Shortcuts

A paranormal superhero story with a supernatural twist

Everyone loves Golden Girl

Comments have been blocked for this story but kudos and private messages are always welcome. Even highly critical private messages are welcome. I don't mind criticism when it's private.

Shortcuts
by Terry Volkirch

Chapter 9

As the superheroine got closer, she made out five young men in the gang, all wearing black leather pants and a black tee shirt with dragon skulls emblazoned on the front. One of the men held the victim, an effeminate boy, by the front of the boy's long, black coat, shaking him and laughing at his distress. The other four men in the gang stood back and laughed along with their cohort, until a purple blur suddenly bowled into them. With four of them out of action for the moment, she turned to the fifth member, using telekinesis to pry his hands open and move his arms to his sides.

The man's jaw went slack with shock as he felt his hands and arms being manipulated by some unseen force. But he soon sneered when he turned and saw a blonde teenage girl facing him.

"What are you looking at?" he blustered.

"Nothing," she replied slowly, emphasizing each word. "Absolutely nothing."

With that insult, the young man tried to lunge at her but suddenly felt himself being lifted off the ground. He stopped making forward progress and flailed in the air, yelping with fear.

Thanks to her danger sense, Sarah felt the other men about to ambush her from behind, but she already had her telekinetic shield up around her. The men nearly knocked themselves out cold when they ran into the invisible shield. It stunned them enough that they staggered back, moaning as they held their bruised faces in their hands. The girl let them recuperate for several seconds and then froze them all in place with her telekinesis.

In spite of experiencing the impossible, the first young man saw his fellow gang members being made fools of and he channeled enough anger to overcome his fear. He pulled a gun and shouted, "Okay, freak! Time to die!"

But Sarah didn't die. She used her telekinesis before he could fire, holding the trigger in place as she painfully twisted the deadly weapon out of the man's hand. She moved the gun down to the ground, engaged the safety like her father had taught her long ago, and answered the man's challenge. "No one is going to die here today. Not even you." She appreciated that she didn't have to physically touch the gun. She didn't like them in spite of what she let her father believe.

By that point, three security guards came out of the mall to take control. They didn't have much to do though, other than use plastic zip ties to secure the wrists and ankles of each gang member and pick up the gun. They also tried a little crowd control, as several shoppers suddenly appeared with cell phone cameras clicking away and recording video.

"Move back!" they shouted to no avail.

Sarah gave the guards a quick recap as she held the victim to her, letting him cry on her shoulder. Then she asked, "Would you like me to help you take these men inside? It's getting a little cold out and they're not dressed for it."

One of the guards, a large, strong woman, replied. "Uh, sure? I guess." She still wasn't sure that she believed what she'd seen, but she rolled with it and spoke again with more force, "Good thinking. We don't want to be sued."

The superheroine patted the victim's head and asked, "Are you going to be okay?"

He nodded and sniffled a little before answering. "Yes. I think so. Thanks."

"You're welcome," she told him. Then she picked up the two heaviest gang members, throwing one over each shoulder, and said, "Lead the way."

The three guards gasped, but again, the woman took charge and grabbed one of the remaining men, surprised to find him light as a feather.

"I'm making them lighter and holding them still so they'll be easy to carry," the blonde girl told them. "Now, please. Let's get them inside."

The guards each picked a gang member and easily ferried them inside, followed by the victim and then the blonde superheroine with the two men slung over her shoulders. It made for quite a sight for the onlookers, who raced to post their photos and videos online as soon as humanly possible.

The group quickly got the gang members settled in chairs in a back room of the security office and Sarah made her exit, much to the protests of the guards.

"You can't leave," the woman security guard bellowed. "We need you to make a statement to the police."

"Sorry. But you have the true victim here to make a statement. I just helped out a little."

"More like a lot," the boy said, grinning.

"Bye bye," the blonde girl said, giving them all a little wave as she ducked out the door to the office.

When Sarah got to the mall exit, she was dismayed to see quite a large crowd waiting for her with cell phones in hand. Flashing phones caught her in the waning light of day as she slowly lifted into the air. She rose to about the height of the tallest part of the mall and suddenly shot to the east, with a dull sonic boom sounding from the distance soon thereafter.

"She's so cool," one girl said.

"Did anyone get her name?" a teenage boy asked.

After much muttering and disappointment, they realized that they still had a lot to learn about the new superheroine in their midst. But they didn't have to worry. The world's first superhuman had just begun her work. They'd soon find out more about her.

