SuperLuminal

2.1 - Edited by: Rellawing, AlliterativeArts - 1/15/2021

 

A crisis loomed. 

 

Leona thoughtfully puzzled over the matter that most concerned her. Besides determining she couldn’t figure out how to reverse the transformation, she also realized she would be stark naked if she were to revert back now. A neighbor would see the little transgirl running around with her little boybits shamelessly swinging around. 

 

She shivered at the thought of reverting but being unable to figure out how to change back again. She therefore had to figure out the way to get back inside her home inconspicuously. As she mulled it over some more, she remembered that she was able to create her costume with some concentration. This had more applications than she’d initially thought of when she’d zoomed off. It was another aspect of this power over light.

 

She grinned and committed the costume she made to memory before trading her complex costume for a simple and clingy white gown. Next, having learned that she could change the size of her wings, she shrank them back down to cherub size. The effect was more than satisfactory but it wasn’t much of a disguise since she was still the newly minted superheroine Aurora wearing a clingy white dress.

 

Seeing this, she suspected that since she manipulated light itself to some extent to do all this, might she not be able to change the color of her skin’s, eyes or hair pigmentation? She focused on choosing which part of the EM spectrum bounced off of her or not. If she couldn’t control what got reflected to an extent, wouldn’t everything stitch she wore come out a different color than she intended? And so she turned her attention to her hair. This required more effort, but her silver hair gradually changed to a golden blonde. With an impish thought, she added streaks of blue to it. 

 

Feeling she had managed to successfully disguise herself, Aurora came out from hiding in the woods and confidently approached her house. She didn’t have her house key with her so she proceeded directly to where the spare was hidden. She felt far too giddy as she fished the spare key from beneath a specific rock to a side of the door.

 

Unlocking the door without any trouble, she replaced the key back to its hiding place and went inside. Trotting across the floor of the living room, she reached the office door to peek isnide. 

 

Leona considered which way to debut herself would make the biggest impact as she watched Quinn still jamming on her deck. She was still squeeing internally, filled with adrenaline. Her joy was impossible to restrain. She just had to SHARE! 

 

Leona bit her lip as she entered the room. Quinn was faced away from the door, her eyes latched onto her screen as she played on her instrument; combined with the fact she was wearing noise-cancelling headphones, made it all the easier to sneak up on her.

 

She suddenly threw her hands over Quinn’s eyes and bellowed in her ear, through the headphones, “BOO!”

 

Quinn shrieked and squirmed. “WHO THE HELL?!” she shouted. Shocked, she turned to eye her assailant and her eyes went wide.

 

“Uuuh… if… if you’re here to have your way with me, give me a minute to get undressed,” she said seriously. “I can drop trou pretty quick.” 

 

Leona’s eyes widened as her face turned a deep red. Her cousin had just said some pretty risque stuff to her little sister! “Oh wow…”

 

“Seriously though, who are you? And what are you doing in my house?” Quinn asked, tilting her head.

 

Leona blinked and sighed in relief. “It’s me, big sis! Your newly minted superheroine little sister!” Leona grinned, shaking off how weird that moment was. “Remember that dream of mine? The nightmare. It wasn’t just in my head… it was real.”

 

Quinn gaped. “W-what? L-Leona? SERIOUSLY?” she asked incredulously, looking her sister up and down. 

 

“Y-you look really different.” Quinn redly blushed. “If you’re really a friend of Leona’s playing some kind of prank, I’m seriously going to punt your ass,” she said, looking around to spot the real Leona hiding. “Seriously… who the heck are you?” Her eyes fastened back on the blonde beauty before her.

 

“I am serious. I’m really Leona.” The giddy girl danced backwards to twirl gracefully while smiling. 

 

“I had a dream where Black Angel, that was the villain I hinted at earlier, chased me around a mausoleum. You remember, she was the one that Mistral put down recently in that cemetary up in Canada. She wanted to dominate me and almost got me.” Her eyes darted around nervously from just the recollection.

 

“That down Sarah got me at the convention, I thought it was just another stupid scam but it sorta turned out to be the real deal. She blew her money on what ended up hiding a flicker of that villainess’ essence. Anyways, she was gonna eat me or something and take over my body, but then her good side that she’d been keeping repressed appeared and saved me. When she joined with me I got real power, real powers!” As her mouth motored, Leona put her hands in weird, incomprehensible gestures that emulated a certain sailor soldier. 

 

“So now I’m like the new Angel, but I’m not a Black Angel. She used shadows and singularities and things, but what I can do isn’t anything like that.” She smiled sheepishly, putting her hands back down.

