All eyes were on Super Hero High’s newest student, the one they had heard so much about. The one who was supposed to bring the school to a Super Triathlon victory. The one…the only…

Wonder Woman stepped onto the takeoff pad. She fastened her safety harness, even though she was certain she wouldn’t need it. Other than the low buzzing sound from Bumblebee, who had made herself tiny, there was silence on the Ferris Flight Track.

Red Tornado could hardly contain himself. He took a deep breath, then shouted, “TAKE OFF!”

In a heartbeat, Wonder Woman was flying. As she soared high into the air, her classmates look stunned by what they were seeing. Some gasped. Others gawked. It was spectacular.

Spectacularly bad.

As she ping-ponged back and forth on the Flight Track, hitting the clear poly-strength ultra-rubber sidewalls fortified with titanium trellis beams, Wonder Woman struggled to gain control. She had miscalculated her takeoff, rising far too quickly. But as she tried to adjust midair, a glint from below momentarily blinded her. Distracted, all Wonder Woman could think of was what Cheetah had said about her mother: “If you don’t fly flawlessly, you’ll let her down.”

From high in the air, it looked like everyone was twirling around on the ground. Or maybe I’m the one who’s spinning, Wonder Woman thought. The only person she could make out clearly was Red Tornado, and he looked like he had just eaten a lemon, or maybe two. The more she thought about her teacher and what he must think of her, the worse Wonder Woman’s flying became. Finally, he blew his whistle and reined Wonder Woman in with the remote-controlled safety harness. It was, as the whispers echoed, “a disaster.”

None of her fellow flyers would meet her eyes, and when she glanced at the nonflyers, only Cheetah and Frost looked back. Cheetah winked at Wonder Woman while Frost turned to her compact mirror and applied her blue lipstick.

Miss Martian unhooked the safety harness in silence, turning invisible to avoid having to say anything to Wonder Woman about her ill-fated flight.

“It’s happened to all of us,” Hawkgirl said, trying to comfort her friend.

“I mess up all the time,” Bumblebee assured her, even though Wonder Woman knew she was just trying to console her. Harley had told her that even though Bumblebee’s parents were not super heroes, the super hero suit she’d built—coupled with her unique DNA—made her an excellent flyer. “And with everyone watching,” Bumblebee continued generously, “well, it’s no surprise that you’d get nervous.”

The weird thing, though, was that Wonder Woman hadn’t been nervous. Sure, she’d ascended too quickly, but she had done that in the past when miscalculating headwinds, migrating birds, and low-flying spacecraft. But this time, Wonder Woman had been unable to self-correct, and she’d let self-doubt take over. How was she ever going to save the world if she couldn’t even fly straight?

Just then, Wonder Woman noticed Harley waving to her and holding her camera in the air. “Got it!” Harley shouted. “The W-Threes are gonna love this!”

“The who?” Wonder Woman asked. Her shoulders slumped.

“The WWWs, the W-Threes—the Wonder Woman Watchers. I’ve got millions of them! Or maybe hundreds, but that’ll change. They love my exclusive videos of you. My goal is to bring my numbers up, and with your help, HQTV will be a media darling! You are my not-so-secret weapon!”

Wonder Woman didn’t want to be a not-so-secret weapon, but her mother had told her that as a super hero, she was a role model, and being in the news was just part of the job.

“It’s information and entertainment,” Harley explained, executing a double backflip while still holding her camera. “I’m doing a service for the community with my videos. If you can’t attend Super Hero High, at least you can watch what happens there!”

Wonder Woman noticed a serious-looking girl standing on the sidelines, taking notes. Her black hair ran past her shoulders, and she was wearing a crisp white T-shirt and clean, cuffed jeans.

“I like your necklace,” Wonder Woman said. When the girl smiled, she didn’t look serious at all. She looked warm and friendly.

“Thank you,” she said, “but do you want to know a secret?”

Wonder Woman nodded.

“It’s not a necklace…it’s my press pass.”

