Sky High 2

Graduation

Will Stronghold glanced around at all of his classmates. It was hard to believe they were already seniors, ready to graduate and go out into the world of superheroes.

Sky High's graduation was not like ordinary ones. In this commencement, the members of the graduating Hero class would be assigned their sidekick selected from the Sidekick class. The Heroes had been given a form to fill out at the beginning of the year, listing their top three choices of who they would like as their sidekick. It had not been hard for Will to complete. A lot of his best friends were in the sidekick class, including his girlfriend Layla Williams. She, of course, had been his first choice. Once the Sidekick and Hero had been paired together, the Hero was allowed to choose his Hero Name, as well as the Name of his Sidekick. In the past, there had been some embarrassing choice of names. Will vowed he would try to be understanding and give his sidekick the best name possible, whoever he or she was. The staff had promised that the Heroes would try to all be given one of their top three choices, though there was no guarantee.

Will caught the eye of his best friend, Warren Peace, ahead of him in the Hero line. Warren gave him a wry smirk and a thumbs-up. Will grinned back. The ceremony would be starting any minute now, and the excitement in the air was palpable….

Pomp and Circumstance, the traditional graduation march, began to play. The Heros and Sidekicks moved forward in their respective lines, parallel to each other. They marched under the applause and approving smiles of the entire Sky High staff. Will spotted his parents, Steve and Josie Stronghold, in the audience. Of course, they had a video camera with them. Principal Powers was already at the podium, on the same stage where the incoming freshmen had been assigned just 4 years before.

Everyone took their seats in alphabetical order and the music faded away. Coach Boomer now took the microphone.

"Welcome," he said, and everyone's hands flew to their ears, which were now beginning to pop, as the tangible sound wave passed over them. Will groaned. Coach Boomer had supersonic sound powers; did her really need to use the microphone? "I would like to introduce our distinguished leader, Principal Powers." There was applause (and a sigh of relief) as Principal Powers re-took her place at the podium.

"Thank you, Coach Boomer. And welcome, one and all. I am pleased to be presiding over the commencement over the Class of 2009." She quickly held up a hand. "Out of respect for the graduates, and for efficiency reasons, please hold your applause until after all the diplomas have been issued and the Sidekicks have been assigned to their respective Heroes."

The diploma presentation began. Will slumped in his seat. He had a little time to wait, being "S" in the Hero class. Heroes were given their diplomas first, followed by the Sidekicks. Will pitied whoever had a last name starting with "Z" in the Sidekick class. Fortunately, the class was not very big. In a little over an hour, all the diplomas for both the Heroes and the Sidekicks had been issued.

Now, the valedictorian and salutatorian for both the Hero Class and the Sidekick Class spoke. Will's girlfriend, Layla, was the valedictorian for the Sidekicks. He listened attentively to her speech when it was her turn, for he was very proud of her, and then resumed tuning out the rest.

At last, at long last, the best part of Commencement arrived. Smart, Will thought, to have the Hero and Sidekick pairing be last. It made people stay in their seats, if nothing else.

A folder filled with white forms was brought out. One by one, the Heroes would be brought up in the same order that they had received their diplomas. A form with their name would be given to them, and that form would say at the bottom who had been assigned their Sidekick. The name of the chosen Sidekick would be read allowed, and that person brought up to be with their Hero. The Hero then had to choose their Sidekick's official name, followed by his own.

Will eyed the Sidekick section. His four friends, Magenta, Ethan, Zach and Layla were in there. Will and Warren had filled out their Sidekick choice forms together, to better insure that all four names of their friends appeared on a choice form at least once. With any luck, two of them would be assigned to Warren and himself. Will just hoped that the remaining two would get just as great Heroes.

Will perked up when Warren Peace's name was called. He took his form and glanced at it once before reading the name aloud: "Ethan Monroe." Ethan jumped up with joy in his classically orange suit and raced up to the stage. He shook Warren's hand and Warren grinned down at him, amused. Then, he announced: "Ethan will now be known as….Popsicle." The entire graduating class roared with laughter, and even Warren and Ethan exchanged grins. Will smirked. Popsicle had been a running gag with Ethan, ever since he had defeated Speed with Warren during the Battle of Sky High freshmen year. Warren had taken to using Popsicle as Ethan's pet name. Therefore, this was only fitting. The laughter died down as Warren continued. "As for me…I'll be called Hephaestus." Will thought it a clever name for Warren's fire powers.

The pairing continued. Will was surprised and pleased when Zach was picked to be Larry Campbell's Sidekick. Zach was given the name "The Glowstick." It suited his light powers (and also helped Larry, now known as "Bedrock Giant", since he was ironically afraid of the dark). Magenta, meanwhile, was paired with Penny. The latter could duplicate herself, while the former could shapeshift into a guinea pig. Unfortunately, Penny's naming was not at all creative, as Magenta ended up being just called "Guinea Pig Girl." Penny became "Ms. Multi-Task." Still, these pairings had turned out better than Will had hoped. Larry and Penny were in a steady relationship, as were Zach and Magenta. Since they were all paired together, they would most likely work closely as teams in the Superhero world, so that long-distance relationships could be avoided. It was well known that both these couples were likely to get married.

Finally, Will heard his own name being called. He slowly approached the stage….

7 Months Earlier

It was a crisp October evening at the Stronghold household. Will and his friends were over for dinner. Friday nights were always this relaxing. The Heroes had just turned in their forms for who they wanted as their Sidekicks.

"So, who did you all pick?" Mr. Stronghold, aka "The Commander" asked.

"Warren and I made sure that all our friends made it onto our forms at least once," Will explained, indicating their four Sidekick friends.

"Have you picked out names yet?" asked Mrs. Stronghold aka "Jetstream."

"I have already decided on Hephaestus," Warren replied.

"English, please,"quipped Zack. Warren glowered at him.

"He was the Greek god of fire and metallurgy."

The Commander passed out plates of food. "I think it's a fine name, Warren."

"I wish Will had your creativity," Jetstream added. "He had better not get up at Graduation and have thrown together some celebrity blend of our superhero names like 'Commandstream.'"

"I think that's a great name, Mrs. Stronghold," Ethan piped up. Jetstream gave him a forced smile that clearly meant You're not helping, dear. Will chuckled as he sipped his iced tea. He had been thinking of a name…but he could not find one that seemed right…

Back to Graduation

Thank God they did not make you put down a name on your Sidekick Choice form, Will mused as his thoughts returned to the present. He had finally come up with a name a week or so before the ceremony. Talk about a photo finish.

Will mounted the stage and accepted his diploma, as well as his form, from Principal Powers. He took the form and read the name aloud.

"My Sidekick is…Layla Williams." There was a cheer as Layla rushed to the stage. Will gave her a big kiss in excitement. "She will now be known as…Earth Queen. As for me, my Hero name is… Mr. Hummingbird." Will could see his Dad chuckle and his Mom turn to him and whisper, "That was so creative!"

Later, the graduates went outside for the traditional hat toss. As the hats came down, Mr. Hummingbird and Earth Queen shared a long kiss, now as Hero and Sidekick: partners in fighting crime and saving the world.