So, as promised to tigerwaterflower6, and update of The Summoning after the updates to the current ongoing parts of The Adventure Saga. I know it's close to a month after the promise, but it's here! I'm sorry! ^.^"
Amy47101 does not own pokémon or The Summoning, both which belongs to their respective owners. I only own Jade and Onyx.
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The Summoning
Summoning the Attitude
o.0.o.0.o
The next morning, I spent half the first class internally panicking for Miss Van Turd or Dr. Charon to stride on into the class and yank Paul out for a 'private conference'. A part of me wanted to trust my mom, to let her take care of me. But her taking care of me ended the day that my father took that rope and tied the not. My ears were straining the entire night and the whole afternoon, trying to hear if my mother did, indeed, call the nurses.
But unless they secretly gave our parents their cell phone numbers and kept their phones on vibrate twenty-four seven, then I doubt she remembered to call. No one burst into class and dragged Paul out. In fact, class was going swimmingly, other than Ursula's glares. Simply to spite her for what she did yesterday, I would lean over to ask Paul some random question about the assignment, which he would answer gruffly and go back to work.
More than once Ursula had to get up to go to the pencil sharpener from pressing down much to hard on the paper.
Perhaps it was foolish of me to be playing with fire, but I honestly didn't care right now. I was tired, stressed, and ever since seeing Topaz in the street yesterday, she hadn't showed up again. Nor had Zoey, or any other ghosts. Now I was truly questioning my sanity. Topaz said she'd come and visit me... but there was nothing.
I sighed, looking up, then freezing.
There was Topaz, smirking, floating a good three feet off the ground with her legs and arms crossed.
"You're fucking funny, aren't ya, Dawn? Blocking me out..." she stated. I quickly looked back down at my work, scribbling out answer, furrowing my brow. Blocking...? "You didn't realize it? Arceus damn, you are hopeless, aren't you?" Look natural, pay her no mind. "So, I want to tell you something. It's some damn good information, too. This place..."
I heard footsteps hurrying down the hallway. Topaz winced.
"Fucking damn those nurses!" she cursed as she suddenly became a small orb and flew into me. I panicked for a moment. Was she possessing me? Dear Arceus, don't let her be possessing me!
I felt me pendant heat up against my skin, and blinked in surprise, my mini panic attack ceasing for a moment. Pulling it out, I stared in silent awe as a faint glow of purple faded away, heat going with it. The door suddenly slammed open, causing me to drop the gem, it dangling from my neck as I snapped my head up.
Miss Van Curd stood there, staring at us all for a moment. Did she finally come for Paul?
"Miss Van Curd?" Miss Wang asked, standing up from her desk. Everyone else regarded her curiously. She stood straight, walking towards the desk, holding a folder that seemed to have come seemingly out of no where.
"Dawns new lessons came in." she stated simply, placing them on the desk and nodding to Mrs. Wang. I raised my eyebrows at this. All that commotion for some lessons? Everyone else shrugged it off, going back to their work. My hand went up to the gemstone, gripping it tightly in my hand.
The warmth had all but faded.
o.0.o.0.o
Paul had a session with Dr. Charon before lunch. When he came out, I was in the hall, waiting for Onyx to hurry up and finish using the bathroom. He was always in there before every meal, and I can't for the life of me figure out why. Onyx never struck me as the type to be so super careful about washing his hands before meals.
At this point, I was considering running upstairs to use the girls bathroom, when Dr. Charon's door opened and Paul's huge form filled the doorway. He ducked down to get under the doorframe, then looked at me. My heart pounded in my chest so loud I was sure he could hear it. He must have gotten in trouble or something. Maybe my mom did call the doctors. I smiled at him. He stared at me for a moment, I continued to smile.
"Dear Arceus, why is this fucking creepo staring at you?" I knew that was Topaz. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a flash of gold, and she was standing behind him now, poking at the back of his head. "Fucking creepo, leave my necromancer alone, got it, fucking creepo?"
He whipped around, staring intently at her. I blinked my eyes. Topaz looked as shocked as I felt. It took everything in my power not to look surprised. He inhaled through his nose, and with his pack to me, still staring at Topaz, he spoke.
"Hey." he grunted out, looking over his shoulder. "Did you... hear anything?"
"Nope!" I said quickly. "Nothing."
"Huh." he muttered. Topaz did that weird thing, turning into an orb and flashing into my pendant. At this point, Onyx walked out with his head down. When he saw us, he shoved something in his back pocket, and smiled. He chuckled.
"Didn't realize I was causing a line." he laughed. Paul turned to him.
"Only Dawn." he stated, before turning down the hallway. I blinked. Huh. He didn't seem angry at all. Usually, he wouldn't even bother stopping to speak to me, or grace Onyx with a response. He, dare I say, seemed to be in a good mood. Maybe mom handled it fine?
