Author's Note: This story is set in the 'With Enemies Like These' verse. You'll see former characters from the last stories, OCs and canon alike, as well as brand new ones. Now doesn't that sound exciting?

I never thought I'd actually write this, but it's been stuck in my head for ages and I simply had to. We'll see how this one goes. Credit to Arnold the female purple pygmy puff for her beta work and to Dr. Seuss for the story title (thanks for the heads-up Katrinka!).

Disclaimer: I don't own Sky High, or any of its canon characters.

Prologue

I was running down the street, chasing an evil villain who was threatening the blow up the entire world with a bomb. I had to be quick.

"Stop right there!" I yelled. With a running leap, I tackled the villain. Soon, we were locked in fierce combat.

Bam!

Pow!

Wham!

I ducked and turned, throwing punches that soon had my villain dazed. I must have looked so cool.

"Ready to give up?" I asked in my best Hero voice.

"Never!" the villain said, like they always did. He tried to fight me and get away. But I was ready. Rearing back, I threw the best punch I could-

-my cape caught on the wardrobe door. I crashed to the floor, taking a chair with me.

"Ow," I moaned, rubbing my knee.

"Evie, what was that?" my mom's voice called out anxiously from downstairs.

"Nothing, it's okay!" I called back. Ripping off the bed sheet I'd tied around my shoulders, I muttered, "Stupid cape."

I'd been playing Heroes and Villains for years, but no matter how careful I was, I always tripped up over my cape. I had to keep practicing.

Someone knocked on my door. I quickly set the chair I'd toppled right again, bundled up the bed sheet and threw it the corner.

"Uh... come in!"

It was my dad. He's the coolest dad in the world. He used to be a superhero, way before I was born. But he retired after he got hurt. I tried to ask him how it happened, but he doesn't like to talk about it.

"Your mother told me to check on you. What are you up to in here?"

"Nothing," I told him.

Dad didn't believe it for a second. "Just... try not to dismember yourself."

"Won't make any promises," I told him solemnly, then grinned. "When's Anna getting here?"

"In a little while, keep your hat on. She's probably caught in traffic. In the meantime, no rough play, all right?"

I made a cross over my heart. Dad smiled.

When he left I got up and put my sneakers on. I couldn't wait to see my big sister. She was taking me to the movies and then for pizza to celebrate my birthday. My birthday was actually tomorrow, but Anna was going to be working so she promised to take me out today. She's the most awesome sister ever. She's a superhero too, and she saves the world every single day. Okay, maybe not every day. She also works at the library across town. But when she's not there, she puts on her costume and takes down tons of bad guys. I even see her on the news.

I put on my jacket and grabbed my hairbrush. When I was done, I took a quick look in the mirror to make sure I was okay. People say I look a lot like my mother. That kind of makes me nervous. Not because I don't want to look like her or anything. But if I'm too much like her, then I might not get superpowers like Dad and Anna.

"Evie! Your sister's here!"

"Yes!" I yelled excitedly, and ran down the stairs.

Anna was waiting by the door. Her face beamed when she saw me. I ran to her and buried my face in her coat.

"I thought you forgot," I mumbled, not sure she'd heard me.

"Like I would," she said, laughing when I pulled back. She looked over my head and said, "Hi Mom."

"Hello sweetheart," Mom said, coming over to hug her. "So, you two are off on a girl's night out?"

"We're going to the movies, then pizza and ice cream," I told her.

"Keep away from the scary movies. And don't overdo the dessert," Dad said.

"Dad, I'm practically ten now. I'm not a baby," I said, rolling my eyes.

"Don't worry Dad, I'll take care of her. As always." Anna looked down at me with a grin. "Ready to go?"

"Yeah. Bye Mom, bye Dad!"

"Have fun!" Mom called out.

"Be careful!" Dad added.

When we finally got outside I asked, "Is it me or is Dad getting worse?"

Anna laughed. "Trust me, it's not just you. So, what movie do you want to see?"

"Zombie Planet IV!" I said immediately.

"No way. You know you're not allowed to watch scary movies."

I gave her my sweetest smile. "I won't tell if you won't."

"Evie, you'll get nightmares. Pick something else."

"Oh fine," I sighed. "'Atomic Man' then."

"Atomic Man's fine."

Anna sounded kind of distracted. I glanced up at her. She was looking up the street, like she was expecting something. I immediately figured out what.

"Warren's coming, isn't he? Anna, I thought you said it was going to be a girl's night out."

"It is. He's just dropping us off. I thought you'd like to go to the movies in style," Anna said jokingly. "Now you know the drill- if Dad asks, you haven't seen Warren today."

"Warren? Warren who?"