* * *

Susan sat in the car, blubbering with happiness and relief after having seen her daughter in action. Erin smiled at the display of love.

"She was so… so…." the proud mother began, not sure how to describe it.

"Amazing?" Erin finished for her and the woman simply nodded agreement.

After a few minutes, Susan spoke up again. "So? Where is she? What do we do now?"

"Oh! Sorry. I'm able to keep track of her. She exceeded the speed of sound in her haste to leave and she's returning now at a much slower speed so she doesn't make another sonic boom. She should be here in a few more minutes."

Susan's eyes widened. "That was her?" she asked. "I thought it was thunder or something."

Erin chuckled. "She can be quite fast when she wants to be."

Another long silence passed until someone's knuckles suddenly rapped on the car's driver side window. Susan didn't have to wipe the fogged up window to see who it was. She quickly got out of the car and rushed to hug her daughter, who looked a little bedraggled.

"Please, Mom," Sarah said. "Let me get in the car. I don't want anyone to see me."

Susan and her daughter climbed into their respective seats and the worried mother quickly asked her, "Why didn't you just change your appearance so no one would recognize you?"

Sarah sighed. "It probably wouldn't do much good. My purple and black clothes are very distinctive and I can't change them. I thought it best to just stay hidden and come back when it got dark enough."

The three of them continued talking and found that they arrived at most of the same conclusions. It wasn't safe to be known as a friend or family member of a superheroine so they had be careful from that point on. Sarah didn't particularly like it but she didn't plan on being a girl all that long, at least not until Erin spoke up.

"Sarah? You realize what you've done now, right?"

"Saved someone who needed help?"

Erin sighed. "You unveiled yourself as a girl with a certain set of superpowers, and people took photos and videos of you. They'll expect you to always look the same."

"But I can shapeshift! I can look like a different guy and be a superhero."

"Yes, but should you give away that ability? If you do, it could make it more difficult to hide your true identity. When Sarah no longer shows up and some superhero guy replaces her, someone will figure out you can shapeshift."

"I can still hide my true identity."

"Yes, but it might be more difficult. Some nefarious types will know to look for a boy who fits your profile. That's all I'm saying. You should consider keeping your look as Sarah when you go out saving people."

"That's ridiculous," Sarah huffed. But she was starting to see the logic. When she reviewed her recent rescue in her mind, she remembered how the young men seemed to underestimate her. It could give her a nice advantage. 'Until I battle some deranged super villainess with ninja girl minions,' she thought.

"Please? Think of your family." Erin countered.

"Okay. Okay. I'll consider it," she said. "And speaking of family," she turned to her mother. "I suppose this means we aren't telling Dad."

"I'm sorry, dear. I really don't think it'd be a good idea now."

She sighed. "I don't like hiding something this important from him."

"I don't either. But he has issues." Her daughter snorted at that. She gave the girl a disapproving look and continued. "You know his side of the family. They're not very tolerant. He's gotten a lot better over the years but I don't think he's ready for this. I'm sorry."

"This… this just sucks," Sarah said, raising her voice.

Erin and Susan gasped.

"I'm sorry but it does. Something like this happens and I can't even share it with him. I know we don't have a lot in common but he's still my father. I still have to try, don't I?" She started tearing up.

"Aw, honey. He really can't help it. He can't help the way he was raised. You know that."

"That doesn't make it right."

"No, it doesn't. But think of it this way. Maybe we can see about softening him up and tell him sometime in the not too distant future."

"Yeah. I guess." She wiped her moist eyes, fighting off the tears, and then noticed something important. "Hey. We better get going to that martial arts store. According to the clock there," she pointed to the car's digital clock, "we don't have much time before class."

* * *

Susan raced to the martial arts store and quickly got a gi for both Erin and Lester. With Susan and Erin out of the car, Sarah changed back to her boy self and slipped on the gi, though he had trouble with the white fabric belt. He wasn't sure how to tie it so just did a simple square knot to hold him until his sensei could correct it. He just hoped that no one noticed the black panties that he wore. It was the only underwear he had with him.

After Lester changed his clothes, Susan made it to the aikido dojo with two minutes to spare. She sighed, quickly ushered her son and his friend out of her car in the parking lot and took off back to the mall, leaving the new students to rush into the dojo just in time for warm-ups.

