A teenage girl sighed as she watched the scenery roll by. She had
brown hair and eyes, was of average height, and just plain old, normal
looking. The girl's name was Riina Arigamu, and she was going to live with
her sister. "Ana, when will we get there?" Riina asked the driver, her
older sister.
"Soon, now be quiet." Ana replied. Riina sighed, and made a small web and began playing cat's cradle with it.
First POV
I rested my head back against the tree trunk, and looked up at the sky. My mom wanted me to go meet the new girl that was coming, but I didn't really feel like it. I would see her tomorrow waiting for the bus anyways. I grabbed an apple off of a nearby branch, and began eating it. I debated on whether or not I should go get my writing pad.
Third POV
The car pulled to a stop, and Ana and Riina got out. Ana began pulling the luggage out of the trunk. "You could give me a hand here, you know." Ana said.
"Alright." Riina replied, grabbing two of the briefcases. She was bringing them into the house when she spotted the small field. At the far end were a couple of trees. She looked at it for a moment, and then brought the briefcases into the house. On her way out, she passed Ana. "I'm going to check out the neighborhood, alright?" Riina asked.
"Just be back in a few hours." Ana told her.
"I will." Riina replied.
First POV
I watched as the two people got out of the car. I knew the older of the two. She'd been living here for a while. She was an odd woman, and normally kept to herself. The girl, however, was new. I snapped out of my thoughts in time to see the girl coming towards the trees. I guess I was going to meet her sooner than I planned.
Third POV
As Riina came up to the trees, she noticed that one was an apple tree. She decided to practice some of her web skills. Riina took aim at one of the apples, and fired. She missed by a millimeter, and hit something else within the tree's branches. She retracted the webbing, and caught the partially eaten apple. "Hey!" A voice exclaimed. The branches rustled, and Riina silently cursed. She dropped the apple, and ran back towards the house. A boy her age dropped out of the tree. He had blond hair, icy blue eyes, was about her height, and was skinny for his height.
First POV
I watched in confusion as the girl ran back towards the house. She certainly was odd, and she took my apple with some sort of web. I shook my head in exasperation, and bent down to pick up the apple. I pulled the webbing off of it, with some difficulty, and walked back towards my house. I decided that I would definitely be talking with her in the morning.
Once I was down in my room, I pulled the web out of my pocket. It was an interesting material. It was strong and flexible, and had been stuck to the apple securely. Other than that, it wasn't sticky. I gave it an experimental tug, and then put it into a drawer.
Next day, First POV
I grabbed my backpack and hat, and stepped outside. The girl was already on the bus. I walked over to the bus, and opened the doors. The girl looked up from whatever she was doing. "Good morning." I said as I sat across from her. She ignored me. "Are you going to just ignore me?" I asked. She didn't answer. "Guess that you wouldn't mind if I took this web sample to my science teacher." I said, pulling a sandwich bag with a piece of web in it out of my backpack.
"What do you want?" She asked venomously.
"Calm down, I just want some questions answered. If you answer them all, then I keep the web sample to myself, and won't tell anyone else what you tell me." I told her.
"Fine, what do you want to know?" She asked.
"First, what's your name?" I asked.
"Riina." Was the reply.
"Alright, my name's Brent." I replied, extending my hand. She glared at it, but shook it. "The next question is, how did you take my apple with that web stuff?" I asked.
"An accident happened earlier this year. I can shoot webbing, retract it, or release it. I can also cling to walls and ceilings, and I have increased agility and stamina." Riina told me.
"Cool. What was the accident?" I asked.
"Some weird spider bit me. I was sick for days." Riina replied.
"Alright, last question. How does your body make that web?" I asked.
"I haven't a clue. Now give me the webbing." Riina ordered.
"No. That wasn't part of the deal." I replied. Webbing shot out of her wrist, and grabbed hold of the bag. The web retracted, and brought the bag with it.
"Sorry, but I just can't trust someone I just met." Riina told me.
"In other words, your answers are false." I remarked.
"No, I stuck with that part of the deal. No sane person would believe that story without physical evidence." Riina replied.
"I'll have to keep that in mind." I said. She put the plastic bag in her backpack, along with the new piece of webbing.
