Author's Note: Another late update! All I can do is thank you profusely for putting up with me. I hope you enjoy this!

Disclaimer: I don't own Sky High, or any of its canon characters

Chapter Ten- I love you, Adam Mackenzie.

There was a heatwave in Maxville and predictably, our air conditioner broke down. So my parents and I went to Anna and Warren's, despite Dad's complaints.

"The repairman said he'll be there first thing tomorrow," he grumbled.

"That's what he said yesterday. And the day before that," Mom told him, moving her chair closer to the AC. Anna came in with a tray of cold lemonade.

"Thank you, sweetheart," Mom said, taking a glass. "Is Warren coming to join us?"

"He's busy interviewing people to help out in the Paper Lantern."

"Why can't he hire me?" I asked. The idea of having extra money sounded great.

"Sorry Sis. But we need someone full-time. " Anna said, taking a seat nearby. Then she turned to Dad. "How've you been?"

Dad looked up. "Could be better."

For the last few weeks my father had been making calls, writing letters and attending protest meetings for Barron Battle's re-incarceration. But nothing really happened. I saw how much that hurt him, and things just went downhill from there.

"Dad, I know things look bad-"

"Look bad? Anna, open your eyes. They are bad. Brenner's set something terrible loose and now this city will never be the same."

"But he can't hurt us. Not anymore. He's powerless."

"He may have been neutralized, but he's far from powerless. I don't care what those doctors say. That man is still sick. Nothing will change that. And now he's out, walking on our streets-"

"Charles, not in front of Evie." Mom said softly.

Dad glanced at me, looking sorry. I stared down at my drink, then stood up. "I'm going for a walk."

"It's over a hundred degrees out!" Anna protested.

"If I start to melt I'll come right back inside."

I left the apartment and went downstairs. Inside the Paper Lantern the air was sizzling. The front door was wide open to let the less warm air (and the customers) in.

"So I'll see you tomorrow at eleven," I heard Warren say as I was passing through.

I turned around. Warren was shaking hands with an asian boy who was probably a year or two older than me. I turned back and immediately made a bee line for the door, but Warren caught sight of me.

"Evelyn? Come here for a minute."

I hesitated, half debating whether or not to pretend I hadn't heard him. But I knew better than that, and so did he. We hadn't spoken since he saw me at the release hearing. Sighing, I turned around and passed the older boy as he made he made his way out. He gave me a half curious glance as he made his way out, and I found myself wishing we were trading places.

"How've you been?" Warren asked, picking up a tray and stacking some used plates onto it.

"Fine," was all I said. I wasn't looking at him, but I could feel him staring.

"So, are you going to tell me what you were doing at the hearing?"

"I'm sorry," I blurted out. "I didn't mean to go. I was just worried and before I knew it, I was there."

I finally looked up at him. He didn't look mad. He didn't look anything. I couldn't tell if he was upset or not.

"Did you tell Anna?" I asked after a while.

"Didn't see the point."

I ran my finger along the cloth edge of the nearest table. "Look, I know I'm just a kid and you probably think I don't know much about anything. But... your dad's been neutralized. And he looked so tired of everything. Maybe he has changed."

Warren finished stacking the dishes on the tray and picked it up. "I hope you're right."

Before he turned to go he added, "Promise me something, Evelyn."

"What?"

"That you'll keep out of places you don't belong."

"I'll try."

That made Warren smile. "You're Anna's sister all right," he said, taking the tray into the kitchen.

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"Find your anchor. It's what keeps you in control of your powers. It's what you focus on. Everything else must disappear. There should only be you and your anchor."

Mr. Fitzsimmons was standing before Sally-the-Dragon. He had a bucket of raw meat in his hands. The rest of the class immediately ran to the back of the room, including me. Mr. Fitzsimmons stood his ground though.

"Hi Sally," he said softly with a smile.

Sally-the-dragon was growling and licking her teeth. She only had eyes for that bucket.

Mr. Fitzsimmons took a step back as Sally stalked forward. "Can you hear me? Sally, give me a sign that you can understand."

Sally screeched loudly. Then growing impatient, she went for him.

"Sally stop!"

And she did. But it wasn't Mr. Fitzsimmons who had said it.

