Astrid Stronghold, cousin to Will Stronghold, lost her father to a Sidekick turned Villain and yet she still chose to become a Sidekick. Lash Livingston, Hero turned Villain turned Hero, would do whatever it takes to save Astrid, if she was ever in...
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Stepping off the bus, Astrid was unable to contain the small smile that graced her lips as she took in the large building in front of her. Aside from the two men who made some aspects of school unbearable, Sky High was a haven for Astrid. It was a place where she could escape the suffocation of her home and not feel ashamed to for the powers she possessed.
Across campus, students were relishing in the fact that they had returned to a safe space to demonstrate their powers. Two boys were using their powers to touch Amelia's rear end so she spun round and froze them in place. Penny Lent was performing her annual cheer with her clones, greeting the Freshmen and welcoming back the older students. Against her will, Astrid's foot began tapping along to the annoying song and she knew she'd find herself humming it during Mad Science yet again.
Stood at the top of the steps, Lash and Speed were eyeing the Freshman that had just stepped off the bus mischievously.
"Round 'em up, Speed." Lash ordered, grinning when he noticed a certain blonde stood near the young ones. "And little Miss Healer."
Zooming around the Freshmen, Speed chuckled as he forced them to pack together more tightly. Shuffling out of the way of the speedster and closer to her cousin, Astrid rolled her eyes in annoyance. Not even five minutes had passed before the menaces had made an appearance. In fact, they were slacking this year as Lash usually got her on the bus. However, she hadn't taken that bus this morning so managing to piss her off this quickly was impressive.
"Freshmen, your attention, please!" Speed smirked when he came to a stop in front of the fresh meat.
Stretching himself from the top of the stairs to Speed's side, grinning when Astrid shot him a look of disgust.
So easy to get under her skin, he sniggered to himself.
"I'm Lash. This is Speed," the striped boy introduced. "As representatives of the Sky High welcoming committee..."
"... We'd be happy to collect that $15 new student fee." Speed finished as Lash's hand stretched to reach in front of the kid with glasses, hand open expectantly.
"Um, there was nothing about a new student fee in the handbook," the kid questioned confused.
Stepping in front of the group, protecting them from the cruelty of Speed and Lash, Astrid was disgusted to discover that she and Lash were matching with stripes yet again. Luckily they were different colours but it seemed to be a habit of theirs.
"Leave them alone, Lash." Astrid demanded, shocked that she was standing up to him for once. "Go find something better to do than picking on fourteen year olds because it makes you feel powerful."
Usually she silently took the abuse – she allowed them to cruelly taunt her, wait until they got bored and continued with her day. However, without even thinking about it, she had defended the Freshman and insulted Lash with one sentence.
