Hey guys! Alexis here uploading her own fanfic. So this is what I call my genderfluid au, mainly because John is a genderfluid teen trying to get used to life at a new school... Anyway, I know you can't really tell the whole genderfluid thing this chapter, but it shall become a thing next chapter alright? I dedicate this chapter to Sierra and Cam, who both encouraged me to write this. c:

~Torgaydo

Your name is Dave Strider and you have never been a fan of school, specifically the first day.

It had started in pre-school when you were only three. Bro had decided that getting you into schooling when you were small was sure to make you more intelligent in the long run. That and he was busy with his own stuff during the day and thought school would be more beneficial than a sitter. After all, baby sitters were inexperienced idiots who watched television and used up electricity. Bro didn't want some sitter sitting around the house while he did whatever he did with his smuppets. You didn't exactly think school would be a better idea than a sitter; even at the age of three, you were not looking forward to the Montessori school and their stupid uniforms that required you to display your eyes for the world to see. On top of that, they seemed to have a no strifing policy, except they called it horseplay, which was obviously stupid. You had been sent home early almost every day of that year because your teacher had called you a "fresh smart aleck with no regard for the learning environment our classroom is trying to have."

Your hatred of school only expanded when you were placed in a public elementary school and were reprimanded when you punched a kid named Karkat for making one of your best friends, Jade Harley, cry by saying that her complexion was irritating. She was grateful, but the principal of the school didn't seem to understand how everyone knew Karkat was a shouty asshole. Coincidentally, the guy was now Jade's friend, as well as your own. However, he was still an asshole and if you could go back to that day you would punch him even harder. No one messed with your friends, especially when they couldn't defend themselves. While your biggest pet peeve was when people picked on people smaller than them, you couldn't exactly help the fact Karkat had been smaller than you and Harley. He deserved what he got anyway. That had earned him a week suspension. Throughout elementary school, Dave became very close with the ladies in the administration office. He was there so often that he could recite names, ages, relationship status, and current phone arguments as well as any gossip on kids at school. He hadn't been eavesdropping or anything; it was just very easy to appear to be sleeping behind pointy anime shades.

It was in middle school that your hatred for school had reached a new level. This had been the year rumors about you being as straight as a line walked by a drunken man had begun. It wasn't that it was untrue. In fact, you would probably like anyone or any gender, but it was more of the fact that people called you Dave Strider the Dick Rider or Gayve Strider. The teasing was relentless and in Texas, people weren't so accepting of you. You noticed how parents would pull their kids away or how kids would point and whisper; it would be easier not to "catch the gay" if someone didn't make eye contact with you. This was when you pretended to date Rose, which didn't work out because you looked like siblings and it was clear she was a lesbian. It was clearer than you being into dicks as well as chicks. That year involved a lot of defending your fake girlfriend and finding solace in tumblr, where you gained followers quicker than gossip spread. It was eighth grade that Rose and Kanaya started dating after Kanaya and Vriska had dated sixth grade year. You had begun dating Terezi that year mainly because it helped your reputation, she was attractive, she wasn't an awful kisser, she was one of your best friends, and you both thought it was funny how much it pissed off Karkat.

High school had more or less gone the same so far. People teased you for being gay, Kanaya and Rose were still going strong for almost three years, Terezi and Karkat had some weird thing going on, and you were still best friends with Rose Lalonde and Jade Harley. Your tumblr had become somewhat of a place where you could be yourself without being judged and you updated comics, voice acting stuff, and more with followers complimenting you and having the hots for you. The best part being that no one called you fag or Gayve, and you embraced the hatred at school like it didn't bother you. Your followers only saw you as a cool kid that nearly everyone loved. That was how it needed to be. No one could see the dork who hated his stupid red eyes and didn't use his glasses for some metaphor like he claimed on tumblr, but rather, to hide his freakish eyes and his emotions. No one wanted to see the true you besides Jade and Rose and that didn't make you feel better considering they were both like sisters.

Today was the first day of junior year and you most certainly were not looking forward to the horrors of the oncoming school year. You had gotten up at it's-too-fucking-early-for-this-shit o'clock and got dressed in skinny jeans and some black shirt made by a tumblr fan showing a white record broken in half. You pulled on some white converse and a black beanie with the decision that you didn't honestly feel like brushing your hair. You then put on a pair of shades, checking tumblr on your phone once. You groaned internally when you saw that even more asks had flooded your inbox. How were you supposed to interact with people if so many of them had inboxed you? Time to answer a few at least, you think.

Anonymous asked: Selfie?

You opened the camera app and obliged, posting the picture and your response;
I hope that works ;)

Anonymous asked: uh hi! i've never really worked up the courage to talk to you, but i'm moving to a new state this month (texas) and i kind of think kids are going to bully me since the school i'm going to doesn't really seem accepting?

You bit your lip, but then typed out your reply;
Texas ain't exactly known for acceptance, especially some of the public schools. I know mine isn't. Why do you think kids are gonna bully you?... But anyways, just try and make some friends on the first day and stay strong! Feel free to message me anytime and maybe we could meet up sometime.

