The morning after Homelander caught me in the bathroom, I woke up alone in the massive bed.
Silk sheets tangled around my legs. Sunlight streamed through the floor-to-ceiling windows, painting the penthouse in soft gold. For a few quiet seconds, I just lay there, staring at the ceiling, feeling the unfamiliar weight of breasts rising and falling with each breath.
No cameras. No Homelander watching. No Vought handlers waiting outside the door.
Just me. And this body.
I sat up slowly, golden hair falling over my bare shoulders. The surgical scars on my neck had faded to faint pink lines, almost invisible now. I touched them anyway, tracing the memory of the transplant with my fingertips.
Yesterday I had come apart twice — once by my own hand, once on Homelander's tongue and cock. But right now, none of that mattered. What mattered was the faint humming under my skin. A warm, buzzing energy that felt like it had always been there, waiting.
Annie's powers.
I swung my legs over the edge of the bed and stood naked in the middle of the room. The floor felt cool under my feet. I closed my eyes and reached inward, the way I imagined Annie used to do.
Nothing happened at first.
Then — a spark.
I opened my eyes and looked at my hands. A soft, golden glow began to form around my palms. It wasn't bright yet, just a gentle light, like sunlight filtered through morning mist. It felt warm. Alive. Like holding a piece of the sun.
I smiled without meaning to.
"Okay… let's see what you can do."
I raised one hand toward the far wall and concentrated. The glow brightened. A thin beam of light shot out — not destructive like Homelander's lasers, but precise and controlled. It hit the wall and left a small, glowing circle that slowly faded, leaving no mark.
Not bad.
I tried again, pushing harder. The beam widened into a bright cone of light that filled the entire room for a second. Every shadow disappeared. The penthouse looked almost holy, bathed in pure golden radiance.
A laugh bubbled up from my chest — light and surprised. Annie's laugh.
I moved to the center of the room and focused on levitation. Annie could fly, right? I'd seen the clips a thousand times.
My feet left the ground.
It was clumsy at first. I wobbled like a kid on a bicycle, arms flailing. But after a few seconds, the light around me stabilized and I rose smoothly toward the ceiling. Hovering ten feet up, I spun slowly in the air, golden hair floating around my face like I was underwater.
For the first time since waking up in this body, I felt… free.
Powerful.
Not like The Deep's lame aquatic bullshit. This was real power. Light. Hope. Something people actually loved.
I landed lightly and tried something riskier.
I closed my eyes and pushed the energy outward, creating a shield. A shimmering dome of golden light formed around me. I pressed my hand against it — solid, warm, unbreakable. Then I made it expand until it filled half the living room.
"Damn," I whispered. "This is… incredible."
But the real test came when I tried to weaponize it.
I pictured the way Annie used to blast enemies in the old footage. I pointed both hands at a heavy marble side table and let the light surge.
A focused blast shot out — bright, concentrated, and strong enough to crack the marble clean in half. The broken pieces glowed for a second before the light faded.
I stared at the damage, breathing hard.
Not as strong as Homelander's heat vision, but precise. Versatile. And I could feel there was more locked inside this body — layers of power I hadn't even touched yet.
I sat down on the edge of the bed, suddenly overwhelmed.
This wasn't just a costume and a pretty face anymore.
This was real.
I had super strength now. Enhanced durability. Flight. And this beautiful, deadly light that could blind, burn, or protect.
Kevin — the old me — had spent years being laughed at. "The Deep." Fish fucker. Useless. A punchline.
But Starlight?
People worshipped her. They cried when she spoke. They believed in her.
I looked at my hands again. The glow had softened to a gentle shimmer.
"What am I supposed to do with you?" I asked the empty room.
The answer didn't come from Annie's memories. It came from somewhere deeper inside this new mind — a quiet, growing voice that was starting to feel more like home every day.
Use it.
Learn it.
Make it yours.
I stood up, walked to the window, and looked out over the city. Vought Tower loomed in the distance. Somewhere out there, The Boys were still fighting. Homelander was tightening his grip on the country. The world was burning after Season 4.
And here I was — wearing the face of the one hero people still trusted.
A small, dangerous smile touched my lips.
Maybe I didn't have to be Kevin anymore.
Maybe I didn't even have to be the old Annie.
I could be something new.
Something brighter.
Something no one — not Homelander, not Vought, not even The Boys — would see coming.
I raised my hand and let a soft sphere of golden light dance across my palm.
For the first time, the voice in my head felt completely mine.
"Let's see what Starlight can really do."