"That wasn't that bad," said Vasilio as they left Professor Tang's Pokemon Chemistry class.
"Yet," said Mori. "Look, I can barely understand her when she's talking about Pokemon battles. How am I gonna learn how to make a potion from her?"
"Just get Vasilio to explain it to you afterwards," suggested Liam. "That's what I'm gonna do."
They passed the alcove where the high school lockers stood.
"Give me a sec," said Mori. "No way I'm taking all these books home."
Liam and Vasilio waited as Mori fumbled with her locker. It always took her several attempts to get the combination right.
"Hey," said Vasilio, pointing to the locker next to Liam's, "they gave Chelsea Cass's old locker."
He was right. The laminated paper name tag that had previously read "C. McCleod" had been replaced—a new tag now spelled out "C. Whitaker '' in bold black ink. Liam felt a weird sense of longing he couldn't explain. Being ambushed by Cass at his locker had been something Liam's secretly looked forward to every day. He was going to miss it.
"Okay," said Mori, "let's get to the bus."
On their way to the stairs, Liam noticed Professor Werner standing in the door of his classroom, leaning on his cane. Liam gave him a nod of acknowledgement, but Werner beckoned him over with a wrinkled, wiry hand.
"Team Virtue meetings start again on Thursday as usual," croaked Werner. "Timothy is going to be quite busy with his other responsibilities—I'm depending on you to train and lead our new recruits."
"Okay," said Liam.
The idea that Professor Werner was depending on him wasn't exactly heartening.
"That's all," said Werner, giving Liam the slightest of bows. "You can go, I'm sure you have very important ways of wasting your time that I'm interfering with."
Liam smiled and returned Professor Werner's bow. Criticism and affection were two sides of the same coin for Werner, and Liam would take what he could get. He caught up with Vasilio and Mori, and together they made their way down the stairs, out the main gate, and around the corner to the public bus stop. They found it crowded with other students waiting for the Number 77. Among them was Taylor, already complaining about the homework he had received from the first day of 11th grade, as well as Rebecca and Liz. Rebecca smiled when she saw Vasilio and strode over to them with the ease and confidence of claiming something that belonged to her.
Like Taylor, Rebecca was in 11th grade, a group that reminded Liam much more of the large and raucous 9th grade than of his own more reserved classmates. She was tan, with a square jaw, dimples, and large black eyes. She had spent most of her life outside her home region of Ferrum—including a few years in Unova—leaving her equally comfortable with both cultures. She played violin in I Am Munchlax, which was either Vasilio's band or Taylor's band or Arthur's band—Liam had never been quite sure. Rebecca's interest in I Am Munchlax's white-haired bass player had become more and more obvious over the course the previous semester. At first, Vasi had been reluctant—between a longtime unrequited crush on Sylvia and a complicated attraction to Mori, Vasilio had plenty of other girls on his mind. But Rebecca had been persistent, and flirtatious, and pretty. Vasilio—usually stubborn, principled, and rational—had been won over. He and Rebecca weren't "dating," but they were as close to it as they could be without putting a formal label on it.
"Ew," said Mori, looking at Rebecca and Vasi with disgust.
They were having a whispered conversation next to the bus stop sign. Liam looked sideways at Mori.
"She's not right for him," said Mori, trying her best to look unconcerned as she pulled out her iPod and began picking a song.
"You jealous?" asked Liam.
"Nope," said Mori with an air of unconcern. "I've got what I want. Vasi just needs someone with a little more…"
She shrugged and put on her headphones. Liam knew that meant the conversation was over. He smiled to himself at the idea of Mori caring enough about Vasilio to be annoyed. He agreed that Rebecca didn't really feel "right" for Vasilio, but he wasn't one to judge. Cass hadn't been the first girl he'd crushed on at Everspring—the black-haired girl bobbing her head to Slipknot next to him held that distinction—but while Cass's obvious interest in him had helped his own feelings along, it had never been one-sided. He assumed that was true for Vasilio as well.
Bus 77 arrived. Liam scanned his bus pass and squeezed his way to the back, clutching closely at his canvas backpack. There were no seats open, so Liam grabbed one of the handles as the bus gave a slight jolt and started rumbling its way towards New Court. Mori grabbed the handle next to his, still bobbing her head to her music and paying no attention to him or anyone else. The other students were soon deep in lively conversation about their expectations for the year, but Liam felt strangely separate from them. Vasi, Taylor, and the others were the Everspring old guard—they watched teachers, principals, and other students come and go, but for them, every year was just like the last. Losing friends, even good friends, was normal. Secretly, Liam wondered just how much difference his absence would have made.
He glanced down at Mori, who had just taken a seat vacated by a Nanzonese woman. She looked up at him inquisitively, and with more than a hint of annoyance.
"What?" she asked, taking her headphones off. "And don't say 'nevermind' or anything dumb like that."
Liam grinned self-consciously.
"How long does it take before you feel like you belong?"
Mori rolled her eyes.
"What makes you think I feel like I belong?"
"You've been here way longer than me," said Liam, lowering his voice as disembarking passengers nudged by, "You've got, I don't know… you fit. How long does it take to fit?"
Mori smiled despite herself.
"I think you fit alright," she said. "Our school needs someone who's overly-anxious, girl-crazy, and lucks his way through every Pokemon battle."
Liam grinned. He was torn between being pleased and being embarrassed, but it was a good feeling.
"Now that I've seen to your fragile ego," said Mori, "There's a KoRn song I need to get back to."
"Thanks, Mori," said Liam.
"Mmhmm," she said, lifting her headphones back onto her head. "Dork."