Disclaimer: I don't own anything about Higher Ground, except for Emma, Fred, Belle and the other horses at the stable. I'm not even sure if there actually is a stable at Horizon. If anyone reads this and knows, could you please let me know in a review? Thanks.
"Fred told me you had quite a fall there, Emma. Are you sure you're fine?" Peter asked, worried she may have some pains that she wasn't letting on to.
"No, I really am fine, just a bit shaken. I have fallen before you know. I've been riding for about... hold on, I'm 16 and I started when I was 7... for about 9 years or so. And I've had quite a few falls. Some were actually quite amusing," Emma said, a smile spreading across her face as she remembered.
"Really? Like what?" Peter sounded interested. He knew that if he made the detour of getting her trust by talking about horses, she would eventually open up to him.
"Do you really want to know? Because I know it can get a bit boring." She looked at him carefully, he nodded, so she continued. "Well, this one time, I was riding bareback, and we turned a corner and I lost my balance and fell. The thing is, I fell in a pile of crap. It wasn't even my horse's pile!"
"Uh, that sounds disgusting. Now try to tell me without the profanity or you will get consequences," Peter said warningly.
"Fine. This other time, I was at camp and the girth on the western saddle wasn't tight enough. As I turned into the middle of the ring, the saddle slipped off the horse's back and I ended up on the ground. My teacher came up to me and was laughing. She said: 'Don't you just love these falls?' Well, I must say, it was quite funny. But still!"
"I see," Peter said. "Oh, could you tell me why you're here? You're files weren't too explicit on that subject."
"Well, honestly, it's not that bad. I mean I got into drugs, but I mean a bit of coke never hurt anyone." She knew this wasn't true, but it just slipped out. "And then I got into the 'money stock' of our school. That's what landed me in court. Our school had a lot of pride and that hit home. I also..." here she stopped. She didn't want to say what the last-and most important-reason was.
"What? You also what?" He looked at her, very intrigued.
"Nothing. It's not important," her face tightening and her teeth clenching.
"Listen, Emma, everything is important. You can tell me."
"Look! I don't want to talk about it! Why can't you just leave me alone!" she cried. At that point she got up and ran out of Peter's office. She headed straight to her dorm. Emma had seen Daisy on the way there, but she seemed to be in the middle of something. As she passed she heard snippets of the conversation. It seemed to be that David and Ezra were fighting over whom would win in a fight between Superman, Batman, and Spiderman. David was sure it was Batman. He had the car, the gadgets and the girl, what more would he need? Ezra seemed to think that was a stupid reason and figured it was Spiderman, because he had more powers such as "spider sense." Daisy saw Emma walk by. She smiled and rolled her eyes. Emma understood that if Daisy followed her, the guys would too, or they'd just solve their problem with name calling and such. Daisy was the mediator. She continued on to the dorm.
There was only Shelby. Jules had taken Jess for a walk to clear her mind.
"Hey there. What's up?" Shelby asked.
"Not much. Just fell off Belle. We had a little problem with a jump."
"Oh, are you okay?"
"Ya, my head hurts a bit," she said. Why was Shelby being so nice to her? Then again, Daisy was her best friend, she'd probably put in a good word for her.
"I see. So, why are you here?" she tried to make her feel better. She could tell Emma wasn't feeling to well. Shelby had put her book aside and was looking Emma over. She was still in her riding clothes, she had a little cut on her chin, her helmet in her hands and her hair was in a messy-bun up on top of her head.
"Oh, theft, drugs, you know. That sort of stuff." She was hiding something, and she knew Shelby could see right through her.
"No, I don't know. Normally, that's not enough to get you into Horizon, normally that just qualifies as a minor charge and you do community service or something like that. No, I think, or rather, I know there's more."
"Well, you see... I don't know how to say this. Not long before I landed in this place, people well, they... they..." Here, she stopped and broke into tears. She lay down on her bead and broke down. "That's when I turned to drugs. Then I started steeling to get money for drugs. Ah! My life is so screwed up." She continued talking into her pillow. She had major issues. "Why?" A few more sobs. "Oh! Ali!" This is where Shelby's attention was brought to a full maximum on Emma. Who was Ali? She knew that name from somewhere. Of, course, Ali is a very common nickname, but then again, she had heard it associated with the name Emma. But where?
"Emma?" Shelby said, as she got up and went to Emma. She sat down on her bed. "Did Ali have a step-sister?"
Emma turned to face her. "Yes. How did you know?"
"Is Ali your sister?"
"Yes." She looked at Shelby. Either this girl knew something she didn't, or she was a great guesser.
"Emma, I think you need to go have a talk with Juliette."
"Wait! No! Not Jules." Emma had a sudden look of horror on her face.
"Yes. I think it's time she remembered that you are her step-sister."
"How did you know?"
"Queenie had problems competing against her sisters. She used to have nightmares and wake up in the middle of the night. I never slept much, so I heard everything. She also talked about you in group."
"She was the pageant queen before her mom married my dad. Then there was Ali. Alexis was beautiful and Jules just couldn't compete with her. So she tried to be-friend her. Ali just pushed her away. She was my best friend. Jules was, I mean. We were super tight. But then, after Ali kept pushing her around, Jules got depressed and started cutting herself and that led her here. I was alone, so I turned to Ali. She was awful. I had never really associated with her, even though she was my sister. She's the one who got me into drugs. The rest is history."
"I think you should talk to Jules. She kept talking about a really nice sister out of all of her evil step-sisters. I thought she sort of compared herself to a Cinderella type. I think she really misses you."
"I don't know. She didn't even recognize me!"
"Well, maybe she thought that you must be someone else because her Emma would never end up here."
