Disclaimer: I don't own Sky High.
The Heavens and Earth rose out of Chaos.
John Milton, A Paradise Lost.
Read on, oh faithful ones.
...
Chapter Sixteen
...
Sitting at the back of the bus, Layla sketched in her notebook, adding more designs to the secret sanctum as she thought of them. Warren hadn't seemed too pleased at the addition of a dressing room, but she thought it necessary in order to house their outfits and any other disguises that they might wear.
It wasn't even that big of a room, Layla thought to herself, looking at the small rectangular room. Although, maybe he was more upset about the clothes dispenser that circulated the pieces of clothing at the touch of a button.
When she couldn't think of anything else to add in, Layla flipped the page to where she'd drawn a rough sketch of an outfit the day before. Despite what she'd told Zach and Ethan, she knew exactly where to carry seeds or even bits of paper: in the hemline of the outfit. If it was natural, as she presumed it would be, then it would be all too easy to open the hem and get the seeds out. It could even be useful if she was kidnapped, a trail of seeds leading her rescuer to wherever she'd been taken. Well, that is if she allowed herself to be kidnapped, or was taken by surprise.
Layla briefly wondered how Warren had been kidnapped by his father. She could imagine him as a young child, trusting his father, as naive and foolish as she'd been.He would have been scared at first, and then angry. So angry at his father, at himself, maybe even his mother. The anger would have consumed him until it burned as bright as his arms, and all of that anger and flames had to go somewhere, burning a hole through the wall for him to escape while his father was preoccupied elsewhere.
"Hey, hippie. What are you thinking about?" Warren asked with a slight frown as he sat beside her.
She was staring off into space and didn't even seem to register that the bus had stopped, let alone that he'd sat next to her.
"Hippie?" he repeated, waving a hand in front of her face.
"Oh, hi Warren," Layla said quickly, giving him an apologetic grin. "Sorry, spaced for a moment. Did you say something?"
"Could see that. I asked what you were thinking about."
"Oh no," Layla whispered, her face paling and the two syllables were filled with so much distraught that Warren looked to see what she'd seen.
Well, fuck. The house on Sycamore Street was under contract.
In her hands, her entire notebook began to wilt, the pages curling and shrinking.
"Not this too," she whispered, the words swallowed by the sound of the bus squealing to a stop for the final passenger.
"Hey, hippie, look at me. Layla," Warren said, moving her face gently so that she was looking at him.
The blank expression in her green eyes concerned him, and he wasn't surprised to realise that vines were starting to circle his feet while the rest of the students sat by obliviously.
"It's just one house; there are more in Maxville, including others that aren't on the same street as a bus full of supers. Do you understand what I'm saying?" he asked, his voice a rough whisper.
She nodded briefly, but the vines still continued to circle his feet.
"I really had my heart set on that one, Warren. It just feels like everyone and everything I want, need, or love is leaving me... Which I know sounds stupid, it's just a house, but..." her words stopped with a choked sob.
"It doesn't sound stupid, hippie. And for the record, I'm not going anywhere," he added. "Well, not until we get to Sky High; I have no desire to repeat my sophomore year. Especially if I have to be in the same class as Stronghold. How you haven't beaten him to a pulp yet is beyond me," Warren said, grinning.
His words had the desired effect, and Layla laughed softly, wiping at her eyes. The vines disappeared a moment later, and then she yelped in surprise when the bus drove off the freeway. Beside her, Warren had his jaw clenched, the sudden drop surprising him as well.
"That burst of adrenaline should replace my need for coffee until lunch," he said in her ear.
She simply nodded in response, her eyes screwed shut tightly.
...
"Hey, Ethan, do you have that book with the people who want to go against us in Save the Citizen?" Layla asked at lunch.
"Yeah, it's right here. I've taken to carrying it around with me, since more people are asking about it," he replied with a grin. Ethan handed the book over to her, grinning slightly.
"You're loving the attention, aren't you, Popsicle?" Warren asked, smirking.
"Well, I wouldn't..."
