Plus Ultra! (closed)

[Apollo Wilde]

He was coming again - a torrent of his hot fluids plunging deep within her - and it was good, so good, but…she ground her hips back against him, desperate for that one last push, a last thrust to send her over the edge that she was teetering over.

“Oh…” she sighed; the sound turning into a slight whimper. “I was so close,” she whined, not mockingly, but with a bit of a wheedling air that was a question, asking if he was up for more. She looked at him over her shoulder, catching her lower lip between her teeth. Her cheeks were flushed, her face bathed in sweat, her silver hair slicked and sticking to her cheeks, her forehead. She was smiling, even as she was panting open mouthed, struggling to catch her breath, the desire to orgasm spurring her forward.

She wiggled her ass against him, slow, little circles, stirring his cock within her. She grinned wider, thinking of something particularly wicked. But at this point, what more was there to lose?

“I haven’t cum again,” she pouted, sticking out her lower lip impishly. “You wouldn’t leave me like this, would you..?” She batted those long white eyelashes at him, letting her fingers slip from the tree. She tucked her ass in, pulling it away from him. His cock slipped out of her, followed by another gush of his cum, painting the insides of her supple brown thighs white. In the faint lights from the city that managed to reach them in the depths of the man-made forest, her snatch glistened. Though her gloves were dirty - smeared by dirt - , she reached between her legs and parted her pussy lips. More of his cum spilled out from her, over her fingers. She sighed, canting her head back, relaxing as more of him poured from her.

Turning her back to the tree again, she spread her legs, holding herself open for him. She was flushed deep pink, her pussy wide from the vigorous fucking, and she had no qualm (clearly) with showing him that. Whatever logic or sense that she could have had - well, it was gone. There was no thought beyond the present - The Naturalist had given her a gift, she’d decided, and she was going to enjoy it to it’s full potential.

“Let’s see how you taste…” Slipping her fingers into her mouth, she sucked his cum free from them. When she dragged them down and across her lips, her gloves were stuck to her skin, turned nearly gray as they clung to her. Long strings of saliva, mixed with his cum, trailed from her mouth as she licked her lips. “Not bad,” she purred. “But I think you should try for yourself.” She waved him over with her wet fingers, her other hand holding her cunt lips open for him. The swollen nub of her clit was a dark pink, peeking from the plush brown of her labia, the damp swirls of silver pubic hair.

 

[BewareTheDream]

“Huurk!” When Moonrise ground herself against him, her immediate reward was one final spurt from his twitching dick. His whole body tensed, and he tightened his grip on her sides as her cunt continued to suck on him. Unfortunately for her, he didn’t give her what she needed to experience an orgasm of her own.

Fighting for breath, Machine Head soon slumped his shoulders forward and loosened his grip on her body. When Moonrise peered at him over her shoulder, she saw that his trim, athletic form was drenched in sweat that highlighted his flexing muscles even more. His skin, which looked pale compared to hers, was flushed, and it glistened in the dim light around them.

“Huh?” It was at that moment that he realized he hadn’t yet satisfied her. Guilt washed over him like a splash of cold water. His body was still so hot - he was still so hot for her - but his cock was spent. What more could he do?

In his head, he yelled at himself. C’mon! I can’t give up! I gotta keep fucking her until she’s satisfied!

PLUS ULTRA!

Machine Head nodded at the voice in his head. “Hmph!” Fingers tightening around her delicious, brown flesh, he was just about to resume railing her against the tree, but she rolled her ass forward and separated their sexes. The withdrawal of his cock made a squelching sound that he knew he’d always enjoy hearing. And the sensation of it made him shiver even though he wasn’t ready to be out of her cunt.

Confused and standing on shaky legs, all he could do was stare at her and wonder what she was up to. “I’ll make you cum again, Moonrise,” he promised after a few moments of stunned silence. Droplets of jizz dribbled from the tip of his half-erect member.

When she turned around, spread herself open, and showed him how pink she was on the inside and how plump her pussy was on the outside, his cock twitched and he started to drool. It swelled more when she gathered some of their mixed juices on her fingers and then stuck her fingers into her mouth.

“Ooo...you’re so nasty…” he breathed. “And you’ve got the prettiest pussy I’ve ever seen.” Hypnotized by her, he dropped to his knees before her. Tasting his own cum wasn’t high up on his kink list, but he would do anything to please her.

They barely knew each other, yet already he knew he’d do anything for her.

Bare knees on the dirt, Machine Head prepared to worship Moonrise with his mouth. He grabbed the sides of her ass. Little by little, his flexing fingers creeped around until he had two firm grips of her cheeks. His hands celebrated by giving her tush a passionate squeeze.

His helmet bumped against her belly and the bottom slopes of her breasts. Before he began to fuck her with his mouth, he wanted to get a whiff of her. His nose, which was only partially covered by his visor, pressed against her tuft of damp, silver pubic hair. He rubbed his nose against her mons, rubbed his visor against her tummy, and inhaled deeply through his nostrils. Shuddering, he realized that he was addicted to the scent of her honey, just like he was addicted to everything else about her. Like her taste.

“I’ll make you cum, Moonrise,” he promised again right before he delivered a slurping, sucking kiss to her cunt.

Machine Head wished to know how she wanted to be eaten out, so he would pay close attention to what Moonrise told him and what her body told him to do. One way or another, she would guide him toward her climax.

As he slurped on her labia, as he bathed it with licks, he’d listen and feel for any sign that she liked what he was doing, or any sign that she wanted something deeper. Once he got her signal for something deeper, he’d reach inside her and begin the tongue fuckin’.

“Nnnngghh…” His questing tongue stimulated the pink folds inside of her, searching for the spot that wanted to get teased the most. If that meant licking a spot deep inside her, he’d gladly do so. If it meant curling his tongue backward to lick the front of her vagina, he’d eagerly do that. When he found a particularly sweet spot, he’d apply constant pressure to it with the tip of his tongue, and he’d continue for as long as it delighted her.

All the while, his taste buds got drenched in a combination of their juices.

If Moonrise somehow told him to suck on her clit, Machine Head would happily do that. He’d pull out his achy tongue, and a few thin strands of stickiness would connect it to her snatch, until those strands snapped. He’d spare a moment to lick and tenderly bite the inside of one of her thighs, for it looked too good to resist. Then he’d close his lips around her clit, trapping it within his hungry mouth.

He’d gently massage it with his lips while marveling at how juicy it was. He’d tease it, tenderly, with his tongue tip. After several, indulgent moments of oral stroking, he’d clamp his lips down upon it, more firmly, and suck it, over and over.

“Mmm…” It was obvious that Machine Head enjoyed sucking on her clit. He just kept on suckin’ her.

Up until that point, his fingers had been happily fondling her firm ass. He ignored the discomfort of his knuckles scraping against bark and instead reveled in how her flesh felt in his grasp. But now, it was time to finger her. He had wanted to finger her ever since he saw how much she enjoyed getting fingered by the Naturalist. One hand dropped from her rear and drifted between her legs.

Now’s my chance to show her how good I am with my hands!

Because he had fucked her pussy wide open, he started with two fingers right away. The duo of digits plunged into her and began to pump, steadily. He curled his fingers to press upon one of the pink patches he had previously tongued. Then, before long, he proceeded to corkscrew his fingers in and out of her, carefully repeatedly. With each, new pump, his fingers became coated in more and more of her cream.

The pressure with which he sucked Moonrise’s pearl and the pace with which he finger fucked her were linked together - so the harder he sucked her, the faster he fingered her.

 

[Apollo Wilde]

He’d called her “nasty.”

Nasty.

The word rolled around in her head, echoing, like she should be ashamed of it. Somewhere deep down, felt like she should, but in the present, all she did was grin wider. Maybe she was nasty. But this felt good. Felt right. And he was kneeling before her either way.

“That’s mean,” she sniffed, still holding her pussy wide open. “I’m not nasty.” Said in a tone that she was entirely not convinced that she was nasty and might be just a tad delighted that he was calling her that. Then he complimented her cunt, and she flushed, biting her lower lip and lowering her eyelids, looking away from him. “Do you really think it’s pretty…?” Her voice was softer now, and she tilted her hips forward, closer to his face.

