Tiny Hero Ch 6: Arch To Another place, Enter Doc!

(Frida)

I couldn't stop myself from smiling as I walked away, leaving poor Peter lying there like a drowned rat on the sand. I glanced down at him one last time—completely soaked, still coughing up a little bit of my spit—and a small, involuntary blush crept up my cheeks.

Gods, I thought, I can't believe it's really him.

Peter. The first boy I ever had a crush on. The only boy, honestly.

Back when I was still a Minari, he was... so far out of my league it was almost hilarious. He was brave, reckless, loud, always trying to save people—especially me. I was the scrawny little nobody he'd toss himself in front of bullies for. I was the sad case he probably pitied more than anything else.

But now? Now it was different. The roles had flipped. Drastically.

He was nothing now. A tiny, fragile thing compared to me. I could end him with a flick of my finger. I could swallow him whole and not even notice. He was so... pathetically small.

And yet...

Yet my feelings hadn't changed. Not really. If anything, seeing him now made them burn even hotter, confusing and stupid as that was.

I chuckled under my breath, shaking my head at myself. Get it together, Frida. You're an Obelisk now. You have power. You don't need anyone...

As I walked, I looked down and noticed a few Minari scurrying out of my way like frightened little bugs. Their tiny legs kicked up little puffs of sand as they sprinted to avoid the shadow of my feet.

I stopped and watched them for a second, amused.

I used to be one of them, I thought, smirking. How ridiculous is that?

They were so fragile, so delicate. It was almost adorable.

I bent down, my fingers plucking one of them—a young male—off the ground as easily as picking up a crumb. He wriggled between my fingers, his tiny hands pushing against my skin in a useless attempt to free himself.

"So cute," I murmured, lifting him closer to my face and grinning.

I held him there, dangling, squirming, completely at my mercy.

I couldn't help but imagine that he was Peter, oh the thing I would do.

Without out a second thought I opened my bikini and stuck the little man inside, his struggles did wonders on my privates.

I couldn't help but moan in pleasure as I stood up , I would have my way with this little thing later, he wasn't Peter.

I gently set the squirming Minari back down and stood to my full towering height again. My heart thudded heavily against my ribs. Now that I had found Peter again... there was no way I was letting him get away.

He was mine. No one else's.

I smiled wickedly to myself, brushing a strand of hair out of my face as the evening wind tugged at it.

"Until next time, Peter," I thought.

And with that, I continued down the beach, the sand hissing beneath my every step.

***

Peter

The sun was setting by the time I was sprinting down Maple Street, backpack bouncing against my spine. God, I was gonna be late. Again.

After barely surviving work (and Frida's weird, terrifying, saliva-covered "visit"), I was now racing to my second "job." Well, kinda a job.

Doc was a friend. Not a real doctor — he had like, half a degree, maybe? — but everyone called him "Doc" anyway.

He was a scientist, or at least he desperately wanted to be. Half the town thought he was a lunatic. Me? I thought he was awesome. Sure, most of his inventions didn't work, and there was that one time he blew the windows out of his house trying to invent "invisible pancakes"... but still. I believed in him.

Someday, he was gonna change the world. I just knew it.

His house came into view: a lopsided, two-story wreck of peeling paint and tilted gutters. Classic.

I jogged up the porch steps, lifted the faded WELCOME mat, and grabbed the spare key hidden underneath. Unlocking the door, I stepped inside, immediately assaulted by the smell of burnt toast and wet socks.

I tossed my backpack onto the living room couch — or at least, I think it was the couch, somewhere under all the newspapers and half-eaten cereal bowls — and made my way toward the basement.

"Hey Doc! You here?!" I called, my voice echoing slightly.

I took the stairs two at a time, reaching the bottom and—

I stopped.

Holy crap.

Before me stood a machine. No, the machine.

It nearly touched the ceiling. It was shaped like an arch, like a giant stone doorway you'd see in some fantasy movie, but it was humming and crackling with soft blue energy. Wires ran everywhere, snaking across the floor like vines. Strange glyphs I didn't recognize were etched along the arch's surface, glowing faintly.

I just stood there for a second, jaw hanging open.

I mean, I'd seen Doc make some crazy stuff before — the Teleporting Toaster comes to mind — but this... this was next level.

Doc popped up from behind a control panel, his white lab coat stained with coffee and what suspiciously looked like mustard. His goggles were askew on his forehead and his gray hair stuck up in every direction.

"Peter, my boy! Welcome!" he said, waving a wrench triumphantly.

"What is it?" I asked, my voice still full of awe.

Doc grinned like a madman. "The future," he said dramatically, sweeping his arms toward the arch. "It is... the Transdimensional Reality Gateway!"

He held the pose for a second, expecting, I don't know, applause or something.

I nodded slowly, trying to take it all in. "Wow."

"I know, right?!" Doc said, bouncing on the balls of his feet like an excited kid. "It can open portals to other dimensions! Other realities! Infinite possibilities, Peter! Infinite!"

He spun around and began flipping switches and pressing buttons, all while mumbling excitedly to himself.

Meanwhile, I just kept staring at the giant glowing arch.

I mean, what could possibly go wrong?