Chapter 7

Where We Went Wrong

LACEY

"Hey guys, do you wanna come with me to Vanessa's graduation?" I figured asking the twins to come along wouldn't be a bad idea; at least I wouldn't be there on my own.

In synchronization they turned on a heel and said, "Grad party?"

I said, "Yeah." A little surprised by their excitement. Them being excited for anything rarely boded well for me. Apprehension crept down my spine.

"We're in!" They said happily and dragged me off toward the outdoor ceremony. I suddenly regretted my choices.

We arrived outside and the stands were filled with the graduates' families and friends. The grads sat uniformly in chairs set in front of the stage in their gowns and caps. We had arrived shortly before the speeches and certificate roll call was about to begin.

I turned to the twins and asked, "Have you guys been to a graduation before?"

"Nah, we just like parties." Henry said lightly.

I found some free space and took a seat. I peered over the crowd for Vanessa and Flint and found Flint's bright red hair quickly. I gestured for Peter and Henry to take a seat and they sat on either side of me.

"I wonder if Lord Death will be here today." Peter squinted at the stage and spotted a long-standing mirror. He pointed it out to me and I grinned with excitement.

"I've never seen Lord Death before! Have you guys seen him?" I asked the twins.

Henry swept some hair out of his eyes to get a better look at the stage. "Only important and senior students get to talk to Lord Death, let alone actually see him face to face. Those sorts of meetings are exclusive to Death Scythes and other teachers. So no, we've never seen him."

Peter folded his arms and nodded in agreement, "It's kind of a big deal to talk to Lord Death-


"Okay just one second!" Vanessa interrupted me from the story and pulled my attention back to the present.

"Can you skip a bit? I was there for that part. Lord Death showed up, bounced around and said little to nothing before moving out of the mirror again. It was short and sweet. The ceremony was great and all, but I remember that part." Vanessa scanned the field and kicked at crumpled red Solo cup.

I sighed, "I had never seen him before okay? So it's kind of a big deal." I tried pulling my hair into a ponytail but it was tangled mess. "After the ceremony ended and all the staff members made their speeches the party started almost immediately."

Vanessa pursed her lips examining her dress, "Okay great then what happened? I obviously drank too much."

I walked up to the stage covered in garbage and its polish had been worn off from dancing and fights. I ran my hand through the dust and my hand came up dark brown.

"At that point we were still together, I had lost track of Pete and Henry but I figured they had wondered off to dance and flirt with girls. As soon as you got up on stage and started drinking and dancing that's when things got pretty crazy." I said pointing at the stage, tracking the memory with my hand sweeping across the stage.


I had been pushing through the crowd to meet with Vanessa and Flint; I saw them climb on stage. Passing several graduates, who were sharing bottles of booze amongst red Solo cups. I watched on from the crowd with a big grin, the party atmosphere was energizing me.

I finally reached the stage and shouted out for Vanessa. Her attention was squarely on her partner. I felt a chill run up my spine and I groaned and I looked to my right seeing a graduate boy beeline for the dancing couple.

I got up on stage and stopped him dead in his tracks; he was a graduate and obviously an experienced fighter. I couldn't tell if he was meister or weapon but I knew in my bones that this was a terrible idea. Instead of warning my friends I just planted my feet and puffed up my chest. What's the worst that could happen?

"Leave them alone." I locked eyes with him and he was already on the tipsy side despite the party had barely started.

He regarded me irritably and was ready to just push me out of the way, but tried to do it with words first. "Git outta the way. It's my turn to finally dance with all the grad girls. Even the stuffy ones like Vanessa."

He tried again to step by me but I sidestepped into his path, "One. You do not call my friend stuffy. Two. It's obvious to me that they don't want to be bothered by you. Finally number three, I won't get out of the way until you turn around…" I began to threaten and he took a menacing step closer and towered over me. "…and walk away." I finished lamely taking a huge gulp of air. I quickly scanned the crowd below the stage and couldn't see my partners anywhere to back me up.

He cracked his knuckles to add emphasis to his glare. I felt my mouth go dry and in the same second I felt a light hand on my shoulder. Flint was on my right and Vanessa was on the left.