 

“Um… you probably don’t believe me even though I said all that. I’m all girl right now too, and I’m just so happy I can experience this.” Leona took a deep breath. The gown dissipated to demonstrate how much of a real girl she’d become. Her wings sprouted and extended to either side, filling the little office. 

 

“Oh, my… GOD!” Quinn gaped. “You’re so fucking sexy now!” 

 

Beginning to sweat a little, Quinn gulped. “Are you sure you’re my little sister? Like, really?” There was a strange hint of disappointment in her eyes and voice.

 

“Yup… I was earlier today, right? Like always and forever. I will be again too. I’m pretty sure this form isn’t permanent. I don’t know if it even can be since I think I run on sunlight now. I store it like… some kinda tree, maybe... or better.” 

 

Letting her mind drift with other possible comparisons for a beat, she ended up giving up and quickly focused her scattered brain and continued, “It’s like some of the superheroes in my comics too, and that gives me some good ideas. It’s just really amazing!” Leona squeed and bounced innocently. 

 

In her ignorance and innocence she glomped Quinn and hugged her ultra tightly. “OH GOSH! I busted some bad guys downtown a while ago! I bet they’ll talk about me on the news! I’M AURORA!” She’d practically reverted to her childhood self at this point.

 

Quinn stiffened and turned red from head to toes. Eventually she calmed herself down and patted Leona’s hair. “I’m happy for you. That’s really incredible. And I'm glad you picked out a pretty cool moniker too. Good girl.” She messed up her sister’s hair. “But oh boy, you’re making it hard for a girl to know where to look.”

 

“Jeez! Did you touch my butt! BAD TOUCH!” Leona laughed aloud. “Am I glowing or something? I disguised myself and I hope I’m not glowy… I’d kinda stick out and it wouldn’t work like I had in mind. And the wings I know are shiny… but tell me, sis… am I REALLY shining?”

 

“Metaphorically, you’re shining way too much. So bubbly and bouncy. But no, not really… when you came in you weren’t shining. You look totally normal, I had no idea you were a superhero. Maybe a supermodel. Kinda like a daydream I had recently. Meh, I’ve never been secretive about my preferences so don’t act like you don’t know what I’d feel if a stranger that looked like you were to come barging in and start taking off her clothes in my room.” Quinn laughed. 

 

“Therefore, since you’re just Leona, I owe you a punch for the crime of getting your older sister going.” Quinn balled up her fists and drew back for a haymaker, but instead of letting fly, just laughed again. “So is this like a permanent thing? You’re always a hero?”

 

“Yeah, I think so. She joined with me… and I think she’s some kind of alien rather than a classic angel. They’re so angel-like that I wonder if they’re the basis for the myths and legends about winged people.” Leona stepped back and turned in circles, folding her wings in the process. 

 

“You really have a body to die for... Okay, well, does that mean you won’t ever go back to normal then? Permanently with wings and stuff?” Quinn asked, mumbling.

 

“You weren’t listening!” Leona huffed. “I don’t know for sure... Last night I transformed a little after I woke up. That was that racket that woke you up. I was shocked. But I transformed back so I THINK I can transform back to normal Leona.” Leona paused and thumbed her chin thoughtfully as she mused, “I mean, it’s nice looking older, the Police took me more seriously. They wouldn’t have if I was just little Leona plus angel wings.” Envisioning the derisive looks the officers would have given her in that case weren’t a pleasant thought.

 

“Honestly, I hope I don’t stay this way forever because I’d miss being a kid. I’d lose these years and have to go right to working or something. It’d be hilarious if I went to college with you, except I’m not very musical and I don’t think I’d pass the exams… and I’m nowhere near graduating high school yet,” she said somewhat listlessly.

 

“Y-yeah… I’m not sure if I could look at you the same way if you were like this all the time.” Quinn shook her head and pursed her lips as something occurred to her. “Tell me though, is that dress you were wearing your costume? Where did you get it? Did you pick something up at the mall on the sly or something? Deets! Tell me everything!”

 

Leona giggled at Quinn’s not catching on after seeing her clothes just vanish. “I don't really know all the details, but I make them from light.” She focused and her new costume reappeared. 

 

Quinn’s eyes widened again, and she whistled. “You fought in that elegant thing? Did it come from your mind? What about the skirt? People could see up your skirt if you’re a flyer, right?”

 

Leona blushed and laughed. “I didn’t think about it, but I thought about the most angelic costume I could. Comparing notes mentally against things I saw in comics, what I know of real superheroes… and I didn’t think about the downside of having a skirted costume, but it’s tight… it won’t billow up when I fly. It’d be hard for people to take pictures of what’s beneath. Anyhow, do you want me to try reverting to my normal form?”

