Prologue pt. 3

A. N. -This chapter contains a scene of child abuse and minor swearing. If this bothers you, you may want to skip it.

Ivex Mcleal shifted in his seat. He was uncomfortable sitting in his principal's office, the bald man staring daggers at him and his mom trying to negotiate with the bald man.

"...please sir," she was saying. "I know you're a good man. We've been having some… family issues at home. That's why Ivex acted out like he did."

Ivex snorted and sank lower in his seat. Family issues. If that's what his mom was calling them now. At the last school, she had called them 'stress due to intense situations at home'.

The bald man, Ivex's principal, adjusted his glasses. "We've been extremely lenient with your son, Mrs. Mcleal, but I'm afraid we can't take anymore of his violence in our halls. All the children fear him!"

Ivex's mom darted a glance at him, before refocusing on the principal. "Ivex doesn't attack people at random, there must have been some reason!"

The ugly bald man frowned. "None that we could find, Mrs. Mcleal. These were all good kids."

Ivex rolled his eyes. "So you think that bullies are good people, Baldasaurus Rex?"

Mrs. Mcleal gasped. "Ivex Mcleal!"

"What?" Ivex looked at his mom out of the corner of his eye. "The kids are bullies. They pick on the first graders, just because they're the only ones younger than us. Oh, and he is a Baldasaurus Rex. That's his name, ma."

Baldasaurus Rex had been silently turning purple as Ivex addressed his mother. "This is exactly what we mean, Mrs. Mcleal. Not only does he harm these students, he is constantly harassing everyone with his derivative nicknames!"

Ivex crossed his arms and leaned back in his chair. "I'd like my lawyer if you're going to charge me as guilty before hearing my plea."

Baldasaurus Rex pressed his lips together tightly. "I'm sorry Mrs. Mcleal, but after three instances of abuse towards classmates, we have to expel the child."

Mrs. Mcleal's fingers tapped rapidly on her steering wheel. "Civility, Ivex. Why can't you just talk to the bullies instead of beating them up?"

Ivex crossed his arms and slumped back in his chair, staring out his window. "They started it," he muttered. "If I had let them win, they still would have gotten away with it."

Mrs. Mcleal sighed. "This is the sixth school that you've gotten expelled from. We only have one other school in this whole kingdom that is willing to let you come! One, Ivex!"

Ivex glared out his window, mad at himself mostly. "That's means we're moving again?"

"Yes."

Ivex uncrossed his arms and flicked at the door handle. "Can we leave him behind this time?"

Mrs. Mcleal winced. "I… don't know honey."

Ivex didn't like his father. He was a drunk who didn't care about his family. A man with several different mistresses at once. A man who would punish Ivex severely for the littlest things.

He was also a man that Mrs. Mcleal still forgave every time he came crawling back. It had been happening as long as Ivex could remember.

"If we moved and didn't tell him where we were going, he couldn't come back," Ivex scowled down at his book bag. "We could be free of that selfish bast-"

"Language!" his mother interjected. "Where do you hear all these words Ivex?"

"From him."

Mrs. Mcleal sighed as she pulled their car into the driveway. "You shouldn't repeat the things he says," she turned the car off. Ivex started to open his door, but then realized his mother was sitting still. "The only school left is in the main city of Vale. Four hours away. Begin packing whatever isn't already in boxes, buddy," Then, she lowered her voice. "Please keep to yourself. I don't want to move out of Kingdom."

Ivex sat on his bed and stared at his walls, willing the stinging tears away. He had liked this bedroom, it had been one of his favorites. It almost felt like home. Too bad he messed everything up. Again.

Ivex rolled off his bed and began to shove his few possessions into a cardboard box. Every time he had to go to a new school, his mom had to find a new job. Or two. His dad, no matter how good he had been doing would drink up a storm and abuse Ivex and his mom the whole move.

Ivex about leapt out of his skin when he heard the front door open. He had learned to tell the difference in the sound of the front and back doors for one reason. He and his mom only ever used the back door, and his dad used the front.

He sprung off the ground and lunged toward his door. He had to lock it before his dad got there! He clicked the lock just as a fist slammed into the door.

"Open this right now, boy!' his father slurred from the other side. "I'm gonna kill you!"

Ivex heard his mom's soft voice trying to reason with her husband. "Damn well it was mistake!" Mr. Mcleal shouted back. "He's the mistake!" Ivex heard a thump on the wall. His blood pounded in his ears. He hated bullies. "No, Diane! I will not 'calm down'!" a fist pounded on Ivex's door. "Come out!"

A momentary pause. "SHUT it Diane! He's MY son! I will do what I wish!"

Another thump, followed this time by a squeak of pain.

Ivex clenched his fists. He couldn't take it any more! He yanked his door open. "Don't touch her!" He growled.

"Are you telling me what to do, boy?" Mr. Mcleal sneered. He reared his hand back and slapped Ivex hard across the face. Ivex fell backwards on the floor, wincing in pain. "You stupid child!" Mr. Mcleal stormed into Ivex's room and slammed his foot into Ivex's abdomen. "You can't follow even the most simple rules!"

