Sunny Daze

by R. J. Ross

  I repeat this with the other two vases, placing the final one at the front of the room, so it will be where Max does his whole speech thing.

  “Hey, Sunny, come over here for a bit,” Jack says, motioning me over. I walk over, yawning loudly and wondering if I can skip out for a quick nap. “Can you grow something in this?” he asks, showing me one of the silver sculptures.

  “It looks like an A,” I say after staring at it from all directions. “Are you trying to kiss up to your girlfriend?” I tease. He’d left a hole at the top, so I assume that’s where he wants something planted. I dig through my pockets, pulling out a bit of extra dirt (what, I’m both earth and plant elementalist, of course I carry dirt with me) and pouring it into the hole. Then I stick my finger into the dirt, pulling out a delicate trailing vine. It tangles around the vase, much like the other vines did to the crate. This time, though, roses blossom along the vines--it’s a climbing rose. My mom loves these things, so I wound up learning them a long time ago.

  “Sweet,” Jack says, admiring how the roses reflect on the metal.

  “We’re going to have to replant it later,” I warn him, “this isn’t nearly big enough.”

  “Yeah, sure, I’ll make a bigger one later,” Jack says, glancing over at the table where Aubrey is determinedly NOT looking in our direction.

  “Can you make me a cat like this?” I ask. “As payment for the rose.”

  Jack looks at me, grinning slightly. “Sure. The rules still apply, right?”

  “Right,” I say.

  “Sunny.” I look up, watching as my girlfriend walks into the room wearing a baggy pair of jeans and a Panther t-shirt. I grin, forgetting about the flower pots entirely and hopping over a few tables to get to her.

  “Hey,” I say, trying to play off how fast I crossed a room just to see her. I hear the guys behind me choke on laughter, especially as I reach up, trying to fix my hair. “Come to help us?”

  “But you’re already done, right?” she asks, more than says, looking around with a slightly baffled look on her face. “This is definitely going to be different,” she says, her eyes going to the paintings that are being finished by the black suits. “They’re going to make you paint over those, aren’t they?”

  “Who knows?” I say. “I think they’re awesome.”

  “One’s a super villain.”

  “Yeah, but the public isn’t allowed in here,” I say, shrugging. “Hey, come see what Jack made for Aubrey,” I whisper, grabbing her hand and tugging her along behind me to the flowering A. “I gave him a hand,” I add modestly.

  “Is that an A?” she asks, looking at it curiously.

  “Is it that obvious?” Jack asks, frowning at it.

  “He’s in the doghouse,” I say all too cheerfully, “over the Keliah and donuts thing.”

  She looks away, her shoulders shaking ever so slightly and I know she’s laughing her head off on the inside. When she turns back, though, her face is perfectly straight. “It’s pretty,” she tells him, “I’m sure she’ll like it.”

  “Yeah?” he asks, looking far more self-conscious than I imagined he would. Having a girlfriend has made him a lot more tolerable, if you ask me. “Think I should go get her donuts, too?”

  “Trust me on this,” Adanna says, “stay away from donuts. Stay far, far away from donuts. Hey, Aubrey, come over here, would you?” she calls over to the girl.

  “Not--” Jack says, trying to stop her. It’s too late, Aubrey’s already heading over.

  “Think this will look good on the middle table?” Adanna asks in an innocent tone as she moves to show Aubrey the statue. Aubrey stares at it, her expression turning softer as a little smile crosses her face.

  “It’s beautiful,” she says, looking at Jack.

  “You like it?” he asks. “Sunny helped.”

  “Thank you for helping him, Sunny,” she says, looking at me.

  “It was his idea,” I say with a shrug.

  “Come on, Sunny,” Adanna says, tugging me away from the pair and down the hall. She turns, looking serious. “Are you okay?” she asks, taking both of my hands in hers. “You look stressed.”

  I jerk slightly, a bit surprised that she noticed. “I’m fine,” I say, “really.”

  “Don’t lie, you’re still stressed over the earthquake,” she tells me bluntly. “Did you mean to do it?”

