The Adventures of American Girl and Magnet Man - Issue 1

[Banner Laverick]

What a week.

First, the concert. It started out fun, then quickly went ugly, all due to Mutant Wackiness. It turned out the lead singer, Melvin (she had decided his name had to be said with a certain distain, especially after what had happened at Cullens') was a mutant, one who had no idea how to use his powers. She had followed him, just to be sure he didn't do it on purpose. He didn't. They had gone to a special mutie college, where Melvin had made some comments that she took offense to - saying her "playing" hero wasn't going to last, that she should leave everything behind to join that school...Then told her to go and rescue some other "strays"...

Banner had flown all the way home without stopping, turned off her computer, her cell and told her mum she felt sick. She spent the rest of her week in her room, in bed. Finallllly, she had decided enough was enough, and had taken the a "personal" day. Meaning she was going to shop till she dropped. Right now, she was at her favorite mall, checking out the trade paperbacks of the latest comics in the mega bookstore. There was only one other person in the aisle - a pretty cute looking boy who had his nose buried deep in some Marvel comic. She caught his eye, giving him a shy smile.


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v484/mneh/AGMMSig.jpg

[Flux]

There are rules to being in this comic book hobby. The first rule is that you need a ton of money. At 3 dollars a pop, they're not exactly a cheap hobby, especially if you subscribe to a stack of books that's an inch thick, like Felix does. Trade-paperbacks and hardback compilations get even pricier, up to 12 and 40 dollars respectively. Luckily, his dad was big into comics as a teen and doesn't mind funding Felix's hobby.

The second rule is that bookstores get stuff WAY too slow. Usually Felix would be at the mom-and-pop comic shop across town, but he couldn't swing the bus fare today AND afford the trades he had been after for literally months. He wouldn't get to find out what had come out this week until next week, but since bookstores stock trade paperbacks the way squirrels hoard food, he's okay with coming out here today.

The third rule is that girls usually don't do Western comics. Felix had been standing with his nose in this Essential Avengers book for an hour, tuning out the on-and-off gigglethons the girls were putting up over in the manga section. So of course when he noticed one approaching out of the corner of his eye, he looked up expecting to see a girl in search of magazines, further down the row, or in search of a friend, who might be wandering anywhere in the store.

To what he's sure will be his everlasting surprise, the girl stops and starts examining the rows of shelves dedicated to Marvel's titles. He's still mostly hidden in his book, but he knows she knows he's staring at her. He smiles a little and shifts himself so he won't be staring at her if he happens to look up. It won't do to chase her away with gawking; it's how his friends keep driving them away when they go out to the REAL comic shop. Nope, best to leave this little glitch in the Comic Book Matrix alone. Maybe she'll stick around.

[Banner Laverick]

With a courage building inhale, she leaned passed him, taking a copy of Ultimate Spiderman off the shelf. "Excuse me."

She stood a little bit closer to him, thumbing through the pages but not really reading anything. She'd noticed him looking at her looking at him, her cheeks flushed. "Avengers, huh? It that book any good?"

[Flux]

He leaned back a little to let her get the book, taking a brief chance to look up at her. A red-headed Spidey fan. He clamped down on the billion and one MJ references that sprung to mind and answered the question.

"Only when Hank Pym is off-panel. Three super hero aliases, two power sets, and the man is STILL the biggest loser in all of comic history. I can't understand how he was ever qualified for this team.I mean--"

He caught himself building steam for a rant and shut that down, too.

"But yeah, it's ok."

[Banner Laverick]

She had to laugh. "Yeah, I know. I used to read Generation X, untill they started to change the penciller every other issue and added a zillion new, useless characters. I mean, hello, it's the X-universe - you could do SO much with mutant powers."

SHe immediately wanted to smack herself in the forehead - what if he didn't like mutants?! Banner bit her bottom lip, embarassed. She stuck out her hand, trying not to blush herself to death. "But I'm babbling. Hi, I'm Banner."

[Flux]

"I, uh, Felix," he answered, shaking her hand back. "Yeah, mutantcy is wierd. In comics it's all like "whoo, action!" but I'll bet the reality of it is so much different." It was a winning bet; he knew all about it. "Hah. How many of 'em do you think have crazy alliterative names?"

[Banner Laverick]

"Hrm, I don't know. I don't think I know ANYONE who has a name that all starts with the same letter. That would be pretty weird though."

She turned her attention back to the shelf full of comics. "What's worse are all those "code-names", some of them are SO silly! I bet real mutants don't have cool powers, like Magneto or Professor X or anything. If I was going to have a power, it would be to fly. It's so much fun..."

Banner didn't notice her wording untill it came out. "Uh, I mean, it would be so much fun. If I could fly, which I can't do, because that would just be crazy."

[Flux]

"You like caffiene, don't you?" Felix asked, half-into his book again. "I like flying, too. I've got a grandma out in Nebraska or something that we see now and then. The plane ride rules. Best excuse to zone out and read comics that there ever was." Hank Pym came back into the book, so Felix put it away. "Anyway, yeah, code-names are nutty. I don't know what the heck mine would be." He paused, thinking about it, and running the last things she said through his mind to pick out something extra to talk about. in case the code-name thing fell flat, which it did. "Oh, trivia for you: my full name is alliterative. Scratch that one off your list of wierd stuff to experience."

