by Lisa Yee
Mandy raced to her violin and blotted the spilled milk. “Expelled? No. Well…yes, but no. But not really. Only, just sort of. Do you know what I mean?”
Wonder Woman shook her head. Was this one of those math word problems? Was she supposed to add, then divide something?
“Can you tell me why you no longer go to Super Hero High?” she asked, handing Mandy a slice of cherry pie.
Both sat crossed-legged on the rug and began to eat.
“I never wanted to go to Super Hero High,” Mandy explained with her mouth full. “Wow, this is good crust!”
Wonder Woman nodded. It was.
Mandy continued, “My dad really, really, really wanted me to be a super hero. He tried to be one when he was younger, and, well, he didn’t quite make it. To make ends meet, he established himself as something of a villain…The Fiddler.” Mandy looked at the floor when she said this. Then she took a breath and sat up straight. “Dad wanted better for me, and I did want to make him proud. So I took all the tests, aced the interview, and was accepted into the school.”
Wonder Woman washed her pie down with a glass of milk, then helped herself to another slice, leaving only half of the pie in the tin. “What happened? Why did you leave?”
Mandy motioned to Wonder Woman’s face. “You have a milk mustache,” she said.
Wonder Woman looked in the mirror. “Oh! Yes, I do. Thank you,” she said, admiring herself.
Mandy thought for a moment. “Super Hero High wasn’t for me. I never even chose a super hero name. All my life I’ve wanted to be a great musician. I’d rather soothe the world with my music and let someone else save it.”
Wonder Woman raised her hand. “I’ll save it!” she offered.
“Good!” Mandy said, smiling. “I was hoping you’d say that.”
“Bumblebee said she heard you threatening Principal Waller,” Wonder Woman pointed out.
Mandy began to laugh. So did Wonder Woman, though she wasn’t sure why. Had she said something funny? This was good. Harley kept telling her to get a sense of humor.
“What happened was,” Mandy explained, “I had a heart-to-heart with The Wall. People think she’s really tough, but that’s not true at all. She’s really nice, only she doesn’t want anyone to know. It would ruin her reputation. Waller was convinced that I had super hero potential. I know that Super Hero High is ‘the’ place to be. But I wanted to go to an elite music school.
“My dad would never have allowed me to leave. But if I was expelled, then he couldn’t insist I stay, and the school wouldn’t look bad. So Principal Waller and I staged a little argument, and I got to come home!”
Wonder Woman’s mind was racing, trying to comprehend it all. “So what do you want to do?” she asked.
“I just want to create beautiful music for the world to enjoy.” Mandy picked up her violin.
At Super Hero High, everyone had a weapon to thwart evil. However, Wonder Woman noted, Mandy had an anti-weapon—something powerful, but capable of causing great happiness.
So if Mandy Bowin wasn’t the person behind the threatening notes, then who was? And why was that person so anxious for her to leave Super Hero High? Wonder Woman’s worry began to ramp up again, but then the strangest thing happened. Mandy closed her eyes and began to play her violin.
The music floated across the room, sweeping away Wonder Woman’s worry and replacing it with joy. In that moment, she realized that she, like Mandy, needed to be who she wanted to be, and not who everyone expected her to be—especially to some unnamed bully who wanted her out.
“You are a true virtuoso, Mandy!” Wonder Woman exclaimed.
“Thank you,” Mandy said without opening her eyes.
Then Wonder Woman did something she hadn’t done since she had arrived at Super Hero High school. She sat back and relaxed, then closed her eyes and got lost in Mandy’s beautiful music.
Dr. Arkham would have been proud.
In the days after she had met with Mandy Bowin, Wonder Woman felt a calm she had never experienced before. Though she was still uncertain about who wanted her out of Super Hero High, the question no longer plagued her. She stopped stressing so much and instead used the extra time to focus on her super hero training. After all, soon the Super Hero High’s Super Triathlon team members would be announced.
