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Where the Heroes Tread - Remi

Growing up in a world of Superheroes and Supervillains should have prepared me better for just about anything. At least, that's what my best friend's grandma always tells me. Really though, how are people flying around in colorful costumes supposed to help me with staying awake in History? I mean, I'm eighteen and ready to get out there and start living life. History bores me.

I'm sitting in the back of the classroom, muzzle propped up on both paws and my eyes half lidded, fighting to keep myself from nodding off. Aforementioned best friend is the only thing keeping me awake today, and he does it by smacking my tail with his. "Hey," he hisses over to me while the brown bear at the front of the class drones on. "Remi, you're falling asleep again."

I stifle a yawn and tilt my head to look at the pine marten and his intelligent hazel eyes. I always find it incredible that he doesn't get exhausted by last period. He does love school, though. "God above, he's just so boring. I could care less about ancient history. If it's before the first super, who cares? Everything's different now." My long ringed tail coils at the tip as that stifled yawn comes back with a vengeance.

Somehow, it doesn't even phase him. "It's still fascinating in its own way, y'know? All of those tribal artifact sites sound so cool. Too bad there aren't any up here. I bet if you saw one you'd pay more attention."

I perk one ear and splay the other, tipping my head to the side so I can wipe a paw across the white circles of fur around my eyes. I try to rub the sleep from them, but it doesn't seem to work. The clock on the wall above the door reads 2:08. Only seven minutes that I need to stay awake left in this period. Then I can sleep on the bus.

I blink slowly, and the next thing I hear is the bell ringing, jarring me awake. So I didn't quite make it, but I think that's good enough for today. I mean, last period on Friday is always rough for me. Only sleeping for seven minutes is close to my personal best.

I slide my book into my messenger bag and heft it over my shoulder as Virgil and my other classmates do the same with their backpacks. Together, we stream through the door so we can mill around by the lockers all up and down the halls. The noise steadily rises until I can no longer pick out individual voices, just groups. Over there by Jessica's locker are the cheerleaders, and gathered around the football captain Jeremiah are the rest of the jocks. Virgil and I hang around each other and just make our way down to our lockers, where books get exchanged for the ones we need for homework, and then we weave through the crowd towards homeroom. Scents crowd into my nose as they always do and I just smile. School isn't so bad, it's the classes that are boring.

I slump into homeroom and find my desk at the back of the class, right near the door. Virgil slinks in behind me, trailing a wolverine and a tall red panda. I perk up when I see them, a grin splitting my muzzle almost immediately. "Chelse, Nate, hey! How was Chemistry?" I get matching smiles in return as the three pull up chairs around my desk.

Chelsea, the wolverine, is the one who answers with a snort. "Please, Mr. Davin is almost worse than Mr. Harrison. Be glad you have him before lunch."

Virgil shrugs and turns his grin into a smirk. "We could say the same to you about Harrison. He puts Remi to sleep nearly every day." I yawn hugely to complement the marten's statement. We get a chuckle for our trouble.

"Rem, we still on for tonight?" Nate turns his little brown eyes to me and perks his ears.

"'Course we are, sweets. Me 'n Virg are heading back to his place first thing, so we'll hang out there for a while. Sound good?" I lean back in my chair, the delight in my gray eyes plain to see for them.

"Makin' plans for me, Remi? I see how it is." Virgil elbows me with a snicker and I just wave him off.

"Come off it," I joke. "You'd be bored anyway."

He thinks about this for a moment, in which Chelsea pipes up again. "Hartfeld's always right about you, Masters. Don't try and deny it."

He tilts his head the other direction. "True. Besides, I don't want to crowd around Remi's house with Kelsey there. Lane isn't back in town, is he?"

I roll my eyes. "Thank God he isn't. I don't want to see his muzzle back here again, period. I'm so done with him." My older brother isn't exactly the best person.

Nate's little ears go back with my disdain, but Chelsea stays upbeat. "Oh come on, I'll kick his ass for ya. It'll be funny. Nobody messes with our Hartfeld. Lane can go fuck himself." Short though she is (about half a foot shorter than me), she's definitely a firebrand.

Virgil makes a 'tchah' noise at her language, but we're used to it mostly. Bit of a stereotype, but she's a wolverine through and through. Tough as nails and a little crass, but still loveable. She balances Nate and Virgil well.

"C'mon Chelse, he's like twice your size," Nate teases, ears still back. But he hasn't pulled his long tail into his lap so he's not actually upset. Just a great actor. "Just let it go. I don't think he'll be coming back around here anyway. Didn't your parents kick him out like, last year?"

