Summary: She's a blond, witty, pig owning, high heel enthusiast destined to be at the top of the high school social ladder. So…what's she doing at the bottom again?

Author's Note: Here is the second chapter for you all! I hope that you enjoy it because it was heaps of fun to write! And don't forget to review because I need to know how this story is being received and whether you like it or not, and whether you think the characters are too 2D, and anything else that you feel like saying! So, REVIEW!

I'd also like to give a huge thanks to those who reviewed last chapter (R. Voltaire, wiltedmoon, and LoveLinkAndRobinHood) and to those who added this story to their favourite and alert lists!

Disclaimer: I don't own Beyblade or anything else that you might recognize (that includes some of the dialogue too which may have been obtained from a variety of sources. Not all of it though, only that which you can identify!).


Chapter Two – One's Got Class and the Other One Dyes

Kurumi sat awkwardly on the uncomfortable chairs outside the Principals' office waiting to be admitted to see the figure of authority after having completed enrolling into the educational institution known as Belmont High.

Apparently it was a standard practice for the Principal to meet and greet all new students.

Whatever it was Kurumi just wanted them to hurry up so that she could finally get to...(she consulted her timetable)...Latin. On second thought they could take all the time in the world, the longer the better in fact.

Just as that declaration passed through the head of the extremely bored blond, the door to the office opened and the student previously monopolizing the Principal's time walked out and made their way to what was undoubtedly their first class.

'Murphy's Law strikes again,' Kurumi thought gloomily as she stood from her position on the lumpy seat as the secretary called to her, "The Principal will see you now Miss. Avalon."

With a small smile of gratitude directed at the harassed looking woman behind the desk, she advanced into the lair of the waiting predator, on guard and ready to run at any sign of danger.

God, she really needed to stop watching the Discovery Channel.

She entered and closed the door with a sharp snap before rotating back around and approaching the man behind the wooden desk.

"Ah, Miss. Avalon please come in and take a seat," the bespectacled middle aged man with greying light brown hair and watery blue eyes said while gesturing to the girl in front of him.

She did as instructed.

"My name is Mr. Kent and let me be the first to say welcome to Belmont High," he continued on in a hospitable tone.

"Technically you're the second because the lady in the...," Kurumi trailed off after a look from the man in front of her and instead replied in the standard manner, "Thank-you it's a pleasure to be here."

"No, I must say that the pleasure is all ours Miss. Avalon," he counteracted with a toothy smile, "After all, to have someone of your pedigree attending our school is a great honour."

"Er, thanks?" the blond offered while resisting the prevailing urge to shake her head at his endeavours of flattery. Evidently, he was all too aware of the influence and wealth the Avalon name carried with it.

What, with Avalon Enterprises being ranked as one of the top five earning companies in the world and all.

Effectively, the corporation controlled the Entertainment Industry, the Fashion Industry, and a large portion of the Travel and Hospitality Industries respectively (they owned numerous hotel chains, restaurants, clubs, resorts, theatres, and even an airline or two). They also had a fair hold on the Publishing sector, owning several different publishing houses and a slew of popular magazines and newspapers.

It was a global initiative that had been owned and built upon by the Avalon family for generations, with each new head of the company adding to the ever expanding portfolio. Subsequently, this cumulated in making the Avalon family a very powerful force to be reckoned with.

And the Principal knew this backwards, forwards and inside out if the cheesy smile he was giving Kurumi was anything to go by.

"Of course, it must be noted that this school rates as one of the top public schools in America," he continued on, the smile falling from his face the longer he talked, "And as such, there are a number of students here at Belmont High that have lineages and important connections much akin to the ones you possess. With that being said, I would like you to know that we do not hold such students in a higher regard when compared to their peers and we treat everyone like equals. That means that you have to work hard, just like everybody else, if you wish to succeed at this school because money and name will not buy your way through, is that clear?"

"Like the water in the Bahamas," the girl replied, a new found respect peppering her words. It wasn't often that a person in his position would give such a lecture to her and she found it to be rather refreshing from the usual fawning she was forced to endure.

'I think I'm going to like him,' she decided mentally, 'He's like Gandhi for the high school generation.'