It would have been a fib for Wonder Woman to say that she didn’t want to be on the team. In fact, she wanted more than anything to represent her school in the competition. In every class Wonder Woman focused as hard as she could, asking questions, listening, taking notes. She honed her skills with her lasso, bracelets, and tiara. Wonder Woman worked and worked, and when she got tired, she rested, recharged, and worked some more. She was so exhausted at night, she slept soundly. She didn’t even hear Harley telling jokes and laughing at herself in her sleep.
Wonder Woman stopped watching the HQTV videos of herself and reading the comments. The only emails she opened were from her mother, and when an anonymous note was left for her, she handed it over to Hawkgirl or Lois, not bothering to read it.
Although she was tired, Wonder Woman had no problem getting up the morning of the team announcement. An assembly was scheduled, one that would change the lives of four of the students in the room. It usually took a couple of minutes for everyone to settle down. But on this day, no one was flying around or floating above their seats. No, everyone was where they should be and facing forward.
Onstage, the teachers sat on oversized thrones—Crazy Quilt’s idea—behind Principal Waller.
“Today we announce the members of Team Super Hero High,” The Wall began. The only sound in the auditorium was an infinitesimally tiny ping caused by a minor computer malfunction in Cyborg’s titanium circuitry system. “This designation is a high honor. Not only will those called represent the school, but their actions will be on display for the entire world, and beyond, to see.
“Team Super Hero High members, when I call your name, please join me on this stage,” Principal Waller said. There was a discernible shift in the auditorium air as she held up a sealed envelope. “Even I have not seen this final list yet.”
Wonder Woman could barely breathe.
“The first member of Team Super Hero High is…”
Wonder Woman leaned forward.
“Katana!”
The auditorium erupted in cheers. Doing cartwheels and landing on the stage, Katana gave Principal Waller a deep bow before doing the same to the teachers and then to the audience.
Wonder Woman clapped wildly for her friend, then sat down. There were three more team members, plus the alternate.
“Will Frost, please join us!” The Wall said.
The temperature dropped when Frost stood tall, surveying the audience. Wonder Woman thought she saw the hint of a warm smile on Frost’s face.
“And now, will Beast Boy make his way up here, please!” Principal Waller called out.
Shape-shifting from a boy to an elephant to a German shepherd to a gazelle, with several other animals in between, Beast Boy raised both arms in victory and blew kisses to the audience.
There was only one spot left on the team. Who would it be? Wonder Woman could hardly sit still. She looked around. Harley was bouncing up and down in her seat. Poison Ivy was twirling her long ginger locks. Bumblebee had gone from girl-sized to bee-sized and back again. Green Lantern was cracking his knuckles, and Cheetah looked miffed.
“The fourth member of Team Super Hero High is…”
Wonder Woman closed her eyes. She remembered how embarrassing it was when she thought she had been named Hero of the Month and stood up when Poison Ivy’s name had been called. She wanted to be sure not to make that mistake again.
Wonder Woman recalled her first day at Super Hero High, in this very auditorium, when she tripped while heading to the stage. That was only a couple of months ago. So much had happened since then, and…
“Wonder Woman!” Principal Waller said—again.
Wha…?
> “Wonder Woman, are you just going to sit there, or will you be joining your teammates on the stage?”
Huh?
“Go, Wondy, go!” Bumblebee said, pushing her up from her seat and down the aisle.
As she stood with the other members of Team Super Hero High, Wonder Woman could not believe she was there. Harley was videotaping.
“Hi, Mom!” Wonder Woman called to the camera. She almost added, “Hi, Mandy!” but caught herself, and instead said, “Hi, Virtuoso!” knowing that her new friend was watching and would understand the code name. Wonder Woman’s heart was about to burst with pride.
“We aren’t quite done yet,” Principal Waller said, clearing her throat. “These talented super heroes you see standing in front of you were selected not only for their individual talents, but for how their skills and powers complement each other’s. The final member of the team is an alternate. However, that person’s role is no less challenging. That’s because as an alternate, they must be able to step in at any time, taking over if one of the other team members cannot compete for any reason. Not only must the alternate have their own unique powers, but they have to be able to adapt their skills and abilities to the team’s.”