His helmet was chill, sticky, against her breasts and her stomach, but before she could caress his helmet, the back of his head, the nape of his neck, he was pressing forward, his tongue lapping the inside of her sex. She moaned, a low, long keen of his name, as she lifted a leg and draped it over his shoulder. As he tongue-fucked her, she lazily bumped her hips into his mouth, grinding against him, rolling with the movements of his mouth against her sex.

When he slipped his fingers into her, she squealed, canting her head back and bucking her hips harder into his mouth, into his hands. “Oh, like that, just like that,” she purred, grinding eagerly down on his corkscrewing fingers. His tongue flicking against her clit, the twisting of his fingers, was pushing her closer and closer to the edge, a slow build that had started again once she’d pulled him out of her. She’d continue to rock her hips into his fingers and mouth, her gloved hands clasping the back of his helmeted head as her panting grew louder and more breathless.

“So good,” she cooed, “Yeah, you’re gonna make me cum. Just like that,” she was breathless, the words scarcely more than a whisper. “Oh,” she ground down harder on his fingers, catching her lower lip between her teeth again. She could feel it, the fire rising through her cunt, the tightening of her muscles around his slender fingers. He’d move them fast, then slow, then fast again - and now he was agonizingly slow, she could feel each ridge of him as he leisurely slid in and out of her body, her wetness audible.

An insistent suck on her clit, and she was tumbling over, shrieking his name, her body quivering against his helmet, trembling delicately within the confines of his hands. Her juices, well mixed with his, trailed from her, down his nose, his lips, his chin. Breathing heavily, she slumped against the tree, her legs slightly wobbly beneath her.

 

[BewareTheDream]

She asked him if he really thought her pussy was pretty.

“Yes,” Machine Head whispered, his breath tickling her moist, nether flesh - the subject of his admiration. “It’s the prettiest.” Then he drew her hips closer to his face, put his mouth on her, and showed her how pretty she was.

The way he devoured her was guided by how she ground her cunt against his mouth, how she clenched her honeyed pink around his tongue or fingers, and how she spoke or cried out. He’d gotten his fun, he’d gotten his rocks off, and this was entirely about her.

Okay, maybe it wasn’t entirely about her. Judging by his moans and by how thick his dick throbbed, it was obvious he enjoyed tonguing her, fingering her, and suckin’ on her clit.

And when she came - oh, what a delight it was! Eyes wide and skin flushed, he eagerly lapped up as much of the flowing juice as he could. He slurped noisily on her labia. He licked her mound. He sucked on her inner thighs. But there was so much cream, he couldn’t possibly drink it all up. It coated his mouth, his cheeks, his chin. Some of it even smeared his visor once again. Machine Head was in heaven.

Suddenly, he had an urge to kiss her. He took the leg she had hooked over his shoulder off and lowered it to the ground, but not before giving it a slurping kiss. Next, he climbed up her trembling body. His hands found her hips and pulled on them as he hoisted himself upward. Then they found her breasts and he climbed up some more. As he ascended, he dragged his cream-coated mouth over her belly. He kissed and nibbled on the flesh between her belly button and her mons. Then he used his tongue to find the grooves between her abs.

He drizzled kisses all over her breasts, too.

And finally, with his naked body pressed against hers, pinning her to the tree they’d been fucking against all evening, his mouth returned to hers. While their lips reunited, he cupped the side of her head with one hand and dropped the other to her thigh. Lifting one of her legs, he pulled it around his waist and ground his sex against hers. So hot, sticky, and lusty, they kept rubbing on each other.

“Mrrmmmm…” A deep, hot moan got poured down her throat while their tongues swirled. When he eventually pulled away, ending their tongue fuckin’, a thread of saliva kept their tongue tips connected for a few seconds more.

“I’m going to fuck you up the ass,” Machine Head declared. They were eye-to-eye, but all Moonrise could see was the black of his visor. What she could feel was the heat and the size of his cock telling her that he was ready to be inside of her again.

However, the sound of sirens snapped him out of a passionate daze he’d been in for who knows how long. “Wha? Oh fudge!”

The sirens got louder, closer. Flashing blue and red lights shone upon the once shadow-shrouded trees. Startled, he drew his still hyper-sensitive body away from hers, grasped her wrist, bent his knees, and assumed a sort of ready stance. However, since the only part of his super suit that he had on was the helmet, and since he had a raging boner, there wasn’t really anything ‘ready’ about his stance.

Several yards away, a pair of narrow, buggy-like police vehicles rode through the park, their drivers carefully navigating them between the trees. The vehicles stopped, and a total of four cops got out of them, flashlights in hand. Machine Head and Moonrise were still hidden, because there was a lot of distance and many trees between them and the cops. But if they searched in their direction, it wouldn’t take long for the naked, sticky Heroes to be found.

“Fuckity fuck!” Without releasing Moonrise’s wrist, Machine Head kneeled down and reached for the closest piece of his discarded suit. He Machine Merged with it, which caused electricity to jump between the scattered pieces, and also caused a small shock to run up her arm. He willed the pieces of armor to reconnect into a single suit, which he draped over one of his muscular shoulders.

“C’mon,” he whispered. “We’ve got to go.” Sticking to the shadows as best he could, he tugged her away from the cops and their high-powered flashlights. Twigs and pebbled poked into his bare feet, but he ignored the discomfort.

“Can you fly?”

 

[Apollo Wilde]

Somehow, she'd reacted to the sirens before he could. She was attempting to wiggle out of his grasp when he grabbed her wrist and pulled her forward. She was nearly knocked off balance, but quickly straightened up as they moved stealthily away from the lights. Even with their combined fluids leaking down her legs, she moved silently beside him, before managing to get her wrist out of his grasp - though not unkindly.

“Fly?” She blinked. “I mean…I guess so?”

I’ve got enough energy to manage another transformation, she bit her lower lip, her mind running through possibilities. If I keep it small…how can I fly without physically manifesting wings…Manipulating wind? No, that would take up too much energy…

“I can try,” she said, with a bit more certainty, “But I don’t know if I can hold it for long. My transformations outside of this one are finite.” It was more than she would have liked to have told a complete stranger, but considering how they’d just been fucking like teenagers, she figured it didn’t make sense to be coy now. And she still didn’t tell him EVERYTHING about her Quirk.

“Hold on a sex, I mean, sec,” she said, and instantly started nervously giggling. What a slip. “Anyway - yeah, hold on.”

She closed her eyes. Took in a deep breath, and pulled from that deep pool of warmth inside of her, the pool that grew larger when she thought of her friends, the wonderful things in the world. Silver light took to pieces the tattered remains of her suit, stripping her completely bare before reforming around her in a sheer white gown, her choker dark purple against her throat. Holding out a hand to him, covered in rings, she grinned.

“You’d better get dressed, and fast; I can’t carry you and your suit.” Massive white wings unfurled from behind her, scattering loose feathers and the warm smell of honey. “And I don’t have long with this transformation.”

 

[BewareTheDream]

Despite the predicament they were in a hurry to avoid, Machine Head still took the time to watch Moonrise’s transformation. Not only was her Quirk visually impressive, but it also had a side effect of leaving her completely naked in between forms. Sure, he had seen her naked already - more than that, he’d been inside of her and had done things with her he had never done with anyone else. But seeing her totally nude and enveloped in silver light was too tempting a sight to ignore.

I don’t think I’ll ever stop wanting to see her naked. Nope, not ever.

The titillating light show lasted for only a few moments, but it was more than enough to make his boner twitch. He wanted to fuck her some more, and he would have if not for the damned cops!

Realizing that his last thought sounded almost villainous, Machine Head mentally reprimanded himself and fought to stay focused. He heard her say she didn’t know how long she could keep the form. That meant a change of plans.

“Okay, don’t worry about me, then. Get out of sight!” Ducking behind a large tree, he Machine Merged with his super suit once again. The suit suddenly engulfed his body, moving as though it were a living thing. Moonrise could hear it snapping into place.
“Ow!” Machine head whispered. The inside of his suit chafed his erect penis, which made him realize that he had left his underwear somewhere back there.

Oh no! Well, there’s nothing I can do about that now. Hopefully nobody finds it. Or if they do, hopefully they think they’re a park bum’s undies, or something.

Now suited up, Machine Head took a couple seconds to flex his arms and fingers. Then he peeked around the tree. The cops were at least a couple dozen yards away, but they were moving in their direction, likely because they spotted the silver light.

