Fire's Healer
By
Ragemoon
Chapter 1
All the students' eyes where riveted to the game below. It was always exciting- explosions, fire balls, and feats of strength. The reining champs of 'Save the Citizen' Will Stronghold and Warren Peace battled their latest set of foes to another stunning defeat. The 'villains' could not believe that the two had once again saved their Citizen. The four had destroyed the entire arena of props between them. Warren wondered how much this really cost the school, for he knew he and Will did a number on things when they battled together. He also could feel someone intensely studying him and he wondered who would dare watch him like that. He felt that stare quite a few times and had never caught the person doing the staring to make them stop. No one studied him so intensely without him finding out who they were and he dealt with them and swiftly. Which was why this watcher always perplexed him, he had as of yet to figure out who it was.
Will looked up at the cheering crowd. He knew he and Warren made a great team. He just wished his broody friend would smile more often and at least outwardly enjoy himself more. Warren had a smile that could light a room on fire if he so wished to show it. They had won their fifteenth Citizen that year since toppling Lash and Speed as the reining kings, they enjoyed playing the villain role too much which should have been a clue to their true natures, and before exposing Royal Pain's plot to turn all the adults and teens into babies again during Homecoming so she could raise them all as villains. He waved and his fellow students cheered their victory once again. "Come on Warren wave to the crowd."
Sitting in the gym watching 'Save the Citizen' with the rest of her class, Emma sat on the same bench as Layla, Magenta, Ethan and Zack. None of them really noticed her; she was the sort that blended in- right into the background. She had learned that having people notice her always got her into trouble so she worked very hard at not being noticed at all by the people around her, to keep herself safe from them and the possible harm they could cause her. She was what was once considered a sidekick, now the sidekicks were officially heroes just like the others with larger then life power. She sighed, feeling out of place amongst her fellow students. She tucked a stray dark hair behind her ear, straightened her glasses on her face feeling them fall forward a little once more. She hated wearing them, but if she did not the entire world was a blur. Her eyes were studying the two below her; she been carefully watching Warren Peace since they started school together. Her placement gave her a chance to study him; none of the other pryokentics were like him at all. She done research on how their powers worked and Warren's were different then normal. She liked that his were different. He made her regret her plan on just becoming a citizen after getting out of school. She knew better then to hope to get assigned to him, for it would never happen; she never was that lucky. She knew it was complete wishful thinking on her part to even dream of being assigned to him. So she watched him and thought of how he would save the world and she knew he be one of the few whose capers she would follow once she joined the ranks of the citizens.
Coach Boomer watched the rowdy students cheer their favorite heroes in Save the Citizen. He could not believe with each battle how much better the two young men were becoming. It surprised him, that Hothead could be a team player if he wanted to. He never would have thought that Warren Peace could and would play well with others. The boy was unpredictable as the fire he commanded.
Warren nodded to his fellow students; he did not wave as Will had bid him. They joined their friends. He looked up and caught the eyes of a girl he had seen around school. She blushed and looked away quickly; he realized that it was this girl that had been studying him, he wondered why. He looked back at her realizing that she was ordinary enough; dark brown hair, pale skin, and the usual gym uniform that they all wore to class. He noted that she wore glasses. He could not see what colour her eyes were hidden as they were behind her glasses and that bothered him. He usually noticed those sorts of things a lot quicker then normal people did. It was a self defense mechanism for him. He watched as she disappeared into the crowd and could not believe how quickly he lost her amongst the other students. He could always trace people as they moved among a crowd after he had found the person he was looking for. "Hmm." He pondered; he knew that all heroes and hero support could have many different kinds of powers blended together he wondered if disappearing into a crowd was one of hers and if it was documented as a power. He made note of speaking to her about studying him like he was some sort of project and was trying to decide if a glare or the scary voice, as Magenta called his low growl, would work on her.
The others looked at him. They looked over to where he had been gazing just moments before and they saw nothing there. "Warren." Layla said as she gazed at him. "What are you humming about?" She tilted her head sideways.
"I just noticed someone I know I've seen before Hippy." Warren said softly. "I just for the life of me cannot remember her name." He frowned and none of them liked seeing that frown, for it meant he was irked about something; even if it was with his own memory. "I need to speak with her about something." He did not tell them what that something was but they all figured it had to do with something that was Warren's own particular way of being which meant that the less they knew the better off they were.
"Warren noticed a girl?" Zack said blinking. "Man you do exist with the rest of us." He smiled brightly and bounced in place then hoped at the same time that his spoken before he really thought words would not get him toasted by his fire wielding friend.