Wonder Woman looked out at the audience. Everyone was sitting still. “Our Team Super Hero High alternate is…”
Who would it be? Wonder Woman searched the crowd.
“Hawkgirl!” Waller called out.
The second her friend stepped onstage, Wonder Woman rushed over to hug her. Hawkgirl seemed to be in shock.
“Congratulations to all these fine young super heroes,” Waller said. “And to all of you. Each and every one of you has powers that you may not even be aware of yet. Though you are not on the Super Triathlon team, you are all part of the team here at Super Hero High, and together we will strive to make the world a better place.”
After the assembly, the coaches let the team members jump up and down, bounce off the buildings, fly through the clouds, slice things up, and run around the world—before asking them to meet in the gym.
Without regular classes, the team had one month to focus on training for the Super Triathlon. Star Sapphire, whose costume in Crazy Quilt’s class had earned her an A+, was put in charge of the team uniforms, and Bumblebee was named weapons/equipment manager. Harley, of course, was team videographer.
Even though she wasn’t on Team Super Hero High, it seemed to Wonder Woman that wherever she went, whatever she did, Cheetah was always right there.
“It should have been me instead of you,” she hissed, motioning to her bandaged leg. Others were always around, too, such as Barbara Gordon, the team statistician. Lois Lane was doing a Web series called The High Price of Competition, featuring team members not only from Super Hero High, but from other top-ranked schools as well. And the Riddler kept showing up and joking constantly that he was the alternate’s alternate. Hawkgirl didn’t find it funny.
The students had always been closely watched, but now they were really put under a microscope. The public couldn’t get enough about the private lives, or, as Harley called her series, Super Secret Lives, of teen super heroes.
The weeks flew by. All the teammates had their challenges. Beast Boy refused to double-check his work. Liberty Belle, who was in charge of the academic portion, had to keep telling him to slow down.
When it came time for the on-the-spot super hero interview, Frost had to be coached not to freeze out the judges. During the practice A/P test, which counted for a full 50 percent in prelims, Katana was so eager to show off her skills that she would whip out unregistered swords and knives. Bumblebee had to keep a special watch on her lest she cause the whole team to get penalized.
The only person who was stellar in all three categories was Wonder Woman.
“Hey, I’ve heard that a new super hero might be joining the student body soon,” Lois said as she took notes on everyone’s progress. “Know anything about it?”
Hawkgirl stopped doing pushups. “I’ve heard a rumor that they’re from another planet.”
“That would be great,” Wonder Woman noted. “It would be fun to learn a lot from someone different.” As it was, Wonder Woman was learning how to be a triathlete. Soon she would find out if she’d succeed. The one hundredth Super Triathlon competition was looming.
As mysteriously as the threats had started, they stopped. It had been several days since Wonder Woman had received one.
“I hope it’s over with,” Hawkgirl said.
“Many times if you don’t engage with the bad guys, they back off,” Lois Lane informed her. “I’ve done several articles about this, and generally villains are lashing out to try to get even for something that has happened to them. They’re cowards, really.”
“I may never know who it was, but I’m glad it seems to have stopped,” Wonder Woman said, letting out a sigh of relief.
Star Sapphire stood in front of the team with five mannequins, each covered with a blue cloth. “These,” she said, “are your Super Triathlon uniforms. I’ve taken each of your current super hero costumes and modified them, adding a Team Super Hero High logo and other embellishments to create a cohesive look.
“This past week, I’ve worked with Crazy Quilt and the Super Sewing Club to make these. If any of you has a problem with what I’ve done, then too bad. It’s too late. However,” she said, toying with her Violet Lantern ring and flashing an irresistible smile, “I’m sure you will love what I have done.”
With that, she pulled on a rope and the blue cloths were yanked up, revealing the uniforms. There was an audible gasp from the team.
“Star Sapphire, these are incredible!” Wonder Woman said. “These really complete us. Thank you!”