"So what's the school like?" Riina asked.
"It's alright. Fairly large in comparison to my middle school. Kind of stinks having to go to another state, cause you have to get up so early." I told her. The bus doors opened, and the bus driver got on. "What classes do you have?" I asked her.
"PE Two, Chemistry, Geo, and French Two." She replied.
"Pray that you don't have Mrs. Hall for Geo." I told her. She nodded, and sat back in her seat.
Third POV
Riina trudged up the stairs, and sighed. The day had been boring ever since she had arrived at the academy. She stopped in front of Severance 21, and looked at the paper that was on the door's window. "Mrs. Hall's class. Wonder what's so bad about her." Riina said. She pushed the door open, and stepped into the classroom. "Riina? You're in this class?" Brent asked.
First POV
Of all people to have in my class, it was Riina. Unexpected, but oh well. I'll have to talk with her at lunch instead of back home. Mrs. Hall began announcing the answers to the homework, so I focused my attention on that for now.
Lunch finally came, and I put my stood up. Riina had already left the room, and my friend, Trevor, was waiting for me. I walked out into the hall in time to see Riina go out through the secondary staircase. "Brent, you coming?" Trevor asked.
"Not today. Maybe tomorrow." I told him.
"Alright." Trevor replied. He went down the hall with the rest of the kids. I went in the other direction, after Riina. I took the stairs two at a time to catch up with her.
"Riina, wait up!" I said. She stopped in front of the door.
"What do you want?" She asked.
"Just to ask you a few more questions." I replied casually.
"No, I already answered your stupid questions." Riina replied.
"Ah, but I still have some webbing." I told her.
"I took it from you this morning." Riina said. I could hear a hint of worry creeping into her voice.
"I'm not an idiot. I didn't bring all of it with me, that have would been a fatal mistake." I replied.
"What is your first question?" She asked irritably.
"First off, I'm surprised that you don't use your powers for personal profit or to protect the innocent. You simply ignore that you have them. Why?" I asked her as we began walking again.
"Are you sure it's safe to talk about this here?" Riina asked.
"Yeah, we're in a dead zone, so to speak. No one hangs around here at this time. It pays to have been a loner for a while." I told her.
"Alright. I don't use my powers for myself because I don't want to risk being found out for what I am. And I don't use them to protect the innocent, as you put it, because my sister won't let me." Riina told me.
"Doesn't it get boring not being able to anything when you have those powers at your fingertips?" I asked.
"That's why I practice using them in the basement. If I could, I would fight crime or whatever, if only to have some fun. I still wouldn't want people knowing it was me, though." Riina replied.
"Why doesn't your sister let you just hang out, and take care of muggers or something?" I asked.
"She says that I have to have someone else with me that she deems responsible enough." Riina replied. She stopped, and looked at me. "Hey, you could come with me. I bet Ana would think you're responsible." Riina mused.
"What? Who said I'd agree to that?" I asked.
"Oh, come on. I'll answer more of your questions." Riina tempted.
"It depends on what I'd have to do. I'm not going to put my life on the line, or anything." I told her.
"I don't think that will happen." Riina said.
"Fine, but if I decide to leave you can't stop me." I replied.
"Thanks. What do they have for lunch here?" Riina asked.
"Sandwiches, pizza, all sorts of stuff." I told her.
I stepped off the bus with Riina, and sighed. I still wasn't sure why I was doing this. "So, anything I should know about your sister?" I asked.
"Uh, just that she's much stronger than the average person and she can sense danger." Riina said.
"Great. And how do I prove that I'm responsible?" I replied.
"She's going to ask you a series of questions, and if you pass that we get to try fighting for an afternoon. But, if something happens then she'll cancel it." Riina told me as we walked up to the door. She opened the door, and stepped inside. I followed her cautiously. "Ana? Ana, are you in here?" Riina asked. There was a thump downstairs followed by some mild cursing. "Come on, she's in the basement." Riina said. I followed her downstairs.
"Hello Riina. How was school?" Ana asked.
"It was alright. I met someone that you should talk to." Riina replied.
"And why should I talk to them?" Ana asked. She came into view from behind the staircase.
