Tomi was a rebel, a trouble maker and part time bully but very protective of his brother. Generally he liked to get in fights. Bill, his twin brother, was picked on a lot and beat up at school. If Tomi beat a few kids' asses for picking on his brother he figured it would be a good day. The kids in Rem's circle where getting dangerously close to an ass whooping.

Rem stared at Bill but was too shy to say anything. She thought him to be a cute dark sprite. When an unexpected encounter with his brother pushes her towards Bill, she embarks on getting to know him in the less populated places of the school. Soon she finds out just how dark her sprite really is.

Tomi roamed the hallways with a permanent scowl on his face. You could usually see him wearing big XXXL name brand clothes. Baggy pants, oversized hoodies and sometimes a head wrap. He had long blond dreads that hung just past his shoulders and a lip ring.

Gustav, Georg, Matt and Brandon where the people that Rem sat with at lunch, sat next to in almost every class, worked with on assignments, and studied with. They made fun of a few kids, particularly Bill. Georg had an especially loud and crass sense of humor. It reminded her of Greg Geraldo. She laughed herself to tears with some of the things he would say. People stared at Bill.

Rem stared at him too. He caught her looking at him a few times. She thought that he thought she stared because she thought him to look like a freak but secretly she liked the look of the little freak. She was afraid to be associated with him because she didn't want to be a target herself. She couldn't smile or talk to him anyway because she was too shy. She felt guilty when Georg would say something so obscene but hilarious. She put her arms up and laughed behind them.

Bill was slight in stature, long and lithe. He had creamy flawless skin and a profile Rem had spent hours staring at. His delicate features reminded her of an elf or a sprite, but a dark sprite. He wore black eyeliner and dyed his hair black. That warranted people to shout things out to him like fag, gay wad, fairy and many other things. People pushed him in the hallways, sometimes to the floor. They kicked his things around the hallway and sometimes stole them. Sometimes he'd even get beat up; she'd see bruises on him the next day.

He was a quiet kid, didn't have any friends. Friends were scarce because they didn't want to be ridiculed and pushed around along with him.

Tomi held quite an impressive school record for being only 13. Prowling the hallways with a constant glare, he just loved trouble, confrontation and bullying. Numerous visits to the principal's office, complaints that their kids have been threatened, pushed or hit by him. Endless detentions. He didn't just pick on the weak he also picked on people his own size, sometimes two at once. It made him feel like a bad ass. He was just an all around delinquent. The teachers didn't know what to do with him. Rumor had it that this was going to be his last year. He might be getting sent to another school next year.

Such a reputation had earned him to be feared by most of the student body. He had a few friends where as most didn't even want to make eye contact. Tomi had gotten suspended twice this year already. School had only been on for 2 months. Both of the times where because he started fights. If you where a little girl who even thought to take candy from his little bro, he'd bitch slap you into next Tuesday.

Georg ran up to her with Matt close behind. He started to open his bag. "Hey Rem, you should put this in his locker."

"What, what is it?"

"A- a dead cat." Matt tried to say while giggling.

Her mouth dropped. "Oh, oh my god. I don' think-"

"Oh hey, hey," Georg said. "It's not just a dead cat, look." He said opening his bag further. She looked and saw one of the most macabre sights she'd seen in her young life. The cat was on a silver platter with some guacamole, potatoes, a side salad and corn all Saran wrapped neatly to the platter.

"Geeze Georg, it doesn't look like you put enough thought into this gift," she said sarcastically.

"Come on. It would be hilarious." Georg insisted.

"No."

"Would you do it for 30 dollars?" She bit her lip. "Come on."

The money sounded really good to her. "You're not serious." Georg dug in his pocket and counted out 30 dollars and handed it to her. "You really want this done don't you?"

"To torment that little cock sucker, small price to pay. Come on and join in."

"Alright."

Matt giggled uncontrollably.

Now Matt, Matt was a fat ass. You'd thing that because of his size he would be a nicer person because he would know how it felt to be ridiculed. But no, he is still sarcastic, rude, judgmental, and racist and loves to see people fight. His favorite show is Jerry Springer and he enjoys listening to obscene rap music.

There were a few kids scattered in the hallway. She crept up to his locker, looked around and opened it. She was just about to lift the platter out of her backpack and put it into his. Hesitating, she had second thoughts. Hearing a noise behind her she turned around quickly, hiding what she had behind her back meeting a pair of darkly lined eyes.

'I can't believe I was going to do it. I can't believe I even thought of doing it.' She scolded herself. She looked at him like a deer caught in head lights which is the same way he should've been looking at her considering she was part of the group that tormented him and she was messing with his stuff. She looked into his darkly lined eyes and started to back away against the lockers.

"I'm- I'm sorry…I'm sorry." Then she turned and fled.

His eyes lingered on her as she ran off. He dreaded to look at his things because kids where always stealing or destroying or putting obscene things in his locker. He found none of the above.

'Weird, I wonder what she was going to do. Probably nothing good considering she hangs out with Georg and them.

Bill had never told his brother on her. He wasn't much of a nark. He himself was afraid of his brother even though Tomi was kind to him. Tomi would gladly kick anyone's ass if Bill gave him their name. But he wasn't completely innocent. In the past he had given names before, so it was those kids that ended up with the black and blue marks, black eyes and sore limbs that they once gave him. Bill didn't always have to give names, people where witness when he was getting beat up and picked on by other kids so it was no big secret.

Rem found Georg and took his hand and stuffed the money back into it. "What happened?" he asked surprised.