I shrug and lace my fingers together behind my head. "Dunno, just happy he's gone. Let's talk about something else." My whiskers twitch and only Virgil notices.

Happily, he goes off on a tangent about the cheerleaders, which Chelsea gladly contributes to. I swear, the two of them could go on about girls for weeks. Nate edges closer to me with his chair and I flop my tail over his. His smile meets mine.

Then there's a scuffle at the front of the room as a thin doe tries in vain to get everyone's attention for end of the day announcements. There's no way a teacher is getting a bunch of seniors to pay attention at the end of school on a Friday. I almost feel bad for her.

Finally the bell interrupts our two skirt hounds and we're all trotting out with bags slung over shoulders soon after, heading to the swarm of busses lined up in front of the high school. We all crowd onto the same one, where Nate and I squeeze into a seat across from Virgil and Chelsea. They continue debating the different merits of our cheerleaders versus Treyall High's cheerleaders and I continue to tune them mostly out. My tail finds its way up onto Nate's lap, where he starts to stroke it. "Thanks for letting me stay over this weekend," he says, softly.

I wave the thanks off, my smile softer than it was in the classroom. "Pffah, it's no big deal, sweets. We're happy to have you, y'know. Mom might like you more than me." I elbow him to get a grin and I'm rewarded with one, warm and sweet.

"Your mom's super nice, though. I mean, so is Virgil's, but she's nice to everyone. I like your mom more." His paws work down over the monochrome bands of fur along my tail, his smile getting wider with each twitch. "I might be biased, though."

I rest my head on the red panda's shoulder and smile. "I don't mind your bias. Means I get to see more of you."

He nudges my cheek with his nose and pushes me back just a bit. "Not on the bus! You're so bad."

My paw sneaks over to squeeze his upper thigh and I put a little purr in my voice. "I can't wait to get back to my place, then."

His ears flick out and he giggles. "Remi!"

I relent, finally, and just give his muzzle a lick before settling back into my own space. "Alright, I'll behave for now." I turn and lean partially into the aisle. "Virg, what did you have planned this weekend?"

The marten turns to me, pausing his discussion happily. I bet he was just waiting for me to ask. "This weekend is just hanging out. Nothing special, though I think Mom's making her shrimp scampi tonight." he grins. "But I thought next weekend we could go camping."

My ears perk. "Camping!"

Nate likewise leans closer. "Where at?"

"Me 'n Dad found a cool spot in the mountains a couple hours away. Y'know Deception Pass?" Both of us nod. We've lived here all our lives, of course we know the mountain pass. It's beautiful up there. "Of course you do. Well there's a deer trail up into the woods that leads to this real pretty clearing, right near a meadow. It's fall, so it should still be fine up there, no snow."

"Yeah it's too early in the season for that. So, leave right after school? Bring clothes and stuff and leave it in our lockers?" My tail twitches about in my excitement. I love camping. Last time I went it was with Virgil and family, and even though Lane was there we still had a blast.

Virgil nods, then glances at Nate and then back over his shoulder at Chelsea. "That okay with you two?" They nod quickly. "Sweet. Bring whatever you think you'll need. It's just gonna be us this time, no parents. And I've got a surprise planned, too, so be ready!"

Oh boy. The pine marten's eyes sparkle when they glance my way, so I know that I'll probably like it. Nate might, he might not. Chelsea probably will too, to be honest. Virgil is pretty good at planning. "Can't wait." I match his grin. "No parents? No problem!" I give him an "okay" sign with my forefinger and thumb, and it makes Chelsea snicker.

"So, that begs the question. Will Masters and I need to split you and Kingsley up into separate tents?" the wolverine snickers again. Both mine and Nate's ears flick back and flush, I know it.

"Please, I don't think that'll be necessary." I snap at her. There's no force behind it, because even though my ears are back, I've got a coy smile. The thought had occurred to me.

Virgil clears his throat and nudges Chelsea back towards the window. "Yes, well we'll figure things out as the week goes on. Just thought you guys should know." He gives me a quick wink and turns back to harshly whispering back and forth with Chelsea. Those two are something else.

So I nudge Nate likewise towards the window, but instead of striking up a conversation, I just hold his paw in mine and rest my head on his shoulder again. We've still got half an hour left on the bus. A nap would be nice, and Nate's always a great pillow.

I close my eyes and fold my ears back to try and ignore the noise of the bus, but I can only tune out so much. I'm jostled around a bit every now and again, but I drift off for part of that time. Only reason I know I do is because Nate shakes me awake when we reach Virgil's stop.