Hank had come forward, looking terrified.

"Hank, are you crazy? Get back here!" Kate hissed at him.

"It's okay," Fitzsimmons said calmly. "Hank, would you like to hold this for a second?"

Before Hank knew it, he was holding the bucket of meat. Sally huffed out a short burst of fire that almost singed him, but even though he looked terrified, Hank didn't move.

"Sally? It's me, Hank. You... you remember me don't you? We're friends. We have lunch together. You hold my bag for me when I time-travel."

Sally didn't seem to remember him. She kept glancing at the bucket then back at Hank like he some kind of annoying buzzing insect. Then, she reared up.

"Please don't kill me!" Hank yelled, shutting his eyes and still clutching that stupid bucket.

Sally descended on him. She yanked the bucket out of his hands with her teeth. The meat fell to the floor with a sickening splat. Sally immediately snapped it up in two seconds. Then she turned to Hank, looking hungrier than ever.

Hank opened one eye. Sally was standing directly over him, growling. But she didn't touch him.

"You did it," Mr. F said. He was now sitting at his desk, eating a pack of jelly beans. "Good job, Sally."

Sally suddenly changed back. She stumbled, but for once managed to keep standing.

"I did it," she whispered, beginning to smile. "I can't believe it."

Hank smiled too, trembling a little.

"That was great!" Mr. Fitzsimmons said. "Okay, up next... Evelyn?"

My heart skipped, like it usually did when the teacher called my name. I stepped forward, trying not to feel nervous.

"Okay, now this exercise is really simple. I want you to choose someone from class, teleport over to them, then teleport with them to these places," he said, handing me a list. "They're pretty easy to spot. There will be blue cards for you to collect at each destination. Think of it as a search and rescue. You have twenty minutes."

I automatically glanced at Adam, who was in our class that day. Before I could even think, I disappeared-

- and reappeared about two inches from his face. I wanted to die.

"Sorry," I mumbled and took a step back, trying to ignore the couple of kids who laughed.

"You're doing great," Mr. Fitzsimmons said.

I glanced at the list. "First stop, Italy."

Adam took my hand and smiled. "Let's go."

His hand felt warm in mine. Suddenly I didn't feel nervous anymore. I closed my eyes and we vanished-

- the sunlight hit my face, half blinding me. I could smell flowers from somewhere. I shielded my eyes, and found myself blinking at the Tower of Pisa.

"I knew you could do it!" Adam said, gazing around. "Now let's find that blue card."

It was pretty easy to spot. A guard was wearing it on his belt right by the entrance that led to the tower. He seemed to recognize me as soon as he spotted us and handed me the card without a word. Within seconds, we were off to the next place.

It was unbelievable. I teleported to every location perfectly on the first try- the Sydney Opera House in Australia; the Osaka Museum of History in Japan; the Parthenon in Greece and finally, the Hollywood sign in California. And all with Adam right beside me.

"Awesome work, Evelyn! You've completed the exercise in under ten minutes. That's got to be the best teleportation work I've ever seen," Mr. Fitzsimmons said when we materialized back in class.

"I'm not surprised," Adam said, with a final squeeze of my hand before letting go.

I couldn't help but beam at him. For a few shining moments I'd completely mastered my powers. And I knew it was all because of Adam. He gave me confidence and helped me to focus and control myself. He was my anchor.

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"I went to Australia today."

"What is it, your fourth time now?"

"Yep. But this time, I went there on purpose. It was part of an exercise. Which I totally aced."

"Wow, congrats!" I heard a couple of blows and some glass breaking on the other end of the phone line.

"Is this a good time?" I asked doubtfully.

"Sure hon. I'm just taking care of a little something."

I heard a man cry out in pain.

"Super villain?" I guessed.

"Petty thief," she muttered tensely. "Stay down!"

There were a few more blows. Then I heard her sigh.

"Just once, I'd like them to listen. So, tell me about the exercise."

I told her all about the different places I teleported to with Adam. I was halfway through, when Anna interrupted me.

"Tell you what. Now that I've taken care of the bad guy, why don't we meet up?"

"Where are you?"

"On the corner of 4th and Stigg, but-"

The next second, I was staring at the stunned face of my sister.

"Hey, I did it again!" I said.

