Narrating
In Which A New Student Finds Herself Alone And, Eventually, Not So Alone At All
Kimiko Tohomiko held up a pamphlet next to a building. She stood on top of a hill, the sun obscured by a sky of gray, and her vantage point allowed her to view the ancient building as though it was the same size as the picture on the brochure. The building on the cover and the building in front of her were identical. Both were massive stone structures, like something out of medieval times. "Hey, kid, you want me to help you with your luggage?" asked the cab driver that had brought her to the hilltop.
"Um, no thanks," she replied as he hauled her duffel bag out of the trunk. "One of the perks of private school; valet service 24/7."
The cabbie chuckled. "Can't say I know much about private school, kid." As he drove away, Kimiko turned to face the daunting school.
"Yeah. Me neither." She bent down and pulled up her duffel bag, grunting at the weight. Between that and her backpack, she felt as though she was carrying a ton. Slowly, Kimiko made her way down the hill, lugging her duffel bag until she reached the long flight of steps in front of the building. She set down her bag, grabbing the straps and dragging it the rest of the way up. "Great idea, Kim," she muttered as she walked backwards, duffel bag thudding with each step. "Valet service my butt. Why couldn't I have let the nice cab driver help?"
"Miss Tohomiko?" Kimiko stopped, nearly dropping her bag back down the stairs. She had just reached the top, where an old man stood, wearing a blue suit. He was bald and had a goatee, and she recognized him from the brochure as the headmaster of the school.
"Um, yeah! That's me, heh," Kimiko said, standing up straight and shaking his hand.
"Well, I am Mr. Fung, and welcome to Deepwater Academy," he said, picking up her duffel bag with one hand like it weighed nothing. "Few of the other students have arrived yet, so I can give you a tour before it gets too crowded."
"That sounds great!" Kimiko said, wondering how an old guy could pick up such a heavy bag so easily.
"Deepwater is named after the famous lake on the grounds. It's actually not very large, but the mythology surrounding it made it famous in legends around this area. Headmaster Dashi founded this school in…" He led her into the school, which was just as big on the inside as on the outside. It had tall ceilings, and though it seemed to be ancient, electric lights flooded the space with warm light. Red carpets lined the hallways on top of marble floors, and the walls seemed to be made of the same grayish stone as on the outside. Arches rose to the ceilings, where Kimiko half-expected to see sleeping bats or gargoyles, but instead saw ornate carvings. Mr. Fung led her up a spiral staircase, talking about the history of the school.
"… Which brings us to the newest renovations in the gym. We have the best physical education program in the state, since we hold fitness just as high as we do education. Of course, the bulk of your time will be spent in the classroom, but we do give our students the weekends off and allow them to go home for holiday breaks."
"Great," Kimiko said, only half-listening. Mr. Fung stopped suddenly, and Kimiko nearly ran into him. They stood in front of a wooden door, and Mr. Fung set down her duffel bag, dusting off his hands.
"This is your room. If you need anything, just talk to one of the teachers or myself. I believe your roommate was here earlier, but I think she ran off," he said, glancing down the hall. "Well, I'll leave you to get settled!" He left, leaving Kimiko to enter the room, gasping in surprise. It was large, with two windows across from the door looking out onto the forest. On each wall was a bed with an iron-wrought frame and crisp white sheets, and a desk in front of each window. A wardrobe stood between the windows, and at the foot of each bed was a dresser. A door to Kimiko's right stood open, and through it she glimpsed tile; it was a bathroom. Kimiko walked in, dumping her bag on the floor by the bed on the right, closest to the bathroom. She sat on the bed, slipping off her backpack and holding her head in her hands.
"I'm rooming in a Disneyland postcard," she said, still not quite able to believe it. "What have I gotten myself into?"
"You were talking to yourself!" Kimiko turned to see a girl her own height peering through the door, an animated grin on her face. She had thick, scruffy brown hair cut as short as a boy's, and copper-framed glasses sat crookedly on her nose, right above a Band-Aid. She wore a white t-shirt with a bright yellow thunderbolt on it, and a black jacket was tied around her waist. Baggy jeans and Converse the same shade as the thunderbolt completed her odd outfit, and Kimiko noticed a sketchbook gripped in her right hand.
"… Nooo, I was narrating. There's a difference." The girl didn't seem off-put at all by Kimiko's response, and walked into the room a little, not quite approaching the Japanese girl.
"Oh, okay! I guess you're my roommate, huh? It's so cool to have somebody new! But I know everybody's gonna be really nice this year, so you don't have to worry about anything," the girl babbled. "'Course, I guess you're really smart and stuff, so you won't have a problem making friends, right?"
"Well, I'm kind of here for the learning," Kimiko replied, shrugging. "I already have friends."
The girl's face fell, and Kimiko realized what she had said. She hadn't meant it to be hurtful, but it was too late to take it back. "Oh. Um, well, I have to go do… something," the girl said, backing away. "It was, um, really nice meeting you, then." She darted away as soon as she got to the door, and Kimiko cringed.
