A Hero

"I don't need your help and I don't want your sympathy," the villain in front of me grumbled.

  I raised an eyebrow. "Your costume barely covers your arms and you're shivering from head to toe -- it seems like you do need help to me. And hey, I know a cafe with the best hot chocolate in town, my treat." 

  She turned her head away from me, her short purple hair eclipsing her face; she seemed to be pouting. Her hands wrapped around her arms, rubbing them to keep herself warm even as the snow fell around her. She was trying to keep it barely noticeable but was failing miserably. 

  "Look, you can't put up a good fight like this," I told her. "After we warm you up, I'm sure you'll be as good as new."

  There was a pause, and then she exhaled a cloud into the air. 

  "You're not asking me out, right?"

  I frowned. "What? No, not at all. Why?" 

  "Well, we've fought each other for a long time, and sometimes feelings can develop--"

  "No," I said, laughing, "this is purely platonic. I'm just doing the heroic thing to do."

  There was another pause before she groaned, "Ughhh, fine. I'll go with you. But if you tell the press about this, I swear I'll rob a bank and keep everyone hostage for a week."

  "And I'd rescue them like I always do," I replied. "Now, the cafe's this way."

  I began to walk through the snow, my boots leaving footprints embedded where I stepped. I could hear her sigh, hesitate for a second, and then start after me. 

  "W--why aren't you flying?" I heard her ask from behind me.

  "Because you can't," I replied easily, and I couldn't help grinning slightly as she grumbled even more. 

  She was stubborn, that was for sure. I was surprised she had accepted my help so easily; for that to happen, she must've been suffering.    

  It was no wonder that she was so cold, though: while her costume had long sleeves, they were extremely thin and skin-tight, not to mention the large holes on both her shoulders and back. Her hands weren't covered by gloves as well. The material allowed her to use her superpowers, but it didn't keep her heat in.

  Her steps slowed behind me, and when I turned to check on her, she was shaking so badly that it was difficult for her to walk. 

  "Hey, let me carry you and fly you to the cafe," I said. "You'd be warmer and it would be faster." 

  "S--shut up, I'm f--fine."

  I frowned slightly. This was a front, of course, but it wouldn't be heroic if I went against her will. "Are you sure? You don't seem fine." 

  Her teeth were chattering too hard for her to answer. 

  "Please. Let me help you."

  After a second where her pride and common sense were warring inside her, she nodded, strands of hair falling in her face.

  I stepped closer to her and swept her off of her frozen feet, one arm around her knees and the other supporting her back. She gasped a little as I lifted her to my chest. 

  "Hang on tightly," I told her with a smile. "I'd rather not have to dive down after you."

  "O--okay." Immediately, her arms wrapped around my neck. 

  I bent down slightly before pushing off the ground with my feet and taking to the sky, my back to the wind to shield her from the brunt of the bitterly cold air. Of course, I wasn't immune to it, but its effects were lessened for me. 

  After a few minutes, I touched down in front of the cafe, letting her slide gently out of my arms; as soon as her feet landed on the ground, she pulled the door open and rushed inside, with me following behind her.

  She audibly sighed in relief as the warm air from the cafe washed over her, and she was smiling. Actually smiling. It was so strange -- she had never smiled before. 

  "Two hot chocolates, please," I called to the waitress, who nodded and headed into the cafe's kitchen.

  The villainess beside me sunk into one of the booths, rubbing her hands together to spread the warmth, and I slid into it across from her. 

  Her cheeks, nose, and ears were flushed because of the wind, and she sniffed a little. For some reason, snowflakes still clung to her eyelashes as if hanging on to the last bit of cold they could find. 

  "So, how are your evil plans going?"

  She snorted. "Trying to get me to monologue, aren't you? Nope, not gonna happen. I'm not as stupid as my minions, you know."

  I smiled at her. "I never said you were. I'm just trying to make small talk, and" --I winked at her-- "maybe get some intel on your future plans if possible."

  "Not gonna happen, like I said," she said confidently, smiling. 

  The waitress set down the hot chocolates on the table and pulled out a can of whipped cream. "Anyone want whipped cream?" she asked, shaking it beside her.

  "No thank you."

  "Just...give." She grabbed the can from the waitress and piled the cream up high on her hot chocolate, so much so that it almost toppled over onto the table. After she was finished, she handed it back to the woman, who headed back to the counter with a confused expression.

  I must've been looking at her with the same look, because when she looked back at me, she said defensively, "What are you looking at? I like whipped cream."