  “Does it matter what I MEAN to do?” I ask her, finally losing it. “I did it--I could have killed people, Adanna! Every time I picked up a tree or a power line, or something else I just KNEW there’d be a body underneath. I still don’t know for certain that no one died because of me.”

  “You’re a Superior,” she says, pulling me into a hug. I bury my face in her neck, clinging like a child as I fight the urge to cry. “They might think that’s an amazing thing, in the norm world--I’m sure they would if they knew about you, but with great power comes great responsibility,” she says softly, rubbing my back. “When this is over--and after your camp is finished, why don’t we both go back and help clean it up?”

  “You didn’t do anything wrong,” I mutter. “You shouldn’t be punished for something I did--”

  “Sunny,” she says sharply, pulling away and giving me a dark look. “Are we, or are we not partners?”

  Are we? I look at her for a moment, trying to come up with an answer. I must be taking too long, though, because her expression is getting downright dangerous. “So we aren’t?” she says. “I thought you were joking about breaking up with you, but I see you were being honest.”

  “I--” I start out.

  “Do you not trust me?” she demands. “Do you think I’m so selfish as to not help when my boyfriend needs it?”

  “Of course I don’t!” I say, positive that something bad is about to happen. “I just don’t want to drag you into my mistakes. You don’t deserve that,” I say, shoving a hand through my hair. “No one deserves that.”

  “We’re heroes, Sunny,” she says, “we were MADE to do the dirty work. Our entire life is meant to be spent cleaning up the messes others make! I knew that when I decided to go to the hero side--when I decided to date you.”

  “Yeah,” I say, letting out a sigh. “You’re right--you’re always right,” I drawl teasingly.

  “And don’t you forget it.”

  “I just don’t feel like much of a hero now,” I say, looking away from her. “You called me a Superior--but don’t you think a real Superior would have gone down there and accidentally made things BETTER? Not worse? I was playing, Adanna--a play fight over stupid points, and I did that! How did--how did Grandpa Superior ever manage, anyway? You know, to be the picture perfect hero that people adored?”

  “Why don’t you ask him?” she asks. “He’s here now, isn’t he?”

  I look at her. “He might be my grandfather, but he’s still Superior. How can I ask him anything?” I say simply. “So why did you come? Want to help out?”

  “We’re going clothing shopping,” she says. “Mama’s waiting in the car.”

  “Oh, right,” I say, “give me a second to tell the others.” We head out after I yell into the room, stepping onto the curb and heading for Panther’s sleek black car.

  ***

  Superior came partly out of habit, partly out of curiosity. Within a few steps into the building, though, he hears his grandson a floor below, chatting with a few others. Instantly he heads down to see what’s going on--only to stop as his grandson is pulled into a conversation with his girlfriend. He stands there, hiding in the shadows and listening. He hears it all, the conversation about the earthquake, the name “Superior” the comment about not asking him anything. He doesn’t know what to say, honestly, which has a scowl crossing his face. To be honest...

  He runs a hand over his face and takes off, flying through the building so quickly that several paintings fall off the walls. Before Sunny manages to get into the car waiting for them, he grabs the boy, hauling him into the air and racing away. “What the h
eck--” Sunny yelps, jerking in his hold until he realizes who he is. “Grandpa Superior?” he asks blankly.

  “Quiet,” Superior says, heading for the fields of Kansas. He knows exactly which one it is, he thinks, even after all these years. He lands in the overgrown patch of land, putting the boy down. “I believe,” he starts out, “that it’s about time I explained a few things.”

  “What? Look, I totally just stood up my girlfriend back there, she’s going to be pissed. Can I at least call her and tell her where we are?” Sunny asks.

  “I’ll take you back,” Superior says, “after I’ve told you the truth. Can you clean this up?” he asks, waving his arm to indicate the abandoned field.

  “Huh? I, uh, yeah?” Sunny offers, looking a bit confused. “It doesn’t look like anyone owns it, though.”

