Third chapter whoo.
Ya know. I forgot to put in any kind of disclaimer. So here it is.
I don't own Sky High.
/Enddisclaimer.
ANYWAY; Time to respond to reviews; Alot of people seemed to like the ninja button. I'm happy my fooling around chapter was a success. Lol.
Kshrimp; Thanks! I'll try. Have a hot fudge sundae. :D
IceAngel95; Thank you! I'm glad you like it. Have a hot fudge sundae. :D
Anonymous x3; Enjoy the hot fudge sundae! And yes, it was weird wasn't it? But all weirdness should be explained in due time. :D
Moo Moo Cow The Writer; Lol. While you like Layla trying to be his friend, Jaden hates it. But that should change soon. Thanks for your review! Enjoy the sundae. :D
Kelly; You have the same name as me! :D I hope this quick update cuts down on your waiting time. Have a sundae.
xxNewMoon29xx; Lol. Even if you can't eat the virtual cookies, you can keep them forever! Enjoy your virtual sundae. :D
Coloring books; Aww. But I love making people squirm with my cliffhangers. So I tried making this one a non cliffie just for you. :D Enjoy the sundae.
EDIT: I just got a review that just simply said 'UPDATE.' I laughed so hard, I stayed up late to finish this. Christmas Break is coming soon for me, so hopefully there will be more chapters in the near future.
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Damn it.
Voices.
Again.
Disturbing his sleep.
Again.
Who was mumbling to themselves anyway?
"Does anyone have manners anymore?" Jaden mumbled, rubbing at his eyes with his fists. "I feel like I got hit by a bus."
"Nah. If you got hit by a bus you would feel much worse. Assuming you lived through it and all," a female voice answered. Jaden's eyes snapped open. He was in one of those starch white beds they have in hospitals. An elderly woman wearing a white lab coat stood over him, her large round glasses magnifying her crinkly eyes ten thousand fold. He tried sitting up only to get bombarded with a throbbing pain in his temples.
"Unh…" he said, before reeling backwards. The nurse scurried over to feel his head. He slapped her hand away. "Don't touch without gloves. Might get germs…or something," he murmured. The woman gave him an odd look, shrugged, and scrambled over to the counter to yank out a pair of latex medical gloves.
"I wouldn't try sitting up for awhile, sugar," she advised, shoving a thermometer into his mouth.
"Thenth why didn'th you tell me thath before?" he grumbled, wiggling the thermometer around with his tongue. It tasted like antiseptic. Ick. The nurse put a hand on top of his head, beneath his jaw, and clamped his mouth shut.
"Would you have listened? Don't talk, just use your head. Can't get your temperature if you moving your mouth." Jaden slowly shook her head no. 'I wouldn't have.' "Then that settles it." The thermometer beeped. "Ooh! Let's see here…98.6. Perfect. Well your fever has gone down."
"Am I in the hospital?" Jaden asked, throwing an arm over his eyes and settling farther into the pillow. "Why do I tend to wake up in hospitals?" The nurse glanced over at him, her bright eyes wondering.
"You're still at Sky High. Just in the nurse's office. Layla Williams brought you over. Such a nice girl,"
"Yeah. Real nice. What happened?"
Dr. Spex, Jaden learned from the nametag on her breast pocket, had been sitting in here reading when Layla and Will rushed in carrying, who else? Jaden.
"Apparently, you had some kind of fit. Miss Williams said y'all were watching Save the Citizen when you just suddenly screamed and passed out. Hit the bleachers in front of you pretty hard. You'll probably have a bruised forehead and arms. Layla said she tried shaking you awake but you were just plain out. She proceeded to freak out, Will saw his girlfriend was in distress, flew out of the Save the Citizen match and zipped you over here," she said, leaning back in the swivel chair she had pulled up to his bedside. "She also said that you were perfectly fine until a Mr. Warren Peace burst into flames," she added, her kind eyes narrowing suspiciously at Jaden. "So, Miss Jaden Hart. Would you like to me yourself what happened?" Jaden balked at the old woman.
"H-how did you-?" he stuttered, sitting up now and glaring at the old woman. "How did you find out?" Spex smiled and patted Jaden's knee comfortingly.