"Well, Brent found out my secret, so I thought maybe he could be the person to be with me so that I could actually do something with my abilities." Riina said. Ana sighed.
"Hello, ma'am." I said.
"You've barely been here for two days, and someone else already found out?" Ana said, frustrated.
"Just talk with him, and ask your questions." Riina replied.
"You're going to be doing some explaining later. Now, your name is Brent, right?" Ana said.
"Yeah." I replied.
"You look like you would be responsible. Ever broken a bone because of a decision you made?" Ana asked. I shook my head. "Alright, do you do drugs?" Ana asked.
"What do you qualify as a drug?" I replied.
"Alchohol, cigarrettes, and the like."
"I've ingested some alchohol, but nowhere near enough to make me drunk."
"Have you ever been the leader of a group?"
"Yeah. Didn't like it though."
"How about the one who does all the grunt work?"
"Done that too."
"Ever been convicted of a crime?"
"Nope."
"Why did you agree to do this?"
"You're an older sibling, as am I, so I knew that my chances of passing this test were slim. If I go through with it, and you shoot me down, Riina won't bug me to do this. If, by some miracle, I pass, I'll just make the best of it. Still not going to put my life on the line, though." I told her. Ana smiled.
"Then a miracle has happened. You passed." Ana said.
"Wh-what?" I asked.
"Really?" Riina asked at the same time. Ana nodded.
"I'll give it a chance." She said.
"Great. So what are the rules, or whatever?" I asked.
"First of all, nobody is to know that it's you two. This means your parents can't know, either." Ana said, pointing at me. I nodded. "Second, I hold the power to cancel this escapade at any moment." Ana added.
"Fine. Anything else?" I asked.
"Not at the moment." Ana said. She turned to Riina. "Now, indulge me as to how Brent found out about your secret." Ana told Riina.
"I was out shooting webbing, and I accidently hit his apple. He was in the tree, and I didn't see him. After I ran back here he collected the webbing, and brought it onto the bus. I answered his questions, and that's about it." Riina replied. Ana looked to me for confirmation. I nodded.
"Alright. Why don't you come upstairs and have a soda with us?" Ana asked me.
"Uh, sure. Why not?" I replied. As I followed Ana and Riina up stairs, I wondered what I was getting myself into.
Next day, First POV
I sighed as I walked out to the bus. Riina and I were heading out to do the whole crime fighting thing. Hopefully, nothing would happen. "Hey Brent. Ready for today?" Riina asked.
"Ready as I'll ever be." I replied.
"Alright. Where can we meet after school?" Riina asked.
"Do you know where the Convinient One is?" I asked. Riina nodded. "Meet me in the alley near by." I told her.
"Sure thing." Riina replied.
I walked down the street later that afternoon. People gave me odd looks, but I ignored them. I quickly checked to see if anyone I knew was nearby, and then ducked into the alley. I leaned against the wall to wait, but I heard something to my right and above me move. I looked over to see Riina clinging to the wall with the tips of her fingers and toes of her shoes. She was wearing black jeans, a white t-shirt with a red spider design on the front, and she had yellow tinted motorcycle goggles. "What took you so long?" Riina asked, climbing down.
"Smuggling ten knives and two daggers in and out of school isn't easy, you know." I replied.
"What do you need them all for?" Riina asked. I noticed that her hair was black instead of brown.
"They're throwing knives. Did you die your hair?" I asked.
"Yeah, it's just temporary stuff." Riina replied.
"Come on, there's an area about ten minutes away that's had thug problems." I said.
"And you would know this why?" Riina asked.
"I've been mugged once or twice in the area." I told her.
"Alright. I'll follow you there." Riina replied. She shot a web up towards the building top, and retracted it. I nodded, and walked out the alley. Today would be a long day.
"I rounded another corner, and still saw nothing. "I don't think anything's going to happen today. There aren't any signs of anyone being here recently." I said. Riina sighed from her position on the wall.
"What time is it?" She asked. I checked my watch.
"4:45. We have an hour until my mother will pick us up." I replied. A small scream cut through the air. "Darn, I was hoping we wouldn't have to do this." I muttered.