The three of us clomp down the stairs and back out into the mid-fall breeze. There's enough clouds to keep the sun away, but no rain which is nice. I hope it stays that way. "Virg, did you get your Calc homework done? I still have a few problems to do." I yawn after I say it, resituating my bag on my shoulder.

"Oh, sure I finished it. Perks of staying awake during Mr. Harrison's class, y'know." He nudges me and we launch into talk about school work, getting occasional comments from Nate as we walk.

Virgil lives in one of the newer developments just outside of Crea Falls, in one of the big two-story houses they put up in the last ten years. He used to live closer to me, but his family is a bit better off than mine is, so they wanted to move into a bigger house. I don't blame them, and I don't mind either because I'm over here nearly as much as I'm at my house.

So when I walk in behind Virgil, both of us call out, "Mom, we're home!" and share a smile right after.

"I'm in the kitchen!" The elder marten calls back, so we wipe our paws on the floor mat and drop our bags at the door before scampering down the main hallway. It empties into the dining room, but it's only separated from the kitchen by a tall counter. Over in front of the sink is a tall pine marten lady in a pretty blue sundress, an apron tied around her middle. "Afternoon boys! How was school?" She doesn't look up from washing the dishes as she asks, but I see her whiskers twitch and her tail flick.

"Remi fell asleep in history again."

"For like, seven minutes!"

"Wait, you actually can sleep with Harrison's voice droning on? It gives me a headache."

"History is boring anyway. It's not like I need it."

Mrs. Masters just shakes her head and turns off the faucet. "Settle down boys. As long as you're getting the notes you need to do well. Enjoying the new classes?"

The three of us slide into seats around the dining room table and shrug. "They're okay," I say. "We don't have an advanced enough science class if you ask me, but at least biology is fun." I pick at a placemat with a claw, my tail coiling and flicking.

Virgil and Nate both roll their eyes at me. "At least you don't have to deal with the theater group," Virgil says.

Nate slumps forward against the table. "Don't get me started. At least we have a decent tech crew, but everyone else has no idea what they're doing. I can't wait for college."

"Good thing CFU has a good troupe, neh?" Virgil comes back with, now grinning.

Mrs. Masters chimes in again as she comes around the table with a pair of bowls. Snacks! I love Virgil's mom's cooking, so the moment she sets the bowls down I snag a piece of chicken from the bigger one. Little boneless chicken bites, perfectly tender and juicy. "It's definitely not a bad school," she says as she sets them down. "They're a good science and arts campus, I've heard. Not as prestigious as Kilverton, but there aren't many that are."

I wolf down the first bite of chicken so I can respond. "CFU's where Virg and I are going, no doubt. Moving cross country for Kilverton sounds like too much of a pain." Virgil echoes my thoughts, albeit around a mouthful of food.

Nate just casually reaches for the smaller bowl, set right in front of him and filled with little bamboo shoots that Mrs. Masters knows he loves. He chews on one thoughtfully, his ringed tail flicking along the floor behind him. "I dunno, Rem. I think it'd be neat to move somewhere farther away for college. It'd be an adventure!" His eyes get bigger as he says it.

"Adventure or no, it still sounds like a pain." I flop my tail overtop of his and grin, so he knows I'm joking. Mostly.

Virgil snags another piece of the lightly spiced chicken and pauses, then perks up. "Oh, the news is on! Mom, can we take these to the living room?" He's already out of his chair with the bowl in his paws by the time he finishes the question.

"I suppose, just don't make a mess!" She goes back to the kitchen, most likely to start preparations for dinner.

I grab Nate's bowl for him and dash into the living room behind Virgil, where all three of us set up on the massive L-shaped couch they have. Nate and I cuddle up in the corner of it and Virgil takes up the spot right on the other side of us. I steal another chicken bite and turn to the big screen TV that flicks to life.

Now, most people that hear about us being excited for the news would probably question why a bunch of high school seniors care about the goings on of the world so much to be excited for the news. I know that my great-grandma was really confused the one time we visited and I appropriated her radio to listen to it. But for us, the world of supers is fascinating and exciting. Everyone has a favorite hero, these days. Or a favorite villain.