[Banner Laverick]

"Really?"

Every F name she knew scrolled through her head. She let out a small sigh of relief that he didn't really notice her screw up. Her book found it's way back onto the shelf too, and she flicked her long red-hair over her shoulder.

"Do you wanna go get a coffee or something? Maybe we can talk comics some more?"

[Flux]

"Sure, lemme just grab what I came for. Oh jeez. Uh..."

He wished he'd just picked them up as soon as he'd wandered in. He felt embarrassed by what he was about to do next.

"Let's see...Hulk, Iron-Man, Thunderbolts, Dr. Strange, AND the Silver Surfer, just to shake things up. I need to break out of Spidey and Avengers and find out what else is going on in the world of Marvel."

It sounded SO much worse in the air than in his head, but then, it always did. He stacked the books in the order he'd want to read them and shifted them under his arm. "You, uh, you want anything?"

[Banner Laverick]

She shook her head, "I was just browsing. I'm still waiting for my pre-order of Zombies Vs Robots Vs Amazons to come in."

They wandered through the shelving maze to the front of the store, waiting in line for an open cashier. "So, Felix, did you wanna get coffee, or food, or whatever?"

[Flux]

"Sure. Not sure what I'll be able to afford, but yeah, we can totally do that." He shifted his books uncomfortably, checking the cover and interior art, and for a moment even considered putting them back. Before he could, he was summoned to a register and asked for his discount card. He handed it over, and the cashier couldn't help but smile.

"Felix Franklin Fletcher. Is that really your name?" he asked, scanning the card and books. Felix nodded, and the guy shook his head in disbelief. "Crazy, man. Bet you get picked on a lot in school." Felix shrugged noncommitally, paid in cash, and didn't acknowledge the cashier's "Have a good day." It didn't feel sincere, somehow.

"Right," he said, winding his hand in the handles of his comic-laden plastic bag and letting her precede him out of the store. "Coffee or food?"

[Banner Laverick]

"Hrmmm. It's tuesday, right? Oh my god, we totally have to hit BK! You like BK, right? Their chicken sandwich is like heaven deep-fried on a bun!"

Banner realised what she was saying and immediately turned bright red. She'd wished she'd bought something, so she would have something to fidget with. Instead she adjusted the little keychain voodoo dolls that hung off her purse.

"Uh, unless you can think of something else?"

[Flux]

"It's fine. It is just fine," he said to reassure her. "Why are you being so jumpy? You act like I'm going to sprout a dragon head and eat you, or something."

Felix was starting to feel a little more at ease, but his low-key nervousness was still there, edging him away from all his nerd talk and trying to push him toward something that might be a little more accessible to the general public. Then again, he was getting the feeling that, for once, it wasn't gonna be an issue.

"I love the BK commercials, with the guys dressed in burger costumes. Funniest fast-food ads EVER."

[Banner Laverick]

"Yeah, me too. I like the King ones, for the Xbox games. Too funny. Their fries are nast though - I only order onion rings, without the zesty cheese sauce."

She made a face. And changed the subject, to something she hoped wouldn't set off her amazing blushing powers.

"So...do you go to school around here? I don't think I've ever seen you before."

[Flux]

"Yeah, I go to PS 44. Small, crappy, out-of-date on everything from books to computers...we're all quite certain that when we get to the real world or college, we'll be too far behind the curve to actually DO anything. It sucks, especially since I wanna go to ESU after I graduate."

He looked at her, saw her blush had faded, and smiled.

"How about you?"

[Banner Laverick]

"I go to Midtown. I don't have a clue about what I want to do after school; I've never really thought about it. I guess I have so much going on now, it just hasn't been a priority."

She smiled back, trying not to get flustered again. "I'm sure you'll get into whatever school you set your mind on. You seem pretty smart...I mean, you do read Marvel comics, after all."

[Flux]

"Hah. I've never been told that the brand of comics I read was a clue to my smartness. Most people say it's a sign of how immature I am." Felix shrugged. "I just really get into this stuff. I like a visual element with my storytelling, and I'm not so picky that I need some kind of epic novel-thing to get me through a good plot. I mean, I do read regular books, and I enjoy them, but...it's just not the same, somehow."

[Banner Laverick]

"I hear you. I'd rather read a great comic than a stuffy book. I read books, but they're all like, fantasy, sci-fi stuff."

They reached the food court, ending up at the end of a very long line at the Burger King. Banner returned Felixs' shrug. "I dont know, liking comics and stuff isn't something I think guys would find attractive in a girl."

[Flux]

"You'd be surprised," Felix answered, edging up the line as customers were served. "Most of the guys I know wouldn't mind a comic-reading girl. In fact, If most of the guys I know knew you existed, you'd be swamped with suitors going after the 'Glitch in the Comic-Book Matrix', because that's no doubt how they'd think of you."

