Antonio Higgins had always had abilities. They had realised that at a young age when they had first been taken to Sheepshead by his father - a place that would eventually grant them the nickname Racetrack. Whilst there, they had heard the most unusual of sounds. It sounded like utter gibberish and was what Race would later refer to as 'Horsish'. They could read the thoughts of animals. Unfortunately, none of those thoughts were in a language Race could understand. It was perhaps the most useless ability in the world which was why they had never told a soul about it. At least, they had never told any adult.
Racetrack had been attending Pulitzer Academy for years. A boarding school which their parents hoped would give them a better life and perhaps free them of their 'delusions' about gender. Race loved their parents. They just wished they could be a little more accepting. That wasn't to say Pulitzer Academy didn't have its perks. Far from it. It hadn't taken long for Race to realise they weren't the only one with...abilities. He, all three of their roommates had them too! Albert could breath underwater but was also somehow the world's worst swimmer. Barney could understand practically every language when people spoke to him but he could not read, write, nor speak it. Then came Kid Blink. Honestly, no one was entirely sure what his abilities were. Other than that he had a somewhat ethereal energy and a habit of carrying around the monstrosity that was Frank, his long furby (and also their dorm mascot). That was only counting Race's dorm mates. Each 'house' of dorm rooms was named after a borough of New York and Race had the honour of being Manhattan. They had quickly noticed a lot of Manhattan had abilities too. So did most of Brooklyn. All in all, it was reassuring to know they weren't alone.
They were all pretty good at keeping their abilities secret and attempting to cover for those who couldn't. Race's dorm mates seemed to specialise in that. They had never been caught out. That was, of course, until Barney Peanuts screwed up. Race hadn't been there when it happened. They had only heard about it second hand from their younger brother, Romeo. Supposed there had been an Italian exchange student being shown around the school grounds. After bumping in to Barney accidentally, she was quick to apologise to him instinctively in her native language and he responded back almost instantly. Barney had never had a single Italian lesson in his life. Race knew that for certain. He always complained about his inability to speak foreign languages. Though, being able to understand them all had never truly made it that much of a problem.
No one had seen Barney after that. A teacher had simply come and whisked him away to who knows where. No one had dared ask where or why. By the time his trio of roommates had made it back to his dorm room, it had been stripped of each and every one of Barney's positions all the way down to his bed sheets. Every trace of him was gone. Not a single spec of him remained. If it wasn't for the few group photos they had pinned to the room's notice board then it would have been hard to believe Barney Peanuts had ever lived there before. It would have been easy to believe he was just a name with no association to the three remaining roommates. Of course, the next logical response had been for the three of them to attempt to text and call him. Yet all three got the same response. 'The number you are calling has been disconnected.' That very quickly cemented a paranoia in all their minds. Something had happened to Barney Peanuts. Something terrible.
None of them dared to speak for a few moments, simply glancing around each other. "M-Maybe this a joke, right? Some ridiculous prank Barney's pulling on us. Nothing bad at all." Even before they had started speaking, Race knew it was bull. They knew they weren't even fooling themself with their suggestions. Even if Barney had set up a prank, he would have never gone to this extent. He would have never tried to scare them this much.
"...Maybe his parents took him out of school? They travel a lot so maybe they just wanted to be closer to him?" Albert supplied as he paced through the room.
Blink snorted, setting Frank down gently on Barney's now empty bunk. It felt wrong to see something so still and soulless on the bed that had once belonged to perhaps the most upbeat person Race had known. "Who are you two trying to fool? Barn's parents sent him here so he didn't have to be raised in a circus. Besides, that doesn't explain why his phone's disconnected." Race watched as his single eye seemed to stare right from them - as if somehow searching every crevice of the room. "...Al, what's that beneath your pillow?"
Both Racetrack and Albert gave an odd look at that. There was nothing visible under Albert's pillow? Still, said boy moved it out of the way and stared in shock at the note underneath. Barney's chicken scratch handwriting was unmistakable on the scrap of paper. "Don't let them find you too." He read aloud before taking a deep breath. "Oh fuck."
"For once, I think that's an understatement." Race whispered. This wasn't real. They had all worked so hard to keep everything secret. This couldn't be happening. Barney couldn't suddenly be missing just for the smallest possibility he had powers. They all thought they were being carefully; they were staying heading. Yet maybe...maybe they had been wrong. Maybe it been obvious this entire time but there were just those looking to catch them out. Maybe their lucky had just finally run out.
It seemed perhaps the Academy wasn't as oblivious as they had first thought. After all, who the hell would want to hurt Barney Peanuts?
YOU ARE READING
Newsboy Academia (Newsies / Sprace)
Fanfiction'Pulitzer Academy promised a normal experience to all its students. It denied entry to any and all powered individuals. It advertised as a safe space for the 'correct' members of society. A place to be praised. A place where no real powered children...
