Buttercup was running late
Monday morning. She'd stayed up late wondering about Blossom's latest personality
quirks, so Buttercup ended up sleeping through her alarm that morning.
Then she couldn't find any clean clothes that she liked, so she ended up
in a ragged pair of jeans and a T-shirt that barely fit her. By the time
she'd be put the outfit together and finished debating whether or not she'd
get kicked out of school for it (it was a very tight T-shirt), Buttercup
had ten minutes before school started. She flew from her room and immediately
went to the front door, calling a hasty good bye to the Professor. It wasn't
until she was at the school door that she realized she'd forgotten her
lunch, nor did she have money to buy a school lunch.
Today is going to
suck, Buttercup thought glumly as she pulled the school door open.
Buttercup forced her
way through the crowd to get to her locker, not noticing how conversations
suddenly died when she walked by. She was too frustrated, and more than
a little self conscious about her clothing, so she was purposefully ignoring
them.
When Buttercup finally
reached her locker, she was surprised that Andra wasn't there. "What the
heck?" she muttered. She grabbed the arm of a girl walking past. "Hey,
has the warning bell rung yet?" The girl didn't answer. She shrugged and
pulled her arm out of Buttercup's gasp before hurrying to catch up to her
clique.
The one minute warning
bell rang then, answering that question, but it didn't tell her where Andra
was. Maybe she's in class already, Buttercup thought. She quickly
got the book she needed from her locker, then ran to class.
Andra wasn't there.
Buttercup turned back
to Bubbles, who sat behind her. "Hey, did you see Andra before I got here?"
"I don't think so.
Did you, Blossom?" Blossom glanced up from the book she was reading, but
quickly averted her eyes when she saw Buttercup's shirt. "Um, no, I haven't
seen her either."
Buttercup sighed and
slumped down in her seat as the final bell rang. She ignored Mr. Hanson
as he read the day's announcements, concentrated on where Andra could be.
Sick? She sounded fine on the phone yesterday. A family emergency? But
she said her mother is an only child and her grandparents are dead. She
hasn't talked to anyone on her dad's side of the family since the divorce.
Something happened to Cassie? I hope not! The list of possibilities
kept getting darker until just as Mr. Hanson finished the announcements
to classroom door opened and Andra quietly stepped into the room. Buttercup
wanted to leap from her chair and fly to Andra, but she somehow managed
to restrain herself.
Andra's eyes were rimmed
with red and her face was slightly flushed. Her hair, usually perfectly
styled, was frazzled, with several strands pulled out of a low pony tail.
She handed the blue tardy pass from the office to Mr. Hanson, then sunk
into the seat next to Buttercup.
"You okay?" Buttercup
whispered.
Andra shook her head.
"What's wrong?"
"Ms. Utonium?" Mr.
Hanson said sternly.
Buttercup slunk down
in her seat. "Sorry," she said, but she sent a look to Andra that said
"we'll talk later." If Andra noticed, she ignored it.
Andra was abnormally
subdued that morning. It wasn't like last week, when she was covertly glancing
at Buttercup. She ignored Buttercup completely, not answering questions
or accepting notes passed during class. She was focused completely on the
teachers during class, and on the floor when she walked between them.
By the time lunch came,
Buttercup knew that something was going on, besides Andra's sudden silence.
Instead of Andra glancing at her, now it was the other students. And Andra
wasn't the only one giving her the silent treatment, every other student
in the school was.
Buttercup didn't let
Andra go to their locker to get her lunch at lunch time. Instead, Buttercup
grabbed Andra's arm and dragged her outside to their clearing, ignoring
the hushed whispers from the other kids they passed.
"All right, I'm not
letting you out of here until you tell me what's going on," Buttercup told
Andra.
Andra pulled her knees
up to her chest. "When I got to school this morning," she whispered, "there
was a group of kids waiting at the locker. They said some stuff about you
and me and a couple threatened to beat me up."
"Mitch Mitchelson,"
Buttercup hissed. "I'll kill him. I swear!" She lifted herself off the
ground. "Wait right here," she told Andra. "I'll be back in a moment."
