Originally Posted: August 16, 2005

Mwahahaha… everyone thought I was dead, but you should know by now that the crypt cannot hold me! I have returned from beyond the grave with the sole purpose of delivering to you, the faithful reader, the next chapter of Spinning for Hours. But seriously, it's been a loooong time since I last updated, and I'm sorry for that. I was so scared of writing this chapter badly, and screwing up the whole story, that I intimidated myself into being lazy and not trying. But I think this is a pretty good chapter (and at 9,600+ words, my longest by FAR). And you can bet that it was a BEAST to write. At points it gets a little description-heavy, but overall I'm pleased… it turned out better than I was expecting.

I recently got into an argument with a bunch of authors who feel that basic courtesy is a thing of the past. I wholly disagree with them, so I'd just like to make it clear that I appreciate each and every review I receive, and if you write me a long and detailed review, and leave your email address, I will most definitely reply to you. After all, it's only polite, isn't it? So thank you to everyone who reviewed.

I must give special thanks to Lewis Carroll and his wonderful "Lobster Quadrille," the insane inspiration for this chapter.

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O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O

Spinning for Hours

-O-

by Sir Mocha

O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O

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Chapter 17: The Corvid Quadrille

"See how easily the lobsters and the turtles all advance. They are waiting by the number… won't you come and join the dance? Will you, won't you, will you, won't you join the dance?"

I opened my eyes wearily, staring up at the dark ceiling. My alarm clock, that cheerful buzzing box of happiness (note my sarcasm), had woken me from my bizarre dream of dancing crustaceans and reptiles. Lazily, I reached over and hit the snooze alarm, intending to get ten more minutes of sleep before having to get up and get dressed.

The weekend had gone by in a flash of color and lovely weather. The storm Friday night had abated, and by morning the grass was shining in the gentle sunlight, a small testimony to the driving rain the previous night. By the afternoon, the rain had evaporated, and the weekend was gorgeous and pleasantly cool.

Despite that, I hadn't gotten the chance to talk to Theo, to thank him for getting me home that night. I guess we were just busy… or rather, not busy, but preoccupied. I would know; I woke up at 10 (which was unusually late for me) and didn't get out of bed for a half-hour. Then I spent the rest of the morning watching my lame Saturday-morning cartoons (I must confess my weakness for the charming little things. I may have been five years too old – and the wrong gender – but I just couldn't live without them), eating Soy Crunchies, and just lying around.

As soon as afternoon rolled around, I wandered over to Tommy's house and finally participated in that Supreme Crush Brothers tournament they had been trying to entice me into. I felt a bit guilty; lately, I had been neglecting my brother and best friend more than I should have – in light of my developing relationship with Theo – so I figured that spending some time with them would be good. I was pleasantly surprised to see how well they had been bonding. (I guess, being two natural hellions, they had some things in common.) Their growing friendship was quite evident – in the way they teamed up to crush my little on-screen character.

I had gone out to get a pizza, and then had gone back to Tommy's house, where the three of us shared slices of Veggie Dream (on my insistence) pizza while Bart regaled us with amusing Juvie stories. At about 10, I had gone back home, and had fallen asleep readily, then woke up again in eight hours to do my morning yoga routine with Tommy, who had ventured out of the house to enjoy the crisp clear morning. Shortly after, we had returned inside to have one of our special jazz sessions, which lasted for quite some time. Then add in homework, random goofing off, and general lazing, and before I knew it it was time to go to bed, in anticipation of school the next day.

My alarm clock buzzed again, signaling me to get my sluggish self up or risk missing the bus. I sighed, and reluctantly levered myself off my comfy mattress, looking forward to another monotonous Monday morning…

-O-

"You've got to be kidding me!" I exclaimed loudly, while Theo looked on amused.

I stood before a gaudy poster depicting a stuffy woman in a heavy brocade dress. The garish letter underneath read 'The Corvid Quadrille', with the subtitle 'Upholding fine Corvid traditions of elegance and refinement.'