Felix, of course, felt no compulsion to tell her that he had thought of her that way himself, and was determined not to behave himself in such a shallow manner.

"If I were you, I absolutely would not worry about it. Depending on what titles you're reading, people will write it off as you being cute, or a strong, independent-type woman."

[Banner Laverick]

"Yeah, but sometimes girls don't want to be "cute"..." She made a face. "It gets old, you know? I don't want guys to think of me as the "cute" girl, I wanna be the "hot" girl sometimes!"

She went back to fidgeting as they moved up in line once again. "I know that probably seems way shallow of me - I mean, looks aren't supposed to be everything, but if you dont find someone attractive, it wont work, right?"

[Flux]

"I...guess?" Felix shrugged. "I haven't been in any relationships, so I wouldn't really know. I mean, I've been attracted to girls purely for personality, and I've been attracted to girls for sheer hotness factor." He considered, head tilted slightly as he studied the menu from afar. "I guess I would've gotten tired of those people real quick. But anyway, you're a hot girl. Don't worry about that."

[Banner Laverick]

"I guess so." She muttered so low he could barely hear her. At least she didn't feel her face burning with the intensity of a thousand very embarassed suns. She chewed on her lip, as he perused the menu.

"But, what if you met a really nice and equally hot girl and she had...well, she was "different". Would you still like her?"

[Flux]

Felix sensed euphamisms.

"Different how? Learning disability, medical condition, used to be a man?"

The last part he intended as a joke, grinning a little at her to help it along.

"Come on, be specific."

[Banner Laverick]

"Okay. Hypothetically," Her voice lowered, and she leaned closer to him, almost whispering in his ear. "Say you met this "qlitch". She's a nice normal girl, who just happens to appreciate all things geeky....but secretly uses super-powers to fight crime in her spare time. Would you still like her, or would the whole "omg!mutie" thing weird you out?"

Banner moved away from his ear, just a tiny bit, grinning sheepishly. "Hypothetically, of course. I mean, ha ha, what kinda girl would really have super powers and ask guys about it."

[Flux]

He leaned back over to her and whispered his answer back.

"I think that'd rule." He smiled at her again before posing his own question. "Switch the female pronouns for male ones. Could you date such a guy?"

[Banner Laverick]

Without thinking, she shoved him. "Shut up! You - oops..."

Shoved too hard, or took him completely off-guard, because as soon as she did it, Felix was skidding across the food courts' shiny floor. It was only a few feet, just enough to have the entire mall (well, it seemed like it to her) stop and gape at her. She felt that terrible hot feeling creeping up her neck - did she see if he was okay, or run like hell? She picked the former, kneeling down to help him to his feet.

"Oh my god, I am SO sorry. Are you okay?"

[Flux]

Felix stood, brushing himself off and punching the palm of one hand with the other like a catcher.

"That's the ol' pepper, kid!" he said in an imitation of Bugs Bunny. This got a laugh from some of the people, and they went back to what they were doing. The two high-schoolers resumed their place in line, just in time to order. Felix resolved to pick on her about her apparent strength later, and waited for her to order first.

[Banner Laverick]

Banner laughed, shaking her head. "You are a goof."

They got back into line, right in front of the snickering cashier. Banner flashed a smile. "Can I get the original chicken sandwich meal, with rings and a chocolate shake?"

She glanced at Felix. "Order whatever you want, I'll pay this time. You can get next time, okay?"

[Flux]

"Uh, sure," he answered, looking back at the menu. Seven minutes in line and he STILL doesn't know what he wants. "I, uh, chicken nuggets, I guess. And a coke." The cashier shook her head and gave Banner the total, placed a tray on the counter, and went to make the milkshake. Four food items, a drink, and a payment later, the two were settlig in at one of the smaller tables in the food court. "Girl, you so strong!" Felix teased, grinning at her as he took his share of the food. "You could probably bench more than my brother."

[Banner Laverick]

"Hush you."

She took a bite of a ring. "It's not something a girl wants everyone to know. Most guys don't want to date a girl who can fly and lift cars and whatever...I'm sorry about the push. I was just, surprized by your question. I guess."

[Flux]

"Which you never answered, Ms. Minivan Benchpresser," Felix reminded. He paused to eat some chicken and drink some Coke. "So? What's the verdict?"

[Banner Laverick]

"I guess it would depend on the guy. If he was a jerk about being a super hero, then I'd have to kick his butt." Another onion ring, a sip of her shake. "Why? Are you secretly a masked crime-fighter looking for a female sidekick?"

[Flux]

"I wish," he said. "I don't know that I'd be a particularly good hero. I'm not at all in shape for it, and I can't drive, so I wouldn't have any way to go patrolling for bad guys or whatever. I kinda envy that American Girl you see on the news all the time. She's got it made with that whole flying thing, and with super-strength there's not much need to work out, unless being super-strong doesn't mean you constantly have an awesome physique."

[Banner Laverick]

She nearly spit up the sip of shake that was in her mouth. "Uh, yeah, well..."

Banner took a deep breath - sure, she'd only just met this guy, but he seemed to, well, get the whole teenage-mutant-weirdness thing. Here goes...