"Good. That being said, we at Belmont High expect you to work diligently to achieve your maximum potential and to utilise the services offered to your advantage. We want to service your needs, and help you to respect our needs. And if your needs and our needs don't mesh..." Mr. Kent let the sentence hang for a few seconds, "Well, in any case I'm sure that that won't be an issue. Any questions?"

"Not really sir, I'm just your typical Mary Sue," she tried to reason and convince him. It wasn't like she was some spoilt little rich kid who was only interested in causing problems for fun and then relied on her parents to use their influence to get her out of any consequences. She could handle herself if the occasion were to arise and being that kind of a nuisance just wasn't her thing anyway. Apparently, if his tone of voice and pointed look were anything to go by, he was sceptical to say the least. Honestly, hadn't the man ever heard of stereotypes?

Finally, with a nod of his greying head in acquiesced acknowledgment he allowed her to leave.

"Well, I think that about wraps things up here so I suggest that you go find your locker and get to your first period of class now."

With that Kurumi got up and walked towards the door but before she could turn the handle the Principal's voice halted her.

"Oh, and Miss. Avalon?" she turned to stare questioningly in the direction of the man behind the big wooden desk, "Please try and stay out of trouble."

"Don't worry, I'm pretty low maintenance," Kurumi assured matter-of-factly, "Like a Honda."

"That's, ah, good to know," Mr. Kent said with a slight smile on his face. There was no other way to say it, but the girl was a little strange. That is if her responses were anything to go by.

The blond opened the door and, with poise, exited the office.

Mr. Kent watched as she left. There was just something about the girl that made him believe that she was going to be like a spanner in the works at Belmont High.

"Somehow I think that this year is going to prove interesting to say the least."


"Is this place the Labyrinth or what!" a frustrated blond exclaimed as she stood in a deserted corridor and looked helplessly around before conferring once more with the rumpled map she held clenched in one fist.

Kurumi perused the diagram of nonsensical gibberish one more time before coming to the conclusion that she really couldn't read maps. And her books were getting very heavy dammit!

'Why couldn't the secretary have given me directions to the classroom too,' she thought dejectedly. The lady in the office had seemingly only seen it fit to give the girl instructions on how to locate her locker and had believed that she would be able to read the supplied map to find her classroom.

How little did she know.

Kurumi sighed pitifully to herself as she thought sadly, 'It hasn't even been 10 minutes since leaving the Principal's office and I'm already in trouble!'

She examined the hallway again to see if it contained anything that could possibly be used to identify where she was, but it looked identical to the last six she had passed through.

She was just contemplating sending up smoke signals when she heard the unmistakable sound of heavy footfalls on tacky linoleum floor.

'Hurry the power of psychic thinking prevails yet again!' the girl cheered silently to herself as she whirled around to find her saviour.

Strolling nonchalantly down the hallway was a boy who appeared to be a little older than Kurumi and slightly taller too, standing at what she estimated to be around 6'2. He was decked out in a white Ed Hardy tee, dark blue jeans, and white Vans shoes, and had piercing ice blue eyes.

Kurumi couldn't help but think, 'This must be the Labyrinth because I just found the Minotaur.'

The unknown teen had the oddest hairstyle that Kurumi had ever seen.

His bright red hair was styled into two upright creations that vividly reminded the blond of bull's horns...or maybe even devil's horns. Although peculiar and definitely unique, she had to say that he wore it well and that it suited the almost evil air that surrounded him.

Snapping out of her musings before she missed her chance at rescue she quickly made herself known.

"Ah, excuse me," Kurumi called to gain his attention.

The teen stopped and focused his gaze on her, a smirk slipping onto his lips upon eye contact.

"Yes?" he drawled.

"Do you happen to know where room E435 is?" she inquired somewhat desperately.

"I might," was his response as he persevered to stare at the shorter girl.

As the seconds grew in number and the male teen didn't look as if he was going to say anything more, the golden haired girl took action.

"So can you point me in the right direction?" Kurumi quizzed in a prompting voice.

"Down the hall, turn right, then left at the water fountain and it'll be one of the doors in that corridor," the boy supplied while casually surveying her up and down.

