Chapter Thirty Seven: Hi

Maybe it'd be okay. Maybe nobody would remember what happened to her backpack. After all, the only people who knew about it were... the entire class because Xion knows that they all did something to it. Maybe they wouldn't care anymore. She takes in a deep breath, hoping that would be true. She hopes they didn't care anymore, if only because she didn't want her new things to get ruined again.

She didn't want to see that sad look on her mommy and daddy's faces, even if they were acting a little funny just now.

As she walks into the classroom, what feels like a thousand amused giggles shoot out of her classmate's mouths and into her skin. Xion grits her mouth in a hard little line and starts struggling not to cry; they did remember. They still thought it was funny. After a moment of shriveling up and looking down on the floor, she lifts her head up and starts meeting any girl who looked at her or smirked at her with an icy cold stare. She had learned it from her Uncle Axel and, just like any person who got on his bad side, all the girls immediately look away from her in fright.

It makes her laugh inside, though she doesn't show it. Unlike Axel, Xion doesn't have the bad temper to go through with her threats. Instead of bothering to takl, she just walks to her desk and sits down at it. After adjusting her backpack next to her, she neatly folds her legs under the desk in a purposely pretty, mocking way. Like always, the other girls turn back to each other and start whispering, as if Xion couldn't hear them.

"If I was her, I wouldn't have come back…"

"Serves her right, coming here."

"She's just dumb, just how dumb is she?"

The tears trickle out of her eyes but she says nothing, preferring her stony silence to answering the vicious whispers. They hurt her, but she can't show it or else her dad would be disappointed in her. Her mom and dad had worked so hard for her to come to this school, cause they wanted the best for her. Xion pulls out her math workbook, newly bought by her Uncle Roxas, and opens it up to the right page for their homework.

Another voice chuckles from the desk behind hers.

"Stupid," the girl says softly into Xion's ear, suddenly giving her goosebumps. The voice was… this is the girl that had helped her on Friday! The seven year old whips around and sees one of her quieter classmates looking back at her with a funny expression in her eyes. There is a completely blank expression on the rest of her face, like her eyes were the only part of her that was actually alive. There is a vicious look in the little girl's crimson eyes, as if she would have personally beat up the whisperers and then some. They flicker toward Xion and crinkle into what looks like a friendly smile, though the girl's face doesn't change in expression.

"Stupid," she repeats in that same quiet voice and nods towards the other girls sitting at their desks. Her fingers lift up and she waggles them at the girls disdainfully. Any girl who noticed immediately gasps, shocked by the sudden disrespect. "All stupid." She declares haughtily.

Xion can't help but smile a little at that and she covers her mouth to stop herself from giggling. Pleased with the change in her gloomy expression, the girl winks at her and pulls out her own math book and a pencil box. She slides the lion sticker-decorated lid open and removes a little red pen from inside.

"For you," the girl states calmly as she tosses the pen over. "Friends?"

Barely realizing what was going on, Xion fumbles and nearly drops the pen, startled by the sudden gesture. She looks down at the plastic and notices the images of a small rabbit dancing across its surface, cute and adorable and her very favorite character from an old TV show.

"Oswald the Lucky Rabbit?" She breathes out in surprise, suddenly grinning and laughing as she holds the pen up to the light to look at it better. The girl nods in confirmation. "Like him? I don't," She explains before tapping her pencil box in emphasis. Xion takes a peek inside to see Donald Duck and Goofy smiling back up at her, frozen into the girl's pencils and pens.

Just like they were on her backpack.

"I love them! I love all the old cartoons!" Xion cries out in excitement, turning around and climbing up into her chair to get a better look at the girl. The kid just smiles a little more with her eyes, flicks back a strand of white hair from her face, and holds out her hand.

For the first time, Xion realizes that she was the new girl that had joined her class a few weeks ago. Nearly all the girls in her class had wanted to be her friend, because she was new and all, but she barely made an effort to learn anyone's names. She kept mostly to herself, though she had gotten in trouble because she had invited some boys from another school on the playground. She was known as one of the coolest girls in class, if very serious… and now… she wants to be Xion's friend?

"Fujin," she introduces herself.

"I'm Xion! Xion Minami, it's nice to meet you! I don't have a nickname so you can just call me Xion!" Xion responds shyly but happily as she takes her new friend's hand and shakes it vigorously. The girl smiles and bows her head in silent agreement. One more, Xion sees her friend's eye wink at her.

"Fuu's better then," is all that the solemn girl would say before shaking her hand back.