"What else can we do after school?" Riina said, heading off in the direction of the scream. I sighed, and followed her. We ran passed a small alley, and I stopped. I looked back into the alley to see a group of guys beating up in some guy and a girl. Two of the thugs had the guy pinned to the wall, and one was throwing knives at him, and barely missing. The two other thugs looked like they were going to have some 'fun' with the girl. Riina came back to me when she noticed I wasn't following. The guy let out a yelp as one of the blades knicked his face. I reached into my trench coat, and pulled on of my knives out. "What-" Riina began, but I held my hand up to silence her. I took quick aim, and threw the knife. It whizzed by the thug as he prepared to throw the next knife, and hit the wall right above the guys shoulder, pinning his jacket to the wall. Riina clambered up the wall, out of sight, and the thug turned around as I ducked back behind the corner.
"Who threw that?" He asked. I reached into my trench coat for another one, and I could hear the thug walking out of the alley way. I whipped back around the corner to be face to face with him, his throwing knife in his hand. "Oh, like getting into other's business, eh?" He asked. He was a good head taller than me, but it could be worked to my advantage. I shrugged in response to his question.
"Depends on what the business is." I replied.
"You know, I may just have my fun with you instead of that other guy. Ever been stabbed?" He asked.
"Yeah, felt like a darn mosquito bite." I said.
"Well, let's see you say that after you fell this!" He exclaimed, bringing the knife up towards my gut. I side stepped, and reached into my trench coat.
"A dagger would work much better than a small throwing knife." I replied, pulling a dagger out of a pocket, and swiping at him with it. He side stepped, but I still cut his coat. As soon as he was out of the way, I threw my knife at one of the thugs who was going to rape the girl. It stabbed into his hand, and he cursed. I ducked as the thug in front of me tried punching me, and sliced along part of his pants as I stepped to the right. His pants slid, and wrapped around his ankles as he took a step, and he tripped. As he fell, I slammed the handle of my dagger into the back of his skull, knocking him unconscious. One of my knives wizzed by my ear, and stuck into the wall behind me. The guy whose hand I had stabbed was glaring at me. I picked up a small piece of lead pipe, and threw it laterally towards him. He ducked, and received the follow up knee to the gut, but to his head instead. He stumbled backwards, and
I tripped him. His forehead slammed into the ground, and I walked by him towards the other guy. He glanced at me worriedly for a moment, but quickly regained his composure.
"You can't take three of us on at once." He said.
"Your buddies are a little tied up at the moment. You're the only one left." Riina said, walking out from the shadows. The two thugs that had been pinning the guy to the wall had their hands secured to the wall with webbing.
"Go now, before we decide to change our minds about your fate." I told him. He nodded, and ran by me, out of the alley. I walked over to the girl, and helped her up. "You alright?" I asked her. She nodded. I picked up her coat and shirt off the ground, and handed them to her. I turned to face the guy that they had been using for target practice. "Sorry about the knife." I said.
"It's alright. Here, have it back." He said, handing it to me. I took it, and put it back in my trench coat.
"Might want to avoid this area as much as possible from now on." I advised as Riina nd I left. I tucked my dagger into my trench coat, and pulled my other throwing knife out of the nearby wall before walking out of the alley. Riina began scaling the wall.
"Wait, what are your names?" The girl asked.
"Huh? Oh, my name's uh, Arachnia." Riina said. I cracked a smile at her name.
"What's yours, sir?" The girl asked.
"Me? I'm Blank." I replied.
"I'll have to remember that. Thank you for helping us." She said. I nodded, and waved as I walked around the corner, and left. A few minutes later, Riina dropped down beside me.
"Blank? What type of a name is that?" Riina asked.
"What type of a name is Arachnia?" I replied.
"Hey, it has something to do with my abilities. I don't see what your name has to do with what you do." Riina countered.
"My name is about what I do. I'm a variable, a blank expression. I try and stay unpredictable, all while trying to predict my opponent." I replied.
"And?" Riina said, encouraging me to continue.
"And what does that better than a blank expression?" I replied.
"Whatever, let's just change, and go meet your mother." Riina said.
"Yeah, I need to clean my knife so that she doesn't find out I've been using them for their original purpose." I added.