"Don't worry dear. Your secret is safe with me. I assume Principal Powers has knowledge of this?" she asked, perking up a graying brow. The boy simply nodded, his mouth still agape. "When you came in and Layla had said you had fallen, I x-rayed you. You have the skeletal features of a female. Yet, your files say you were male. I put two and two together and assumed it was some kind of secret. Especially since on your medical forms, Principal Powers is your emergency contact. You're on the run aren't you? That's why you're a late transfer. You're running from something. You mind telling me what it is? 'Cause sugar, you look like a girl with a lot of burdens. And if you tell me, perhaps we can figure out what exactly went wrong today." And for the second time that day, Jaden burst into tears. "Oh, honey," Spex said, wrapping her arms around the shaking boy's shoulders. "Oh, honey…"
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"I wonder what's going on with Jaden," Layla mused aloud during fourth period Hero Tactics. It was the only other class the entire gang had together besides gym. Both heroes and sidekicks needed to learn what to do in certain situations. The only one that wasn't with them was Warren. Being a year ahead of them in high school, he had moved on to Crime Crushing, an elective course.
"Yeah. He just screamed and passed out. Who does that?" Magenta said, flicking a paper ball at Zack's head. Zack responded with a paper ball of his own, though his was covered in spit. "Ew! I'll get you for that, you Christmas light!"
"SHHH!" Professor Spide shushed, shooting the group a menacing glare.
"Sorry!" they whispered in response, returning to the rope knots in front of them. Their task was to untie them in less than thirty seconds. Which they had already failed to do.
"But seriously. I wonder why he did that. And why he doesn't wanna talk to us. What do you think, Will?" Layla said softly, turning to look at her boyfriend.
"Why do you care?" Will hissed, glancing over at her with an angry gaze. Layla's eyes widened in shock.
"I was just wondering….sheesh."
Stonghold sighed and turned back to the series of knots in front of him. Layla just didn't get it. At all.
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When Jaden had finally calmed down a bit, she began the tedious task of reciting her story. Well. Parts of it anyway.
"And he was there beside me. He was already dead but I couldn't just leave my only brother there alone. So I stayed with him. I didn't really register that the building was burning and I closed my eyes to sleep I guess? I don't know. The next thing I remember was seeing all these blurs around me. People. People putting me in an ambulance. And then I woke up again in a hospital. But I keep seeing it again and again."
"Jaden. What's your real name?"
"Amelia."
"Then that's what I shall call you," Spex said. Jaden's lip quivered in protest. "JUST in private. Anyway, Amelia. It sounds like to me that you wanted to die with him." The elder looked up from a clipboard she had resting in her lap, her pencil scribbling notes.
'What is she writing there? I feel like some psycho being evaluated. WHAT is she writing? Argh.'
"Amelia?" she repeated tapping her pencil to get the boy's attention.
(AN: Even if Spex is calling her Amelia, Jaden will still be called a 'he'. Also, my Dr. Spex is a doctor/psychiatrist)
"Huh, what?" he asked, snapping his thoughts back to the present. "Sorry…can you repeat that?" The woman sighed and pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose.
"I said, it sounded like you wanted to die with Aiden. Did you?"
'I didn't want to die…did I? I don't know, I don't know…'
"I don't know…" he said aloud, covering his eyes with his hands. He wasn't going to cry again. He was pretty much cried out. But he didn't want to see anything right now. "I don't know…I didn't think, 'I should die'…"
"What were you thinking?"
Jaden's body stiffened, his fingers wrapping around the ivory streaks in his hair. Remember, remember…"I thought…I thought that our bloodline should end here."
"Our bloodline?" Dr. Spex inquired, leaning forward to rest an arm on Jaden's bed.
"Aiden and I…our bloodline. I…I thought that we should end it. No creating anymore Harts."
"Why?"
"Because…because….I don't know! I just thought it! That we shouldn't live! That we shouldn't have children!" Jaden shrieked, pulling out a pillow from behind him to toss at the wall. "I don't know!" He backed up against the bed headboard, pulling his knees to his chest. "It just popped into my head," he whispered. "And then I fell asleep."
"I'm sorry. This clearly upsets you. Perhaps we should move onto something else?" Spex said, her wise eyes studying Jaden intently, before scribbling another note on her clipboard. "Did you see anything after Warren revealed his fire abilities? Like perhaps you dreamed while you were unconscious?"
"Not really. I just saw more fire. And…Aiden standing in it and…my mother."
"Your mother? Did she die in the fire too?"
