No, NOT The Notebook!
(Or, "Revenge Is So Very, Very Sweeet…")
A/N: Meh, I'm sure there are bound to be comments about Amber's relationship with her father…or maybe not, since not many people read my fiction…o_O But anyway, something to say about Amber. Amber is the definition of "Daddy's Little Girl". Her father is her only family and will always be her only family because any relatives she would have would be in Australia and out of contact. Soooooooo…Amber is not having an incestuous affair with her father! Dammit! She's just very attached to him. For nine years he was her only friend and her only family. So nyar! =P
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Amber Wereneck meandered meaninglessly in her new home, feeling a bit out of place. Looking out the window at all the snow around her, it seemed like home, but this America place just didn't live up to the same caliber as Antarctica. For one, the people were brutal. Amber desperately was trying to find a friend, someone she could confide in, but so far there was almost no one she even had a smidgen of respect for (except for Kyle, Kyle had been the only one). She sighed sadly and shuffled to her room, flopping down on her ice cold water bed, but not before cranking up the AC. She closed her eyes and sighed again, a single tear slipping down her cheek. It had only made about half the journey, however, before it turned to a tiny ice orb frozen to her cheek. She flicked it off idly and sat up, determined not to mope around all day.
"This is bloody well ridiculous," she said to herself, walking over to her work desk and pulling out her iBook, turning it on. "Sitting her like a stupid baby and crying all day…god! What is wrong with you, Ambrosia Jade…"
She probably would have continued her self-rant for a fair bit if the doorbell hadn't of rung at that point. Groaning, but inwardly pleased that someone had come over, she scurried over to the door and answered it.
"HIIIIIIIIIIII!" the cheery redhead that appeared in front of her cried, holding out a pie. "Here! I made this for you!"
The girl giggled and beamed as she handed the slightly stunned Amber the pie, who accepted it graciously.
"Aww…thanks," Amber said, giving her a smile and opening the door wider. "Why don't you come inside? …I don't think I know you, however…what's your name?" The girl bounced in the door and immediately flipped over in the empty expanse of the sparsely furnished living room, doing a handstand. She smiled and lifted one hand up to wave as Amber looked on, mildly impressed.
"Why, I'm Katarina Alexis Pierce I am!" she cried, rolling over into a sitting position. "You're in my classes! Of course you have to know me!" Amber blinked as the recognition dawned on her—this was the girl she tuned out because her even as a spy she couldn't listen to babbling about pie all day.
"Oh…that's right," Amber replied, looking less then pleased. "Kat's your nickname, right? Umm…well, come on into the kitchen. Sorry that there isn't a lot right now…but…we can have some of your pie out there."
"Okie! That sounds great! Super! Fantastic!" Kat giggled, bouncing after Amber as she led her into the kitchen. Amber got out plates and forks while Kat babbled incessantly in the background.
"You're a spy, right?" Kat asked, hopping from one foot to another, unable to keep still. "I wonder if you know a lot about Saturn. Have you ever been there? I'm from Saturn, you know…" Amber smiled a bit and shook her head, placing two slices of pie on the table.
"I don't believe I've ever been to Saturn," Amber replied, taking a bite. "Mm…this is very good, Kat. You did a nice job with it!" Kat's face crinkled up in the biggest smile Amber had ever seen.
"Awww, thanks, funny spy girl!" she cried, nibbling at her pie. "My mommy's partner helped me make it! She's really good at cooking!" Amber smiled sadly, taking another bite and chewing it thoughtfully.
"Well, that's good at least," she replied, putting her fork down and pushing her plate over to Kat. "Say, I'm not all that hungry anymore…do you want the rest of it?" Kat squealed and grabbed the plate, shoving the rest of the pie in her mouth, giggling madly as she did so.
"Mpmmmhphhhpmhh!" she cried, unintelligible because of the amount of pastry in her cheeks. Amber blinked and put her fork in the dishwasher.
"Say what?" she asked, slightly confused. "Swallow that before you answer, Kat, or otherwise I can't understand you." Kat nodded and giggled again, swallowing the rest of the pie in a matter of seconds. Amber was shocked at her propensity for pie eating…she just never seemed to stop. She never seemed to stop talking either, for that matter…
"Hey, funny spy girl!" Kat tittered as she got to her feet. "You've got a funny voice. Like Matty's. Why do you have funny voices?" Amber smiled.
"It's an accent, Kat," she replied. "Your friend Matt has an Australian accent, and so do I." Kat cocked her head.
"…I think I see…" she said thoughtfully, eyeing the pie. "…So…I have…a Saturnine accent then?" Amber sighed.
"No, Kat, you have an American accent. You're not from Saturn…it's too cold and too hostile for anyone to live there." Kat's eyes welled up with tears at this.