"See you at lunch." I said as I stepped in the bathroom. With the door shut behind me, I heard a laugh.
"Yo, lunch is this way." Onyx said.
"Start without me. I gotta get something from my room."
A pause. I strained my ears to hear Paul's response, or any response at all.
"Hold up." I heard Onyx say. "I need to talk to you about something." Paul's heavy footsteps paused. There was no response, but I heard Paul go up the stairs, followed by Onyx's quick footsteps.
o.0.o.0.o
After lunch, it was my turn to take out the trash. Life experience, I kept telling myself as I wheeled the wagon to the shed, praying that there was not rattatta's crawling about in it. I sighed, curling my nose up at the stench. All life experience. I never know when there might be some contest where I need to make something look like garbage.
My laugh fluttered throughout the yard. That sounded ridiculous, even in my head.
Well, at least the daffodils were blooming, masking a bit of the smell. The sun shown down brightly, announcing itself to the world, making my day a little better. I stretched a bit, walking around and basking in the great weather. I must look so weird to the nurses who were watching me. But I was to happy to care. This was a pretty good start on my afternoon-
I froze.
There.
In the yard behind ours was a ghost. She had to be. A little girl, no more than four. She had to be a ghost. She was alone in the yard, wearing a wedding cake concoction of a frilly dress, filled with lace and bows and ribbons. Her blond hair was pulled into tight ringlets, tied into adorable pigtails with big bows holding them in place. She spun around, her skirts lifting and revealing little tiny bows on her little patent leather shoes.
I tossed the bags into the shed, them hitting the wood, safe from marauding pokémon. The girl barely glanced up. I closed the shed, braving my confidence, and walking over, smiling. I crouched, getting close to her level.
"Hello." I said. She looked up, as if unsure who I was talking to. Her big blue eyes stared at me, and I nearly cried from the cuteness. My smile broadened. "Yes, I can see you. That's a very pretty dress. I had one just like it when I was a little girl." One hesitant glance over her shoulder, then she stepped closer, looking through the chain link fence.
"Mommy bought it for me." she said, smiling shyly.
"Really? My dad bought mine. I was his little princess, and I would parade around in that dress. He was my noble steed." I smiled fondly at the memory, and the girls eyes lit up, as if she just got a new idea. "Do you like it?" she nodded, her smile lighting up her eyes even more. I laughed slightly, closing my eyes and tilting my head to the side. "I bet you do. Do-?"
"Amanda!" a voice cut off my next question. I snapped my eyes open as the girl jumped back, landing on her rear, letting out a wail. I widened my eyes.
"Oh! Oh, don't cry!" I exclaimed, realizing with horror that she was a real girl, not a ghost. The woman in slacks and a leather coat broke into a run, keys jangling in her hand as the back door swooshed shut behind her. She scooped up the child.
"Don't you talk to my child, understand?" she hissed venomously towards me. I opened my mouth, trying to figure out words, but couldn't quite figure out what to say. I was just talking kindly to her! "Oh, Amanda," she said in a much nicer tone. "You got your dress dirty. I'll have to reschedule your special photos." she walked away, voice lowering to a much more stern tone. "I told you to never go near that fence, Amanda. Don't talk to those kids over there. Never, do you understand me?"
Don't talk to the crazy kids. I longed to shout out that I thought her child was a ghost, not a real human being. I wasn't crazy, I'd just made a mistake, that's all. Instead, I sighed, leaning my forehead against the fence. The woman walked back into her house. The door slammed shut.
"Maybe there's a Arceus-damned book for it." Topaz said sarcastically. "Fifty Ways to Tell a Ghost From a Human Before Ending Up in a Fucking Padded Room. Wonderful title, eh? Yup, the library totally carries that one."
"Shut up." I muttered, standing up. Topaz smirked, floating next to me.
"I could teach you a thing or two. Be a little bit respectful, at least."
"Please stop." I muttered.
"Oi, lighten up. You're not the only one." Topaz floated in front of me, a soft smile on her face. "I would know. I could see them too." She paused. "It's not a virus, and it's not an Arceus given gift either. More often then not, it's inherited. But sometimes, and this rare, people who are on the brink of death and come back get powers. Don't know why."
"You...?"
"Yup." she paused. "Someone's fucking comin'."
I heard a thump behind me, and stood up. This was a living person. If there's one thing I knew, ghost can yell, scream, cry, and talk, but they don't make noises when they move. I was still behind the shed, hidden from view. I knew that, like the basement, no one would hear me scream for help.
"I'll keep you safe, don't start fucking blubbering." Topaz said. I ignored her as I dashed around the corner as a shadow fell over me.
It was Jimmy. And he looked livid.