Flint gently nudged me to step back and I gladly took the hint to back off. Vanessa and Flint rejoined and held hands. I felt the buzz of energy in the air around them, they easily put on a more intimidating presence than I would ever hope to achieve.

"Christopher, were you just menacing my roommate?" Vanessa asked icily.

Christopher's demeanor finally broke and his head bowed submissively, "Not at all, j-just wanted to ask you to dance."

Flint said in a strictly monotone, "Let's dance then, go get your partner."

Almost at the drop of his tone Christopher took a few steps away and when I thought he'd run he called out for his meister, Jean.

Jean appeared almost immediately and still firmly in party mode scoffed at Vanessa and Flint's challenge. I took several steps back and when I finally noticed the dancing and partying around on the stage came to a screeching halt at the light of Christopher and Flint's transformation.

I brought the heel of my hand to my forehead in a satisfying smack. Why did I instigate a fight? All the other fights were strictly fun or blades clinking in celebration. Hardly fights if at all.

What could I have done otherwise even if I was armed with Peter and Henry? EAT grads are in a completely different league than someone like me. But maybe it wasn't too late to fix it? I made things worse but I could still fix it and take the blame.

I pushed past Vanessa and stepped between the two teams and held my hands out. Vanessa shouted to get out of the way and I shouted back.

Jean held Christopher, the huge metal mallet lightly in his hands glaring at me.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry! Please don't fight! I just wanted to protect my friend from a pervy boy ruining her dance with her partner!" I pleaded.

"Lacey, you're only in the way! He tried to bully you and tried to harass me. He needs to be put in place!" Vanessa shouted at me and I flinched at her apparent irritation.

"Girl, this is how EAT students deal with problems, we fight!" Jean called out and his side of the crowd cheered with agreement.

I shook my head vigorously, "And ruin the party in the process?"

Vanessa took an aggressive step forward, "The party doesn't matter anymore!"

The entire crowd cheered and chanted, "FIGHT, FIGHT, FIGHT!"

The stage shook with the weight of the mallet connecting with the ground I found myself shaking and suddenly felt fire at my feet and tried to stomp it out. Vanessa dashed forward and used the back of Flint's staff to knock me off the stage. The crowd parted momentarily and I flew off the stage onto the grass.

"I just wanna say, sorry. You were just being stupidly stubborn." Vanessa glossed over it.

I glared, "You were the stubborn one! I just wanted to get back to dancing and having fun instead your fight totally triggered the crazy end of the party."

Vanessa glared back, "You started it, you're so defiant and it'll only get you into more trouble mark my words, Lace."

"Argh!" I threw my hands up in frustration.

"Well what happened after that?" Vanessa pressed, changing the subject.

I pushed up from the grass and snarled in frustration, I walked backward and gave the fighting grads plenty of space. I watched on from about ten feet back and silently berated myself.

Vanessa slipped out of her heels and I could hear the crack of ankles and her toes wiggled appreciatively with the freedom. Flint was impressive in his weapon form; the staff was a dark cherry wood at the length of six feet without the blade. His blade angled into a slight steel hook, at one and a half feet. The base of the blade was intricately etched with a spiral design. Flint had mentioned once before that it matched the spiral tattoo he had at the base of his back.

The spirals lit up with fire and flashed across the blade. Flint was a fire glaive and in Vanessa's hands they had earned fearsome recognition.

I watched Vanessa dance with expertise, her muscles moving to its second nature of fighting. Flint sparked off the steel of the mallet and showered the stage with pockmarks of fire. Jean swung around Christopher with effortless weight and aimed directly for Vanessa's guard.

She stepped and dodged the mallet with ease and as she evaded the mallet meister's defenses, she brought the butt of the staff up to his head and knocked him sideways. Her opponent snarled and dashed with unprecedented speed back into the fight.

I was about to turn away and find my partners when I heard a clang of steel and I saw Flint spin and fly away out of Vanessa's hands. I watched him shout in terror as he spun past my eyesight and disappeared behind the school some 200 feet way.


"Oh! That's how he we were separated then. What a amateur mistake, I totally dropped my guard and Flint flew right out of my hands." Vanessa nodded soberly.

I scratched at the pockmark on the stage and said, "It was really embarrassing. How much had you to drink at that point?"

