by R. J. Ross
CAPE HIGH KINDERGARTEN
BY
R.J. ROSS
Cape High Kindergarten
Amazon Edition
Published by Book Candy Publishing
Copyright © 2019 by R. J. Ross
All Rights Reserved
Cover art and design by Leslie Zielinski
This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Amazon and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are products of the author’s imagination and are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
~Other works by R.J. Ross~
The Winstead Files Series
Courting the Beast * Snow White, Snow White
Seasons of the Fae Series
Raven's Return * Death of a Dryad * Water Wielder
Cape High Series
Super Villain Dad * America's Grandson * Hello Kitty * Don't Know Jack * Daddy's Girl * Aces Wild * Steampunk Time * Fire Hazard * Ditto Ditto * Sunny Daze * Life Light * Guitar Hero * Super Girls * Shadow Boy * Super Villain Grandpa * Mic Drop * Coyote’s Howl * Rocky Road * Rainbow Rush * Rise and Shine * Burn Out * Stringless Puppeteer *America’s Firewall * Mimic You
Cape High Side Stories
Cape High Christmas: A Side Story
Cape High Villainy: A Side Story
Reaper’s Darlin’: A Cape High Side Story
Cape High Kindergarten: A Side Story
Cape High: Days Past
Ringmaster (Toodles)
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER ONE
*A While Back*
Ashlynn Jones looks up at the rather broken-down looking apartment building, wondering if she’s in the right place. That’s hard to ask, though, of the two black suits that have driven her and her daughter here. They seem to think this is the right place.
“So, you were working for the same children’s home that your daughter was living in?” the female black suit asks.
“Something like that, yes,” Ashlynn says, picking Evie up and placing her on her hip. Her daughter’s eyes glow slightly since it’s so early in the morning. Her head sways more before she leans against Ashlynn’s shoulder and falls asleep again. “Are you certain this is where they want me to live? I know that Evie’s father knows about her now… but is he really that big of a danger?”
“Shadowman is extremely dangerous, yes, but he’s not wholly the problem,” a man says, seeming to appear out of nowhere. He has a massive cup of coffee in his hand. It’s letting off enough heat to create a cloud over the cup. “I’m not usually a morning person, but I didn’t sleep last night, so it’s all good.”
“Ashlynn, welcome to the apartments. You can call me Nico,” he holds out a hand and then smiles slightly as he sees hers are full. “We’ll leave the hand shaking for later.”
“Technico, sir,” the black suits say, saluting him.
“If you’d get her things for her, we’ll have her moved in, in a second,” Nico tells them as Evie wakes up and looks around. She starts to smile, pointing at a random car, excitedly.
“Evie?” Ashlynn asks blankly, only to jerk slightly as a tall, lanky teenager pulls himself out of the ground next to the car. The teen grins widely as Evie cheers, reaching for him. His name is Rocco, he’s Evie’s half-brother. Ashlynn watches, silently, as he comes over and Evie jumps into his arms. Her daughter, who’s usually so shy that it’s painful, is chattering at Rocco at a mile a minute, now. They’ve only met ONCE.
She jerks as she sees her and Evie’s bags being carried past her. “I can hel—” she starts, only to stop as Nico pulls out the final five bags, himself, and STILL manages to keep one hand free for his steaming hot coffee.
“You don’t have much,” he says. “We’ll fix that, soon enough.” He heads for the front, only to stop. He puts the bags down, right next to where the black suits are standing, and pulls out his phone. A green light flickers over her, and then goes over Rocco and Evie. “Okay, you’re in the system. I need for you to press your hand to the screen here and step on the glowing footprints. Once we get you settled in, we’ll go over the information you’ll need for Monday.”
“Monday?” she repeats.
“That’s when I plan on starting the kindergarten class,” he says. “If it were up to Pan, it’d be today.”
“Oh… then, um… I’m going to need to come up with a curriculum. I was hoping to learn more about the children I’ll be teaching,” she says as she follows him into the beat-down looking apartment. She has no idea why she has to step on glowing footprints—then again, she’s not sure why a crummy place like this would HAVE something like glowing footprints in the first place.
“We have a curriculum that should work, but you’re welcome to change it up how you want,” he says.
The door slides open and she steps into the most amazing lobby she’s ever seen outside of movies. The walls are lit up with pictures of superheroes and villains, the floor tiles light up wherever someone steps, and the flower displays in the corners are absolutely stunning.
“You’re on this floor,” Nico says, heading down a hall. She almost has to run to keep up with him. “I’ll bring up the files there,” he adds over his shoulder before opening a door. “This is your place,” he says, heading in. She follows, slowly, taking in the apartment that he’s just giving her. “No rent, or bills, and you can get lunch at the school, so you only need to worry about breakfast and dinner, unless you eat more than three times. If you want fast food brought in, we’ve got a guy that lives here that can get it for you. You might tell others, though, because we’ll usually have something to order, as well. Now… phone, please,” he says, holding out a hand.
