Here is the first official chapter! Please let me know what you think and enjoy.
Warren is in the next chapter, but Layla is in this one:)

⌲⌲⌲

"Good morning," I hop downstairs, ready for the first day of high school.

I see my parents making out in the middle of the kitchen and have to hold in my barf.

"Gross!" I shriek and they pull away from each other with a laugh.

"I warned you they'd be down soon," my mom gives a knowing look to my dad.

"Where's Will?" Dad asks.

He always focuses on Will more than me; he's the favorite, of course. The first born boy... by two minutes.

"Will?" he rushes upstairs.

"Don't mind your father, dear. He's been excited for this day long as I can remember," Mom assures me.

"So have I," I say glumly, grabbing a piece of bacon and sitting at the table.

High school. Today. It's going to be everything I've ever dreamed.

We hear a loud thud from upstairs and I can only imagine super strength is involved with my twin brother putting up the facade that he, too, has it.

"Good morning, Mrs. Stronghold," I turn to see Layla- my best friend and current crush- waltz through the door.

Over the summer, I've felt myself grow closer to the girl and I'm so sure that I've developed feelings. Thankfully, both she and Will are oblivious. The whole dynamic would be messed up if anyone ever found out.

"Morning," Mom responds.

"Ada!" Layla smiles and sits across from me at the breakfast table.

"Layla," I smile in return with a small blush.

"I noticed you had some recyclables in the trash, so I took the liberty of moving them for you," Layla informs us.

"I was going to fix that later," I say, knowing I'm the only environmentally conscious person in this house, thanks to my best friend.

"Thank you, Layla," Mom sets a plate for each of us. "You hungry? We've got plenty of eggs, bacon?"

"No, thanks," she declines. "You know how my mom can communicate with animals?" We nod. "Apparently they don't like being eaten."

"How do I keep forgetting you're vegan?" I ask, so used to eating normally in this family.

"You wouldn't forget as much if you'd join me," she urges me as usual.

"How about some juice?" Mom suggests, giving me a look that pleads for me not to become a vegan.

"Great," Layla agrees.

"Some for me, too, please," I add.

"He's on his way," my dad walks in and talks to my mom.

I stand up to grab my breakfast plate and Layla grabs my wrist as I feel a pleasant chill spread through my body.

"You aren't actually going to eat that dead baby chicken corpse and sizzling pig skin, are you?" she looks at me with sad eyes.

"Um... eggs are vegetarian enough, right?" I ask, knowing she won't let me get by with eating bacon.

"They aren't vegan, Ada," she frowns.

"But... breakfast..." I look longingly at the delicious bacon.

"Hello, Layla," Dad interrupts us.

"Good morning, Commander," she responds and I send her a shocked look; she's not supposed to mention it!

"Commander, huh?" Dad asks with a smirk.

Layla gestures to her face and I see my dad isn't wearing his glasses.

"Oh, thanks, Layla," he catches himself.

"Okay, can I please eat the eggs at least? Juice isn't filling," I beg my best friend.

"It's your body and your choice, but consider the option of vegan sometime," she says understandingly.

I instantly plate the eggs excitedly, even though the bacon does smell delicious.

"I can't believe you kids are starting high school," Mom states. "It seems like just yesterday you three were swimming naked in the kiddie pool."

"Gross," I scrunch my nose.

"Mom!" Will walks in, not pleased with our mom's comment. "Hi, Layla."

"Good morning, Will, Dad," I officially say good morning while a phone rings.

I grab my juice and sit with the food as my mom grabs her work cell.

"Josie, it's the other one," Dad speaks up, ignoring saying good morning and instead getting straight to superhero stuff. I get it. He's busy.

Will and I share a knowing look as Dad answers the Super Phone. Then, he takes a bite of bacon and I watch longingly.

"There's trouble downtown. Big trouble downtown," Dad tells Mom dramatically.

"Oh, shoot. And I really wanted to see Will and Ada off to the bus," Mom sighs. "I remember his first day of pre-school, he wouldn't let go of my leg. And, Ada was just sobbing for me not to leave her," she tells Layla.

"Not cool," I glare at Mom embarrassing me in front of the girl I think I like.

"Josie," Dad calls Mom to leave. "Oh, kids, a reminder: A lot of the kids at Sky High will only have one superhero parent, not two. So, take it easy on them, huh? No showing off."

"Oh, Dad, not to worry. I'll keep it low-key," Will assures them, even though they have no idea how easy that will be for him.

Will still has yet to get his powers and I only have the beginnings of ice powers, like my aunt. I'm definitely not great at them yet, but I hope to become a master soon. Sky High should help with that.