"No. She died…giving birth to me," Jaden mumbled, his grip around his knees tightening. His face paled ever so slightly.
"Difficult labor?"
"…..You could say that."
Dr. Spex threw a questioning look towards Jaden, her lips stretching into a thin line. Her pencil hovered above the paper as she paused in thought.
"What do you mean?"
"…I killed her."
"You couldn't have possibly killed her," Spex sighed, shaking her head. "You were just a child. It wasn't your fault."
"You don't understand…My power killed her."
The old woman looked skeptical. "Amelia. I know you're probably a very talented hero but you couldn't have been born with power. It's impossible."
The boy sighed, placing a gloved hand over his face. 'How can I explain…?' "Dr. Spex. Have you ever heard of…the villain Dark Heart?"
"Of course. Everyone has heard of him. He was one of the most notorious super villains. Couldn't he control minds?"
"Yes. He could bend everyone to his will. Did you hear that he married and had children? One was a boy. He was known as the villain-"
"Dragon Heart!" Dr. Spex interrupted, "He could breathe fire!"
"And then there was one other child…"
"I never heard about the other child."
"That's because Dark Heart only revealed her birth to the villain society, claiming she would be the greatest villain to have ever lived. He tried to hide her existence from the heroes, in case they got it into their minds to steal her away from him."
"Why is that?"
"Because she was born with her power. They gave her a villain title before she was even a year old. Her name was Death Heart."
"I don't understand. What does this have to with you?" The boy sighed, his fingers tangling in his hair once again. It was something he favored when stressed out.
"Think, Dr. Spex. What is my last name?"
"Hart."
"And my brother, Aiden. Do you remember what I told you about his power?"
"He could breathe- Oh no. It can't be true. You're Dark Heart's daughter? Oh my. You are really on the run aren't you?"
"Not from him. He's in jail now. My brother and I lived together in an apartment that was left to us. While my brother terrorized New York, I went to school. A villain school called Hell's Depths. My principal, Malicia Sin was my legal guardian until my brother turned 21. SHE'S the one I'm running from. If she ever found out where I was, I'd probably be beaten, Sky High would be obliterated and probably all of Maxville too. When Aiden died and I didn't, I figured I would be Sin's puppet. I couldn't take that. And I didn't want to hurt anymore with my power. So I skipped town."
"And your mother…died from your power?"
"Yes."
"So you're all alone now?"
"…Yes," he whispered, glancing at Spex. She had stopped writing now and had voted to merely listen instead.
"You really have a lot going on in your life, huh, Amelia?"
"Well excluding the fact that I have to hide my past, identity, gender, and power, it's turning into a pretty good life." The Doctor nodded, smiling appreciatively.
"That's the spirit. If you keep an attitude like that, you'll be just fine." Spex glanced at the clock, gasped and hurriedly began shuffling around the room. She stuffed the clipboard into a locked file cabinet and began to take off her white lab coat. "I'm sorry for keeping you so late, Amelia. You barely have five minutes to school is out! You can return to class if you wish or just stay here."
Jaden shook her head and slowly stood up, checking her balance and wooziness level before fully placing her feet on the floor. "I'll just stay here…Dr. Spex?"
"Yes, dear?"
"What will I tell everyone…I mean about the passing out thing?"
"You could just say you're afraid of fire. That's what it appears to be anyway."
"I can't do that…I can't show a weakness." The woman glanced over shoulder at the boy, her gaze suggesting disbelief.
"It's not a weakness. It's a normal human trait."
"I'm not human."
Spex threw back her head and emitted a loud guffaw. Jaden suppressed her urge to giggle at the woman's donkey-like laugh. He didn't think she'd much appreciate it. However, she did seem like the woman to find about anything humorous.
"Well, let's just say you were sick. You did have a fever after all."
"And the scream? How will I explain that?"
"Hmm. I really don't know, Amelia. I think you might just have to ignore the ones who mention it."
The boy nodded, shrugging his shoulders into the straps of his backpack. It was still empty as Jaden had failed to attend about every class today. 'I REALLY hope no one mentions it. If anyone makes fun of me, I'll just have to hit them.' He smirked as he opened the door, preparing himself for when the bell rang. "Thanks for your help today…and Dr. Spex?"
"Yes?"
"Can I come back and talk, you know, when I need it?" The old woman smiled, warmly, nodding her head.
"Of course. You're always welcome."