  “They do--I do, actually,” Superior says. “I inherited it. I hated it, as well. If you clean it up, I’ll let you have it.”

  “What?” Sunny asks.

  “All this land--as far as you can see, it’s yours. I’ll have Mastermental alter the papers. It fell under Hall ownership by default. I never wanted to tell your father about it--and Liz would have told him, had I told her.” A slight, bitter smile pulls at his lips as he looks to the right. “Right there was the house I finally found so long ago.”

  “Found?” Sunny asks.

  “When the slave traders landed on the planet and tossed me off the ship,” Superior says, looking at him, “because I was worthless, even as a slave.”

  ***

  I won’t lie, I’m completely stunned. No, not about him being an alien--there have been whispers about that since long before I was born. It’s the idea of Superior being worthless. He looks at me, a smile slightly pulling at his lips. “I won’t lie,” he says, walking over and placing his hands on my shoulders, “I was extremely shocked to hear that there was an elementalist in the Superior line. It brought back memories I didn’t want to remember. But I thought about it, ever since I found out about you, and I think this is fate’s way of giving me a chance to deal with the demons from my past.”

  “Grandpa--I created an earthquake in Texas,” I blurt out, unable to stop myself. “I’m a failure as an elementalist. I don’t know where you’re going with this, but you’re probably barking up the wrong tree--”

  “I’m not,” he says, his hands tightening slightly on my shoulders. “You aren’t descended from a god, Sunny. The name Superior is a lie.” He lets go, letting out a laugh. “I can’t believe how good it feels to finally admit it,” he says with a hint of wonder. “I am the most well known hero in all of history, Sunny! They have movies after movies about my life. They have statues of me in cities I’ve only flown over! I am Superior! And I started out as a rejected slave, abandoned on a backwater planet because I wasn’t worth the food it cost to feed me. The people that owned this land took me in and passed me off as their son.”

  “They were your foster parents? What happened to them?” I ask, looking at the clearly abandoned farm. There aren’t any traces of a house, I think as I walk over to where he’d indicated. No, there are. There’s a brick building under the layers of dirt and grass, probably a cellar or something.

  “They died, almost a hundred years ago--I’m a lot older than I look. They were no parents,” he says with a hint of derision. “They used me for my abilities, all the while they hated me for being a freak. They were afraid of me, as well. I went to school because otherwise the neighbors would talk. When I wasn’t in school or church, I was working their farm. I tried my hardest to be useful, but I realized soon enough--I was still a slave. They had children after they took me in,” he goes on, looking at the place I’m standing. “They treated those children so much better than they treated me. I slept in the barn, like an animal, while their precious children had beds and blankets. The younger ones barely acknowledged me, except in school. They had to do it there--it was expected.”

  “Then why did you inherit this land?” I asked. “Why didn’t your little brothers and sisters get it?”

  “Because they were going to lose it, anyway,” he says, looking at me. “The bank would have taken the land, regardless, so they decided to give it to me to look good in front of the neighbors, expecting me to lose everything before they even died. The younger ones left as soon as they were able, never looking back. It was only me that stayed.”

  “Why?” I ask.

  “To prove to them that I was superior to them,” he says with a snarl on his lips. “You want to know what I did?” he asks. “I went out--by then I could fly--and I found a mountain. I beat on it until I found gold. It took me twenty minutes,” he says ruthlessly. His hand opens and clenches again, as if remembering the moment. “In twenty minutes I found enough gold to pay off twenty plus years of debt. I brought it back, dropped it on the table, and they started to cry.”

  “What did you do?” I ask quietly, feeling sick to my stomach.

  “I left,” he says. “No one knows this story, Sunny, no one except you and me. I haven’t even told your grandmother. What you do with it, though, is your choice, just like this land. I poured years of wasted sweat and effort into this land, and all I got out of it was a bad taste in my mouth. I came back after they were dead and tore down the buildings, but it doesn’t change anything. To this day I know the truth--I’m not a hero, I’m a slave in everything but name.”