"Jimmy-"
"What did you say about my brother?" he said through ground out teeth. I stepped back.
"W-W-What?"
"You told the nurses something. You accused Paul of something."
"I didn't accuse him of anything!"
"Your mom, then." he seethed. His fists were clenched tightly at his sides, glaring at me. "You know what I'm talking about. You told her, she told the nurses, then they pulled him into a special conference before lunch. They said that if he bothers you again, it's over. They're sending him away."
"Wh-What?"
"One word from you, and he's gone. Transferred." his hands shook with rage. "Paul's been perfect since he got here. Now, all of a sudden, with one problem with you, he's put on notice. He so much as looks at you funny, he's gone."
"Perfect?" I responded, glaring. "He flipped a desk across the room."
Jimmy looked surprised that I knew that, but went back to rage.
"He came upstairs after lunch all freaked out. Something happened the other night, didn't it? He said he was talking to you and he screwed up, big time. That's all he'd tell me."
I considered the truth, that I hadn't meant to tattle on Paul. I'd been quiet at breakfast and my mom had figured out I was upset. But that might have sounded like I'd been sulking, wanting her to drag it out of me.
"Why you fucking, no good bastard, I'll throttle you!" Topaz shouted, clenching her fists. Then a wave of emotions went over me, those that weren't my own.
Why should I have to explain myself to him? I had every Arceusdamned right to tell on Paul. Jimmy's attitude was pissing me off. He's all but accused me of making up stories, unfairly targeting his poor, misunderstood brother. I shot an icy glare to him.
"It was hot in the fucking restaurant." I said icily. "So I rolled up my sleeves." he looked surprised for a moment. I surprised even myself. I don't swear. Never.
"What?"
I shrugged off the cut-off jacket I was wearing, showing him my left arm. The bruised palm print had faded slightly, but it was still there, green and yellow in some spots. Jimmy took one look and paled slightly.
"My Mom, as deadbeat as she fucking is, wanted to know what happened. When I didn't tell her, she tricked me into admitting it was a boy. She met Paul when she came to pick me up and he was being a rude jackass, per usual, so she decided, out of her own blessed damn vocation, that it was him. If he's in trouble that's not my Arceus damned fault. I should have run upstairs to the fucking nurses. I had every fucking right to. But I didn't."
Yow. Okay, that totally isn't me. Was Topaz influencing me?
"Okay, okay." he rubbed the back of his neck, staring at the bruises. I pulled my jacket back on. "So he grabbed your arm. That's what it looks like. Right? He forgets how strong he is sometimes, and he grabbed you harder than he thought."
"He threw me across the room."
Jimmy widened his eyes, then shut them, dropping his arms to the side as he tried to hide his surprise.
"Y-You don't understand. He didn't mean to. He never does. If you saw how freaked out he was after that night, you'd know that."
"So that makes it a-o-fucking-kay?!" I practically scream. "The insanity of that statement makes me understand why you're here! So you're telling me if I loose my temper and fucking smack some common sense into you, it's alright, because I didn't fucking plan to?"
Topaz, stop it. Calm down. Let me handle this...!
"No! You don't understand, he just-"
"She's right." Paul's voice preceded him around the corner. I took a step back. I couldn't help it. It wasn't because of him, but I felt a serious change around me. Topaz hovered off the the side, taking deep breaths to calm herself, and I felt like me again. I noticed, though, as I stepped back, a look passed through Paul's eyes. Remorse? Guilt? Gone in the blink of an eye. He stopped behind Jimmy's shoulder, at least five feet from me.
"I just wanted to talk to you that night. When you tried to leave, I pulled you back and..." he trailed off, gaze flicking to the side, avoiding my eyesight.
"You threw me across the room." That was me this time around. I wanted to punctuate that point in the argument. His eyes flashed at that.
"I didn't-" he stopped himself, letting out a low groan as he pushed his bangs out of his eyes. He stood like that for a moment, then dropped his hand, looking at me again. "Yeah, you're right. Like I said, no excuse. Jimmy? Lets go." Jimmy shook his head.
"She doesn't understand. See, Dawn, it's not Paul's fault. He's super strong and he-"
"And she wasn't wearing her kryptonite necklace. Paul said, turning to the side with a bitter smile on his face. "Yeah, I'm big. I got big fast." He looked remorseful and sad, even lonely. He let out a low sigh, then replaced his remorseful look with his same serious expression. He glanced at me out of the corner of his eye. "I just don't know my own strength yet."
"That's not-" Jimmy began.
"No excuse, like she said. You want me to stay away from you, Troublesome? Wish granted. Don't come crying to me when you mess up."
"Paul, tell her! I think she might be-"
"Drop it, okay? She's not interested. She's made that very, very clear. Now lets go before someone catches me with her and I get stomped again."