Ivex rolled backwards, clutching his stomach. "That much being true, I would still be a better father than you!"

Faster than Ivex realized a drunk man could move, Mr. Mcleal had whipped out his belt and had raised it above his head, ready to strike Ivex with the metal buckle. Mrs. Mcleal jumped up as fast as she could and latched onto Mr. Mcleal's arm. "He's only eight! A child, Rodin! Leave him be!"

Mr. Mcleal flung his wife off of his arm, letting her head smack against the wall. "Exactly, Diane! Children need to be disciplined!"

Ivex shut his eyes, bracing for the pain, wishing he was strong enough to keep his mom safe.

He didn't like the new house. It smelled weird, the walls were too green, and it was too small. The walls of his bedroom were painted a puke green color that always put him in a bad mood when he saw them.

He flipped on the light in the bathroom and cringed slightly at his reflection. The bruises had faded a bit, and his eyes weren't red anymore, but he was still wearing his hood to school today.

The night before, he had come across a bad omen for this school. A baby bird had gotten its' wings caught in a fence and had struggled against it so much, it had practically torn its' wing off. Ivex had cut it out as a neighbor girl had been walking by. She was kind enough to offer to help. Her mom was a nurse, so the girl suggested they take the bird to her house to get it fixed up. It died before they could get there though.

Ivex had stayed up late that night and cried for several hours. He felt like he should have been able to help the bird more then he did.

His dad always said that 'crying wasn't manly', but his mom felt that it was important for people to cry, no matter their gender.

Ivex yanked on his hood and shuffled into the kitchen.

"Morning Vex," his mom said, reading the newspaper in her hands, scanning the 'help wanted' section over her coffee cup. "How'd you sleep?"

Ivex sat down across from her and grabbed the spoon in the bowl that was set at his seat. Wheat cereal. Yum. He poured some milk on the cereal and chewed on the grainy cereal. "Fine," he mumbled. "Pumped up to ruin another life today."

Mrs. Mcleal frowned at him, glancing up from the paper. "Ivex-"

"Forget I said anything," Ivex interrupted, shoveling cereal into his mouth. "It will be a perfectly happy-go-lucky day," he stood up and dropped his bowl into the sink.

"Are you wearing that hood to school?" His mom furrowed her eyebrows.

"Yes, I'd rather be the weird kid who wears a hood than the kid who's too weak to protect his face."

"Ivex-"

Ivex left the house and let the door slam behind him, cutting off whatever his mom was going to say.

"Ms. Arctic! Ms. Arctic!" a small blond girl raised her hand as high as it could go. "You said we were having a quiz today, remember? We can't have carpet time before that!"

Ms. Arctic, one of Ivex's new teachers, smiled at the girl. "That's right Jodi! Thank you for reminding me!"

When she set the test on Ivex's desk, she leaned down close to him. "If you don't know this stuff, come talk to me and I'll help you get caught up with our class. This test won't matter to your grade."

It was a test on some book the class was reading, and Ivex only knew the bare details of it, but he still tried to answer some of the questions. He set the paper on the teacher's desk and went outside for free hour. He kept a careful eye on all the other students as he made his way across the courtyard. If there was going to be trouble for him being a new kid, he wanted to at least be aware of those threats.

After confirming that the kids were just ignoring him, he sat down in a shady corner of the yard. He unwrapped a sandwich he had packed for himself and took a bite out of it.

He flipped through his new Scroll, the bribe his mom had given him so he wouldn't start fights with the other kids. Music, communication and a couple other basic Scroll things were on the home screen. He would have to download some more interesting stuff.

"Put me down!"

Ivex raised his gaze to the girl who had said it. She was being held in the air by her ponytail by an older-looking boy. A girl, who looked a lot like the boy, stood next to him, frowning at the ponytail girl. "Why'd you have to remind the teach that we had a test today, Professor Genius?" She sneered at the girl. "Me and Darcy probably lost a letter off of our grade because of that."

The boy, Darcy, Ivex assumed, lifted the ponytail girl higher off the ground.

The ponytail girl kicked at the boy holding her. "Maybe if you had read the book yourselves you would have gotten a higher grade!"

The other girl raised an eyebrow. "Are you saying I'm stupid?"

Not my fight, Ivex reminded himself silently, trying to refocus on his Scroll.

"You're a brat of a genius child," the other girl said calmly. She raised her hand and slapped the ponytail girl across the face.

You stupid boy.

Ivex pressed his lips together. He had noticed that the ponytail girl was the same girl who had offered to help him with the bird the day before. Not. My. Fight.

"Why are you even here?" The other girl spat.

He's the mistake.

Darcy slammed the girl against the wall, still gripping her ponytail tightly. "Don't you remember who rules this school, Professor?"

He's MY son.

Other kids had begun to murmur to themselves. "The twins are at it again?" "Serves Professor right, I totally had forgotten to study for that stupid test." "This will be great!" "Ag, why can't she just fit it in? It would help her a lot."