"What is this?" I asked bemused. "Some sort of costume ball?"

"You could say that," replied Theo. "It's the annual formal ball of the Corvids. Everyone dresses up in period costume, dances quadrilles and cotillions, and stands around eating tiny little soy dogs off ornate silver trays. It's a socialite party," he clarified, seeing my blank look.

I must have made an interesting face or something, because he burst out laughing. "It's not THAT bad! It was kind of fun last year…"

I raised an eyebrow. "I spend my time in basement jazz holes, playing blues with beatniks and artists. Maybe when I was EIGHT I enjoyed dressing up and prancing around on a dance floor, but I haven't danced in AGES, and certainly not eighteenth-century French ballroom dances!"

He smiled and said, "It's really not that hard… let me show you…" With that, he grabbed me around the waist with one arm and swept my other hand up to hold his at about shoulder level. He then proceeded to swing me around… or would have, had I not tripped over my own foot and sent us both crashing inelegantly to the ground.

"Gah…" I choked, "you're smooshing my legs. Can you get off?"

"Serves you right," he muttered, and… was he blushing? I guess lying on top of a girl can do that to you. I had to admit… it was rather interesting to be pinned to the ground by the guy I had a crush on, whether it was intentional or not. Fortunately, with my glowing yellow complexion, I can usually mask my supreme embarrassment.

He got up rather quickly, then offered a hand to help me up. I took it, and pulled myself to my feet. Then, as we both dusted off from our ungainly trip to the dirty floor, a very awkward silence ensued. I was determined not to look at him, because complexion or not, my face was like an open book and I didn't want to give him insight to how I was feeling.

I coughed, an obvious ploy to break the silence, then said, "So, about this whole Quadrille thing… I don't think I'm going to risk showing my face."

I glanced over at him in time to see him frown gently. "Actually, according to this poster… attendance is mandatory."

"Are you KIDDING?" I yelped, wheeling around to stare furiously at the poster. "You saw how graceful I am on my feet! They hate me already, so how are they going to feel when I trip and throw everyone else off? I've…. I almost r-ruined the Knowledge Bowl… now I'm going to be responsible for destroying yet ANOTHER stupid ceremony?" I felt heat rise in my face again, though this time it was from rising anger, not embarrassment. "They don't want me there anyway!"

"Well…." he said hesitantly, "I would like it if you went… I wouldn't mind dancing with you."

"Yeah, if you enjoy dancing horizontally," I muttered.

Oops. He he…

This time, it was he who coughed. "Um… well, this is an important event and all for the Corvids. We usually spend class time preparing costumes, and learning dances, and –"

I laughed derisively. "Oh, so we waste class time we could be using LEARNING in order to prepare for a costume party! It's WONDERFUL how the Corvids have their priorities so straight!" I could feel the beginning of a rant coming on. "Here were are, in a fancy velvet and gilt classroom, using extravagant resources while the rest of the school has to stare at bare light bulbs and cracked chalkboards. They CLAIM we deserve it because we're smart, and nurturing and developing our gifts, and yet we waste time on COSTUME BALLS? It's not right… it's not fair…"

I stopped abruptly, my mind racing. Theo was watching me warily, aware that I was thinking very hard and formulating something monumental. He hesitated for a second before saying quietly, "What are you up to?"

"I've got it!" I said quietly, excitedly. "I've got the PERFECT way to knock those stupid Corvids off their high-horses!" Quickly I launched into a rough outline of my master plan, making it up as I went along… and as I talked, Theo's eyes got wider and wider.

"Are you CRAZY?" he shouted, looking around to see if anyone else might have heard me. "You can't DO that! Do you know how much trouble you'd be in if you were caught?"

"It's not like everyone is particularly thrilled with me right now," I remarked dryly.