“It’s not hooked up to a company, or anything,” she says as she holds it out. “But I have all of my pictures on it—” she watches as he waves a hand and all of her pictures appear on the wall before they drop into a folder icon. Once that’s done, he crushes the phone in his hand, shocking her. “Is there a reason to do that?” she asks.
“They can be tracked,” he says. “I would have done it earlier, but we want the pictures. Here, your new one.” He hands her a new phone as Rocco comes in with Evie on his hips. “Now, let me bring up the files of the kids you’ll be teaching for sure. You can access these files by touching any flat surface in the room, by the way, so this will be a quick run-down.”
An image of a little girl appears on the wall. She looks to be of Asian descent and is absolutely adorable with her black hair up in pigtails and a wide smile that’s missing a few teeth.
“This is Hana Nao, the oldest of the group,” Nico says. “She’s going to be six in a month or two. She’s the daughter of Kim Nao, the tailor for Central Hall. According to her mom, she’s been showing some small signs of her powers, usually when she’s mad, but nothing too big, and nothing dangerous, so it shouldn’t be a problem.”
“What ARE her powers?” Ashlynn asks.
“She falls under the ‘material manipulation’ category,” he says simply. “You can find out more in her file. Next is Kayode Michael Panterus, who’s better known as Cubby,” he goes on, bringing up a file. A young black boy with brilliant blue eyes appears on the screen. S
he glances over as she sees Nico grin. “Don’t call him his real name, though, he hates it. It usually means he’s in trouble. He turned five this month. He possess some of his lesser abilities, already, balance and coordination are two of them. He also has his super hearing, already, so I ask that you don’t let the classes get too loud. If they do, well, make sure he’s wearing his earmuffs.”
“I see,” she says. “Is he also the child of someone I should be aware of?”
“He’s the son of Panther,” he says, “the most famous super villain in our hall. He’ll come into his shifting abilities when he’s thirteen, or so, and I’m sure he’ll have all of the different panther forms that his father does. You don’t need to worry about that, though. Next is his brother, Akoni Nathanial Panterus, but he goes by Robo.” A picture of a little boy who looks almost exactly like Cubby appears. The biggest difference is their hair style. Cubby has a flat top at the moment, while Robo has cornrows.
“Robo?” she asks.
“He’s, well, I suppose you could actually call him a sentient computer, since he’s a thinking, learning being. We’re just using the A.I. term because it’s something most people are aware of,” Nico says. “My daughter and I built him; Pan and Amara are raising him. He isn’t coming for the education, he’s coming so you can teach him to act like a normal child. Here are his schematics, including what he’s capable of—and how we’ve limited him. He’s a little too good at getting online without a proper security system.”
“I… see,” she says, feeling just a little worried at the thought of a child A.I. “Is he…” she doesn’t know how to put it, but she’s seen too many sci-fi horror movies where the A.I. goes insane and tries to control the planet.
“He wants to be a superhero,” Nico says dryly. “His mother even made him a cape. I’m going to have to deal with that before we actually put him out in the field.”
She nods, but her mind is still wrapping itself around all the new information. “We have a classroom for you already ready, complete with access to all the things you put into this one. The curriculum we have is in that file, there, you’re welcome to go over it and change it.”
“This will be separate from the older kids, right?” she asks. Everyone knows that there are dangerous supers being trained in Cape High!
“For the most part, yes, but I would prefer it if you came to the cafeteria for lunch,” he says. “That way we make sure they get a hot meal.”
“Will the children be safe?” she asks.
“Eh, getting climbed on by little guys like these isn’t going to hurt anyone,” Nico says. She stares at him blankly as turns to her, his amused smile disappearing into a look of seriousness. “I train good kids, Ashlynn. They aren’t going to hurt your little ones. But I don’t know what you’ve been through, or seen in the past, so I’m not going to just force you to blindly accept what I tell you. You can watch them and see for yourself.”
She wants to say that she would do that, regardless of what he says, that she’s heard the line “they’re a good kid, I swear!” too many times, said by the same adults that look the other way when something bad happens. The children’s home had been a good place, as far as places go, but it hadn’t been perfect. Her daughter has been picked on too many times when she wasn’t looking, by “good kids.” She’s not going to allow it to happen here, as well, not when the perspective bullies have superpowers. She feels Nico watching her silently, now, and she almost jerks, wondering if he can read minds.
“Mastermental said you would be a good pick for this job, after you got used to how we do things,” he says. It’s said so casually that it catches her off guard. He changes the subject before she can reply. “There is another little girl that will be in your class, but her mother’s decided to do it next year, since she’s still a bit too young. We won’t worry about that one, for now. And last, but not least, is our youngest, Evie Jones,” he says, looking over at where Rocco’s laid the little girl down on the couch.
“Evie’s your daughter, sure, but she’s also the daughter of Shadowman. Shadowman is one of those supers that the world doesn’t know about. He’s working for the Hall now, but he’s got a nasty past, more than a few enemies, and two kids. I don’t like Shadowman, he’s done a lot of things that make me want to hate him, honestly, but I like his kids. I’m going to make sure that they have the best lives possible. That includes protecting them from any repercussions that his actions might cause.”
