Author's Note:

I do not own any of the Twilight characters that may appear in this work, nor do I claim ownership of any mythological characters. I also do not own Ramona Quimby, no matter how old she is. God… can you imagine? Ramona Quimby, age 85.

Chapter 2: Cassie Quimby, age 8

"Mom! I need my permission slip signed!" Dammit, why can't that woman remember anything? I've been hounding her for the last three days to sign this stupid piece of paper. The last time this happened, I had to sit in the library while my classmates went to the museum without me. It is not happening again!

I am about three seconds from knocking on my parents' door when their muffled voices reach me. I would feel bad about listening, but gathering intel is important when you are trying to live the life of an 8 year old for what must be the millionth time.

"I'm telling you Sue, she doesn't act like a normal kid her age. And this 'phase' she is going through is even odder than normal."

"Oh come on Bill. She is intelligent and mature. So what if she wants to change her name, it isn't that strange. You are being unfair. After all, what name is on your birth certificate?"

I hear Bill give a little laugh. I like Bill, he's much more patient than a lot of guys I've known throughout the years. There aren't many men out there who can turn a corner in a conversation and admit fault in their own viewpoint quite like Bill can. "Ok that's fair I guess. But let's be honest… Bill is the accepted short version of William. 'Alexa' is nowhere close to 'Cassie'."

With a sigh, my mom concedes the point. I guess I hadn't been acting like an 8 year old as well as I thought. I had actually gotten to live to see 30 in my last life, which was strange in its own way. I'll have to try harder. With a grin, the perfect idea hits me. As loudly as I can, I stomp through the door and interrupt their conversation.

"MOM!" I yell with as much attitude as I can muster. "Would you PLEASE sign this? Ugh!"

"Oh I'm sorry Cass I'll…"

"MOM! My name is Alexa!" This is what Bill was referring to by my 'latest phase'. I've been trying to get both my parents to call me by my goddess given title for the last month. Pressing this point now will help with the temper tantrum image I'm trying to throw in their faces at the moment.

"Alexa, play 'Huey Lewis and the News'" pipes in Bill with a stupid grin. I try to fight it, but my scowl slowly gives way to a smile and I can't help but comment.

"Sorry Bill, I don't know "If This is It", I wish I could go "Back in Time", but it is still not "Hip to be Square".

"Oh… uh… that was pretty good… uh… Lexy?" Bill replies with a very surprised look on his face.

"I can deal with Lexy, but I would still prefer Alexa." I let Bill know as I give him a small kiss on the cheek. Turning to my mother, I gently take the paper out of her hands.

"Thanks mom. I'll see you guys after school!" I head out of the house, but not before I hear Bill's mystified voice.

"This is what I'm talking about Sue. How the hell did she just pull 3 80's titles out of thin air, and all by 'The News'?

"Oh my God!" my mom laughs, "Maybe you are rubbing off on her more than you think!"

The field trip was… well, interesting I guess. We visited a local nursery and our tour guide actually knew quite a bit about the local fauna and flora. Of all my lives, this might be the first time I've gotten to spend a few years in east Texas, where my family is currently living. It is always refreshing to be able to learn something new. Repeating school over and over is so tedious.

The final bell rings and I pack up my things to start the trek home. I love this part of my day. The trail to my mom's house passes through a small thicket and over a stream, so I get to enjoy nature on the way. The smell of blue bonnets and the ever changing songs of mockingbirds have really grown on me. I enjoy whistling a few notes and seeing if I can get the birds to reply back.

I am just about to round the back corner of the gym when I hear the monsters. Well, calling them monsters isn't really fair. These are monsters in training. Slowly, I peak around the corner of the building to observe the commotion. As I suspected, the local thug wanna-be's are picking on a small boy. There are 6 of them, and they are shoving the boy between 5 as the 6th tears up the boy's back pack and taunts him with ripped pages.

'Come on, stand up for yourself!' I think as I watch the fight. I have no problem with stepping in, but sometimes people need to fight their own battles. As long as things remain non-violent, there isn't much I should do. Unfortunately, I know this bully. I've been watching him for a while. It wouldn't be much of a stretch to say that this kid is probably picked on by his own father, so belittling those smaller than him is his version of normal.

"Come on Matty, aren't you going to fight back?" crows the bully. "What's the matter? Too chicken-shit to do anything about it?"

"Fuck you Brock!" the kid replies.

'Oh no… here it comes' I think as I watch the bully pull out a lighter and set the kid's books on fire. Those are going to be hard to replace. Still, I can't step in. That is, until I see Brock start toward Matt with the lighter. Two of Brock's cronies have Matt by the arms. Between them, they are more than enough muscle to keep the smaller kid from escaping. Now I need to act. There is no other way. This is what I was destined to do.

"Dice, please don't let this be my time" I mutter under my breath as I square my shoulders and stomp around the building's corner. "Hey asshole!" I yell.

Brock spins around wide eyed, hiding the lighter behind his back as he does. That is, until he sees me. Then all the shock leaves his eyes and is replaced by pure malice. In those eyes, I can see the fledgling monster stretching its wings. An evil grin spreads across Brock's face.

"Well well, if it isn't the Ginger! Come here Ginger, lets see what real flame looks like on your head!"

'Ok, setting a kid's hair on fire is a new low' I think to myself as I approach Brock. Luckily for me, Brock doesn't see the determination in my eyes. He can't see that I have no fear. He completely misses my fist smashing its way through his nose.

"Damn kid, who taught you to throw a punch?" Bill asks from the front seat. I can tell he's a bit smug… maybe even a little proud of me. My mother on the other hand is pretty damn angry.

"Be quiet Bill!" she scolds. "Honestly Cassie, what were you thinking? You know fighting is wrong. Why do we keep having these conversations?"

"It's Alexa mom. And we keep having these conversations because I'm not going to just let bad things happen. He was going to burn that kid mom!"

"Then you go get an adult Alexa! You don't go rushing in and take matters into your own hands. You could have been seriously hurt!" My mom is crying by this point. I can see she is fighting it, but once the chin starts to wobble, the tears are never far behind.

"There wasn't time mom. School was out. Teachers were leaving. The nearest door was over 100 feet away and the nearest teacher was even further. If I hadn't stopped them, best case scenario Matt would be going to the hospital right now." I could see this statement made a bit too much sense by the rise in Bill's eyebrows. Crap, too much logic for an 8 year old again. "Look mom, I know you don't like it, and I know being suspended from school isn't good, but I did the right thing. I won't apologize for that."

I can see I'm getting through to her. She may not accept my actions fully, but perhaps I have made my point. "I know Ca… Alexa. I just… I don't like this… this vigilant side of you. But… I guess the world needs heroes every now and then."