Wednesday, December 9
- - - - -
The investigation into the SSS’s plan was, according to Sara-N-Dipity, “Proceeding as expected.”
At least, that was her public statement. Privately, in the TUSSA group text and our emails, she kept sounding more and more frustrated. She knew, with 80% certainty, how to beat the SSS’s security, but without cooperation from Dark Girl Anima, it wasn’t a matter of luck. TUSSA simply didn’t have access to her unique powers, and no amount of probability manipulation could change that.
So, instead of a quick investigation and a wrap-up that’d force the SSS’s hand and let TUSSA chase down the few who’d escaped, we had a mess. At least we hadn’t seen any villains in classes since, with the exception of Gourmet. Her lawyers had gotten her off almost instantly, and she was shooting another episode of Gourmet’s Glutton Hour later that night.
Still, curiosity was killing the cat—and it wasn’t just Tails who couldn’t wait to know all the SSS’s secrets. Bianca and I had spent two long days wishing we could figure out the mystery ourselves; it had messed with every bit of studying we’d tried to do. Worse, I’d suggested that we cancel our plans tonight to deal with it.
“Fuck no, Annie,” Bianca said, leaning against the maintenance room door that led to our Green Room. “Su-Bin and Cam are coming over in twenty. They’re even doing the cooking, or getting take-out, or something. All we have to do is make sure the decks are shuffled. Now, sit down and relax.”
“Okay, babe. I’ll do my best.” I flopped down on the couch as Bee’s hands worked across my too-stiff shoulders, shuffling the decks of black and white cards until they’d been well-randomized. But the tension wouldn’t bleed out of my back no matter what I did. After my third shuffle-through, I put the cards back in their long, skinny box. “I thought for sure that Sara’s power would break in, no problem.”
“Yes, yes, I know. Now, no shop talk. Only fun.” Bee kept working my shoulders and upper back until, finally, I relaxed a tiny bit.
That lasted until the doorbell rang, and Fursona let Su-Bin and Cam in. Cam looked like part of a mountain had decided to take a walk, then put on a few pounds of muscle. He filled the door, lugging a pair of slow cookers under his arms, with a thin layer of snow on his simple haircut and jacket shoulders. “Kitchen? Gotta get these plugged in again.”
Bee pointed him toward the kitchen as Su-Bin pulled off her knee-length coat and tossed it onto a rack near the door. “The weather outside is frightful—and no, I’m not starting a sing-along. It’s gonna be a long walk home later.”
“I bet,” I said, glancing at the melting flakes in her hair. Was Polar Vortex or Black Ice out there? Would I have to figure out a way to change into Understudy, protect Walnut Tower, and keep my identity safe from President Pak? Bee’s hand clamped on my shoulder, and she raised an eyebrow. I nodded slowly. “How about a couple of hands while we wait for that to heat back up? I’ve got them all shuffled up and ready to play.”
Su-Bin snorted into her Coke cup. “Annie, you’re great, but I’ll give them one more shuffle, just to be sure?”
“What’s the matter? Don’t you trust me?” I managed to give it enough snark to disguise it and pushed the card box across the table toward her.
“Thanks.” She shuffled, dealt a handful of white cards to each of us, and flipped the first black one over. “The card is ‘During sex, I like to think about…’”
“I’ve got this one.” I flipped my card onto the pile, followed by two others, and Su-Bin snorted into her Coke cup again as she read them off.
“And the winner is…’All the single ladies,” she declared. “Really, Cam?”
“Wasn’t me,” the big guy said. “Funny, though.”
“I’ll take that,” Bee said. She reached for the card as I glared dramatically at her, but even though it was hilarious, my mind wouldn’t stop turning about Polar Vortex and Black Ice, or about President Pak being here—right here—in my apartment, and how much APPEAL needed that radio pitch. Bee drank a shot and flipped the next black card. “’Before blank, all we had was blank and blank.’ A triple! So exciting!”
We played another eight or nine hands—I couldn’t keep count—before Su-Bin finally checked on the chili smell from the slow cookers. “Alright, let’s eat it,” she said, opening my cabinets to hunt down some bowls.
It was pretty good, to be honest; my taste buds were a bit spoiled by Ramsey Fieri—every time I cooked, I thanked whoever was out there that Gourmet had never taken the Costume back—but it had the right spices in the right places, and Su-Bin or Cam had done a good job with it. Bee had three bowls, and then right back to the game we went.
But something had changed. Su-Bin looked increasingly anxious about something, and she kept checking her phone. After the fourth time, Cam put a gigantic hand over it. “No more checking unless you tell us what’s up.”
The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.
“But it’s shop talk,” Su-Bin said. Before I could stop her, she continued. “Look, you know Magical Girl Understudy’s been a problem for APPEAL. I’m trying to make some sort of peace with her, but she’s been reluctant to let that happen. She keeps saying she’s too busy or pushing us off. It’s really frustrating, and the club’s starting to lose patience with it as a strategy.”
“Well, maybe—“ I started to say, but Bee kicked me in the shin. “Never mind.”
“Never mind what?” Su-Bin asked.
I could practically hear Bianca’s groan, but I’d kind of committed myself, and there wasn’t another option except to BS an answer. “What responsibility does APPEAL have for making amends? I get that you think she’s been a problem for the campus and you guys, but don’t you have some sort of responsibility, too?”