She flew above the trees and scanned the playground. There he was, standing
with a bunch of boys under the monkey bars.
"Mitch!" Buttercup
shrieked. Mitch looked up with wide eyes, but Buttercup was on top of him
before he could run. "I warned you," she said as she lifted him by his
shirt collar. "I warned you not to say anything!"
"I didn't! I swear!
Don't hurt me!"
"Why the hell should
I believe you? Everyone in the freakin' school is talking about me and
Andra and nobody knew about it but you!"
"Let him go, Buttercup."
Buttercup looked up
and saw a circle of boys standing around her and Mitch. She wasn't sure
which one had spoken the first time, but Harry Pitt spoke next. "He didn't
tell anyone, Buttercup. He didn't have to. We all knew you were a dyke."
In a flash, Buttercup
was off of Mitch and was instead pushing Harry to the ground. "You know
absolutely nothing about me or Andra."
"Somebody get her!"
Mitch shouted as he pulled himself up from the ground.
Before Buttercup could
react, four boys jumped on her, pulling her off of Harry, then pushing
her back down to the ground.
"Get off of me!" Buttercup
cried as she flung her arms and legs desperately. But every time she threw
one boy off, another was there to take his place.
"Leave her alone!"
"Andra!" Buttercup
called. Mitch punched her in the stomach.
"It's the other dyke!"
and eight grade boy Buttercup didn't know shouted. "Someone help me get
her, too!" Harry let go of Buttercup's right arm to join the other boy."
"Don't you touch her,"
Buttercup growled.
"Aww, she's worried!"
Mitch mocked.
"You should be, too,"
Buttercup said. Before Mitch or any of the other boys could respond, Buttercup
used her free arm to punch Mitch in the face. As he fell back, he tripped
the boy holding Buttercup's legs. The third boy ran before Buttercup could
do any damage to him.
With the crowd gone,
Buttercup could see the eighth grade boy and Harry. They had Andra pinned
against a tree and were taking turns punching her in the stomach.
"Why you little. .
." Buttercup muttered, too angry to even complete her thought. The boys
didn't hear her, and she didn't bother to warn them when she flew directly
into them, knocking them both to the ground breathless.
Carefully, Buttercup
lifted Andra from the ground. She'd collapsed when the boys hadn't been
able to hold her up. "Are you okay?"
"I tried to stop them,"
Andra whispered.
"I know," Buttercup
said. "Stay right here, don't move. I'm going to take care of those jerks."
Andra grabbed Buttercup's
arm and held tight. "No, Buttercup. You'll get into trouble."
"I don't care! Besides,
it's not like anyone is out here to give me detention."
"What on Earth happened
out here?"
"Or maybe there is,"
Andra said with a wry smile.
"It's Buttercup's fault,
Mrs. Stone!" Mitch said as soon as he saw the assistant principal. "She
tried to beat me up for no reason!"
"And your buddies beat
up Andra for no reason!" Buttercup shouted. "Mrs. Stone, Andra needs to
go to the nurse. She got beat up pretty bad."
"Oh my," Mrs. Stone
said when she saw Andra slumped listlessly in Buttercup's arms. "Can you
carry her there, Buttercup? You can fly in the school just this once. Be
careful!" she warned when a groan escaped Andra as she was being lifted.
"And wait in the office for me. I'm going to want to talk to you and these
boys." Buttercup sighed but nodded, then slowly flew Andra into the school
while Mrs. Stone rounded up the boys.
"What happened to you
two?" the nurse asked when Buttercup and Andra arrived in her office.
"A bunch of jerks on
the playground," Buttercup answered. "I'm okay, but Andra looks like she
might faint."
"The poor thing," the
nurse murmured as she took Andra from Buttercup's arms. "Will you get me
an ice pack for her? Then feel free to clean yourself up. You've got some
nasty looking cuts." Buttercup got the ice pack quickly, then went to the
sink and began cleaning her face with some paper towel.
