Hi! I'm back! I actually decided I would not make this story a one-shot, but maybe a three or four shot. Yay! I'm a little sad about Imprisoned being over, but that just means I can move on to more exciting stories, right? Anyways, I guess you could call this a prequel to Imprisoned, kind of. I mentioned Experion and Skylar playing in the Lava Pits of Kellnar, and that gave me an idea. I had always wondered what Skylar's life was like before she lost her powers, so I decided to write this story! I refer to them by the nicknames they gave each other in The Friend of my Friend is my Enemy, Expi and Sky. I hope you like this. It'll be cute! Now, I would like to respond to reviews of Imprisoned I didn't get to in my last chapter.
Writer207: Yeah, I wouldn't have ended my story without the final attack, and I'm so glad you liked my chapter! I, too, loved the new episode, and I thought the ambulance driver was both annoying and funny, a good combination in a comic relief character. Thanks for reviewing!
barbara-loveskoliver000: I'm glad you loved the chapter, and I hope you aren't too sad about the stories end. I promise the rest of my stories will be even better!
Oh! I don't own Mighty Med, Hey, Juliet: by LMNT (I loved the playful tune, and certain lyrics, like 'I think you're fine, you really blow my mind' so cute!) or Daylight: by Maroon 5 (The lyrics about one more day together made me wonder when Experion became evil, and when his last good day was.) Here's the story!
Nobody's POV:
"Expi! Catch up!" whined a very excited thirteen year old.
"I'm trying!" cried a frustrated Experion, "My boots keep getting stuck in the lava!"
"But jumping in lava is so much fun!" cried Skylar, jumping into a lava puddle and splashing Expi.
"Ewww…" whimpered Expi in his high pitched childish voice. We had, after all, only hatched out of our pods a few weeks ago.
"Come on!" begged the hyperactive teen, "Let's go climb the trees in the pod forest, or go build a lava man, or throw ash-balls!" Sky loved winter. All the shades of red and...more red. Either way, she was tired of school and having to stand in the corner(oven.) She and Expi chatted so much during class, the teacher threatened to move our desks into the corner! Oh, well. If she did, at least we would be together. We were best friends, and inseparable.
"It's so cold!" whined Expi, "It's only, like, three thousand fifty degrees! We should go inside!"
"Aww," said Sky, sadly, "Just one more race through the Lava Pits of Kellnar, pleeeeeeease!"
Expi sighed. He knew he couldn't let Sky down. She was his best friend! We took off running, kicking up ash and lava rocks. As we ran, we passed three Sky look-alikes. Of course, Expi didn't mix up the real Sky from the strangers. They were best friends and could tell each other apart from all their look-alikes. Sky had stopped to talk to the three girls, who pretended to ignore Sky. Sky's face fell as she realized what they were doing. She took off, this time not for pleasure. I raced to catch up with her.
"You look really upset. What's wrong?" Expi asked, but he already knew what'd happened. It happened frequently enough. Not every Calderan got important superpowers, in fact, very few, and those who were destined to work at Mighty Med were often rude and jealous, mostly towards those with powers. The superheroes were often widely celebrated once they could start saving the world, but until then, we were mostly ridiculed. That was how we met. It was incredibly rare for two superheroes to hatch at all, let alone at the same time. She was the first person Expi saw after hatching, and he was hers. They had become fast friends immediately. Now, they were just counting down the days until hero training.
"Y-you know, the usual." sniffled Skylar. We were each others only friends. No other superheroes in our region had hatched yet, and nobody understood us.
"You shouldn't feel bad." Expi said, "One day we will be saving the world, and they'll be stuck at Mighty Med, giving sponge-baths and delivering food!" Sky laughed, picturing Expi's image.
"I know." said Skylar, "But it still hurts."
"Come on." said Expi, "Let's go home."
Expi's POV:
We rushed into a house carved out of the side of a volcano. I was Sky's neighbor, but I enjoyed hanging around at her house, because of Emily. Emily was Sky's assigned caretaker. Every hatchling was assigned a caregiver, until they were sixteen and could care for themselves. My caregiver was Aiee-yikie-yikie-whaa. She was mean. She was one of the Calderans who didn't get good powers, so she was stuck being a nanny. Emily was also not destined to be a hero, but she actually liked Sky. Emily was smarter. She accepted that she wasn't a hero, and that she could either go on being unhappy, or make the most of her life, and have fun with me and Sky. Luckily, she chose the latter.
"You really should wear coats out there. It's cold!" Emily had always been nervous and protective of the two of us. Sky left to use the bathroom, and Emily leaned towards me, and whispered, "Was anyone mean to you two? Skylar looked a little upset." Of course! Emily always knew how we felt, no matter how hard we tried to hide it. Whenever we went out with her, if she saw anyone try to pick on us, she would stop them immediately. She was crazy about making us feel equal.