"Yeah, he totally is," Zach said, clapping him on the back with a grin.
Shaking her head at them, Layla opened the book, looking at the list.
"How good are you feeling today, Warren?" she asked, frowning briefly.
"No better or worse than usual," he replied with a frown of his own, reading over her shoulder.
Ethan's sorting and organising skills had classified the pairings in skill level, ranging from more than easy up to so hard you'll need private health insurance before fighting them, under which only one pair was classed. Layla glanced at the others, deciding that starting with an easy peasy pair and going onto a challenging pair would probably be best for now.
"I don't know if these are better or worse than the hero and sidekick labels," Layla muttered.
"Who on earth are Grant and Jewel?" Warren asked, seeing the pair under the health-insurance-hard label.
"Jewel is the brunette over there," Ethan said, indicating to a girl sitting by the window. "She has the ability to change anything she touches into a jewel. Apparently, it's a very painful process for humans."
"Doesn't sound too hard to beat; we just won't let her touch us," Warren commented.
"Just keep watching her for a moment, you'll see."
They did, and Layla was the first to spot the shining reflection of her skin.
"She's a jewel?" she asked in confusion.
"Her skin has the same properties as a diamond, actually," Ethan corrected. "That includes the ability to retain extreme heat and cut through anything. Your fireballs would be useless, and your vines couldn't possibly hold her," he said, looking at Warren and Layla respectively.
"All right, what about Grant?"
"Grant is the blonde there," Ethan said, indicating to a boy a few tables away.
While Grant wasn't alone at the table, the people he was seated with seemed to be giving him a wide berth.
"He has the ability to repel everything and seems to be immune to powers. The Mad Scientist is still running some tests, apparently, but Grant is one of the people who could go against the Commander and win. He could repel a punch and the Commander would be the one to crumble," Ethan said in a hushed and awed tone.
"I want him on my side when the world falls," Zach muttered. "What?" he added when Ethan looked at him oddly.
"So how do you figure that Grant's health insurance bad?" Layla asked, redirecting the conversation and hiding her smile at Zach's words. She'd been thinking the same thing about both super teens.
"Well, he'd repel anything either of you could throw at him, and even if you did manage to do something, he'd be immune to it. He's never been sick in his life."
"So his is cell-deep, not skin-deep like Jewel's," Warren said with a nod. "Who are his parents?"
"Well, that's the thing. His mother is completely human, and no one knows who his father is. There's been speculation that his father is the Incredible Genius," Ethan said in a whisper.
"Just who has been speculating this?" Layla asked in amusement.
"Well, mostly me, but I have a good reason for it," he replied quickly.
He took the book from Layla, flipping to the back where the small document pocket was located. He unfolded a few pieces of paper and placed them on the table. Ethan looked from the photographs of the Incredible Genius to Grant.
"He looks remarkably similar to him, and while it's not 100 per cent proof, there's also this," he added, unfolding another piece of paper, this one a photocopy of a newspaper clipping.
"Michael Marking the youngest graduate from the University of Maxville, age 15, majored in genetic engineering and has a bright future ahead," Layla read quietly. "Yeah, that's all good and well, but Grant's at least 17 years old. The Incredible Genius was captured almost 20 years ago. No amount of genetics could keep a woman pregnant for three years before giving birth."
"Grant's a senior, and since he was born early in the year, he's actually closer to 19 years old," Ethan replied. "The Incredible Genius was captured 18 years and 7 months ago."
They went silent, looking from the pictures to Grant.
"You did all of this just for Save the Citizen?" Warren asked, frowning at Ethan briefly.
He faltered, not having thought of it that way. "I did it so you'd understand your opponents better. I didn't really think of itas something for Save the Citizen," he admitted with a slight grin.
"I'm not knocking it, Popsicle. It's great you put all this work into it. Thanks," Warren added, chuckling when Ethan darkened.
"So, how many people have asked? Do you reckon this is the entire school?" Layla asked.