Me, I like Pathos. He's a newer hero, one of the only telepaths who's ever shown up fighting for the side of good. He's also the most beautiful snow leopard I've ever seen and wears a full leather suit, like a biker would wear. That may influence my opinion a little, even if I'm dating Nate. A pretty guy in nearly skin tight leather is so easy for me to enjoy. Virgil likes Starfire Vixen, obviously. When you have a vixen who looks like that and wears an outfit that revealing, she's gonna end up being most straight guys' favorite super. Even Nate's appreciative of her looks, though I think secretly he's jealous that she can pull off the outfit. He's always said that Derringer is his favorite hero, though. The rowdy little kangaroo mouse is definitely something else to watch in action. She's always moving, always throwing her wind powers around with such precision. It's impressive.

Political news starts the program and so we promptly ignore it, chatting between mouthfuls of food about last week's news stories. There was a big confrontation between The Guardians, our international league of superheroes, and Syndicate, the likewise international group of supervillains, a couple states over. Syndicate had a multi-million dollar heist planned and half the compliment of The Guardians showed up to stop them. I managed to get Mom to tape it, because my God it was incredible to watch. Gestalt, leader of The Guardians was there, and so was Starfire Vixen, Derringer, Ferrous, and Jumper for the heroes side. There were fewer villains, but they had Animus, the telepathic leader of Syndicate, and her lackeys Ragnarok and Firecracker, along with The Unstoppable Ulunir. He's Chelsea's favorite super, but I think that's only because they're both wolverines.

That clash was legendary, and the only thing that would have made it more exciting was if Pathos had been there too. But he's not a Guardian yet, so they probably wanted to make sure it was handled by the pros. Too bad.

We wrap up our little discussion as the newscaster turns from politics to SuperNews. "Gestalt seems to have recovered completely from his incredible show of force last week. He's been seen all over Crea Falls and the North West, putting a stop to more than a few possible tragedies." Pictures appear next to the lively weasel, showing the massive lion in his red suit holding up a battered cheetah in black latex, then one of him pinning down a very angry looking hyena in a hooded sweatshirt. "He's taken down two more supervillains trying to carve a foothold in our lovely corner of the country with surprising flair. Unlike Gestalt's normal friendliness towards our field reporters, they claim that he turned them away with "No Comment" when asked about the impressive takedowns. To address this, we have an exclusive interview with our local hero, conducted earlier today."

The picture of the anchorman gets replaced with a dolled up wolf in a slinky dress sitting in a fancy room across from Gestalt himself. I always get shivers when I see him around other people. He's just so big. "Hi, this is Jessica Smithers with CFN, joined by our local hero, Gestalt. Now, Mister Gestalt, recently you've been shunning the spotlight and foisting it more onto your subordinate, Starfire Vixen. Why is that?"

Even with as much media coverage as I've seen of the lion, hearing his bass rumble still makes my ears flick back. I nestle into Nate's side a bit more snugly to hide it. "Getting right into it, I see. Well, Miss Smithers, would you mind if I answered that with a question of my own?"

She's too professional to let her indignation show. "Of course not, go right ahead."

The massive lion folds his enormous paws over his abdomen. "Miss Smithers, how long have you been a reporter?"

That ruffles her, but only a little bit. She's pretty good, I guess. "About three years now, why do you ask?"

"And, forgive me if this is prying, but how long do you think you'll continue to be a reporter after today?"

She considers this for a moment. "Well I guess it'd depend on how the next few years go. Again, though, why do you ask?"

"Because you have a general idea of what you're doing with your career, and your life, no? I have the same. I have been at this for nearing forty years now, and I can tell you that I've lost a step or two."

I know for a fact that the reporter isn't even close to forty years old. She probably grew up watching Gestalt run around being a hero. "Now I don't think-"

He holds up one of those velvety-looking paws to cut her off. "Before you finish that thought, let me finish mine. I believe I can address your questions." He takes a deep breath. "It's a young hero's world out there. I see it with every new super that pops up around the globe. I've got experience on my side, but my glory days are far behind me. I'm proud that I've been able to serve this country and our world for as long as I have, and if the need for me to continue to do so arises, I will answer that call as I always have." He shakes his head, that thick mane tossing with the motion. "But I'm still an old man, under this mask, and I do not want that to affect the world at large. So I'm stepping down from The Guardians."

"What?!" The three of us on the couch echo the wolf on the TV, startled into a far more upright posture.

"No way!" I exclaim. "You can't retire!"

"I know it's a shock, but can you imagine doing the active Field Reporting that you do today in about forty years? Especially when you have trucks thrown at you, trains running into you, explosions around you and lightning fast lynxes fist fighting with you on a semi weekly basis. Starfire Vixen is youthful and strong, and I trust her to lead well in my stead."

"Are you going to stay active around Crea Falls, Mister Gestalt?" She asks, eyes still wide.