  I couldn't help but laugh. 

  "What? What's so funny?"

  "I don't know," I said. I could feel myself grinning. "I just didn't think you, the most dangerous criminal in this city, would like whipped cream."

  She crossed her arms. "I have a big sweet tooth, okay? Can anyone blame me? Sweets are good."

  I laughed. "True." I stopped for a second, searching my brain for something to talk about. "So...what do you like to do when you're not out committing some heinous crimes?" 

  She rolled her eyes and shook her head. "I'm not that terrible," she said jokingly, "and believe it or not, I like to write."

  "Oh, you do?"

  She nodded, a faint, content smile on her face as she took a sip from her hot chocolate. "Yeah. It's really fun for me."

  "What genre?" I asked her. I was genuinely intrigued, because I loved to read.

  "Fantasy, mainly," she replied, "but a little dystopian and sci-fi as well. I'm actually getting a book published soon. I hope it does well, because…" She sighed. "If I'm being perfectly honest, villainy isn't my thing. I'd rather be a perfectly law abiding citizen, using my powers for good, but I was so poor…I couldn't even afford to eat. I'm planning to disappear from the crime world as soon as I have enough money to live on my own."

  After a second, the realization of what she said spread over her face. "Why am I telling this to you? It's not like you care."

  "But, I do care," I said. "And in fact, I'm glad you told me this because I can help you get publicity." 

  She blinked, surprised. "Wait, really?"

  "Of course. After all, you're a frightening adversary and I'd prefer not to face you in battle again," I joked, grinning, because at least part of that was true: she was a formidable enemy to have. "You'll be on billboards everywhere around the city, I promise."

  As soon as I said this, her face softened into a genuine smile. "I don't know what to say," she breathed, her face filled with relief. 

  "You don't have to say anything."

  She shook her head gently. "I just…don't understand it. I've done nothing but cause trouble for you, and yet you're so nice to me. Why?"

  "Everyone deserves kindness," I replied. "Especially when you regret your past choices and want to learn from them. This will help you do that, and I will do anything to make that happen."

  She laughed, and I could see that shimmery tears had gathered at the corners of her clear blue eyes. They were truly beautiful eyes. "Thank you so much."

  "You don't have to thank me," I responded, and I meant it with every fiber of my being. "But…if I'm being perfectly honest with you, I'll miss fighting you. You're an amazing opponent."

  "I could say the same about you," she teased, blinking her eyes to clear them of tears. "So…how about one more round?"

  "Where?"

  "In the town square, at twelve in the afternoon in two days. I'll be in the middle of a robbery." Her smile grew. "It'll be warmer at that time of day."

  "I'll clear my schedule," I said. 

  Her eyes met mine; we stayed that way, staring at each other until she suddenly got up, her face flushed pink.

  "I should go." 

  "It's still snowing, though," I pointed out. "You'll freeze! Let me fly you home."

  Suddenly she laughed, only a slight hint of nervousness -- why was she nervous? -- to her voice as she said, "O--oh, right. I don't want to die before my book gets published." 

  She picked up her mug of hot chocolate by the handle and drained it, smiling as she set it down. 

  "Shall we?"

  I nodded, and after I set the money for our drinks down on the table, we stepped outside into the freezing air; she immediately wrapped her arms around herself once more, exhaling her breath into the night. This time, when I swept her into my arms, there was no protest -- instead, she just snuggled closer into my body heat. 

  The flight to her home was a short one, made easier by the directions she whispered in my ear. 

  It didn't look like I had thought it would have: it was a modest apartment, not an evil lair -- the red brick facade and dark wooden door actually looked quite homey. 

  When I touched down in front of it, she smiled and said, "This is me." She glanced at her apartment and then back to me; it may have been a trick of the light, but she seemed to be blushing once more. "Well…I'd better be going."

  I nodded. "Yeah."

  She turned away from me and touched her hand to the door; waves of sound exuded from the tips of her fingers, and their pitch -- which was unable to be heard by most humans -- unlocked it. She pushed against it, and barely took one step inside before she glanced back at me and said: "Wait."

  I frowned slightly. "What is it?"

  "I know I said this earlier, but…I want to say it one more time." Once again, her crystal blue eyes met mine, and it was a gaze that warmed me even in the cold of the night. 

  "Thank you, Zion."

  And she turned on her heel into the sweet warmth of her apartment.

  I smiled at the door behind which she had disappeared and whispered, "Anytime, Sana," while her breath and her words still lingered in the frozen air.