A Writing Commission - Super Hero Wives (Patreon)

The Mount Hope airport felt small and almost cozy after the chaos of Narita or the struggle of going through customs in Vancouver. Artemis Verteller-Croix still had to wonder a little about having done a non-direct flight to Hammer City, with a two hour wait for a connection in Vancouver, rather than the direct flight to Toronto, just 40 miles away. However, her wife Tomiko’s eyes had glazed over slightly, shaking her head and saying ‘not Pearson, never Pearson’. So, Artemis had dropped it.

Either way, they’d arrived now, and Artemis wasn’t going to spend any more time thinking about flights than she could avoid at this stage. Instead, she quietly followed her wife to the exit from the arrivals area. Neither of them was quite awake enough for proper conversations after nearly 20 hours of airplanes and airports.

They were tired enough they nearly missed the sign with their names on it (the fact they were so used to seeing those in Katakana instead of the Latin alphabet possibly contributing). The person holding the sign was a woman in her fifties who was wearing a large smile.

“Mrs. Leblanc?” Tomiko said, doing a slight double take.

“Hello, dear,” the woman said. “It’s been too long… and, oh, is this your wife?”

“Uh, yes,” Tomiko said, before noticing the slightly lost look on Artemis’ face. “Sorry. Artemis, this is Mrs. Leblanc, she’s a friend of my dad’s. Her cottage is a couple houses down from our’s. And, well, Mrs. Leblanc, this is my wife, Artemis Verteller-Croix.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, dear. I’ve known your wife since she was… well, about my height! Hah… I must say, you both do look quite thoroughly conked out by your flight. I’m glad your father asked me to drive you both, Tomiko. It wouldn’t have been safe to have you drive yourselves,” Mrs. Leblanc said as she led them over to the baggage carousel.

Artemis offered a thankful smile and minimal ‘good to meet you’, but was a bit too drained to manage much else. They waited for their luggage to appear, Tomiko gathering up most of it in her large and strong arms. Even without her powers, she could carry 50 lbs suitcases like they were empty.

They then headed to the currency exchange, Tomiko setting the suitcases down to handle it. After getting her hands on a small stack of bills, Tomiko then took a moment to show off one of the new bills. The only type that looked properly green.

“The new queen does look better than that old English guy, doesn’t she?” Tomiko said with a brief flash.

“I prefer my Japanese-Canadian women a bit taller,” Artemis replied before the two of them let out a quick laugh.

Mrs. Leblanc then showed them the way through the airport to where she was parked. She and Artemis worked on adjusting the passenger side seat back as far as it could go for Tomiko’s sake while Tomiko put the luggage in the trunk. Then they set out, driving through the outer edges of Hammer City. There were a pair of hotels close to the airport, but after that it was mostly low slung warehouses until it trickled out into farmland for a while. She’d probably find out what the actual city was like another time.

Artemis dozed slightly in the back seat, the slight bumping of the country road and gently rolling hills lulling her towards sleep. She didn’t think she missed much, waking up briefly now and again to see small towns or more farmland.

It took a proper poke from her wife to wake her again when they reached the Croix family cottage. It was a nice modernist building in an otherwise more traditional looking street, Lake Erie lapping at the shore only a handful of metres away. Artemis vaguely noted that the other houses were also fairly new, just designed to look more old fashioned, but she was pretty used to everything being new after so long in Japan.

She sleepily thanked Mrs. Leblanc for the drive and then helped Tomiko with the doors while her wife handled the luggage.

And then, well, they were married, they were mentally drained, yet also rather full of physical energy. So Tomiko led them to the bedroom and they spent the next while enjoying one another’s company. As well the fact the neighbours were much further than usual, so less likely to complain about the noise.

-

Staying up all day had been a bit of a struggle, and the pair ended up going to bed (to actually sleep) at about 8pm. Which had led to them waking up rather earlier than either wanted, even with getting 10 hours of sleep. They were tired enough to enjoy the slow start to the day, however. Which meant a simple breakfast of oatmeal and dried fruit, eaten at a sedate pace as they watched the lake outside the kitchen window.

“A gal could get used to this,” Artemis said, wearing a happy smile.

“Yep… still I’d get a little stir crazy sitting around here for too long,” Tomiko replied.

“Maybe we can try ta find a place by the water back in Japan, though. Lotsa water there,” Artemis said, pausing with a small yawn. “I reckon it wouldn’t be too hard ta find a waterfront place. Even if we gotta downsize a little.”

“I’ll think about it,” Tomiko replied with a small nod.

Then, unfortunately, they had to do dishes. There wasn’t much, but it was still a rude intrusion of reality on their first morning of vacation.

“We should probably go get some groceries,” Artemis half mumbled as she put the bowls away. “I appreciate your parents havin’ left us some shelf stable supplies, but it ain’t the height of culinary options.”

“We can get some food after we go into town,” Tomiko said. “There’s some other things we should get too.”

-

It was about a twenty minute walk to get to the ‘downtown’ of the charming little beachfront town of Port Dover where they were staying. A sort of distance that living in Japan had helped Artemis get used to seeing as a normal walk, and made more pleasant by the cute small town charm of the historic residential neighbourhoods they passed through on the way.