"I guess all the flying and crime fighting helps to keep me in shape, since I spend most of my time trying to be "normal"."

[Flux]

Felix stopped chewing and stared at her. His head tilted to one side, then to the other. He swallowed the chicken nuggets and picked up his drink, sipping thoughtfully as he appraised her. Red hair? Check. Stronger-than-the-average-bear? Kinda check. Though her being American Girl would make her crazy "I can't fly that'd be wierd lulz" fit in the bookstore make a ton of sense. And now, he's basically gotten this confession from her. Heh. He'd just been making chatter.

"Really?" he said after a bit more thinking. "Makes sense. Explains a lot." The grin he'd been trying to suppress came to his face,, and he held back even harder on the huge rant that was trying to come out with it. "I want you to know that I am very excited to know that. My entire social circle has fantasies about dating you. They'd die to know I met you."

[Banner Laverick]

"Oh god," she laughed, relieved he finally spoke after a seemingly unending silence. She took a big bite of her sandwich, mmmm, yummy; making sure she had completely finished her food before she spoke again.

"Well, you can't exactly say "Hey, I was at the mall and had Burger King with American Girl! She has excellent fast food etiquette, not to mention she's a total babe." You could, maybe, but then I'd have to beat you up." She grinned back.

[Flux]

"They wouldn't believe it anyway. They'd be mad at me for lying and getting them all jealous and stuff. And the questions they'd ask trying to determine whether I'm telling the truth or not would be absurd and embarrassing." He slides his empy food container to the side and puts his head in his hands. "Every time I think I'm pushing the nerd thing a bit much, I can always go see those guys. Social ineptitude is their collective superpower."

[Banner Laverick]

"Ha, you sound like my friend Parker. Sometimes, I swear, he's King Dork. But he's really sweet, so, it offsets the bouts of total geekiness. Most of the girls I know like geeky guys, anyway."

Banner made short work of her sandwich, crumpling the wrapper and shoving it into the empty onion ring box. "Sooooooo...I'm really glad you don't think I'm a major freakazoid for having these powers. It's not like I can help what puberty has wrought, heh."

[Flux]

"Well...as a comic book fan, I always thought it'd be great to have powers. A world full of powered people isn't really that scary to me. I feel like I can kinda handle it. Now, the part where the powers actually start sounds like it'd be scary as hell. I hear it usually happens in some traumatic fashion."

He hasn't heard it, he knows it. Even though Banner has come out and announced herself to him as a powered individual, he's not sure he wants to tell her about his own power. He's not a hero yet (wait, did he think that for real?) and hasn't quite got his power down yet.

"Is that true for you?"

[Banner Laverick]

"I got my powers, well, found out about them, in school. Parker and I were goofing off in the gym, climbing on stuff and whatever. So he dared me to climb the rope, you know, the one that goes up to the ceiling? I did, but then I looked down."

Banner made a face. "And I screamed like a little girl, let go and stopped in the air right above Parkers' head. The strength came during our testing period. We used to hang out at night in my back yard and try and see if I developed any new powers. Dorky, huh?"

[Flux]

"No, I'd totally do that, too," he assured her. He finished his food and put his garbage on the tray with hers, then pushed it aside."So you got a friend who knows already? What was his reaction?"

[Banner Laverick]

"He thought it was awesome as all get out. He's my best friend, though. I don't know what I would've done if he decided to bail on me." She chewed on her lower lip, thinking to herself. "He's the only one who knows, besides you. I actually made a new costume, so less people could recognize me. Sometimes mask just doesn't cut it. And dont even get me started on the whole Clark Kent thing - there's no way that would work in the real world!"

[Flux]

"I hate that so much. Honestly the domino mask works out pretty well, but I can understand wanting more face coverage. I'd go with a full mask if I was to ever get into hero work. Where did you even get costumes?"

That, more than anything else, has been his biggest concern, mostly because it was the one he could address easily without having to contemplate anything other than his sorry income and total lack of experience in sewing. As opposed to things like what to do if he were to get stabbed, shot, or otherwise injured horribly while playing costume party.

[Banner Laverick]

"Okay....this will sound so dumb, but," she leaned close to him, speaking very quietly. "My first costume was made by my grandma. I told her it was for a party. The last one I kinda did on my own."

[Flux]

"Hah. I'd do that too, but as I stated earlier,my grandma's in Nebraska. Also, I have no experience with a sewing machine, so I couldn't make one if I wanted to." He paused, looking at the corner of the table by his elbow as he thought. "Do we even have a sewing machine? My mom hand-stitches our clothes and stuff when we tear 'em, but I don't think I've actually seen her sew anything. Huh."

He shook his head to snap himself out of it. "So, new outfit. What's it like? You still stuck on red, white, and blue, or are you gonna shake things up a bit?"

[Banner Laverick]

She raised a brow at him. "Now why would you, Mister Normal Every Teen need someone to sew you a costume? Mine is still red and blue, with a few stripes of grayish white. But with a mask and these sort of goggle type things over my eyes. BUT, enough about ME, let's talk about you! Why would you even think about sewing a costume unless...you have some pervy furry-esque fetish for super-heroes?!"

