. I mean, the entire second half of this chapter is improvised. If any of you write, I think you know what I'm talking about. You have this perfect plan for what you're going to do and then while you're putting it into action, it just doesn't feel right and suddenly, the story starts taking its own path and you're just along for the ride. It's really interesting and it makes me feel all the more proud that these kinds of ideas come from me. You look back on it and you think to yourself, "Wait, did I do this?"
Anyways, I think I've said enough. This is the second of the three chapters. I think it could have been better but seeing as I'm pressed for time and this did not follow my plans at all, I kind of feel like this is lower in quality than what I usually produce. But at this point, I've done everything I can so this is about as good as it gets. I just hope for you all, it's good enough. I really care what my viewers think and I want this to be good for them as much as it is for me. So let me know your thoughts in the reviews.
Enjoy!
Amber
"An' I stood over 'im with my cactus club an' I said, 'That's how it's done in Big Butt, Junior'," Sheriff Scaley Briggs said with a loud bellowing laugh that everyone else soon joined in as he took another big bite out of his chunk of meat.
"'Butte'," Sashi interrupted loudly. "It's pronounced 'Butte'."
Everyone stared at her in silence and Sashi tried to maintain an air of dignity and righteousness but eventually blushed and shrank down into her seat. Then suddenly, everyone burst out laughing again.
"What?" Sashi demanded, trying to look angry but blushing even harder. Penn laughed beside her and she elbowed him, trying to get at least one of them to stop. Penn weakly tried to defend himself but didn't stop laughing in the least.
"Oh, Sashi," he managed to say between laughs. She was about to elbow him again, this time harder, but he put a hand on her shoulder and leaned his head on her as he continued laughing. She was about to push him off but for some reason, decided not to. Then she finally gave in and joined in on the laughter, which seemed to grow when she did.
Later, when they were all cleaning up the table after the feast, Penn noticed Sashi struggling with her load. Concerned, he went over to help her and caught her just as she was about to fall and drop all the dishes.
"Sashi?" he said as he helped her balance herself again. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine, Penn," she said, trying to sound reassuring. It would have worked if she hadn't winced again when his hand accidentally brushed over her wrist as he let her go. Sashi saw Penn notice and immediately backed away from him.
"It's nothing, Penn," she said.
Penn hesitated for a second, wondering whether or not he should believe her, then seemed to accept her answer as he relaxed, the tension leaving his body and the concern leaving his face.
"Give me the dishes, Sashi," he said, holding his hand out for the pile of plates she was holding.
"Oh, come on, Penn," she complained. "I can do this. I'm a Sidekick, remember?"
"You're also human, remember?" he shot back. "You might be tough but you still get hurt. And doing work while you're still hurt isn't helping anyone, especially you."
"But-"
"Sashi," Penn said, his voice becoming more stern. Sashi almost shrank back and wordlessly handed him the dishes. She was suddenly reminded that Penn wasn't just the leader of the team for his strategic skills.
Penn smiled warmly as he took the dishes from her and turned around to put them in the kitchen sink. Then he came back and held his hand out again.
"Give me your hand for a second, Sash," he said to her. Sashi gave him her hand and he carefully took off the glove and rolled up the sleeve. The skin was raw and red around her wrist where Amber's lasso had wrapped itself. She knew it had been hurting for a while but Sashi certainly hadn't expected it to be this bad.
Penn's eyebrows creased in concern and worry again and Sashi couldn't help but smile at the thought that the concern on Penn's face was for her.
"Sash?" he said, snapping her out of her stupor. Her head snapped up and Penn let her hand go and reared back in surprise.
"What?" Sashi said and she couldn't help but notice her voice sounded a bit more annoyed than she would have liked.
"Uh, are you okay?" he asked hesitantly. "Does it hurt anywhere else?"
"She lassoed my ankles, too," Sashi admitted, controlling her voice so that it sounded like the friendly and unguarded tone she usually reserved for Penn and Boone. Actually, maybe it was only for Penn since, compared to him, Boone annoyed her so much more. Sashi almost growled at the thought of his antics.
Penn nodded.
"Go downstairs and rest, Sash," he said.
"What?" Sashi said. "Why?"
"Because you're hurt and if you're like this when we have to go to school on Monday, people are gonna start asking questions."
"Wait," she said. "We're staying here for the night?"
He nodded.
"Where am I gonna sleep?" she asked.
"In Amber's room," he answered. "She said she felt bad about lassoing you and throwing you in a cage so you can have her room for the night."