"Thanks," the blond replied, in a voice that held barely restrained disgust, as she began to walk away.

"Hey, wait up," the teen told her as he caught up with her and stationed himself a little too close for comfort, "You never told me your name pretty girl."

Kurumi almost rolled her eyes at his seductive smile and flirtatious manner. She had to hand it to him, he was good, a regular Casanova even. Luckily for her, she had encountered his type many times before. She was betting that she was better.

Instead, she decided to humour him and said coyly, "You first."

The boy continued to smile charmingly at her as he came a little bit closer, "My name? Well it's a four letter word that starts with a 'T' and has an 'l' and a repeated vowel in it. Care to guess?"

In response Kurumi cocked her head to the left and said in a completely innocent tone, with a slight hint of confusion, "What 'Tool'?"

She couldn't help but smirk as the teen's expression was wiped off his pale face and a small scowl replaced the look before it was smoothly covered once again.

"A funny girl, huh? I like that," he said as he moved even nearer.

"You know what I like?" Kurumi responded in a low and coquettish voice, as she stopped and faced the cocky redhead, almost closing the space between them. She tilted her face up to his, an enticing smile adorning her countenance.

"What?" the boy asked as he leaned his head so that there existed only a couple of inches separating their lips.

The blond flicked her gaze to his lips for a split second, the same expression as before still gracing her features. In an instant, however, that changed to a look of distaste as she proclaimed, "Personal space!" while shoving him out of the way.

She was pleased to see a look of utter shock on the others face before turning with the intention of going to class.

Another teen, however, was standing a couple of feet in front of the girls' path.

This one was just as tall as the other with hair coloured two tones – dark blue at the back and a lighter blue, almost slate colour at the front – and intriguing crimson eyes. He was even more devilishly handsome and had strange blue triangles that resembled shark fins painted on his fair skinned cheeks. From what Kurumi could see of his body through his clothes (a black t-shirt with something printed on it (she didn't have time to distinguish it due to her quick examination), baggy dark blue jeans, and black converse Chucks), she determined that it was toned and if his arms when anything to go by, muscular too. Yep, he was a definite Adonis.

Just from his stance and the way in which he held himself she could also already conclude that he thought of himself in a superior light, was egotistical and ultimately conceited.

All in all he was a true heartbreaker and she immediately disliked him.

Currently, an amused smirk was playing upon his well defined lips as he calmly nodded in acknowledgement at the adolescent behind the shorter girl and said "Tala."

This seemed to marginally snap the other out of his stunned state as he inclined his head while staring baffled at the back of a specific golden head. Obviously, blatant rejection wasn't something he was overly familiar with.

"And you are?" the unnamed bluenette inquired while leisurely sweeping his garnet orbs over Kurumi's body, glancing longer at certain parts of her anatomy, and exuding an air of complete confidence and arrogance. Even from the few words that he had spoken thus far, the blond knew that her previous assessment had been entirely accurate.

"Leaving," was the curt retort as she manoeuvred her way past the boy, pausing only to chuck a "Later Lucifer" to the redhead behind her and a "Jaws" to the haughty bluenette. She then proceeded to defiantly strut down the hallway, heels clicking audaciously, and didn't bother looking back.

If she had of however, she would have seen two very surprised and astonished looking male teenagers watching her as she walked down the bland corridor and around the corner, marching entirely to the beat of her own drum.


Kurumi came to a halt outside of room E435, still incensed over the nerve of the two perverts, and took a moment to collect herself before knocking on the frosted glass of the door.

"Come in," a decidedly feminine voice called from within the confines of the classroom.

With a deep calming breath, the blond girl opened the blue door and made her first debut into the Latin class.

"Can I help you?" the teacher asked in a soft and timid voice, pausing as she wrote something on the board. She had a dulcet look about her and was rather petite, with wispy amber hair and mahogany eyes framed by wire rim glasses.

"Hi, I'm new here," Kurumi informed the woman while handing over the paper she was given by the secretary in the office. As the teacher skimmed through its contents, the blond girl proceeded to glance over at her new peers.

