After the dinner he made on Saturday night pretty much emptied the fridge, Rich managed to convince Dad to make a grocery run on Sunday. The Rice household now had everything the son of the house would need to prepare home-cooked meals for the whole week.
"Jesus, Rich, I guess you weren't lying," Becca said over Sunday dinner. She was practically inhaling Richard's special lasagna. "This is like, professional chef level. Seriously, where did you learn?"
"Internet," he said easily.
Dad was watching them with a smile that didn't reach his eyes. "It's good to see you two getting along. When Rich went with Karen, and Rebecca stayed with me, we thought..." he trailed off.
The atmosphere at the dinner table chilled instantly. They'd done a pretty good job of pretending to be normal, but denial only worked for so long. Mom was dead, and they would have to live in a world where Mom was dead.
Dad sighed. "Where on the internet, Richard? I didn't know they had internet cooking classes." He redirected the conversation. Denial would last a little longer.
"YouTube, uh, I mean blogs!" Rich replied. Did YouTube exist yet? Blogs definitely did. The first Richard actually had a blog back in the day.
Dad raised an eyebrow. "Cooking blogs? I had no idea. Well, I guess you two won't have to worry about food while I'm gone. Work starts again tomorrow."
That's right. Rich and Rebecca were on spring break, but Dad still had to go to work.
"How are things going at Texas Instruments? Calculators still calculating?" Rich tried to joke.
Dad didn't smile. "It's going. Will you two be okay if I head to bed early?" he asked with deceptive lightness.
Want to be alone, huh? "You bet, Dad. We'll be fine, right, Becca?"
"Oh, uh, of course," she said after hastily swallowing another mouthful of lasagna.
Their father pushed away from the table. "Okay," he said, more to himself than to them. "Goodnight. I love you, Richard, Rebecca." He met both of their eyes in turn.
"Love you!" they said together, and watched Dad flee to the master bedroom.
As soon as Dad was out of earshot, Becca set her fork down with a clinking sound. "So, when were you going to tell me about being Future Hero?" she asked directly.
"I literally showed you yesterday. There isn't much to tell. A weird old bald guy who might be an alien or a wizard gave me a magic ring, and now I can transform. I'm pretty sure my mission is to fight Stinger. You're the only one who knows, and I'd prefer to keep it that way."
"Then why didn't you save Mom?" she demanded harshly. The tears were back, and Rich wanted to cry in sympathy. She was his mom, too. Or at least it felt that way. He'd known the male version in his own world, and this one wasn't all that different. But it was hard! Confusing! Cut him some slack here!
"I'm sorry, okay?" Rich fired back. He held up the ring. "That was the first time I used it, and it didn't exactly come with instructions, you know. I was under a lot of pressure!"
Rebecca wilted at the sound of his raised voice. "I'm sorry," she said guiltily. "I know this must be hard for you, coming home, losing Mom, and now all this." She waved her hand vaguely. "I'll try to be more mature, but you've got to be careful! You rushed right in to fight Stinger yesterday. It was terrifying!"
But why? Why was Stinger so terrifying? "I don't get it, Becca. They robbed a Blockbuster. They shake down Girl Scouts, I mean Boy Scouts, for their cookie money. They just look like regular women in nazi biker outfits. Why can't the police deal with this? Why do you need a superhero to fight them?"
His sister took another bite of lasagna and chewed thoughtfully before answering. "Stinger has connections, big ones. They started out in New Mexico, or maybe Nevada, something to do with aliens and Area 51. The ones we get here in Texas are small fry, but they're moving in bit by bit. I heard in New Mexico, they damn near run the whole state. People say judges, chiefs of police, district attorneys, and all that are on Stinger's payroll, or maybe intimidated. If the cops arrest them, they just walk out twenty-four hours later like a revolving door, so the cops don't bother. People don't fight back because Stinger would burn their house down. So watch yourself, Rich."
"I will! You saw me, I can fight 'em!"
"Maybe you can," Becca allowed. She got up to wash off her plate in the sink. "I can do the dishes since you cooked, how does that sound?"
"I like that. Let's make it so Dad doesn't have to do anything around the house, make his life easier."
Rebecca stilled. "You noticed that?"
"Of course I did. She's taking it hard." He thought for a moment. Becca was looking down again. "You want to play games after dinner? I could show you my Nintendo!"
His sister snorted. "Such a mollygirl...but I'll pass. Being in a boy's room would be weird."
"That's ridiculous. We're brother and sister. You know you can come to me and hang out when you feel lonely, right? Anytime at all."
Becca stopped scrubbing and stared at him for a long moment. "I'd like that, Rich. I'd like that a lot, but not tonight, okay? I was gonna read my new Harriet Potter book anyway."
They were pretty different, but at least they were alike in this. "Oh! Do you hope Harriet and, er, Granger get together?"
"Hell yes! They're basically soulmates. Orestes Granger is like the perfect boy. Why can't Harriet see it?"
