Date chapter! I think you'll really like what Hotstreak has planned. And Richie gets a date too, since I've opted to go drama-rama with this stuff. XD

Decided to put Richie's date off so I could post the chapter. It was holding the whole thing up.

(-)

His return to the Abandoned Gas Station of Solitude on Wednesday was something that Virgil was becoming increasingly nervous about. He and Gear were scheduled to meet there in a few minutes, once they had both finished their patrols. And he was still not sure what he should say.

Static came in for a landing and headed inside. Gear wasn't there yet, and Virgil took the time to think over what he was going to say. Then he remembered that he said he'd take Richie on a date too. So maybe since he had one date with Richie, he could argue that a date with Francis was only fair.

Virgil was laying on the couch in his regular clothes when Gear came in. "So I have a proposition for you," he said as Gear removed his helmet.

"You're propositioning me? That's kinda forward, don't you think?" Richie said with a grin. Virgil noticed that he was cheerier and that he had a certain bounce in his step, and it was definitely not the mood he'd been in the past few days.

"Ha ha. Well, it's kind of a good-news/bad-news kind of thing. Bad news, at least possibly from your perspective is that Francis asked me on a date Friday. Good news is we can plan our date sometime this week. I was thinking tonight? We could go do whatever you wanted," Virgil said.

Richie looked away from Virgil and blushed. "Um, sounds great, V, just not tonight. I have plans."

Virgil blinked, surprised. "What plans?"

Still not looking at Virgil, Richie said, "Lance wants me to come to his game. He said he'd be really bummed if I didn't show up."

That got Virgil's attention. "So he's making a move?"

"I'm not sure," Richie admitted. "It could just be a friends thing."

"Well that's some kind of progress, anyway. So we can go out some other night?"

"Definitely. And did you say Francis asked you out? How is that gonna work?" Richie wondered.

Virgil shrugged and sighed as Gear began divesting himself of his gear. "I don't know. I said if he could take me on a date that I could go to in my costume, I'd go with him."

As Richie started sliding out of the skin-tight part of his costume, Virgil let his eyes wander a bit. They'd never felt shy changing in front of each other before, and this was mainly, on Virgil's assumption at least, because it wasn't that important or interesting after all these years. But now that he wasn't ignoring and repressing his thoughts about guys, he found watching Richie undress to be kind of titillating. He wondered if Richie had this problem with him all these years.

"Wonder what he's planning," Richie said, sliding on boxers. "Even I'm having trouble thinking of anything that doesn't involve the wilderness where there aren't many people."

"What, like he'll take me camping, and we can roast marshmallows for s'mores over his hands?"

Richie laughed at that mental image. "Something like that. It isn't like Static blends into a crowd."

"True story. It would be easier if he just knew my identity, but I'm not ready to give that up yet."

"It's safer if you never give up your identity," Richie pointed out.

"Yeah. But I can kind of feel already like he's wearing me down. Damn him. I feel like I should know better, but I also feel like he's serious."

Richie sighed. "Well, Jealous Me definitely supports total secrecy. Reasonable Friend Me understands how you want to trust him. Just...keep in mind that our secret identities are pretty closely linked, almost as close as we are. If Virgil gets pegged as Static, his best buddy Richie is obviously Gear a few seconds later."

"I know, man; I won't let you down. If I ever decide to tell Hotstreak, I'll talk with you about it first," Virgil said. He offered Richie his fist, which Richie bumped with his own.

"Well, I'm headed to get ready for the game," Richie said, putting his costume up in the wardrobe hidden behind a panel in the wall.

"Make sure to cheer real loud and sit where he can see you," Virgil said with a grin. "You'll boost his morale enough to help the team win the game."

Richie went bright red and protested, "Don't say shit like that, V! Like I wasn't nervous enough..."

"Go have fun," Virgil said. "He'll be glad to see you."

Richie opened his mouth, closed it, then left. Virgil sighed, wondering if his date would be as much fun. Hand-roasted s'mores in the woods...

(-)

On Friday, Virgil walked in costume to the address Francis had given him. His jaw dropped a little when he saw the convention center. "I forgot Dakota Hero-Con was happening this weekend! I'm definitely too busy if I can forget that!"