Machine Head looked up at Moonrise in her angelic form and did his best not to swoon. Looking at her made clear thinking difficult, and the scent of honey that suddenly filled his nostrils didn’t help. “If we can’t find each other, meet me on the roof of the HumNews building.” Losing sight of her was the last thing he wanted. What he really wanted to do was take her ring-covered hand and pull her in for a nice, deep kiss. But there was no time for that. They needed to split up, or else they’d be spotted, or worse.

“I’ll see you soon,” he promised right before he fired a grappling hook from his forearm-mounted launcher and ascended toward the tree tops.

Unbeknown to them, the police had found the Naturalist not that far away. After Machine Head tased him, the rapey, plant-obsessed Villain plummeted to the ground and took a nasty bump to his head. He’d been unconscious the entire time that Machine Head and Moonrise screwed each other’s brains out.

 

[Apollo Wilde]

"But, wait! How will you get out of here?” She kept her voice low, even as she tried to “shout” across to him. She knew her transformation couldn’t last long, but surely it would be enough for both of them to get to safety. At least in the sense to sort of play off what they’d just been doing.

Maybe.

The fatigue that had been pushed away by the multiple orgasms that Machine Head had given her was starting to creep back, and she could feel it begin to creep round the roots of her wings as muscle strain.

He wants to meet me back at HumNews - but I don’t think I can make it - not without losing my transformation all together!

“Change of plans,” she hissed, moving closer to him. She wasn’t sure what to tell him, so she decided to go with the truth. Well, at least a modified version of it. “I don’t think I can make it to HumNews.” She walked over to him now, and placed a hand on his shoulder, gently squeezing. “Tomorrow night, top of HumNews building, 9 o’clock - don’t be late!” Though it wouldn’t make much of a difference, she lightly pecked the side of his helmet, backing off as he grappled away.

Standing there, watching his glimmering form grow smaller in the distance, she had to stop herself from letting out a long, lovesick sigh. Absolutely ridiculous - she’d just met the man, and not only had she developed one hell of a crush, she was this close (though, if she was being honest, he’d earned it) to declaring him the best lay of her life. Like…she was left wondering how she’d gotten this far in life without experiencing a dicking of that magnitude.

On slightly trembling legs, she flexed her wings. Would it be easier to try and sneak away - or could she manage one last transformation?

____

She couldn’t really remember how she got home - just that she woke up in bed, as herself, plain old Serena Hawkes, to a splitting headache, a mouth that felt like cotton, and aches and pains in her lower body and all over. The shrill beeping of her alarm didn’t help her aching head - and without having to fake a “sick voice,” she called in to her job and took the day off. Her phone call made, she rebundled herself in her blankets, rolled over, and went back to sleep.

Hours later, when she awoke to the eager breath of her pups in her face, both of them balls of fluff with bright eyes and wagging tails, the events of last night came tumbling back as she was finally getting round to brushing her teeth. Moving around in a daze, she went through the motions of her life - showering, getting dressed, walking the dogs. It was in the midst of walking the dogs that she realized that the screen on her phone was cracked. When and how that happened, she had no idea - it wasn’t as if she went into battle carrying it.

Wincing, she held it up under the afternoon sun, watching as the light caught the cracks and sent them out in long arcs of white light. It didn’t seem like it was major damage, but enough that she couldn’t really go around with it like this. How had she not noticed that when she was calling into work this morning?

“Ugh,” she sighed, out loud, rubbing her eyes. She was still sore, still tired, and knew that she didn’t look a fraction of her best. Definitely not in the best, “I’m totally ready to be seen in public!” face by any means. “Well, puppers, looks like we’re going on a bit of a longer walk,” she grumbled. Sure, maybe she could have transformed and fixed it herself - not outside of the realm of possibility - but with as drained as she felt, not to even mention how scatterbrained, she thought it probably wouldn’t be in her best interests. Besides, the walk might do her good. The weather was clear - a sunny sky with white fluffy clouds, and a whisper of chill in the wind, suggesting that fall might be around the corner.

Shifting her purse higher up on her shoulder and positioning the leashes in her other hand, she continued on her walk.

____

“ ‘Hideki’s Quick Fix,’” she murmured, scuffing the toe of her converse against the side walk. It looked more legit than half of the other places she’d walked past, and from what she could tell from the reviews, they did solid work - and the prices were reasonable. It’d been her luck that this place wasn’t too far from where she lived. A good couple of blocks, but not enough that she’d need to legitimately call a cab unless she was being ridiculously lazy. After a few miles and a latte, she felt a bit more like a human being.

She cracked the door open a bit, holding her dogs back. “Hey - I just wanted to ask - are you guys dog-friendly? I’ve got my two pups with me, but I didn’t want to come all the way in without asking! They're not very big and really friendly, if that helps at all?"

 

[BewareTheDream]

Machine Head wished he didn’t have his helmet on when Moonrise gave him a goodbye smooch, but he had a secret identity to protect. He wished that he had thought to turn his head so that the kiss was mouth-on-mouth instead, so he could feel her lips and taste her tongue one last time tonight. And finally, he wished that the police hadn’t interrupted their sweaty sexfest.

Unfortunately, wishes alone couldn’t change reality. Before he departed, he stared at her mutely, trying to come up with something really cool to say. But some shouting from nearby cops startled him, and he grappled away without saying anything, cool or otherwise.

Damnit.

The good news was that Moonrise wanted to see him again. That wasn’t just good news, that was grand news! The bad news was that she couldn’t meet him again tonight, and he’d have to wait more than 24 whole hours before he could see her again. As he hoisted himself onto the top of a tree, he realized that he wanted to see her again so badly, it felt like his heart was constricting in his chest. He had to tell himself to calm the frick down and to breathe.

In and out. In and out. Eyes closed, he concentrated on nothing but his breathing, as well as the cool, night air caressing the part of his face that wasn’t covered by the helmet. Eventually, he got a hold of himself.

From atop a tree, Machine Head had a decent view of the cops, and by using visor, he could zoom in and out on them to watch what they were up to. By now, there were maybe half a dozen of them, as well as three vehicles topped with twirling red and blue lights. Two of the vehicles looked like smart cars - they were small enough to maneuver around Central Park without too much difficulty. He thought they looked stupid, but the form served a useful function. The third vehicle, however, was pretty big - big enough that it couldn’t be driven between the trees, and had to be stopped on a paved path nearby. It sort of looked like a pickup truck, except instead of a truck bed, it had a large, dome-shaped structure on its back. The hi-tech Hero immediately knew that it was a mobile Superhuman Containment Unit, or SCU, which suppressed the Quirks of those contained within. The police used SCUs to transport subdued Villains to special prisons. This one was for the Naturalist.

Zooming in, Machine Head saw that his almost naked, green arch nemesis was on his feet but needed two cops to help him walk. He appeared to be barely conscious. Machine Head assumed that the Villain was experiencing lingering effects of his taser attack, or that he hit his head when he fell. Maybe he suffered a concussion. It was a long, scary fall he took, after all, so if all he got out of it was a concussion, then he was lucky.

I’ll do a lot worse to that dickhole the next time I see him, Machine Head promised to himself. A memory flashed before his mind - the memory of Moonrise’s tight, brown ass getting whipped red by vines. His cock bulged, which both exhilarated and embarrassed him. He shook the memory away, but deep down he knew he’d replay it again in private, before he went to sleep tonight. There’d be a lot about tonight he’d replay in his head, over and over again.

The cops loaded the noodle-legged Naturalist into the SCU, locked it up, and hauled him away. Machine Head felt another pang of embarrassment, this one caused by the fact that he didn’t bother to bring the Naturalist to the cops, because he was too busy fucking Moonrise.

Again, his dick twitched, and again he felt exhilarated.

Machine Head grappled out of Central Park with Moonrise on his mind.


*****


Throughout the rest of that night and the following day, Hideki wondered what would happen when he saw Moonrise again tonight. Would they talk about what happened in the park? Would they lose control like they did last night and fuck each other stupid? Maybe they’d do one, and then the other.

It was obvious that he was totally checked out today - so obvious that Popcorn picked up on it right away. At one point, Popcorn tried shooting rubber bands at the back of his head to see if he’d even notice.