“Of course we do, but that’s why we’re trying to make peace here. If you just—“
“Hang on,” Cam said.
“Wait a minute,” Bee interrupted at the same time. “Annie, are you okay?”
“I’m not sure.” My head was spinning, and my throat felt tight. I stood up. “I need to take a few minutes. I’ll be back.”
“Okay, babe. See you in five?”
“Ten.”
----------------------------------------
I slipped into my bedroom—I wanted the Green Room, but with Su-Bin right there, it’d be like admitting I was a hero—and opened the closet door. Mom’s suit hung in the back, and I grabbed a sleeve. It wasn’t like her actually being here, but it was close, and I needed someone to talk to.
For a moment—just for a moment, but for long enough—I hadn’t been Annie. I’d been Understudy, if not in powers, at least in my attitude toward my friend. My clothes pressed around me as I pulled out my cell phone and texted a familiar number.
This whole mess seemed like the exact kind of thing super-counseling was for. I’d spent so much time in my Understudy Costume that Annie was starting to become her, too, and I didn’t like it one bit. I held my mom’s Madame Shockwave outfit until a message came back in.
My phone buzzed a moment later, and I picked it up instantly. “Understudy here.”
“Hey, Annie. My schedule is packed, but I wanted to make sure you’re not having a crisis. If not, I can get you in on Friday afternoon if that works.” Dr. Ayers’ voice was chipper as usual, if a little staticky from my speaker.
“No, I’m okay. I’m just…I’m looking for ways to balance what I’m doing here with my personal life. They’ve started to feel…kind of the same? It’s hard to explain.”
“Okay. How about I pencil you in for Friday at 3:30, and we take it from there?” Dr. Ayers said. “What you’re dealing with is surprisingly normal for heroes on the edge of going full-time, and we’ve got some plans for helping you navigate that process. I’ll get some resources together, and maybe I can set you up with a mentor hero, too.”
“That all sounds great. I’m already working with—“
“Annie, you good?” Bee’s voice cut in from the bedroom door.
“Yeah, I’m fine. Just need a couple more minutes.”
“Ooookay. I’ll let Su-Bin and Cam know, alright?” Her voice dropped. “You might want to keep it down, though.”
“Thanks, Bee.” I turned to my phone. “Yeah, Friday sounds great. I appreciate it. I’ve gotta go, though.”
“No problem. I’m happy to help,” Dr. Ayers said.
I hung up, took another minute to pull myself together, and opened the closet door. Then, after checking to make sure I seemed okay, I wandered back into the living room and sat down. “Thanks for being patient.
----------------------------------------
I was dreading the moment Bianca turned on me.
She’d been every bit the perfect hostess the whole game, even after she lost hand after hand. She grumbled good-naturedly about her bad cards and, after the game ended with Su-Bin winning, showed that she’d somehow managed to draw almost ten extras. We all yelled at her, and she defended herself by consulting the rules. Sure enough, they stated that cheating was acceptable, but being caught cheating was against the rules.
“What kind of game is this, anyway?” Cam complained.
“A good one,” Bianca smiled widely and held the door as he trouped by with the much-lighter slow cookers.
Then the door clicked shut.
“I posit you were pondering your personality problems,” she said, leading me back toward the couch. “You haven’t been acting like yourself the last couple of weeks.”
“It’s that noticeable?” I grinned sheepishly and sat down. She went right back to rubbing my shoulders, this time getting her hands under my sweater, and I jumped at how cold they were. “Yeah. I’ve got an appointment with super-counseling on Friday.”
“Alright. But in the meantime, why don’t we talk it over?” Her hands kept pushing, and I melted into the back of the couch. “You seem okay on our dates, right? How’s that different than when we play games with Su-Bin?”
“Uh, you know my secret already, so I don’t feel like I’m pretending to be someone I’m not. With Su-Bin, it’s all about managing two different relationships, between Annie and her, but also between Understudy and President Pak. And that was working for a while, but it’s harder to keep the shop talk out of game night.”
“So what do you want?”
“I hate that question so much, Bee,” I complained, leaning forward out of her back-rub. She walked around the couch and sat down next to me as I kept talking. “I don’t know. That’s why I’m seeing Dr. Ayers.”
“Okay. Look. I’m here for you. I know some of the tricks, and I’ve got your back. You want to step back from superhero stuff for a bit? We can do that. The campus should be safe, and we’re not going to end the Third Power War ourselves or anything, right?”
I tried to keep a straight face, but before I knew it, a giggle forced its way out of my mouth. Then it was a laugh I couldn’t stop, even though I wanted nothing more than to take it seriously. “Fursona and Understudy save all the days,” I gasped between almost painful breaths.
“Yeah, it’s a little hard to even think about with so many ridiculously powerful heroes out there,” Bee said. And, look, we’re in the minor leagues, but that doesn’t mean we have to be heroes all the time. We really should take some time just to be us.”
I took another deep breath, let one last giggle go, and then waited to see if more were coming. When they didn’t, I grabbed Bee’s hand and held it. “We should. But the superheroes are part of us, too.
“I think—“
Before she could keep talking, I interrupted her. “Bee, I’m going to see Dr. Ayers on Friday. Until then, let’s just keep on doing what we’re doing. She’ll have some new ideas.”