  “But isn’t that what a hero is? Not a slave, exactly--but a servant,” I say. He jerks, looking at me in shock. “Isn’t it a hero’s job to clean up the messes of others? To do the dirty work, even risk your life for the sake of others? The norms think it’s your JOB to dash into burning buildings, to pick up the pieces that they can’t--because you’re a hero. I’m sorry,” I go on, honestly, “I’m really, really sorry that you wound up here--that you were treated like crap, but you--you’re better than them, Grandpa. You paid off their debt, letting them die in peace rather than out on the streets. You went on to save millions of people, on top of it. I know that you hated them for what they did to you--but even then, you did the right thing.”

  He watches me with this impossible to read expression on his face. It makes me hesitate, but I’ve already started. I need to finish it, right? “I know that what you’re seriously thinking when you’re doing good deeds matters. We both know that what was in your heart wasn’t what you were acting on. But don’t you think, after like, a hundred years, you should try and let it go? Right now you’ve got a LOT of good things, right? Grandma’s amazing, and I know Dad says he doesn’t like you, but he told me the other day that the two of you working together can accomplish anything.” Well, close enough. “Aunt Liz looks up to you, like SO much, and you’ve got me, and Zoe, and actually you’ve got Emily and Aubrey, too, if you want to claim them. They’re family, now.”

  I feel stupid, because his expression hasn’t changed. “I’ll fix the ground,” I say, motioning to the ground below me. “I’m going to use it as a base for my summer camp, though, so, do you mind if I tear it up a bit, first? I’ve got a fight with Maximum to finish.”

  “Mastermental’s son?”

  “Yeah,” I say, seeing the first hint of a smile on his face.

  “Make sure you wipe the floor with him.”

  “Absolutely.” Then to my shock, he walks over, hauling me into a hug. It feels like he’s going to crush me, but I ignore it. How many people can claim to have been hugged by Superior? I doubt there are many of them.

  “Thank you,” he says quietly.

  “Can you take me back, though? I really did promise I’d go clothing shopping with Adanna,” I say. If my voice is a bit breathless, well, it’s because an S class super hug is enough to crush ribcages. So far mine’s still in one piece, thank God.

  “Of course,” he says, picking me up and taking off. “Think you could learn to fly if I drop you?” he asks, halfway there.

  “I don’t know--maybe in a year or so we can try it!” I say.

  “We’l
l do that, if you haven’t learned in the meantime.”

  “Deal.”

  ***

  “I still think he should wear a suit,” Adanna says. She’s on the other side of Cubby’s seat, pouting because she got stuck in a dress and they put me in a uniform of browns and brass colors. There’s a vine gently twined around my body, which looks a lot like part of the uniform but isn’t. It’s my own little touch.

  “Well I was going to do that, until Ace called us and told us what he had planned,” I say, reaching up and patting the vine fondly. “I think I’ll actually keep this uniform,” I admit. “It’s pretty baggy and comfortable.”

  “Kim liked you,” Amara says from the front chair. “I do believe she liked you so much that Adanna got jealous,” she teases.

  “I was not jealous!” Adanna says, blushing brightly.

  “Don’t mind her, Sunny,” Pan says. He’s in his formal uniform, and looks quite intimidating, even if he is driving a car full of family. “Adanna was hoping to walk in with you--Prisma’s daughter is going to be there.”

  “I have no thoughts on Elidee, whatsoever,” Adanna says, her jaw going up in a stubborn move.

  “You look really amazing, by the way,” I say, completely distracted. She gives me a dark look--one extremely similar to the ones I’ve seen from her cat form. “I’m sorry I can’t walk in with you,” I say, reaching over Cubby’s car seat, offering my hand. She looks at it for a long moment before she takes it with a reluctant expression. A laugh escapes her as Cubby grabs both of our hands.

  “Cubby’s trying to steal my boyfriend again, Papa,” she drawls with amusement.

  “You can share,” Pan says, looking at us in the rear-view mirror with amusement. Adanna leans over, kissing Cubby on the cheek in reply. He gives her a huge grin.