“Quit it, you little jerk,” Hideki muttered after the third rubber band clipped his ear. So yeah, he finally noticed.

“Dude, what’s up with you?” Popcorn asked. There was a mixture of laughter and concern in his voice.

“Exhausting night,” Hideki replied in monotone.

“‘Exhausting night.’ ‘Exhausting night’ That’s like the twentieth time you said that today.”

Sighing, Hideki rotated on his stool so he could look Popcorn in the eye and offer what he hoped was a convincing smile. “I’m fine. I just need some rest, okay?”
Popcorn didn’t look convinced, but he let it go, anyway. “Hm. Okay, Deks.” The smaller man glanced at his phone before hopping off his stool. “It’s almost lunch. What you in the mood for? Thai again? Pizza? Greek? I’ll pick it up, if you don’t want to come with.”

The mention of Greek food reminded Hideki of Moonrise. He realized that practically everything reminded him of her. “Yeah, I’ll stay here. Get me whatever you’re having. Thanks.”

“Sure thing.” Popcorn waved goodbye before he strolled out of the Quick Fix. Hideki watched his friend through the wide window at the front, and when he left his line of sight, he went right back to daydreaming about Moonrise.

His daydreams didn’t last long, however, because another customer walked in mere minutes after Popcorn left. The door chime rang, and a woman asked him a question about dogs.

“Yeah, you can bring your dogs in,” he replied as he got up and stood on the other side of the counter. His movements felt mechanical or automatic. “But if they break anything, you gotta pay for it.”

Although he was born and raised in Japan, when Hideki spoke English, he did so without a noticeable accent. His English sounded accent-neutral, like a reporter’s.

Adjusting his glasses, he had his first good look at the woman who poked her head into his shop. Right away, he thought she looked familiar. In fact, he thought she looked like Moonrise.

You’re losing it, Hideki. You’re literally seeing her face on every woman you see. Before long, you’ll see her face on Popcorn, too. He cringed at that last thought.

“Hi, there. My name’s Hideki. What can I fix for you?”

 

[Apollo Wilde]

Maybe there was a passing resemblance to Moonrise, her alter ego, if someone cared to REALLY look. After all, after her transformation, her face, her build, her height - they were all the same. But her hair length and color, the color of her eyes, her attitude - those, well, those were completely different. Besides, Serena was looking less than “glamorous” in her current outfit - a baggy shirt that hung loosely off of one shoulder, exposing a teal strap of her sports bra, second skin teal leggings, and her beat up purple high top converse. However, even with the loose fitting shirt and sports bra, it was clear that the girl was stacked - an ample bust under all of the layers of fabric.

“Oh, great,” she breathed, excited, and she clicked her tongue. “Come on, guys, we’re good!” She opened the door all the way, and two excited balls of curls, looking all the world like miniature teddy bears, came barreling in, eagerly sniffing at the floor. One of them, a deep coal black, stopped in its exploration to look up at Hideki expectantly, tail wagging. The other, a deep rust red, stopped at Hideki’s voice, and quickly mimicked the body language of the black one.

“You can pet them, if you’d like; they’re super friendly and would probably be offended if you didn’t.” She grinned, looking down at the pups, before looking back up at Hideki. And had to stop herself from gaping.

Oh my god; he’s a fox!

Her tongue thick in her mouth, she sort of stood there, dumbly, before she managed to scrape the words off of her tongue. “Erm…the red one is Lucy, the black one is Ricky,” Ugh. Lame Lame LAME.

She resisted the urge to fiddle with the crescent moon on her choker. The choker was subdued, its color shifted to not only match her current outfit, but not to stand out against the brown of her skin. Though, much to her embarrassment, she knew that her shirt didn’t cover all of the bruises and love marks from yesterday. At least one ring of mottled colors was clear, positioned sloppily under where her neck met her shoulder.

“Oh, yeah, um,” she reached into her pocket, fishing out her phone. She’d left her purse at the house, not thinking that she’d be going on such a long walk. But no harm, no foul there. “The screen’s cracked. I’m not sure if that’s something that you guys can fix, but I figured why not, you know?”

She cut herself off, realizing she was rambling. Ugh. She was so much more confident as Moonrise. Now, she had to stop herself from fiddling with her choker, from raking her short hair back from her face. As herself, her hair was a neat, meticulously braided bob reaching to her shoulders, dark brown, with a wash of violet over them for a subtle wash of color. Her eyes, large and dark brown, were framed with thick black lashes. Her face was clear of makeup, and the faint dark circles under her eyes suggested that she probably hadn’t gotten the best night’s sleep. From her sloppy manner and long pauses between sentences, it was clear that she wasn’t at her best, and she was moderately embarrassed by that fact. But overall, it came across as slightly endearing, as if she were shy, rather than completely exhausted.

 

[BewareTheDream]

She really does remind me a lot of Moonrise.

The signs were definitely there: her face was more-or-less the same no matter which form she was in; there was an inexplicable quality to her eyes that remained the same; she was stacked and sexy as hell, even in her disheveled state; and she kept toying with a choker with a freakin’ crescent moon on it. Put all of these things together, and it should’ve been obvious that this was Moonrise’s off-duty identity. Hideki didn’t make the connection, however, mainly because of her attitude (or, more accurately, her current lack of an attitude.) The customer in front of him didn’t act at all like the Hero who made him feel like a jerk the very first time they met, and who rocked his socks off last night.

Just thinking about Moonrise and this woman’s similarity to her was enough to give him an awkwardly-timed boner. Embarrassed, Hideki chose to stay behind the counter so it would hide his condition, rather than step out and pet Serena’s dogs. It was a real shame, since the two fuzzballs were quite cute. He did want to pet them, but he wanted to avoid showing the new customer his erection even more.

“Err, I’d better not. I’ve got a little battery acid on my hands, and I don’t want them to lick them, you know?” In an attempt to make the lie more believable, he snatched a rag off his workbench and used it to wipe imaginary battery acid off of each of his fingers. He continued to wipe his fingers until Serena showed him her phone and its busted screen.

“That’s it?” Leaning over the counter, he knew right away that he could fix her problem in only a few minutes. Thanks to his Quirk, he could fix all but the most serious of technical problems in just a few minutes, but this was so easy, he wouldn’t even need to use Machine Merge. “Yeah, I can take care of this, no problem.”

Hideki glanced at her face and gave her a small, friendly smile. The glance threatened to turn into a full-blown stare, though, for looking at Serena kept reminding him about how excited he was to see Moonrise again. On top of that, she really was beautiful, even when her Quirk wasn’t activated. The whole situation made him feel confused and horny, plus it made his whole body flush. He forced his gaze away from her face, and stared at her phone instead.

“It’ll be $12.99. That’s just for a new screen. The work is really easy, so I won’t charge you for that.” Reaching out, he waited for her to hand him her device.

If Serena did hand Hideki her phone, he’d bring it to his workbench, take it apart, replace the screen, and put it back together again, all in under five minutes. During that time, she could watch him work, or she could browse the shelves between the door and the counter for any electronic accessories she might need. If she chose to watch him, she’d see Hideki in his element - confidently and silently fixing a machine.

“There you go. Easy peasy.” Unable to look her in the eye, he handed her phone back.

 

[Apollo Wilde]

“Oh, ah, makes sense,” and leaning down, with a soft click of her tongue, she called the two poodles back to her side. They instantly responded, sitting neatly at her feet, dark eyes inquisitive. Much like the two fluff balls, Serena stuck to standing in one place. Electronics made her nervous; without the grace of her Quirk activated, she was prone to being clumsy, and more than once, had broken things (from a coffee maker to an iPad – the latter was enough to still make her break out into a cold sweat remembering it).

After handing him her phone, though, she let her gaze follow him to the back of the shop. Not like she would have been too interested in the phone cases and computer displays around her – even if Hideki hadn’t been a complete fox. So, she convinced herself, it was all too easy just to follow him with her eyes, trace the hang of his bangs, the reflection from his glasses, the line of his jaw –

Huh.

Nah. She had to be seeing things. Of course she’d be seeing things. She’d been nearly fucked blind last night; it’d only be natural that maybe if she stared a little harder, it would seem like Hideki had the jawline of Machine Head. But come on – how many men in the city had that same sort of jawline or skin color? Please. She was being ridiculous.