"I notice girls all the time." Warren pointed out dismissing Zack's comment much to the relief of his friends. "I just don't find many that are worth my time, considering." They all winced at what he was referring to, Melissa Frost who now bore the title of Warren's ex-girlfriend. She had not been easy to deal with at all. She seemed unable to decide on how to treat Warren's friends; that and she kept trying to change Warren. He had refused to bow to her will. So he let her go or let her let him go which is what it came down too. "Well it's lunch time. Let's shower, change and go grab a bite." They all nodded and went to their respected locker rooms to do exactly that.
In the lunchroom at their usual table, Warren and his friends sat. They were eating their lunches and Warren looked up to see the girl again. "She is right there guys." The girl in question was walking down one of the isles between the tables, searching for a seat. She was now dressed in worn jeans, a deep crimson t-shirt and black boots, a faded denim jacket covered her t-shirt, her messenger bag strap was on her left shoulder; the bag itself was sitting on her right hip. He realized her eyes, hidden behind her glasses, were plain brown. She had not noticed them watching her every move in her search for an empty seat. He made a mental note to talk to her later and in a not so public place about staring at him.
Ethan frowned then smiled remembering who the girl was that Warren pointed out to them. She was in one of his classes. "That's Emma Perry; she's in my hero costume design class." Ethan smiled lightly. "She's really painfully shy or at least she seems so. She might just be the sort that does not talk much. Her power is immunity to fire and she can heal someone whose power is fire. This makes her a great aid to any one like you Warren." He paused. "Only thing is, I don't think she even wants to have anything to do with the hero world."
"Why?" Will asked before Layla or the others could ask although he could guess as to why. He had a long snit in the hero support classes and knew how those that were classified as heroes treated their sidekicks. They did not treat them very well at all. It still upset him to see the divisions still standing in the school. You would think that after Royal Pain's attack that the heroes would realize that it did not matter the amount of power a hero had, what mattered was their heart and conviction to get the job done and to defeat their villain.
"She is really bitter about how she is treated by most of the pryokentics in her class. They are quite mean to her. There is only one she has not spoken to, but she said she did not know how to approach him. Emma would not tell me who he was either." Ethan sighed and shook his head he had a feeling she was referring to Warren when she said she had not worked up her courage to speak to him. Warren was intimidating when you did not know him. "She just doesn't talk to people. She admitted that to me as I struck up a conversation with her. That people really bothered her. You think she was sensing their motives or she just can read people really well." He shrugged, "I personally think they are being stupid. Emma's a great girl and she would be a great help to any pryokentic hero."
As he was speaking Warren noticed the whispered conference at the table Melissa was sitting. Smiling sweetly the ice wielding girl froze the floor as Emma walked past causing the girl to slip and fall on her butt. Emma after falling on her rump proceeded to slid until she ran out of ice. Her tray of food went flying everywhere. Melissa and her cronies all laughed at the girl, who numbly picked herself up and set the tray on one of the trash cans before leaving the lunch room. Her lunch was now all down one of the isles between the tables much to the annoyance of some of the students who now had to pick their way around the mess that Melissa had created.
Warren felt his rage boil up and he glared over at his ex-girlfriend and she must have felt the intense heat of his gaze for she glanced coolly back and then blanched when she realized who exactly was glaring at her. She and her minions all left out the opposite door that Emma had fled a few moments before. He then noticed that the female part of their group had disappeared. "So where did Hippy and Pig o' Doom go?" He arched and eyebrow at the remaining group waiting for their response.
"I believe." Will spoke quietly to the fire wielder next to him watching the other students pretend nothing happened in their cafeteria once again. "They went to see if Emma was alright. I think part of the reason was so Layla would not go after your ex."
"Yeah she does not like it when others mistreat people." Ethan sighed. "I don't blame her though. I've been though what they are doing. I am sure the only reason I don't still get such treatment is because no one wishes to cross you or Warren." He looked between Will and Warren; they both remembered what the others had gone though before gaining the respect they had now.
Zack sighed and looked at his plate his stomach forgotten for he could not believe people could play such cruel things on each other, especially the people they might have to work with one day. For the hero did not get a choice of who he had assigned to himself. It just did not make any sense and he knew the things he himself did not always make sense but he did not subject anyone else to his own foolishness but himself and his friends sometimes.