"Wait, she already knows we're staying here for the night?" Sashi asked.
"Yeah," Penn said as if it should be obvious.
"When did you guys plan this?" she asked in disbelief.
"While you were busy telling us that it's pronounced 'Butte'," he answered.
"How many times did I say that?" she demanded, still not able to believe she had missed them all making sleepover plans right in front of her.
"I don't know," he said with a nonchalant shrug of his shoulders. "I lost count at around 800."
Sashi gaped and it took her a full two seconds before she realized that he was joking. He saw the realization dawn on her face and he started laughing. She angrily got up out of her seat and moved toward him as if she was about to tear him apart limb from limb but there was a sudden burst of pain in her ankle as it hit the chair leg and Sashi's raw skin suddenly felt like it was on fire. Penn caught her before she could fall. Sashi clutched at his arms to steady herself. Penn gently set her back in the chair she'd so hurriedly got out of. She thanked him and looked up only to find that they were face-to-face, nose-to-nose. She blushed as she found herself staring deep into Penn's sky-blue eyes and she noticed for the first time how unusually bright they were. She noticed Penn lightly blush as well and all too soon, the moment was over as he let her go and stood up.
As Penn walked away to continue helping Amber and Scaley clean up, no one noticed the look he gave the father and daughter as they worked side by side, talking and laughing as if they hadn't been on opposite sides just hours ago. A sad smile appeared on his face at the sight of them.
Later that night, Amber lay on the roof of the house, staring up at the moon and stars lighting up the otherwise pitch-black sky. She remembered doing this back when she still lived with her dad. Ever since she had left, she hadn't had much time to enjoy the view of them as often as she would have liked to because of all the work she'd done for the villains around town to build up her rep. As she stared, she couldn't help but think they looked especially beautiful tonight.
She heard a sound and she immediately shot up and looked around, her trained instincts making themselves known as she scanned the roof around her. She listened to the sound and realized it was actually footsteps. The guests were sleeping and they were far too light and quick to be her father's. Amber cracked her neck and got up, readying herself for a fight.
She climbed down the side of the house and pressed herself against the wall as the stranger came around the side of the house. They continued walking, not noticing her at all. They stopped ten feet away from the house and looked up at the sky and Amber couldn't help but wonder what they were doing before she realized they were just looking at the stars. She considered leaving them alone before dismissing the thought. She didn't know who they were or what they wanted and if it had been just her and her Pa, she wouldn't have worried too much. But they had guests over and what kind of host would she be if she let them get attacked when she was perfectly capable of stopping it?
With that in mind, she silently crept up behind the figure, careful not to make a sound. Then, without warning, she lunged.
She must have made some kind of sound because the figure inhaled sharply and quickly spun around, their leg already out in a deadly spinning kick. Amber blocked the oncoming kick but she was hit to the side. She rolled over on the ground and quickly recovered before charging. She lunged at the figure again but they dodged her outstretched arms and grabbed her by the collar. They spun, slamming her onto the ground. They let go and stood to examine who it was but then suddenly jumped back before she could trip them and make them fall to the ground. The figure did a back handspring and landed gracefully on their feet. As they looked up, all they saw was a blur coming toward them as Amber got to her feet and rushed forward. The figure barely managed to sidestep in time to dodge being tackled and beaten to a bloody pulp.
Amber quickly closed the distance between the two and threw a flurry of punches and strikes, all of which were deflected or blocked. Amber aimed a right hook at the figure's face but the figure dodged and bent down, driving a fist straight into Amber's stomach. Amber doubled over and the figure smashed an uppercut into her jaw. Amber stumbled back and the figure rushed forward. They jumped and aimed a two-legged kick at Amber's face but Amber used both of her arms to block it. She dug her feet into the ground, struggling to withstand the seemingly colossal force behind the kick and grunted as she pushed back. The figure hopped off and Amber quickly cleared her mind, trying to ignore the pain plaguing her body. She glared in front of her where she expected to see the figure land gracefully and prepared herself for a fight, however, the figure wasn't there. She grew confused before her instincts made her look up. As she did, two feet smashed into her face and the figure hopped off, doing a backflip and landing on their feet as she fell to the ground, groaning.
The figure walked up to her and grabbed her by the collar, fixing her brown eyes with furious blue ones.
"Who are you?" Amber managed weakly.
The look in the stranger's eyes turned from fury to surprise.
"Amber?" they said in an all too familiar voice.