"I'll talk to her. Just not now." Shelby got up to walk away. "Shelby?" She turned around. "Thank you for talking to me." Shelby just went back to her book. But that was all Emma had needed. She got up and went to find Juliette.
"Fred told me you had quite a fall there, Emma. Are you sure you're fine?" Peter asked, worried she may have some pains that she wasn't letting on to.
"No, I really am fine, just a bit shaken. I have fallen before you know. I've been riding for about... hold on, I'm 16 and I started when I was 7... for about 9 years or so. And I've had quite a few falls. Some were actually quite amusing," Emma said, a smile spreading across her face as she remembered.
"Really? Like what?" Peter sounded interested. He knew that if he made the detour of getting her trust by talking about horses, she would eventually open up to him.
"Do you really want to know? Because I know it can get a bit boring." She looked at him carefully, he nodded, so she continued. "Well, this one time, I was riding bareback, and we turned a corner and I lost my balance and fell. The thing is, I fell in a pile of crap. It wasn't even my horse's pile!"
"Uh, that sounds disgusting. Now try to tell me without the profanity or you will get consequences," Peter said warningly.
"Fine. This other time, I was at camp and the girth on the western saddle wasn't tight enough. As I turned into the middle of the ring, the saddle slipped off the horse's back and I ended up on the ground. My teacher came up to me and was laughing. She said: 'Don't you just love these falls?' Well, I must say, it was quite funny. But still!"
"I see," Peter said. "Oh, could you tell me why you're here? You're files weren't too explicit on that subject."
"Well, honestly, it's not that bad. I mean I got into drugs, but I mean a bit of coke never hurt anyone." She knew this wasn't true, but it just slipped out. "And then I got into the 'money stock' of our school. That's what landed me in court. Our school had a lot of pride and that hit home. I also..." here she stopped. She didn't want to say what the last-and most important-reason was.
"What? You also what?" He looked at her, very intrigued.
"Nothing. It's not important," her face tightening and her teeth clenching.
"Listen, Emma, everything is important. You can tell me."
"Look! I don't want to talk about it! Why can't you just leave me alone!" she cried. At that point she got up and ran out of Peter's office. She headed straight to her dorm. Emma had seen Daisy on the way there, but she seemed to be in the middle of something. As she passed she heard snippets of the conversation. It seemed to be that David and Ezra were fighting over whom would win in a fight between Superman, Batman, and Spiderman. David was sure it was Batman. He had the car, the gadgets and the girl, what more would he need? Ezra seemed to think that was a stupid reason and figured it was Spiderman, because he had more powers such as "spider sense." Daisy saw Emma walk by. She smiled and rolled her eyes. Emma understood that if Daisy followed her, the guys would too, or they'd just solve their problem with name calling and such. Daisy was the mediator. She continued on to the dorm.
There was only Shelby. Jules had taken Jess for a walk to clear her mind.
"Hey there. What's up?" Shelby asked.
"Not much. Just fell off Belle. We had a little problem with a jump."
"Oh, are you okay?"
"Ya, my head hurts a bit," she said. Why was Shelby being so nice to her? Then again, Daisy was her best friend, she'd probably put in a good word for her.
"I see. So, why are you here?" she tried to make her feel better. She could tell Emma wasn't feeling to well. Shelby had put her book aside and was looking Emma over. She was still in her riding clothes, she had a little cut on her chin, her helmet in her hands and her hair was in a messy-bun up on top of her head.
"Oh, theft, drugs, you know. That sort of stuff." She was hiding something, and she knew Shelby could see right through her.
"No, I don't know. Normally, that's not enough to get you into Horizon, normally that just qualifies as a minor charge and you do community service or something like that. No, I think, or rather, I know there's more."
"Well, you see... I don't know how to say this. Not long before I landed in this place, people well, they... they..." Here, she stopped and broke into tears. She lay down on her bead and broke down. "That's when I turned to drugs. Then I started steeling to get money for drugs. Ah! My life is so screwed up." She continued talking into her pillow. She had major issues. "Why?" A few more sobs. "Oh! Ali!" This is where Shelby's attention was brought to a full maximum on Emma. Who was Ali? She knew that name from somewhere. Of, course, Ali is a very common nickname, but then again, she had heard it associated with the name Emma. But where?
"Emma?" Shelby said, as she got up and went to Emma. She sat down on her bed. "Did Ali have a step-sister?"
Emma turned to face her. "Yes. How did you know?"
"Is Ali your sister?"
"Yes." She looked at Shelby. Either this girl knew something she didn't, or she was a great guesser.
"Emma, I think you need to go have a talk with Juliette."
"Wait! No! Not Jules." Emma had a sudden look of horror on her face.
"Yes. I think it's time she remembered that you are her step-sister."
"How did you know?"
"Queenie had problems competing against her sisters. She used to have nightmares and wake up in the middle of the night. I never slept much, so I heard everything. She also talked about you in group."
"She was the pageant queen before her mom married my dad. Then there was Ali. Alexis was beautiful and Jules just couldn't compete with her. So she tried to be-friend her. Ali just pushed her away. She was my best friend. Jules was, I mean. We were super tight. But then, after Ali kept pushing her around, Jules got depressed and started cutting herself and that led her here. I was alone, so I turned to Ali. She was awful. I had never really associated with her, even though she was my sister. She's the one who got me into drugs. The rest is history."
"I think you should talk to Jules. She kept talking about a really nice sister out of all of her evil step-sisters. I thought she sort of compared herself to a Cinderella type. I think she really misses you."
"I don't know. She didn't even recognize me!"
"Well, maybe she thought that you must be someone else because her Emma would never end up here."
"I'll talk to her. Just not now." Shelby got up to walk away. "Shelby?" She turned around. "Thank you for talking to me." Shelby just went back to her book. But that was all Emma had needed. She got up and went to find Juliette.