"I'm not talking about our CLASS, Lisa! I'm talking about the ramifications of getting an entire SOCIETY pissed at you. A SOCIETY, with unlimited POWER and INFLUENCE! This isn't just bad grades… this could actually endanger your PERSONAL SAFETY!" He had a slightly wild look to his eyes, as if he was afraid of incurring the society's wrath by merely bringing up the topic.

"You know what? I don't really CARE," I spat back. "I've been in worse situations before. I don't really care about offending a bunch of snobs."

Theo was silent. He had a pleading look in his eyes, as if asking me to reconsider. I wanted to – it touched me that he was so concerned about my well being – but this was a matter of upholding my principles. I had never felt completely comfortable with the Corvids, and it wasn't right to insult and condemn them while doing nothing about it. Passive resistance would get me nowhere; they had already proven that by ignoring me for the past month.

No, it was time to take action.

"Don't worry about me, Theo," I said calmly. "I know what I'm doing."

"Well, just the same, I think it'd be better if I helped you out."

I looked up abruptly. "What? NO! If they catch you, they'll work their 'unspeakable evils' on you too! Look, it's my idea. I can pull it off by myself; you don't need to get involved. Knowing I have your theoretical support is enough for me."

"Since you're so confident that you can pull it off, and since you're so unafraid of the consequences, it shouldn't be a problem whether or not I tag along, should it?" he asked slyly.

Hm. Well, he had me there. "You can help if you want," I conceded, "and help would be appreciated, of course. It's just… I don't want anything bad to happen to you because of my stupidity."

"I'm sure we'll be fine," he replied, seemingly confident.

Hah.

I grimaced. "I guess this means I have to go to that stupid Quadrille, doesn't it?"

He grinned. "Well, Miss Conspirator, according to your own plans it will be the best time for the heist."

"I know, I know…"

While everyone was dancing, it would be the perfect opportunity to sneak away, and get my hands on their precious Tome of the Brethryn Corvyde.

-O-

"And… ONE, two, three, four, five, six, ONE, two, three, four, five, six…"

I rolled my eyes as, for the umpteenth time today, I spun too early in the wrong direction. As a veteran of Lil' Vicki Valentine's School of Dance, I thought I knew about slave-driving dance teachers… but Miss Forchette took the cake.

And speaking of the red-haired dance teacher, she was currently striding towards me with an angry look on her thin face. "Lisa! What have I TOLD you so many times before? LEFT three, UP three, BACK two, RIGHT three… then a spin on the LAST beat! How many times will it take to force this into your head?"

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry…" I grumbled, not in the best mood. We had been working on this particular dance – the title quadrille – for the past TWO HOURS, and I remained the ONLY girl unable to do it. Was I really THAT bad at dancing?

"Fine. If Lisa could PLEASE get it right this time, we may continue on to the next set. And… ONE, two, three…"

I glanced in front of me at Amber, who was breezing thought the dance as if it was nothing. Looking at her freckles and glasses, I would never have guessed that she would be a choreographic prodigy. Appearances can be deceiving, I thought as I desperately tried to mimic her every movement.

Perhaps this emulative style of dancing was more successful, because I actually managed to get thought the tricky part without screwing up (well, without screwing up enough to merit the reporach of Miss Forchette).

I breathed a sigh of relief as she announced a fifteen-minute break. I immediately hobbled away from the area and headed towards Theo's desk. He sat there, calm and collected, his sandy-brown hair still arranged neatly on his head and his thin glasses set evenly and purposefully on his face. I'm sure I looked frightful at this moment; my blue-blonde hair, which I had tied up so neatly before the beginning of the lesson, was coming down in sporadic clumps, and I think I was developing a bruise on my cheek after running into someone's unluckily placed elbow.

"How do you MANAGE this?" I asked incredulously, flopping down in my chair beside him.

"Practice, my dear Lisa, and experience. Oh, and of course an innate talent for artistic motion."