"Then what are we waiting for?" Riina asked.
"Nothin. Nothin at all." I said.
"Soon, now be quiet." Ana replied. Riina sighed, and made a small web and began playing cat's cradle with it.
First POV
I rested my head back against the tree trunk, and looked up at the sky. My mom wanted me to go meet the new girl that was coming, but I didn't really feel like it. I would see her tomorrow waiting for the bus anyways. I grabbed an apple off of a nearby branch, and began eating it. I debated on whether or not I should go get my writing pad.
Third POV
The car pulled to a stop, and Ana and Riina got out. Ana began pulling the luggage out of the trunk. "You could give me a hand here, you know." Ana said.
"Alright." Riina replied, grabbing two of the briefcases. She was bringing them into the house when she spotted the small field. At the far end were a couple of trees. She looked at it for a moment, and then brought the briefcases into the house. On her way out, she passed Ana. "I'm going to check out the neighborhood, alright?" Riina asked.
"Just be back in a few hours." Ana told her.
"I will." Riina replied.
First POV
I watched as the two people got out of the car. I knew the older of the two. She'd been living here for a while. She was an odd woman, and normally kept to herself. The girl, however, was new. I snapped out of my thoughts in time to see the girl coming towards the trees. I guess I was going to meet her sooner than I planned.
Third POV
As Riina came up to the trees, she noticed that one was an apple tree. She decided to practice some of her web skills. Riina took aim at one of the apples, and fired. She missed by a millimeter, and hit something else within the tree's branches. She retracted the webbing, and caught the partially eaten apple. "Hey!" A voice exclaimed. The branches rustled, and Riina silently cursed. She dropped the apple, and ran back towards the house. A boy her age dropped out of the tree. He had blond hair, icy blue eyes, was about her height, and was skinny for his height.
First POV
I watched in confusion as the girl ran back towards the house. She certainly was odd, and she took my apple with some sort of web. I shook my head in exasperation, and bent down to pick up the apple. I pulled the webbing off of it, with some difficulty, and walked back towards my house. I decided that I would definitely be talking with her in the morning.
Once I was down in my room, I pulled the web out of my pocket. It was an interesting material. It was strong and flexible, and had been stuck to the apple securely. Other than that, it wasn't sticky. I gave it an experimental tug, and then put it into a drawer.
Next day, First POV
I grabbed my backpack and hat, and stepped outside. The girl was already on the bus. I walked over to the bus, and opened the doors. The girl looked up from whatever she was doing. "Good morning." I said as I sat across from her. She ignored me. "Are you going to just ignore me?" I asked. She didn't answer. "Guess that you wouldn't mind if I took this web sample to my science teacher." I said, pulling a sandwich bag with a piece of web in it out of my backpack.
"What do you want?" She asked venomously.
"Calm down, I just want some questions answered. If you answer them all, then I keep the web sample to myself, and won't tell anyone else what you tell me." I told her.
"Fine, what do you want to know?" She asked.
"First, what's your name?" I asked.
"Riina." Was the reply.
"Alright, my name's Brent." I replied, extending my hand. She glared at it, but shook it. "The next question is, how did you take my apple with that web stuff?" I asked.
"An accident happened earlier this year. I can shoot webbing, retract it, or release it. I can also cling to walls and ceilings, and I have increased agility and stamina." Riina told me.
"Cool. What was the accident?" I asked.
"Some weird spider bit me. I was sick for days." Riina replied.
"Alright, last question. How does your body make that web?" I asked.
"I haven't a clue. Now give me the webbing." Riina ordered.
"No. That wasn't part of the deal." I replied. Webbing shot out of her wrist, and grabbed hold of the bag. The web retracted, and brought the bag with it.
"Sorry, but I just can't trust someone I just met." Riina told me.
"In other words, your answers are false." I remarked.
"No, I stuck with that part of the deal. No sane person would believe that story without physical evidence." Riina replied.
"I'll have to keep that in mind." I said. She put the plastic bag in her backpack, along with the new piece of webbing.
"So what's the school like?" Riina asked.