"No way! That's not true! I am from Saturn! Mommy said so! Mommy said that that's why I am so different! I can be from where ever I want!" she cried, and then started to weep. Amber stared on, shocked again by this…psycho. Her guilt getting the better of her, she walked over to the weeping alien and put a hand on her shoulder.
"Hey, Kat. Don't cry, I'm sorry," she said gently. "Of course you're from Saturn. I just forgot that all pie loving red-heads are from there." Kat scooted away from her, shying from the coldness of her skin, but still maintaining eye contact with her sad, naïve eyes.
"You're cold," Kat sniffed, wiping her eyes. "You're like an ice cube. Why are you so cold, funny spy ice girl?" Amber groaned inwardly. One minute weeping, the next minute prying…this girl was flighty!
"I don't know why," Amber replied aloud. "I wish I did. It's something that I've been wondering about for a long time, Kat." Kat nodded her head in understanding.
"I can relate with that," she said solemnly. "I've been wondering if I should get an apple pie or a chocolate cream pie tomorrow for lunch." Amber chuckled, unable to help laughing at this girl's innocence.
"That must be tough to deal with, Kat," Amber replied, smiling. She stood up from the table and pushed the chair in, walking over to the door. "However, you're going to have to go now. I have some stuff I need to do and I can't have people around when I do it." Kat cocked her head, curious.
"What stuff?" she asked, bouncing over to the door. "Katty won't get in the way…" Amber shook her head.
"It's private stuff, Kat," she responded. "Let's just say…it's like my diary." Kat nodded, understanding.
"Katty knows. She has a diary too," she replied, speaking in third person. "She writes in it a lot."
Not as much as I do,
Amber thought as she opened the door for her. She gave her a smile and waved goodbye as she hopped out the door and onto the sidewalk, skipping down the street. Amber shook her head and closed the door. Even if she was a bit strange, she couldn't help feeling a certain liking for the redheaded pie girl. She'd been nice enough to come to her house and bake her a pie…"I'll repay her later," Amber said aloud, walking into her room where her notebook was, in the front pocket of her backpack. She took it out and opened to the diary half, flipping to the next empty page.
"I'm running out of room," she said to herself as she got a pencil out of her bag, sticking it behind her ear. "I'm going to need another soon…" She took the pencil out from behind her ear and tapped it against the page thoughtfully. After a minute or two, she put it down and started reading through her recent entries, unable to think of the words to write what she wanted at the moment.
September 13, 2001: 3:00 p.m.
Well, today was my first day in a real school…and boy, is it nothing like what I would have expected. I never had any idea that kids were so cruel…
She sighed as she read that last sentence, pondering the word. Cruel. An ugly thing, she decided as the thought of the rather unkind names that were whispered in her direction the other day. "Freak". "Ice Queen". "Kangaroo Fucker." That one was particularly harsh.
"Completely unnecessary," she stated aloud, reading farther down in her narration.
At least there were two kids on my side… one was an Aussie kid…Nathan was his name, I believe. He was pretty nice to me. He's even kind of cute…and then of course, Kyle…
"Dah…" Amber groaned as she read that, turning red. Reading stuff like that she had written always made her feel embarrassed.
"What's wrong with you, Ambrosia?" she chided herself as she turned back to the blank page, picking up her pencil again. "How many times do I have to tell you that unrequited crushes aren't worth it…"
She let out a sigh and began to write.
September 14, 2001: 5:45 p.m.
God, why am I so worked up lately? The smallest thing seems to send me into a complete tizzy. I guess it must be the jet lag finally catching up to me. Either that or I'm finally going crazy. Either way, it's not good. It's the crazy Yanks, I swear. They'll drive me over the edge and beyond. This country is SO not like home. I guess nowhere is really like Antarctica, really…but I digress. This is turning into pointless babbling, and that makes me sound like a certain little redhead who paid me a visit today.
Kat was nice enough…or, I should say, she was plenty nice—overly nice even. She brought me an apple pie she made herself as a…sort of housewarming gift, I guess. But boy, that girl has some serious problems. I won't go into it now, as it will take up space that is seriously lacking in my diary part of this notebook, but boy…expect a feast when I finally get around to cataloging her.
She closed her notebook and put it back in her bag, tossing it on the floor afterwards. She leaned back on her bed again and closed her eyes, thinking. Before she could really get started though, once again, she was interrupted by the arrival of someone at the door. This time, however, it was not an unwelcome guest…
"Dad!" Amber cried, jumping out of bed and running to the door. "Finally!" She opened the door and waved to her father, who was just getting out of the car. He smiled and waved, giving his eager daughter a pat on the head as he walked in the door.