"Oh, definitely not. I've only been asked by 30 people approximately, and the school has about 120 students if I go by the average of 30 people per year. Besides, the small amount of information I've written in there for each person isn't detailed. If you compare it with the school records of students, then that book's almost worthless. I've only given you their name and superpower," he said, shaking his head.
Zach frowned slightly, seeing the look that passed between Warren and Layla. He wasn't entirely sure what the look meant, but he was beginning to suspect that it didn't mean something good for the rest of the student population.
"It's definitely not worthless, Ethan. You've done an awesome job, and this will be so useful... Oh, I think I know who we should go against," Layla added, indicating the two pairs to Warren.
"Who?" Zach asked, grinning.
"Wait and see," Warren replied.
The bell rang loudly, and Ethan hurried to put the pieces of paper back in his book, stuffing the notebook into his bag.
"You're really not going to tell us?" Zach asked in disappointment.
"Patience is a virtue, Zach," Layla replied over her shoulder, grinning.
"See you at the gym," Ethan called.
"What's the point of being best friends with the reigning champions of Save the Citizen if they don't tell you who they're going to fight?" Zach muttered, leaving with Ethan.
"Really? Warren's your best friend?"
"Well, there's Layla and you, of course... Don't tell Warren," he added quickly.
"Wouldn't dream of it. He'd probably evaporate me," Ethan replied with a chuckle. "Come on, I want to get a good seat so I can record the fight."
With a nod, Zach hurried with him through the corridors.
...
"So, any strategies for the first pair, hippie?" Warren asked when they were dressed and in their protective gear.
Layla pretended to think about it for a moment. "Well, I'm still extremely upset about the house on Sycamore, so I say we wipe the floor with them and let the Citizen get destroyed," she replied brightly.
"Lucky we're going with the harder ones first then," he replied, his eyebrows raised slightly.
"Catwoman beating Poison Ivy, yeah right," Layla scoffed.
"So I'm stuck with the human hose?Great," Warren muttered.
"Do you want someone else? I thought he'd be easy for you; just heat him up until he's nothing but boiling water."
"Boiling water is still water, hippie," he said, rolling his eyes. "I'll do it, but if I call for help, you put the cat down and help me, understood?"
"If you call for help, I'll throw the cat at him. Cats hate water more than you," she said, grinning.
"All right, you two. Heroes or villains, and who do you pick?"
"Villains," Layla said sweetly. "And I pick Kate," she said, indicating to the feline-looking girl.
"Paul," Warren said, gesturing at him.
"Come on, Catwoman!" Zach called loudly, a few people laughing at his enthusiasm, or Kate's new nickname.
Kate glared at Zach, and he hurried to sit down again, but still grinned nonetheless.
"I bet Catwoman's going to kick Poison Ivy's butt," Zach said to Ethan, chuckling.
"I'll take you on that bet," he replied, stunning his friend for a moment.
"You're going to bet on Layla against Catwoman? Dude, it's like I don't even know you anymore."
"Oh, shut up and accept the bet already," Ethan replied, rolling his eyes.
"I don't exactly have any cash on me. What else can we bet for?"
"How about a dare?" he suggested.
"You're on! If Catwoman wins against Layla, you have to streak completelynaked down the school corridor," Zach said, laughing.
Ethan paled slightly, but he shook his hand anyway, figuring that if he did lose, he'd be able to streak while melted down.
"All right, and if Layla wins, then you ... Oh, no," Ethan said quickly, realising that the buzzer was about to sound and he didn't have the camera ready.
Warren adjusted his gloves as a ruse to cover his left wrist properly, glancing over to Layla, who had an assortment of green bracelets over her left wrist. She saw where he was looking and grinned briefly. The buzzer sounded loudly, pulling both of them out of their thoughts, and Warren and Layla moved forward to their opponents.
Kate ran forward, sharp nails growing, her hands changing shape as her body squeezed and stretched in the same motion. In a burst of clothing, the girl turned into a cat. Unfortunately, she wasn't a small domestic cat as most would have presumed. Instead, she was a lion.
"Oh man, you had better get ready to strip," Zach crowed, clapping Ethan on the back.
Layla came to a sudden stop, staring at the large lioness before her.