The aikido class started badly for Lester and went mostly downhill from there. He couldn't get the hang of tying his own belt so Sensei did it for him and Lester was sure that the man saw his panties. He blushed profusely and then imagined that everyone would think he was a pervert. It was no wonder he had trouble concentrating.

Having been a girl most of the afternoon and evening didn't help either. His coordination and balance were off. He was too used to being a girl. That upset him. Sensei tried to teach him all of the arm and upper body movements for the kata from the previous class but Lester had the hardest time. He ended up watching Erin go through the movements and just imagined himself following along.

They practiced the same wrist lock again for part of the class time. Lester could handle that well enough, though he didn't seem to make any improvements in his form. It wasn't until the last ten minutes that he got his confidence back, when Sensei gave a lecture on balanced awareness. The boy understood that well enough. He'd already experienced that when he fought against Big Jim, and then again when he trounced the five gang members earlier that same day. He could easily attain a state of relaxed alertness to detect any and all attacks, and he could use extreme focus that seemed to make his attackers move in slow motion. Class ended on a good note and he sighed with relief.

Erin heard him and gave him a sympathetic smile. "Sorry you didn't do well tonight, Sarah… I mean, Lester. Oops."

"It's okay, Erin. Really." He smiled back and then texted his mother to come and pick him up. "Do you want to stay until my mom gets here and say thanks again or something? I don't think she'll insist on taking you home now that she knows about you."

The redhead nodded. "Sure. That sounds like a nice idea."

'Nice must be my middle name,' he thought. 'But it never gets me anywhere.' He still hadn't given up on dating the girl.

Erin went off to change her clothes and Susan showed up only about ten minutes later. She was already on her way after having been at the mall to see how people were reacting to the new Golden Girl as they were calling Sarah for the moment, until they got her real name. So far, most of the world didn't believe Golden Girl was real, but locally, enough people had seen her that they ranted and raved about her greatness. Unfortunately, the only real evidence of her existence were the two mysterious sonic booms that otherwise defied explanation. No one trusted photos and videos any more, considering how easily they could be faked.

Erin stood just outside the front entrance, wearing her coat as Susan approached. "Thanks again, Mrs. McHenry. And good night. I'll see you again next Tuesday."

"You're welcome over anytime, Erin. You could come over and practice with Lester this weekend if you like."

"Oh. Yes. Thank you. I'll think about it. It sounds like a good idea."

The redhead started to walk away and Susan called out to her. "Are you sure you'll be safe going home?"

"Don't worry, Mrs. McHenry. It's night now. I'll be able to go straight home right after you leave."

The girl's reply confused the woman but Lester would sort of explain what it meant on the drive home.

* * *

That night, Lester felt some well-meaning nudges and went in the desired direction among the Akashic records, though he later wished he hadn't. He ended up getting a full education in aikido. It would spoil the fun of learning it in class but he'd go anyway. He could still help Erin along and practice would help keep his skills sharp.

He woke up to his alarm and tried to start Friday on a good note. Seeing his girl clothes hung up neatly in his closet didn't help though. That made him remember that he still needed to be a girlfriend for Erin at school and he almost cursed.

'It must be love,' he thought. 'There's no other way I'd change myself into a girl.'

After throwing on some warm clothes and having a quick breakfast, he used what little extra time he had to brainstorm for ideas about changing into a girl at school. As he walked to the bus stop, the best he could come up with was wearing androgynous clothes covered by a sweat jacket that he'd remove after changing into a girl. He'd basically have one look for when he was a boy and a different one for when he was a girl. The jacket would hide the clothes everywhere except in the boys locker room when he had his PE class, but he figured he could change quickly enough that none of the guys would notice what he wore under the sweat jacket. He'd only change his upper body and he'd keep his bust size small so he wouldn't have to worry about needing a bra. His slender shoulders and arms, feminized face and small breasts would allow him to easily pass as a girl. He just had to make sure that he used a different body and face from his Sarah look. He didn't dare change into Golden Girl at school.

He'd checked the Internet after his class last night and found far too much interest in Golden Girl. The mall where he rescued the boy had turned into a circus soon after he left, with police cars and reporters everywhere, and there were zillions of photos and videos that looked far too authentic for his taste. He'd also noticed that his two sonic booms were used as evidence for his flying ability. Even though it sounded so farfetched, the tide was turning towards a greater belief in Golden Girl. It seemed that the world wanted or even needed a hero, and most people seemed to like it to be a girl. A little anti-feminism cropped up in some blog comments but for the most part, girls looked to Golden Girl as a role model, and predictably, boys preferred a superheroine to fantasize about. It made Lester uncomfortable when he thought about where world opinion was leading him.