Vanessa hummed in her throat in thought, "I had done some pre-drinking before the ceremony and downed a few cups of orange screwdrivers before we started dancing." She tapped her chin thoughtfully, "Never expected to be fighting anybody like that."

I turned on her in confusion, "Then why did you fight? I tried to give you guys a free pass by taking on all the blame!"

Vanessa shrugged, "It was a matter of pride, it would have been downright embarrassing to not take up such an obvious challenge." She conceded. "The vodka definitely did not help the decision."

"Whatever the case, it was my fault." I said quietly, "After Flint disappeared you got really angry and started taking some seriously cheap shots at your own expense. The fight ruined the mood and other fights started springing up in the crowd and party. Music got louder to accommodate all the noise and I tried to get back to Peter and Henry."

"I can't remember how the fight ended or how we ended up here." Vanessa admitted.

"I tried skirting the fighting zones but only ended up getting tossed around by the crowd. I got a couple elbows to the face, drinks were spilt on me, and I blacked out a couple times. So I can't even remember how we ended up here." I shook my head.

Vanessa finally noticed all the blackened bruises on my face and became much more sympathetic.

"You are a mess." She smiled and poked my red cheek.

I couldn't help but smile in spite of myself, "I thought this party would have been like a grand entrance into my new life." I admitted.

Vanessa sighed, "Disappointed?"

"Severely." I nodded.

"You always hold such high expectations for everything Lace." Vanessa said, patting my back comfortingly.

I replied defensively, "What's wrong with that?"

"Your expectations are a great motivation, but you have this idea how you should act now that you're an EAT student and its stopping you from actually progressing." Vanessa made eye contact and I became instantly annoyed.

"It's barely my first day, what progression are you talking about?" I said, trying to downplay the defensive tone I had taken.

"You thought blazing this new trail would be more fun and something you'd see in a movie." She pointed at her head her tone was achingly light, "You wanted to find a new best friend with your partner and hit it off. You want to be my equal. You bet on EAT and its direction as your escape into a life you actually want instead of the one you've been handed." She shook her head condescendingly "You want so much for yourself. It's actually quite selfish."

I clenched my jaw and couldn't stop myself from thinking, You're wrong!

"The only times I've seen you act like yourself was when you actually spoke your mind." Vanessa stepped in front of me and crouched down in front me.

"I speak my mind all the time, I don't let anyone speak for me." I said heatedly.

Vanessa shook her head. "Your parents spoke for you against the bullying. I speak for you against your decisions. Peter and Henry direct your training and want you to be the meister they want, not the meister you want to be."

I closed my eyes, reigning in my emotions, "They were my only choice. They were the first weapons I was even compatible with!"

"You rushed, if you had given yourself enough time you would have found someone more suitable. There's no one else to blame but yourself, Lacey." Vanessa said pointedly as she resumed standing. "You want to be you so badly that you're listening to what everybody says about you before you listen to yourself."

I swallowed a dry spot and remained silent stewing on her words. How could they have been true in any sense? Everything she is saying was just a knot in my stomach.

"We should find Flint." Vanessa suggested and started to peer out across the field, I assumed she was using her soul perception to find him.

I glared at her back and said, "You can find him, and I'm going to find my partners."

Vanessa glanced over her shoulder at me, "Don't be ridiculous. They're probably at home passed out in their own beds. Probably forgot all about you, Lace."

I marched by her and bumped my shoulder with hers as I passed, "They wouldn't leave me alone."

Vanessa growled, "Lace, come on. Your loyalty to two boys who don't care about you is absurd and misplaced."

"They do care!" I snarled back.

"They don't!" She shouted latching a hand onto my wrist. I immediately tried to shake her off. "Why do I have to keep repeating myself? I know what I'm talking about! Why don't you ever listen to me?"

I violently shook at her hand and tried prying off her hand, "You keep saying you know best but you don't! You don't know how I feel and what I should do! I'm done with listening to you tell me I'm naïve and desperate!" Vanessa grabbed for my other hand and held them with a vice-like grip. "I am somebody! I know that now more than ever!" I kicked at her stomach and she let go as soon as I lifted my leg and dodged my kick.

She looked hurt and I felt the fire spread through my stomach. Her words felt like the truth but how could they be truth when they just made me feel worse about myself?