"We're swapping, hippie. No arguments."
"We're not going to swap, Warren. I can handle her. Deal with Paul before he puts you out," she muttered.
He saw the stubborn set of her jaw, and with a growl, turned on Paul, his arms flaming. Warren didn't even give the boy time to power up or react before he threw fireball after fireball at him, the flames surrounding him in a circle that grew higher with each passing second. Paul tried to get his power flowing to put out the fire, but it seemed to be resistant to anything he could produce.
Kate advanced on Layla, a predator's gleam in her eyes as she snarled softly. Gathering herself to pounce, she did so, a large paw swiping out at the redhead. Kate growled when she realised that she was stuck in midair, something tight around her waist. Her growl turned into mewls when the tight feeling became painful, hundreds of thorns piercing her body. Kate tried to use her sharp claws to break through the vines, but every movement made the thorns dig in deeper, and she couldn't move her limbs the proper way to reach the base of the vine anyway.
"Yes! I hope you weren't getting too excited about seeing me naked, Zach," Ethan said with a laugh.
Layla watched for a moment as the vine twirled around Kate, covering her from head to toe in mid-pounce. When she was completely contained, Layla turned to see Warren facing off Paul. The latter boy seemed to be surrounded, crouched on the ground as the heat of the flames intensified and made him weaker in turn.
"You want to deal with the Citizen?" Layla asked, moving towards him.
"I think we should both do it," Warren replied, looking at her.
"Not in front of them. Let's save that one for later," she said with a slight smirk. "But if you destroy the rope, I'll make sure the citizen will never speak again."
With a nod, Warren turned and threw a ball of fire straight at the citizen. It tore through the rope immediately, the loose ends curling and blackening. Coach Boomer called out a warning to Warren when the fireball hit his clipboard. Everyone ignored him, and Layla used a vine to feed the citizen into the teeth headfirst. A moment of silence surrounded them at the deliberate act, but then Boomer called out that they were the winners, Nurse Spex made her way into the arena, and noise returned to the gym once more.
"Maybe we should be heroes this time around," Warren muttered, scanning the crowd of faces and whispers that were being directed at them.
"Yeah, you're right. Looks like we'll have to be heroes until this blows over. But I really hate that citizen," Layla muttered.
"At least it's not a real one."
"I have a feeling that a real citizen would be more annoying," she said, rolling her eyes.
Warren conceded with a nod, and they turned to challenge their next opponents.
...
Layla adjusted her skirt quickly while no one was watching, smoothing out the material as she glanced at her surroundings. It was her first day working at the Mayor's office, she still didn't have much idea what to do, there were superheroes surrounding her on all sides, and the complete lack of real plant life was actually making her feel nauseated. Three fake plants were all that the building's foyer contained, and no other plant life - real or fake - existed in the entire building. The vine beneath her skin rippled, as if to reassure her that it, at least, was alive. She sighed softly in relief, and made her way over to Ms. Peace, who was to be her supervisor during Layla's three month probation period.
"Okay, I've got an induction checklist here, so we'll go over your duties, make sure you have a swipe card and access codes to the building, and then we'll get you familiarised with the layout of the place."
"Okay, great," Layla replied, trying to ease her nerves.
"Now, your basic duties are photocopying files, filing documents away, basic office duties, and such. When required, you will also need to do some data entry work," Ms. Peace said. "Oh, you've also been nominated for the lunch and coffee run."
"Lunch and coffee run?"
"You take everyone's lunch and coffee orders, and you buy them, bring them back and distribute. It's a cinch," she replied with a smile.
"Okay. How am I meant to do the lunch run if I'm at school?" Layla asked hesitantly.
"Sorry, I meant on weekends and during election time. Although, that may be more a dinner run, depending on how late everyone stays here. It's a busy time, and everyone's expected to pull their weight."
Layla nodded, following Ms. Peace to the photocopying room.
"If this thing breaks, then you'll want to call Stephanie. She's a step short of being a technopath, but she can fix nearly anyelectronic item there is."