"PENN?!" Amber managed before she was promptly put on the ground and Penn was beside her in a second, looking over her for injuries.
"Oh my God, are you okay?" Penn said worriedly as he helped her up. "I'm so sorry, it's just that you attacked me and I panicked and when I tried to see who you were, you just kept attacking me and I kept fighting back and I thought you were some stranger that had come to attack the Briggs and I got really angry and protective and I started fighting you and-"
"Would you shut your trap?!" Amber said, cutting him off. Penn looked sheepish as he promptly stopped talking.
"Sorry," he apologized. "Why did you attack me out of nowhere like that?"
"I thought you was a stranger come to hurt my Pa an' my guests," Amber answered him. "I was jus' lying on my roof, peacefully watching the moon and stars and then all I hear's someone walkin' around when everyone should be asleep and it definitely don't sound like my Pa. So I look an' I see a stranger walkin' 'round my house so I try an' put him down an' see what he's up to." She shot Penn an annoyed look as she rubbed her cheeks. "But then he steps on my face an' kicks my butt an' all I can think is who in the great Bessie Lou's name is this guy?" She looked him up and down. He didn't look like much. His wiry frame didn't look that strong, which was surprising considering the amount of force behind his blows, and she didn't take him to be such a good fighter either. When Amber had fought Sashi, she had been caught off-guard and couldn't use her feet so Amber had won that fight pretty easily. But Penn's instincts were much sharper. Amber realized that was what had warned him of her attack.
"Didn't you recognize me?" Penn asked. Amber scoffed.
"With that thing on your head?" she said, looking at his hair. "No way."
Penn looked up at what she was talking about, then looked down in embarrassment. "It's not that bad, is it?"
"It is," Amber said. Then she sighed, struggling to get up but wincing in pain when her stomach hurt where Penn punched it. Penn got up and offered her a helping hand which she accepted and pulled her to her feet.
"What're you doin' out here, Penn?" she asked.
"I came to watch the stars," he said. "What about you?"
"Same," she answered. "The roof's a pretty good spot," she said.
"Is that an invitation?" Penn asked, relieved that she wasn't mad at him.
"Well, looks like you ain't as dumb as the rest o' the boys."
Penn chuckled as she climbed up the side of the house. He followed after her and she couldn't help but admire his grace and expertise. She was growing more and more intrigued with him by the second.
"In case you haven't noticed, Amber," Penn said, "I'm not like the rest of the boys."
"I'm likin' that more and more," she said, smiling as they both climbed onto the roof.
They lay facing the sky and got comfortable, although Penn maintained a bit of distance between himself and Amber, something she didn't fail to notice.
For a while, neither one of them said a word, both just enjoying the view of the shining moon and blinking stars. There was an unspoken understanding between the two of them to not say anything so for a while, they both lay there, looking at the view of the moon and stars decorating the sky.
Finally, after a while, Penn spoke.
"Do you come out here often?" he asked.
"I used to," she answered. "Every night. My Pa would always get mad that I wouldn't go to bed on time but I couldn't help it. I loved coming up here. You get peace, quiet, and this," she said, gesturing to the sky and sighed airily.
"I know what you mean," Penn said.
"Anyways," Amber continued. "After a while, he gave up and I could come up here whenever I wanted to without being scared that he was gonna find me."
"What was he like?" Penn asked. "Scaley. What was he like when he was young?"
"He was amazing," Amber said and there was that childlike admiration in her voice that Penn heard in many young children's voices when they talked about their parents as if they were heroes. "He'd save the town again and again. He was the town's hero. He was every kid's dream. He was every bad guy's nightmare. But he was always only my Pa."
"What happened between you two?" Penn asked, and she could hear the tentativeness in his voice. He knew it was a touchy subject and he didn't want to be prying. But just knowing that he respected her boundaries made it okay so she decided there was no harm in telling him.
"He was my hero," she said, and there was fondness and sadness in her voice at the same time. "I wanted to be just like him. I wanted to be him. But no matter what I did or how much I tried, he'd never let me go with him. He'd never see me as anythin' more than his little girl. And I know he was just doin' it to protect me but it always just felt like I was never good enough for him." She sighed and Penn looked to see a tear roll out of her eye. "So I left. I left because I couldn't take it anymore. I was so sick and tired of not bein' 'tough'. It hurt so much because it was him. My hero. My Pa. Lookin' at me and lettin' me know that I wasn't good enough. An' I wanted to prove him wrong more than anything. So I worked for the bad guys. Caused a ruckus. Built a rep. All so he'd see me for who I was. Not his little girl anymore but his successor. His legacy. His daughter all grown up." She laughed lightly. "Now he finally sees that. He deputized me an' now I can be just like him. I got everything I ever wanted. And it's all thanks to you," she said as she turned to Penn and smiled. Penn smiled back and turned his head back to look at the sky.