Still…

Wouldn’t it be fun if this guy was Machine Head? Maybe he’d do something that was a dead giveaway, like, oh, maybe make some sort of reference to HumNews, like something about the copier. Or maybe something about the Naturalist, like…in a deep, breathy voice, say that he was glad that the Naturalist had captured Moonrise; got her nice and wet and ready for him.

The room felt warmer than it should be. She swallowed, and gently patted her cheeks, feeling them flush. She had to get it together. This was ridiculous. But maybe that’s what she got for swearing off men for the past few years. Relationships hadn’t been her thing, and she wasn’t too interested in one night stands. No, she had decided, one New Year’s Eve, that she’d continue on her journey, wherever it lead her, and if she met a nice guy along the way, then that’d be great, but that a man wouldn’t be the destination of her journey.

So maybe she was a little pent up. It was easy to forget that maybe, even someone like her, had physical needs. If she could even call it that.

She could say something. She SHOULD say something. But lifting her head back up to watch Hideki, she figured it’d be best not to say anything while he was working. His hands were sure across the small surface of her phone, and she breathed a small sigh of relief when he mentioned the price. Not working overtime had taken a chunk out of her paycheck, but hey, work / life / hero balance was important.

“Oh, thank you,” it was sincerely spoken, on the heels of a bright, open smile. Taking her phone back, her fingers brushed across his. She had to fight the urge to let them linger. Gah. She would have thought that getting laid would have cleared out the whole “I have a crush on every boy” thing she was currently experiencing, but maybe not.

“I mean, can I at least get you a coffee or something?” She’d blurted out the words before she could stop herself, and she flushed, before swallowing. “For the labor, I mean,” she quickly added, hoping that it hadn’t sounded like a desperate come on. “I mean, when you get a car fixed, you pay for the cost of the parts and the labor. And it just seems fair.” She grinned, a small, lopsided thing that suggested mischief and good natured hijinks. “But I get it if you don’t want to. However,” she leaned forward, sliding her phone back into the pocket of her leggings, “I’m totally going to tell all of my friends about this place and get you loaded with business. Do you have a card or anything?”

 

[BewareTheDream]

For a couple of awkward seconds, Hideki just blinked at her. The coffee offer surprised him, but the request for a card was easy to answer. “Uh, yeah. Here you go.” There was a little, plastic card holder there on the counter, right by the cash register. Hideki took one of the cards from the stack and handed it to her. It was blue and purple with blocky, white text and a cartoonish image of a smartphone on the upper left corner and a laptop on the lower right.

“Yes, please tell all your friends and family about my shop. I’m Hideki, and I’m the one who does the quick fixing. You know, like it says on the sign.” It didn’t occur to him that he sounded silly, but his mouth went dry all the same.

Hideki was caught off guard by Serena’s invitation for coffee for at least two reasons. First, no customer had ever thanked him like that before. Payment and maybe repeat business was usually thanks enough. Second, he had never been asked out before. Never ever. Back in Japan, he was the one who initiated each of his brief, mostly passionless relationships. And ever since he immigrated to the United States several years ago, he barely dated. The few dates he had been on were each found via dating sites like eCupid or SingledOut.

Isn’t Moonrise my girlfriend?

He wasn’t sure. He’d never fucked a woman before dating them before. Since he had already been inside of her, did that mean they got fast-tracked to one of the later stages of romantic relationships? If he accepted a date with this stranger in his shop, would he be cheating on his new girlfriend? Did Moonrise think of him as her boyfriend? Was this customer even asking him out on a date, or was she just weird and grateful to have her phone fixed?

So many questions. And once again, the mere thought of Moonrise and the memories of what they did in the park made his dick jerk inside his pants. Hideki tried not to squirm as he stood behind the cash register.

Stupid erection! You keep happening at the worst possible times.

“Okay,” he heard himself say. It was like his mouth was working all by itself. “Sure, coffee sounds good. I close up at 9:00, so if you’re free tonight, we can meet here, then. You don’t mind drinking coffee at night, do you? Does it mess with your sleep?”
He didn’t know how to handle this smoothly.

 

[Apollo Wilde]

The brief moment, no matter that it was simply a few seconds, felt like it stretched out for years for Serena.

If the earth could just swallow me whole, that would be great right now.

To her credit, she managed not to groan aloud at her own embarrassment, and, instead, kept her mouth shut. Her full lips tamped down in a quivering line, she tried to ignore how hot her cheeks were. Black or not, it would be all too clear she was blushing.

She cleared her throat, and something that could have been considered a laugh a few hours ago escaped her. Now, it was little more than a slight chuffing sound, caught between clearing her throat and crying. “Ah, well, right,” she said, keeping her tone buoyant. “I, um..”

I can’t do tonight! I’m supposed to be meeting Machine Head! Ugh. Should I blow him off for this guy? Well, that’s not fair - I met Machine Head first and made those plans first. That would be a total dick move if I didn’t show up. But…seriously, what could even be between me and Machine Head? It’s not like we could date. I guess? Other heroes date. Do I even want anything else from him other than fucking?

“ARGH,” she suddenly exclaimed out loud. Then, almost as quickly as she’d blushed before, she turned pale, and then, accepting defeat that this hunky tech guy thought she was a lunatic, she just sighed. “I’m sorry, Hideki - I can’t do tonight. I’ve got-”

Dude. He doesn’t need to know you’ve got another “date.” I mean, let’s be real. Moonrise can do her thing, and Serena can do hers, but you guys have got to talk - because you’re the same person. Period.

“I had plans with my girlfriends,” she lied, only with a hint of slipping up. She grinned, and bunched up her shoulders. “I’m sorry. I’m being a crazy woman. Forget I even asked,” she waved her hand back and forth. Might as well try and escape this with as much of her dignity intact. “But thanks again for fixing my phone. And I am totally serious about telling all of my friends about your place.”

 

[BewareTheDream]

The meanest version of the voice inside Hideki’s head began to yell at him a split second after he told Serena that they could meet here tonight.

What are you doing, stupid! You CAN’T meet her tonight! You’re supposed to meet Moonrise on top of the HumNews building at 9! Not only can’t you make a date with some woman whose phone you just fixed, you’re gonna hafta close up at 8 to make it to the roof on time.

Idiot! Moonrise is the hottest woman you’ve ever seen, yet you’re already making plans with another hottie just because she sorta looks like her? Okay, maybe not only ‘sorta’. There’s something similar about their eyes. And their lips. Their skin. This woman probably has big boobs like Moonrise, too. She even smells a little like her...

Stop that! Get it together!

Thankfully, the customer gave him an out by taking back her invitation. Hideki was so rattled at that moment, he didn’t even feel offended by her backtracking, nor did he notice the signs that she was lying. Disappointment would settle in later, though.

“Oh. Yeah, sure. Consider it forgotten.” Almost mirroring Serena’s gesturing, he waved both of his hands in front of him, trying to make it look like none of this was a big deal. “Yeah. Yes, please tell all your friends about me. I mean, about my shop. I always appreciate the business! And if you ever need something else fixed, you know how to find me. I guess you live close by, huh? Where do you live? Someplace nice?”

Stop that!

Several seconds of uncomfortable silence followed. Hideki had trouble looking the woman in the face, so he glanced at the shelves, at the wide window behind her, and then at the two little dogs by her feet. “So....um… Your dogs are really well behaved.

“Hey, I just realized that I know your dogs’ names, but not yours. I’m Hideki.”

She already knows your name, stupid.

Hideki extended his right hand for a handshake.

 

[Apollo Wilde]

She grinned, before it dissolved into a light giggle. That was the third time he’d introduced himself. It was…cute.

“I’m Serena Hawkes,” she replied easily, taking his hand and giving it a gentle squeeze. “And not too far. Well, I mean; not right around the corner, but not far enough that I’d have to take a car, unless I was being incredibly lazy. The weather was nice and I figured I’d just go for an extended walk with the pups.”

You’re rambling. And you’re still holding his hand.

She slipped her hand from his, not unkindly. “And thank you. They can be little shits, but they’re sweet.” As if realizing she was talking about him, Ricky let out a small “whurf” – a dog version of a huff, caught between a full on bark and a grumble. In all, an exceedingly cute old man sound from a dog that looked like a teddy bear.