Mom calls for Dad and he runs out, leaving me with my twin and Layla in the kitchen. So, as I eat, Will turns on the TV to look for our parents and then Layla heals our plants in the kitchen window.

"I love when you do that," I admit.

"I feel so powerful when I do it," she laughs. "But, I don't want to become power hungry. It's for the good of others."

"Guys," Will catches our attention and we all watch the TV a moment.

I watch them do a takedown similar to many before and I kind of get bored of it. After awhile, it's like, "yeah, I know my parents are awesome." But, I can't share that with anyone, except Layla.

And now, the rest of Sky High will know once they figure out I'm a Stronghold and I'm excited for it. Maybe I'll be popular like in Mean Girls, but without the backstabbing girl drama.

While Layla and Will are engrossed in the TV, I reach over to where the bacon is cooling to sneak a piece. So, I lean backwards to shove it in my mouth.

"Ada!" Layla screams and scares me, causing me to fall off the bar stool and drop my bacon in the process.

Will laughs at me as I groan in pain from my butt's contact with the tile.

"What did I say about the bacon?" Layla scolds me as she helps me up.

"I'm sorry," I bend down to pick up the strip I dropped, "but it's delicious."

"You people are what's wrong with the world," she says when she sees Will grab a piece. "The environment will thank me for my lessened meat intake."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," Will grabs his bag and walks out the door, ready to leave us behind.

We walk out towards the bus stop as Layla speaks up, being just as excited as I am for this new school.

"Now, I know it's just our first day, but I already can't wait to graduate and start saving mankind... and womankind... and animalkind," she says.

"And the rainforest," Will points out.

"And the whole environment," I tease her.

"Exactly," Layla says, dead serious. I admire her passion. Wow.

"Hello, kids," our neighbor calls to us.

"Hi, Mrs. Kibbitch," we all say in unison.

"I just feel really good about this year," Layla explains.

"Me too! A fresh start where we can show off our powers? How cool," I smile, so proud of my small power I have now. "I can't wait to grow as a hero and then make friends like in cliche movies and have sleepovers and makeovers and all of the 'over's."

"That's a lot of 'over's," Layla giggles..

"It seems really great," Will says distantly.

"You'll find your power, big bro," I give him a supportive smile as the bus pulls up.

The doors open and some man driving the bus smiles at us, "Morning."

"Morning," all three of us respond.

"Is this the bus to Sky High?" Will asks loudly in a dumb way.

"Shhh," Layla, the bus driver, and myself shush him.

"What, are you crazy?" the bus driver asks him, giving all three of us the stink eye. "I guess you want every supervillain in the neighborhood to know we're here?"

"No, no, sorry," my brother apologizes.

"He's stupid," I mutter and he glares back at me.

"What's your name, freshman?" he stops my brother.

"Uh, Will Stronghold."

"The son of the Commander and Jetstream?" he asks hopefully.

"Yeah," I nod and the bus driver smiles happily.

"Everyone, it's Will Stronghold, son of The Commander and Jetstream," he introduces him to the whole bus.

"And his sister, also the child of The Commander and Jetstream," I pipe up and he looks at me just as excitedly.

"My name is Ron Wilson, Sky High bus driver," the man introduces himself to us. "If there's anything I can do to make your journey more comfortable, let me know." He looks to the front seat, "You two, up! The seat behind Ron Wilson belongs to Will and..."

He glances at me, wondering my name and I fill it in for him, "Ada."

"Will and Ada Stronghold," he finishes proudly and makes the girl with purple hair and the boy in orange vacate the seat.

"It would be an honor," the orange kid agrees.

"You don't have to," Will and I say in unison. This twin thing gets old real fast.

"No, no, I want to. You're third generation! Magenta, get up," orange kid ushers his friend, Magenta, to move.

"Why?" she asks in a sad tone. "What about that one?" she points to Layla.

"Just a friend," Layla says.

"We basically grew up together. She's like family," Will nods.

Right. Family. Not a crush at all.

"Well, in that case," some guy with curly hair and glasses stands up, "Hi. I'm Larry."

"Let's sit," Layla turns to me and the three of us move to seats towards the back.

"Special treatment already?" I ask in surprise.

"Sup!" a dude in yellow yells at us. It's my brother's friend, Zach.

They initiate conversation as I begin to overthink, as usual. I haven't even gone over my schedule yet. What if the teachers hate me? What if I don't make any friends?

"Ada," a hand grabs mine, "are you okay?"

I look over at Layla and nod.

"Nervous?" she asks.

"Mhm," I press my lips together.

"Me too," she says and links our pinky fingers together. "But, I'm here for you."

"And I'm here for you, too," I assure her with a smile.

Suddenly, the bus jerks to an abrupt stop and picks up a kid.

"That's everybody," Ron The Bus Driver says. "Next stop: Sky High!"