We got ice cream at a nearby parlor, then took a walk through the city park.

"I don't think I could have done so well without Adam," I was telling her. "He makes me feel... well, like I can do anything."

"You really like him, don't you?" Anna asked with a knowing smile.

I shrugged, my face warming up. I focussed on my ice cream. "I don't know. I guess."

"You should ask him out."

I stopped in my tracks. "I can't do that!"

"Why not?"

"Because! Girls don't ask boys out."

"Oh really? Are you sure that's the only reason?"

"What if he says no?" I asked doubtfully.

"What if he says yes?" she pointed out.

I sighed. "I'll think about it."

We walked around the park then made our way back to Anna's place, still talking about school and Adam. We walked through the Paper Lantern, saying hi to Mrs. Soong and the new boy that Warren hired. Then we went upstairs and into the apartment.

Anna stopped halfway through the door. Her purse fell to the ground.

"What's up?" I pushed past her, and soon saw that we weren't alone. Warren was there. Sitting across from him, was a man with black hair and equally black empty-looking eyes. My first thought was that he was a friend of Warren's, except that Warren didn't look too happy about the fact that he was there.

"Evan?" Anna whispered.

The man stood up. His empty expression didn't change. "Hello, Anna." He glanced down at me. "This your daughter?"

"My sister," she said, and her voice sounded strange. It was like she was talking in her sleep.

"Right. Of course."

He trailed off. They were all being so weird. Warren was staring at Anna sadly. Anna wouldn't take her eyes off of this Evan guy. It was kind of creeping me out.

"Is everything okay?" I said after a second.

Anna flinched a little, like she'd forgotten I was there. "Of course. Look," she said, taking her purse off the floor and hastily pulling out a ten dollar bill. "Why don't you take a cab home? I'll give you a call later."

"But I can teleport-"

"Don't you dare," she said immediately. "You're not supposed to be doing that out of school anyway. Don't make it a habit. Now go on."

"But-" I hesitated.

"For goodness' sake, just listen to me for once, Evie!"

There was a quiet gasp. I glanced at the man whose expression changed for the first time since we came in. He looked...hurt, like someone had just given him some bad news.

Anna's shoulders sagged. Something shifted in the already weird atmosphere. I decided not to stick around any longer. I took the money and headed out of the door, not bothering with goodbyes.

Something was definitely not right back there. I wanted to know what was going on, why Anna had acted like that when she saw that guy. Part of me wanted to ask her what it was all about. But I knew she'd never tell me. I was just her kid sister, and I knew from experience that she almost never told me the really important things.

But I had to know.

I stopped halfway down the street. Swallowing a little, I ducked into a nearby alley. I couldn't afford any distractions- I was nervous as it was. Closing my eyes, I tried to picture the guest bedroom I had stayed in at their apartment. But it was hard to concentrate.

I imagined Adam's voice in my head: You can do this.

I felt the familiar pull-

-and then I could hear voices for real. Namely Warren's.

"- have to believe we tried everything in our power to stop this."

I opened my eyes. I had done it. I was in the guest room. As quietly as I could, I put my ear to the door, ignoring the twinges of guilt that settled in my stomach.

"He had no right getting out. Not ever. How'd this happen?" Evan had said it.

"Brenner. He started this initiative years ago. I heard it was going to be controversial, but I don't think anyone dreamed it'd turn into this."

"So what now? Is he going to just walk around free?" Evan sounded bitter and angry, and I automatically wondered who he'd lost.

"Evan, I... I tried everything. I don't know what else to do." Warren's voice was tired, apologetic.

"Don't you?" there was a flat tone in Evan's words.

"What are you implying?" It was Anna.

"He's a dangerous psychopath, who'll be up to his old tricks sooner rather than later. Are you two just going to sit here and wait until he starts racking up a body count?"

"You don't know that, you don't know what he's going to do. He's been neutralized-"

"Don't start spouting that bull at me, Anna!"

"Look Evan, I understand that you're angry," Warren interjected, obviously trying to cool things down. "But we have to be rational about this. Now I've been keeping an eye on him. Keeping regular tabs on where he goes, especially after dark. And there's been nothing suspicious so far. I'm not saying that he's on the up and up," he added when Evan started to interrupt, "But there's been nothing that's happened to convince me that we should start worrying."