She nods, because there’s nothing else she can say. What he’d just said is exactly why she’s even here with her precious little girl. Evie CAN’T go to a normal school, her eyes already glow whenever she’s hit by a shadow, and if he’s right, that might not be the only problem she’s inherited.
“Just like your little girl, these children need to be in a safe place. That’s what you and I are going to provide,” Nico says.
“You’re right,” she says, “it is.”
***
*A Few Days Later*
“Everyone!” Miss Ashlynn says, clapping her hands. “Line up, line up! We have a very exciting day today, and we don’t want to miss any of it!” She watches as the little ones loiter around, and a few argue over who gets to be line leader. This image should make her delighted, she thinks, they’re some of the most adorable kids she’s ever seen. Not to mention the fact that her daughter is as happy as can be in her new class… it’s just… Seeing this sort of thing on TV is a lot different from seeing it in real life, she thinks as she looks down at the canyon floor.
The older kids are already well into their morning practice. She winces as a metallic skinned boy goes flying from a fight, hitting the rocky wall with a grunt. He drops to the ground, dusting himself off and then tugs his shirt off. “Darn it, Trent, Mom just bought me this shirt!” he complains as he reveals a tear.
“That’s why I told you to wear your uniform to sparring today!” Trent calls back.
“HI JACK!” Cubby shouts from where he’s standing in line.
“Cubby!” Jack yells back. “Hey, little guy! You gonna spar with us, today?”
“Can I?” Cubby asks, racing down the steps. Ashlynn shoots her hand out, but she’s too slow.
“Cubby, I don’t think you’re old enough for sparring, yet,” she calls after him. Five-year-olds shouldn’t see this sort of thing in real life, much less be invited to join! Teenagers shouldn’t be thrown into walls at school, either! If this was a normal school, they would have SO many problems, it’s not even imaginable! But it’s not a normal school, it’s a school for superheroes, and these adorable little ones she’s teaching? They’re going to grow up to be just that. She needs to keep reminding herself of those facts.
“Miss Ashlynn?” Hana asks, tugging on her shirt.
“Yes, Hana?” she asks, trying to ignore the sounds of fists hitting flesh, or metal.
“Cubby just got grabbed by a giant rock monster,” the adorable little girl says, pointing. Ashlynn looks, seeing the boy being carried by a girl made out of rock.
“It’s okay, Hana, she’s one of the students.”
“Hey! Hey! I want carried!” Robo yells, climbing up on the metal railing.
“Robo, please come down from there!” Ashylnn says. “It’s dangerous!”
“No it’s not, it’s Sandra,” Robo says, perching on the second rail and pointing.
“I meant standing on the railing,” Ashlynn says. “Come on, everyone, get in line. We’re going down the steps, now,” she urges them. At least Sandra stopped Cubby from jumping into the fight, she thinks, a bit light-headed. She keeps an eye out as her little class starts forward, inwardly praying that none of them fall. Kids at this age usually don’t have that good of balance-- Just as she thinks that, her own daughter trips. Her heart jumps to her throat and she lunges forward, only to blink as Robo catches her, easily.
“I can carry her,” he says, putting her down and turning around, his little arms going back to offer a piggyback ride.
> Ashlynn hesitates as Evie looks at her. “You won’t drop her?”
“I won’t!” he says.
It’s a ludicrous idea, except she knows for a fact that he’s not a normal kid. She’s actually seen a picture of his robotic structure in the files Nico sent her. “Okay, just for a little bit,” she says. Evie climbs onto his back, grinning widely.
“I want carried,” Hana says, tugging on her shirt. “Miss Ashlynn, I want carried! There are too many steps!”
Ashlynn feels a little at a loss, because she’s not sure it’s smart for her to carry the girl down the steps. “Um, okay, I—” she says, starting to pick Hana up. She almost jumps as a teen with a weird lizard shaped hairdo appears, grabbing the railing and pulling himself up. She’s positive that he climbed up the wall to get here.
“I can take her,” he says, hopping over the railing and onto the platform.
“Not if you’re going to climb the wall with her, you can’t,” Ashlynn says, pulling Hana away from him.
“I’ll take the steps, I promise,” he says.
“You’re gonna carry me?” Hana asks him, staring at his hair. “Did you know there’s a lizard on your head?”
“There is?” he asks, his eyes widening. “Oh, no!” He slaps his hair and she starts giggling. He grins at her, holding out a hand. “I’m Freddy,” he introduces himself.
“There are holes in your ears,” Hana says, looking fascinated.
“There are,” he agrees.
“Did it hurt?” she asks in a whisper.
“It started really little and kept getting bigger with the gauges—see the hoops?” he says seriously. “So it didn’t hurt, it just took a while.”
“You’re from the High School division, right?” Ashlynn asks.
“The only people you’ll find here are either teachers, students, black suits, or our janitor,” Freddy says. “If they look a little scary, don’t worry, they’re just super villains.”