"Yeah, you've always seemed like the geeky-type to me," Hotstreak said, approaching from behind him.

Virgil turned to look at Hotstreak, who was grinning. "Now I know why you said to bring a camera. I have to admit, this a good place for an in-costume date."

"And in Dakota, there's a lot of Statics walking around. Also, I entered you into the Hero Look-Alike Costume Contest. There's a special category for Static."

Virgil frowned at Hotstreak. "But I am Static. Isn't that kinda cheating?"

Francis shrugged. "If you get first place you can turn it down and tell them you just wanted to see where you'd place. But I entered you under the name of Steve Shores, for the record. And the contest isn't until this evening. Let's go get our passes."

Virgil followed Francis into the con. He was barely in the door when he called out, "That Green Lantern costume is off the hook! Awesome job!"

Francis looked back at him and grinned. "I knew this was your type of deal." He pulled Virgil gently to the line for badges. It was pretty long. But there was plenty to look at while they waited.

"They got the whole Justice League together," Francis noted, pointing to some cosplayers posing for a group picture.

Virgil took note of where he was pointing, but a second later he called out to a passer-by, "Ebon is not a hero!"

The Ebon cosplayer turned around and stopped in front of him. "Nice Static. And you sure get into character. But what good is Hero-con if some bad guys aren't crashing the party?"

That drew a begrudging smile from Virgil. "True story. But lack of heroism aside, that is a great costume. All you need now is a swirling portal of darkness."

The cosplayer reached into his bag and unfolded a piece of cardboard to show a miniature dark vortex. "It's not big, but I've got it."

Virgil laughed. "Well, don't go robbing any banks then. I'd hate to have to lock you up."

"Like you could, He-ro," the Ebon replied in a good impersonation of the villain himself. He grinned at them, barely visible under the black morphsuit, and went on his way.

Hotstreak was laughing quietly and pulling Virgil along as the line started moving forward. "I definitely brought you to the right place."

It didn't take too much longer for them to get their badges. Francis paid, much to Virgil's surprise. He restrained himself from asking where Francis had got the money since it would be rude and really ruin any mood they had going for them. They clipped on their "Static" and "Hotstreak" badges (filled in with a marker) and started moving around the con.

Virgil noted as they moved around the Dealers' Den that Francis was mostly watching his enthusiasm with amusement and satisfaction. "Didn't you ever have any superheros you loved, even when you were a kid?"

Francis considered the question. "Maybe the Black Destroyer."

Virgil frowned. "The Black Destroyer wasn't a hero."

That drew a snort from Francis. "I expected you to say that, Static. He was an anti-hero. He didn't take any crap, and he didn't let the bad guys give any innocents any crap. And even if he wasn't a lover of peace, justice, and truth, he was my hero."

They were interrupted at that moment by a Rubber-Band Man walking by and stopping to tell Francis, "Nice Hotstreak costume; you got the hair perfect! You're the only Hotstreak I've seen today, but he hasn't been hero-ing long so that just means you're ahead of the curve." The Rubber-Band Man gave Francis two thumbs up and a grin and moved on.

Virgil couldn't help but smile at Francis's surprised look. "Got that hair perfect, man."

Francis punched him lightly in the shoulder. "At least I stand out of the crowd."

It was true. Maybe one in ten con-attendees was Static. Given that he was the first superhero to emerge right after the Big Bang, it made sense that he had built up this kind of fan base. Gear was maybe one in forty. But near the concessions stand, Virgil spotted one that he had to stop and talk to. "Dude, your gear for Gear is just awesome! I was about to take you and go fight some crime."

The young-looking Gear grinned a little shyly at him. "Not many people seem excited about Gear. But he's totally my hero. Big brains can defeat physical might any day."

That made Virgil grin. "Can I get a pic? I have a friend who would just love to see this."

The Gear nodded eagerly and struck a pose, only sliding a little from his skates. Virgil snapped a few pics and said, "Thanks so much, man; this will make his day!"

They moved on, and the Gear looked very pleased and much more happy than he had when they walked up. "You really are a really nice guy," Francis noted.

Virgil looked over at him and then pulled him to a bench to rest. "I hate people who show up in really awesome costumes and accept compliments but look down on everyone else's hard work. It's Hero-Con, not Snob-Con. Even if I'm not a fan of Ebon, I can appreciate the effort that went into that costume. People work hard on their costumes, and we're all here to enjoy ourselves. Acting like a dick doesn't facilitate that for anyone."