"What about your parents?" Amber asked. At this, the look on Penn's face became pained. Immediately, Amber regretted asking. "Sorry, I didn't mean to-" she stuttered, trying to apologize, but Penn cut off her.
"It's fine," he said, and she immediately stopped talking. He sighed as he looked up at the sky. " Even if I wanted to talk about my parents, I can't."
"Why not?" she asked.
"Because if I did, you'd think I was crazy."
"Honey, you ain't seen none of the things I seen," Amber said, scoffing. But Penn just chuckled.
"You'd never believe me, Amber."
"Try me," she challenged.
Penn chuckled. "Okay."
5 Minutes Later
"WOW," Amber said, trying to wrap her head around what Penn had just told her.
"I told you you'd think I was insane," Penn said. He watched as Amber tried to take in everything she'd just heard.
"So you guys go to different worlds 'cause the heroes o' those worlds ain't good enough?" she asked.
"Yep," Penn answered, turning his head back to look up at the sky.
"An' that guy goes to different worlds 'cause the villains o' those worlds ain't good enough?"
"Yep," Penn said again.
"And you guys always go to the same worlds?"
"Not always," Penn said, turning to face her. "We get sent wherever the balance isn't perfect. Usually, the heroes of the worlds are good enough to win. But when they aren't, we get sent in to either take their place or help them. We make sure that good always wins. That guy goes to the worlds where the villains aren't good enough. He tries to make sure evil wins. If the villain wasn't good enough, that means the hero is and we don't need to go and help. But when the villain is good enough, the hero isn't. That's when we're sent in. That's why we go to the same worlds. Because when he tips the balance towards evil, we have to go in to tip it back to good. Sometimes, the heroes of the world he's gone to are good enough that even when he's there, he can't win, so we don't always get sent to the same world. But most of the time, he does tip the balance so we have to go in to fix it."
"Wait," Amber said. "So what if you guys get sent into the same world but there's another world where the heroes also aren't good enough but you can't help you're too busy keeping the balance where he is? What happens then?"
"We're not the only Part-Time Heroes in the Multiverse," Penn answered. "There are some worlds with their own Part-Time Heroes. There are others in my world, too. Some live in different cities, some live in different countries. But we're all on the same team. We can go into worlds where other Part-Time Heroes need help and we restore the balance there. Or we go to a world where the Part-Time Villain won and we restore the balance there. We don't always fight the same Part-Time Villain all the time. We don't even fight Part-Time Villains sometimes. This is just what happens most of the time."
"Ooooohhhhh," Amber said, finally understanding. "So this guy, Rippy or sumthin'-"
"Rippen."
"Whatever. This guy's tryna be a real villain?"
"Full-Time Villain but yeah," Penn said.
"An' he's never won a fight against you guys even once?"
"Nope," Penn said, and a prideful, almost arrogant smirk appeared on his lips. Seeing that made Amber smile too a little before her face became serious and her voice became tentative, much like Penn's had when he'd asked about her father.
"And he's the guy that trapped your parents in the Most Dangerous World Imaginable?"
Penn hesitated and just for a moment, his face contorted into a terrifying hateful expression, a mixture of sadness and rage. Amber almost scurried back in fear at seeing it but then it was gone, so quickly that had she not been looking at him the whole time, she would have even doubted it had been there.
"Yeah, he is," Penn said, and she couldn't imagine how much it was taking him to keep his voice even.
"Then why haven't you killed him yet?!" Amber asked incredulously.
For a moment, Penn didn't say anything. He just continued looking up at the sky and kept doing it for so long that Amber thought he hadn't heard her. Just as she was about to say something, Penn sighed. She stopped, caught off-guard by the reaction.
Penn turned to look at her again and there was a resigned look in his eyes.
"You think I haven't wanted to do that?" he asked. Unlike what Amber had expected, there was no anger or resentment in his voice. "You think I don't think about killing him whenever I see his ugly face or his stupid smile? You think I don't think about how good it would feel to just cross that line, take that final step and kill the bastard?" He sighed again and turned back to face the stars. "I want to. Every day I want to. There isn't a single moment in my life when I don't want to. But as much as I want to, I can't. Not now, not ever. Because that's not what a hero does. And if I really am my parents' son, then I can never forget that."