[Flux]

"Hey, if Calvin gets to have a Stupdendous Man costume to play in, I can have a costume, too. It'd be great for spirit week at school; they've had a costume day every year I've been. Plus Halloween and costume parties, and conventions, if I can ever go to one." He shrugs. "Besides, even if I just had it to wear in front of the mirror and flex in now and then, it'd still be worth having."

[Banner Laverick]

"Sure sure."

She shook her head, laughing to herself. That was the lamest reasons for wanting a cosume ever; she was sure there was more to it, but she wasn't about to push anything.

"Too bad I'm not a telepath, I could tell if you were fibbing to me or not."

[Flux]

Felix tapped a finger to his temple. "Oh, you don't wanna go in here. It's absolutely filthy and cluttered and wouldn't be any fun. Or my magnetic personality would reel you in and keep you there forever, and you'd never leave. Do you really want that?"

[Banner Laverick]

"Maybe."

She smiled shyly, flipping her hair over her shoulder as she got up to put their garbage in the bin. She decided to go to one that was out of the way, just to give him time to mull that answer over a little.

[Flux]

Maybe? What was that supposed to mean? Briefly he considered that maybe she was coming onto him, and dismissed the thought rapidly. Girls don't hit on Felix Fletcher. It's like, a law. He'd burn up all the luck he was going to get for the next 5 years if that was to happen.

Anyway, that's not really the point. The point right now is that she's shared a HUGE secret with him, but has known him for maybe half an hour, if that. He felt pretty good about it, and wanted to share HIS secret in return, but it's a nice, big gamble. It could be that she's not American Girl at all, and is just trying to root out gullible mutant types. As she approaches the table he decides to wait and see on it, waving as she got back.

"Did you want to stick around here, or go somewhere else, or what?"

[Banner Laverick]

"Hrm. I dunno. The mall is kinda lame, but if we decide to go anywhere, we'll have to walk. Or bus it."

He could see an idea forming in her head. "Oh! We could go flying! Didcha want to go flying?"

[Flux]

"What, you're gonna carry me, or something?" he asked. Truth be told he was a little nervous about it. Not that he should have any reason to worry if she's the super-strong flying heroine American Girl, but still...it'd be way wierd. "Where would we go?"

[Banner Laverick]

"I have no idea, but it would be fun." She grinned at him, trying her hardest not to grab him and drag him away so they could fly around the city. "Cmon, it'll be awesome. We don't have to do it for very long, if you think it's weird or something."

[Flux]

"And you're sure you don't have mind powers?" Felix stands and grabs his shopping bag. "Where are we gonna start from? There's too many people around here, and I doubt we'll be able to get anywhere with roof access without mall security going haywire. What's your big plan, Banner?"

[Banner Laverick]

"We'll go around to the back of the mall, and take off from there. No-ones' back there, just trucks. And unless they have x-ray vision and can see through the trailer, we'll be cool."

Without thinking, she grabbed his hand, leading him towards the back exit of the mall. In a matter of minutes, they were in the deserted back parking lot of the mall. Banner turned to face him, taking both of his hands in hers, still grinning.

"Ready?"

[Flux]

Felix allowed himself to be dragged along, trying not to take notice of the giggling onlookers who thought he was being a good, cute boyfriend (Hah! As if he was even in this girl's league) or the scowls of the jealous singles out looking for a hook up (Hah! Sucks to be you guys!) and just tried to figure out where the hell they were going.

When they burst out into the lot he was temporarily blinded; the difference betwen the indoor lights and the sun was, well, blinding. He blinked the water out of his eyes and nearly stumbled into her as she stopped, taking his hands in hers.

"Ready? she asked. Felix wasn't, but he nodded anyway and braced himself for what was gonna happen next.

[Banner Laverick]

Banner put his hands on her waist, putting her arms around him. This was the closest they'd gotten all day, and she couldn't help the pink color that was coming to her cheeks. She held him tightly. Soon they were a good five feet off the ground; she stopped, not wanting to soar off into the wild blue yonder just yet.

"Is this okay? If you want to go back down, we can."

[Flux]

Felix's red beat all the blushes she'd made in the past hour as he realized this was the closest he'd been to her all day. Hell, it was the closest he'd ever been to any girl. He held onto her tightly as they began to take off, dropping any pretense of being a brave man by shuting his eyes and hiding them on her shoulder as she asked if he was okay. He wasn't, but he was having one of those "DO AND DO NOT WANT" moments and hadn't committed to being not-okay yet. Which meant...

"I'm good," he answered, feeling very self-concious about how small his voice sounded. "Do your thing, girlfriend." He gripped his wrists to ensure his hold on her waist wouldn't break as easily, and tried to focus on just how awesome it's gonna be to talk about the experience later.

[Banner Laverick]

"Awwwww!"

She held him even tighter as he put his head on her shoulder and squeaked out an "I'm good." She shifted under him, leaning closer to his ear. Her voice was soft as she spoke to him - inside she kinda felt bad; flying had been weird for her the first time she did it too.