"If I am needed, then yes I will do what I must, but I have faith that you will be well protected by The Guardians, as you have been in the past. They are a competent and trustworthy bunch and they haven't let me down before. You are in good paws."

"Is there anything else you have to add?"

He shakes his head again. "That was all I had to say. Thank you for the time."

"And thank you for the opportunity. This has been Jessica Smithers for CFN."

Virgil grabs the remote and turns the volume down, then looks over at us, still appearing shocked. "Okay, I'm not one to cuss, but what the hell? Superheroes can't retire, can they?"

I shake my head. "I don't know. I mean, I guess it makes a little sense. He has been around for a while."

Nate pets down my back once and clears his throat. "Yeah, but just because he's been at it for a while doesn't mean that the work's done."

"The Guardians haven't disbanded though, they're just under a new leader," Virgil says.

"I bet you're real happy about that, Virg," I comment. He smirks.

"And hey, at least he stuck around past when Syndicate's old leader vanished. Ring-something or other, I think."

I turn to Nate. "Yeah, there is that. But he's still one of the few who can really deal with Animus well, I thought. That's what it always looks like, at least."

Virgil shakes his head and resumes popping chicken into his muzzle. "That's all bosh, Remi. Pathos can handle her and so can The Armorer. Remember?"

Right, Pathos did have a standoff with Animus a month or so ago. there wasn't much to see, since they're both telepaths, but nothing bad ended up happening, so Pathos had to have won. And the Armorer... well if it exists, he can build something to stop it.

"Yeah, I guess. But Pathos is an east coast hero and he isn't part of the Guardians, so he can't be everywhere she is. All they'd have is The Armorer and he's been around almost as long as Gestalt."

"Yeah but he isn't out as much as Gestalt is, so he's got less stress and strain."

"But what about Ferrous? Couldn't he stop her?"

"No way, she'd just drop him to the ground or make him dance around or something humiliating like that. She always seems to do that to the muscleheads."

"But what about-"

And we continue in that fashion all the way up to dinner, only pausing to chorus a greeting to Virgil's dad when he gets home.

The delectable aroma of garlic and shrimp draws us into the kitchen not long after Mr. Masters gets home. Mrs. Masters bustles us back out again, saying, "Wash your paws first, then you can help me set the table. It's almost ready."

Heroes and villains don't come up again throughout the meal, just quiet conversation about school again and a couple stories from Mr. Master's work. He's the Operations Manager of the same research facility that my father works at, for Brismer Enterprises. Big company, lots of money. Virgil's always been proud of his dad for hitting it big like he has.

Then the dinner is over and Nate and I help clean off the table while Virgil washes dishes. Mrs. Masters tells us a little about what's going to happen next weekend with the camping trip and says that she'll be talking to our parents about it too. Then it's time for Nate and me to head back to my place. Virgil offers to drive us, as I knew he would.

We all pile into his mom's Dayrunner and he cranks up some boyband that he's always annoying me with. I just grin and take it, because when I drive I get to listen to my music and it has the same effect on him. Plus, with his music on I can make the excuse to sit in back with Nate and tease him the entire fifteen minute drive back to my house.

So by the time he and I slide out of the back seat and wave to the pine marten as he drives off, I'm nice and warm in more than one way. Feels nice when we're standing in the mid-fall evening. But we hurry inside anyway.

The door opens, then Nate pulls it shut behind us, and then we're running up the stairs. "Hi Mom, bye mom!" I call into the living room, where I know she'll be.

"Welcome home, dear! Hope you had a good day at school." She calls back, probably not even looking up from her book.

I lean over the bannister at the top of the stairs. "Yeah it was great. Nate and I are gonna study in my room, okay?"

"That's fine, dear, just be in bed by eleven. I'm making breakfast for you two tomorrow morning before I go to work."

"Thanks Mom!" And then I half drag half lead Nate down the hallway and into the last door on the left.

I close the door the moment he gets inside and I throw my arms around him, my muzzle going right up against his. He giggles and playfully pushes me away. "Cut it out! We have homework to do!"

We do, but it doesn't last long. Soon enough, we're curled up on my bed and I've pulled up the latest Hartley film and we're just cuddling, me in his lap. I smile, turning my head to fit it under his chin. This is the life. The only thing that would make it better is if I could have him over every night. He pulls his arms around me a little tighter and kisses the top of my muzzle. I don't even care that he still has all of his clothes on. It's too nice to interrupt.

Eventually, the clothes come off, but we're both yawning by then and just end up curling up together for sleep. I settle into his arms, press myself back against him with a wiggle, and drift off.