"That's my girl."

Dad doesn't like Warren very much. I'm not sure why. He says that Anna's too good for him, and usually likes to pretend that Warren doesn't even exist. I think it's dumb, since he and Anna have been married for about forever now.

An old black car pulled up in front of us. Anna opened the creaky back door and I got in. Anna got in the passenger seat, and didn't waste any time in giving Warren a big kiss.

"Gross!" I said, making a face.

"Nice to see you too," Warren said sarcastically, before tossing something gift-wrapped in the backseat.

"Happy Birthday," he added, smiling at me in the rear-view mirror.

I pounced on the present and unwrapped it quickly. It was the latest edition of the Chimera and the Silent Dart comic book series.

"Oh, cool! These don't go on the shelves till next month! How'd you get it?"

"I have my ways," he said, before he drove onto the street. Anna gave him a small frown she probably thought I didn't notice.

"She likes them, sue me," Warren muttered to her.

I was so excited for my fun night to start, it seemed to take a million years to get to the movie theater. When we finally arrived I jumped out, still clutching my comic book and headed to the ticket booth.

"Hey, wait up Evie!" Anna called out, getting out of the car. "Don't run off, okay?"

I sighed. What did she think I was going to do, follow some stranger into a dark alley?

"I'll see you tonight," Anna said to Warren, kissing him goodbye.

"Come on, Anna," I said.

"I'm coming, sheesh."

We had a great time. Anna bought me a jumbo box of popcorn and a large Mountain Dew at the concession stand. Atomic Man was awesome, blasting the radioactive rays from his hands at his enemies. It reminded me of Anna. I stared at the screen, wishing I didn't have to wait three or four more years till I got my own powers.

"What did you think of the movie?" Anna asked me when we left.

"It was amazing! Did you see the way he double punched those guys in the nuclear lab? Boom! Man, I can't wait to use that move when I fight crime. We're going to be so awesome together."

"Together?"

"Yeah, when I become a hero. We'll share your Headquarters and everything. I'll have a big shiny cape, and... what's the matter?"

Anna wasn't smiling anymore. She was looking at me funny, in a sad kind of way.

"What did I do?" I asked, worried.

"Nothing, nothing," she said, trying to smile. She put an arm around my shoulders as we walked to the pizzeria. "You know," she said after a while, "Being a superhero is nice. But it's not the only great thing in the world. I mean, you could be a million other things. Like a teacher, or an artist, or-"

"But I want to be a hero, like you and Dad," I insisted. "I want to save people and fight crime."

Anna looked kind of disappointed. But she nodded and said, "Fair enough."

At the pizzeria, she ordered a pizza with pepperoni and pineapple, my favorite. I asked her if I could have a double banana-split afterward.

"You'll get a stomachache," she warned.

"It'll be worth it."

Anna sighed. "Okay. But we're sharing."

That was when it happened.

There was a very loud bang. Someone shouted, "This is a robbery- everyone down!"

People started screaming. Scared, I looked up and saw a man holding a gun. But that was only for a second. Anna pulled me to the floor, behind our table.

I blinked at her. She was in her Hero costume, white and shining.

"Stay down, no noise," she whispered so quietly, I just barely heard her.

I just nodded. I was too scared to speak.

She stood up and I shut my eyes. My heart was pounding. This wasn't like in the comic books or the movies, or even when I played Heroes and Villains. I didn't feel brave at all. I just wanted to be safe at home with Anna and Mom and Dad.

"Put the gun down," Anna said in a calm voice. I heard some people scream. My chest suddenly felt tight.

"You stay right there, White Star!"

"No one has to get hurt here. Why don't you let these people go?"

I knew she was trying to get the people to safety, including me. But even though I was scared, I didn't want to leave her.

"No one's going anywhere!" the man yelled, and I heard a click that made my stomach drop. "As for you... you're not going anywhere ever again."

"No!" I cried without thinking. Forgetting what Anna had told me, I jumped to my feet and saw the bad guy, who immediately turned the gun to me.

"Evie!" my sister screamed, and I never ever heard her sound so scared.

I heard a shot. Everything went black-

For a split second, I felt like I was being yanked from the inside out. It was horrible. The next thing I knew, there was a shout, then a loud screech of tires. I slammed back into a seat that definitely wasn't there a second ago. That was when I realized: I was in a car. A really familiar car.

Warren was staring at me from the front seat in shock.

"Evelyn? How the hell did you get in here?"

I couldn't answer. My eyes filled up with tears. I suddenly felt really sick.

Warren recognized the look.

"Oh no. Evelyn, don't-!"

But it was too late. I pitched forward and threw up in his car.