"Were you that confident the last time he was out?" Evan asked, so softly I almost didn't hear him.

There was a long silence. "Evan, that's not fair," I heard my sister say at last.

"I'll tell you what's not fair," Evan said in a choked voice. "That this piece of garbage is enjoying life as a free man, when he's taken so many lives. That he can wake up every morning and feel the sun on his face, while my sister is dead!"

I heard a sob. Anna was crying.

"I don't like this anymore than you do Evan," Warren said in a low voice. "But whatever happens, whatever you think you might want to do about this... it's not going to bring Evelyn back."

I stared blankly at the paint on the wall, not sure I'd heard right. But I had. Evan's sister was called Evelyn too. Who was this guy?

"You know this isn't right," Evan said. "You know what needs to be done."

"What do you want?" Warren asked.

"Honestly? I want that scumbag rotting in a pine box six feet under. But I'll settle for re-incarceration. My mother, she was sick for a long time, and... she passed away last month."

"Evan, I'm so sorry," Anna said.

"I'm sorry," Warren said quietly.

"When she heard that Barron was getting out, she made me promise that I'd come back here and fix things. It was her dying wish. One way or another, that monster needs to be taken off the street."

"What are you trying to say, Evan?" Warren asked.

"I'm saying that I'm not leaving Maxville until Evie gets the justice she deserves. But I can't do it alone."

"Evan, we can't-"

"You know that Barron Battle isn't just going to fade quietly into the night. I know he's your father, Warren. But you know where he belongs. You owe me that much. You both do."

There was another long silence. Then Warren spoke and his voice made me feel cold all over.

"Barron Battle's not my father. He hasn't been a father in a long time."

"So... you'll help me? Whatever it takes?"

I took a step back from the door. I didn't know why, but suddenly I decided that I didn't want to hear their answer. I wanted to go home-

The familiar yellow walls of my room suddenly appeared. I sank down in my bed and wondered about the future.

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"Whoo! Look guys- I'm a superhero!"

I couldn't help but laugh along with the rest of the class. Mr. Fitzsimmons was zooming over our heads. He wasn't flying, exactly. Marilee was controlling the blood in his body, and had gotten really good at it. It hadn't gone too well the first couple of times though:

"Now Marilee, remember- you have to be aware of my circulatory system at all times. Keep my blood traveling, and flow with it. Or I'll, you know, die."

Mr. F. ended up going to the hospital once or twice and Marilee swore repeatedly she'd never use her powers again.

But now here she was, giving our teacher the flight of his life. She looked so happy as she landed him gently on his feet again.

"That was so much fun! Ten out of ten, easily!" Fitzsimmons announced, bouncing on his heels.

Marilee grinned, blushing a little.

"Right, there's just one more little exercise I have for you."

"Okay, sure."

"First I want you to close your eyes."

As Marilee did so, Mr. F went outside the classroom for a second and came back with a medium sized box covered with a piece of cloth. I could hear movement inside. He pulled off the cloth. My heart sank, and I gave Marilee a worried glance. It wasn't a box at all. It was a cage. And there was a little puppy inside.

"Okay, open your eyes."

Marilee did. Her smile vanished and she went as white as a sheet.

"Now Marilee-" Mr. F. began.

"No! Please..." she whispered, her eyes welling up.

I exchanged glances with my friends. I knew they were all thinking the same thing I was. When Marilee powered up for the first time, she'd accidentally killed her puppy, Snuffles. It was really traumatic for her. How could Fitzsimmons do this?

"I think you're ready to try," Fitzsimmons said.

"No I'm not. And I won't do it, period. You can't make me!"

I tended to disagree. But I knew where she was coming from. I didn't think it was fair to put her on the spot, especially in front of people. It was too close to home. It was like my first teleport- I still got queasy whenever I passed that pizzeria.

"I won't make you do anything," Fitzsimmons said patiently. "But you're never going to move forward until you face this. And I'm not just talking about graduating."

Anger and pain flashed across Marilee's face and she looked about ready to burst into tears.

But something happened then. Adam came forward and knelt in front of the cage.

"He's really cute," he commented, stroking his head through the cage bars. "What's his name?"