A few minutes later,
Mrs. Stone was at the infirmary door. "How are the patients?"
"I want to know where
the aides were while this was going on," the nurse said sternly. "Andra
will probably have to go home. She got beat up pretty bad. She might even
have a concussion."
"Are you all right,
Buttercup?"
Buttercup shrugged.
"Some bruises, some cuts. I've had worse."
"I'm sure you have.
Can she come with me for a conference?" Mrs. Stone asked the nurse.
"That should be all
right."
Buttercup hopped off
the cot she'd been sitting on and followed Mrs. Stone into her office where
the five boys, all in various states of disshevelment, were sitting. Buttercup
sat as far as she could from them, while Mrs. Stone sat behind her desk.
"Buttercup, will you
tell me what happened out there?" Mrs. Stone asked.
"How come she gets
to go first?" the boy who'd led the attack on Andra demanded.
"You'll all get a turn
to speak," Mrs. Stone said sharply. "And I'll thank you not to interrupt
while someone else is talking." The boy muttered something about "damn
super heroes," but leaned back and didn't say any more.
"Somebody has been
spreading rumors about me and Andra," Buttercup said. "I assumed it was
MItch because of something that happened this weekend. Then his cronies
decided they'd beat me up because of said rumors. When Andra came over
and told them to stop, they beat her up too! Two large boys against one
average sized girl! Without super powers." She glared at each boy
in turn.
Mrs. Stone turned to
the eighth grade boy. "Sam? What do you have to say?"
"Buttercup threatened
Mitch first, saying he started the rumors. We protected him."
"And what about Andra?"
Mrs. Stone asked.
"She tried to attack
us, too."
"While you were 'protecting'
Mitch?"
"Yeah."
"Andra didn't attack
you and you know it!" Buttercup shouted.
"Buttercup, please
don't interrupt," Mrs. Stone said. To the boys she said, "does anyone have
anything else to add?"
"Buttercup's a maniac,"
Mitch pronounced.
"What makes you say
that?" Mrs. Stone asked before Buttercup could respond.
"She threatened me
Friday night. When I caught her and the dyke kissing."
Buttercup leapt from
her chair and hovered in front of Mitch. "How dare you call Andra that?
I swear, Mitch Mitchelson -"
"Buttercup! Sit down!"
Mrs. Stone demanded. She followed Buttercup with her eyes until the Girl
did so. "Mitch, I will not tolerate such language in this school. That's
your only warning."
"But Mrs. Stone, you
should have seen them! If Buttercup hadn't destroyed my camera I could
prove it. It was disgusting."
"I don't need proof,"
Mrs. Stone said. "It's no business of mine what students choose to do off
school property so long as they don't do anything illegal."
"But it was gross!"
Mitch insisted.
"Your morals don't
decide the laws here, Mitch. No matter what you believe is right or wrong,
you and your friends aren't allowed to use violence to enforce your point
of view. You five have detention after school for two weeks, and if I hear
of any more violence from any of you, it's another week per infraction,
got it?"
"What about Buttercup?"
Harry demanded.
"I need to talk to
her privately for a moment. You boys talk to the secretary to arrange your
detentions." Mrs. Stone watched them leave her office then turned to Buttercup.
"Am I in more trouble
than them?" Buttercup asked.
Mrs. Stone sighed.
"This is a difficult situation, Buttercup. I should punish you because
you did make the first threats, right?" Buttercup nodded. "But I don't
think school is the best place for you right now."
"Are you suspending
me?" Buttercup demanded.
"Not officially," Mrs.
Stone said. "But if you and Andra remain in school, it may only trigger
more violence."
"So Andra and I have
to hide because of some idiots. Wonderful," Buttercup said. "Andra was
right, it is happening again. People like Mitch and Sam are the reason
Andra moved her in the first place, did you know that? And now she has
to go into hiding again!"
"I understand this
is difficult, Buttercup, but once you've calmed down I'm sure you'll see
this really is for the best."
"Yeah, right."