Ivex tightened his fingers. He was getting twitchy. He couldn't just sit here and do nothing!

Please keep to yourself. I don't want to have to move out of Kingdom.

"Put me down!" The ponytail girl shrieked. "It hurts!"

"She said to stop, jerk faces," Ivex's body had moved on its own free will, standing up and marching over to the bullies.

The other girl looked over lazily at him. "What was that, new boy?"

"Stop messing with her," Ivex crossed his arms.

The other girl snorted. "Did I miss dress up day or something? You look like some sort of downsized Huntsman."

Ivex turned his body toward Darcy. "Let her go."

Darcy frowned at Ivex, his expression saying he was tying to figure out this child's motives. "Make me."

Please keep to your-

Ivex swung his leg up and kicked the inside of Darcy's arm, hitting a pressure point that forced the hand to release. The ponytail girl landed on the ground, her eyes wide.

The other girl scowled and slung her backpack off. "You just messed with the wrong people, loser." She darted forward, throwing a punch at Ivex's face. He dodged to the right, the air whistling where the girl's fist soared past his head. Ivex cartwheeled over Darcy's leg that had tried to sweep Ivex off his feet. The girl lashed out at him again, Ivex dodged again, but instead of jumping away, he sent his fist into the girl's stomach.

She landed on her back. A deep growl rose in her throat. "Kill him!" she barked at her brother.

Darcy glared at Ivex. He shifted his weight on his back foot as Ivex swung at him. He stepped to the side, clothes-lining Ivex. Ivex landed in the dirt, hitting his elbow hard.

Darcy quickly yanked his belt out of its belt loops and raised it above his head, ready to strike Ivex.

Children need to be punished.

Ivex was on his knees instantaneously. He raised his arm and let the belt wrap around his forearm. His eyes flashed at the boy before him. For the first time, Darcy looked scared. "I. Hate. Bullies!" he roared, yanking his arm down, sending the taller boy flying across the courtyard. He slammed into the brick wall of the school building. He hit the ground with a groan. All the rest of the kids took a step away from Ivex.

"You're all pathetic," Ivex narrowed his eyes at the circle of his peers. "Any one of you could have helped," he went over to the ponytail girl and helped her stand up. "No body is going to mess with Professor any more, got it?"

All the other children quickly nodded.

Ivex tugged on the girl's hand, leading her to a more secluded part of the courtyard. She frowned up at him. "Thanks, but even that won't stop Dahlia and Darcy from bullying us you know," her frown deepened. "You could have gotten hurt!" faster than Ivex could react, the girl had flipped his hood off. She gasped and took a step back. "I… I t-think you need to see the n-nurse."

Ivex left the girl at the nurse's office. The girl had been in the middle of a conversation, and Ivex didn't want to interrupt it. He cautiously pushed his classroom door open. Ms. Arctic sat at her desk, correcting papers and humming to herself.

Ivex swallowed. Here it was. Him about to get expelled from another school.

Ms. Arctic looked up at the figure in her doorway. She smiled at him. "Ivex! What's up?"

Ivex stared down at his feet and slowly walked into the room.

"How was your free hour? I was just about to call the others in," she asked.

"It was… interesting?" Ivex responded, rubbing his toes together.

"Mm?"

"I got into a fight with a couple other kids," Ivex mumbled.

Ms. Arctic leaned back in her chair, placing the paper she was holding down on her desk, sliding her glasses up her head. "Are you aware you made an 86 on the test, Mr. Mcleal?"

Ivex's gaze jerked up to his teacher. "Huh?"

Ms. Arctic chuckled. "Yes. I assume you must have read the book before. Quite impressive for your first day," she picked up all the papers, tapping them on her desk to make them neat. "Why did you fight with them? Did you have a reason or did you just not like their clothes or something?"

"You'll probably want to get their side of things too, but what happened from my point was that they were bullying a girl smaller than them. No one else was doing anything. I tried talking to them at first, but they didn't listen to me. I went overboard and should have stopped sooner. I'm sorry," Ivex looked back down at his feet, feeling his eyes beginning to sting.

"You know how brave you have to be to tell the truth, Ivex?" Ms. Arctic asked kindly. "To stand up when no one else is willing? It takes a lot of courage," she tapped her pencil on her desk, calling Ivex's eyes to hers. "You don't know what kind of school this is, do you?"

Ivex frowned. He wasn't in trouble?

Ms. Arctic smiled. "This is an early Huntsmen Training academy. We watch everything our students do and recruit them from all over Vale. Everything we do is helping make you into good people, and strong Huntsmen. You won't have official training until you turn twelve, but we don't punish students for fighting."

Ivex widened his eyes. A school where you couldn't get in trouble for fighting? Hell yes. He was home.

A. N. #2 -This was a bit of a longer chapter because Ivex has so much going on. There will be several more chapters this length or longer in the future. The prologue stuff is usually short, so sorry about this one. Hope you enjoyed! /Kronos\\