With that thought locked in his head, he looked up to see Brian marching right for him on the bus and his discomfort intensified.

"Seriously, dude?!" his friend said, holding his smart phone out with a video of Golden Girl playing as he sat down.

Lester gave him a sickly little laugh. "It just sort of happened. Erin needed a girlfriend and everything went a little sideways. What can I say?"

"Say you'll get me her autograph," Brian said, and then laughed a little too loudly.

"Come on," Lester whispered loudly. "Knock it off. You're attracting attention."

"Oh, Lester. Check out this video."

The smart phone showed Sarah carrying the two gang members on her shoulders and walking with a very feminine sway to her hips.

"That is so hot, dude."

"Will you please stop?!"

Brian stopped the video and turned off his phone, suddenly giving his friend a serious look. "I have to say I'm a little surprised. I didn't think you'd ever do it, not after I joked about it in the park."

"Yeah, I did think about that. But like I said, it was Erin's request and she's hard to say no to."

"I guess. You're sure it wasn't really your idea?"

Lester scowled. "Would it matter if it was?"

"No. Just wonderin', dude. And I was thinking it wasn't too bad an idea. It would make perfect cover."

"Aw. Not you too. I already had this conversation with Erin and my mother."

"Wait. Your mother knows too?"

"Yeah. I was at home and wasn't very careful. But I learned my lesson."

"I hope so," Brian said. Then he paused a short moment before asking, "I take it they agree with me about it being a good idea?"

"Yeah. Yeah. You and most of the world. Everyone loves Golden Girl. I guess there isn't much choice."

"You've always got choices, dude. It's just that most of them are bad."

"Yeah. Thanks for that," Lester said with a little sarcasm.

"Hey, dude?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you think you could teach me any of that stuff?"

"Not really. I don't even know how I learn it. It just sort of pops into my head and I know it, like I've always known it."

"Weird, dude."

"Yeah."

* * *

Mister Guile had a creepy smirk on his face again that morning. It gave Lester the creeps. It gave everyone in class the creeps except Erin. As usual, the feisty redhead just glared daggers at the man.

The lecture that day mostly kept to the expected content, but when it veered away into the darker side of humanity a couple of times, Erin made sure to get it back on track with a probing question or a sharp counter example to cancel out any of Mister Guile's unpleasant assertions. It kept the two special beings engaged even if it didn't do much for the rest of the class.

Lester daydreamed through the middle half of the class. He couldn't get the idea of being Golden Girl out of his head. The more he thought about it, the more sense it made and yet the more uncomfortable he became. That's why he ended up only using about half of the class time to daydream. It got to the point where he had to stop himself before he flew up and crashed through the ceiling out of frustration.

'Can't do that,' he though sarcastically. 'Not without changing into Golden Girl first.'

He quickly chastised himself for that thought. He found himself becoming more and more sarcastic lately and he didn't like it. Shaking it off for the moment, he concentrated on the rest of the lecture and caught enough content that his grades wouldn't suffer.

The boy's concentration didn't lapse again in spite of another creepy smirk appearing on Mister Guile's face towards the end of class. He slunk out of class with Erin and didn't look back.

'Now it's really getting interesting,' Mister Guile thought.

* * *

Advanced Literature passed by too quickly as the class continued to read from A Midsummer Night's Dream and occasionally paused to analyze what they'd read. Lester enjoyed the distraction, and he continued to chuckle about the play well into lunch time. He almost didn't notice how he came to be sitting at a table, enjoying his lunch until Erin plopped down next to him with her new hobo bag on the bench seat between them.

"You seem to be in a good mood today," she said evenly.

"Yeah. I loved reading A Midsummer Night's Dream in class today."

"It is one of Shakespeare's better ones. I agree."

They both took a bite and paused a moment in thought as they chewed. The lack of conversation lasted through several bites until Erin spoke again. "I'm feeling a little uncomfortable at the moment. I think I'm starting my period."

Lester choked on his food when he heard that. It took a few drinks of soda and a lot of coughing before he could speak again. "Please, Erin. Don't talk about that at lunch." He would've said don't talk about it at all but he forced himself to be sympathetic. It probably wouldn't be too long before he experienced the same thing as Sarah.