"Unless there's a problem with the software, or a virus. I'm not a geek, and I can't do that," a woman added, stepping into the room. "Hi, I'm Stephanie. You must be the new coffee girl," she stated, looking Layla over and continuing without giving her a chance to introduce herself. "Make sure you get the orders right, or else you'll meet the same fate as the last one," Stephanie drawled as she swiped her card against the printer.
It beeped and began printing her job. There was silence for a long moment, and Ms. Peace raised her eyebrows slightly at Layla, attempting a grin. She smiled back hesitantly, stepping out of Stephanie's way when she grabbed her printed documents and left the room without a word.
"What exactly happened to the last coffee person?" Layla asked quietly.
"He got Stephanie decaf two days in a row, and was fired by the third. She's one of the Mayor's favourites, so just make sure to get her coffee order right," she replied, shaking her head. "Anyway, when you get your card, you'll be able to log on to the printer. For now, I'll show you how to print using mine."
It was fairly simple, and the instructions were laminated on the wall above the printer itself, so Layla could consult those if she forgot anything. Ms. Peace took her down to the HR department to get her photo taken and access card. Layla didn't like her photo, but on seeing some of her new colleagues' photos, she figured she'd been lucky. Ms. Peace continued through the tour, introducing Layla to everyone in such a whirl that she doubted she'd remember their names in an hour's time. The filing system, if it could be called that, was nothing short of a mess, with twenty people using their own methods of filing to put documents away. It was somewhat of a miracle that anything was ever found. Layla's first job would be to sort, organise, and refile every single document within the three-drawer cabinet that had been nicknamed The Monster.
"And, last but not least, this is Jorge. He's the Mayor's personal assistant. If you ever need to speak to the Mayor, just ask Jorge, and he'll set everything up."
Layla shook his hand, smiling politely. Jorge didn't seem too enthused about her presence, but by the grey hairs that were framing his otherwise young face, and the thinning of his hair on top, she doubted that he was enthused about much regarding his job.
"He used to have a full head of hair when he started," Ms. Peace muttered as she led Layla away.
"What's his superpower?" she asked.
"He's a cat, which could explain the whole shedding thing, but he's supposed to be really organised. We've yet to see proof of that, and most of the girls are betting he only got the job because he's a relative of the Mayor's. Don't repeat that," she addedquickly.
"I won't," Layla promised.
Ms. Peace nodded, smiling as she guided Layla back to The Monster. "Your shift finishes at 8pm, so you might want to get started on this. I'll come back in half an hour to see how you're going, and then we can have a break, okay?"
"Okay, thank you."
The door shut with a sound of finality that Layla decided she didn't like. Sighing, she turned to look at the large black filingcabinet, pulling open the first drawer. Papers were stuffed in files every which way, others were stuck between files, and by the smell that escaped the open drawer, Layla was fairly sure that someone had hidden their lunch inside it.
"This could take a while," she muttered to herself, looking around to find a clear space to sort everything.
The table was covered in papers that hadn't even been attempted to be filed, and with a quick glance out into the office area, Layla turned the table into a small tree with separate flat branches to place the paperwork on. Taking off the messy paperwork, Layla began to sort them into piles alphabetically.
Ms. Peace knocked on the door gently, opening the door and looking inside. She'd been caught up with her work, and it had almost been an hour since she'd left Layla with The Monster. She wasn't entirely sure what she was expecting, maybe some tears or her slacking off as one of the previous apprentices had done when left alone, but she was surprised to see that Layla was working hard. A flat-branched tree was before her, papers on each branch, a small vine keeping the papers in place from the ceiling fan spinning above. She wondered how long Layla had kept the tree up; surely she must be exhausted?
"Layla? Are you ready for a tea break?"
At Ms. Peace's voice, Layla turned around, placing the bundle in her hands on the desk chair as she nodded.
"Are you all right?" she asked as she led Layla to the break room.
"A little tired, but I'll be fine. Where is everyone?" she asked, seeing the empty desks and offices around them.