"Glad to see me?" Frederick asked teasingly, placing his briefcase on the kitchen table. Amber nodded rapidly, throwing her arms around him.
"Of course!" she yelped, hugging him tight. "I'm always glad to see you!" Frederick smiled and picked his daughter up, sending her into a fit of giggles.
"Well, that's a good thing, then," he said, twirling her around once before setting her down on the ground. He walked over to the fridge as Amber headed back to her room to start the catalog of Kat, but was interrupted by her father's call.
"Amber?" he called from the kitchen. "Where is this pie in here from?" Amber turned around and scurried back into the kitchen, where her father was placing the pie on the counter.
"Oh, that's from this girl named Kat," she said indifferently. "She stopped by today and made us a pie as a housewarming gift." Frederick smiled and cut himself a slice.
"Well, that was awfully nice of her, wasn't it?" he said, taking a bite. "Mmm, this is really good. I'm sure you thanked her?" Amber nodded.
"Of course. It's the nicest thing anyone from that school has done for me." She failed to mention, however, the fact that she already had a crush on someone. Frederick smiled sadly and looked at her.
"Now Amber, don't worry about any of that," he said, eating another bite of pie. "They're just not used to you because you're different. You're from a part of the world that none of them have ever been too—"
"Actually, there are two other kids from Australia in my class," Amber interrupted, only to be interrupted by her father.
"Pfft, well…none of them have ever been to Antarctica, have they?" he asked her.
"Well no…"
"There you have it," he completed, also completing the pie. "They've never been to Antarctica and they've all known one another—except for your little Australian mates there—all their lives. They just have to get used to the fact that you're not from America."
"And the fact that I have blue hair?" Amber stated, pulling at a strand. "And the fact that my body temperature runs at about -80 degrees Celsius?" Frederick sighed.
"Oh Amber," he said sadly. "I'm sorry you got dealt a bad hand. But, the best card players can make a bad hand into a big win, you know. Don't think so negatively. You never know…maybe one day you'll star in the sequel to 'Harriet the Spy'—"
"Gee, that's real uplifting Dad," Amber said sarcastically, hiding a smile. "I'm glad that your standards are so high that you think I could do that!" Frederick laughed.
"It's what I'm here for, Ambrosia," he replied. "Now, go on…I have to get dinner going." Amber nodded and she started to walk out of the kitchen.
"What are we having?" she asked as she was leaving.
"Fish," he replied. Amber grinned.
"Coolness," she said, walking towards her room. "Fish rocks…"
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Amber curled up under her covers, reading through the myriad of entries she had had on people in the past.
"Hmmm…" she said aloud, reading one particularly interesting one. "'Thomas Flannagan, age 35, previous residence before coming to the research centre: Phoenix, Arizona. Has a sister and a brother back at home. Both parents are dead. Fluency in Russian. Computer literate. Hopeless romantic. Highly intelligent. Physically active. Is having an affair with Sarah Platte, one of the women here. Has a wife and two kids back in Phoenix…'"
"Heh, wonder what happened with that," she mused aloud, taking her pencil from behind her ear and tapping it on the page. Flipping to a fresh page, she wrote "KATARINA ALEXIS PIERCE" at the top in her neat, condensed handwriting and underlined it. Satisfied, she started to write everything she knew as of now about this girl.
Kat Pierce, age 9, previous residence Somers Point, New Jersey. Has a younger sister, Jess, aged 8, and a younger brother, Gary, aged 4. Parents rumoured to be lesbians. Speaks little French. Contortionist like movements. Excellent dancer/gymnast. Adamantly thinks she is from the planet Saturn. Has a huge obsession with pie, snorkels, and shiny objects. Has a slight learning disability. Clinically insane. Spastic, giddy, erratic. Strange sense of humour. Red hair, hazel eyes. Right-handed. Lacks common sense.
She looked over what she had written and nodded, closing her notebook.
"That'll do for now," she said, snuggling under her blankets, but not before taking a look at her watch. Only 5:30 in the afternoon…but yet she was so tired…
"Hmm…I think a good nap is in order," she said to herself, closing her eyes. Within minutes she had fallen asleep.
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Kat giggled happily to herself, skipping down the street towards her home, her mind wandering. She wasn't even paying attention as she found herself skipping towards her biggest fear—Lily…or, actually, Lily's house. Oblivious, she continued on her merry way, singing out a little song as she skipped.
"Well, pie is so very gooood!" she squealed, not even in tune. "And it's so veeeeeery creamy! And when I eat it lots and lots, it makes me get all dreeeeeeeeamy!"
She giggled at her rhyme, not knowing that her screeching had alerted Lily of her presence.
"I'm a poet, and I didn't even knoooooooow it!" she shrieked, doing a cartwheel. "I'm so cool!"