You hear obnoxious honking outside and of course it's Rose. You weren't later than usual, but you didn't have time for breakfast considering how early she was. You grumbled to yourself and pulled your backpack on one shoulder as you walked to the car and climbed into the back seat next to Jade and behind Kanaya. "Hello ladies," you greet, but add, "You're fucking early," under your breath. Of course Rose hears you and she gives you this stupid smirk that pisses you off to know end. Rose is the designated therapist of your friends because she seems to be perfect when you need comforting, but like therapists, she also tends to piss you off. A lot. She spouts philosophical bullshit and is always in your business. Sometimes you don't know how Kanaya can deal with her. "Oh come on Dave! Aren't you excited? It's the first day of school," Jade asks, the usual smile on her face. "I hate school. Especially the first day," you reply in a monotone. "You get to see all of your friends again," Kanaya supplies, trying to be helpful. Unfortunately for her, you didn't really care. "All the people I give a shit about I spend time with outside of school," you answer. Rose smirks, adding, "I hear a hidden compliment from Mr. David Elizabeth Strider." The car, mainly Kanaya, bursts into laughter and you groan, looking away from the girls.

"Elizabeth?" Kanaya questions, holding her hand daintily over her mouth to contain her laughter. "Okay, let's get something straight," you hiss. "My name is not David. My birth certificate specifically says Dave Elizabeth Strider and that's because Bro is a dick," you tell them. "Broseph isn't a dick. He has an excellent sense of humor. Him and I discuss you on the phone every Tuesday and Thursday about you and your feelings and such," Rose tells you. "That joke isn't funny anymore Lalonde," you reply. "Don't mess with him, it makes him upset and such," Jade tells her. "And an upset Dave is a hellish one to deal with," she adds. "Who said I was joking?" Rose laughs. You groan and the second the car slows into a park, you spring out of the car and rush into school, your head ducked down as you pull out the folded schedule from your pocket. In purple pen is a cursive note from none other than Rose Lalonde;

Dear David,
I was in charge of setting up new class schedules. A thank you will be needed later.
Rose Lalonde

1- Art: Ms. Paint
2- English: Ms. Serket
3- Gym: Mr. Slick
4- Music: Mr. Ampora
5- Math: Mr. Vagabond
6- Lunch
7- History: Mr. Vantas
8- Science: Ms. Lalonde

Screw Rose and her absolutely irritating meddling. You walked to your locker, placing your textbooks from you backpack inside as well as binders from classrooms later in the day. You removed your sketchbook as well as your Art History textbook and trudged off to art class with Miss Paint. The small, stout woman was your favorite teacher in school, but that didn't change the fact you hated the first day of school more than Vriska loved Nicholas Cage. Miss Paint was a woman in her thirties who constantly had her platinum blonde hair in a makeshift twist so it wouldn't get paint in it; the lady constantly had paint somewhere on her body and students came to know her by the paint trails she would leave behind. She wore bright, colorful smocks daily, which contrasted with her husband's (your gym teacher) black and gray attire. In fact, they were opposite in every way possible. But now wasn't the time to get into that.

You walked into her class and scanned the different colored tables (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple) and their various name cards that had beautiful cursive writing indicating who was to sit there. You finally found your name at the purple table, where you had been at the red table the year before with Vantas, who drew depressing art, and Terezi, who drew dragon art and claimed that red helped her think or some weird shit like that. You quickly scanned the other notecards, wondering what other two people had been placed with you this year, but to your surprise you only saw one other notecard at your table. Johnathan Egbert. There must be some sort of mistake. There was no way that could be a Johnathan Egbert. Probably some joke pulled on you by some stupid classmate considering no new kids ever came to the school and you didn't recognize the name out of the four hundred classmates you had in school, with one hundred per grade. When the bell rang, you were even more sure that this was a hoax.

Miss Paint stood at the front of the room, a big smile on her face. "Welcome students! I'm sure you noticed that there are only two chairs per desk and that is because you have reached advanced placement art! Now that is most certainly a hard feat to reach, but here you are and I wanted to say I am so proud-" She was cut off by a door slamming open to reveal a boy. His raven hair was windswept and messy, being somewhat shaggy. His icy blue eyes were hidden behind a pair of thick frames and his smile was slightly bucktoothed as well as him having an overbite. The boy was slender in frame, with a more feminine body type. He was wearing black skinny jeans and a white long sleeved with the Ghostbusters emblem on it with a pair of black converse as well as a nervous smile. "Oh! You must be John Egbert. Class, this is John Egbert and he's a junior from Washington D.C. who just moved to Texas. He's sitting next to…. Dave! That's the purple table, hun," she chirped, gesturing to your table. The boy squirmed at her words, clearly uncomfortable with the entire class staring at him.

Your heart sped up and you looked down to fiddle with your pencils and sketchbook. He was cute. Really cute. The kind of cute you wanted to hug and coddle and cuddle with. This boy was so cute he should be fined. It was probably illegal to be that cute. He slid into the chair next to you and sent you a brief smile, waving. "As I was saying, I am so proud of you all! Now today we're going to be getting to know our partners because this week's assignment is to draw your partner. Now this isn't as simple as it seems. In fact, you need to know someone pretty well to draw him or her the way I want you to. So hang out after school! And I expect it to be in color," Miss Paint finished. She sat down at her desk and you turned to John, who had been giving watching you. "Well, uh. Welcome to Texas, I'm Dave Strider," you welcome him politely.

Your name is Dave Strider and you think that the first day of school, and the rest of it, might not be that bad.