A random assortment of gazes returned her own, some with interests, others with curiosity and some with boredom.

"Well, welcome to year 11 Latin Miss. Avalon. I'm Miss. Karin your, um, your teacher," she finished off clumsily as she looked nervously at the girl next to her, "Could you please introduce yourself to the class?"

This last part was asked as more of a question and Kurumi felt sorry for the poor woman. She seemed to be terrified of her own students!

In response, the blond gave a cheery "Sure" and a large smile to try and make things easier on the suffering woman.

She hesitantly smiled back in what appeared to be gratitude, before turning her awareness to the rest of the class.

"Excuse me everyone, I'm sorry to disturb you but we have a new student," she remarked in a quiet, fearfully apologetic voice.

'She's such a mouse!' Kurumi mentally said as she scrutinized Miss. Karin form the corner of her eye, 'I wonder what made her become a teacher if she can't even cope with the students?'

Pushing this thought away as she became aware of the class staring at her, Kurumi smiled in what she hoped was an approachable and friendly manner.

After all, you didn't make friends with vinegar.

The class in return did nothing but watch; a couple of people gave half-smiles, and waited for the sunnily smiling blond to make her introductions.

Everyone was staring at Kurumi and she could feel the beam that indicated the spotlight. Blood began to rush to her head and her heart was speeding up as nerves took over the usually composed teen. It was times like these that she really wished the ground would open up and swallow her whole.

She hated being put on the spot like this but she didn't think Miss. Karin could handle the pressure of having to introduce her without having a heart attack stimulated by anxiety.

A small cough issued from the mouth of one of the students in the front row as some began to snicker quietly in the back, time stretching uncomfortably on.

"Oh, right. I'm Kurumi Avalon and I'm fifteen," she started in a tone of confidence that did not betray her inner turmoil, "I only recently moved back to New York after living overseas for the previous few years, Japan being the last, and have only just realized how much I missed it. I have an unappeasable addiction to coffee, an obsession with high heels, a sometimes violent, fashion orientated pet pig, and I think that sliced bread is the greatest thing since sliced bread. I've always dreamed that one day I'd wake up to find that I'm the next Marilyn vos Savant, but I'm a realist and have accepted the fact that it's probably never going to happen. I also made the all important discovery last year that eating eleven litres of Ben and Jerry's ice cream in one day doesn't cure heartbreak depression; it just makes you fat."

At the conclusion of this speech, everyone in the room stared at the blond. No one said anything for quite some time until Kurumi felt the need to break the discomfited silence.

"Heh...tough crowd," she said while glancing around at her various new peers, and what she had originally hoped, friends. Now, she was seriously starting to doubt the latter. If the reactions to her introduction were anything to go by, she didn't think that she would be getting an invitation to lunch from anyone present.

That was certainly a disappointing development.

Although in hindsight, it wasn't that surprising as she did have a sense of humour that not everyone found appealing (mainly because they didn't always comprehend the intricacies that made it funny).

"Okay, um, thank-you Miss. Avalon. Would you like to take a seat next to Miss. Wong?" the teacher asked, instead of told, uncertainly while indicating a pink haired girl in the back corner.

With a small smile, Kurumi walked towards the table that the girl occupied and sat down, several of the other students continuing to gawk even after she had taken her place at the desk.

Ignoring the feel of eyes on her, the blond decided to try and strike up a conversation with her desk mate, hoping to at least make one acquaintance in this class.

She focused her concentration on the girl and really looked at her for the first time. She had long hot pink hair that was loosely tied in a ponytail upon her head and bright golden eyes, hidden though behind a pair of nondescript black glasses that did nothing for her appearance. She also wore a rather outdated and shapeless dress that hid her figure and did not aid in enhancing her natural beauty.

Despite this, she seemed to be open to conversation and interested in Kurumi as she was peering at her sideways, her glasses obscuring the directness of the look.

"Hey, as you undoubtedly know, I'm Kurumi," the blond girl whispered to the person beside her, aware of the quietness of the classroom as Miss. Karin began to apprehensively talk about the origins of the Latin language.