"Dawn!" Mrs. Talbot's voice rang out across the yard.
"Perfect timing." Paul muttered. "Must have ESP."
"Just a second!" I called back, moving sideways so she could see me.
"Go on." Paul said, a small smirk on his face. "Wouldn't want to be late for your meds, would you?"
I glowered at him, then turned, circling wide around them, starting towards the door. Jimmy murmured something to Paul.
Smoke rose in my path. I paused, then stumbled back. F-Fog?! What...?! It hovered above the ground, but didn't move.
"Jimmy!" I heard Paul hiss.
"What's that?" I whirled while pointing at the strange fog. Paul glanced at me, dry humor appearing in his eyes.
"What's what?" Paul's gaze followed my finger. "Huh. Must be a ghost. No, wait, you don't see ghosts. You hallucinate. Guess it's a hallucination then."
"I'll show you a fucking hallucination when I WHIZ YOU ACROSS THE YARD SO HARD YOU MAKE A FUCKING HOLE IN THE HOUSE!" Topaz shrieked. I internally winced at the volume as her emotions hit me full force again. My blood was on fire with rage. I wanted to hurt him, smack that smug look off his face, make him know that I am a force to be reckoned with.
I inhaled sharply. No. Not my emotions. Topaz's. Regain control, Dawn. You've got this.
"That's not-"
"It's nothing, Dawn." he pushed his hands into his pockets. "Just your imagination, like everything else. Now run along and take your meds, like a good girl. And don't worry, I'll stay out of your way." he walked past me, looking over his shoulder. "It seems I made a mistake. A big mistake."
He meant he misjudged me. I wasn't worthy of his attention or interest. I clenched my fists as I ducked my head down.
"Watch it, Dawn." Paul smirked, turning around and patting me on the head, like I was some sort of pokémon pet. "You wouldn't want to hit me. Then I'd have to tattle on you."
Topaz's emotions hit me at full force. Was she angry for my sake? Suddenly a whoosh of air came over me, and I didn't feel like myself. I hid my eyes with my bangs, trying to figure out what was going on. I was floundering inside as emotions that weren't mine took over.
"Cut it out, Paul, she didn't tattle-" Jimmy started until I suddenly cut him off.
"Leave." I said angrily. "Take the trash bin back, I want to talk to him in private." Jimmy hesitated.
"You sure?"
"Go. Away." I hissed. Paul was still petting my head. He was smirking, as if amused by the situation.
"Go, Jimmy. I'd like to hear what Troublesome wants to talk to me about." Jimmy shifted on his feet. I kept my head down. Paul kept petting my head. Slowly, Jimmy rolled the wagon away. Once out of earshot, Paul spoke.
"I thought you didn't want me around you, Troublesome."
"Do I look like a fucking pokémon to you?" I hissed out, glancing at him through my bangs. Surprise seemed to register on his face as he stepped back, dropping his arm to his side. Topaz, what-?! "You better leave me fucking alone you Arceus damned asshole, or you'll have more fucking things to worry about than getting fucking transferred to some other Arceus-damned hellhole."
There was a long silence. I was still floundering around inside my own body, as weird as it was, trying to come back to the surface, to gain control.
"Dawn?" he asked, almost hesitantly. I inhaled sharply as something shifted, some sort of energy leaving my body. The world spun a moment until something landed on my shoulder, steadying me. "You gonna pass out, Troublesome?"
"Urgh..." I groaned out, blinking my eyes. The dizziness lifted and my pendant glowed warm again, indicating Topaz went back into it. "I-I'm fine."
Paul moved his hand from my shoulder. We stood there awkwardly.
"Do you know what you said?" he asked. I blushed furiously as the words that came from my mouth came into focus. Paul sounded neither insulted nor angry, just curious, if not slightly surprised.
"I-I don't know. It wasn't me!"
He raised an eyebrow. I floundered.
"I don't know, I didn't mean to, it's like I wasn't myself! Like, those weren't my words that I wanted to say, I didn't even want to talk to you privately!"
"But those exact words came from your mouth."
I paused, then sighed.
"There's just no point in trying to explain it to you." I said, going around him. "I'm going inside. Just... Just don't talk to me for a while, okay?"
He didn't say anything nor made a move to follow me. As I approached the door, I looked over my shoulder. He was standing in a place were I was talking to the little girl, just barely in my sight. He stood there for a moment, as if taking in the surroundings where I and Topaz once stood.
The door slammed shut behind me as I stepped back into the house.
o.0.o.0.o
So here's the next update! Did anyone notice the new coverart? Based off of Kelley Armstrong's The Summoning's actual cover art! Does it deserve a review? Good enough? Please tell! ^.^
Amy47101 signing off! ^.^