Orestes? Well, "Hermione" would probably sound weird to Becca.
***
"Jesus Christ, Rich! Put on some clothes before Dad sees you!" Becca was covering her eyes with her hands and averting her gaze.
Oh. Different taboos about male nudity. Rich should've anticipated that. He hadn't bothered to put on a shirt when he got up early to make breakfast. Putting the heat on low, he quickly went back to his room and slipped on a tank top.
"That's still kind of slutty, Rich," Becca criticised when he got back to the kitchen.
Was there no pleasing these people? "It should be fine since it's only you and Dad in the house. I'll cover up more when we go outside, I promise!" He decided his mission for spring break week was researching cultural tripwires like this. Embarrassing his family with his behavior was the last thing Rich wanted to do.
Dad stumbled into the kitchen, bleary-eyed and haggard-looking, a few minutes later. Rich served him up some pancakes and eggs. The man just picked at it.
"Eat!" Rich urged. "You need to keep up your strength."
Their father looked down, smiling a genuine smile this time. "Worrying about me, huh? You'll be a hell of a househusband one day, my son."
"You're spoiling us," Becca complimented. "Dad and I usually make do with takeout or microwavable things. Having three home-cooked meals a day is blowing my mind."
"We'll save money," Rich said conversationally, pouring syrup on his own pancakes. While technically true, seeing how cheap 2005 McDonald's prices were was triggering. How did we ever have it so good?
Dad rushed through breakfast, but thankfully, he ate most of what Rich put in front of him. Before they knew it, Dad was dressed, and the siblings were waving as he drove off for another day of embedded systems programming.
"Dad is pretty cool, isn't he? He's like the only man who works at Texas Instruments, inspiring," Rich commented.
"I guess," Becca said. "What do you want to do today?"
"How about you show me your PlayStation games?" Rich offered. "Do you have any Final Fantasies?"
"All of them," she said proudly.
They played for a while, or rather, Becca watched while she coached Rich through the first few hours of Final Fantasy X. Genderbent Tidus was crazy, and male Yuna was crazier!
After that, Rich suggested they head to the park again. There were still moments when his sister became quiet and thoughtful. Keeping her occupied might help with the grief, he supposed, and fresh air and sunshine never hurt anybody.
Walking along happily, Rich yelped when Becca pulled him behind a tree. "What? Stinger again?" he asked worriedly.
"Worse," his sister said, peering through the leaves. "My nemesis is right over there."
The tree, of course, wasn't wide enough to hide two. "Hey, what's going on over there?" challenged a voice, deep for a woman.
"Fuck," Becca said softly before stepping out. "Hello, Julie."
"Julie" was tall. Rich was six feet, or 183 cm in non-freedom units, which was very big for a boy in this world. This girl dwarfed him. She must've been 6'4" at least, or 193 cm for non-American readers. She had long black hair, a haughty, arrogant face with high cheekbones, an elegant jawline, and purple eyes that projected an entitled gaze like the whole world already belonged to her. Her toned, athletic body was barely contained by a pair of jeans and a purple shirt that had "PLUH" in silver letters emblazoned across the chest.
"What the hell is 'PLUH'?" Rich asked.
Julie's purple eyes locked on him in an instant. "And just who are you?" she purred seductively.
"Richard Rice," he introduced himself. "And you?"
Julie looked at Richard, then back to Rebecca, then back again. "Father of god...the loser has a hot brother!"
"My sister is not a loser!" he returned hotly.
"Whatever you say, pretty boy." She didn't react at all to his aggressive posture or tone of voice. "I'm Julie, Julie Cohen. I really hope we get to know each other better at PLUH."
"What the hell is PLUH?" Rich demanded again. It sounded ridiculous. Was this some kind of practical joke?
"Plano Liberty Union High," Becca explained tiredly. She pushed her glasses back up her nose. "My, our school. Rich, my twin brother, will be joining us after spring break."
Julie sniffed arrogantly. "Twin? Impossible. You see those muscles? Do you have any idea the kind of genetics a boy has to have to be built like that? There's no way a scrub like you is twins with him."
"My sister is not a scrub!" Rich defended her, tasting the bitter lie on his tongue.
"How do you figure?" Julie taunted. "She couldn't even make the football team. I'm the quarterback, by the way, got the coaches of big football schools coming to my house and everything. I'm talking SEC, Big 12, all the big names. I'll be captain next year. I know talent when I see it, and Rebecca Rice has none."
This...this...arrogant cunt! Richard wasn't about to stand for this. A plan formed in his head rapidly. "September is six months from now," he began. "Give me six months, controlling my sister's diet and exercise, and she won't just make the team, she'll be starting varsity! I'll bet you anything! Rice family genes are elite!"
"Done," Julie agreed instantly. "If he doesn't make it, you have to be my boyfriend for the whole of senior year."
