Willow's heart was pounding as she left. She had fully intended on at least hurting Tidal, but she couldn't do it. She had hurt many people before and never felt bad about it, but something about Tidal was so pure and innocent that Willow couldn't justify causing her any pain.
She knew Tidal was going to go back to the other heroes and tell them what a wimp Willow was and then they would all try to take her down, but she couldn't even find it in herself to care. She didn't feel bad about hurting them if they came close. She was known for scorching anyone who tried to touch her, and she wasn't going to ruin her reputation now.
Still, if Tidal was the one who came after her, she wasn't sure she could protect herself.
When she got home, her feet were throbbing. The shoes she had created to allow her to land hard on her feet without feeling the pain of it clearly weren't up to par. She had felt it as soon as she jumped off the roof, but she hadn't allowed it to slow her down. Tidal surely would have taken the chance to arrest her as soon as she realized that Willow couldn't hurt her.
The fifteen minute walk home hadn't helped the pain at all, and she cursed herself for not testing the shoes again before using them. They had worked many times before, but she was supposed to administer tests after every five uses to make sure they were still in good shape. Her laziness was becoming a hindrance.
She left the shoes by the door and told herself she'd fix them later, but she had done that many times before with objects that still remained scattered all over her house. She immediately went to her security room, hoping to catch a glimpse of Tidal, but she was nowhere in sight. Hopefully she wasn't already reporting back to her allies. Willow needed time to think of a solution...and to rest her feet.
~
Everything was still quiet the next day. No news reports about Willow going soft had aired, so she figured Tidal still hadn't told anybody what happened. Still, she needed to decide what to do. She needed dirt on Tidal to use as leverage, but she was confident the hero had never done a bad thing in her life. She probably spent her days holding every door open for strangers and returning lost wallets. She was as good as it got.
Sometimes, Willow forgot that heroes were still normal people. So, when she saw Tidal walking home carrying grocery bags, she almost didn't think it was her. She had been scouting out places for her next fire from the roofs of buildings around the city when her eyes stopped on a familiar blonde ponytail. Even out of costume, Willow had seen her enough times through her cameras to know it was her.
With her new and improved energy-absorbing sneakers, she jumped the short distance down and landed a few feet in front of Tidal, making her gasp. It sounded straight out of a horror movie.
Willow grinned smugly, watching her try to figure out how to react. She was smart enough to know Willow knew who she was, even when nobody else did.
"Hi, Tidal. Going home?"
A few people on the street had spotted Willow and began freaking out, thinking she must be about to burn something. Tidal also noticed this and switched her bags to one hand so she could grab Willow's wrist and yank her between two buildings. Willow waved to the people on the street as she allowed Tidal to continue to pull her until they were hidden behind one of the buildings.
Wanting to pretend she had the upper-hand, she forced the skin Tidal was touching to heat up just enough that she ripped her arm away, cradling it to her chest.
"Are you crazy?" Tidal seethed between grit teeth.
"Uh, yeah, I think that's what they call me on the news." Willow replied sardonically.
Tidal ignored her comment, raising her eyebrows. "Are you trying to get me exposed?"
Willow cocked her head, "Just letting you know that I could."
"And how do you know what I look like anyway?" She asked, beginning to pace but not taking her eyes off Willow, watching her distrustfully. "It's those cameras isn't it? Oh my god, have you watched me get changed? Ew, do you have cameras in my house?"
Willow let her go on, talking nonsense and working herself up. She noticed that she had cut off the burnt section, leaving one bit of hair shorter than the rest. It looked ridiculous. Tidal suddenly stopped pacing and stared at Willow, clearly expecting a response.
"I don't have cameras in your house." She replied, having tuned out whatever she had said after that.
"Then how do you know what I look like?" She asked, switching the bags to the other hand.
Willow shrugged, taking her time looking over Tidal. She seemed flustered under her gaze. "You look exactly the same out of costume. Your mask barely hides your face. If you're going for mysterious, it's not working."
"Well," Tidal sputtered, sounding like a child, "You're hiding too much. You must look hideous under your mask if you're trying so hard to cover up."
Willow laughed, tossing her hair behind her shoulder. "I look like a villain."
Tidal frowned, looking like she was going to defend Willow when her phone started ringing. Honestly, ringing. She was the only person Willow knew who actually had their ringtone on. She yanked it out of her pocket, almost dropping one of her bags in the process. When she saw the caller ID, she groaned, glancing to Willow before accepting it and turning slightly away. Willow thought it was a stupid move, turning her back to a villain, but she didn't do anything to prove it. She just listened.
"Hello?" Tidal said quietly, but the person on the other line was so loud that Willow could hear their reply.
"Juniper! I called you last night, young lady, why didn't you answer me?"
Juniper. Juniper.
Juniper groaned again, glancing nervously at Willow, who couldn't stop smiling. Without even trying, she had found out Tidal's real name. She hadn't even had to search through countless profiles on social media to get it.
"I've been a little bit busy," Juniper pressed out after turning the volume down on her phone. Willow just stepped closer to hear. She was getting antsy just standing there, though, knowing one of the people on the street must have called the police.
"Too busy for your own mother? I told you my toilet wasn't working!"
"And I told you I'm not a plumber."
"Nonsense!"
They continued to bicker lightheartedly, and Willow started to feel the sharp pain of jealousy in her chest. She didn't want to listen to them anymore. She started walking backwards to one of the side doors on the building, knowing from experience that it was kept unlocked. When Juniper noticed she was leaving, she seemed conflicted on whether or not to go after her or to continue to listen to her mother, but Willow already knew which option she would choose.
"Bye, Junie." She said, offering a small wave and a sarcastic smile before she slipped through the door and turned the lock.
YOU ARE READING
Hopelessly Heroic (Rewritten)
Genç Kurgu"Then do it." June challenged, watching Flame's eyebrows shoot up. "I don't think you're as tough as you want everyone to think. You want to hurt me? Do it." The fire in her hand grew, and June watched it with bated breath. She was inviting the town...