I (very immaturely) stuck out my tongue at him. "Well, at least I won't have to do much dancing that night. It's mandatory to go, but Finch never said for how LONG we had to be there. I figure I'll dance the stupid quadrille –" I lowered my voice significantly at the next part "– then run out, grab the Tome, and go home."

He too lowered his voice, and looked around conspiratorially. "You never actually told me WHAT you're going to do with the Tome once you have it. Are you gonna burn it or something?"

"A book that rare? I could always make a bundle by selling it online or something." He didn't smile, and my voice faltered a bit. "I-I don't know what I'll do with it. I haven't thought that far ahead."

He closed his eyes for a moment, as if asking for patience from a higher power. "Lisa, if you're going to attempt this crazy scheme, you're going to need to PLAN IT OUT a little better. You think it'll be so easy, but I'm sure there's security around it, and protective measures that will be able to catch anyone who DOES get it. If you don't plan it out, you're going to be caught… and whether you believe it or not, I think you'd be in SERIOUS trouble."

I looked up at his pleading eyes, and felt my resolve crumble. Was I really doing the right thing? Sure, they had insulted me… sure, they were snobs… but was petty theft really going to make me feel better, or would it just make everything worse? And it wasn't just me who would get in trouble; Theo would get busted as well, punished for a crime he was against in the first place. Was it right to run the risk of subjecting him to that? I couldn't… it wouldn't be right…

"Well Lisa, you'd be surprised at the laws that do not apply to you in this room."

"I think it's about time that we kick those Center snobs off their high-horses, and show that knowledge can't be bought, but has to be earned! We'll show them just how competent an average public school really is!"

"…We're Corvids. You'll find we have a lot of special privileges in this school."

But it wasn't right the way my fellow Corvids acted either. There would never be improvement, never a step towards equality if someone didn't stand up against the inherent favoritism. It wasn't just my morals I was standing up for; it was an improvement in society! No sweeping changes would ever take place if the little people didn't do the little things to make it better. And even if I got in trouble… even if Theo got in trouble… we might well go down in history as noble martyrs to the cause of equality and justice around the world.

If you haven't guessed by now, I tend to get a bit overdramatic. In this case, I think I was casting around for an excuse – ANY excuse – which would make what I was about to do right. I wanted so desperately to believe that what I was doing would have widespread benefits… that I wasn't just acting petty and vengeful for selfish reasons. That I wasn't taking drastic actions for less-than-drastic measures.

"BIEN! Your fifteen minutes are up! It is time to learn the next section of the Quadrille!"

I groaned aloud, while Theo chuckled at my frustration. "Don't worry, you're smart. You'll get it soon enough."

"Screw you," I said rudely, which only made him laugh more.

But as I was dancing (or attempting to dance), I couldn't get myself to concentrate fully on learning the steps. I was reprimanded many times for it, of course… but my mind was focused on other things. On what Theo had just said.

"If you don't plan it out, you're going to be caught…"

He was right, of course, as usual. For the past few days, I hadn't really focused on the plan – I was still mentally preparing for perpetrating the crime, and hadn't had time to figure out the logistics. But he was right – it would take careful timing, and I would need plans to fall back on in case of (probable) failure, and I would have to take into account any accidents I might have. I needed to plan, and I needed to KNOW the plan so the night would go perfectly. There was still a week and a half to go, but with school, and Bart/Tommy time, and homework (yes, because we were wasting our time in school we had MORE homework than usual), and Theo time, I didn't have that long to figure out what I was going to do.

That night, after rubbing my feet to ease the sore muscles that had suffered from the day's torture, I pulled out a piece of paper and a pencil. Then I sat there for half an hour, wasting time while no sudden inspiration came to mind.

I thought about various harebrained schemes I had partaken in over the years. Sneaking around, thwarting cops and criminals alike, escaping from an abandoned amusement park full of killer robots (though I doubted that would be much use in this situation; the Corvids were still masquerading as humans). I took a nice little trip down memory lane, and after a while my recollections began to awaken the plotting and scheming part of my brain.