"Whatever," Lily snorted, slamming the door behind her as she stomped outside. "What the hell are you doing around here? And why are you making that awful noise?" Kat froze in her tracks, staring at Lily like a deer stares at headlights.
"Uh…I-I'm sorry, funny flower girl," Kat stammered apologetically. "I-I…didn't even realize I was going towards your house…please don't hurt me…" Lily snorted.
"Why shouldn't I?" she snapped, cracking her knuckles. Kat looked around nervously, before suddenly getting an idea. She boldly took a step forward, smiling.
"'Cause my friend Amber will beat you up!" she cried with a smile, spreading her hands wide. "She's a spy and she'll find out bad things about you and write them down and then use them against you!" Lily smirked.
"The blue freak?" she snorted. "What can she do? And how do you even know that stuff?" Kat stomped her foot and crossed her arms, irritated that Lily wasn't believing her.
"She DOES! She told me! She told me that she has a journal and she writes everything down in it, and she'll find out all the nasty things about you and spread them around the SCHOOL!" Kat cried, becoming more animated with each passing word. Lily raised an eyebrow, suddenly getting an idea.
"Hmmm…" she mused, rubbing her chin. Then she grinned evilly and grabbed Kat roughly by the arm, causing her to squeal.
"Show me where the freak lives," she barked. Kat cringed and nodded her head meekly.
"O-okay," she said nervously. "It's this way…" She started walking, leading Lily in the direction of the new girl's house. Lily grinned again. She knew a way to make sure the blue headed girl didn't mess with her again…ever.
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"Hi."
Frederick Wereneck stared down at Lily and Kat, and then smiled.
"G'day," he replied, holding the door open. "Come on in. Amber's sleeping, but you can wait for her in her room, if you like." Lily and Kat nodded and then walked inside. Lily let out a gasp as they entered the foyer. The air in the house was colder then the air outside. She turned back towards Frederick, questioning.
"Um…is your heater working?" she asked, rubbing her arms. "It's awful cold in here…" Frederick smiled again.
"Of course it's working," he replied, turning back around towards the kitchen. "We just don't need it." Lily blinked, confused, and then shrugged and continued walking ahead into the living room, not sure of where to go.
"Don't need it…" she muttered to herself, perplexed. "How can you not NEED it? It's fucking freezing out there…and IN here…"
She headed into the hallway, Kat close on her heels, and opened the first door she saw. A bedroom, but not a child's. There was a suit lying neatly off the edge of the bed.
"This must be the father's room," she said, stating the obvious as she shut the door, moving onto the next one she saw. Kat giggled and cut in front of her, kicking the door lightly to open it.
"Boom, baby!" she squealed, laughing. Lily clobbered her in the back of the head, infuriated.
"You IDIOT!" she whispered harshly, pushing Kat out of the way. "What if this is her room? Do you want to wake her up?" She peered inside, while Kat pranced about behind her.
"It's just the silly ol' bathroom," Kat tittered, twirling around. "There's no need to get all worked up, funny flower girl."
"It's Lily, and shut up," Lily retorted, caustic, shutting the door and heading down to the last room.
"This has to be it, so shut your goddamn mouth," she whispered to Kat, who at least had enough sense to not get in the way of a determined Lily. She nodded and skipped out of the hallway into the kitchen to keep Frederick occupied. After she left, Lily cautiously opened the door and poked her head in. The room was completely blue from bottom to top, which didn't really surprise her, as the entire house so far was the same way. She slipped inside and shut the door quietly behind her, really starting to get a hold of her surroundings. Over in the corner there was a futuristic ice blue plastic desk, which immediately caught her eye. She tiptoed over to it, figuring this would be the most logical place for a journal of any sort. What she saw there shocked her. All over her desk were all sorts of mechanical gadgets—a two-way radio, a pocket-sized video camera/digital camera, a tiny microphone, a blue iBook portable computer, complete with attached scanner, CD burner, printer, and webcam, and various other knickknacks. Lily's eyes bugged. Temporarily distracted from the task at hand, she sat down in the matching chair for the desk, trying to figure out in her head how much all of this stuff would be worth if she sold it.
"Damn," she whispered aloud, staring. "I could make a fortune with this stuff!"
She made a mental note to come back some other time with her backpack, and then continued on the task at hand. The desk obviously had not yielded the journal, so she would have to look somewhere else. She cautiously made her way over to the bed, praying that the weirdo wouldn't choose now to wake up. She didn't. She was sleeping peacefully, a slight smile on her face. Lily resisted the urge to punch her into a deeper sleep and looked around. She suddenly smiled when she saw it, lying right next to the blue girl's hands.
