Okay, so we reached chapter 21. Last chapter i skipped ahead a week, and i think i might skip some more in the next couple of chapters. Last chapter The Ashleys had gone trough all the phases that Spinelli had to go trough before she would become a full-on Ashley, and it was ten phases, she has already gone trough the first couple of phases, some of them are still in progress. And it will take time, before she has finished the last phase, but she will get there. Eventually. I think this chapter will be her first riding class, with the Ashleys.

Chapter 21: Riding class and dream

The rest of the day had passed by somewhat slowly; not as slow as before, but still slow. Now it was time for Spinelli's first riding class.

Now, it had been some time since Spinelli stopped trying to argue with the Ashleys logic. Every time she would question them, they would remind her that she took an oath, and signed her name in the Ashley book; meaning they could do as they pleased with her. Plus, with T.J. no longer interfering, the girls were confidence that Spinelli would earn her name—her true name—before the summer ended.

Flo dropped off Spinelli at her riding class. The other Ashleys were already there waiting for her. Unbeknown to Spinelli, Ashley B had called Spinelli's mom to determine what sizes clothes and boots she would need for riding. Spinelli couldn't purchase any common riding clothes; after all, they needed to be Ashley approved.

Once Spinelli and Flo vacated from the car, she greeted the girls and said that she needed to talk to an instructor. Ashley T had already anticipated this, so she walked over towards the nearby instructor, catching his attention.

He was male, tall and blonde. He looked to be in his early thirties.

Flo greeted him. "Hi there, I'm Flo and this is my daughter Ashley. She'll be your newest student. This is her first lesson."

The instructor smiled. "Hello Flo. Hello Ashley. I'm Christian and I'll be teaching Ashley." He glanced over towards Spinelli, offering her a kind smile. "It's nice to meet you, Ashley. Why don't you go get dressed? I'll go over the finer details with your mom. You know, it's funny. We have four other riders named Ashley here." He gazed towards the four Ashleys who offered him kind smiles. "The girls are enrolled in the more advanced program, however, whereas you'll be starting in our beginner program. Now, since there are five of you, I'll need a way to distinguish you. So then, what should we call you?"

"Oh, that's Ashley S." Ashley A responded. "She's our new best friend."

"Thank you, Ashley A." Christian laughed. "Very well, Ashley S it is. Ashley A, why don't you show her where she can get changed? I still have some matters to discuss with Flo. Afterwards, I'll get Ashley A started on her training, then the rest of you can find your instructor."

The other Ashleys scattered while Ashley A and Spinelli walked to the change rooms.

"Here is your riding outfit, Ashley S." Ashley A stated when they entered the change rooms, and Spinelli immediately saw a freshly wrapped outfit waiting to be open from its plastic bag. "I, like, picked it out for you, and I, like, got your name sewed into the shirt."

Spinelli looked at the outfit. It was a pink polo shirt with brown riding pants and black riding boots. She grabbed them without hesitation and went inside the small bathroom to change.

A few minutes later, she walked out and the Ashleys all looked pleased. Aside from the different shirt color, Spinelli looked identical to them. It was a perfect sight.

Flo saw Spinelli's change of clothes and couldn't help but smile. These girls were so nice to her daughter. Finally, Spinelli was making some true girlfriends. However, unbeknown to Flo, the Ashleys were using her. She was completely blind to their games. She merely perceived them to be innocent girls, but the four of them were cunning masterminds.

Flo then left, saying she would pick up Spinelli from Ashley A's house later-on that evening.

The next two hours were rough for Spinelli, even though Christian was being very nice to her. She was hesitant to ride the horse, and it seemed like the animal sensed her fear. She didn't know what she was doing; it was her first-time riding. But eventually class was done, which meant it was time to head to Ashley A's house for dinner and studying.

Of course, dinner at Ashley A's house wasn't anything fun. The girls were all enforcing all her rules from her etiquette classes. They believed that the more she learned, the sooner she would remember it, and then her weekend etiquette lessons would be over. Once her weekends were free again, the girls could continue to break and reshape her into the perfect Ashley. She would come to see things their way eventually. She would realize and learn that the Ashleys were only trying to help her achieve her true potential.

Spinelli was destined to be an Ashley. She was their sister, whether she knew it or not.

Their plan was foolproof; especially since they had eliminated T.J. Detweiler from the mix.

The last week had been kind of weird for Spinelli. She used to love her old friends and hate the Ashleys. But now, she only liked her old friends and didn't venomously hate the Ashleys; she merely disliked them. She couldn't understand why her feelings had changed so suddenly, seeing as how she was a part of their club for less than one month.

The Ashleys, opposingly, knew that Spinelli's change of heart largely stemmed from the tape she was listening to every night. It was highly efficient in making Spinelli tolerate them, and it was giving her a push in the right direction. Spinelli was changing from that disgusting and unrefined girl she once was. She was slowly discovering how to become a pristine and proper young lady. She would soon become Ashley S entirely, all they needed was time.

The Ashleys were also starting to tolerate Spinelli. Before they, too, hated her. Her lack of style, her bad manners and terrible speech. Not to mention her vile personality. Even her name was atrocious. But when they learned about her name, a name that embodied a sense of style and grace, they knew they needed to act fast. It was hard, at first, learning how to tolerate her presence, but those sentiments quickly dispersed when they discovered how much fun it was to torture her. The girls considered it payback, given how much she and her old friends tormented the Ashleys.

The next step in their master plan was the town's annual beauty pageant. Spinelli would sign up—whether she wanted to or not. The girls were all willing to sacrifice their chances of winning the title this year, if it meant that Spinelli would have a better chance of winning. It was their way of doing her a favor. She would eventually understand.

Everything was going according to plan, after all, so hopefully by Christmas, Spinelli would start to hate her old friends.

She accidentally told the girls that she still liked her old friends. That wasn't acceptable. Spinelli couldn't like them anymore. But it was also a good sign too. Spinelli was slowly confiding to them. It was a real sign that she didn't entirely hate them. She was making real progress.

Meanwhile, back to Spinelli, the rest of the day eventually passed by. Her mom picked her up and she soon went to bed, exhausted, not knowing that she would have a very specific dream that night.

In her dream:

She was sound asleep when suddenly there was two sides of her; the old Spinelli hanging out with the gang, and Ashley S, wearing a red outfit that matched the Ashleys, and hanging out with them, calmly sipping tea.

Spinelli was stuck watching the two, unsure of what to do. She was at a crossroads; unsure of where she stood and where to go. One side of her was desperately holding onto her old self, while the other wanted to give in and let the Ashleys do what they wanted.

Right now, the crossroad Spinelli was wearing a very interesting outfit. She was wearing a red dress, very plain, like her old frog, but without the boots and leather jacket. Her hair also wasn't in its signature pigtails; it was straight down nearly touching her shoulders.

She obviously wanted to go over to the gang, but something was stopping her. Her gang side was clearer, but it was slowly fading. Fading away.

Spinelli then woke up, covered in sweat. She wasn't sure what the dream meant. She could only deduce that it meant she wasn't as strong as before. She still liked the gang and wanted to hang out with them, but the Ashleys were pulling her in another direction entirely.

Next chapter: probably the beauty pageant.

As always let me know what you think, and please R/R and if you have any suggestions let me know. The dream was a suggestion.

And as always I do not own Recess or its characters, only my oc's.

Thanks to my beta reader SheikahLover for editing the chapter.