“Oh, you know it’s true,” Serena grinned, looking down at Ricky. Indignant, he stood up, and stretched. Lucy, on the other hand, seemed to be laughing, still sitting down patiently at Serena’s feet.

“Anyway, I think I’ve darkened your doorstep long enough. It was nice meeting you, Hideki. I hope to see you again…” She blushed. “I mean, yeah, I’m sure we’ll run into each other at some point. Hopefully not for more broken appliances, though.”

 

[BewareTheDream]

There was something about the feel of Serena’s skin that made Hideki’s cheeks warm and his pulse to quicken. Even though their handshake was brief and a little awkward - like most handshakes between strangers - it was enough to affect him deeply. He didn’t know why. Unsure of what to say or do next, he just stood there, blinking and silent, for a few moments.

He was sure of only one thing: he wanted to see Serena again.

It took some time, but he figured out what to say. “Well, if you do have another broken device, please don’t hesitate to come back.” He smiled, nervously. Even though he wasn’t relaxed, Hideki still had a nice smile. “I spend a whole lot of time here; probably an unhealthy amount. I don’t even need to commute, because I live right upstairs.” Gesturing to the ceiling, he realized that he was probably riding the line between polite conversation and ‘too much info’.

“Um, I mean, I don’t get out much.” That’s not true, he thought. I get out every night as Machine Head. But yeah, as Hideki I don’t get out much. “Which means we probably won’t run into each other outside. Which means that the best way to meet up again - if you wanna meet up, that is - is for you to come back to my shop. I’d love to fix your phone again...so I hope you break it again soon!”

Was that joke bad? It sounded bad. Yeah, it was bad. Hideki laughed anxiously and scratched the back of his head.

“Soooo, yeah...it was nice meeting you, Serena.” What a pretty name. What a pretty woman. “You got my card? Yep, good. Okay, well, have fun with your girlfriends.”
The two said their goodbyes, and Hideki was left alone in his shop, at least until Popcorn returned with lunch. While he was alone, Hideki scolded himself for acting like such a goober. He hoped he didn’t act like that next time he saw Moonrise.

Popcorn returned around 15 minutes later, and the two ate their lunches at their worktables. Afterwards, and for the rest of the day, Hideki worked in near silence. He was distracted, mostly by the building anticipation and excitement for his next encounter with Moonrise, but also by his meeting with Serena.

Am I becoming obsessed with women?

Because of his Quirk, his repair jobs were all done quickly and efficiently in spite of his distraction. Working behind him, Popcorn tried to strike up conversation throughout the day, but Hideki didn’t exactly come back with scintillating responses. The smaller man didn’t push it, though.

The hours oozed by like molasses. The sun eventually went down behind New York’s tall buildings, and through the large windows at the front of the Quick Fix, they could see that it was dark and that the streetlights were on. New Yorkers hurried past at night the same way they did during the day.

Stretching, Popcorn yawned, then checked his smartphone for the time. “Hey, boss, is it cool if I leave early?”

“Huh? Oh, yeah, sure.” Hideki figured that Popcorn had another date with Karishma, aka Seer. He never asked to leave early before the two of them started dating.
Turning around, Hideki looked Popcorn in the face for what felt like the first time since lunch. “Have fun tonight.”

“You know I will!” Like a kid rushing out of school after the bell rung, Popcorn put on his jacket, shut his laptop, stuffed it into his bag, and then made his way for the door. “Thanks! See you tomorrow!”

Hideki watched his best friend fast-walk past the window, and chuckled. He knew how he felt.

He checked the time on his own phone - it wasn’t quite 7:00pm. He could’ve worked for another hour, closed up shop, changed into his Machine Head armor, and traveled to the top of the HumNews building with time to spare. But no, Hideki decided to close up right then and there.

Maybe she’ll be there early, he thought as he hurried to shut down his computer, lock everything up, and turn off the lights. After that, he rushed upstairs to his apartment to take a quick shower and then change. He really hoped that Moonrise got there early, or else the next 2 hours would feel like an eternity. This whole day took forever, except for that brief interaction with Serena.

 

[Apollo Wilde]

Maybe if he didn’t have such a great smile, and such nice lips, and such piercing eyes, his nerves may have come off as awkward. Well, awkward is as awkward does, and Serena answered his questions with a slight, dare she admit to herself, giggle.

Gah!

Taking it as her cue to leave, she turned, slipping her phone back into her pocket. “Well,” she said, drawing out the “l”s, enjoying how they felt pouring over her tongue, “I might just have to step on it or something.” She turned, looking at him over her should. She grinned, her eyes crinkling at the corners, shining with good humor. “Chuck it against a wall, let it fall out of my pocket…you know, something to get it good and smashed. Something longer than a 5 minute fix.”

Am I flirting?

I…I totally think I’m flirting. This is so how Moonrise would handle this. She’s always so confident and charming.

“See ya around, Hideki.” There was a purse to her lips, a lowering of her eyelids, before, and then - a wink. A so quick he may have missed it, or perhaps a trick of the imagination quick wink. It’d surprised her as well, but she’d already done it and decided to roll with it, her smile growing. It couldn’t have been a more perfect exit, even though her heart thudded in her throat and her palms felt damp. Maybe she should let the Moonrise section of her brain drive things more often.

____

The rest of the day passed too slowly and too quickly at the same time.

She tried laying out on the couch, enjoying what was left of her day off - binging some t.v. shows. No matter what she tried to watch, nothing held her attention. She tried going to the gym, and ended up sitting on the bench, spacing out as she faced the neat rows of barbells, letting her vision blur, her mind completely full and empty at the same time.

What was she doing?

Yeah, the sex had been amazing, but how sustainable was it, really? How long did she have until the sex became routine? What did she really want? No matter how much she thought about it, her mind kept running in circles. It’d grown darker outside, and still, she was no closer to figuring anything out. With a heavy sigh, she got up. Why couldn’t she just enjoy it for what it was? Did it need to be anything deeper?

Maybe she should listen to Moonrise on this one. Let her gut lead the way. Realistically, sometimes, it felt like Moonrise was her own person. Sure, there was always a bit of a distance between the super hero persona and the actual person; it’s how heroes were able to stay sane. But sometimes…it just felt like Moonrise took over. Maybe it was something to do with the Quirk itself.

She idly fingered the heart on her choker. Only one way to find out.

____

Despite the sheer nature of her costume, Serena wasn't always affected by the weather. It felt like only when she made the conscious effort to think, "Oh, it's chilly out," that she actually felt things like heat, cold, rain. Perhaps it was nerves that dusted her bare arms with gooseflesh - though she resisted the urge to rub them down. Up this high, the city was deceptively quiet, and the faintest breeze, carrying with it the smell of distant places, tugged at her hair, ran invisible fingers through it.

As much as she wanted to be apprehensive - considering, well, the last time - she couldn't stop herself from grinning.

 

[BewareTheDream]

New York was sometimes referred to as a concrete jungle, but Machine Head didn’t normally see it that way. Instead, the tallest buildings reminded him of the Zhangjiajie National Forest Park, with its many pillar-like, quartzite-sandstone structures rising out of the almost ever-present mist. He had never been to China, let alone to Zhangiajie National Forest Park, but when he was a student back in Japan, he once did a report on the area. To this day, he still remembered some of the key details of that report.

It’s funny what your brain holds onto throughout the years.

Tonight was different, though. Tonight, he actually had an easy time imagining New York as a jungle. He didn’t swing from building to building on carbon fiber lines; no, he swung from tree to tree on thick, ropey vines. He didn’t hear car engines, horns, and some dude with a thick Eastern European accent screaming curses at someone on the sidewalk; he heard the rushing waters of a nearby river and the distinctive call of a kookaburra. And rather than feel the chill of night air on the exposed skin of his lower face, he imagined tropical heat and sweat.

Tonight, I’m not Machine Head. Tonight, I’m Tarzan, and I’m on my way to a rendevouz with my very own Jane.

“Ha!” A couple seconds after that thought crossed his mind, he laughed out loud because it was so silly. Jimminy Christmas, Hideki, get a grip, he thought as the hidden winch in his gauntlet reeled him up to a rooftop.

Okay, I’m not Tarzan. But Moonrise is as sexy as Jane. No, she’s sexier. Way, way sexier. Sexier than even the Disney version.