"Man, this is too easy," she said to herself, nabbing the book and placing it under her coat. She shoved the bottom half of the book in the top of her pants so she wouldn't have to hold on to it and then headed for the door as fast as she could without making any noise. She opened the door and looked to see if anyone was coming. No one was. Almost home free, she scurried out of the room and shut the door behind her, heading out into the living room area again. Frederick looked up from the TV and gave her a smile.
"Hello again," he said, turning the volume down. "Is Amber awake yet?" Lily shook her head.
"No, she's not," she replied. "I checked, but she was out like a light, and I didn't want to wake her. I guess Kat and I will come by some other time to say hello." Frederick nodded.
"I'm sure that would make Ambrosia very pleased," he said, giving her a warm smile. "I didn't get your name, though. What is it, so I can tell Amber who stopped by when she wakes?"
"Oh…sorry," Lily said, not really sorry at all. She didn't have a very good first (or second…or third, for that matter) meeting with the blue head and neither one of them liked the other. In fact, not liking the other was an understatement—Lily loathed the blue head, and she was pretty sure the feeling was mutual. Knowing that she came over wouldn't make the Ice Queen happy at all, she imagined.
"Lily…I'm in her class," she said, pushing those thoughts aside. Frederick nodded again.
"Pleased to meet you, Lily," he replied. "I tell her you and Kat stopped by, all right?" Lily nodded hurriedly, heading for the door.
"Sure, that would be great," she said quickly, opening the door. "See you around." She gave him a quick wave and shut the door behind her, taking off down the steps. Kat blinked, and then started to run after her.
"Hey!" she shouted, easily catching up to Lily. "You're supposed to wait for meeeee!" Lily stopped right in her tracks, causing Kat to slam right into her. She gave her an icy smile.
"There. I waited," she stated brutally, giving her a kick and a cruel smirk before running off again. Kat stared after her, shock lighting up her naïve face, and then started to cry, scurrying to her feet and running back to her house as fast as she could.
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Lily ran as fast as her legs could carry her back to her house, eager to read what this wannabe James Bond had written about. She wondered as she got to her door if she had written anything about her. Probably, she concluded, opening the door and rushing inside, yelling a quick 'hi' to her parents before bolting to her room, shutting the door behind her. Stan looked up from the Nintendo.
"What the hell are you so worked up about?" he snapped, noticing the look on her face. "You just made me die on the last boss, bitch." Lily flipped him off and climbed into her bed.
"Oh, you think I give a crap about your stupid game?" she retorted, opening the book to the first page. "I have more pressing matters right now, anyway." Stan raised an eyebrow.
"What, like figuring out what you're going to feed Cartman to keep him liking you?" he stated with a smirk. Lily scowled.
"No, you dumb shit," she snapped back, starting to read. "I stole that reject's journal." Stan raised an eyebrow, suddenly interested.
"What reject?" he replied curiously, turning off the game. "South Park is loaded with them." Lily giggled a bit at that.
"Well, duh," she replied, beckoning him to come over. He did, climbing up the ladder until the two were both crammed side by side in her bed, staring at the book. "I meant I stole that freak kangaroo humper's journal. You know, the blue haired kid." Stan's face finally lit up in recognition.
"Oh yeah!" he exclaimed. "The one that Kyle talked to over the internet? Dude, that girl's messed up." Lily nodded her head adamantly.
"Well, of course she is! She thinks she's a spy!" she cried. "What normal person would think that?" Stan shrugged.
"Well, people do have dreams," he replied. He motioned to the book.
"Come on, let's read this thing! I want to see if I can find out anything good!" Lily grinned evilly.
"All right," she said, looking down over the first page. She blinked in confusion. "…Adam Reynolds? Who in the hell is that?" Stan shrugged.
"Maybe someone from Koala bear land," he sniggered. "Just flip through until you find the area on facts about people we know." Lily nodded her head and started flipping roughly through the notebook, searching madly for anything about people from South Park. She let out gasp after about a minute.
"…Hey!" she cried, looking at the page. "This is about ME!" Stan raised an eyebrow, trying to get a better look.
"Lemme see," he said, grabbing at the notebook. Lily snarled and slapped at his hand, pulling the notebook possessively to her.
"No! I'll read it out loud to you," she stated, and then started to read.
"'Lillian Marsh, age 9, previous residence Burlington, Vermont, USA. Has a twin brother, Stan, and an older sister Shelley, aged 13. Parents Randy and Sharon Marsh, both residents of South Park. Fluent in several different languages, including French, Russian, and Japanese. Amazing artist. Moody, possessive, and bossy. Looks down upon other people. Always has to be the leader. Is currently dating Eric Cartman. May or may not have done sexual acts with him—'" Stan started to laugh.