"It's alright. Fairly large in comparison to my middle school. Kind of stinks having to go to another state, cause you have to get up so early." I told her. The bus doors opened, and the bus driver got on. "What classes do you have?" I asked her.
"PE Two, Chemistry, Geo, and French Two." She replied.
"Pray that you don't have Mrs. Hall for Geo." I told her. She nodded, and sat back in her seat.
Third POV
Riina trudged up the stairs, and sighed. The day had been boring ever since she had arrived at the academy. She stopped in front of Severance 21, and looked at the paper that was on the door's window. "Mrs. Hall's class. Wonder what's so bad about her." Riina said. She pushed the door open, and stepped into the classroom. "Riina? You're in this class?" Brent asked.
First POV
Of all people to have in my class, it was Riina. Unexpected, but oh well. I'll have to talk with her at lunch instead of back home. Mrs. Hall began announcing the answers to the homework, so I focused my attention on that for now.
Lunch finally came, and I put my stood up. Riina had already left the room, and my friend, Trevor, was waiting for me. I walked out into the hall in time to see Riina go out through the secondary staircase. "Brent, you coming?" Trevor asked.
"Not today. Maybe tomorrow." I told him.
"Alright." Trevor replied. He went down the hall with the rest of the kids. I went in the other direction, after Riina. I took the stairs two at a time to catch up with her.
"Riina, wait up!" I said. She stopped in front of the door.
"What do you want?" She asked.
"Just to ask you a few more questions." I replied casually.
"No, I already answered your stupid questions." Riina replied.
"Ah, but I still have some webbing." I told her.
"I took it from you this morning." Riina said. I could hear a hint of worry creeping into her voice.
"I'm not an idiot. I didn't bring all of it with me, that have would been a fatal mistake." I replied.
"What is your first question?" She asked irritably.
"First off, I'm surprised that you don't use your powers for personal profit or to protect the innocent. You simply ignore that you have them. Why?" I asked her as we began walking again.
"Are you sure it's safe to talk about this here?" Riina asked.
"Yeah, we're in a dead zone, so to speak. No one hangs around here at this time. It pays to have been a loner for a while." I told her.
"Alright. I don't use my powers for myself because I don't want to risk being found out for what I am. And I don't use them to protect the innocent, as you put it, because my sister won't let me." Riina told me.
"Doesn't it get boring not being able to anything when you have those powers at your fingertips?" I asked.
"That's why I practice using them in the basement. If I could, I would fight crime or whatever, if only to have some fun. I still wouldn't want people knowing it was me, though." Riina replied.
"Why doesn't your sister let you just hang out, and take care of muggers or something?" I asked.
"She says that I have to have someone else with me that she deems responsible enough." Riina replied. She stopped, and looked at me. "Hey, you could come with me. I bet Ana would think you're responsible." Riina mused.
"What? Who said I'd agree to that?" I asked.
"Oh, come on. I'll answer more of your questions." Riina tempted.
"It depends on what I'd have to do. I'm not going to put my life on the line, or anything." I told her.
"I don't think that will happen." Riina said.
"Fine, but if I decide to leave you can't stop me." I replied.
"Thanks. What do they have for lunch here?" Riina asked.
"Sandwiches, pizza, all sorts of stuff." I told her.
I stepped off the bus with Riina, and sighed. I still wasn't sure why I was doing this. "So, anything I should know about your sister?" I asked.
"Uh, just that she's much stronger than the average person and she can sense danger." Riina said.
"Great. And how do I prove that I'm responsible?" I replied.
"She's going to ask you a series of questions, and if you pass that we get to try fighting for an afternoon. But, if something happens then she'll cancel it." Riina told me as we walked up to the door. She opened the door, and stepped inside. I followed her cautiously. "Ana? Ana, are you in here?" Riina asked. There was a thump downstairs followed by some mild cursing. "Come on, she's in the basement." Riina said. I followed her downstairs.
"Hello Riina. How was school?" Ana asked.
"It was alright. I met someone that you should talk to." Riina replied.
"And why should I talk to them?" Ana asked. She came into view from behind the staircase.
"Well, Brent found out my secret, so I thought maybe he could be the person to be with me so that I could actually do something with my abilities." Riina said. Ana sighed.