"He doesn't have one yet," Fitzsimmons said.

"That's too bad," Adam said. He glanced up at Marilee. "Want to pet him?"

Marilee shook her head firmly.

"It's okay. He's really friendly."

Reluctantly, Marilee took a step forward. Then she took another. Soon, she was stooping down before the cage, petting the puppy carefully.

"Is it all right to open the cage, Mr. F?"

"Sure!"

So Adam did. The puppy immediately came bounding out, wagging its little tail frantically. There were a couple of 'Aww's' from the class and the puppy barked, excited at all the attention.

"Why don't you pick him up?" Adam suggested.

Marilee bent down, but then Adam said, "I meant the way you picked up Mr. F."

"I can't!"

"If you start getting in trouble or hurt the puppy in any way, I'll stop you immediately. It'll be okay," Fitzsimmons said.

Marilee seemed frozen for the longest time. Then finally, a red film of blood came over her eyes. The puppy was slowly lifted into the air, a little shakily. He didn't seem to mind, though. He kept wagging his tail.

"Keep going. You're doing great," Fitzsimmons said.

There were a couple of moments where the puppy yelped and Marilee trembled. But she continued on until the animal finally landed in her arms.

"You did it," Fitzsimmons said, and we clapped. We all knew how big of a deal it was for her.

"How do you feel?" Mr. F asked.

Marilee was staring at the puppy, who began to lick her face. "I don't know."

"Do you want to keep him?" he asked.

Marilee's eyes widened. "Can I? I mean, do you think... he'll be okay with me?"

"I know he will," Fitzsimmons said.

Marilee cuddled her new puppy... who immediately peed on her shirt.

"Oh, gross," Scott said, making a face.

But Marilee didn't seem to care. She nuzzled her new pet. "I'm going to call you Mr. Piddles."

Adam and I laughed. Our eyes met and he winked at me.

I'd been hanging out with Adam more and more lately since the teleportation exercise. We'd meet up in the hallways sometimes before class just to say hi. One time, I worked up the nerve to sit with him and his friends at lunch. He was really nice about it. We chatted about what the cafeteria had served- chicken fajitas and whether or not they used real chicken. It was one of the best moments of my life.

I thought about Anna's advice and considered asking Adam to go see a movie or something. I played the scenario over and over in my head, trying not to have it end with Adam laughing in my face and me jumping off the edge of the school to escape the humiliation. I wasn't good at this visualization stuff at all.

After a couple of hours of mental torture I decided to just go for it. I waited until his friends Helen and Fern said goodbye before heading to the library, then walked up to him.

"Hi Adam," I said, wondering why my voice decided to get so squeaky all of a sudden.

"Oh hey Evie," Adam said. "Good class today with Mr. F, huh?"

"Yeah. It was really... good." Real smooth, I thought sickeningly. Where the heck did my brain go?

"So what's up?"

Just ask him already! "Uh... well, there's this- this movie, and I wanted to know if-"

"For the last time Scott, Mr. Piddles is just a puppy! He didn't mean it."

I turned around furiously to see Scott and Marilee arguing their way towards us. Scott's shirt was curiously damp in the front.

"Maybe you don't mind reeking of animal pee all day, but I do!" Scott retorted. "Just keep that mutt away from me!"

He stormed past us. Marilee looked down at the cage, with pity in her eyes.

"Don't you listen to him, Mr. Piddles. You didn't do anything wrong."

"He's only a few weeks old," Adam said. "He'll figure it out eventually."

Mr. Piddles didn't seem to care either way. He was laying on his belly, and I was almost sure his tail hadn't stopped wagging since we first saw him.

"Thing is, I don't have the slightest idea how to housebreak a pet. If he starts peeing all over the place, Dad'll have a fit."

"It's totally easy," Adam began, then glanced at me. "Sorry Evie. You were saying something about a movie?"

"Uh... it's not important," I said, my face burning. "I have to go anyway. See you guys later." I couldn't get out of there fast enough.

"See you Evie," he said after me.

Okay, so that didn't go as well as I hoped. But that was okay. As I left Adam giving Marilee advice on how to potty train her pet, I smiled to myself, pretty sold on the idea that this was the boy I was going to marry one day.