The actual beachfront district was also charming and small. It was still a bit early, so there wasn’t too much bustle just yet. Still the morning people were out in decent enough numbers to make it feel lively, but not crowded.

“I will admit, I’m mighty suspicious about you not explainin’ just what we’re gettin’ on this trip,” Artemis said, knowing her wife’s smile meant she was planning something.

“Everything I’ve planned is perfectly innocent. For one, we’re picking up a rental car. We’ll need it to see more than just this town. Even if it’s a nice town,” Tomiko explained.

“Alright. Fair enough.”

The smile hadn’t left Tomiko’s face, though. If anything, it had gotten bigger as she came to a halt and gestured to the store they were out front of.

“And, well, we’re in a beach town, so we should get some beach supplies.”

Artemis turned to the store and realised it sold surfboards, snorkels, and… swimsuits.

Specifically, she realised, women’s swimsuits. Which was something she was going to need if she was going to go swimming. Now that she was properly a woman and all of that. But. Well. That was—that was quite the step. To be out in public with her new body in swimwear…

“Come on, dear,” Tomiko said, opening the door for her. “It’s a waste to visit Port Dover and not embrace the lakeshore. It might not be one of the Caribbean provinces, but the beaches are still nice.”

Artemis swallowed nervously, but entered. She was sure she could find something reasonably modest. Maybe she could even go for trunks and then a more covering top. That sounded reasonable.

She began to quietly browse, trying to ignore the feeling like everyone in the store was watching her. That they had to somehow know she was so new to this: to being a woman on the outside. It was a feeling that used to plague her whenever she went out of the house, but was now mostly able to ignore. At least when she wasn’t doing something so scandalously gendered as looking for swimwear (or lingerie).

After a few minutes of browsing, Artemis was glad she’d found what she was looking for and went to the clerk to ask about using one of the change rooms. Out of the corner of her eye she saw her wife innocently browsing the surfboards.

“Just the two pieces?” the attendant asked, getting a nod from Artemis.” Here you go, then,” the woman added, handing her a plastic tag with a large number 2 on it. “Use whichever stall you would like.”

“Thank you,” Artemis said, before slipping over towards the nearest curtained changing room.

She took her shirt off, hanging it up, and then found herself freezing up, staring at the bikini top in front of her. It was modest, as bikini tops went, but it was still… well, a bikini top. Something she’d never worn before, and certainly had never worn in public. Staring at it, she couldn’t move, struggling against the reservations of an entire youth spent confused about herself and trying to ignore or reject the desire to wear such outfits. It was… it was really too much for her still slightly jetlagged brain.

Then, making her jump, Tomiko’s hand slipped through the curtain, hanging a second place tag marked with a 2 on a hanger. Artemis could only stare, confused as her wife then carefully slid into the room, carrying a hanger with a cow print bikini string bikini that made Artemis’ cheeks hot just looking at it.

“What in the world is that?” she whispered sharply.

“Something that I think would look better on you,” her tall wife said with a grin. “Would love to see you wear it.”

“I—I ain’t even sure there’s enough fabric there ta count as wearin’,” Artemis mumbled, staring at it.

Tomiko leaned down, planting a kiss on Artemis’ forehead. “Trust me, sweet pea. You’d look wonderful.”

“Tha—I… what I picked was too much fah me,” Artemis mumbled, feeling her blush getting worse, and her accent getting stronger. “That is just… what would my momma think if she found out I wore a string bikini…”

“Well, we don’t have to tell your mother,” Tomiko replied with a smirk. “There’s plenty of other things I’ve talked you into that I have no plans of letting any of your family know about.”

“Sure, but… that… this is public, an’ I—” whatever half formed thought was in her head at that moment was cut off by Tomiko kissing her on the lips.

A kiss that shot a jolt of pleasure and reassurance through her. Not that Artemis wasn’t still frazzled, however. Tomiko seemed to sense that one kiss wasn’t enough, and continued. Her jaw and tongue began to add to the kisses, making each more wonderful than the last. Soon, Artemis found herself lifted into the air by her wife’s strong arms, pressed against a bit of wall so that her feet were well above the ground but Tomiko was still leaning down with her kisses. Shifting a bit, her wife switched to letting her powers levitate Artemis to free her hands to… further work pleasure and confidence into Artemis, to word it in a way that would be less likely to upset the store clerk a few metres away.

The moans and yelps escaping Artemis probably told the woman all she’d needed to know, however.

It was so hard not to give in when Tomiko went on the offensive with physical affection, and Artemis soon felt like jello in her wife’s strong hands. A few more minutes of Tomiko’s wandering kisses and hands had fully flushed any thoughts of shame from Artemis’ mind.

Her wife slipped out of the changing stall a moment later, and Artemis quietly changed to make sure the bikini fit (slightly lessening the daring thrill of it by wearing her underwear beneath for the try on, as was proper etiquette). It fit, and she couldn’t help but feel slightly giddy about the idea of showing it off to her wife.