"Felix, look at me. I'm not going to let anything bad happen, okay? Trust. If you feel uncomfortable at all, you tell me, and I'll land."

[Flux]

It took him a lot of effort to look at her. He did it carefully, making sure not to look at the ground to maintain whatever resolve he did have. Her voice is reassuring, which makes him feel better about the whole flying thing, but she looks guilty, which makes him feel bad about being such a loser.

"I said I'm good," he told her, finding a little more strength for his voice. He encouraged her with the most obscure nerdom he had. "Go fly. And soar and spin and climb and dive and look way, way down on everything else." His face re-hid on her shoulder. "I'll come out when I'm ready to look down, too."

[Banner Laverick]

She wanted to laugh, but decided not to (she didn't want him to think she was laughing at him, cos she wasn't.) Instead, they floated higher and higher, untill the mall was nearly a speck, and all the people and cars looked like little insects. They flew over the city at a steady pace, high enough that they'd be overlooked by anyone who saw them from the ground.

The sun was beginning to set in the distance - was it really getting that late? She glanced down. They were over a suburb, luckily one with a large park in the center. She settled them down on the highest tower of the big climber/slide combo thingy, letting go of Felix. "Well?"

[Flux]

Felix managed to look as they reached the heighest point of the flight, looking down with an expression of amazement. It was incredible! It was still scary as hell, but now that he was actually here, and she did indeed have the strength to carry him, there was no doubt in his mind; American Girl was flying him around the city. He hid his face again as they started to descend, and pulled away from her reluctantly when they landed.

"That. Was. AWESOME." he blurted after catching his breath. "And you do this all the time? Do you even bother with public transportation, or do you just fly everywhere you wanna go? Because I know I'd abuse the crap outta being able to fly."

[Banner Laverick]

"If I'm alone, I usually fly, but with people who don't know about it, I act like a normal teenager. I take the bus an awful lot for someone who can fly."

She stretched, arms above her head, her back arching. "It is pretty cool. I've read online about some other mutants who've ended up with like, the lamest powers ever. Flying and having super strength are classics for a reason - cos they rule!"

[Flux]

Felix made a little "heh", looking at her while she stretched and looking away when she mentioned lame powers.

"Think magnetism would be a dumb power? Like, being able to magnetize metal and stuff?"

[Banner Laverick]

"uh, No?! Are you crazy? Have you never heard of Magneto?"

She stuck her tongue out at him, leaning on the railing. "No, that is a killer power. Think of all the stuff you'd be able to do. I mean, Magneto ripped the metal right off Wolvies bones. That's pretty tough, don't you think?"

[Flux]

Felix rolled his eyes. "Of course I know who Magneto is," he mumbled under her exposition. "Well, yes that's awesome. Not for ol' Wolvie, but yeah." He moved to the guard rail on the platform and leaned against it, looking for something to make an example of. "But you know ol' Mags can affect magnetism for anything, which lets him fly and do all kinds of other crazy junk. I think in reality, it'd be less impressive."

[Banner Laverick]

"Yeah, but you'd be able to learn how to do all that stuff. I mean, when I started flying, I hit into walls, telephone poles. I've had to learn to control how much strength I put behind every touch, because I could really hurt someone..." She sighed, looking out across the playground. It was dark, deserted. The moon was coming up, round and full, lighting up what the lamp-posts missed.

"Sometimes it's not awesome, though. Being a super-hero is kinda lonely; like, I can't share it with anyone. I don't know any other mutants, and it's not like I'd take any of my friends out to fight crime with me."

[Flux]

Felix nodded, when he noticed something out near the sidewalk. A metal wastebasket was sitting there, surrounded by scrape marks where the heavy thing had been moved around by rowdy kids or workers emptying it. The fence surrounding the park was metal, too, and Felix took a deep breath.

"Hey, Banner. Look at that garbage can."

Once he was sure she was looking at it, he focused on it, assigning it a mental "plus" as he put a mental "minus" on the fence. The visualization had helped him test his powers before, and with the visualization in place, the can slowly began to scrape along the concrete until it contact the fence with a soft clink of metal. The whole process took maybe two minutes, and by the time it was over, Felix was sweating lightly across his forehead and looked almost as fatigued as if he'd pushed it physically. He looked expectantly for her reaction.

[Banner Laverick]

Her eyes opened a bit wider than she'd have liked, and her mouth opened before quickly shutting again. "Mind powers, or magnetics? And why the hell didn't you say anything about this before?!"

[Flux]

"Magnetics." He noticed she was wearing a necklace, and pulled his keys from his pocket. The necklace suddenly drew toward the metal and hovered there in air until he touched the two objects together, where they stuck fast. A little change of focus and the necklace flew back to her chest as the keys repelled them. "Just like playing with magnets back in grade school."

He stood and turned to lean back against the rail, the better to face her when he made this next confession. "I didn't say anything before because I...well, I wanted to be sure you really were American Girl, and not somebody pretending to be in case of some...I don't know, anti-mutant thing. Getting powers has made me a little paranoid, especially considering how I found the stupid thing out."