Machine Head vaulted over a ledge and landed on a roof that gave him an elevated view of the HumNews building, which was a block away. Using the binoculars and night vision of his visor, he zoomed in on his destination to see if he could spot Moonrise.

There she is! The voice in his head sounded like a child excited for his birthday. The mere sight of her dark, distant form and what it promised caused his cock to strain against his armor. His heart, which had been beating rapidly ever since he swung away from his apartment, started to beat even faster. His excitement kept building until it became an unpleasant pressure in his chest; he wondered if this was the start of a panic attack.

It's all right. Calm down. Breathe. Machine Head had studied meditative techniques - off and on, mostly off - for many years, and now was the time to use one. Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath, held it, focused on how it felt inside, and then breathed out. He repeated this several times - breathing in and out and listening to what his body told him - until he felt better and more in control.

You got this, he told himself when he opened his eyes. Everything’s cool. Just make sure you don’t call her ‘Jane’.

With one last breath and a sudden burst of speed, Machine Head sprinted across the rooftop and then, with a grunt, he leaped across the gap to the next roof. Tucking, rolling, and springing back to his feet, he sprinted to the next ledge and leaped once again, this time into open air. After firing his hook into a wall, he swung across the street, and continued to swing until he arrived at the top of HumNews.

Machine Head landed a few yards away from Moonrise, trying to look as cool as possible even though he was pretty much a mess inside. Seeing her again so close all but eliminated any possibility of remaining calm.

"Hi, Moonrise." That was all he could say, at first.

Standing there, mutely, for several seconds, he stared at her eyes, then her nose, and then her lips. Licking his own lips, unconsciously, he thought about how she tasted. She could see him lick his lips, because nothing covered his mouth; he shaped his helmet into its half-helm form because he hoped beyond hope that they would kiss again.

Realizing that the silence between them was growing awkward, he looked back at her unique eyes and smiled nervously. “I’ve been thinking about you all day. I couldn’t stop thinking about you, actually. To say that I’m happy you’re here would be a huge understatement.” The words just came out.

“I want to kiss you,” he confessed as he stepped closer to her. It felt like he didn’t have control over his body - it needed to be closer to hers. And despite the cold around them, he could already feel the heat they generated just by sharing the same space.

“I want to kiss you very badly.” He hoped she wanted to kiss him just as bad.

 

[Apollo Wilde]

She could hear him before he landed. By the time his feet landed on the top of the HumNews building, she was already facing him, tucking an errant strand of silver hair behind her ear. Her eyes caught the lights of the city, making them seem as if they were glowing within the soft brown of her face.

As he spoke, breaking the silence between them, she just grinned. She could feel her cheeks warming up from where she was standing, and it took much of her self control not to instantly press the palms of her hands to her cheeks.

Get it together! You’re an adult; not a moony-eyed kid.

But what could you say to that? Really - there seemed to be no other answer, no true alternative, but to do what he asked. So she closed the gap between the two of them in a swirl of silver hair. Throwing her arms about his neck, she pulled him close, nearly bumping her forehead against the smooth shine of his armor. Settling down from the balls of her feet, she loosened her grip about his neck, and tilted her head upwards.

His lips were as soft as she remembered them, and yielded under her own. As first, or second (or, honestly, which one? She couldn’t remember; there had been so many kisses between them already) kisses go, she kept this one primly chaste, sweet, savoring. Unhurried. Hopefully, she thought, perhaps reassuring, that the attraction was still there, even without the noxious pollen of The Naturalist flowing through her system.

Breaking the kiss, she kept her nose against his, her face close to his. “I don’t know what to say.” She was breathless, both from the kiss and from excitement. It was as if a part of her brain shut down every time she saw him, an infatuation that had come on entirely too hard and too fast for her to try and make heads or tails of. What was she to do with this, really? Could she keep enjoying things, this, just as they were now?

 

[BewareTheDream]

Inevitably, Machine Head turned to putty within the comfort and warmth of Moonrise’s embrace. His gloved hands were drawn to the swells of her hips, and although he didn’t have direct contact with her skin, he could still enjoy how her flesh yielded in his grip. Seconds later, his arms wrapped around her back, and he held her tight for their kiss.

Great googly moogly, she feels like a dream! And she somehow tastes even better than I remember!

Their mouths reunited for the first time in what felt like forever. A part of him wanted to get all pornographic with their lip lock- heck, a big part of him wanted to do way more than that - but instinct told him to keep things gentle. So for a long time, the two of them tasted each other’s lips, nice and easy. When their tongues touched, they did so delicately.

His breathing got hotter and heavier the more they kissed. And on more than one occasion, he couldn’t help but moan in ecstasy.

Machine Head felt dizzy by the time their mouths parted. At first, he didn’t know what to say, either. All he could do was keep his face close to hers. Their noses touched. He began to treat her to some eskimo kisses.

“Wow,” was the only word he could come up with before he hugged her tightly and gave in to his desire to taste her kiss some more. Okay, not just ‘some more’, but a lot more. Their mouths reconnected, and many more minutes rolled by while his tongue rolled around with hers.

The cold New York air didn’t bother him one bit, because not only was his super suit insulated, but being so close and intimate with Moonrise stoke his inner fire to a dangerous degree. He was already starting to sweat. When their newest round of kissing stopped, he was even dizzier than before, yet somehow he found more words this time.

“I missed you,” he whispered, his face still close to hers. “I was in such a hurry to get here, I almost crashed into a building.” Chuckling, he pulled his head back, opened his eyes, and got a good look at her. She couldn’t see his eyes because of his visor, but he could see hers. He’d never seen eyes like hers before. He’d never seen a woman like her before, period.

Her hair shimmered in the moonlight. He brushed some of the silver strands away from her face, caressing one of her brown cheeks as he did so. Machine Head could feel himself falling for her deeper and deeper the longer he stared at her. At that moment, he wanted to keep staring at her, forever.

 

[Apollo Wilde]

At his confession, she pulled back, just a bit, so she could get a better look at him. She blinked once, twice, then, she laughed, her face lighting up as laughter bubbled out of her.

“Oh, Machine Head,” she found herself cooing, lowering her head to rub her nose against his. It was a whisper of a touch, followed by the warmth of her lips close to his. “I don’t know what to say…”

And that was true. For all of the mental gymanastics that she’d done before, leading up to this, fretting on the roof, none of that mattered. All that she wanted was his warmth close to hers, for him to run his fingers through her hair, to hear his voice.

I’m just going to let it go.

“So, um…” she trailed off, licking her lower lip. She imagined that she could still taste him there, a mix of the cold sharpness of metal and the slippery warmth of his tongue. “What do we do now…?”

 

[BewareTheDream]

What do we do now? Why, we fuck, of course! We fuck until we can’t move no more!

Machine Head didn’t say that out loud, but he almost did. He also almost went in for another kiss when he saw Moonrise lick her lower lip. One little peek of her tongue was all it took for him to want another taste.

Oh, Christmas on a cracker, I can’t think of anything more tempting than her tongue. Well, actually, I can think of a few other things…

Blushing under his helmet, Machine Head stared at her mouth, then at other parts of her face. It wasn’t only his cheeks that were flushed - his entire body felt like it was overheating. He gave her a few more eskimo kisses, careful not to bump her head with his helmet. As for his hands, they rested on her lovely hips; his hands felt like they belonged there.

“Oh!” he blurted out after several seconds of quietly holding her close. “I have something for you.” Although he didn’t want to take either of his hands off of her, he had to in order to get something from one of his super suit’s hidden pockets.

“Here.” The object in his hand looked somewhat similar to the Starfleet communicator-pins from Star Trek. “It’s a communicator. You can wear it as a pin, put it in your pocket, whatever you want.” There didn’t appear to be any pockets on Moonrise’s skin-tight outfit, but Machine Head was more than willing to examine her from head to toe to make sure.

“You just have to press it once to activate it, and press it again to turn it off.” Machine Head pressed his thumb against the comm, and with his other hand he touched the side of his helmet to activate his own comm. “Ichi, ni, san, yon.” Both of them could hear his voice emanate from the device as he counted in Japanese.

“Now we can contact each other whenever we want.” Once Moonrise took the device from his hand, he placed both his hands back on her hips. His fingers were eager yet tender as they squeezed her lovely flesh.

