Monday morning found Kim, Ron, Monique, the Tweebs, and Jenny walking to Middleton High School. It was a beautiful September morning, and Kim didn't see the need to drive. She and Ron were holding hands as they walked.
"Nervous?" Monique asked Jenny.
"A bit. I haven't attended school in a long time," she answered.
"Aw, it's fun," said Jim.
"Yeah, especially when you know who to bug," said Tim.
Kim rolled her eyes. "You Tweebs are going to give Hatchett a heart attack one of these days," she said.
"Well, it's her own fault," said Jim.
"For being such an overbearing jerk," said Tim.
The school librarian had quickly become the target of the Tweeb's pranks, and in their latest caper had changed the "Hatchett Decimal System" so the books were arranged in reverse alphabetical order, regardless of subject.
Secretly Kim was pleased. Being put into "Library Lockdown" for an overdue book was way excessive in her opinion. That's why she never made any serious effort to stop the Tweebs.
"Maybe you'll change your mind about hexing her, once you've met her," said Jim to Jenny.
"Yeah, she could use a good hexing," said Tim.
"You know I promised your mom not to use my powers except in an emergency," said Jenny.
"Aww..." said the twins in stereo.
"Are you still going to walk us to class?" asked Tim.
"You promised," said Jim.
"Not today, guys," said Kim, "She needs to go to the office for business first, and then get settled in."
"I'll do it tomorrow," Jenny said. The twins still had a crush on her, and she found it amusing to indulge them a bit. She teased them about it, too, but didn't want to hurt their feelings.
"Okay," they said, grinning.
Arriving at the school, Monique, Jim, and Tim went their own ways. Ron headed for the gym to check equipment for cheer practice that afternoon.
"C'mon, I'll take you to the office," said Kim, and headed down a corridor, with Jenny by her side.
Jenny's odd looks got stares from other students, but several went up to her and shook her hand, saying they were glad to meet her, and how cool it was the way she had stopped Drakken's robot.
Jenny's cheeks turned a bit pink at the praise. As they continued down the corridor, Kim looked at her.
"You okay?" she asked.
"Yeah. After being a villain for years, it's strange to have people thank me and be nice after I've destroyed something," she answered. "Usually they run screaming when they see me later. But I think I could get used to it."
Kim laughed.
Jenny was expected at the office, and she got her class schedule, map, and textbooks in short order.
Kim looked over the schedule. Last year she and Ron had managed to get all their classes together, but weren't so lucky this year. But she noticed that all of Jenny's classes had either her or Ron in them, and they had the same lunch period. She thought it likely that was Dr. Director's influence.
As they left the office they headed for homeroom just as Mr. Barkin came out of his office.
"Just a minute," he said in a loud voice. Kim and Jenny stopped and looked at him as he approached.
"That's Mr. Barkin, the vice-principal," muttered Kim.
Barkin leaned over Jenny. "You're the new student, correct?" he asked.
"That's right; I'm Jenny Wheeler," she answered.
"Well, Wheeler," said Barkin, "This school has, against my better judgment, a fairly liberal dress code. But you are way outside the line."
Jenny glanced down at herself. She was wearing a dark blue blouse and matching skirt that fell below her knees, a pink belt, dark blue socks, and pink tennis shoes.
She looked up at the scowling face. "I'm clean and dressed nicely. What's your damage?"
Kim stood aside and watched, saying nothing. She had seen Jenny handle super-villains, but dealing with Barkin was another story. She would only intervene if necessary.
"Oh, want to play dumb, eh?" said Barkin, "Very well, I'll spell it out for you. When you come to school tomorrow, I expect to see your real hair color, no body makeup, and you without those ridiculous contacts."
"If you had bothered--" started Jenny in an icy tone.
"Watch what you say, Wheeler, you're about one step away from a week's detention on your first day here," said Barkin.
"If you had bothered to read my file," said Jenny in the same tone, as though Barkin hadn't spoken, "You would have known my hair isn't dyed, I'm not wearing makeup, and these ARE my real eyes."