"Hello, ma'am." I said.
"You've barely been here for two days, and someone else already found out?" Ana said, frustrated.
"Just talk with him, and ask your questions." Riina replied.
"You're going to be doing some explaining later. Now, your name is Brent, right?" Ana said.
"Yeah." I replied.
"You look like you would be responsible. Ever broken a bone because of a decision you made?" Ana asked. I shook my head. "Alright, do you do drugs?" Ana asked.
"What do you qualify as a drug?" I replied.
"Alchohol, cigarrettes, and the like."
"I've ingested some alchohol, but nowhere near enough to make me drunk."
"Have you ever been the leader of a group?"
"Yeah. Didn't like it though."
"How about the one who does all the grunt work?"
"Done that too."
"Ever been convicted of a crime?"
"Nope."
"Why did you agree to do this?"
"You're an older sibling, as am I, so I knew that my chances of passing this test were slim. If I go through with it, and you shoot me down, Riina won't bug me to do this. If, by some miracle, I pass, I'll just make the best of it. Still not going to put my life on the line, though." I told her. Ana smiled.
"Then a miracle has happened. You passed." Ana said.
"Wh-what?" I asked.
"Really?" Riina asked at the same time. Ana nodded.
"I'll give it a chance." She said.
"Great. So what are the rules, or whatever?" I asked.
"First of all, nobody is to know that it's you two. This means your parents can't know, either." Ana said, pointing at me. I nodded. "Second, I hold the power to cancel this escapade at any moment." Ana added.
"Fine. Anything else?" I asked.
"Not at the moment." Ana said. She turned to Riina. "Now, indulge me as to how Brent found out about your secret." Ana told Riina.
"I was out shooting webbing, and I accidently hit his apple. He was in the tree, and I didn't see him. After I ran back here he collected the webbing, and brought it onto the bus. I answered his questions, and that's about it." Riina replied. Ana looked to me for confirmation. I nodded.
"Alright. Why don't you come upstairs and have a soda with us?" Ana asked me.
"Uh, sure. Why not?" I replied. As I followed Ana and Riina up stairs, I wondered what I was getting myself into.
Next day, First POV
I sighed as I walked out to the bus. Riina and I were heading out to do the whole crime fighting thing. Hopefully, nothing would happen. "Hey Brent. Ready for today?" Riina asked.
"Ready as I'll ever be." I replied.
"Alright. Where can we meet after school?" Riina asked.
"Do you know where the Convinient One is?" I asked. Riina nodded. "Meet me in the alley near by." I told her.
"Sure thing." Riina replied.
I walked down the street later that afternoon. People gave me odd looks, but I ignored them. I quickly checked to see if anyone I knew was nearby, and then ducked into the alley. I leaned against the wall to wait, but I heard something to my right and above me move. I looked over to see Riina clinging to the wall with the tips of her fingers and toes of her shoes. She was wearing black jeans, a white t-shirt with a red spider design on the front, and she had yellow tinted motorcycle goggles. "What took you so long?" Riina asked, climbing down.
"Smuggling ten knives and two daggers in and out of school isn't easy, you know." I replied.
"What do you need them all for?" Riina asked. I noticed that her hair was black instead of brown.
"They're throwing knives. Did you die your hair?" I asked.
"Yeah, it's just temporary stuff." Riina replied.
"Come on, there's an area about ten minutes away that's had thug problems." I said.
"And you would know this why?" Riina asked.
"I've been mugged once or twice in the area." I told her.
"Alright. I'll follow you there." Riina replied. She shot a web up towards the building top, and retracted it. I nodded, and walked out the alley. Today would be a long day.
"I rounded another corner, and still saw nothing. "I don't think anything's going to happen today. There aren't any signs of anyone being here recently." I said. Riina sighed from her position on the wall.
"What time is it?" She asked. I checked my watch.
"4:45. We have an hour until my mother will pick us up." I replied. A small scream cut through the air. "Darn, I was hoping we wouldn't have to do this." I muttered.
