a/n: some swears for you.

The ages for the characters are as listed:
Robb - 19
Jon - 19
Sansa - 17
Arya - 16
Bran - 14
Rickon - 11
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Jaqen (female) - 16
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Gendry - 27
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North Snow Private High School for Girls;
A Change of Pace:

Chapter 10: —
Loosened Hold:

Because Arya was now a sophomore, she was moved to the Sophomore Dorm. The layout was relatively the same as Freshman Dorm, she just got a different room, but thanks the Gods her and Jaqen were still roommates. The R.A. was different, which Arya was a little sad about because Myra was an okay girl, nice and reliable. Pamica was the Sophomore R.A., twenty-years-old with skin like dark chocolate, hair in dreads nearly down to her arse, and her huge smile with flashing white teeth.

"How was your summer?" Arya questioned as she and Jaqen put on their uniforms the morning of their first day as sophomores.

"A girl feels the urge to rip her hair out when in the presence of her mirror image." Jaqen replied grimly.

"That bad?" she asked as she slipped her arms in her grey blazer.

"A girl can only handle so much... doofus." Was her reply. "And what about this girl next to me?"

"It was actually pretty good, no trouble at all. I got to be with my little brothers, and I even got a summer job, saved up some money."

"The girls is smart. The girls thinks ahead."

"You ready yet?" Arya tied the grey neckerchief with the white stripe around her neck.

"This girl charges ahead into the bloody war grounds."

The went to the cafeteria and had breakfast, both choosing eggs and bacon. Before they went to school next door. Because Arya had come to North Snow in the second semester, she missed the first year assembly that took place every new high school year, where every teacher and T.A. and students were to be present.

The Auditorium was huge, and fold down seats were quickly filling up, the ones in the back first, and ones front and center of the stage last—for both that reason, and for the fact of that was where the teachers sat. Jaqen gave her an apologetic look as she spotted a free seat in one of the middle isles, and jumped for it like a cat on a mouse—every girl for herself, it seemed, and Arya was left to fend for herself. Arya sighed as she ended up sitting in the second row from the front, and as she sat amongst teachers and teacher assistants, she was startled to realized that sitting on her right was Gendry Waters.

What luck or not luck, Arya thought as he recognized her and gave her a smile in greeting as the Vice Principle called for attention on the stage, she had no choice but to smile back before turning to look steadily to the front through the whole hour assembly.

He silent presence right next to her was like a bullhorn blowing in her ears. She steadily kept her gaze trained on the stage as the V.P. spoke, as the student council preformed some skits and through everything else. Right off, after nearly three months away, and her first morning back at school and she'd already run into Gendry—sitting right next to him, completely aware of his arm right on the rest next to hers. Deep breaths, she told herself, though they were for a completely different reason. She wondered where Krissi was, Arya hadn't seen the girl since she'd been back, and now decided that this was not luck, bad luck.

When the V.P. finally dismissed them to get to their first classes after a ten minute pause, everyone girl got up and started to file out. Arya jumped from her seat like her skirt was on fire, and disappeared in the sea of girls before Gendry could even stand.

She got her books from her locker, the same one she had last year and looked at her schedule. Her first class and homeroom was Literature with Mr. Pycelle on the third floor. Jaqen had this class as well, she took all the literature and English classes that she could. Pycelle was a very, very old man it seemed. He had a long white beard, and he seemed to mumble his words a bit, and repeated himself quiet often, which was annoying, but quite necessary because it took you a couple of times to understand what he was actually saying. He wrote on the chalk board slow, too, just like he shuffled about. Arya wondered how he wasn't retired yet, he must be a hundred-years-old! Thank the Gods that he had a T.A.

Her next period was P.E. with Mr. Forell. He had a deep accent, and seemed to refer to his students a girl, which kind of got confusing since they were all girls, but he'd be looking straight at you when he said it, so you knew. When he talked, it was short and simple, and he got to the point with similes. He made sure that you participated, and when you did, you did it right. Every other Wednesday was health class, conducted by the school nurse, discussing you-know-what—sex.

Arya breaked for lunch and found that she also had Civics class with Jaqen. They went together after they ate. The teacher was Mr. Baelish. He was a smooth talker and explained things so you actually understood what they meant. Arya preferred him to Mr. Pycelle, but then she preferred Mr. Forel over Baelish.

Arya hadn't seen Krissi all day, not in the auditorium, cafeteria or the dorm, and she began to hope that maybe Krissi didn't go to school here anymore.

Her last class of the day was with the teacher that she liked and admired the most—Mr. Waters' history class. It was like it had been last year, packed with girls, all wanting to sit at the front, to be as close to the man as they could without crawling on him; listening to his every word, eyes following his every movement. Arya sat in the back like she had last year, and as she listened to him, she wondered how he never got creeped out by being stared at continually.

