I retrieved my bags from the trunk of the taxi and walked up the front steps, not bothering to knock as I entered my cousin's house.

"Will? You home?" Silence was my answer.

Dumping my luggage in the living room floor and carefully setting my laptop on the coffee table, I took out the note that Will had left at my office.

Lex,
Got a problem and need your help. Come for the weekend and bring your stuff.
Details when you arrive.
If I'm not home, we're all at Layla's. Keep this on the DL.
NO PARENTS!
-Will Stronghold

I shook my head, pondering for the umpteenth time why he felt that he had to specify who he was by using his last name. It wasn't like I was constantly getting secret communiqués from guys named Will.

I grabbed my laptop case and slung my messenger bag over my chest before heading out the back door to cross the yard to Layla's house. I knocked, smiling politely when her mom answered.

"Alexis! It's so nice to see you," she said, giving me a friendly hug. "Come to join the big pow-wow?"

"Yes ma'am. I'm staying the weekend at Will's."

"I know you kids are probably going through withdrawals, what with you all being so busy with work and college," she said as she led the way to the stairs.

"It has definitely been a switch," I agreed. "See ya Mrs. Williams," I called, bounding up the stairs.

I rapped twice on Layla's bedroom door, leaning in to sniff the wisteria that tangled over the doorframe. Sometimes being able to grow plants anywhere was pretty cool.

Layla opened it and pulled me in, wrapping me in a hug with a squeal.

"Omigod, I missed you so much!" she gushed.

"I missed you too," I said. I gave a wave at everyone and crossed the room to sit next to Zack. "So what's up?" I asked Will, who sat next to Ethan on the floor looking at what appeared to be blueprints.

"Mr. Brilliant there misplaced his HiN transmitter," Magenta said, kicking Will lightly on the leg. "And now the mad scientists at the SSE have it."

Ethan chimed in. "We've got to get it back before anyone A.) finds out that Will lost it and B.) gets themselves turned into guinea pigs. Ow!" he said, rubbing his arm where Magenta punched him. "It's just a figure of speech!"

Another knock on Layla's door sounded, but I was too interested in the schematics of the SSE building to pay any attention.

"We'll need you to get through their surveillance and security so we'll have time to get the transmitter and any heroes that might be in there," Will said. "Their system is more advanced than anything I've seen, and with them being the SSE, I figure they're prepared for anything a hero can offer."

A hero's HiN—Hero In Need—transmitter was like a worldwide panic button. Any time a hero needed backup, they would press their button and the nearest available hero would swoop in and help. If Will's HiN had fallen into the hands of the Society for Superhero Experimentation, it was only a matter of time before things got really bad.

"Oh, wonderful," a deep voice mocked from behind me.

Speaking of really bad…

I turned around slowly, a look of contempt practically curling my lip. Too bad Warren Peace was so damn disagreeable. It was a total waste of good looks.

He stared down at me, one brow arched but otherwise showing no expression. His black hair was shorter than last time I saw him; not quite brushing his shoulders. He had long since traded in his red streaks, but he still wore the same style of clothing as when I first met him.

A vintage black Guns N Roses t-shirt stretched across his chest, the sleeves and neckline of a white t-shirt peeking out from beneath it. His dark jeans fit his waist but bagged in the legs, and a long chain led from his front pocket to his back pocket. He had tossed his leather coat over a chair in the corner, but his hands were still covered with black fingergloves.

"1986 called. They want their gloves back," I said, using the line my brother had tossed at me every time I wore my fingergloves. I was glad I had to do laundry and was simply wearing a t-shirt and jeans. Our tastes had always been similar, and it tweaked me that he liked the same things I did.

"Cute," he said, though his tone implied the opposite. He rubbed his fingertips in the telltale sign that he was annoyed.

First blood, I thought with a secret smile.

-

We stayed at Layla's long into the night, planning. In a little more than 24 hours, we would be breaking about 50,000 laws, including hacking, breaking and entering, theft, and destruction of private property.

Needless to say, everyone was a bit edgy.

"Zack, stop glowing!" Layla demanded, shielding her eyes against the vibrant green light.

"I can't," he said helplessly. "I glow when I'm nervous, and the more we talk about this, the more I am fuh-reakin'!"

"Relax," Will said. "It isn't gonna be that bad. Right?" he asked, looking to me for confirmation.

How the hell should I know? I thought, but I nodded.

"Right. I've totally got you covered," I said, offering Zack a smile.