"Hi, it's nice to meet you, I'm Mariah," the now named girl informed the blond, "Let me just say that I completely understand the appeal that Ben and Jerry's have."

Kurumi grinned at this.

"I know right. You should see the kids in Japan, they eat that stuff like crack," she replied, earning a snort from Mariah.

The class dwindled on and during that time, Kurumi was able to ascertain that she most certainly liked the pink haired girl and that facades could be deceiving. She found that the girl had a wicked sense of humour and appreciated much of what the slightly shorter blond said. If Kurumi could hazard a guess, and if it wasn't too premature to do so, she would say that they were like two peas in a pod.

Eventually the bell rang, much to everyone's utmost pleasure, and the array of different students began to pack up their belongings in order to head for their next class.

Kurumi and Mariah had made a quick pit-stop at the water fountain and just as the pink haired girl was taking a drink, they became aware of the presence of three girls standing next to them.

"He-hem," the one in the middle fake coughed in an effort to gain their audience. She had waist length bright purple hair (that Kurumi speculated just had to be dyed), emerald green eyes, and a face that would probably be very pretty if it wasn't for the layers of make-up that hindered its naturalness. Her lack of clothing also added to the construction of a modern day Aspasia in Kurumi's mind.

She felt Mariah stiffen beside her.

Resisting the urge to question the pink haired teen at her reaction, she looked upon the new arrivals with vague interest and a puzzled look.

"Hi, I'm Amanda, and this is Holly and Julia," the evident leader began while indicating the two other teens.

The one named Holly was a bleached blond, blue eyed replica of Amanda who seemed to have overdosed on the fake tan a tad too much and was now a very orange colour. It also looked as if she had indulged in a little artificial enhancement if her chest was anything to go by.

Julia, on the other hand, had long brown hair that was a golden yellow colour on the top and vibrant green eyes. She wasn't wearing as much synthetic products as the other two and was clad with a more conservative feel to it. All in all, it gave the impression that she didn't really belong with the other two.

"Oh, hi it's great to meet you all," Kurumi responded happily; open to making as many new and diverse friends as possible. Anyway, it was always better to have connections with different groups of people as it increased life experience and could come in handy in certain situations.

Lorenzo de' Medici eat your heart out.

In addition, the blond was more partial to having copious amounts of friends as it enabled her to socialize, which advertently was one of her favourite things to do.

"So, you just moved back here huh? I'm in your Latin class so I heard your intro," Amanda said in an effort to strike up a chat, "It must be kinda weird being back after being gone for so long. Where did you say you were last again?"

"Oh, I got back from Japan, Tokyo to be exact, about a month and a half ago" Kurumi informed the group of teens, all of whom listened intently.

"That's so cool," the purple haired girl said in a tone that oozed sweetness. "Well, you'll be okay here. If you hang with me and mine, you'll be accepted in no time. Of course, we do have to test your coolness factor. You're originally from New York, so you can skip the written, but let's see. Green nail polish?"

"Um, over?"

"So over," Holly answered, "Milo Ventimiglia?"

"He needs to call me!"

"Frappaccinos?" This time it was Julia who asked.

"An old favourite."

"Cosmo?"

"The Bible."

"Okay, that was pretty much a given, but...you passed!" Amanda congratulated.

"Oh, goody!" the natural blond replied in an accent of teasing enthusiasm.

It was at this moment that Mariah straightened up from her bent position over the drinking apparatus and was perceived by the purple, bleached, and duo haired teens.

"Mariah! Nice dress! Good to know you've seen the softer side of Sears," Amanda commented snidely amid the deriding laughter of Holly. Julia, however, remained silent and averted her eyes from the taunting scene. This action did not go unnoticed by Kurumi who watched on in shadowed disgust. If there was one thing she really couldn't stand it was other people thinking that they were better than others and had the right to ridicule those less fortunate.

These girls had just gone from potential friends to people not worth bothering with.

Mariah muttered in a voice dusted with embarrassment, "Uh, oh, well, my mom picked it out."

"No wonder you're such a guy magnet then," Holly mocked while looking on in revulsion at the red faced Mariah.