Wait...what? Julie was hitting on him? Reverse worlds were a trip. "Fine!" he agreed. "And if he does make it, you have to apologize publicly and tell the whole school my sister isn't a scrub!"
The tall woman smiled evilly. "Deal! Shake on it?" She offered her hand.
Her fingers were long and strong and didn't want to let him go. Julie held on to the handshake for an awkwardly long time until they spotted a pair of Stinger soldiers harassing a lone male jogger.
"Uh, I have to go," Rich said, trying to sound nonchalant.
Becca looked at her incredulously. "Right now?" The rest went unsaid.
"Yes, right now. It was nice meeting you, Julie," he said more politely than the bitch deserved. She finally let go of his hand.
If anything, the smile on her face became even more evil. "I have to go too. You're just my type, pretty boy. You'll look great hanging off my arm during senior year. Now off with you! Wouldn't want Stinger to get their hands on what's mine."
They parted, and Rich took off at a jog, looking for an isolated place to transform. Becca was struggling to keep up. "Were you serious about training me?" she asked.
"Of course! I'm already cooking all your meals. You're getting your senior year glow-up, sis. I promise!"
"What the hell is a glow-up?" Becca asked in confusion.
Rich sighed. "Never mind." He held up the ring and struck a pose.
"From a future dark
To a post not set,
Stinger hasn't won just yet,
With Pureheart Power, a noble mission,
Come forth! Future Hero! Henshin!"
Blazing with Purple Pureheart Power, Future Hero emerged again. He rushed to where the Stinger soldiers were harassing that poor man. They looked like they were expecting him.
"Fell right into our trap," one of the nazi biker chicks said arrogantly. The lone male jogger turned out to be a petite woman with short hair! He leaped backwards, expecting an ambush, but none came.
"Some trap," he mocked them. "The three of you are no match for me." Rich decided to make this quick; it was almost lunchtime. Absentmindedly, he found himself planning his sister's lunch while he advanced on the Stinger mooks.
"But I am!"
Something grabbed him and pulled him off his feet! When Future Hero hit the ground, he rolled and turned.
A tall woman was looking down on him. She wore a split-leg dress with a spiderweb pattern and had a face full of pale, gothic makeup. There was something familiar about her, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.
"Who the hell are you?" he demanded while he struggled with some kind of sticky string that was stuck to his ankle.
"You may call me Spider Queen Nyte," the woman said officiously.
"One of Stinger's Four Demonic Queens," a Stinger soldier offered helpfully.
"Never heard of you," Future Hero said, ripping the string off his ankle and vaulting to his feet. "I guess you gals got tired of getting your asses kicked and now you think somebody named 'Nighty' can stop me."
The pale woman frowned. "Not 'nighty'. It's Nyte with an 'e'," she clarified.
Future Hero sank into his fighting stance. "Whatever. Let's get this over with."
"I bet you're hot under that helmet," Nyte said breathily. She licked her lips with a long purple tongue. "I just want to tie you up and keep you in my web forever!" The spider woman raised her arm and flexed her wrist. A string, no, a spider web shot out of her body!
Holy shit, she's got Tobey Maguire Spiderman powers! Future Hero just barely managed to dodge the attack.
Figuring she was a ranged specialist, he rushed her and went for a superman punch, only for her to flip in the air, landing behind him. Halfway through turning to face her, Future Hero felt a kick land in his ribcage and pain lanced through his whole body. Undeterred, he managed to roll as he fell and caught her with a kick of his own when she followed too closely.
Nyte backed away, the arrogant look wiped off her face. "So they weren't lying. You really are strong. My body is enhanced with spider DNA, and your kick was actually able to hurt me!" She moaned in ecstasy, like that was a fantasy of hers. "Come on, hit me more!"
What followed was a close-range engagement where Future Hero and Nyte battered away at each other's guards, neither quite landing a clean hit.
"God, I'm getting turned on!" she cried rapturously. Nyte picked up the pace while the Stinger soldiers cheered her. Future Hero just barely managed to slip a punch that cut through the air like a scythe. He went for a low kick to establish distance, but tripped on one of her webs!
Nyte tackled and mounted him, leaning down so her blazing purple eyes were right in front of his helmet. "Shush, don't resist anymore. I promise I'll protect you. Just give yourself to me!"
"Never!" Future Hero defied her, bucking Nyte off and kipping up.
The woman's frown deepened. "Nobody tells me no!" she sneered.
"There's a first time for everything, Nyte!" he said confidently, but already he felt the Pureheart Power ebbing away. With one final burst of energy, he baited her into overcommitting and hit her with a flying knee while she was off balance and couldn't dodge. Once Nyte was dazed from the blow, Future Hero broke contact and dispelled the Endram Armor while he still could. He only had a minute or so left anyway. Fortunately, Spider Queen Nyte didn't pursue. Maybe she was as tired as he was?
When he found Rebecca again, Rich made a mental note to be cautious around any Stinger person with an actual name.