Barkin glared at her, and she returned the look, not backing down an inch.
"Very well, Wheeler," said Barkin at last, "I'll read your file. But if what you claim isn't in there, you've got a month's detention coming."
"Are we finished, Mr. Barkin?" asked Jenny in her icy tone. She turned to Kim.
"I'm watching you, Wheeler," said Barkin, and turned back to his own office door.
"Fine, you watch all you want to," said Jenny, without turning, "Just don't do it in the girl's bathrooms or locker rooms."
Barkin's face turned a dark red, and a vein throbbed on his temple, but he went back in his office without a reply. The door shut behind him.
Cheering immediately broke out from all the students who had witnessed the confrontation.
Jenny found herself the center of attention, her hand being shaken vigorously, being slapped on the back, and in general being called a hero.
It took several minutes before Kim and Jenny could get away from the well-wishers. As they approached their homeroom, Kim said, "That was amazing. You're the first student I've ever seen make Barkin back down."
"I never put up with bullies in HIVE Academy, as a villain, or in prison, and I'm not about to put up with them in high school," she answered.
When they arrived at homeroom, they found Ron, Monique, and Felix already there, and seats saved for them.
Across the room, Bonnie looked at them with narrowed eyes. "Great," she muttered to Tara,
"Not only do we have to put up with Little Miss Perfect and the loser, now we've got the freak factor."
Tara looked at her best friend sharply, but didn't reply.
kpkpkp
By lunch word had spread of Jenny's confrontation with Barkin, and many students approached her, shaking her hand and saying thanks.
Jenny, for her part, was grateful for the distractions. As she had been warned, the food in the caf was less than stellar, so found a reason not to eat it.
Because of her pink eyes and gray skin, she was asked several times if she was an albino, to which she replied, no. But she didn't explain further.
A number of students had seen the fight with Drakken's robot on TV, and had questions about her bad-luck powers. She had to decline the requests for a demonstration, even though the lunch lady was a tempting target.
kpkpkp
As they left the final class of the day, Kim and Jenny found Mr. Barkin waiting for them outside the room.
"Wheeler, it seems I owe you an apology. You were right; I should have read your file first,
as I was unaware of your...circumstances," he said.
"Apology accepted," said Jenny, holding out a hand, "No hard feelings?"
Barkin looked at the proffered hand, but made no move to take it. "Carry on," he said, and walked away.
Jenny looked at Kim. "That's Barkin for you-- tough but fair. Let's get to the gym; I've got cheer practice," said Kim.
Considering Jenny's background, it should be no surprise that she was unfamiliar with cheerleading, or the work that goes into it.
She sat in the stands, impressed with the physical prowess and athleticism the eight girls showed. She laughed and clapped at Ron's antics as the Maddog Mascot.
Near the end of practice, Ron asked her to spot with him for a new cheer they hadn't had much practice with. The idea was to end in a pyramid arranged so the girl's hair colors made a certain pattern within it. Tara would be on top, with Kim and Bonnie just beneath her.
They performed the cheer well, if not perfectly, and Tara ended in place. They held their stance for a second, then suddenly Tara yelped as she lost her balance and fell.
Jenny was right there. HIVE Academy training taught her to take a fall without getting hurt and it was like second nature to her. Tara landed on her hard, and Jenny let her own body go while she concentrated on not letting the other girl be hurt.
Ron helped Tara up. "You okay?" he asked as the pyramid came apart behind him.
Tara nodded. "Not a bump." She turned and extended a hand to Jenny, who took it and stood up. "Thank you so much!"
Jenny looked down. "You're welcome," she said, smiling shyly.
Tara squeezed Jenny's hand. "After a save like that, I guess we don't have any choice except to be friends."
Jenny's pink eyes looked deep into Tara's blue ones. "I'd like that," she smiled.
"Okay, that's it for the night, let's pack it up," said Kim, and the other girls let out a sigh of relief, and started gathering their things.
Nobody noticed Bonnie glaring.