21 - KIT:

I watched the two of them go, practically cackling with glee in my head. Doesn't notice you, my tail, Damian! She notices you more than you think. Not that he'd believe me if I told him; and I wasn't going to tell him.

I wanted to follow them, but I knew it wouldn't be right. If I went, then that left the door open for others to go, and soon the whole crowd around us would be on its way to the nurses office.

I glanced over at the boy Kari had left behind, Ian. He also looked like he wish he could follow them. At least, he didn't look happy to see them going off by themselves. The gleeful cackling increased.

Until he stood up. Uh-oh, he was going to interfere? No way I was letting that happen.

"Ian," I called out quickly, my mind racing for an excuse to get him to stay. "I'm curious. You and Kari seem really close. If you're not dating, then...?" I trailed off.

It was a little more nosy than I liked to be, but I needed to get him to stay. I could afford to be less than tactful.

He turned and frowned at me, annoyed. "Kari and I have been neighbors since she was seven. We're sort of like brother and sister now," he answered, sitting back down slowly.

"Oh, I see. So, you've known her for a very long time then?" I asked, trying to drag the conversation out.

"Yes, probably longer than anyone else except her grandmother."

"What about her parents?" I asked, surprised; I regretted it when I saw his expression turn somber and he looked away from me.

"She's an orphan," he explained quietly, "Her parents died when she was seven, and that's when she moved here to Forks to live with her grandmother."

"I'm sorry, I didn't realize," I spoke uncertainly.

"Yeah, I noticed. You don't realize a lot of things," he replied coolly, not looking at me.

My eyes went wide and I blinked, stunned. "Wha-what's that supposed to mean?" I demanded.

He turned to glare at me with cold eyes, "You made her walk here on a sprained ankle. You invite her to sit with you without even realizing she hates crowds, and you attract crowds like a flame attracts moths! You treat Kari like a friend, but do you really know anything about her?"

"I'm trying to get to know her!" I hissed back, getting upset. A little part of me tried to tell me he might be right, but I ignored it, "Besides, she insisted that we bring her here. I was going to make her go to the nurse."

"But you didn't," Ian shot back accusingly.

I seethed, glaring at him as I tried to think up a reply. I didn't have one, so I remained seething. How dare he? Making assumptions about me, he had no right!

I was saved from having to make a reply when a loud voice boomed from the speakers over head. I barely noticed as the principal began the assembly, welcoming everyone who came. He made some announcements, but I wasn't listening.

I was fuming. No one had talked to me like that before. Well, except for my brother; but that was Damian. He didn't count.

This boy thought he knew me. I would show him. I could too be considerate of others! He knew nothing about me!

I was already making plans to prove him wrong. From now on, I would focus on putting Kari first. To do that, I needed to know more about her. This was going to be difficult; Kari didn't talk much about herself. She also didn't appear to enjoy talking about herself either.

I would be Kari's bestest best friend ever! Just to prove that boy wrong. No, wait; that wasn't what a friend would say. Grrr... I'd do it to make Kari happy! Yes, that sounded better.

My plan set, I turned my attention back to my surroundings. The principal had finished speaking to the students and, currently, the band was playing some upbeat tune meant to inspire. I tuned it out, bored; I wasn't interested in such trivial entertainment.

Lacking something better to do, I watched the people around me out of the corner of my eyes. The girls that had come to sit next to Damian were now sitting silently next to each other, studiously ignoring each other.

I could almost feel the unease between them. I'd have smiled in amusement if I didn't feel like ripping someone's head off at that moment. Particularly the boy sitting on the other side of me. Whom I was stubbornly ignoring.

I tried to ignore him at least; I still noticed when he turned to frown at me for a moment before turning back to the band. Ugh, I didn't understand why he disliked me so much. It wasn't so bad though; the dislike was mutual.

The band finished, and a flash of something shiny interrupted my thoughts. I turned to watch a group of girls enter the gym in set of two lines. They all wore the same uniform and had odd, bushy, multi-colored, plastic objects in each hand.

I watched, confused, as they made their way to the middle of the gym, fanning out into a uniform formation, each striking the same pose. Once in position, music began playing from the loud speakers and they all started moving at once.

Nearly every head turned to the girls as they performed a carefully choreographed and well practiced dance. It was one of the most spectacular things I had ever seen.

I dug my fingernails into the wooden bench beneath me, shifting slightly to claws as a reaction to my stress, as the familiar longing for attention flooded my brain. I wanted to join them. Badly.

I watched them twirl and jump, everything they did demanded people look at them. It was like watching myself when I was younger, performing tricks that would shame an Olympic level gymnast just to get my family's attention.

To be able to perform so shamelessly in front of so many people. It was practically my dream come true! I quickly fought against the urge to leave the bench and join them. I had already been resisting the urge to show off in front of all these people, so it wasn't as bad as gym.

I distracted myself by focusing more on the how I could join their team and work with them the right way, instead of just jumping in their and stealing the show from them like I so desperately wanted. It was almost working.

"Are you alright?" a voice asked from beside me, "You look like you're sick or something..."

I turned to the voice, surprised to see Ian. I had forgotten about the others around me. All at once my intense dislike of him returned; I would not show weakness in front of the enemy.

"I'm fine," I told him curtly, shifting my claws back into fingernails and forcing myself into a leisured position. I wanted to ask about the dancing girls, but I wouldn't allow myself to potentially look foolish.

Ian frowned at me for a moment before shrugging and returning his attention to the front. The girls were finishing up their routine, much to my relief; and when they finished, one of the girls walked up to the microphone.

"Hello, Forks High!" the girl called out, getting a roar of approval from the crowd. "As you may or may not already know, I am Lauren Mallory; and I'm the captain of the cheer squad."

There was a captain? My mind burned with jealousy. I simply had to be a part of this 'cheer squad', and usurp the spot of captain if possible. My mind was racing to come up with plans and ideas to assure that position as mine; some of them teetered dangerously on the 'too far' side. I was fairly certain casting a spell that would cause this 'Lauren' to become seriously ill, or horribly ugly, was considered 'too far'.

"As usual, with the graduating of last years seniors, we currently have a few vacancies that need to be filled. Next Friday, a week from now, we will be holding auditions to fill those vacancies."

Next week. Friday. Armageddon would not keep me away.

I forced myself to not smile as I began to plan. I would be a cheerleader, and it would be glorious. Now I just needed to figure out how to do it without risking exposure for me and my family.

*~*~ A/N: Sorry it took so long to post, I'm still trying to get situated in my new place. I'm still looking for a job too. Boo the economy. Boo it, I say!

Well, hope you enjoyed it, and please review. :)

Review incentive is Kit dressed up as a cheerleader.

-Loves

Pyroth*~*~