While Wonder Woman pondered that, the girl extended her hand. “I’m Lois Lane. I’m a reporter from Metropolis High, and I cover the super hero beat. You can find my articles on my Super News website. Whoa!” Lois suddenly exclaimed. “That’s quite a handshake you have there. Maybe you should go easy on us mortals!”

As she blinked back the pain, Lois asked, “Would you be up for an interview sometime? Metropolis citizens want to know all about the new super hero who’s going to school in the middle of their city. What do you say? I’ll treat you to the best fruit smoothie and sweet potato fries you’ve ever had.”

Wonder Woman really didn’t want any more media attention, but Lois Lane seemed nice and, well, she’d never tried sweet potato fries. Would they taste sugary, like her cereal? “Sure,” Wonder Woman said, then paused. “Are you going to write about me messing up in flight class?”

Lois Lane shook her head. “I’m sure we can come up with more interesting stuff than that.”

“Thank you,” Wonder Woman said gratefully. She wished she could tell Harley to stop airing her videos. But Wonder Woman wasn’t one to boss someone around…unless, of course, it was required for saving the world.

Trying to put her disastrous flight behind her, Wonder Woman was looking forward to her Heroes Throughout History class. “Knowing the past can help us prepare for the future,” her mother always said.

“Over here!” Katana called out.

Wonder Woman made her way toward her friends, careful not to trip over the weapons that were left in the aisles. As she sat down, she was surprised to find a note on her desk. She looked around, not sure what to do with it. She hoped it wasn’t a message like the one she’d received that morning, telling her she wasn’t welcome at Super Hero High.

“Open it,” Poison Ivy mouthed.

Wonder Woman cautiously unfolded the piece of paper. She smiled when she saw what was inside—a drawing of the five of them: Poison Ivy, Hawkgirl, Katana, Bumblebee, and Wonder Woman, with the caption FABULOUS 5!!! And when she looked around, her friends were smiling back at her.

“Fabulous Five?” Wonder Woman asked.

“It could be our team name. Um, maybe,” Poison Ivy said, her cheeks turning a shade of pink that matched the flower pin she was wearing.

“Eyes up here, class!” Liberty Belle said, ringing a miniature Liberty Bell that sat on her desk.

Wonder Woman tucked the piece of paper into her pocket. She wanted to keep it forever.

As her teacher talked, Wonder Woman admired her mass of blond hair and the Liberty Bell emblem on her sweater.

“It is with great delight that I welcome Wonder Woman into my classroom,” Liberty Belle was saying. Her voice rang loud and clear. “In honor of your being here, I’ve got a special lesson plan for today!”

Wonder Woman took in a sharp breath when she saw whose picture was projected on the screen in the front of the room.

“Hippolyta is the celebrated Queen of the Amazons,” Liberty Belle said, placing her hands over her heart and adding, “and a personal favorite historical figure in my eyes. As legend has it, she rules over an island populated by female warriors, and has one daughter. Wonder Woman, please stand.”

There were pockets of applause, most enthusiastically from her corner of the room.

“I am your mother’s biggest fan,” Liberty Belle gushed, “and have read all the myths and legends ever written about her!”

As her teacher continued to sing her mother’s praises, Wonder Woman began to doubt that she could ever live up to the Amazon queen’s legacy. Growing up, Wonder Woman had always thought that her mother was the greatest person in the universe. Smart, strong, kind, and giving. But she didn’t realize that everyone else felt the same way—and expected Wonder Woman to be just like her mom. That was asking a lot. Maybe too much.

As Liberty Belle continued, the only person not taking notes was Wonder Woman. She didn’t need to. She looked down at her notepad and was surprised to find another folded piece of paper on it. She smiled. Another drawing of her and her friends, she hoped.

It wasn’t.

Inside, in block lettering, a note read:

Crash much? I’ll bet your mother never did when she was flying.

Wonder Woman looked around the room. Everyone was facing forward, looking at the teacher. Everyone but Cheetah—who was looking straight at her.