Parr for the Course
By Shahrezad1
Summary: "When you got down to it, they were only human." Unrelated glimpses into each of the Parr's lives.
Disclaimer: Owning, Sherry does not do.
Chapter 3: Helen
Helen Parr had only cried seven times that she could remember.
The first had been when she'd first discovered her powers, a frantic puddle of goo crying for help from the basement floor, unable to find sense or form. Her parents had both been too shocked and horrified to know how to help their sweet little red-haired girl.
Since then she'd hardened herself to things like shock and sorrow--Elastigirl always bounced back. And so when the hope of their future crumbled between her fingers with the lawsuits, her loving husband mourning the tides of public opinion and the pains of the Superhero Relocation Act, it had been Helen that had been the rock in the storm.
She was Elastigirl, and title or no title she wouldn't allow her shields to crumble in the face of her loved one's pain. No tears had been cried then.
Her next few tears had been of joy. Three beautiful children born to the Super, each with a dusting of curls upon their glorious, round heads. Dark blue eyes of infancy lightening before her gaze as they aged and became individuals in their own right. The feelings of love and relief at their births (Superheroes having children was always a risk) had mixed with her exhaustion to form rivulets of joy streaming down her face, almost unable to see her beloved's own beaming features through the waterfall of her tears.
The fifth was of sorrow, doubt, and self-hatred. A woman feeling her entire foundation shake beneath her as she was faced with her ultimate fear--rejection.
It was irrational to feel that way, but she couldn't help but blame herself for the anguish she was feeling. If only, her mind said, if only I hadn't nagged him so much. Hadn't put so much pressure on him, and had paid more attention to his needs than her desire to live life normally. Maybe then he wouldn't have turned away…to another.
The blonde hair.
It had only been with an extreme situation that her feminist side had reared its indignant head, furious at her own weakness. And in standing up for their marriage, reminding her husband of the promises he'd made to her, somehow everything had turned out alright.
Wonderful, in fact. And the tears of sorrow had become those of relief, and love. That their family was once again together.
The sixth, however, she knew would not be so easily put rights.
For after the battle, after the danger and the anger and the grief, and most importantly, the joyful reunion, Bob had finally told her a story that was a long-time coming.
About how her husband's actions and words had incited a simple boy into turning into a criminal mastermind, nearly destroying her family in the process. While still others paid the price for his mistakes.
Macroburst. Phylange. Apogee. Her good, funny friend Blazestone. Gamma Jack. Downburst. Psycwave. Universal Man. Stormicide. Everseer. And most importantly, their long-time friend and ally, Gazerbeam.
They were all gone.
She would never see their faces, nor hear their voices again. And while she'd been able to hold back her sorrow in the aftermath of the law, fifteen years prior, she hadn't been able to stop herself as realization finally hit.
They were gone. All of their friends and loved ones were gone.
The Incredibles and Frozone truly were the only ones left, outside of the Supers of other nations.
The tears dried soon after that, but simultaneously her smile became tempered that day; eyes more wise. And if she was more forgiving of her family, to an almost surprising extent, it was in recognition of her own humanity.
The realization that time stood still for no one, and that the illusion of invincibility was only that--illusion.
Helen Parr never cried, but there was always a lingering sorrow in the curve of her smile.
Until the seventh, and last time.
It had occurred randomly at first. The appearance in the news of a boy that could liquefy solids, or a girl with a Banshee's shriek. One by one, the Super Relocation Act being slowly lifted, they appeared to save the day; fighting evil back. All young, and with the familiar faces of their parents and relatives shining pure and bright in the sunlight; her friends reborn in the next generation.
And then she knew, as a legion of teenage Supers stood proud before her in gleaming suits courtesy of mothers and costume shops across the nation, their own hand-me-down inheritances as vibrant as the coming dawn.
She knew what she needed to do. For her husband, her children, and herself.
The last band had been seeped in the blood of innocents, loss always in the background. But here was a new generation, waiting for guidance. Battling sorrow with hope, and in search of a teacher.
For the seventh and final time in her life, Helen Parr cried.
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AN: Strangely sorrowful, considering the series of stories this is being added to (which so far have only light-hearted in content). I guess I just wanted to show a side of Helen that's not generally portrayed in the movie (feminist and/or Supermom. It's always one or the other, but never simply 'Helen').
Also, I've been thinking about the ramifications of the mass genocide Syndrome committed. There will be another generation of Supers, and, similar to what occurs in X-Men, they will need guidance of some sort. It looks like, on the West Coast at least, Elastigirl, Mr. Incredible, and Frozone are the last adult Supers left. One of them will have to take over training the next band of heroes, and who better than someone made to be flexible?
(I kind of wrote this in an epic, narrator-type format, which was a little interesting to work with. I hope no one minds, but it's what I thought would work best, given the context.)