"Ok," Ethan said, drawing everyone's attention back to the blueprints. We all sat in a circle in the middle of Layla's floor.

"We're going to set up shop here," he said, pointing to a cluster of trees. "From there, Lex is going to take out—"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa…She's not going with us," Warren said.

A muscle beneath my eye ticked, but before I could respond, Magenta lit into him.

"Seriously flameboy, you need to get over your ego. Just because Alexis is a squib—no offense, Lex--doesn't mean she isn't a valuable part of what we're doing."

"I never said she wasn't," Warren said, surprising me. "But the fact is that she's just a normal girl with no pow—"

"What, so just 'cause she's a girl she can't go? Girls without superpowers can't handle themselves?" Layla demanded.

"Not in situations like this," Warren insisted.

Will gave a soft groan and Zack shook his head as Layla stared open mouthed at Warren. You would think after 5 years he would know what buttons to avoid pushing. The fun-loving tree-hugger could only bend so far on certain subjects, and she had just reached her snapping point on the subject of feminine prowess. Ethan scooted a few inches to the side as subtly as possible. Magenta and I just watched. Warren was about to be verbally flayed alive.

"That is the most chauvinistic, priggish, arrogant thing I have ever heard tumble from your mouth," Layla said, standing. "And that's saying something."

Warren watched her, knowing that he was in for a speech. I had to give him credit though. If anyone else had been standing over him yelling, he would likely have torched something. But everyone could stand when Layla scolded them. It didn't happen very often, so usually we just let it slide.

She planted her hands on her hips and gave him a withering glare. The ivy that had been clinging to her walls slowly withdrew and returned to the main potted plant.

"Can you hack into an elaborate, highly secured computer system and disengage surveillance and alarms? Hm? Nooo? Well Lex can. Hero or not—man or woman—Lex is a very, very important key player in this operation, so you just need to shut your cakehole."

My eyebrows rose as Layla sat down with a huff, but what surprised me most was the smile that crept across Warren's face when she looked away. It was quick; a flash of white teeth amidst his dark coloring, but it was there nonetheless.

My own lips curved in response, just as he flicked his eyes my way. I looked away quickly, but not before I noted the way his features softened when he smiled.

Damn.

For the first time in years, Warren Peace had slipped past my defenses.

-

Sky High Beginning of Summer Dance
End of Sophomore year

"Are you sure it's ok that I come to this?" I asked Layla as we stepped off the Sky High bus. "I'm not a student here."

"It's fine. Your parents were students, so it's not like you're an outsider. You just…"

"Don't have any powers," I finished for her. "Yeah, I noticed," I said, tugging the strap of my dress back onto my shoulder.

As a rule, dresses weren't my thing but if I had to wear one, Aunt Josie had picked the perfect one for me. It was black and purple plaid, with black lace covering the bodice. It had wide tank-top style straps and a long skirt that lightly brushed the ground as I walked. The greatest thing about it was that I could wear my Converse high tops underneath and nobody would know. At 5' 8", I tend to stick out when I wear heels.

"Come on," Layla said, leading me to the gym.

We met up with Will and the others by the punch bowl. It was easy enough. Just look for the gaggle of girls pouting for the next dance, and Will was sure to be there.

I knew Zack already, but it was the first time I had met Magenta and Ethan. We stood around talking for a while before I removed myself with the excuse of needing some air. In truth, I wanted to explore the halls of the legendary Sky High…a place I would never be welcome.

I walked along, humming softly, intrigued by the placards outside the classroom doors.

Mad Science Lab, Techno- and Telepathic Training Center, Hero Support…

This place was great. I rounded the corner and stopped, listening. Music? From ahead I saw a single beam of light slipping from under a door. There wasn't a sign on the door, so I approached it cautiously and pressed my ear to the surface, listening for sounds from within. I could hear a soft whooshing sound above the music—White Zombie's "More Human Than Human", I realized, smiling—and gently pushed the door open.

I snuck inside, hanging back partially hidden by a wheeled metal shelf. Obviously I had stumbled into a practice arena of sorts, because every few seconds a ball or stream of fire would shoot across the room and hit one of several targets. I had yet to see the one throwing them, but as the stereo switched to a different song, I heard heavy, long-but-lazy stride of footsteps coming closer to my hiding spot.

I inclined my head slightly, leaning against the shelf to get a peek at the mysterious pyro, but the shelf creaked and shifted. I had forgotten the wheels, and with a small squeak of surprise, I found myself in a heap on the floor. To make matters worse, I had startled whoever was practicing so I was immediately rolling out of the way of a well-aimed fireball.