"DDOOOOOOONNNNNNNG!" the intercoms bellowed, signaling the end of the day. Jaden waved as he exited the room, rushing out into the hall to perhaps beat some of the oncoming traffic. "Bye!" he called.
He hurried to the bus, nodding at Ron Wilson as he boarded. He was the first one on. Thank God. Jaden scurried to the back of the bus, taking the last seat. Hopefully, whoever usually sat here wouldn't mind too much. He caught sight of Layla and co. heading towards the vehicle and Jaden was reduced to crouching low in the seat. 'Please don't see me, please don't see me…' They didn't. Awesome. But he wasn't home free yet. He had to remain hidden. Suddenly, the space beside him was filled and Jaden glanced over to see a very blue girl. She had blue eyes and blue clothes and blue eyeshadow and even blue lipstick. Her hair, however, was a platinum blonde. She looked like she would have a pretty face but Jaden wasn't too sure. It was buried under 20 lbs of makeup. Her clothes were also over done. 'Or should I say under done?' Her shirt was a low v-cut camisole that began too far below her neck and ended too far above her waist. The girl was too endowed in the chest department to be wearing a washcloth for a shirt. Jaden could see she had a belly piercing that said 'Ice'. She had on an extremely short skirt that probably only reached her thighs when standing up. Sitting down it was much worse. If he leaned forward a bit, he could probably tell you that her panties were also blue. So he didn't lean forward.
"Hey, cutie. Not that I mind but what are you doing in my seat?"
"Is it okay if I sit here? I don't like sitting up at the front and I'm trying to avoid some people up there," Jaden said, scooting towards the window slightly. This girl was leaning close.
"Sure, I don't mind. Sit here as long as you want," she said, arching her back as she spoke. Jaden knew this trick. Arch your back, hunch your shoulders. It made your boobs and butt look bigger. A lot of the slutty girls did it at Hell. "I'm Emily Snow, by the way. What's your name?"
"I'm Jaden Hart. Nice to meet you." Emily smiled, hunching her shoulders now.
"You dating anyone, Jaden?"
Jaden's eyes widened and he scooted away more. She was getting SERIOUSLY close.
"Um, no but-"
"That's GREAT! 'Cause I know this girl that would be just perfect for you!" she squealed, snaking her arms around his own arm, pressing her chest against it as hard as she could. The bus halted to let someone off and Jaden seized his chance.
"My stop! Gottagobye!" he said, leaping out of his seat and scampering down the aisle. He really threw himself off the bus this time, ending in a heap on the sidewalk. The bus pulled away and Jaden released a huge sigh of relief.
"You…okay there?" said a familiar voice. He glanced up to see….
Warren.
Damn it.
Of all the people to see.
It had to be the one that makes him scream like a little girl.
"Im-uh-fine," he said, standing to brush himself off. I was in such a rush to get off the bus, I tripped and…yeah." Warren perked a brow.
"Why'd you get off here?"
"I had to escape," Jaden whispered. He shivered, as if he were cold, but it was more or less due to the fact that his arm just basically got raped. "That girl…uhh!" Warren narrowed his eyes at the petite boy.
"What girl?"
"Ice, snow, something…." Jaden pondered for a moment, his brows knitting together in concentration. He clapped his hands in a sudden realization, his blue eyes lighting up. "Emily Snow! That was it. Yeah, Emily Snow."
"And you had to escape from her why…?" Warren asked, his arms crossing over his chest.
"Because she was hanging all over me…and she was just-ugh!"
The pyrokinetic's fists tightened in their chest embrace. "Just..ugh?"
Jaden shrugged, his face portraying slight confusion. "I don't know. She was just all over me like she couldn't wait to get into my pants. She was like begging to be screwed or-" Jaden's sentence was cut short as Warren's fist collided with his face. Jaden toppled backwards to the ground, his arms flailing for a handhold. As Warren's knuckles connected with Jaden's bare cheek, the pyro slightly stumbled after a wave of drowsiness washed over him. He shook his head vigorously to rid himself of the feeling, before glancing at the sprawled boy on the sidewalk.
"What the hell was that for?!" Jaden shrieked, leaping back to his feet and into a sturdier stance.
"Don't talk about her like that!" Warren growled, glaring at the short, ebony haired boy. "Don't talk about her like she's trash!"
