"I'm here to put a stop to the killings," the Power was saying on Anna's television set. "That's all anyone needs to know about me."
"But who- or
what
- is causing the killings?" the reporter asked, shoving his microphone into the Power's face.
The tall and powerful woman on Anna's screen took a deep breath, and seemed to consider her answer.
"I'm not sure entirely," she said after a pause. "I don't want to say too much, and frighten folks in this wonderful City, but I think it is important that people know- "
But before Anna could hear the rest, the tea kettle erupted with whistling in her kitchen.
Damn it, Anna thought, getting up from her couch and running to her kitchen. She turned off the kettle, poured the boiling water over her oolong, and rushed back to her living room in front of the television again.
"Well, we thank you very much for all you do here, wherever you came from," the reporter was saying to the Power, nodding towards a bank heist that the superheroine had just foiled. The police were leading handcuffed suspects into the back of an armored van. A crowd was milling around the reporter and the Power. In the background, black smoke poured out of what had been the getaway car, until the Power had stopped it in its tracks.
The television reporter turned to the camera, and when he turned back, the Power was gone.
Anna drank some of her tea, it was too hot. She hissed at the burn to her tongue, and put the cup back down.
I hope she knows what she's doing, Anna thought. I don't know if she should have come here.
She thought back to her days as the Spider, creeping out at night, spinning through the air, ensnaring evil in her grips. She loved that feeling, the loved the terror on the faces of those who were out to harm, out to hurt. She loved seeing them run, she loved ending their fights against justice.
She loved the
darkness.
In the dark, she was invisible. In the dark, she could disappear.
Nothing could hurt the Spider in the dark.
She shook her head, and had a sip of her cooling tea.
But nothing, she knew, was worth ending up as a mindless slave. She remembered quite clearly feeling herself open up to Just John, the feelings of obedience coiling around her very self, how
good
it felt to slide under the waves of pleasure that washed over her while under his control. She could still feel the echoes of orgasm as she remembered telling John that she would obey him, that he owned her, that she surrendered control of herself to him. Anna remembered very clearly how good that felt. She knew that too much more of that, and she would never be able to say no to him, that she would serve him with her mind, body and soul forever.
Part of her still throbbed every time she thought of him. Each night, she thought about throwing the window of her high rise apartment open, and gliding down on her gossamer webs and finding him. She burned at the thought of falling to her knees in front of him, pressing her lips to his feet, begging him...
Her doorbell rang.
Anna opened the door. It was Heather. Anna wasn't expecting Heather.
She looked down at the nurse's feet. There were two large duffel bags on the floor of the apartment building there.
Anna looked at Heather, questioningly. She noticed Heather had a grim expression, seemed distraught, distracted. It looked as if Heather was having a very rough day.
"Heather, I wasn't expecting you," Anna said. "I'm afraid this isn't a good time; I was planning to- "
"The rest of my bags are downstairs in a taxi," Heather cut her off, rudely. "You'll go downstairs and get them. Pay the cab driver."
"Wait, Heather. I don't understand- "
Heather stepped closer to Anna, pressing into her. Heather stood a head taller than Anna, and pushed the smaller woman up against the wall, shoving her breasts into Anna, holding her up against the wall there.
She glared down at Anna.
"Go downstairs, Anna." Heather said in clipped, even tones. "Go downstairs and get my
fucking
bags and bring them up-
fucking-
stairs right
fucking
now. Do you understand me?"
Anna just nodded, mouth open. Heather was
pissed.
Heather was upset. It was best to just do what she was demanding for now and later maybe they could talk about it.
Heather stepped away from Anna, pointed to the elevator, and without another word walked into the apartment, closing the door behind her. The door closed with a click.
Anna stood there in the hallway, wondering what was going on. Why her friend was mad at her. She looked at the floor, and saw that Heather had left her two duffel bags there also for Anna to get.
Anna shook her head.
She went down the hall, to the elevator, and pushed the button.
Inoffensive music played as she went down. The main elevator in Anna's high rise was all glass, and she took in the view of the City as she descended. It was a beautiful morning, the sun was bursting through the soft white clouds, the City looked scrubbed, refreshed after a good morning's sleep, the hard edges rounded in the soft morning glow.
Anna made her way to the waiting cab, greeted the driver and paid the man. He unloaded four large suitcases from the trunk, put them on the sidewalk, grunted and drove off.
Anna stood there, looking around the City for a minute or so, the cars driving and honking at each other, the people pushing and rushing on their ways to work. It was so
busy
, she remembered. So much life, so much energy.
I've been inside too long, she thought. I need to start getting out. I'm all healed now, physically, anyway. Maybe it's time that I started exploring the world again, started finding a use for myself. Now that the Spider is gone, I need to find out what
Anna
can offer the world again.
If Heather lets me, anyway. She might not think I'm ready.
Anna turned around from the busy street, and looked up the dozens of floors to the window that she used to slip in and out of, clad all in black, as the Spider. She remembered how crisp and clear the air felt up there, thought about how the wind felt in her hair as she descended from such a height. It was exhilarating. Liberating.
She picked up Heather's luggage, and struggled to carry it inside.
******************************
Anna let herself in the door of her apartment. She carried in Heather's luggage and placed it carefully in the hallway. She didn't know where Heather wanted her to put it.
"Heather?"
Anna wasn't sure where the nurse had gone to.
She walked into her living room, and saw Heather standing there, wearing Anna's bathrobe, too short on the taller woman, barely covering Heather's ass. Anna stood there for a moment, watching Heather as she looked out the window of the high rise.
"There you are," Anna said. "Hey, what's going on? I wasn't expecting you. I was planning to go out for a bit. I thought you were at work today?"
"I don't work at City Hospital anymore," Heather said, absentmindedly, still looking out Anna's windows.