The girl looked at him with her eyes tearing up.

"Please, Erin. Hold it together."

"I want Sarah!" she wailed, a little too loudly for comfort.

Lester held his hands out as if to plead for mercy but she was having none of it. She took him by the hand and led him down the hall towards the girls rest room. The surprised boy didn't think to resist until the last minute. He pulled up short to protest. "I can't go in there!"

Erin looked around, and seeing no one in the hall at the moment, she hissed, "You promised!", and yanked him inside.

He immediately noticed a girl in front of the mirror putting on makeup. She stood a good six inches shorter than him with long, silky black hair and a slender build, and luckily, she hadn't noticed him yet. He quickly turned around and bent his head low, immediately changing his face and lengthening his straight brown hair until it hung down a little past his shoulders. With the most obvious part done, he hunched over and made his arms, neck and upper body more slender while giving himself small breasts. He barely had time to finish changing his voice before the girl called out to Erin.

"Is that a boy?!"

Lester, now a different version of Sarah, turned and gave the girl a nervous smile. "Do I look like a boy?" he asked in a very feminine voice.

The other girl gave Sarah a good look. "Your outfit looks like a boy's," she said, smirking and turning back to continue applying makeup. "But I guess you pass."

Sarah looked down at his clothes and sighed. His loose-fitting black jeans and large sweater in several shades of brown looked somewhat androgynous but he could see the girl's point. The drab, baggy clothes did seem more masculine than feminine.

A noise to his right caught his attention and he turned to see Erin, looking forlorn in a nearby stall with the door open. The half girl made shooing motions with his hands but Erin didn't move to close the door. The redhead just kept staring at him, beckoning with her eyes.

Sarah sighed again then, but at least he didn't roll his eyes. He refused to roll his eyes. The half girl walked slowly to the stall and stood just inside the door facing Erin. It was close enough for his friend to grab him once again and yank him all the way into the stall, slamming the door behind them before starting some frantic whispering.

"Are you all girl?!"

Sarah looked shocked and tried shushing his friend.

"Well?! Are you?! Because you better be! I don't want anything popping up in here if you know what I mean." She half growled the last part, implying threats that scared Sarah enough to change his lower body and make himself all girl. His, now her, pants got a little uncomfortable but she compensated by making her hips and thighs small enough to fit. It was only the suddenly large waist of her jeans that didn't fit well.

"There!" the newly complete girl whispered back. "Done! Now can I leave?"

Erin shook her head. "Not yet. Please. Not until I check."

Sarah immediately turned around to face the door and hissed, "Get on with it then."

"I can't. I'm afraid."

"Oh, for heaven's sake. Don't be such a baby. You remember what my mom told us. You're probably only spotting at this point. Just pull your panties down and get it over with."

Just then, the girl at the mirror called out to them. "Are you two okay in there?"

"We're fine!" Sarah replied loudly and blushed.

A few moments later, the sounds of rustling clothes could be heard, then a short, sharp gasp, followed by a sigh. "Yes. I'm spotting."

Sarah did roll her eyes then. "So? You've got your hobo bag full of goodies. Use a pad and let's get out of here!"

More rustling could be heard and before long, in a small voice, Erin said, "I'm done."

Sarah took a step back, opened the stall door just enough to squeeze through and shoot out as quickly as she could, almost running into the counter in front of the mirror to get away. Making a scene like that earned her a funny look from the girl at the mirror. "What?" she told the girl. "It was just a little girl trouble." The girl cocked her head and raised an eyebrow when she heard that. Sarah huffed then, and added, "She's having a difficult period! Okay?!"

"Whatever!" the girl said, putting away her lipstick and marching out of the rest room.

The new girl turned then, and saw Erin standing just out of the stall, looking dejected. She went over to comfort her friend, offering a hug that was gently refused at first.

"I'm sorry, Sarah."

Sarah gave her a faint smile. "I'm sorry too. I was a bit short with you. But we need to be more careful in the future. Okay?"

Erin nodded and then moved forward with open arms to gratefully receive a hug.

* * *

© 2015 by Terry Volkirch. This work may not be replicated in whole or in part by any means electronic or otherwise without the express consent of the Author (copyright holder). All Rights Reserved. This is a work of Fiction. All the characters and events portrayed in this book are fictional and any resemblance to real people or incidents past, present or future is purely coincidental.