Amanda turned her focus back onto Kurumi and informed her that, "If you wanna fit in here, the first rule is: know your losers. Once you can identify them all by sight," she glanced at the pink haired girl, "they're a lot easier to avoid."

At this statement, Mariah made to move past Kurumi and the obviously popular group of teens, her visage rivalling that of a tomato. Before she could get very far, however, the blond put a hand out and grabbed her wrist, halting her movement, while never removing her blazing eyes from those of Amanda.

"Thanks for the tip but I think I can decide for myself those that need to be avoided," she said coldly while staring pointedly at the group before her.

Three pairs of eyes looked back in confusion until the violet haired leader started to laugh.

"Oh, I get it," she affirmed in between giggles, "You evidently don't know how this school operates and were just making a joke. Like in class right?"

"Oh," Holly then said in relieved understanding. For a minute there she thought the new girl was serious.

Dumbfounded was the only expression that could be distinguished on Kurumi's features. Were they deaf? Did she need to write it on a billboard in flashing neon lights?

"So, you'll join us for lunch right? We can explain everything to you then," Amanda proposed in a condescending manner, flipping her hair over her bare shoulders in the process.

"Yeah, so you should definitely come if you know what's good for you. After all if you hang with us you'll automatically be popular," the bleached blond clone stated as if it were fact before adding, after seeing the disbelieving look adorning Kurumi's beautiful face, "Oh and don't worry, you're totally cute enough to hang with us."

"But not as cute as Pushkin right?" Kurumi inquired in acceptance tinged with incredulity.

At this query, the blond could feel Mariah shaking in suppressed laughter as her wrist remained in Kurumi's warm hand, her back still stationed towards the group.

Amanda and Holly just looked confused while the one named Julia appeared to be attempting to stifle a chuckle, her cheeks tinging light pink at the effort.

"Never mind," the golden haired girl said while shaking her head slightly, "I'm really sorry but I've kinda already got plans at lunch, you know with Mariah and all."

"Huh?" Holly screeched intelligently, clearly outraged, "Are you mentally challenged?"

"Not that I'm aware of."

Amanda smiled in a sickeningly sweet way while saying, "I'll give you one last chance to reconsider."

"What is this? A plea bargain? What part of 'No' don't you comprehend?" Kurumi proclaimed exasperated with the whole state of affairs.

"You know, you really should have accepted. Enjoy your downward mobility on the social scale," Amanda said in a dangerous tone, her emerald eyes narrowing with every word, "I'll be sure to help you get to your rightful position...loser."

With that, Amanda and Holly gave the disobedient blond simultaneous sneers, while Julia gave her an indifferent look that didn't quite succeed in reaching her green eyes and smothering the look of inquisitiveness that was held within their depths. The three teens then proceeded to walk away down the bustling corridor.

"So, should we get to History?" Kurumi inquired of Mariah acting as though nothing out of the ordinary had happened.

"You really shouldn't have done that you know," the pink haired girl said in a low voice, "They're going to make your life hell now."

The blond snorted in reply, "I'd like to see them try. I'm guessing that they're part of the popular clique then?"

"You just met the Queen bee and two of her loyal followers."

"Ah, I see. I have to say that she wasn't that terrifying," Kurumi remarked in a light hearted jest.

"You haven't seen anything yet. I still can't believe that you turned down the opportunity to be a part of that scene. Barely anyone gets the chance and now you're stuck at the bottom because of me," Mariah murmured softly, guilt dripping from every word.

"If you ever say that again I will inflict serious damage with my fantastically fashionable shoes. I really don't want to be friends with people like that anyway; I already know way too many so my quota's all filled up for the next thousand years or so," she triumphed in coaxing a smile form the other adolescent, "and now you're stuck with me! Aren't you lucky!?"

"Can I send you back?" Mariah queried, earning a light slap on the shoulder from her newfound friend.

"No!" Kurumi exclaimed in mock indignation, "Anyway enough of that kind of backstabbing talk, on to more important matters."

A raised eyebrow met this declaration.

"If Amanda's the reigning Regina," the blond girl questioned her pink haired companion curiously, "Who's Rex?"


Note:

Regina – Latin for Queen

Rex- Latin for King

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