We go into a construction zone and then a bridge that has a sign blocking it stating that the road is closed.

"Where are we?" Layla asks.

Suddenly, seatbelts strap around us and I gasp, leaning closer to my neighbor.

"Hang on back there!" Ron calls.

I close my eyes as our speed increases.

"Here we go!"

Ron yells and I hear everyone yell, even Layla.

"I'm gonna die! I'm gonna die! I'm gonna die!" I keep repeating to myself in fear. I'm terrified of heights. Terrified.

So, when I open my eyes and we're in the clouds at full speed, I feel nauseous and like I might faint.

"There she is: Sky High, kept aloft by the latest in anti-gravitational propulsion. She is in constant motion as a precaution against those who otherwise might have nefarious plans. Her location is supplied to only a handful of highly qualified individuals, such as myself, Ron Wilson, bus driver."

"Hey, it's okay now," Layla wraps her arm around my shoulder as I keep my eyes closed and breathe heavily from anxiety.

"Smooth and easy." I feel us lose altitude.

And then, the landing is anything but smooth and easy.

"Sorry! Word of advice: Don't miss the bus. The bus waits for no one," Ron opens the doors to let us off. "Except you, Strongholds. If you're ever running late or you're running early or you just want to talk," he grabs a business card and hands it to Will, "give me a call."

"Thank you," I say on behalf of both of us and then we walk towards the school.

As a collective whole, we see flying students, students with laser vision, a student who mastered her freezing powers, and cheerleaders that can multiply. That's so cool!

It's cool, until a tornado surrounds us with wind and scares us to death. Will falls back onto me slightly from the vortex's pressure, until someone stands in front of us: Super Speed Guy.

"Hey, freshman. Your attention, please," Super Speed Guy speaks up.

"I'm Lash," a boy with powers similar to Elastigirl comes over, "this is Speed. And as representatives of the Sky High Welcoming Committee, we'd be happy to collect that fifteen dollar new student fee."

Lash's hand extends to me and I look at him, "I never saw anything about a new student fee."

"Trust us, princess. It's legit," Speed laughs with Lash.

"Don't," Layla whispers to me.

"Okay, guys. Very funny. I'll take over from here," a girl in pink walks over. She is very... pink. "Hey, everybody, I'm Gwen Grayson, your student body president. I know you're all going to love it here at Sky High."

She goes over everything she needs to introduce to us. She seems really nice and she's definitely pretty.

"If you can just follow those few simple rules, I promise you won't fall off the edge of the school," she concludes her speech and we laugh. "Now, just follow me inside for orientation."

"Rules? What rules?" Will asks.

I guess I'm not the only one who thinks she's pretty.

⌲⌲⌲

We're lead into a space that looks like a gym and suddenly, a blast of energy and light flies above us and lands. This is the coolest place ever.

"Good morning. I am Principal Powers," the lady from the ball of light introduces herself. "On behalf of all the faculty and staff, welcome to Sky High."

"Yeah!" Zach claps excitedly and she gives him a look of disapproval. He's just excited.

"In a few moments, you'll go through Power Placement and your own heroic journey will begin," she explains.

"'Power Placement?'" Will asks quietly.

"Sounds fascist," Layla frowns.

"Power Placement. It's how they decide where you go," the orange kid behind me says.

"The hero track or the loser track," Magenta clears it up for us.

"There's a loser track?" Will questions. He may be more nervous than I am.

"I think the preferred term is 'Hero Support.'"

"For now, good deeds and good luck. Let the adventure begin. Comets away!" Principal Powers disappears just as quickly as she came.

"All right. Listen up," a middle aged gym teacher now stands before us. "My name is Coach Boomer."

"Okay, Boomer," I hear Zach laugh to himself.

"You may know me as 'Sonic Boom.' You may not. Here's how Power Placement is gonna work: You will step up here and show me your power. Yes, you will do so in front of the entire class."

No pressure, right?

"I will then determine where you will be assigned," he continues. "Hero or sidekick. Now, every year there are a few students, or as I like to call them, 'whiner babies,' who seem fit to question and to complain about their placement. So, let's get one thing straight. My word is law. My judgment is final. So, there will be no whiner babies. Are we clear?"

I nod in understanding. He's a very intimidating man, I hate to say.

"I said, 'Are we CLEAR?!'" his voice literally blows us back and almost bursts my eardrums. I cover my ears in a panic.

"Yes, Coach Boomer!" we all yell.

And then, he blows a whistle, "Go time." A ladder drops down from the platform. "You, what's your name?"

"Larry," the boy with glasses says.

"Little Larry. Get up here," Coach Boomer says.

"What's humiliating him in front of everyone going to prove? This is so unfair," Layla states.