Finally, I set to work formulating my master plan. Having to get up various times to consult reference sources (the Internet for a map of the school, the encyclopedia for the mechanics behind various types of locks), I sat back after a while with a rocky and dubious, but feasible, plan before me.

-O-

"Ow. Ow. OW!"

"Well, if you would just HOLD still you wouldn't keep getting your hair caught in your zipper."

After two weeks of dancing, etiquette, and costume fittings, Miss Forchette and I were not the best of friends. I think she was PURPOSELY catching my hair in the zipper as she yanked it up… and it wasn't even my FAULT, because it had been SHE who had taken my hair down out of its typical ponytail.

"THERE!" she barked, yanking a few final blue-yellow strands out of my head. "And you really MUST do something with your hair… you can't just leave it hanging ratty and multicolored from your head, can you?"

I glared at her, not bothering to hide my scorn. "I happen to LIKE my hair, and I think I'll leave it as is. Besides, I don't think I would take fashion tips from YOU, when it was YOU who made this dress in the first place!"

She glared back with enough fury to burn a hole though me, pounds of brocade and all. "Just get OVER THERE with the others who are ready!" As I turned to walk away, I could hear her muttering angrily behind me… something about yellow-and-blue demons…

I suppose I had been a bit mean. Contrary to what I had said, I (the ubiquitous tomboy) thought the dress was beautiful. It was a bit more ornate than I would have liked, and the voluminous petticoats were a bother, but the soft grey embroidered material caught the light just right, and was a simple yet elegant balance to my wild-colored hair. Plus, I couldn't help noticing that the gentle color was a dead-ringer for the color of Theo's eyes…

He walked up to me then, looking a bit stiff in his ornate costume of forest-green velvet. I smirked at him, and commented, "I don't think I've ever seen you in so many ruffles and lace."

"And you NEVER will again!" he finished, flushing adorably. Then he looked up, and glanced at me oddly. "Wow… I don't think I've ever seen you with your hair down. It's so… exotic."

"I know!" I said, rolling my eyes. "I hope the blue grows in soon… it's really annoying that it can't make up its mind whether to be blue or blonde! I like uniqueness, of course," I said, reaching up to grab one lock and examine it critically, "but I'm thinking of, once the blue grows in a little longer, getting it cut and having it solid again." I felt like I was rambling, but I was afraid that if I stopped, there might be an uncomfortable silence. Theo was looking at me so oddly. "On the other hand, I don't know if I'm going to have to put up with it much longer… my m-mother was grey by the time she was nineteen, and my dad is almost completely bald. Huh, that's weird… you've never met him, have you?"

"Uh uh," he said, still looking at me uncomfortably. I was just about ready to do the same (and really, staring at him in that gorgeous outfit would be no problem…) when Mrs. Finch said, "Ok, find your partner and form lines here and here…

As we ran through out dress rehearsal (stopping often as someone would trip over one of the many long floor-length skirts), I had a whispered conversation with Theo. Surprisingly enough, my two weeks of agonizing torture under the tutelage of Miss Forchette had come to fruition, and I was able to remember the steps to the (simplest) dances. I would never be a dancer – alas! – but by now, the motions had become mechanical enough to allow me to think of other things.

"I picked up some rope from the janitor's closet," I whispered to Theo as we came together for some steps and a twirl.

"You can climb rope?" he asked me, leading me in a circle.

"Eh, not exactly." I paused for a few complicated steps. "But I thought I could knot them together and make a rope ladder."

We moved a few steps to the left, and he said, "You're going to climb a ladder in fifty pounds of ballroom dress?"

We spun again, and I replied, "Hey, I went to military school. They made us do all sorts of arduous and pointless tasks there. If I can slog though the mud with a twenty pound pack… if I can pull myself across a hundred feet of rope over a patch of thorny brambles… if I can run the damned obstacle course and scale a brick wall, then I can climb a simple rope ladder while wearing a stupid gown."