"Man dude, this chick has you right on!" he sniggered. "So, how was fucking tubby?" Lily clouted him, nearly sending him off the bed.
"Shut your goddamn mouth and let me finished this, you piece of shit!" she yelled, turning her attention back to the book.
"'Physically fit. Above average intelligence. Dominating, cruel, and bullying. Gets pleasure out of torturing people different then her. Has a small silver star in the middle of her forehead—unknown what it does at the time. Long, blonde hair, purple eyes. Left-handed. Lacks common decency, respect, and tact...'" Lily scowled angrily.
"I'm nothing like that!" she snorted, furious. "That little bitch! Man, is she going to get it tomorrow. I'm going to kick her ass!" Stan rolled his eyes.
"Hyeah, sure you're not anything like what she said," he scoffed. "She nailed you right on, and you just proved it by saying you were going to go and kick her ass!" Lily huffed, and then thought about it for a minute.
"…Well, I don't care! How dare she write all this down about me! That cheating, spying BITCH!" she shouted, tossing the notebook aside. "I'm going to get her back. I'll find something out about her…and then tell the whole school! Then, no one will ever want to be friends with her…ever!" Stan tapped her shoulder lightly, pointing to the notebook.
"Ahh, Lily…" he said meekly. "Wouldn't you want to use her diary for that?" Lily stared at him, and then patted him on the back, nearly knocking him over again.
"YES! Of course!" she cried, picking up the notebook again. "You, Stan, are a genius!" Stan smirked.
"I know," he stated as Lily opened up the diary half of her notebook and began to read.
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It was gone.
She looked everywhere, tearing her room apart in a panicked fury, trying to find her most precious possession.
The notebook. Out of all the things that had to be missing, it had to be the notebook. Amber strained her mind, trying to think of what could have happened.
It was lying right next to me when I went to sleep…but now it's gone! …Maybe Dad took it…he did say he wanted to read it sometime…
She walked out of her room towards the living room, where her father was relaxing and watching some TV.
"Uh, Dad?" Amber looked over at him. Frederick looked up and smiled at her.
"Yes, precious?"
"…Did you take my notebook?" Frederick blinked.
"Your notebook?" He shook his head. "No, of course not. Why would you think I would do that?" Amber sighed.
"It's missing and I don't know where it went…" Frederick looked thoughtful.
"Hmm…" He scratched his chin and stared blankly off into space for a minute. "Maybe that little friend of yours that stopped by accidentally picked it up—"
"Who?" Amber's voice was urgent. Frederick smiled.
"Ah, just a girl named Lily. She told me to tell you that she came over—wasn't that nice—"
"That bitch!" The expletive flew out of her mouth but she didn't care, even with her father's disapproving look. "That little…ooooooooh!" She burst into tears (ice cubes), unable to control her rage. Frederick looked shocked.
"…What's going on here, Ambrosia Jade?" He looked at her, concerned. Amber just wailed.
"I HATE her! I hate her so much!" She cried still harder, her body racked with sobs. "S-she's so mean to me…a-and now she took my n-notebook…" Frederick looked bemused as he stared over at his daughter.
"But sweetheart, she was as polite as can be when she talked to me—she said to tell you that she had been here—" Amber threw her hands in the air.
"Well, what did you expect her to do, whip out a sword and hold it to your throat?" an angry Amber retorted. She slid to the ground, still sobbing. "She's probably burning it or something…" Frederick sighed and moved onto the floor next to his daughter, putting a comforting arm around her shoulder.
"Oh, come on now Ambrosia…it might not have been her at all, you know…that was just an idea. You might just have misplaced it—"
"For my sake I hope so," she replied miserably. "Trust me."
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"Hey, look at this…" Stan pointed to something on the page. "This is really rich." Lily quickly scanned to where his finger was.
"Heh…" She smirked and did a perfect mockery of Amber, complete with accent. "At least there were two kids on my side…one was an Aussie kid…Nathan was his name, I believe. He was pretty nice to me. He's even kind of cute…" She giggled. "How lame! Out of all the people, she goes for the cripple." Stan frowned slightly.
"Hey, that's not cool, sis…Nath is my friend, you know." Lily rolled her eyes.
"Oh, shut up." She flicked her hair back from her eyes snobbishly. "I don't know why you're friends with them anyway. Matt's a goody-two-shoes little boy-scout and Nath's his little bitch."
"Well, it's better to have friends that are different then not to have friends at all." And with that little proverb, Stan left the room, probably to go out seeking his different friends. Lily watched him go, a little bit stunned and slightly hurt by that remark. Her old self was showing through for the first time in a long while. Then she scowled, pushing her old self back down into it's comatose state and feeling the old anger rise up in her again.