Outside the lunch room, walking quickly down the halls to the nearest girls' bathroom Emma pushed opened the door and prayed it would be empty. It was, blessedly. She walked in found a convent wall and slid her back down it to pull up her knees and lean on to her knees and just started to sob gut-wrenching sobs that shook the entire body. When people played nasty tricks on her she just wanted to leave school, but you could not just walk away from Sky High, unless you could fly which Emma could not. She was so very tired of allowing people to just walk on her, mistreat her. She just did not want to get into trouble at home if she stood up for herself at school. Her mother had taught her to turn the other cheek; only thing is Emma thought to herself her mother had no clue how hard it was to not react to the treatment she was receiving with anger and violence. She just did not know how much more she could take. She felt almost full and ready to erupt on whoever tried something else on her. She did not like that feeling or any of the other ones racing though her.
Layla and Magenta both walked down the hall and prayed that they find Emma first before Melissa got any other ideas on how to hurt the other girl. They pushed open the door to the girls' bathroom and saw Emma sobbing. It hurt both of them and they rubbed their chests in symphony to the girl's emotional state.
Layla walked over and crouched down and placed a hand on Emma's shoulder startling the girl out of her sobs. Layla could tell the other girl was shocked to see them there. "Are you ok?" Layla asked concern colouring her voice. Emma looked terrible, her eyes all red and her face red from her sobs.
"No, I'm humiliated again. You think they be board of what they are doing but no. I must amuse them somehow." She looked at the two girls feeling uneasy for she did not know the two younger girls. "Are you here to torment me too? That is all I seem get here." Her voice was tight with emotions both girls knew too well- anger tinged sadness amongst other emotions that they did not wish to name. "I'm so tired of it." She sobbed. "So tired but there is nothing I can do about it but endure one more year after this then I can just disappear into the world of the citizen." Telling them this did not make her feel better, only worse. She envied these two and their friendship. She wished she had friends like them, but she just did not know how to go about making friends.
"Why?" Magenta asked. "You could be a great hero support." She then added. "Not that that matters anymore, for hero support proved that they can be heroes too. I'm sure the establishment loved that." The sarcasm in her voice was hard to miss and got a flicker of a smile from Emma.
They watched as that smile disappeared to be replaced by an emotion that neither of them ever wanted to see again as Emma then laughed it was edged with something both girls winced to hear, self-ridicule. "Name one pryokentic that not treat me bad and I'll think about it." She knew one, the only one she had not worked up the courage to speak to for he had a way of just keeping people away from him. She had to respect what he wanted, she admired his strength of character to keep on studying the path of the hero even though he knew that the entire hero world thought he go villain as soon as his father could reach him. She knew better just by what she had seen of him, Warren Peace was a hero and would always be a hero no matter what people would say otherwise.
Layla mentally went though all the pryos in the school and realized that there was only one. She looked at the girl before her with a smile that had warmed more hearts then she realized. "Warren Peace would never abuse you." She pointed out to Emma hoping the other girl knew that.
"He would not notice me either. I'm unnoticeable or at least I try and go unnoticed." Emma sighed starting to get herself under control as she hiccupped. She looked at the other girls. Her words made Layla look at Magenta in surprise. "My powers are not worth much; well I don't think they are." She chided herself for saying what she and they knew was not very truthful. She inwardly sighed wondering how she was going to get away from them they were making her feel uncomfortable yet they made her feel better, that someone actually cared.
"Yes they are. They are just specialized." Magenta disagreed. "You can only heal someone who is based in fire, big deal." She and Layla helped Emma up. "Don't give up."
"All powers are worth something Emma." Layla pointed out to her. "I'm going to mention you to Warren and see if he can get you assigned to him. You both graduate next year. He should be able to make such a request, just because I know he would not want you assigned to anyone who would be cruel to you. That I think would anger him, and I for one would rather avoid that." Layla smiled and Emma knew she meant every word she said.
Emma smiled wanly she seen the famous Peace temper in action the year before they had shown up. It had been a sight Warren had almost burned the cafeteria down because some idiot new student provoked him into loosing his temper. She walked over to the sink, took off her glasses and splashed water on her face. "I should know better then to cry. I look horrible afterward." She looked at the two girls as she replaced her glasses on her face once more. Her face was blotchy and red and she did look a sight but both girls were too well mannered to agree with her. "Thank you for your concern. I'm going to go to the library and study or surf the net." With those words she disappeared out the bathroom.
The girls watched her leave and looked at each other. Magenta sighed. "Ticking time bomb." She shook her head. Layla looked at her surprised. "If that girl doesn't react soon she's going to explode Layla. A person can only take so much and Emma's starting to get to her breaking point." Magenta shook her head. "I have to admire her strength to have lasted this long. I don't think I could have. This has to have been building since last year."