"They've all gone home. Most shifts finishbetween 4 and 5pm, so there's not many people here after that time. Your shift finishes at 8pm so you can catch up with work, and get things ready for everyone by the next day. When you're more comfortable in the role, you'll get a lot of printing and photocopying requests that others don't have time to do during the day."
"Okay, that's a good enough reason," Layla said with a brief smile.
"The tree that you've got in the room withThe Monster, will it be all right without any fresh air or sunlight?" Ms. Peace asked as they sat down.
"It's a bit of a strain, but since I made it out of the wooden desk that was there, it'll be fine."
"How are you going with the filing?"
"Getting there. I've almost finished sorting the first drawer. I don't think there was much of a filing system before this; I found paperwork for KPGM, the television station, in the C file."
Ms. Peace frowned slightly, trying to think of anything that would connect the two. "No idea how they got that," she muttered, shaking her head. "I've found a tray for you, if you want to put that in the room so no one accidentally ruins your work."
"That'd be nice, thank you," Layla replied, taking a drink of water.
When their fifteen minute break finished, they both returned to the office area, Layla going into the filing room, and Ms. Peace returning to her desk. Rolling her shoulders slightly, Layla picked up the bundle once more and continued sorting the documents.
By the time 8pm chimed and Ms. Peace knocked on the door again, Layla had finished sorting the first drawer and was a quarter of the way through the second. The tree looked smaller than before, but she was more surprised at Layla's stamina to keep it up for so long. All of the games of Save the Citizen must have helped her, she mused.
"Are you ready to go now, Layla?" she asked with a smile.
Layla nodded, replacing the bundle in the filing cabinet. Slowly, the tree began to shrink, and she moved each pile of documents onto the chair in a neat stack, crossing them over so they wouldn't get mixed up.
"Here's your tray. Why don't we put it on a table or chair outside the room, and lock the door so no one messes up your work?" she offered.
Placing the last pile on the chair, Layla picked them up and placed them on the desk, carrying the chair outside. Writing a quick note to leave all filing in the tray, Layla thanked Ms. Peace and headed down the corridor to leave with her.
"After your probation period is over, you'll be here on your own, and you'll get the alarm codes to lock up," Ms. Peace said, punching the numbers into the pad and locking the door as they left the building.
"Hey, hippie," Warren said, stepping out of the shadows.
"Warren! You scared the hell out of me. I thought I said for you to wait by the car?" his mother asked, holding her hand over her heart to try and calm its erratic pace.
"I did, but it must have looked like I was trying to steal it, because someone called the police, and they've driven by twice already," he replied. "Ah, here they are again. Should I wave?" Warren asked sarcastically as the police car drove past yet again.
"Don't be a smart alec," Ms. Peace said, glaring at him.
"Sorry, I'd better get going. My bus will be here soon," Layla said, interrupting them.
"All right. See you later, Mum," Warren said, turning to leave with Layla.
"You're coming with me?" she asked, frowning.
"Yes, it was his idea, and I'm not letting you go home alone at this time of night either," Ms. Peace said behind them. "Now, go before you miss your bus."
If she wasn't already running late, Layla would have protested. She simply nodded, thanked Ms. Peace again, and hurried out of the parking lot with Warren beside her.
"You didn't have to do this, Warren."
"I know that. It's a Monday deal only, since I'm working the rest of the week. But, if you like, you can come to the Paper Lantern after work, and I can take you home from there."
"Was it really your idea, or did your mother put you up to this?"
"It was my idea, hippie. You look like you could barely make a flower bloom at the moment," Warren added, not letting her protest.
"Well, I made a tree to help sort out the files in The Monster, so I did exert myself," Layla admitted. "Thank you, Warren," she added, smiling at him.
"No problem, hippie. Come on, the bus is almost here," he said, headlights from the bus shining behind them as if on cue.
Hailing the bus, they ran to the stop. When they were seated, Layla realised how exhausted she felt, and with a sigh, she leant against Warren's shoulder, smiling and her eyes closing as his arm wrapped around her shoulders.
...
End of the sixteenth chapter.
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Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoyed it!