"Maybe he'll surprise us?" I suggest.

"Look at him," Will whispers.

"You're one to talk," I glare at him.

And in that moment, Larry growls and becomes a huge rock monster.

"Oh!" I smile, though a little scared.

"Car," Coach Boomer presses a button as if he is not impressed.

A car drops from the ceiling and on top of Rock Monster Larry. Larry catches it.

"Big Larry. Hero," Coach Boomer nods in approval.

"It's always the underdog," I smile.

"You were right," Layla nods. "Still fascist, though."

"So, he's good," Zach speaks up. "I'm better."

Zach walks up on the platform and Boomer glares at him, "Did I say you were next?"

"Name's Zach, Coach Boomer. Try not to drop your clipboard."

He claps his hands and smiles out to us.

"Any day now, superstar," Coach Boomer says.

"I'm doing it," Zach says.

"Doing what?" Coach asks him.

"I'm glowing," he says like it's obvious.

"He's not glowing," I whisper.

"I don't think so," Coach says.

"Well, it's easier to see in a dark room," Zach argues. "Maybe we could turn out these lights, you could cup your hands real close to your eyes, and look real close..."

"Sidekick," Boomer decides.

"Are you sure-"

"SIDEKICK!"

Zach is blown away by Coach Boomer.

"Now, you. Front and center."

"Me?" I ask in surprise.

"Up here now," he demands and I frown before making my way up onto the platform. "Name."

"Ada Stronghold, sir," I say nervously.

"Stronghold. Commander and Jetstream's kid," he notes. "Let's see what you've got."

"Um... okay," I nod and prepare myself. I just have to impress him.

I channel my energy into my fingers and icicles develop like Wolverine's claws.

"Popsicles?" Coach Boomer isn't impressed. "That's it, Stronghold?"

"No," I say.

"Then, what else?" he's becoming impatient.

"Okay, hold on," I nod as I try to get into the zone since I've only done it a few times.

"What are you doing? What is she doing?" Coach Boomer mocks me as I stand still in a neutral position to clear my mind. Layla taught me meditation in middle school and that was when I first discovered my powers.

"She's focusing," Will stands up for me.

"Hurry up. We don't have all day," he says impatiently.

"If you could wait just one second!" I turn to him angrily. He's shocked, but I can't stop myself. "You expect us to come here, practically unprepared, so you can sort us one way or the other. Just give me a moment!"

And then, my icicle fingers project throughout the room and crystalize everywhere.

The students gasp in shock. Flurries are frozen all around us. I've never done this before.

Coach Boomer is even stunned as he reaches out to touch a snowflake.

"Like I said," I focus my energy and control the ice to shrink all into an orb in my hand. I hold it like a delicate baby, surprised that this just came to me. "I just needed a moment."

"Stronghold..." Coach Boomer looks at me. "In a battle, you don't get a moment to focus. It's a do-or-die situation. And I don't appreciate you yelling at me."

I look down. I'm ready for his next words.

"But, you have the heart of a hero, so that's where I'm putting you. Stronghold. Hero!" he announces and I smile excitedly.

"Hero?!" I repeat.

"No more acting out," he tells me and I nod excessively.

"All right," I say as I get off the platform and rush back over to Will and Layla.

"That was so awesome," Magenta says to me. "You totally stood up to him."

"Your powers are so awesome, Ada," Zach holds out his hand for a high-five, which I accept.

"You gave into his system," Layla frowns.

"I'm sorry. But, you know how long I've wanted to be in high school. I didn't want to screw it up," I explain.

"You didn't let me finish," she stops me. "But, what you did was cool. Literally."

I smile excitedly, "Thank you, Layla."

"Nice job," Will nods.

"You'll do great, too," I assure him.

"I need a power in five minutes. Good luck to me, huh?" he sighs.

"You. Flower child," Coach Boomer says. I turn to Layla. "Let's go."

"I believe in only using my powers when the situation demands it," Layla says.

"Well, you're in luck. This is the situation and I'm demanding it," he counters.

"But, to participate in this test would be to support a flawed system," she continues. Oh, no. This isn't going to be good. "I think the whole hero-sidekick dichotomy only serves to-"

"Let me get this straight," he stops her. "Are you refusing to show me your powers?"

"It's more complicated than that. I mean-"

"Sidekick!" he yells at her and my face falls. She isn't in the same class as me?

"Dude," Will turns to her in confusion.

"I will not listen to the man on a situation like this," Layla defends her choices.

"I don't understand you, but I respect you," I tell her. "We just won't have any classes together."

"Oh. I didn't really think of that, Ada," Layla's face falls. "I'm really sorry."

"All right. We'll pick it up right after lunch," Coach says. "Starting with you," he points at Will.