"I'll call the Professor
now and ask him to come pick you up."
"Don't bother," Buttercup
snapped. "I'm flying. And I'll take Andra home, too."
"You can't do that,
Buttercup. A parent or guardian must pick each of you up."
"And what will you
do if I break that rule? Suspend me?" Buttercup demanded. She didn't wait
for an answer, she simply left Mrs. Stone's office and floated back to
the infirmary.
"How is she?" Buttercup
asked the nurse.
"I'm okay," Andra answered
in a small voice. "But I have a monster headache. The nurse was about to
call my mom."
"She doesn't have to.
I'm taking you home."
"Why?"
"I'll explain later.
Can you get off the bed?"
"Yeah, I'm not an invalid,"
Andra said. She hopped off the bed, but stumbled when she landed. Buttercup
was there in an instant to steady her. "I don't know if I could handle
flying though."
"You can't take her,
Buttercup. Her mother -"
Buttercup interrupted
the nurse. "I've already had the lecture, but I'm ignoring it. C'mon, Andra,"
Buttercup took Andra's hand and led her out of the office.
"Buttercup, please
tell me what's going on," Andra pleaded.
"Hold on, I want to
get us out of here without facing Mitch and company."
"Was he the one saying
stuff?"
"According to his friends,
no. He didn't need to say anything, they apparently already knew."
"You don't believe
them?"
"How could Mitch resist
telling them the details of Friday night? He must have contributed something.
You ready?" Buttercup asked when they were outside the building.
"What about our stuff?"
"I'll ask Bubbles or
Blossom to get them for us."
"Then I guess I'm ready."
Andra placed her arms around Buttercup's neck. "Just don't go fast, okay?"
"No problem," Buttercup
said as she carefully lifted off the ground.
"Hey, you're talking
to Blossom again?" Andra asked after a few moments of quiet flying.
"Yeah. Kinda. She's
still a little weird, but we're getting better."
"Is it because of what
the Professor told you Saturday?"
"I guess so."
"What was it? You said
you'd tell me."
Buttercup landed on
Andra's porch. "Is Cassie home?"
Andra sighed. "No,
she's at work. You're just trying to find excuses so you don't have to
tell me what happened."
"Maybe, maybe not,"
Buttercup said coyly. "Okay, where's the key to get inside?"
"It's around back.
I can get it myself. Mrs. Stones probably already called the Professor.
He'll be worried."
"I'll call him from
inside. The nurse said you might have a concussion, you're not supposed
to leave people with concussions alone."
"She was exaggerating,"
Andra reassured Buttercup. "She told me just before you came and got me
that it's only a bump. It'll hurt for awhile, but I'll be fine."
"Isn't there any way
I can stay here with you? I'm not anxious to be yelled at by the Professor."
Andra smiled. "you're
worried about me! That's sweet!"
Buttercup frowned.
"No I'm not."
Andra laughed lightly,
careful not to move her head much. "Well, if you promise to explain why
we had to leave, and what's going on with you and Blossom, I'll let you
come inside. Just don't tell Mom, you know I'm not supposed to have people
over when she's not home."
"But I'm not people,"
Buttercup said as she followed Andra around the house. "I'm me. Your knight
in," Buttercup looked down at her clothes, now stained by grass and dirt
and torn a lot more than they had been that morning. "In ill fitting clothes."
Andra laughed again.
"You're silly, Buttercup." Buttercup blushed and silently followed Andra
into the house.
"You want some lunch?"
Andra asked when they were in her kitchen.
"Are you okay enough
to make it? Or even eat it?"
"Sure," Andra answered,
then she winced. "Okay, I can't eat much. Soup okay?"
"Can you make it?"
Andra sighed. "It involves
pouring water and condensed soup into a pot and boiling it. Not exactly
rocket science. Call the Professor."
"Yes, ma'am." Buttercup
saluted Andra then marched to the phone and called the Professor.
"Hello? Buttercup?"
the Professor answered on the first ring.
"Yeah, Professor, it's
me."