"Whoa, easy!" I called, throwing my arms over my head. "Relax!"

"What the hell do you think you're doing in here?" The tall--and incredibly angry--boy demanded as he turned off the stereo. His eyes narrowed on me, raking over my form in assessment. "Get back to the dance, freshman," he said, slapping the power button on the CD player. Another heavy rock song blasted from the speakers as the boy returned throwing flames at random dummies.

"Why aren't you at the dance?" I yelled over the music. He looked at me for a moment as if wondering why I was still there and rubbed his fingertips.

"Didn't I tell you to leave?" he asked, sounding bored.

"Yeah.Well, no. Not really. You said 'leave freshman.' I'm not a freshman."

"Glad you cleared that up," he said. He flicked his forefinger and a mini-ball shot out, landing at my feet.

"I'm guessing you aren't on the welcoming committee," I said, scuffing my shoe on the scorch mark in front of me.

He shook his head, giving up and unplugging the cd player. He picked up a leather coat and tossed it over his arm before taking his cd player and making his way to the door.

"So why are you not at the dance?" I asked again. I walked over and opened the door for him, receiving a scowl for my efforts.

"I don't like people."

"Oh. You're friends with Will and Layla though aren't you? Warren, right? I recognize you from Will's yearbook from last year."

He gave a grunt of affirmation. I soldiered on. "I'm Alexis--Lex to most people. Will's cousin."

"Fascinating," he said, his voice void of emotion.

"Your power is pretty cool," I said, wondering why I was making idle chitchat. He was silent as we walked down the hall. I tried again, suddenly curious.

"Do you like going to school here?"

"Why the hell are you following me?" he asked, exasperated. He pointed back the way we had just come. "The dance is that way."

I opened my mouth to reply, but was interrupted by a loud male voice reverberating down the hall.

"Hothead!"

I flinched, but Warren just muttered a curse. He turned, tilting his head to the side and pasting a look of insolence on his face.

"You and your little girlfriend here wouldn't be working on biology, would you?" he asked rudely. "You know the rules. Students aren't allowed to leave the gym during dances."

He looked at me. "Who're you? No, wait. I know you. You're the Lewis kid," he said, pointing at me. "Aquarius and Archangel's daughter."

"Yeah, though sometimes they're known as Stan and Genie," I said with a small smile. Don't ask. Please don't ask...

"So what's your power?"

Shit.

"Well, it's, um, kinda complicated to explain," I hedged. I flicked a glance at Warren Peace, who was paying attention to me for the first time since we left the practice room.

Naturally.

"I, uh, I haven't really pinned one down yet."

Boomer's brow furrowed and he looked at me confusedly. "What, so you're a squib?"

"I don't know," I said quietly, silently lamenting about how much this sucked. "I just don't have any powers yet."

The coach gave a scoff of dismissal and looked back at Warren. "Just take it back to the gym, huh fireball?" he said before brushing past us and going his own way.

I straightened my shoulders and cleared my throat. "Look, I better get back to the dance," I said, not quite meeting Warren's eyes. "Later."

I left, nearly running into a couple of students as I rounded the corner.

"Couldn't help but overhear," a beautiful Barbie-esq girl said, grinning maliciously. "A real live squib here in our midst."

"Yeah, I thought Ron was the only one," a preppy blond boy said. "What a small world."

"Your parents must be SO proud," Barbie said.

My fingers curled to fists, and I braced myself as I prepared to pop Barbie right in her perfect face. Before I could swing, however, a hand clamped onto my wrist and a body stepped between us.

"Problem, Ice-Bitch?" Warren asked.

The boy snickered, sobering quickly when both Warren and the blond girl pinned him with matching glares.

"Beat it," Warren said dangerously, igniting the fingertips of his free hand. The boy scampered off, but the girl remained.

"Well, well," she said, crossing her arms. "Warren Peace and a squib? How the mighty have fallen. Not so fantastic now, are we Peace?"

Warren shrugged, unconcerned. "Maybe not. But remember Leah: regardless of how shitty I am, I still dumped you."

He gave her a frigid smile and walked off, pulling me helplessly along behind him. He kicked the gym door open and made his way over to Layla, Will, and the others.

"I thought you were leaving," I said as I stumbled to keep up with his long strides.

He made a sound that was somewhere between a sigh and a groan. "I guess not."