Machine Head glanced around. Because of the heat between them, he hadn’t noticed it was getting colder until that moment. Not only that, but making love on a roof wasn’t exactly romantic. A change of venue was in order.

He looked her in the eyes, smiling. “Hey, want to go into the HumNews office? I bet one of the offices has a couch or something.” The things they could do to each other all around an empty office in the middle of the night raced through his head. Since he continued to hold her close, Moonrise would surely be able to feel his erection thickening against her belly.

 

[Apollo Wilde]

She took the pin from his fingers, blinking curiously as he explained its purpose. She turned it over, back and forth, the metal glimmering against the snow white of her gloves. From the way her nose scrunched up, it was clear that she was giving serious thought as to how to attach it. With a small slight of hand, she slipped the communicator into her glove. She’d find a way to wear it in the future - probably not when she could feel him pressing up against her like that. It was tempting, entirely too tempting, to want to reach down and caress his swelling head, but she resisted. Instead, she pressed gently into him, leading with her hips.

If it was anyone else, had been anyone else (and, to be fair - it seemed that the only people that openly propositioned her as Moonrise were two-bit thugs and criminals. Good on the heroes, she supposed, but it maybe would have been nice to think that there was…she didn’t know, something there?), she could have been offended, but instead, all she did was giggle a bit. “Why, Machine Head,” and she pressed more insistently into his crotch, her hips molding flush to his, “Are you propositioning me? Because, if you are…” She trailed off, pressing her lips closer to his cheek. City lights caught the glimmer of her deep pink lip gloss, played tricks with the hints of glitter within it, “I might have to raise a complaint with the other Heroes…” There was absolutely nothing serious in her tone; if anything, there was a throaty purr there, hinting, teasing, asking.

“But maybe not within the HumNews building,” teasing was gone from her voice, replaced with a careful thoughtfulness. “I think they still might be cleaning up from last week. The last thing they’d need to find is two heroes doing this and that.” She could feel her cheeks heating up - ugh, she was blushing - but sucked her lower lip in to distract herself. Being bashful was silly. She knew what she wanted. She’d already had a bit of it and wanted more - even though she thought she was tired, thought she was sore - but she also couldn’t deny the fact that her mind had kept going back to him and what they’d done before. And now he’d given her this communicator - so surely, his mind had to be on the same thing. Better yet - not only was he thinking about it, but wanted more of it. That was something, wasn’t it?

“Got anywhere else in mind?” Bumping her hips into his, she put space between the two of them, her eyes sparkling. “Something like ‘my place or yours’ doesn’t really work in this situation, does it?”

 

[BewareTheDream]

What else could Machine Head do but shiver and moan when Moonrise rubbed her crotch against his? It was such a subtle move, but the sensations it caused almost made him cum in his super suit. His moans melted into gasps when she pressed her delicious, glossy lips against his cheek, so close to his lips. She whispered something to him, but he was so far gone at that moment, he didn’t immediately hear what she said. All he could understand was that she was teasing him.

Inevitably, her teasing got his cock to throb even more. She could feel how much it hardened against her crotch.

“Hngh! Oh my stars and garters, I wanna fuck you right here and now!!!” Moonrise’s subtle coaxing was met by an obscene outburst, for Machine Head was in no condition to be subtle.

He was just about to kiss her. More than that, he was just about to tear off her Quirk-created super suit, bring her down to the cold, hard roof, and plow her like a madman. The memory of what it felt like to be inside of her surged through his mind, as did an image: the image of Moonrise bent over the edge of her roof, screaming toward the cars and the pedestrians down below.

Before his lips touched hers, though, Moonrise bumped her hips against his and put some space between them. It was such a tiny bit of space, but to him it felt like miles. At the very least, it was enough to snap him out of his fervor, for now, and remind him that he can think like a person, not an animal.

“Ungh! Huh?” Blinking behind his visor, he stared at her sparkling eyes. Deep in the back of his mind, a part of him knew that he had already fallen in love with her, and just looking into her eyes made him fall that much deeper, that much faster. That realization would work its way to the front of his mind sooner or later.

For now, he had to concentrate on what she just said - something about going to her place or his.

“I don’t live far from here,” he blurted out. “Well, not too far.”

He wanted so very much to kiss her and to grab her ass, but he knew that if he did either of those things he’d be lost again. So instead, he took a step back. Licking his lips, he could taste her - that would have to be enough to keep him satisfied, for now.

It took him several seconds to realize what he just said. Once he did, he blushed out of a mix of embarrassment and confusion. “I mean, you want to know who I am, right? My secret identity?” The memory of her telling him that she wanted to see him without his helmet was imprinted into his mind almost as firmly much as the first time they fucked. Come to think of it, they were in the middle of fuckin’ when she said it.

“I could show you tonight, if you want?”

It occurred to him how weird it was that he felt so protective of his secret identity. After all, he was a Hero who was born and received his earliest training in Japan. A majority of Japanese Heroes didn’t have secret identities, unlike in the United States, where Heroes guarded their real names like the Louvre guarded the Mona Lisa. In fact, he didn’t have a secret identity when he attended U.A. High School. Back then, he was just Hideki Moriyama, and he didn’t come up with his super name until after he immigrated to the States.

The funny thing is, if Moonrise did some internet research on my Quirk, she’d probably find out my real name pretty easily. And if she did, what’s the big deal? She’s seen my penis - she did more than just see it - so why don’t I just show her my face?

Part of him thought it was silly to hide his identity from her. But all those years of training under Silver Fox caused the other part of him - the Americanized part of him - to hold back.

There was a long silence between Machine Head and Moonrise, then. During that pause, he struggled to decide what to do. Ultimately, he chose to give himself an out.

“We can go to my place, no problem. Either that, or I know a place we can...you know...a place we can go that’s right over there, in the Upper East Side.” He pointed in the direction of one of New York’s richest neighborhoods.

“What do you say?”

 

[Apollo Wilde]

He was so sensitive - it was insane. It seemed like the slightest touch from her was enough to send him reeling.

And…

She liked that. It was powerful and endearing and sweet and arousing - a heady mix of desire and emotion that she’d never encountered before. It was enough for her to drown in. She pressed closer to him, wishing, not for the first time, that his suit was made of something like cloth - something with give, that allowed her to feel the heat of his body.

As he exclaimed, her cheeks grew warm - then she laughed. It was good-natured; not mocking. “Down, boy!” she said, playfully, gently grasping his bare chin under his visor. “But it’s nice to know I’m wanted.”

The space between them was enough to cool her down - and him as well. At least enough for them to talk. As he mentioned that he didn’t live far, she blinked, perplexed. It hadn’t occurred to her that they’d…well, reveal themselves to each other. Maybe not now - but in the future? If anything, she’d wanted to see his face, not out of a desire to know who he was, but to actually get a full image of the person who’d been balls deep in her not that long ago. Knowing each others civilian identities was a big deal - it seemed like only classmates from the various hero schools knew that sort of thing. Maybe those affiliated with agencies as well - she hadn’t honestly put much thought into it. It was nice to have a life that was her own, even with the overlap between herself and other heroes, like her coworkers. In their case, it was good enough to know that they were at least doing the same thing, having the same goals.

“I mean…I’d like to see you without your helmet…” she trailed off, fidgeting with the tail end of one of her long ponytails, “But…yeah…” Chuckling, she looped more hair around her finger, before pulling it lightly free. “Stuff like this totally didn’t come up in hero school!” The words came buried within an explosion of laughter, a release of nerves and incredulity at the whole situation. To ask for anything more felt like maybe she’d knock the magic loose, that the more they knew about each other, the more that they’d lose whatever this was. Not that she’d spent a lot of time trying to figure it out past how she could get him crammed inside of her again.

Her secret identity? She was no one, really. She had to fight the urge to fiddle with her choker, the source of her powers. And because of her abilities, she could be anyone - why, if she wanted to, she could have crafted a whole new identity just to show him to keep her true self hidden. But no. She’d dismissed the thought before she barely had time to finish it. That wouldn’t be fair to him or her.

But before the tension could rise between the two of them - tipping from playful into too serious, he’d mentioned another place. And instantly her spirits rose. “YES,” then, realizing she’d practically shouted at him, she laughed, and said, quieter, “Yes, that sounds like a good idea. Let’s leave the serious stuff to post fucking cuddles.”