"Oh thank goodness.
Mrs. Stone said you flew off with Andra. I was getting worried."
"We're both okay. I'm
staying with Andra for awhile. She's not feeling so good."
"Would you like me
to come over and help?"
"No, we'll be fine.
But could you call the school and ask Bubbles or Blossom to get my and
Andra's stuff? It's in our locker, combination 10-43-17."
"I'll be sure to do
that. Stay with Andra as long as she needs you."
"I will, don't worry.
Bye, Professor."
"Take care, Buttercup."
Buttercup hung up the
phone then turned to Andra, who was standing in front of the stove. "The
Professor says i can stay as long as you need me. Bubbles or Blossom will
bring our stuff after school."
"Good," Andra said.
"Sit at the table, I'm going to need you for as long as it takes you to
tell me just what is going on."
"Cassie might get home
before I finish telling you."
"Is it that complicated?"
"Part of it is. The
part about me and Blossom."
Andra ladled out soup
into two bowls, then brought them to the table. She set one in front of
Buttercup, then sat in the seat next to her.
Buttercup took a sip
of her soup. "Ow. How," she muttered. "What happened at school is the easy
part: we're unofficially suspended."
"What?! We didn't do
anything!"
"That's why it's unofficial.
Mrs. stone thinks it's best if we 'lay low' for awhile."
"That's not fair!"
Andra cried, apparently ignoring her sore head and stomach. "Those stupid
boys who nearly gave me a freakin' concussion by banging me against a tree
get to stay in school and we don't?"
"They get two weeks
of detention. We're suspended indefinitely, probably with Blossom and Bubbles
bringing our homework."
Andra slammed a hand
down on the table, nearly upsetting the soup bowls. "This isn't right.
We are the victims of the stupid homophobic jerks here. We don't
deserve to be punished. They didn't some weird stuff at my last school,
but they never suspended anyone because they got beat up! This can't
be legal."
Buttercup thought about
that for a moment as she sipped more of her soup. "You're right, I don't
think it's legal. It's definitely not right. I'm friends with the
Mayor's assistant, Miss Bellum. I bet she would help us."
"And Mom has a lawyer
friend back in California she still e-mails," Andra said. "She could help
too."
"We'll get them back
yet," Buttercup said with a grin.
Andra took a couple
sips of soup then leaned toward Buttercup. "Okay, what's up with you and
your sisters?"
Buttercup sighed and
stared down at her soup. "We're not sisters."
"What?"
"The Professor told
us that, genetically, we're not sisters. He said our DNA isn't identical,
it's not even close enough to be from the same family. It's like we're
from the same ethnic group. The Chemical X ethnic group."
"Weird," Andra said.
She took a sip of soup. "How did Blossom and Bubbles take it?"
"Bubbles was kinda
upset for awhile, but you know how quickly she adapts. Blossom. . . I don't
know. I can't figure her out. She's more or less ignoring me now, but there
isn't as much tension as before."
"Well that's good,"
Andra said.
"Yeah. I guess. It's
just weird. It feels like I'm living with strangers now. I know Blossom
and Bubbles are the same people they were the Professor told us we weren't
related. I guess I'm just waiting for another secret to come out of the
closet and surprise me."
***
Andra and Buttercup spent
the afternoon in Andra's living room watching TV, and activity that was
surprisingly tense, as neither girl was sure how comfortable the other
was with being as close as other couples were when they were together.
They started out at opposite ends of the couch, but gradually moved closer
until they were right next to eachother. Then the doorbell rang.
Startled, Buttercup
jumped up. "I'll get it! It's probably Blossom and Bubbles anyway." She
zipped to the door and opened it. Blossom and Bubbles pushed their way
in.
"You two look awful!"
Blossom exclaimed. "What in the world happened to you?"
"Mitch Mitchelson and
his goons," Andra muttered.
"Why?"
"Because they're idiots,"
Buttercup said. "And so's Mrs. Stone. Me and Andra get suspended, but Mitch
the others don't! When obviously Andra and I came out worse in the fight."