[Banner Laverick]

She touched her necklace as it fell back onto her chest. She could totally understand; it wasn't like being a mutant was something anyone would want to shout from the rooftops. It could be a scary thing...but stupid?

"It's not stupid," she moved closer to him, putting a hand on the railing, on top of his. She leaned a little closer still, planting a soft kiss on his cheek. "I understand about being careful, but you have to realise that powers are like, part of you. It's something that makes you special."

[Flux]

He half-smiled and turned only half as red as he had earlier. What was he supposed to say to that? It sure as hell was true, but he didn't feel that way all the time. In fact, the only times he had felt that way was when he'd tested his powers and just now, performing them freely in front of someone who wasn't going to judge him for them.

"Thanks."

[Banner Laverick]

"You're welcome."

Wow, they were totally having moment here. She had kissed him (on the cheek, does that even count?) and neither of them had blushed themselves to death. Of course, a bunch of rowdy teenaged drunks had to come into the park and ruin it. She rolled her eyes as they made their way towards the jungle gym where the pair stood. Hopefully they'd leave her and Felix alone...

"Hey babe, whatchu doin' with that dork?" One of them called from below. The other few laughed, stumbling around, starting to climb up the ladder. Banner folded her arms across her chest.

"What dork? The only dorks I see here are you and your two lamer friends."

[Flux]

Oh brilliant. Never a dull moment in New York. And things were going so well.

"You guys missed the short bus. We can let you ride the big bus with the smart kids, if you promise you'll shut up and behave yourselves."

AND he's started shooting his mouth off. Way to help the situation.

[Banner Laverick]

The loudest loud-mouth had made his way up the jungle gym, standing on the platform in front of them. Banner couldn't help but smirk at Felix. That was unexpected, and it had made these dummies even more annoyed. Now this guy was glaring at them. He made the mistake of grabbing Banners' wrist, pulling her to him.

"Cmon baby. Lose the zero and get with a hero."

[Flux]

"What are you nuts?" Felix could feel the heat in his face and neck, and for the first time today, not from being embarrassed. Felix was pissed. "I am the hero!"

Sir Drunk and Disorderly, as it happened, was a fan of piercings. His face was covered with them. So Felix slid aside, revealing the metal guardrail, and turned his powers on. The loser faceplanted the rail hard, smashing his nose as the metal pieces tried to contact each other. Felix couldn't help but smile; that felt so good.

[Banner Laverick]

Before she could cheer for her hero, the other two were charging up at them. Right into Banners' fists, which sent the pair of them halfway to the swing set. Mr Piercings was out cold, his friends had gotten to their feet and were running away as fast as they could...

Banner turned to Felix, wrapping her arms around his neck with a laugh. "That was SO awesome! You were amazing, Magnet Man!"

[Flux]

She nearly knocked him over simply by catching him off guard, but he was stopped by another railing. He hugged her back and nodded, unable to take his eyes off the guy he'd just knocked out cold. Before his powers, he'd have been steamrolled by such a thug. It had happened with fair regularity in school, and now Felix felt like he was better than all of them. Superior. Maybe this is what that Technofreak guy was talking about.

"Yeah," he said, coming out of his thoughts to answer her praise. "You were awesome. Knocked them clear off the tower. I'm surprised they can still walk. Good job, American Girl."

What had she called him? Magnet Man. Just like his blog handle. Maybe it would work for a decent hero name. He'd have to think about it a little more.

[Banner Laverick]

"Thanks. I didn't hit them as hard as I'd like, figured I shouldn't send them to the hospital just for being lamers."

She kept her arms around his neck, hugging him. "You really were amazing. Ever think of fighting crime as a hobby?"

[Flux]

Felix managed to stop looking at his handiwork and look her in the eye. "Nope. No way to hide my identity, I'm not in good physical condition, I could get arrested for being a crazy vigilante, I could get hurt or killed...I mean, it's fun to talk about, but I'm not sure I could actually DO it. At least, not right now."

[Banner Laverick]

"Hrm. I guess you're right." She pulled away, looking a little disappointed. They'd make a great crime-fighting duo. At least she thought so. Banner looked down at her watch, a little embaressed and trying to change the subject.

"Ugh, so late. Did you want me to fly you home? Or I guess we could try to catch a bus or something."

[Flux]

"I dunno. Maybe, I guess. I don't even know where I live from here. Where's a street sign?" He climbed down and helped her down, too, and headed towards the street to find out where they were. "I guess if all else fails you can take me to my school. I can walk home from there."

[Banner Laverick]

"Okay."

She trailed behind him, following him out to the street. It wasn't anywhere she'd ever heard of.

"Do you know where we are?"

[Flux]

He recognized the street sign (Markhaven Street) as one that intersected the roads near his school. However, he didn't know what direction to go in.

"Uh...kinda. Don't know which way to go though. I guess we could just walk one way, figure out which way to go, then fly in the right direction. Is that okay, or do we need a different plan?"