"Yeah." I said. After I saw Emily's angry and horrified face, I quickly added, "But they were just a few girls. We were able to handle them."
"Well," said Emily, "You won't have to put up with them much longer. The superhero school just called. They want you and Skylar there tomorrow."
"Why tomorrow?" I asked. It was pretty short notice.
"Because," said Emily, "The Mighty Med staff are coming tomorrow, to pick up and train their future doctors and nurses."
Mighty Med. I had only visited the mysterious place once, when my leg broke while I was running through the Lava Pits. I didn't remember much, even though it had only happened about a year ago. But, in my defense, I had only hatched recently, and had an incredibly bad memory. What I did remember, though, was white everywhere, except for a round window with the Mighty Med logo of a big red M on it. I remembered pain in my leg, and novocain to numb the pain. I remembered a bearded man who kept saying 'I Love Bridges!' It was all pretty scary at the time, but now I wondered about the superhero hospital. I would probably learn about it in superhero training, since many superheroes visited there frequently.
Sky got back from the bathroom, and we gave her the news. "Finally!" cried Sky, "I'm so ready to learn how to be a hero! I can't even use my flight! I keep flying into trees!"
"That's because you haven't learned how to control your powers." said Emily, patiently.
"But I will." said Sky, excitedly. "I bet I'll be the best hero ever!"
"No, me!" I cried.
"No, me!"
"No, me!"
Emily just smiled at our bickering. I'll miss them, she thought as she unloaded the dishwasher. When they come back from superhero school, they won't be two squabbling kids. They'll be adults, ready to save the world. Emily hoped they wouldn't become one of those solitary, I-work-alone heroes. It was rumored those heroes rarely visited their family/caretakers. Oh, well. she thought, I can't think about myself. This is for Skylar and Experion. They'll be happy saving the world, and living up to their destinies.
Nighttime
Skylar's POV:
I was laying in bed, thinking of superhero school. Of course, it's the darkest time of night when you start thinking about your worries. I was going over everything that could go wrong. Would they say I didn't have potential? Would they separate me from Expi? Would I never see my home, or Emily, again?
I heard a knock at the door. "Come in." I whispered. In walked Emily.
"I figured you'd still be up." said Emily, "What's on your mind?"
And then it all spilled out. I told her about how I was happy and sad and confused and excited and nervous all at the same time. I told her my fears and hopes. I told her that I would miss so much, so how could I leave? I told her I was thinking of backing out, because of my fears. Heroes didn't have fears.
"Now, you listen to me." said Emily, "I didn't raise you to be a quitter. Now, regardless of what happens to me, you must become a hero. We all have roles to play in this universe. (She was careful to say universe, not world, since Skylar would be on earth for much of her time.) Mine is of a nanny, and yours is of a hero. You wouldn't be happy as a doctor or nanny, and I wouldn't be happy not spending every second of every day with children. I know you can do this. If it's hard at first, guess what?! You'll overcome your obstacles! Do you think Tecton and Dark Warrior became who they are overnight? No! It took many months of training to become the adored superheroes they are today. One day, I will be caring for a new Calderan hatchling and I'll say, guess what! I was once the caregiver to the famous Skylar Storm! And then I'll show them every comic you're ever in, because I swear, I will own them all! What I'm trying to say is, one day, when you're older, you will be an amazing hero, and the whole universe will look up to you and be proud."
"Wow." I said, "The weight of the universe is quite a load."
"And I'll be there to help you carry it whenever you need me." said Emily. As she was heading out the door, she turned around and said, "You don't really think heroes have no fear, do you? My best friend was a hero, and we never let the title of hero get in the way of our friendship. She could tell me anything! And when she became an official hero, she would always tell me how scared she would be before a fight, but how the rush of adrenaline during the fight would always calm her nerves. You are still human, superpowered or not, and fear will always be there. What is important is overcoming your fears, and if anyone can do that, I know it'll be you."
"I never thought about why you were never hostile with me." I said, softly.
"Well," said Emily, "I had to tell you one day or another. Now goodnight my little superhero. Get some sleep. Tomorrow will be a long day."
And with Emily's loving speech in my head, I fell fast asleep.
What did you think? I thought this was an original idea, and I have always wondered how Skylar lived on Caldera. Speaking of which, I based Emily off my own mom, and Sky off of how I would feel in this situation. I thought this was so cute, and I'm excited to write the next chapter! Of course, now that this isn't a one-shot, I'll need to alter my writing plan, but this story is worth it. Until next time, Bye!