Layla frowned, "I hope we can find a way to prevent it from happening. It wouldn't be good to have her do a Warren sized explosion just because she can't take it any more." They walked back to the lunchroom to rejoin the boys. Layla had that frown on her face she looked at Will as she sat down next to him. "If I could go back in time, I'd destroy that dramatics of hero and side kick." The venom in her voice surprised the young men surrounding her. "I'd destroy it just so Ethan, Mag, Zack and Emma never have to deal with the bull that happens just for having supposedly lesser powers."
Everyone looked at her. Magenta took up the train of thought and filled the boys in. "Layla and I talked with Emma and she doesn't want to even be hero support she just wants to graduate and join the rest of the citizens and never be a hero at all. She's lost all hope." She frowned as she went on. "I hate the fact she's lost hope, it sucks. That and I don't think she was sure she could trust us, not that I would have felt the same if I was in her shoes either but still."
"What," Will looked at the girls in disbelief, "lost hope, that's terrible." He felt thunderstruck by Magenta's words; he could not fathom not using his abilities for the good of the world. She must have truly given up on heroes to have really decided that. That made him angry for some reason; no one should feel that way. No one and it had to be stopped. Only question was, how?
"Yes it is." Warren agreed. He mentally looked over the way most heroes treated their sidekicks and saw why she would just forsake her power for pretending to be normal. Emma would never be normal, she was what she was; a super. He pondered if there was anything they could do to change her mind. Not that he really wanted them to know how much this was bothering him, so he said nothing about what was on his mind and he changed the subject so he himself would not brood for too much more on it. "My first solo Gambit run is today after lunch."
"Luck Warren." Will said looking over at his best friend. "We don't get to start those till next year." He smiled his lopsided smile that always got the others to grin along with him, all save Warren. Will sighed realizing that Warren was in really deep thought he wondered what Warren was thinking.
Warren smiled lightly. "Thanks." He sighed looking up at the time. "I'm going to head back to the locker room. I want a chance to clear my head before entering the Gambit." They all nodded as they watched him leave them behind.
"You know I'm surprised that Principal Powers is not doing team dramatics yet." Layla stated softly. "It puzzles me that after Homecoming that she hasn't done anything to prepare us all for what's coming."
"I think she's working on something. We all still have a few years. Warren and Emma only have one more to our two." Ethan pointed out. "She is going to need the entire summer to rework what the classes and what not are going to be after what happened."
His friends all nodded in agreement then did not want to think about how much school would change when that happened. None of them looked forward to what Principal Powers most likely had planned for them all.
Meanwhile at the door to the Gambit room thirteen; Warren stood wearing his armor for Coach Boomer. He watched as the gym teacher walked over to where he was standing staring at the door. Warren did not say anything in greeting for he was more then ready to get the Gambit run over with. He was not looking forward to whatever Coach Boomer had planned. Room thirteen was not the easiest room; it was one of the hardest. He did not know how to feel- honoured or threatened. His heart hammered along betraying his nerves to his logical part of his mind.
"Ready?" Coach Boomer asked. He knew that Warren was one of the few he did not have to go over again and again what was going to happen. He did not like the Peace boy but he had some respect for his hot headed student. Warren was good at what he did he would make a good hero. Boomer was not going to tell him that for he was not sure how to say it without sounding stupid. "Get moving Hothead; I'll be watching." He watched as Warren stepped forward and walked though the doors.
In Nurse Spex's office, Emma was rolling bandages when she over heard Nurse Spex speaking to Principal Powers. "Warren is bruised badly and half his ribs are broken; the other half of the ribs is bruised. He has deep muscle and bone bruising from head to toe. It's not good how hurt he truly is." She watched as the two adults left the room and she looked at the infirmity closed her eyes and gathered up her courage to do what she knew was the right thing to do. She got off her stool and walked into the infirmity. She remembered what Layla had said about Warren not abusing her if she helped him. So she approached a very wary Warren Peace. She looked at him a bit nervously. "May I heal you?" She asked quietly her soft voice barely reaching his ears. "I think that not wanting people to remember me or my abilities; they forget how much I can help."
Warren watched the emotions play across the girl's face and he knew how much it cost her to ask. "Yes, you can." His voice soft knowing to himself how much it cost both of them to ask and agree to what she was proposing, "I don't mind." He watched as she approached him, shyly. She placed a soft hand on his bare bandaged chest. Her hand was cool to his skin; he was surprised only his fellow pryos were cool if they touched him for all pryos were physically hotter then normal heroes; then he felt different as he watched a bright red-white glow cover them both. He felt hot then he felt like he returned to his normal body temperature. He winced and then realized that he no longer hurt. She looked at him as he smiled at her making her blush once more before speaking. "Thank you." Warren felt that those simple words where not enough but he did not know what else to say to her and what she had done for him.