"Why do you want me to be the bad guy?" She asked, water in her eyes.

I rolled my eyes and said, "This isn't about you!"

Vanessa folded her arms, "Right, because everything is always about Lacey Goodman and her fabulous ability to synchronize with two of the most annoying people in the entire school!"

I was readying my next comeback and stopped at the sudden realization, "You tried to be their partner before Flint?" I asked.

Vanessa's eyes widened like saucer plates and her real anger showed briefly. "Do not go there."

"They rejected you and you obviously had your heart set on creating two death scythes." I reasoned, the connections and their antagonism becoming clearer.

Vanessa stomped toward me and towered over me in her heels and I felt the hair rise up on the nape of my neck, a blatant warning to stop. "You took great satisfaction in their inability to find a partner and how you created a death scythe out of Flint instead." I pressed on.

I didn't intend to push her buttons. Vanessa hates losing. She pushed all my buttons and pushing hers felt like the only way to win back some ground.

Her soul swelled with emotion and power. I planted my feet and said, "You hated that I had succeed where you hadn't with pure dumb luck. I won your prize."

She held her herself over me and replied, "I hated that my inexperienced NOT roommate was walking straight into failure and still stubbornly believes those two idiots are her ticket to success. They're going to chew you up and spit you out." She pushed me off my feet and I stared up, feeling the sweat dripping down my brow. "I'll save them the trouble and do it myself!"

I winced and braced myself. I didn't want to add more bruises to my already pulped-up face.

Vanessa's weight disappeared suddenly and Flint was standing in front of me holding out a hand. His eyes were just endlessly sad and I took his hand and he helped me up to my feet.

I stepped away gratefully and said, "Thank you."

Vanessa was back on her feet and snarling, her soul still swollen and angry. Flint put his hands up, submissively and said, "Calm down. You're too angry right now."

"Get out of the way, Flint! I need to teach her a very painful lesson!" She screamed.

"No, you don't." Flint insisted calmly.

She dashed forward and Flint caught her in his arms and locked her hands above her head. She kicked and screeched like an animal. I finally felt the hot tears roll down my cheeks.

"You went too far this time, Vanessa." I snarled, angrily wiping away the tears. "I'll show you, I'll show everybody just how wrong you are!"

Flint grunted against Vanessa's strength and brought her down into his lap on the ground. "Lacey, leave." He warned.

Sniffing, I brushed away my tears and dashed past them toward the doors and ran to the entrance of the school. Hearing my footsteps echo off the empty halls and I didn't stop to even breathe. Fear and emotion drove my legs harder than ever before.

Wrong turn after wrong turn and I was completely lost. The school was dark and different; none of the hallways looked the same. I stopped and tried to concentrate on where I was. I could still sense Vanessa's angry soul.

I finally found myself leaning on the wall and cried my eyes out. Fearing for my future and myself.

I ruined my friendship with Vanessa and she was right. She was right; I didn't know how to listen to myself. I tried to control myself through everybody's opinions and decisions instead of my own. I felt so messed up and confused. My tears stung my eyes and I started to hiccup.

All I could bring myself to do was push off from the floor. I walked down the hallway and approached a set of huge double doors. The sign pinned to the door read Death Room.

I pushed on the door curiously and it nudged open with a loud creak. I pulled my hand back and started to turn away. I had already seen what Lord Death looked like; I didn't need to waltz into his office in the middle of the night. It was a terrible idea.

My hand hesitated and I pushed the door wide open. It was darkened as the night sky was outside and the archways were large red guillotines. I listened intently and heard nothing. I saw the large expanse of the crosses and moved forward listening to my footsteps and loud hiccups, convincing myself every step of the way was a gross trespass and a mistake.

I approached the clearing and the huge mirror standing in the middle at the far end. I stepped up and did a 360 look around. I figured a quick look around would be enough for my curiosity. I would never see this room again without an invitation.

"It's awfully late for anyone to be here." A voice stated. I nearly jumped out of my skin and turned to the mirror.

Lord Death was standing outside the mirror and was a towering figure in the dark. Candles lit up around the mirror and silhouetted him.

I felt my mouth flap open and felt my chest continue to hiccup.