 

Quinn shook her head and hesitated. “No. Yes… I… I think it’s important you learn how to do that, even if you don’t want to revert maybe. Just in case you ever have to step up you should explore.” Quinn frowned a little and nodded resolutely. “So try.”

 

Leona giggled again and sat on the floor, crossing her legs. “It was funny how flustered you got.” She teased her big sister one last time before she focused for a long moment. Taking  a deep breath, she willed the power to return to dormancy.

 

More easily than expected, there was a flash of light and she was back to her normal form. And, as feared, very naked.

 

Quinn rubbed her watering eyes and laughed. “You did it, I think… my eyes are still trying to work.” She somehow sounded both relieved and disappointed, but also rushed down from her chair and hugged Leona warmly. “Now go put something on, would ya?” 

 

Leona returned the hug and grinned. “I’ll run up to my room and throw something on. I really hope I don’t have to strip naked every time I transform. That’d be really awkward and stupid. When I changed, my clothes got way too tight. Like I was some kinda giant green monster, except it was the hips and breasts.” 

 

Quinn nodded in faux empathy. “Yeah, that would seriously suck. Now get out!”

Leona giggled and darted upstairs to change. It was fun to tease Quinn and confess about her powers to someone. When she quickly returned in casuals, Quinn shook her head. “At this rate, I can see how you’ll be stretching out all your clothes if you don’t find a solution. Maybe you should try wearing my hand-me-downs when you want to go crime fighting.”

 

“Great idea! They’d be kinda baggy, but baggy is stylish sometimes, right sis?” Leona smiled, plopping down onto the bed this time. Leona grinned hopefully and cupped her own smallish breasts to emphasize her next words, “I wonder if transforming into Aurora will do good things for my development.”

 

Quinn sat next to Leona and pet her hair with a smile. “Doesn't matter what you look like. You’re you, Leona. You’re always cute no matter what, so have some real confidence. You don’t need those glowy wings to be the best you. I know you’re going to miss me when I’m off at college, but now that you have wings, you can come over and visit me, no problemo. We can rave and I know you’ll be extremely popular. Even if you left those wings out, you’d fit right in, adding into the atmosphere.” Quinn barked a fond laugh.

 

“But seriously, we all have to grow up. Don’t be afraid of it. Enjoy it while you can. Don’t grow up too fast and don’t get anyone hurt by being all reckless and silly.” Quinn nodded to herself and seriously looked at Leona, spoiled a bit by a little smile adding, “Weird advice from your reckless and silly old sis, no?”

 

Leona nodded and sniffled at the thought of Quinn leaving, but she smiled. “I will miss you.” She bit her lip, sighing. “No matter how far away you are I will definitely visit you whenever I want, so we won’t be apart forever. Anyhow, when I come, I’ll come incognito. I don't want my family getting hurt because of me.”

 

“Yeah, and heeeeeyyyy,” Quinn waved her hands as an idea occurred and her eyes widened. “Wait a minute. That’s it! I have an answer to your problem!” Her voice became excitedly as she continued, “You can fly to that reprogramming camp to visit Sarah now! If you show up as a superhero, they might even let you in during the day or whatever!”

 

Leona brightened up instantly. She hadn’t thought about that. “That’s true! I could do that! Or I could go undercover if I needed to. I wonder if they’d just let a superhero in to do whatever she wanted.” She was now taking a bit of time to mull this new possibility over.

 

 “Hmm, if anything, they’d probably use me to advertise their services and other kids would end up there. Y’know, what with my angel-like appearance. ‘Even messengers of the divine drop by’ or whatever they’ll say. I could make myself look like a councillor or someone else that belonged there, then I could find and talk to her. If I got caught I could just spread my wings and they’d think I was a real angel if I made myself sparkly enough.” Even to herself, she sounded like she was bargaining, but she really did miss Sarah.

 

“Anyhow, the real goal is just to see Sarah and make sure she’s okay. I wish her parents weren't such sticks in the mud. Sarah’s miserable, I’m sure.”

 

“Maybe you should go to her parents’ house first and proclaim that the Voice of God(tm) says it’s okay to be gay and then fly off. How’s that sound?” Quinn asked.

 

Sweat drops. “Um… nice and all, but if I did that, they’d see me in the news being a superhero and yeah… I don’t see it working long term. They’d be justifiably pissed. I don’t want that kind of bad publicity and lying is never good, sis.” Leona stared at her sis who simply smirked and shrugged in reply.