She returned his smile with a very shy one of her own. "You're welcome. I think I'm going to go and sleep on the cot on the other side of this curtain." She moved the curtain and he saw the other bed. She sighed. "I'm so drained."
"Just from the healing?" Warren was concerned he did not want what she done to strain her. Although she seemed not to mind too much it still made him feel terrible for her. She drained herself just to heal him; he really did not know how to react to that at all.
Emma shook her head before answering him. Nurse Spex had been correct, Warren had been badly hurt. She was surprised after healing him how tired she was feeling. Then again it was the first time she healed anyone she had not known what to expect. It was not the way the books had explained it, nor had those same books prepared her for the realities of healing someone. She knew she have more studying to do in order to really use her powers properly, that is if she changed her mind. "No not completely, it's just been a long day, all in all." She winked playfully at him. He smiled softly glad she had a playful side, he had a feeling Emma was letting him see her as she really was and not just her mask she wore to school. She curled up on the other bed and closed her eyes and was sleeping within moments. Warren watched her for a moment trying to puzzle out this new development in his life before he closed his own eyes and went to sleep as well.
A half hour later, Nurse Spex returned to the room where both Warren and Emma were sleeping. She had Warren's mother Fate Peace with her. She looked over at Emma and shook her head. "That girl," Nurse Spex's voice caused Warren to stir and open his eyes. "I see you are a wake."
"I am healed." He informed her feeling peevish all of a sudden. He had heard the annoyed tone in the nurse's voice and felt very insulted for Emma who had still not waken up from her healing of him yet. He needed to move and he realized that he needed clothing, all he had on were his boxers and he could not wander though school dressed in only his boxers. Nor did he feel like getting out of bed in fount of his Mother and Nurse Spex in only his boxers. "Can we take these bandages off?" Warren asked her. "I need to get moving."
"How?" Nurse Spex asked as she looked Warren over using her own power to make sure he was truly healed. He was healed and that surprised her. She then looked over at the sleeping form of Emma and realized how Warren was healed. "She healed you. I forgot she can heal fire wielders. She has not healed anyone before you though. She normally flat out refuses."
"Well if I was treated the way Ethan says she gets sometimes. I think I would not heal them either." Warren pointed out to both adults grimly. "Can I have my clothes back now? I can't wander around school in my boxers."
Fate laughed at her son and handed him a new outfit much to his surprise correctly reading his look. "It's not like we can go into your gym locker Hun." She pointed out to him. She smiled watched as he smiled a little in return. "Well now that I'm not really needed. I shall return home to enjoy my day off." She smiled warmly at her son patting his shoulder and giving it a squeeze. She then looked over at the young woman who was still sleeping soundly from healing him and shook her head as she left.
Nurse Spex left the room to grant Warren some privacy and Warren quickly dressed. Emma sighed once startling him as he pulled on his shirt. He looked over at her and found she was still asleep. He smiled faintly and walked out of the room. "I'm going to talk to Principal Powers." Nurse Spex nodded and watched him leave wondering what was on his mind. Walking quickly down the hall Warren walked into the office.
He looked at the people there and walked past them opening the door to the principal's office. Veronica Powers looked up startled from reading her report to see Warren Peace letting himself into her abode. "Principal Powers, I have a request to make of you." He looked at her and inwardly smirked at her startled expression. "I've a feeling you are going to start assigning teams this year." He paused then spoke again. "I want Emma Perry a part of mine and Will's team along with Magenta, Zack, Ethan and Layla." He looked at her hoping he was not totally out of line with his request. Make that demand for he would accept no one else as his teammates then those he listed.
Veronica had to smile at the young man's tenacity. "Yes I will though it is not really up to you though. I will take your thoughts into the making of these teams," she looked at him again; studying the young man before her. "How did you know?" Wondering if he had a touch of his mother's abilities, if he did they had all better watch their steps. Fate had always been good at predicting who would win at what and many other things. She was never wrong; could be blind sometimes, but wrong- never.
"Just a feeling," Warren stated. "Plus she just healed me and I know that she doesn't want to be a hero because of what others have done." He paused gathering his thoughts his concern was apparent in his eyes as his elder watched him pick his words carefully. "I don't want a catastrophe on our hands if she explodes from what she's going though. She's more a ticking time bomb than I am and that's saying a lot." He crossed his arms waiting for her answer to his bald statements.
Veronica nodded to her student. She realized even as she spoken a bit harshly to him earlier for assuming he could order up his team, those he listed would be the best people to surround him with. Warren would likely murder anyone else with his temper. "Good thought and it will be done. I'm assigning teams tomorrow at a special get together in the gym."