He bent sideways and said, "You're a DWMA student, correct?"

I stammered, "Y-y-yes, s-s-ir."

"Why on Earth are you here then? Shouldn't you be tucked in bed and sleeping soundly?" He asked and his big white hands popped out and he rubbed his mask thoughtfully.

"I am so sorry for trespassing! I got lost, everything is so dark and my friend just scared me and tried to beat me up! I don't know what I was thinking when I came in here! I was just curious! Please don't expel me!" I clapped my hands together and squeezed my eyes shut as I rambled.

I felt a gentle bump on my head and looked up, "Sir?"

"Had quite the party, huh?" He asked and pulled out a chair for himself and pulled out a second one presumably for me.

I hesitated and he gestured with his huge white glove hand to sit.

I sat flattening the tatters of my dress under my legs. "Y-yeah." I let another hiccup pop out of me.

"You're a new EAT student, correct? What's your name, dear one?" He asked kindly.

I hiccupped again and said, "Lacey Malta."

He said in a singsong voice, "You look to be about the same age as my son! How delightful to meet a new EAT student."

I tugged at my lower lip, "You have a son?"

"You betcha!" He replied enthusiastically.

"I guess he isn't a student then." I asked.

"Nope! Private lessons and what not." He flapped his big hand around and I ducked out of the way. "More importantly, do you have a place to sleep?"

I shook my head sadly, "No, my roommate is really mad at me."

"Then you should stay with your partners!" He suggested.

I shook my head, "They don't know I'm still here. How do you know about them?"

He winked, "I know all about the goings on in my own school."

I nodded, "Of course, sir. That was a silly question."

Lord Death became serious, "There is no silly question, Miss Malta. Each question represents the destruction of ignorance."

I nodded enthusiastically. He returned to a brighter demeanor, "Peter and Henry Halloway should be here to pick you up very soon. I'll walk you to the entrance of the school."

"That's not necessary, sir! I don't want to trouble you anymore than I already have!" I said.

He bumped me on the head again with his hand and said, "Nonsense, I can at the very least ensure one my students gets to a safe place."

I squeaked and he bounced from side to side and began making his way down the path. I followed behind him and kept quiet rubbing at my stinging eyes.

Nobody was going to believe that Lord Death personally escorted me outside the school, I thought sadly. I was even more baffled that Lord Death called Peter and Henry to pick me up.

We quickly made our way through the school and out to the entrance. I stopped at the sight of Peter and Henry. I looked up at Lord Death and smiled.

"Thank you, sir. For everything." I said and bowed my head in respect.

"Don't be afraid of the future, with or without Miss Amsel's acceptance, you'll never be lonely Miss Malta." I stared up into his mask, "You'll always be loved and maybe you'll never need more than that."

I looked back at the twins and looked back to Lord Death one more time; he nodded reassuringly. I turned in an instant and ran to my partners.

I dashed into Henry's waist and buried my face into his back. He irritably tried to push me off and Peter huffed.

Pulling away I said, "Thanks for coming to pick me up. I guess Lord Death calling you was enough to get you out of bed."

Peter raised an eyebrow at me, "What are you talking about? We've been waiting here for the better part of two hours. We heard you were still here and so we decided to at least wait for you to give your butt a ride home."

I was confused, why did Lord Death lie about calling them? I replied, "I wandered into Lord Death's office and he told me he called you guys and then walked me out here." I turned back and Lord Death was nowhere to be seen. "You guys waited for me?" I stared.

They looked at me like I had three heads Henry said, "Of course. Do you honestly think we'd leave you here alone with your drunk roommate and her MIA boyfriend?"

Peter examined my face and said, "I'm mean look at you, you're covered in bruises and it looks like you've been hanging out in a trash can."

Henry took a closer look too, "Your eyes are all red too. Have you been doing drugs?"

I shook my head vigorously, "Can I stay with you guys tonight? Vanessa is really mad at me."

They exchanged a look, wordlessly knowing what the other was thinking. Henry and Peter simultaneously beckoned me to follow them down the stairs. They didn't ask any questions, they didn't make any jokes. Peter took my right hand Henry took my left, gently squeezing. Fresh tears welled over my eyes again and I cried freely without holding it back.

-End of Chapter 7-