-

Artemis had been so excited about the swimsuit that she’d nearly forgotten about groceries after Tomiko had picked up the car, wanting to head straight back home. Her amazonian girlfriend’s stomach was not prepared to be ignored, however. All those muscles needed calories.

Browsing through the aisles, Artemis did find the wonderful delight that was a Mexican food section. A cuisine that was so much more difficult to find in Japan. And so worth delaying going back to spend some more time in private with her wife.

-

The buzzing of her phone distracted Artemis from the lunch of nachos she and Tomiko were sharing. Hurrying over to grab it, she felt a smile on her face at the name.

“Hello, Moses,” she said as she answered it.

“Hey there, Artemis,” he replied in his gruff voice. “I just got through customs and I figured I should phone to let you know I’ll be up in a few hours. Probably going to grab some lunch while I’m here in Windsor.”

“That sounds mighty fine,” Artemis replied. “We’ll be thrilled to see you.”

“Oh, tell him we should meet up at Turkey Point,” Tomiko called out. “The beaches aren’t as crowded there. More room to have a proper barbecue. No way we’ll be able to do that at Port Dover on a long weekend.”

Artemis nodded and relayed the information. “Also, there’s no need to rush. We’re just havin’ lunch ourselves.”

-

Staring at the amount of burgers and hotdogs Moses had brought with him, Artemis briefly wondered just how many people he was planning to feed. It was easy to forget that he probably ate more than Tomiko did, with all the physical crime fighting he did and his generally solid build.

“There’s no way you brought all of that over the border,” she found herself mumbling as she and Tomiko walked from their parking space to where he’d set up the grill.

“Hah, no. Just the grill. She’s a beauty I picked up in South Carolina and the only grill I’ll ever use, now,” Moses replied, a smile on his large and bovine face. “It’ll take me a while to get her set up, though.”

Artemis nodded, watching as he fussed with the charcoal and all the rest. It seemed surprisingly finicky for a portable grill, but she figured she could trust Moses to know what he was doing.

“Are you going to keep that t-shirt on and your towel wrapped around your legs all day?” Tomiko asked, leaning in to whisper the question in her ear.

The soft sound of her voice so close sent a pleasant shiver down Artemis’ spine.

“I—I’m fine with you seein’ it, but… it is a bit bold for out in public,” she replied, her cheeks hot as she looked around at the crowds.

“Well, I’m going to show mine off,” Tomiko said, pulling her t-shirt off to reveal a sporty black bikini and her always breathtaking musculature. “I could use a bit of help with sunscreen, though… and I’d love to help you with yours.”

The promise of her wife’s strong hands rubbing sunscreen into her back pushed through Artemis’ nervousness and she managed to drop the towel and pull her own t-shirt off. Her reward for doing so proved more than worth it, the firm feeling of Tomiko applying her sunscreen causing Artemis to melt slightly. To the point she briefly forgot Moses was there and let out a moan of pleasure.

Then she bolted upright, blushing and hoping he wasn’t too weirded out.

“It wasn’t nearly as loud as you thought,” Tomiko whispered in her ear.

“Oh,” she replied, letting out a sigh of relief.

She was glad for that as she and Tomiko traded places, so that she could return the favour of helping with sunscreen. Then they set up their towels, relaxing near the waves as Moses finished his preparations. Both of them tried to offer to help him at various points, but he waved them off in a cheerful manner, happy to have conversation, but protective of his barbecue.

Instead, Artemis gave in and started on the small talk. They’d begun to run low on that as Moses started putting the chicken burgers and hotdogs on to start grilling. Which led to Tomiko and Moses talking work, discussing recent rescues and the supervillains they’d fought. Artemis felt a touch out of the loop, still getting used to being retired, but her wife seemed to notice and decided to nudge the conversation over to more domestic matters, finding an excuse to bring up some of Artemis’ recent culinary boldness.

And, when the word ‘boldness’ was used, Artemis couldn’t help but think of her current outfit. A bikini that she had found herself feeling quite comfortable wearing. Even in a fairly public eye.

-

In the end, they ended up spending hours talking about nothing in particular as they ate through the food and enjoyed the gentle ambience of the lakefront beach.

There were other people on the beach, but they’d set themselves up far enough from the main parking lot not to be overcrowded. It was also starting to get a bit sparser where they were, now that the sun was starting to set.

“I wonder if there will be any fireworks,” Tomiko said quietly.

“Is it a fireworks sort of holiday?” Moses asked as he cleaned his grill.

“Canadians are only slightly pickier than Americans for setting off fireworks. A long weekend in the summer will probably see a few…” Tomiko said.

As if waiting for its cue, a speck of light headed up from near the horizon, where by Port Dover. They had a decent enough view from the Turkey Point beach, and were far enough to just barely hear the bang of the firework exploding. More fireworks followed as the sun slipped further below the horizon.

It was wonderful to just watch for a few moments, but then… Artemis felt a wave of romantics come over her. She reached her hand over to grab Tomiko’s. Then she softly tapped her wife’s shoulder, getting the much taller woman to lean down, ready to hear a whispered message. Only for Artemis to offer her a kiss instead.

Tomiko let out a quiet but happy ‘oh!’.