"Good," with those words Warren Peace showed himself out and Veronica watched him retreat pondering him and his request. She had to smile; Will Stronghold and his friends had substantially sweetened up Warren Peace a little with their friendship. She pondered just how Emma Perry figured into this, for Warren was not prone to noticing anyone; hero or hero support.
"I will do as he asks for I fear he is right that if I don't intervene we shall loose a hero to the idioticness of high school teen-age antics." Veronica sighed going back to her paperwork. "Which is not something that is going to happen on my watch, I am not going to have another Royal Pain."
After school all the teenagers returned to their homes or works depending on what they were doing. Warren went to the Paper Lantern for his shift. He smiled as he greeted Mr. Lee in Chinese. "/Good evening Mr. Lee./" Warren picked up the tub he used to bus tables with and went straight to work clearing tables. After a while when they got hit with a rush, he helped by waiting on tables until the rush was over.
He was still amused by how many of his teachers still showed up at his work for dinner. He sighed and tried to shake of the feeling they were keeping tabs on him. He knew that the Lee's were former super heroes themselves and that was the real reason why other supers came and ate at the Paper Lantern.
He was glad when Mr. Lee flagged him over. He looked at the older man who then spoke to Warren with a smile. "/Go your shift is over now Warren./"
"/Thank you Mr. Lee./" Warren flashed him a smile as he replaced his tub where it belonged and took off his apron. He counted the money he had made with his part of the tips for busing the tables as well as his own tips that he had earned with waiting on several tables that night. He was pleased with the amount he nodded to Mr. Lee as he left to go to Will's house.
He knocked on the door to Will's with his backpack flung carelessly over his shoulder. Will answered the door hoping it was the missing Warren, "About time Stronghold." Warren muttered.
"Sorry we were talking about Emma while waiting for you to show up." Will explained as they rejoined the others in the front room.
Warren looked at the others. "Talking about Emma?" He raised an eyebrow. "Why?"
After her bus dropped her off on her street Emma went to Ranger Records the local record shop near her home to start her shift. She sighed glad to be early for once. She was always almost late every shift and she hated cutting it so close to school getting out and she did not understand why she was worked like that at all. She talked to the manager but the new manager did not seem care. He only cared how many hours he could get out of her while she was in school.
She started to put away CDs, cassettes, the occasional LPs and the new DVDs that had come in. She smiled loving everything she saw, other then the horror flicks. She did not understand how people could watch such things. She did not like them for she knew that people could and have done such things to each other and did not like seeing it be glorified by movie makers.
She got everything she needed to get done and she was glad that no one from school had come into cause trouble, she almost lost her job the last time Melissa or one of her friends came in and made a scene. Her favorite assistant manager waved her over. "Yeah, Lisa?" she asked her.
"Go home kid, you're shift's over." Lisa smiled at her best worker she wished she could get Vern to see that. He favored the young men that worked here. She and Emma were the only females in the entire staff. She sighed and wondered if opening her own record store was a bad idea she shook her head as she watched Emma disappear off into the night. She smiled. "She's such a good kid," she looked at the list and her eyes widened. Emma had gotten her list done, Tom's list and Fred's list. "Wow, that girl just blazed right though." She shook her head as she watched the other two workers and did what she was supposed to do with them.
Meanwhile Warren was at his shift at the Paper Lateran, Will and his other non-working friends all convened to Will's place to study knowing that Warren would join them after his shift was over. Will's Mom handed them all glasses of lemon-aid. They sat around the coffee table in the front room, looking at each other Layla pondered aloud, "I wonder what the rally at the gym is going to be tomorrow?"
"Me too." Zack smiled, "Not going to class is going to rock."
They all looked at him. Ethan sighed. "I wonder how Emma's doing?" He picked up his hero costume design book as he pondered the question. He hoped that his friend, though it was a new friendship, was doing alright. She seemed wound too tight, like Warren did at times. Ethan was worried she was going to explode if she did not let go and talk to someone. Only he could not think of anyone for her to talk to about what was going on at school that would believe her and not act like she was blowing it out of proportion.
"You have been thinking a lot about her lately." Magenta looked at her friend. "Do you like her or something?" She teased her friend who looked at her all wide-eyed in shock at the thought of him being in love with Emma.
"No." Ethan said the shock he was feeling at her teasing was in his voice. "It's just that she takes so much abuse and does not react. I fear that she might explode. It worries me."
Everyone looked at him as they thought about what he had said. They knew it was not good just to keep taking, and taking, and not letting go. They wondered who had taught Emma that. It was not a good thing to teach someone for in the end you can only hold so much hurt that others have dealt before you explode with violence.