Star Sapphire smiled. “You’re welcome, Wonder Woman,” she said. “Anything for the team!”
Wildcat had taken on the role of head athletic coach for the triathlon. As he stood before the team with his blue SHH baseball cap worn backward, he reviewed the stats and analysis of each competitor, which Barbara Gordon had created with a computer program she’d developed herself. Wildcat nodded several times as he flipped through the pages. Sometimes he smiled. Other times, he frowned. Once, he laughed out loud.
“Your attention, please!” he called.
Katana sheathed her sword. Beast Boy turned human. Frost chilled out. Hawkgirl stood at attention. Wonder Woman coiled her lasso.
“You all have been putting in a two-hundred percent effort. As has our support team of Bumblebee, Star Sapphire, and Barbara,” he added. “But now is the time for one of you to step forward and assume your role as Team Captain. As such, it will be your job to lead and encourage the team— Yes, Wonder Woman, did you have a question?”
Wonder Woman put her hand down and shook her head. She had merely been volunteering to be Team Captain.
“Those of you who would like to be considered for this prestigious position— Yes, Wonder Woman, did you have a question?
Wonder Woman put her hand down and shook her head again. Again, she’d wanted to volunteer to be Team Captain.
“Ahem,” Wildcat said, taking off his SHH baseball cap and scratching his head. “As I was saying, if you’d like to be considered, then we would like to hear from you now.”
The team members looked at each other, and then stood up. Wonder Woman looked around and stood up, too.
“Good!” Wildcat noted. “You all are leaders. However, we are looking for a leader among leaders. Who would like to speak first? Tell us why you are suited for this role, and then, as a group, we will elect our team captain.”
Katana went first. “I can cut through any problem,” she promised, wielding her sword.
“As your team captain, I promise the other schools won’t know what’s happening!” Beast Boy said, morphing into a dozen creatures in less than ten seconds.
“I’ll stay cool under pressure,” Frost said as she made it rain icicles.
“Wonder Woman,” Wildcat said. “Your turn.”
> Wonder Woman stood before her coaches and peers. She thought about what her mother had told her, that she was an ambassador for Paradise Island. And now she was lobbying to be an ambassador for Super Hero High on the world stage.
“It would be an honor to lead this team to victory,” Wonder Woman began. Frost’s eyes narrowed. Beast Boy turned into a monkey and began scratching his armpit. Katana sharpened her blade. Wonder Woman noticed Cheetah lurking behind a tree.
She continued, “Each of us has powers, abilities, and enormous potential, but none of us is as powerful individually as we are as a team. The Super Triathlon is a team competition. This is not for personal glory, but to showcase what the students of Super Hero High can do when we pull together.
“I know that some of you have been told in the past what you can’t do. Well, I am here to tell you what you can do. You can embrace your inner super hero. Fly higher, run faster, fight harder, think smarter. We can do this together. We are Team Super Hero High, and if I am chosen to be your team captain, I promise to do everything in my power to make it happen. Because I believe in you. I believe in us.”
The last week rushed by in a blur. As Team Captain, Wonder Woman made sure not only that everyone trained hard, but that they stopped to relax and recharge, too.
“This music is great,” Katana said as she leaned against a tree and sliced Poison Apples for the team. “It’s really powerful. Who is this?”
“It’s an up-and-coming musician called Virtuoso,” Wonder Woman said, smiling at the thought of Mandy playing the violin in her room.
Just then, Principal Waller walked up to the team. “Sit back down,” she told them. “I’m just here to tell you how much I appreciate the hard work you’ve all been putting in. Tomorrow morning, we march into the LexCorp Super Triathlon Arena, and tomorrow night we will know which school takes home the championship title.
“Whatever the outcome,” Principal Waller said, “you are already winners. I want you to know that. You know that I don’t give out much praise”—everyone nodded in agreement, even the teachers—“so when I do, I mean it. And I mean it when I tell you that I am proud of each and every one of you. You are all great reflections of Super Hero High. Get a good night’s rest, and good luck. Tomorrow will be a big day.”