"What else can we do after school?" Riina said, heading off in the direction of the scream. I sighed, and followed her. We ran passed a small alley, and I stopped. I looked back into the alley to see a group of guys beating up in some guy and a girl. Two of the thugs had the guy pinned to the wall, and one was throwing knives at him, and barely missing. The two other thugs looked like they were going to have some 'fun' with the girl. Riina came back to me when she noticed I wasn't following. The guy let out a yelp as one of the blades knicked his face. I reached into my trench coat, and pulled on of my knives out. "What-" Riina began, but I held my hand up to silence her. I took quick aim, and threw the knife. It whizzed by the thug as he prepared to throw the next knife, and hit the wall right above the guys shoulder, pinning his jacket to the wall. Riina clambered up the wall, out of sight, and the thug turned around as I ducked back behind the corner.
"Who threw that?" He asked. I reached into my trench coat for another one, and I could hear the thug walking out of the alley way. I whipped back around the corner to be face to face with him, his throwing knife in his hand. "Oh, like getting into other's business, eh?" He asked. He was a good head taller than me, but it could be worked to my advantage. I shrugged in response to his question.
"Depends on what the business is." I replied.
"You know, I may just have my fun with you instead of that other guy. Ever been stabbed?" He asked.
"Yeah, felt like a darn mosquito bite." I said.
"Well, let's see you say that after you fell this!" He exclaimed, bringing the knife up towards my gut. I side stepped, and reached into my trench coat.
"A dagger would work much better than a small throwing knife." I replied, pulling a dagger out of a pocket, and swiping at him with it. He side stepped, but I still cut his coat. As soon as he was out of the way, I threw my knife at one of the thugs who was going to rape the girl. It stabbed into his hand, and he cursed. I ducked as the thug in front of me tried punching me, and sliced along part of his pants as I stepped to the right. His pants slid, and wrapped around his ankles as he took a step, and he tripped. As he fell, I slammed the handle of my dagger into the back of his skull, knocking him unconscious. One of my knives wizzed by my ear, and stuck into the wall behind me. The guy whose hand I had stabbed was glaring at me. I picked up a small piece of lead pipe, and threw it laterally towards him. He ducked, and received the follow up knee to the gut, but to his head instead. He stumbled backwards, and
I tripped him. His forehead slammed into the ground, and I walked by him towards the other guy. He glanced at me worriedly for a moment, but quickly regained his composure.
"You can't take three of us on at once." He said.
"Your buddies are a little tied up at the moment. You're the only one left." Riina said, walking out from the shadows. The two thugs that had been pinning the guy to the wall had their hands secured to the wall with webbing.
"Go now, before we decide to change our minds about your fate." I told him. He nodded, and ran by me, out of the alley. I walked over to the girl, and helped her up. "You alright?" I asked her. She nodded. I picked up her coat and shirt off the ground, and handed them to her. I turned to face the guy that they had been using for target practice. "Sorry about the knife." I said.
"It's alright. Here, have it back." He said, handing it to me. I took it, and put it back in my trench coat.
"Might want to avoid this area as much as possible from now on." I advised as Riina nd I left. I tucked my dagger into my trench coat, and pulled my other throwing knife out of the nearby wall before walking out of the alley. Riina began scaling the wall.
"Wait, what are your names?" The girl asked.
"Huh? Oh, my name's uh, Arachnia." Riina said. I cracked a smile at her name.
"What's yours, sir?" The girl asked.
"Me? I'm Blank." I replied.
"I'll have to remember that. Thank you for helping us." She said. I nodded, and waved as I walked around the corner, and left. A few minutes later, Riina dropped down beside me.
"Blank? What type of a name is that?" Riina asked.
"What type of a name is Arachnia?" I replied.
"Hey, it has something to do with my abilities. I don't see what your name has to do with what you do." Riina countered.
"My name is about what I do. I'm a variable, a blank expression. I try and stay unpredictable, all while trying to predict my opponent." I replied.
"And?" Riina said, encouraging me to continue.
"And what does that better than a blank expression?" I replied.
"Whatever, let's just change, and go meet your mother." Riina said.
"Yeah, I need to clean my knife so that she doesn't find out I've been using them for their original purpose." I added.
"Then what are we waiting for?" Riina asked.
"Nothin. Nothin at all." I said.