[Banner Laverick]

"How about we get up in the air, do you think you could see your school from up there? It would save us a bit a time and walking."

Before he could answer, she'd scooped him up, lifting him by putting her arms under his armpits. They were up and over the trees and street lights, then over whatever buildings surrounded the park.

"Do you see your school? Or anything familiar?"

[Flux]

Second time was much better than the first. Maybe it was just that the flying thing had gotten steadily cooler after he'd done it that one time. He turned his head and twisted as best he could to see, then finally spotted it a good distance away. "Over there," he said, pointing over Banner's shoulder.

[Banner Laverick]

"Alrighty."

She flew slowly at first, but since Felix seemed fine with the whole being a zillion feet in the air thing now, she sped up. Even did some trick flying before setting him on the grass beside his school. Banner floated a few inches from the ground, digging into her purse. Out came her cell phone.

"Uh, do you think I could get your number? Maybe we can hang out again sometime. If you want to."

[Flux]

He actually laughed as she pulled her tricks, keeping his eyes open for the whole bit. He managed to stop the giddy laughter shortly after the landing, just in time to give her his phone number. He pulled a pencil from his pocket and fished the receipt out of his bag of books, turning it over to write on the back.

"Let me get your number, too. Oh, and I'll give you my AIM name and stuff. Is that cool?"

[Banner Laverick]

"Sure."

They exchanged all the important info - land-line numbers, cell numbers, IM screen names, email addresses. Then stood there awkwardly in silence. Banner settled her feet on the ground, fidgeting once again.

"Um, I guess I should be going. See you later?"

[Flux]

"Yep. I'll log all this when I get to the house; probably send you a message onlne." He pulled her into another hug and kissed her on the cheek, in return for the one she gave him earlier. "This was fun, we'll definitely have to do it again. Good night Banner."

[Banner Laverick]

She hugged him back tight, smiling as he kissed her cheek. "Yeah. Good night Felix."

She was about to let him go, take off for home...when, well, she decided (since she WAS a strong, independent type woman, after all) to stop. She pulled him tightly to her, pressing her lips hard against his, eyes shut and keeping her fingers crossed that he wouldn't freak out.

[Flux]

He was half-turned to walk away when she yanked him back and ensnared him in his very first kiss. He held onto her as he stumbled, shutting his eyes, trying to breathe, and returning the kiss as best he could think to. He wasn't sure how long it lasted; to him, it felt like a very good forever. When they parted, he stumbled back a step, relaxing a little and letting his body find it's own center of gravity.

"Hah. Oh wow. I mean, uh..."

So now what is he supposed to say!? What's he supposed to do? None of his friends had ever been kissed (Felix was betting they never would) and his brother had never given him any advice about what to do when a girl just randomly throws herself upon you in an act of passion. Or...whatever. He just wished he'd stop grinning like a damn idiot and looked at the ground.

"That was, uh...that was yeah."

Again with the stupid talk. If he weren't feeling so elated he would simply shrivel up from embarrassment.

[Banner Laverick]

"I'm sorry." So much for being strong, Banner felt like...well, embaressed of course. It seemed to be the theme for today. She'd kissed one guy before, and it was nothing like this...She just kind of, wanted to do it again. So she did, a little gentler this time, her fingers trailing down his back.

[Flux]

Felix fairly melted. He returned the kiss a little more easily this time, worrying less about what he was doing and just...doing it. But there was that little part of his nerd-brain the whole time going

THIS IS AMAZING! Oh my God, how did I get THIS lucky? This never happens to people, not even in comics. Oh, and I know me some comics. Maybe that's why. Maybe this is my payoff for being a good little comic book guy. Nah, it's bigger. Oh screw it, this is AMAZING. Nobody will ever believe it.

His hands ran up into her hair, and he marveled at how it felt. What had he been missing out on for two years of high school? And this is because he's a mutant? Oh, thank the powers that be for mutantcy. Without it, he'd never know Banner Laverick.

[Banner Laverick]

Her hands had made their way down to his bum, giving it a teeny squeeze before she broke the kiss. She couldn't think of anything else to say, except sorry, but that didn't seem appropriate. Her thoughts were going a million miles per minute. but wow...just wow.

"So...yeah. Uh, we should definitely do this again. Very soon. If that's okay."

[Flux]

He didn't dare touch her back. He just grinned, looked at her, looked at his feet, looked at her, and said "Yeah. Anytime you like." He scratched the back of his neck and looked off down the street toward his house. "I'll, uh..." He looked back to her. "I'll see you later?" He didn't want to go, but he figured he'd best go while they were both still happy and not-awkward. Well, not as awkward as they could be.

[Banner Laverick]

"Definitely."

She grinned at him, looked at her shoes, his shoes, then down the street. She didn't want to go home, but she knew neither of them could stay out all night without their parents grounding them forever.

"I better go, my mum is going to be wondering where I am. Yours probably is too. I'll im you later. Stay sweet, Magnet Man."

One last kiss - a quick peck on the lips. Before he was out of sight, he turned and waved at her, still smiling. She couldn't help but smile back, nearly skipping into the air, as she headed for home.