"…I have friends, Stanley," she said darkly to herself, getting off the bed and watching him from the window. "I have Dylan and Bonnie…and of course…a very good friend in a very high place…"
She leaned back in her bed, closing her eyes as her head rested comfortably on her over stuffed pillows.
"A very, very high place…"
She opened her eyes and for a brief second, had there been anyone there to see them, they would have seen that her eyes, instead of their normal violet color, were no longer a color, just an absence of light.
Black.
=-=*=-=*=-=*=-=*=-=
Amber went to bed feeling anxious and alarmed. What if Lily really did have her notebook? If she did, what was she going to do with it? Although she was not religious, she did offer a silent blessing that almost all of that notebook was from when she was living in Antarctica, and Lily would have no idea as to what she was talking about. Still, she couldn't help but have that strange feeling that something bad was going to happen…
It did.
=-=*=-=*=-=*=-=*=-=
"Class?"
Mrs. Choksondik glared about the classroom, trying desperately to get attention from any of the students in attendance. Amber glanced up at her and smiled, trying to seem cute and charming so she wouldn't be in as much trouble when she found out that because of last night's chaos, she had forgotten to do her homework for the first time in her life. Kat glanced up at her as well, but only because the light was glinting off her glasses, giving them a shiny touch. The rest, however, just ignored her as usual. She sighed and grabbed the pointer stick, tapping it against the blackboard.
"CLASS!" A few more students glanced up this time, but still no real progress. Mrs. Choksondik sighed yet again and did what she ended up having to do every morning to get the attention of the class.
She flashed them.
The class was deathly silent, and Kenny twitched once or twice and then fell out of his chair in a catatonic state. She pulled her shirt back down and then frowned disapprovingly.
"Are we ready now?" The class nodded hurriedly, not wanting to have to see that ever again. Mrs. Choksondik put the pointer away and picked up her attendance book.
"Good. Now, after I take attendance, we're going to be learning about—" She glanced around the classroom suddenly, eyes narrowing.
"Where's Lillian?" The glare turned upon her brother. "Come on now, Stanley. Why is your sister not coming to school today? Still plotting for world domination?" Stan shrugged.
"Jesus dude, I don't know where the hell she is," he muttered sullenly. "How come everyone expects me to be the keeper of—"
He was interrupted by the crackle of the PA system then. All eyes turned up towards the speaker as if it was the one actually speaking. The microphone squeaked and buzzed for a second, until finally it cleared up and they could hear whoever it was breathing on the other end. After another few seconds of that and a faint "ahem" was heard, and then they started to speak.
"Ah…hello there…this is Lillian Marsh with your morning announcements."
Amber lowered herself down in her seat, a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. It all came into place in her mind as Lily continued on the PA, growing more confident with herself.
"Yes…as a matter of fact, I have some selections to read to you from a certain person's journal, who I think I shall keep anonymous…for now."
Amber closed her eyes, not wanting to believe she had heard that, yet knowing that it was going to happen all along. She tried not to show anything as she forced herself to look up at the PA system as well, waiting for the blows to be struck.
"Hmm…lemme see what I can find here…" Pages rustling in the background could be heard as she continued. "You see…I have a rather long time to tell you this…considering Principal Victoria's been knocked out and there's no one to stop me…hehe…so…aha! Here it is—just a few choice pieces of information that I found in here the other night…"
"August 30, 2001…we're getting ready to leave the station, and Dad has all of our things packed…but I really don't want to go. America seems like such a big and scary place…and I'll be all alone there…except for my dad…"
Amber closed her eyes, steeling herself, and remembered when she wrote this. She had been sitting on her bed, looking out the window with tears glimmering in her eyes, unwilling to leave the place that she loved more then anything…
"It's times like these I wish my mum were here…" Amber could hear herself saying this as Lily read it over the PA. "I wish she could have been alive to see the snow as it twirls and dances along the dunes of this ice desert we live in…of course, mum wouldn't have liked it here…since she doesn't like the cold like my dad and I like the cold…but I'm sure she would have liked it if she could have been here with us. Why did she have to leave? I miss her so much…and I wish I knew her…"
Amber was snapped back to reality as Lily stopped reading and started laughing, along with the rest of the class.
"God…you can even see the little dried up tears on this page…what a little crybaby!" More laughter. Amber felt herself loosing control, but struggled to keep a blank face. "I mean, come on! It was only her mom…she probably would have hated the little kangaroo fucker anyway!"