Layla pondered if Emma felt the need just to act sometimes like she did, but yet she would not react without thinking first because she did not want to anger her mother. Who had taught her not to use her powers for battle, though that was what Sky High was training them for was to fight villains. She pondered the hypocrisy of being taught not to use her powers to fight and being trained to use them to fight. It made her head spin. They were interrupted by a knock on the door as Will got up and returned with Warren.
Warren looked at them. "Spill it," he demanded as he sat down in one of the arm chairs and took a hot cocoa from Josie Stronghold. "Thank you Mrs. Stronghold." Then back to his friends. "Spill, why the worry over Emma?" He had not told them of her healing him yet and was not sure how to tell them.
After her shift at Ranger Records was over Emma walked home. She was glad that her Grandfather was still up. She needed to talk to him. She walked in the front room and looked at the older man who should have been asleep. "Grandfather?"
He looked up at her, "yes Granddaughter?"
"I feel like I am going to explode if I take any more of what the others in my school have been doing to me. I was hoping they grow tired of it but I think my not reacting makes it more fun for them." Emma stated hoping that he would understand. She needed to do what her new friend Ethan had spoken to her about, talk to someone and she knew that her Grandfather would be perfect, for he would never judge her. He would listen then give her thoughts and advice on the situation that she could use or not use depending on how she felt about what he said.
Her Grandfather smiled; he did understand and hoped that his daughter would forgive him for countering her teachings. "A true warrior does walk the path of peace." She watched her wince when he spoke. "A true warrior also knows when to pick his battles and fight." He saw hope bubble up in her eyes with his words. "Sometimes we need to defend ourselves granddaughter, why else would we learn how to do battle?"
"Thank you Grandfather." She hugged him as she left the room to go to bed.
He sighed looking over at his daughter who had just come into hear what he had said to her daughter. "She's going to just explode Delilah and you know it. She's at her breaking point. I'm surprised my Granddaughter's made it this long before reaching this point."
Delilah looked at her father and thought about what he was saying instead of reacting like she taught her daughter not to. "Yes I actually do see. And you're right I didn't realize school was that bad."
"She doesn't tell you how bad she has it." Delilah's Father pointed out to her. "She tells me for she doesn't want you worrying which is why I had to say what I said. Now she will be much happier being able to react when she has had too and not just keep taking the abuse."
She nodded. "Good night Father. Go to bed yourself soon." She watched as he nodded admitting to hearing what she said and she took herself off to bed but not before peeking in on her daughter and finding her sound asleep.
The next day, during second hour all the students convened into the gym, taking their seats as they found who they wanted to sit with. Warren scoured the crowd for Emma; he found her off in some obscure spot in the back and had to shake his head. He had tossed out the idea of talking to her about staring at him as unimportant as keeping her mentally safe and stable.
Emma noted that Warren had noticed her and then sat down. She sighed wondering if it was a good thing or a bad thing to be noticed by Warren Peace. She was glad that no one else had decided to notice her. She watched as various students got called up in pairs. She was surprised as Warren was when he and Will got called up by Principal Powers.
Veronica Powers then looked at the student body. "I have called up many different students today. For today you all embark on a new journey together. One that was started when a group of truly diverse students banded together to stop Royal Pain and proved to the staff of this school and to myself that it is the heart that truly makes the hero not just the strength of their power." Her eyes roved over her students, "Today I handed out your team assignments. Each pair of students you saw come up here are co-leaders. They will seek out the others that where listed on the paper I gave them." She looked around, "I have made the teams across the grade lines as well. Some of you will be returning next year for the team training sessions with your assigned teams even as you embark on your hero work while they all finish off school." She looked at them all. "I expect all of you to respect the members of your team. Everyone has power, not all are great that is true but wasn't it proven that it does not take great power to be a hero. Just the heart and the tenacity to be the hero is all that truly matters." She looked up at the clock. "You are dismissed. Go to lunch if it is lunch for you or go to your fourth hour."
She watched as the students left like a great tide. She looked at Coach Boomer, "I don't think they are going to like the changes. Although I think their parents are not going to like them any better." He nodded as the two walked back to her office to talk over the plans for the next school year.
At lunch Emma sat at an empty table and was about to take a bite of her sub when she felt herself surrounded and people suddenly sat all about her. She blinked as she realized that it was Will, Layla, Magenta, Zack, Ethan and Warren sitting about her. "What?" She asked in surprise. "Are you doing?"