"Way to go, Kimiko," she muttered, glaring at her hands. "You just insulted Bambi."
Kimiko walked into the auditorium, a vast room with only half it's seats filled. Boys and girls, all in high school, occupied the seats, but only the ones in the front were paying any attention. Not wanting to attract attention, Kimiko chose a seat in the back. A few rows in front of her, she could see a cute boy with tan skin and dark hair waving a plushie dragon in the air above a short, bald boy, who reached for it futilely. Then a muscular blonde guy came up behind the tan one and smacked him upside the head, making him let go of the stuffed animal. The little boy caught it, sticking his tongue out at the tan boy. As far as Kimiko could tell, the blonde one was chastising the tan one for taking the plush, but he wasn't really listening. They finally sat down, and Kimiko tried to concentrate on the speech Mr. Fung was giving, but she was too nervous to listen.
"Hi, Ashley!" Kimiko looked up and saw her roommate, the girl from earlier, approach a blonde girl in a blue tank top that showed her stomach. The blonde sat between a girl with darker blonde hair and a pink shirt, and a girl with blonde braids and a cowgirl hat. "Can I sit with you guys?" she asked cheerfully.
"Oh, great, the orphan's back," the center blonde (Ashley) snapped, flipping her chic bob. "Of course, Fung's pulling out the same speech he always does, so the same freaks should show up to hear it. Sit down, orphan," she snapped, and the girl sat hesitantly behind them. "This isn't an Oliver Twist chorus line."
Kimiko growled under her breath, and Ashley glanced over. "Hey, it's the Tohomiko brat we heard about. Did you have a comment, Tohomiko, or is there a chunk of McDonald's stuck in your throat?"
Kimiko stood, attracting the attention of her roommate and the boys who were sitting in front of her. "Ha, McDonald's. No, really… that's great." Her voice dripped with sarcasm as she slowly approached the trio of blonde girls. "I mean, you totally got me there. I chose to work my way into this school, instead of letting my dad get in me in on money alone. By all means, continue to make fun of my public-school background, my outfit, my out-of-style haircut. Wow, it's like all of my deep, unconscious fears are being laid bare before me." At this point she had shoved past the girl in the pink shirt and sat next to Ashley, pushing the girl out of her seat. "And y'know, I'm totally with you. Losers like me suck, and I sure do wish I had your social power. But you know what I'm glad I don't have?"
Ashley had no idea how to respond, and Kimiko grinned inwardly. "Um, no… what?" she asked, unable to think of anything else to say.
"An inner insecurity so profound I would have to pick on others just to feel better about myself. So, tell me, why are you such a creep? Mommy and Daddy didn't love you enough?" She leaned in, glaring daggers. "Inquiring minds want to know."
Ashley was still for a moment, then she stood abruptly, fury radiating around her. "Come on, girls. It smells like dork in here." Then she and her posse stormed out of the auditorium, leaving Kimiko and the brunette girl to watch the doors slam behind them.
"That was amazing!" Kimiko's attention was brought back to the girl in glasses, who was sitting behind her and grinning widely. "I've never seen anybody stand up to Ashley like that!"
Kimiko shrugged, smiling. "It wasn't too hard. I've dealt with worse. But I think we got off to a bad start." She held out her hand and the girl shook it firmly. "I'm Kimiko Tohomiko, and sometimes I talk to myself."
"I'm Emma O'Reiley, and I think I'm gonna like being your roommate," the girl said, returning the smile.
Kimiko noticed the three boys glancing her way, and waved. The tan boy waved back, flashing her a grin. Kimiko faced the front again, crossing her arms behind her head. "It should be an interesting year."
"Ashley… what was that?" The girl paused, turning to face the other two girls. The girl with dark blonde hair was the tallest, but the girl with the cowgirl hat was the toughest-looking.
"What was what?" Ashley replied, her eyes narrowed like a cat's.
"The new girl," said the girl in the hat. "Nobody talks t'you like that." Her voice had a Southern twang.
"It was nothing, Jessie," Ashley said, glancing back at the auditorium.
"Nobody beats you, Ashley," said the girl in the pink shirt.
"No, Dyris, they don't," she replied. Then a small smile worked its way onto her face, and she turned away from the auditorium, facing the other two. "It should be an interesting year."
A/N: Yes, I should be working on Knightfall, but I should also be exercising and watching grown-up shows and not Transformers Animated (which has come back to the Hub, SQUEE!) so forget that idea! XD This is based off of The War At Ellsmere, a graphic novel by Faith Erin Hicks. Her writing and illustrating are both phenomenal, so I suggest you check her out. As to why I didn't use Wuya as the head of the gang, she's- let's face it- too old to be a high school girl. Chase won't be in here either, so if you're only reading this in hopes of hot Chase Young shower scenes, you're gonna be disappointed. Also, you should see someone about that. O.o Drop a review and I'll love you forever!