Francis grinned at him and discreetly slid an arm around Virgil's waist. "Yeah, more and more you make me see the attractiveness of heroes."

Virgil felt way too warm, and he coughed pointedly. "Anyway, you've been following me running around like a little kid all afternoon. What did you want to do here?"

"Besides watch you in the costume contest? I thought the panel on 'How to be a Hero' would be interesting. Possibly enlightening."

Virgil careful slid from Hotstreak's grip and stood up. "Where and when is it?"

Francis looked pouty but said, "It's in Ballroom D in twenty minutes. We should be able to make it without too much trouble, provided it doesn't have a ridiculous line."

They headed down the long hallway crowded with costumed heroes to Ballroom D. On the way Virgil spotted a blond Wonder Woman crying a little as a Superman sneered at her. "You got that at a Halloween store. It's cheap plastic trash. And you didn't even get a black wig or dye your hair! That's a fucking terrible costume."

Virgil immediately detoured to get into the Superman's face. "Why don't you back off? This convention is supposed to be fun! What if she did get her costume at a Halloween store? Who cares?! She can get her costume where she wants and wear it how she wants! We're in America. Are you gonna pick on a female Static because she didn't get a sex-change surgery? No! So why don't you stop acting like such an overgrown bully and go enjoy the convention someplace else."

Virgil offered a hand to the Wonder Woman who took it and stood. As he led her back to Francis, he added to the Superman over his shoulder, "And in my professional opinion, you would make a really shitty hero."

The Superman looked embarrassed and angry, and it was gratifying to Virgil. "Don't listen to him. Blond Wonder Woman will become a new trend, just wait and see."

The Wonder Woman sniffed and smiled at him. "Thanks. I did get it at a Halloween store a few years ago but I got invited by a friend who lives here and I didn't have time to put together a better costume."

"Where's your friend?" Francis asked.

She blinked at him in surprise before she realized that he was with Virgil. "He worked tonight, but I wanted to get the whole weekend. He's coming tomorrow."

"Wanna come with us then? We were headed to 'How to be a Hero' funnily enough," Virgil said.

She nodded at them. "My name is Luci by the way."

"I'm...Steve," Virgil said, remembering the name Francis had given him.

"You don't look like a Steve."

Virgil grinned at her. "I look like Static, that's the point!"

Luci giggled at that. "And you are?"

"Hotstreak, who else?" Francis asked.

"So Steve and Hotstreak. Well, thank you for coming to my rescue."

They started heading towards Ballroom D. The line wasn't long and people were already moving inside. They got in just before they closed the doors. It was mostly about the speaker's "Hero Code" but they had costumed actors to illustrate the scenarios described, and they made it humorous.

When they walked out of Ballroom D, Francis said, "Hey, Luci, mind if we detour? I signed Steve up for the Look-Alike Costume Contest, and he needs to check in to get judged before it starts."

"Sounds fun. I'm on board."

Francis and Luci couldn't come with Virgil as he head backstage from Ballroom A and stood in front of a table with four people staring at him and scribbling notes. "Cheap lighting decal..." he heard one mutter.

"Seems too short to be Static," another one noted.

"Can you show us how it looks without the mask?" one asked.

Virgil got very nervous at that. "Of course not! Static never takes his mask off for others to see! What kind of masked hero does?"

That earned him a few chuckles and then they had him turn around to give them a full view of his costume and asked him to show them how he was Static. He assumed they didn't mean lightning superpowers so he just struck a pose and said, "I'll put a shock to your system!"

"Thank you. Next!"

Man, he really was Static and he didn't feel optimistic about his chances. He rejoined Francis and Luci since they had time before the show started. "They didn't seem impressed with my costume," Virgil said, feeling a bit down.

Francis immediately had a suppressed giggling fit that Luci lightly slapped his arm for. "That's not supportive!" She looked back at Virgil and said, "I think they aren't supposed to show you how they're grading, so they don't mislead anyone or get anyone's hopes up."

"That makes sense. And I suppose winning won't do me any good anyway."

"Why not?" Luci wondered.