"Why were you fighting?"
Bubbles asked. "Was it 'cause of the rumors?"
Andra's face paled.
"What. . . what rumors?"
"That you guys are
gay," Bubbles stated simply. Andra and Buttercup glanced at each other,
but didn't answer. "Well?" Bubbles prompted.
"Bubbles, you really
aren't supposed to ask questions like that," Blossom said quietly.
"Oh," Bubbles said,
her eyes downcast.
Andra looked at Buttercup.
"Can I tell them?"
Buttercup shrugged.
"Might as well. The entire school is suspicious anyway."
"The rumors are true,
Bubbles," Andra said. "I'm gay. Buttercup is, too. We went out on a date
Friday and Mitch saw us."
"How dare that little
cretin do such a thing as spread rumors and fight you two just because
you're going out?!" Blossom demanded. "I'll show him tomorrow at school
that when you mess with one Powerpuff Girl, you mess with them all!"
"Um, Blossom, that's
great and all, but really, you'll just get suspended, too. 'Cept yours
will be official," Buttercup said. "We're unofficially suspended.
If you beat the crap out of Mitch you'd get an official suspension, and
how would that look on your permanent record?"
"What about after school?"
Blossom asked.
"I can't believe you,"
Andra said. "I'd expect this sort of talk from Buttercup-"
"Hey!"
"-but not from you,
Blossom! You will not fight for me and Buttercup. I'll crawl out
of this house if I have to to stop you."
"Are you feeling that
bad?" Bubbles asked. "You look kinda pale."
Andra shrugged. "I'll
be fine. I just have a bump on my head and dozens of bruises on my stomach.
I'll live.
Bubbles set down the
pale yellow backpack she'd been carrying along with her denim one. "We
brought your stuff. And we'll bring your homework to ya', too."
"Yippee," Buttercup
muttered.
"Here's your bag, Buttercup,"
Blossom said quietly, having suddenly lost her enthusiasm. She handed the
green bag she'd carried to Buttercup. "We'd better get home. You coming?"
"She'll be out in a
minute," Andra said quickly. "I want to talk to her for a moment."
Bubbles gave Buttercup
and Andra a suspicious look, but quickly shrugged it off. "Okay. Bye, Andra.
Feel better soon!" She bounded out the door before Andra could respond.
Blossom followed, but at a much more subdued pace, with several glances
over her shoulder at the girls.
"You need to watch
out for Blossom," Andra said as soon as Blossom was gone.
"What? Why? She's being
nice! She's paying attention to me again."
"Yeah, she's paying
attention all right. Sending secret glances your way, getting quiet and
blushing when she accidentally touches you. Sound familiar?"
Buttercup made a face.
"Are you saying Blossom likes me? She can't! She's my sis-" Andra
was slowly shaking her head. "Oh, yeah, she's not. But we've only known
that for two days. Crushes don't develop that quickly."
"Maybe that's why the
Professor told you about how you're not related, because Blossom told him
she liked you and was totally freaked out. If you were sisters it would
be against the law, you know."
Buttercup shook her
head. "No way. Blossom's too analytical to get a crush on someone who she's
thought of as a sister for the last 7 years." Buttercup paused for a moment.
"Now you're the one who's worried. If I didn't know better, I'd
say you were jealous!"
Andra blushed. "Well.
. . okay, maybe I am a little. But pretend you're me for a second: the
most amazing girl you know is your. . . your girlfriend, but there's someone
else in the same bedroom with her who may have a crush on said girlfriend.
You'd be kinda jealous, too."
Buttercup shook her
head. "You're paranoid. Will you be okay here till Cassie gets home?"
Andra sighed. Buttercup
certainly had a knack for changing the subject when she didn't like where
a conversation was going. "I'll be fine, Buttercup. You'd better go, before
your sisters come back to drag you out."
"Okay. Um," Buttercup
bent down and quickly kissed Andra's slightly bruised cheek. "Bye!" She
grabbed her bag and flew out the door before Andra could reply.
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