 

“I do think you should do something though. I mean, you got these powers so enjoy them a little bit.” Quinn advised.

 

“Oh, and I gotta go to the police station too. They want my testimony or something.” Leona couldn’t wipe the smile of her face.

 

“Oh? That’s kinda rough.” Quinn tilted her head.

 

“Nah, I know superheroes. Working with the police is one of the best parts. They were so respectful and grateful for help!” Leona clenched her fist in a pseudo-fistpump and gave a firm nod.

 

“Anyhow, I’m like one of the biggest fangirls out there for superheroing and I know the do’s and don’ts. The selfish use of one’s powers is close to top of the list for things that can unmake a hopeful hero.” 

 

Shifting gears somewhat, Leona cast her mind towards the future. “One way or another, a superhero always makes enemies, either in the media or making rivals or arch enemies. A good hero is understood and loved by the majority of the people. Their hearts go with them. Like with Vanguard. My dad hated him so much for not saving my mom, right? But I still want to be that kind of hero. Vanguard with Mistral mixed in. And I want as many people to love me as possible.”

 

“Meh… overrated,” Quinn replied flatly before switching to a silly grin. “You should be more like Cheshire or Privateer. Now they rock!”

 

Cheshire and Privateer were happy-go-lucky vigilantes who were disliked by a lot of the establishment for their flippant, wisecracking mouths. 

 

On one hand, Cheshire was initially framed for the crimes of a supervillain but had since cleared her name, except for some members of the media who continued to give her a hard time. 

 

On the other, Privateer was one of the newest members of the Society of Sentinels, a dashing swashbuckler in the truest sense; dressed like a pirate, she used martial arts and an energy weapon that could take the form of a sword or a short-range pistol. She had calmed down a bit since her early days as a Society newb, in part due to personal issues with the team, but was less of an outlaw now than Cheshire in the eyes of the people.

 

“You don’t understand, sis. I know you like those kinds of antiheroes or rogues. And I’ll try to project a bit of confidence like Cheshire if I can; it’s too fun not to play it that way. But what I don’t want is to use my powers for any negative purpose. These powers belonged to Black Angel once. If I walked the line too closely, I’m afraid I’d become another version of her, or worse, she’d come back to life and I’d be gone. I don’t want her to try eating me again. Fear isn’t the only reason, though… I want to become the most ideal superhero I can be. Do you know what I mean?” Leona looked up to her sis.

 

Quinn shook her head in resignation. “Yeah, yeah. Come here, goofball.” She hugged Leona again. “As long as you’re true to yourself, I’ll always respect you, got it? Even if you’re a dork.” 

 

Leona smiled happily and hugged her back tightly. “Thank you, big sis!” 

 

After a moment she broke the hug. “Soon, I think I’ll try that mission to the camp where Sarah is. We’ll see how that goes. But before, I think I need to tell Goonie this secret tonight.”

 

“That’s a good idea, but something else came to mind.” Quinn’s eyes narrowed. “Can you carry people with those wings? Fly while holding onto someone, I mean? Maybe you should just swoop down, snatch Sarah out of the yard and fly off into the sunset with her, eh?” Quinn snickered, “That’d be so romantic. And if she likes you, she’ll love Aurora too, you can bet on it!” She winked.

 

Leona’s eyes sparkled at the idea. “I LOVE THAT IDEA! We’d be like... WHOOSH! She’d LOVE IT!” Leona danced merrily. “They won't know what to think about an angel swooping in and snagging a kid from their yard.” The plan did technically maybe involve kidnapping Sarah, but you were only kidnapped if you weren’t willing to go, and Sarah would be. Grinning broadly, Leona glomped Quinn for this cute and romantic idea. “I love you, sis!”

 

After spending a short amount of time considering things to try, Leona impishly suggested what came in mind, “Do you feel like experimenting a little? If you want to go to the cafe, I think I might be able to handle carrying someone. I learned it and a few tricks when I took out those baddies today.” She winked at Quinn.

 

“Nah… you should maybe stay away from the cafe until you’re ready to tell Mom later,” Quinn said. “Besides, I’m still working on getting this beast of mine up and running.” She gestured to the large control deck. “I’ll be fine here, but you go rescue your girlfriend from the evil fortress, okay?”

 

Leona nodded and giggled. “Alright, sis. If Mom gets home before I get back, I’ll explain it to her. If I’m not back by then, I know it’ll be hard but please try to explain it to her for me. I know you can handle it.” Leona gave Quinn a thumbs up with sparkling eyes. She stood and focused on recalling her powered form with her costume. 

 

Power welled up inside until it exploded in a dazzling flash.