"She sure acted like trash!" Jaden hissed, ducking as another fist came flying his way. He would NOT be caught off guard again.
"She's also my ex-girlfriend!" Warren said, attempting to give Jaden a hard hit to the stomach. Miss.
Jaden paused, slowly blinking and examining Warren like he was the village idiot. "YOUR EX? WHY THE FUCK DOES IT MATTER IF IT'S YOUR EX?"
"Because…" Warren mumbled, his arms slowly returning to his sides. "Because she wasn't always like that and deep down she's a nice girl."
Jaden sighed, punched Warren hard in the jaw to return the favor, and turned to walk away. He didn't really feel like having some long, drawn out fight. "Whatever, douche bag,"he growled, glancing at the fuming boy, behind him. Jaden could practically hear Warren mentally restraining himself from attacking Jaden again. "I didn't know she was your ex, dude, okay? You didn't have to fuck up my face," Jaden murmured, stalking off towards the city's innards.
Leaving Warren to wrestle with his fury, Jaden made his way to the center of the city where a large park resided. Maxville Park, it was so originally dubbed, reminded Jaden of his own native Central Park. The boy had been immediately drawn to the green plot in the center of the metropolitan area upon his arrival the day before. It was also where he was currently living.
'I'll have to get a job soon if I want to stay somewhere a little nicer,' he thought, strolling through the trees to a secluded picnic area. He clambered up one particularly large oak to a hidden tree house, built originally for recreation purposes. Now it served as Jaden's temporary home. It was roofless, but it was the only place he could afford to spend the night for an unlimited amount of time with his financial resources. He had about a $100 dollars with him. Enough to stay in a hotel maybe for two or three days, so he figured he might as well hoard it away for emergencies. Jaden did have a very full account in New York. However, not wanting to risk any kind of paper trail, he had avoided withdrawing from it. He wasn't sure if Malicia Sin even knew he was alive and didn't want to alert her to his survival.
The boy pulled off his gloves and hoodie, tossing them inside the small enclosure. He leapt back down to the grass below, landing in a feline-esqe crouch. He touched his cheek where Warren had hit him, running his fingertips over the area that was already beginning to swell. It would probably be a large bruise…and it already hurt enough. Jaden placed his hands against the grass, running his naked fingers through the greenery. One by one, the grass blades he came into contact with began to turn brown and curl in on themselves. While the grass slowly withered away, the swelling in Jaden's cheek began to lessen. Now he merely felt a slight throbbing pain where it had once felt as if a hammer had struck him. He continued to brush his fingers through the grass, watching sadly how the lawn died off. Sighing, he hopped back to his feet and once again climbed the massive tree. Once inside, he struggled out of his t-shirt and jeans, leaving him in a bandaged torso and boxers. Jaden managed to maintain somewhat of his girly side, proven by a blue lacy hem peeking out over the top of the boxer's elastic. Victoria's Secret, perhaps? The boy shorts Pink Line had been a favorite of Amelia's. Maybe not for Jaden though.
The boy gingerly unwrapped the bandages again, exposing an array of burns across his back. The largest one was three and a half inches wide, a long wound that stretched diagonally across his shoulder blades. They were far from healing as Jaden had escaped the hospital less than a week ago. In fact, he probably wouldn't have the nice pink scar tissue skin for awhile yet. He picked up a tube of cheap burn cream off the floor, a quick purchase at the drug store. Smearing the ointment where he could reach, he leaned over to snatch up a new box of gauze and went to work wrapping his torso again. After tying the white bandages tightly around his chest, a lopsided bow/knot resting right over his heart, he removed a small pillow, sleeping bag, and blanket from a dark blue duffel tucked in the corner. Jaden scooted into the shadows with these items, presumably stretching out to sleep. Next to his head sat a miniscule alarm clock, battery powered, that alerted him to the time and also woke him up for school. It was only about 4 in the afternoon. But Jaden always went to bed extremely early on account of his sudden development of insomnia. Lying there staring at the branches above him tired him out faster than any activity did. He breathed in deeply, recounting his first day at Sky High.
"Total sucky first day. I should have just moved to Siberia," he concluded, closing his eyes.
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And that's the end of the third chapter! I hope you guys enjoyed it.
And guess what you get if you review this time.
A ninja button!
THAT'S RIGHT! I SAID NINJA BUTTON!
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Do it for all the ninjas in need of homes!
I so need Billy Mays. :c