He grinned, and pulled me closer for a tight spin. I relished in the brief contact… and judging from the slight tinge of redness on his face, he did too. "Well, I believe you. I'm just saying, it would be pretty bad to be stuck in that room with no way to escape."

I smirked evilly. "Well, if worse comes to worse, I can always ditch the dress and go commando."

The song ended, and as I curtsied I watched as he bowed low, hiding his beet-red face.

-O-

Even though I was against the squander and extravagance the Corvids employed when designing their classrooms, I had to admit that the gilt, elegant entrance hall was a perfect setting for the ball. The softly glowing crystal chandeliers and stately red carpet beautifully emphasized the swirl of colors of students in their period costume. Our class was on the small side, so in order to create a more festive and rich atmosphere, Mrs. Finch had deigned to invite the other magnet class. This was one of the rare times when B Class, the Corvids, and A Class, the regular magnet program, came together for social interaction. The grand doors of the classrooms on either side of the hall were closed, but light leaked from around their edges. We had used the classrooms as dressing rooms earlier in the night. The band and the dancing, as well as the refreshment tables, were located in the main hall.

This made my plan all the more difficult. If, as Theo feared, the escape plan failed, we would be caught exiting into the main hall. I had checked, and double-checked, the plan and was confident that we could pull it off. Still, it would have been more of a relief to have the hall a bit more deserted.

Theo and I stood there, tumblers of punch clasped nervously in our hands. Having successfully completed the quadrille (take that, Miss Forchette!), it would soon be time to put my plan into action.

"Theo…" I started, and was surprised by the begging tone my voice had taken, "you know you don't have to go…"

"You're depending on me," he replied anxiously. "You have the plan all set, and ready to go."

"Well, I don't need you… I could always adapt it –"

"– As you go along, I know, I know. That seems like a REALLY bad idea… I'm going with you, whether you want it or not."

I smiled at him gratefully, and he returned my smile with a small, nervous, but tender smile of his own.

I heard the band strike up a new, lively tune, and said, "Ok, they're just about to start the allemande, which everyone loves. While they're distracted, we –"

"I know, I know, we sneak into the classrooms, grab our stuff, then smuggle it out of the hall."

"Yes," I said. "Good luck, don't get caught." Then I did something neither of us suspected – I gave him a swift kiss on the cheek. He stood, shocked, for a moment, and I feared I had broken his concentration. But I guess my spontaneous action gave him new resolve, because he strode confidently to the door… and I glimpsed a wide smile across his face.

I counted to thirty, then walked off towards the opposite side of the hall. We wanted to stagger our actions, to prevent people from noticing. I approached the grand classroom doors, paused a moment, then opened it as quietly and as little as I could. I squeezed myself through, into the deserted classroom, and shut the door quickly behind me.

It was a good thing our dresses were so bulky, because no one had found it suspicious when I walked into the classroom earlier with a huge bag. It did hold my ponderous costume, but it also held a number of useful items to successfully carry out the plan tonight. The first thing I did was exchange my fancy slippers for sneakers. The dress would have to stay on – an attempt at camouflage – but I wanted sneakers for all the sneaking we were about to do. (They would stay hidden under my dress anyway.)

The trickiest part would be getting from the classrooms to the main doors without getting stopped. If either Theo or I was stopped by a teacher or student, the plan was to say that I had an extremely bad stomach ache, and Theo was going to walk me home to make sure I was ok. I wasn't the world's best actress, and I didn't know if I could convincingly pull off pain and nausea, so it would be best if we weren't caught.

The allemande was still going strong, and I hoped everyone was sufficiently distracted. I slowly pushed open the door and slipped out into the main hall. Fifty feet away, I saw Theo standing awkwardly, his smaller, less obtrusive bag in hand. I hurried over, grabbed his arm, and veritably yanked him towards the entrance.