Mrs. Choksondik gasped at the expletive, but the class just laughed harder. Even Kyle, who had to know that she was talking about her, was laughing. Amber clenched her teeth and closed her eyes, still not doing or saying anything. She wasn't going to loose it…
"All right, all right…" Lily giggled, still laughing a bit. "I have another one…boy, this one is rich, too. Heh…listen…"
"September 13, 2001…Well, today was my first day in a real school…and boy, is it nothing like what I would have expected. I never had any idea that kids were so cruel. At least there were two kids on my side…one was an Aussie kid…Nathan was his name, I believe. He was pretty nice to me. He's even kind of cute…"
Amber let out a soft moan and lowered her head down on her desk, blushing furiously. She had completely forgotten about that being in her journal…
"Cute?" Lily snorted over the PA. "He's a dumb Aussie cripple! But, then I guess Nath and Amber would make a perfect couple…oops!" Another giggle. "Did I say her name? Oh well!"
Every single eye in the room was now off the focus of the PA and onto Amber. She refused to look up for fear of the amused and scornful looks on her classmate's face. She especially didn't want to look to her right, where Nath sat, with a bemused and shocked look on his face.
"Heh…that's all really, because most of this is from when that little ice bitch was living in Antarctica anyway. Thanks for your time and attention!"
The PA clicked off then, and the whole class started howling with laughter, all of them gathering around Amber's desk.
"So, Aaaaaaaaaamber?" someone asked, but she wasn't sure who. "What's it feel like to be publicly humiliated in front of the entire school?"
"God, you're SUCH a melvin!" She recognized that voice—Cartman. She didn't even respond and just kept her head down, trying to ignore everyone.
"Why don't you pick your head up and deal with it, you Antaussie freak!"
"Kangaroo fucker!"
"Ice Queen!"
"Freak!"
"CLASS!" Mrs. Choksondik's voice broke through the melee, right as Amber lifted her head off the desk, eyes blazing. Of course, no one paid attention now that they knew Amber was paying attention.
"Ha! Now she decides to come out of her shell!"
"Ice cube more like it!" Amber clenched her fists, a hot feeling rising inside of her for the first time in her life. Never, ever had she felt so angry…
"Please be quiet," she said softly, controlling her rage. Her classmates all looked at one another and burst out laughing. Amber sighed and pleaded towards Kyle, but even he was laughing. In fact, what he did next shocked her more then the reading of the notebook, the finding out of her secrets, and then reaction of her classmates.
"Aw, man Amber…I can't BELIEVE I was going to be friends with you!" Kyle howled, chortling. "I mean…god!" He turned towards Stan, Cartman, and Kenny, who were all behind him.
"You guys were right." He looked back towards a betrayed Amber and smirked.
"She really is a melvin." Amber stared at him, the taunting from the others gone from her mind.
"…But Kyle…you said you'd be my friend," she stated softly, disbelieving. "You said I could tell you anything—" Kyle rolled his eyes.
"Oh, shut up! Why don't you go hang out with Pip or something?" Amber stared at him, still unable to comprehend this.
"…Kyle, please, don't do this—"
"Shut UP, Amber! We're not friends anymore! We're through! Done! Now get on with your back-stabbing, spying existence and get out of here!" Amber jumped out of her seat, her vision completely covered over with a red veil. She leapt at Kyle angrily, her voice choked with emotion.
"You son of a bitch, I'll kill you!" she shouted. She didn't get very far, however, as she was held back by the other member of her class. Cartman grabbed her and shoved her to the floor, towering over her.
"Ah would advise you to not ever do something like that again." Amber looked around her from the floor, devastated. She then did the only logical thing to do at that point.
She got up, kicked Cartman in the balls, and then ran from the room. Mrs. Choksondik glared around the classroom after she left, hands on her hips.
"Well, did you all have you all fulfilled your daily taunt session for today?" The class nodded. "Then SIT DOWN AND GET BACK TO WORK!"
=-=*=-=*=-=*=-=*=-=
Amber fled blindly down the hallway, trying to put as much distance between her and her classmates as possible. Only after she had thoroughly gotten herself lost in the many intertwining hallways of the school did she stop, her breath coming in labored gasps, too upset even to cry. She leaned back against the wall and slid down to the floor, trying to comprehend what had just happened in there. She'd been humiliated in front of the entire class…and she had lost her best friend…
That hit her the hardest. She clenched her fists, trying to tell herself it wasn't true. After what Kyle had told her…he couldn't just abandon their friendship so readily…could he?
She was knocked out of her thoughts by something smacking her in the head. She looked around, but there was nothing to be seen but a blonde ponytail disappearing down another hallway. She sighed and looked down at the ground. Her notebook was there. She grabbed it, flipping through it crazily, making sure that there was no harm done to it. There wasn't—but there was one thing different about it.
In the back, on the very last page, was a note. Amber scowled and ripped it out of her book, crumpling it up and tossing it on the floor before she stood up, slamming the notebook shut and walking towards the exit.
If she was going to plan revenge she had a lot of thinking to do.