"Um, well, because...winning isn't everything," Virgil managed.

Luci shrugged. "That's good to keep in mind. Hey, I'm hungry, you guys want to split a funnel cake with me? My treat."

"Heck yes!" Francis said enthusiastically.

"As long as Hotstreak there doesn't eat the whole thing by himself," Virgil said pointedly.

"Steve, why would I do that?" Francis asked innocently as they headed towards the concessions area.

"Maybe because you're a calorie-burning inferno?"

Luci laughed as she watched their exchange. "You two would make a cute couple, you know that?"

Virgil's cheeks grew warm and even Francis was blushing a little. "Not sure why you would say that," Virgil said.

"You just have that kind of chemistry between you. I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable though."

Francis was smiling now. "Hear that, Steve; we have chemistry! I told you so."

"You did not! You said no one could possibly think I would date you!"

They were at concessions and Luci went to get in line for their funnel cake. Virgil and Francis grabbed a little table with three chairs, and Virgil scolded, "We can't be talking about this in public yet! Not until we're sure of things."

Francis frowned. "Well I'm sure. And we're having fun together, aren't we?"

Virgil smiled at him. "This has been an awesome costumed date. Thanks for bringing me."

That turned Francis's frown into a smile. "I'm glad you've enjoyed it. And maybe later I'll try to extract a slightly more personal 'thank you', if you don't object."

Virgil's face felt warm again. "We'll see..."

Luci came back with a fresh funnel cake covered in powdered sugar. They ate until it was demolished, Luci eating a surprising amount and thumb-wrestling Francis for the last bit of it (she won), and Virgil glanced at a clock. "I've gotta jet; costume judging is being announced. If I place, the contest winners are in a show half an hour from now. Hope you can make it, Luci, and I'll see your there, Hotstreak."

Virgil zoomed back to Ballroom A. He was told he placed third in the Static Look-Alike category. With the way the judges looked at him, he was surprised he placed at all. He understood why Francis had been laughing; it was kind of funny. Static can't win his own Look-Alike Contest.

The Static category went last on being announced and Virgil had to admit that first and second place had nicer costumes than his. Of course they didn't have to replace and repair theirs constantly due to scrapes flying into things, cuts from sharp objects, stains from being thrown in dumpsters, but the judges didn't know that's why he purposefully made his costume inexpensive.

When he stepped out on stage for his third place as "Steve Shores", he scanned for Hostreak and Luci. They must have gotten there later because they were near the back. When the top three Statics were lined up and people were cheering, a bunch of loud sirens rushed by on the road in front of the convention center.

"Well, I suppose I'm not bad at making a scene," he muttered to himself, reaching for his disk.

He expanded his disk to the delight and shock of the crowd. He saw Francis saying something to Luci. And since his cover was blown anyway, he borrowed the microphone from the announcer. "Just want to say you have excellent costumes," he said to the first and second place winners, "and I'm sorry I have to leave early. Tell whoever should be third place that they're awesome too, since they only got beat by the real thing. Hotstreak, let's check that out."

He handed the announcer the microphone who just stared at him. Virgil couldn't quite suppress a smile as he boarded his disk and flew over the crowd, who had gotten really excited at this point. He could hardly hear the sirens over their screams now. He saw Francis shoving to the back of the crowd with difficulty since his identity had been revealed as well.

Static used his powers to hold the door for Francis and then the front doors to the convention center. They were being followed by a tide of people and Francis barely had enough space to lift off without scorching anyone. "Did you have to mention me?"

Grinning, Static said, "I wasn't the only real super-hero crashing the party. Had to give you some acknowledgment."

"You just like showing off," Francis insisted.

Static shrugged. "True enough. But that really was a fun date."

"Hmmm, remind me to corner you in a dark alley later when we've taken care of business." Francis had a predatory look on his face, and it was causing considerable distraction for Virgil.

"Coming from a super-hero, that threat doesn't scare me like it might otherwise."

Francis looked elated at that comment.

(-)

So most of that chapter was done a long time ago and was sitting in a separate document. The beginning transition jammed me up forever, so if it's kinda awkward, it was because I finally resolved to shove through it and get the chapter posted. Proof that I'm not dead yet. (I'm getting better...I feel happy!)