Amber stared at him. As insane as everything he had told her sounded, she knew he was telling the truth. Everything she'd seen between him and Rippen, as well as his team and her father, made a strange sort of sense. And the sadness and rage she'd seen on his face just a second ago couldn't possibly have been faked. He was telling the truth. Everything he'd said to her was true. He had really lost his parents and he didn't know if he would ever get them back.
"I'm sorry," Amber said sincerely. Penn looked at her and there was a terrible sadness on his face. But he smiled at her, even as a tear rolled down his face.
"It's fine," he said. "I'm just glad you didn't lose your dad the same way I lost mine."
"Thanks, Penn," she said sincerely. Penn just smiled and looked back at the stars.
Neither one of them said anything for a while. Finally, Amber asked him something that she'd been wanting to know since Penn and Sashi's interaction in the kitchen.
"So you and the little lady a thing?" she asked out of nowhere.
Penn jerked and his heart almost exploded out of his chest.
"What?!"
"Honey, I ain't blind," Amber said, the knowing look on her face silently telling Penn to cut the crap. Penn sighed.
"No," he said.
"But you like her, don't you?" Amber said. Penn nodded wordlessly. He sighed and rubbed the back of his neck as a troubled look appeared on his face.
"Does she know?" Amber asked.
"I don't think so," Penn said. "She always was better at listening to her head than her heart."
"So are you," Amber said. Penn looked at her. "If you'd listen to your heart more, you'd have already made a move."
"I don't even know if she feels the same way," Penn argued.
"See, that right there's you listenin' to your head," Amber pointed out. Penn looked as if he was about to say something but then stopped. Seeing that he was actually listening to her, Amber went on. "You keep waitin' on makin' a move an' she'll move on," Amber said. "It's what I would do. It's what any girl does. Penn, if you lose her, you're not gonna feel better knowin' you played it safe. You're gonna regret not goin' all in."
"So I should go all in?"
"Is she worth it?" Amber asked. Penn didn't say anything for a second before he sighed and laid back down, looking up at the sky.
"I don't know," he said at last. "She's pushed me away before. I'm finally getting through to her, but I don't know if I should go for it now. What I have with her is great. I'm scared that if I want more from her, I won't have anything left when she says 'no'. I don't know if having that is worth losing this."
"Hm," Amber said, laying back down. She could see why Penn was so conflicted on this. It wasn't easy risking what you had for something you might not get. Things didn't always work out. Life wasn't always perfect. Penn's life was proof of that. Sometimes, the Hero didn't always win.
"You've got a chance, Penn," Amber said. "Whether it works out or not, are you really okay with never trying?"
Penn thought for a moment, not saying anything. He knew he'd been making progress but he'd never intended to end up feeling the way he did, he had only been trying to get Sashi to open up a bit more. He didn't even know if she felt the same way, although the more he thought about it, the more hopeful he became. She hadn't pulled away from him when he thought she would. She hadn't hurt him whenever he crossed a line. And, more than anything, she hadn't shut him out but had actually let him in. Multiple times. He knew for a fact that she had never done that with anyone else and likely never would. That had to mean something, didn't it?
The more he thought about it, the more he realized what it was that he was actually afraid of. It wasn't that he was afraid of losing what he already had with her. It was that he was afraid of not having anything at all with her. And he realized that if he didn't take the chance he had with her now, that was going to happen anyway because she would move on and he would be left regretting not taking the chance while he still had it.
"You're right," he finally said.
"So you'll go for it?" Amber asked.
"Yeah," Penn said. "But not just yet."
"Why not?" she asked.
"Because she's not the kind of person that trusts people easily. This is going to take time."
"So long as you go for it," Amber said.
Both of them laid back down on the roof and went back to stargazing.
"Thanks for this, Amber," Penn said sincerely. "It feels good to finally talk to someone about this."
"Least I can do," she said.
And they lay back on the roof and watched the stars.
The next morning, Sashi found Penn and Amber asleep on the roof, with Penn snuggled comfortably in Amber's arms and her hugging him like a teddy bear. Now that had been very hard to explain and both Scaley and Sashi had not been very happy with that. Even as Penn left that world behind with some new scars, he couldn't help but be a little happy with how Sashi reacted to that sight. Maybe he had a chance with her after all.