"He, uh was at his locker before I could get there," she lied.

"Just do it next period."

"I can't."

Gustav asked. "Why not?"

"I don't want to do that."

Georg also asked; "Why not? He's just a skinny white weasel."

Gustav and Rem broke out into giggling fits. Seeing that she laughed, Georg left her alone and said;

"Ok. I'll do it."

It was in the middle of lunch period and the hallways were empty. She was on her way to the library when she saw Tomi wearing his usual scowl, walking toward her. She didn't panic. She went to walk around him and he didn't let her pass. She panicked. He backed her into the lockers. She was afraid of Tomi. He'd gotten suspended plenty of times before beating people up and she knew he wasn't above hitting girls.

She was afraid Bill had told on her. She couldn't bring herself to say anything to her defense. She shivered not being able to look him in eyes she looked at his arms instead. It's true she was in one of the groups that tormented Bill but she didn't really take an active part.

"They pick on who they see as weak. I'll pick on one of theirs that I see as weak."

She gasped as he grabbed her tightly by the collar with both hands. Her hands went up instinctively to his. A smile ghosted over his lips. She jumped violently as the bell rang. He let her go and walked away shooting daggers over his shoulder.

Her teeth chattered and she started to cry. She tried to hide her face as she walked down the hallway. Gustav saw her and immediately put an arm around her and led them around a corner to where they could talk

"What happened?"

She was sure that if her friends knew that Tomi had grabbed her they'd want to fight him and she didn't want to see any of them hurt, so she lied.

"Nothing."

"You're not crying for nothing. What happened?"

Unable to come up with a lie she thought he'd believe she said; "I don't want to talk about it."

Gustav was in hurry getting to class. He turned around very fast and Bill ran into him.

"Watch where you're going you little stain." A few near by kids laughed. Bill tried to mind his own business.

"Are you ignoring me? Look at me when I'm talking to you." Bill walked away and Gustav spun him around by his shoulder. He was going to punch him but just put his hand on his head and pushed Bill away saying; "You're not worth it." and stalked off.

It was during lunch in the hallway when Rem was walking past a classroom door and saw Tomi out of the corner of her eyes.

"Hey Rem, Come here."

Shivers ran up her spine and she quickened her pace. She again thought Bill had told on her about the locker incident and that Tomi was going to beat her up now. He strode to catch up. Taking her by the front of her shirt, he spun them into an empty dark classroom.

She gasped pawing at his hands to get them off of her. "I didn't do anything," she whispered. "I'm sorry. Just let me go." He let go.

"First off, I don't need a reason. Next, why are you sorry?" He tilted his head. "What did you do?"

She hesitated. He didn't know? Bill didn't tell him? She sighed heavily, full of relief.

"What?" He asked sharply, scaring her back into reality.

"I- I just thought, you-" she swallowed.

He turned his face and said, "Never mind." He eyed her again. "Why do you run with them anyway, those kids you call your friends?"

"Acceptance. They, they accept me."

"They don't…accept." She flinched as he put his hands on her shoulders. "You want to know what I'm thinking?" He said as he rubbed her shoulders. "I'm thinking I could hurt you and have you tell them the same thing will happen to them if they continue to torment Bill."

"P-please don't."

He glared at her steadily wanting to see her fall apart because of him. "Or, I could tell you to give them a message. Tell your friends, if they touch Bill, taunt him or so much as look at him wrong again and I hear about it. It will be their asses." He took his hands off her. "You can go now."

She was not normally one to run in hallways but she ran as fast as she could into the library. She sat down at a table in the corner and hid her face behind her arms trying to shake off the fear Bill's brother had put into her.

During the next class period. "Hey you guys, Tomi told me-"

"Tomi talked to you?" Georg asked shocked.

"He told me that…if anyone of taunts or touches or looks at Bill wrong again that-"

"When did he say this?" asked Matt.

"What did he say?" asked Gustav.

"Did he hurt you?" asked Georg.

"N-no, he didn't hurt me. He said it would be your asses. He told me at lunch today."

"He's threatening us." Gustav said. "What should we do?"

"We should stop," said Rem. The coming class periods were unusually quite.

She was sitting in class board one afternoon and she found her mind wandering to Bill. She thought about what she would say to him if she wasn't so shy. Then she thought about writing him a note. She passed it to him while no one was looking. When he was back home safe he opened it up and read it. It said;

Bill,

I'm sorry about that one day at your locker. I was going to do something terrible but I was having second thoughts and then you showed up….

I'm sorry that I stare at you. I'm sorry for…I'm sorry about my friends. I like you, but I'm afraid, of a lot of things and that's pathetic. Just please don't think anything bad when I look at you.

-Rem

With a dainty finger he tucked a lock of hair behind his ear. He had never been given a friendly note before. No one had ever apologized to him. It pulled at his heart. He knew she was shy and that she liked him but he also knew she laughed at him and that confused him.

She had gone back to her locker during lunch to get a book. Suddenly her locker door was pushed shut, she jumped. Tomi backed her along the lockers and into an empty classroom. He took out the note that she had wrote to Bill. "Is this a joke?"

"No, no." She shook her head quickly.

"You like Bill?"

"Yes." She nodded vigorously.

He scowled at her judgmentally. "Bill needs friends…"

"Yes," she said.

"Talk to him then, befriend him."

"Does he want me to?" His eyes flashed at her.

"I want you to." She swallowed hard. "You like him," he touched her under her chin. She gasped and stiffened. "It shouldn't be too hard." He gave her a sidelong look and then stalked away.