But the one thing that she was one-hundred-present aware of, was that neither Krissi, nor Uma were in her class. Arya wasn't sure what to think of that, could she be stupid enough to hope? She knew that Krissi would cut off her hand if it meant that she could be in everyone of Gendry's history classes, that's how crazy she was; Uma wasn't infatuated like Krissi, just a follower, so she wouldn't care what classes she was in.

When the day was over, and she finished up in her locker and was heading back to the dorm, she saw Uma walking down the hall, Uma, but no Krissi. She took note of that as she quietly approached the girl; she was sick of being on edge about not having Krissi in her sight-line and she wanted answers.

"Uma..." Arya said softly behind the girl.

Uma nearly jumped out of her skin, giving a little shriek of fear as she spun around, her binder clutched to her chest. "A-arya, what is it? I didn't do anything, I swear!"

She'd never seen the girl act like that before, but then she'd never seen Uma without Krissi. "I know," Arya cooed, placating. And then she narrowed her eyes. "Where's Krissi?"

"She's not here." She swallowed.

"And what exactly does that mean," Arya forced herself to stay calm, and intense, and though the girl was taller than her, it was her who was looking down at Uma.

"I heard that during the summer, a week before school started, that she fell down the stairs at her house and broke her leg, and dislocated her shoulder."

"What do you mean you heard? You're her best-friend, aren't you?"

Uma swallowed nervously. "She's nuts!" she exclaimed suddenly. "She starting going crazy last year about you, and when she came back to the dorm after the water balloons with her hair all messed-up, she lost it. She wanted you to pay. I was not going to be like that, I was not going to let her drag me down! So-so I started to hang out with her less and less, keeping my distance. And after what happened to you after the soccer game with the Desert Ragers—which I didn't know about until after!—I confronted her. She said she'd kill me if I told anyone what she did. Oh I was so scared, I knew that she meant it. That's why I didn't hang out with her during the summer, I'm not friends with her anymore—she's gone completely mental about Mr. Waters and you too."

Arya was silent as she thought through what Uma had just told her. She would never say it, but she was happy and proud of Uma for getting out of the toxic relationship with Krissi, the girl just wasn't crazy, and she didn't need to deal with that crap. But Uma said that Krissi had gone crazier than ever, and Arya felt dread in the pit of her stomach of was psychotic things the blond had thought up to do to her during the summer.

"If that's right, then she shouldn't be back for at least two months," Arya murmured thoughtfully.

"I-I guess," she stammered. "Can I go now?"

Arya looked at her, her grey eyes narrowed and sharp, cutting right through her. "Alright, but when the times comes and I come to you, you're going to tell everything that's happened. Got that?"

Uma just nodded silently, and Arya dismissed her with a gesture, and the girl didn't hesitate. Arya had a lot of things that she needed to think about now.

Xx

It was after supper, and the two girls were back in their room, dressed in their civvies, getting ready to go to the school library, which was just a big as any public one she'd been to, complete with forty computers that the students were free to use at any time as long as the library was open, which was from 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.

"Did you notice that the crazy bitch isn't here?" Jaqen said, looking at her.

"Yeah," Arya nodded. "I talked to Uma—"

"Stupid girl did what?" She demanded.

"As I was saying," Arya sent her a glare. "I talked to Uma—who is not a crazy bitch, by the way, she's actually kind of okay—" Jaqen gave her an incredulous look by stayed silent "—and she told me that Krissi got into an accident falling down that stares, and broke her leg during the summer, and that's why she'd not a school."

"Serves her right!" Jaqen spat. "She deserves worse than that,"

Arya didn't comment. She wasn't sure what she felt, only that she was glad that Krissi wasn't here, tormenting her all over again. They turned off the light, and shut the door behind them, and walked down the dorm hall.

"If I'm right—and I'm gonna check while we're at the library just to be sure—but if I am, then I have about to months to come up with a plan to solve this once and for all. I can't live another two years like I did last year," Arya said.

Jaqen nodded as they left the dorm. "But doesn't a girl mean us?"

"I don't want you to get anymore involved than you already have, Jaqen!" Arya started. "What if she comes back and starts on you too?"

Jaqen scoffed at the idea. "I know that you promised your parents that you wouldn't cause trouble, but I have no reservations with my parents. If that crazy bitch even tries anything on me, I'll give her a run for her money—by promptly breaking her nose, and then everyone can see what a sick little shit she is."

Arya raised a brow at her, but was smiling, she always found it funny when Jaqen got fired up, and Arya knew that she meant every word she said, she wouldn't hesitate to do exactly that and punch her in the face, unless Arya asked her not to.

"So, a girl and her friend are going to come up with a design." Jaqen declared.

Arya had no other choice but to agree, but she hardly put up a fight. Jaqen was the only one beside Uma—and Gendry who suspected—who knew the truth. It felt nice to have an ally, someone who understood what she was going through, understood what she might have to do.

-tbc-

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Thanks for Reading!

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