"All clear."
Eric entered behind me, his feet barely brushing the stone floor. The warehouse was cold, dim, and smelled heavily of dust. There was room for several eighteen-wheelers. But the concrete building was empty. Which honestly just scared me more. My heart quickened. I summoned a fireball to my hand.
I hate this part. Hate hate hate hate. Creeping around looking for a villain who is probably going to jump out and scare me half to death. So fun. I love my job. I swallowed hard. The experience was enough to make me scream and then curl up and cry. Not that that was an option.
"Firebird!"
I jumped and nearly shot off my fireball. (That was an option. Sorta.) Eric set a hand on my shoulder.
"Easy now."
I scowled and shrugged him off. A young Indian looking woman hurried down the stairs from the warehouse's loft...thing.
"Firebird," she repeated with a wide grin.
I slowly quirked an eyebrow. I had never seen a villain so excited to see me. Nor one in a black teeshirt with "I *heart* Firebird! #GirlPower" written in bright orange across it. She wore no mask or makeup or even a hat. I fought a scowl. If I've come all this way to be duped by a fangirl...
"Who are you?" I asked.
"Oh, I'm Amrita Devi," she swallowed and started playing with her long braid.
Definitely a fan. Great.
"I'm sorry for-uh-tricking you, but uh...I want to be you!"
My forehead furrowed. I swapped confused glances with Eric, and Amrita blushed.
"I mean, I want to be Firebird. I -," she groaned and hid her face in her hands.
"I...I already have a sidekick...?" I tried, still wondering what she was getting at.
Maybe Pigeon is of some use.
"That's not what I meant -. Wait," Amrita pointed at Eric. "He's your sidekick?"
Eric frowned, and I bit back a laugh. I like this girl.
"Yeah, it's more of a trial run. Pigeon here has flight powers, so I'm hoping he'll be of some use."
Eric shook his head, "Somehow, I never considered abrasiveness to be a superhero trait."
"Getting mocked by magazines for your lack of a thigh gap and being trailed by fans who try to pull your mask off to see if you are pretty will do that to you. Get used to it," I looked back to Amrita.
Maybe that was another reason why no one had connected Firebird to Kimberly Nguyen. Because while Kim was empathetic, sassy, and generally amiable—albeit sarcastic and reserved—, sometimes, even I thought Firebird was cynical and world-weary. Amrita straightened.
"I don't want to be your sidekick. I want to be Firebird. I've been thinking," she continued quickly. "What is the best possible way to ensure that Firebird is always ready to face a villain, but also given time to recover from injuries and take breaks?"
"I give up, how?"
"By making two people Firebird. You wear the suit one day; I wear it the next. If you're hurt or need that break, I can take over. Constant vigilance!"
I held in a snort, "Um, you're Indian, I'm Vietnamese."
"I'm Bengali."
"Right. Sorry," I grimaced. "My point is that you are obviously not me."
YOU ARE READING
A Guide to Being a Superhero...Therapist? (Guide to Being, Novella Two)
HumorIf you think this is what I ever thought I would be doing, you ought to look at the question mark at the end of this title. No one in their right mind would ~ever~ purposefully become a superhero (yeah, you heard that, Eric and Amrita!) Hey, you do...