"Sitting with our teammate," Magenta said with a smile. "Welcome to team thirteen." She smirked at the look that graced Emma's face. It reminded her of the look Warren had given them when they invaded his table that fateful time before Homecoming. Shock coloured her features and disbelief as she took in Magenta's words for the first time.
Warren hid a smile with his hand; turnabout was fair play and all that. He handed her the paper that had all their names listed on it. She read it and looked at him surprise in her eyes. "No one will pick on you again."
She smiled lightly. "I've had enough of being stepped on Warren. I'm not going to let it just happen and turn away from it. I was hoping they get board but no." she paused and took a deep breath and decided to embrace the new dynamic she was handed with and forge on with what she was going to say. "I talked with my Grandfather. He said it was now time to fight and I was to do just that. Sometimes a warrior needs to battle in order to walk in peace." She smiled lightly. Her words made Warren inwardly laugh he wondered if the others had really caught the unrealized double meaning of her words. "My Mother would be appalled that I'd fight but her way has gotten me nothing but pain and I'm tired of being hurt. I've had enough. No. More. Pain."
Warren nodded as he looked at the other members of his team and noted that Layla was looking at Emma oddly. The earth powered hero spoke before Warren could. "Your mother doesn't like fighting either?"
"No," Emma smiled slightly at the red headed girl; Layla wished she smile more often for it lit up her face completely. "She thinks that's what is at fault in this world." She sighed. "I think it's that people just stopped caring about each other that is the real issue but never mind that."
Ethan was about to say something else when Melissa and her friends walked by and one of Melissa's friends dumped her drink on Emma. Emma closed her eyes and stood up. "Why did you do that?" She asked her voice barely betrayed her fury. She was tired of just letting them do as they wished to her, now that she could stand up for herself, she did. Her eyes blazed with her inner-fire something that shocked Melissa when she saw it in the other girl's eyes a fire that reminded her as to why people did not mess with pryos.
"It was an accident." The other girl simpered then giggled. The rest of her pack joined in and Warren felt his blood boil. He knew that the others had joined himself and Emma in standing up. He did not know weather or not the idiot girls Melissa hung out with had noticed the change in Emma and her attitude. He did not think they had and it amused him to think that they were going to get to keep getting away with such behavior.
Emma who had had enough of being treated like this pulled her arm back, made her hand into a fist and punched the other girl in the nose. "Oh and that was an accident too." Emma cooed, and then she growled out. "Don't mess with me. I'm not going to be abused by you all anymore. Today begins a new day for me and how I feel about my life." She moved closer to the surprised bunch of popular girls who looked at her with fear and wild-eyed surprise, their easy prey was proving to be truly other wise. Emma's eyes blazed with her fury and Melissa was suddenly thankful for the small twist of fate that the other girl was not a pryo but a healer of them. For if Emma had the power of fire they all be crispy critters at that moment.
"Back off all of you," Layla placed a hand on Emma's shoulder. "Emma's our teammate and we will defend her if need be." That was when Melissa realized that she and her buddies where out-powered for even if Warren's friends were not high powered they knew how to work together and she and her friends had no clue how to do that, yet. She glared at them and found they were not one bit frightened of her and glared back. She took her friends and left quickly.
Emma sat down and sighed feeling a great weight lift off her shoulders. She felt lighter now that she knew she could stand up for herself, she also felt weak from the emotional toil that it had taken from her. "I feel so much better, other then I need to change my shirt. I feel great." She smiled lightly. "I know I don't have another shirt to wear."
"School store time." muttered Magenta. Emma and Magenta both made a face then laughed as they realized that they both felt the same about the cheesy t-shirts that the school store kept in stock. "Let's hope we can find something that's not too bad."
They all trooped out to the school store, a young woman looked up at them surprised to see them in there. "What are you guys looking for?" She asked.
Emma reached in to one of the racks frowning tying not to give up for the t-shirts were all a bit cheesy. Layla giggled as she found the perfect shirt for her new friend. She handed it to Emma.
Emma laughed. "Well it's not too bad I suppose." It was black with the words 'Fire Child' across the chest. It also had on the back the Sky High logo with the school motto printed under it.
"Fire child." Magenta smirked. "Yeah that works." She eyed Warren and he seemed just as amused as Emma was in the finding of that t-shirt.
"Now begins the process of team-friendship building." Layla stated softly to Will. They watched as Emma reappeared with her new shirt on and the old one in the canvas bags that Sky High's school store used. The students who ran it decided that plastic and paper where bad for the environment and went to canvas bags that the students could either in the store again or use them around school or even in the real world for they had nothing to mark them as from Sky High. The canvas came in two colours natural and black, Emma had chosen to buy a black one.