Unfortunately, a 5'3", red-haired obstacle blocked our way. Mrs. Finch stood watching the two of us, her eyes narrowed slightly. "Aren't you having fun?" she asked, a hint of a threatening tone in her voice.

I immediately doubled over, and wheezed, "I… I have a really bad stomach ache…" I leaned against Theo for support, while he petted my back gently.

"She hasn't been feeling well all weekend, Mrs. Finch," explained Theo, "and she decided to come tonight anyway. I tried to convince her to stay home, but she really wanted to come…"

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Finch's eyes narrow even further. She knew as well as anyone that I had hated the idea of a mandatory costume ball. I ever-so-gently slammed my foot down on Theo's, making him wince but stop his foolish prattle.

If Finch saw my motion, she didn't reveal it. "Well, Lisa, if you're feeling poorly I'll call your father, and he can come pick you up…"

"Uh, her father isn't home," said Theo quickly. "He's away for a few months. I was going to walk Lisa home, you know, to make sure she's ok and all. I don't think it's a good idea for her to walk around, alone and sick, in the middle of the night."

"Indeed," said Finch coolly, and as I glanced up at her I saw her face, devoid of any expression. "Well, you have sound judgment Thelonious, and I trust you will get Lisa home safely." Her eyes darted down to my face, which I quickly tried to contort back into a pained expression. "I trust you'll feel better soon, Lisa, so you don't get too far behind in your schoolwork."

It may have been my imagination and paranoia, but I could have sworn that she glanced momentarily at my garment bag, in which I had stored all the supplies for the night's theft. If there was one person in this room who might figure out our plan, it was she. After all, she didn't become our teacher though being stupid. Indeed, there were times where she seemed to know stuff she could not have possibly known.

And with that, she turned to go back to the allemande, which was finally coming to an end. As soon as she was gone, Theo and I bolted for the exit. We threw open the wide double doors and dashed through, that strange computer voice bidding us "Have a nice day!" as we left.

"You don't think she suspected anything, do you?" Theo asked anxiously, while I caught my breath from lugging the heavy equipment.

"Are you kidding? She had suspicion written all over her face! But the Quadrille is still a few hours from being done, so she can't leave yet."

"Yeah, but that won't matter if we're caught inside, will it?"

I frowned. "Seriously, last chance to turn back."

He gave me an equally grim look. "Nope, I'm in too deep now. There's nothing to do but lay down my life to help you with your idiotic mission."

"And I expect no more," I replied cheerfully, picking up the bag and throwing it over my shoulder so I could walk with the huge weight.

Like the perfect gentleman, Theo tugged the bag from my grasp and threw it over his own shoulder. I beamed at him, and he said, "Well, in case we do meet anyone. It'd look strange for you to be carrying a huge sack when you supposedly have a killer stomach ache."

We trekked through the cavernous basement halls fairly quickly, and ascended the staircase to the main level of the school. A few more twisting halls took us to the main lobby, and the exit out to the parking lot. We quickly vacated the building, and headed over to one of the benches that adorned the curb. Here I took the garment bag from Theo, opened it up, and rummaged around until I found a sheaf of papers, which I spread out across the bench. We both knelt before it.

"I just want to go over this one more time," I said, "because once we start, we're going to have very little time to stop and talk along the way." I gestured to one of the papers, a floor plan for the basement of the school, with the Magnet classrooms highlighted in yellow. "Now, here are the two classrooms. Class A's room is being used by the guys as a changing room, but we don't need to mess with that one. Class B's, or the Corvid classroom, is being used by the girls for their changing room. Since it would be pretty bad for YOU to be caught in there, that is my part of the mission." I pointed to a small door in the corner of the room. "This door leads to the supply room, and the room where Finch keeps the stupid Corvid costume as well as the Tome. I don't actually KNOW this for a fact – I've never been in there – but it's the only room on the plans unaccounted for, so it HAS to be the place the Tome is kept."

"Unless, of course, she put the Tome in an unexpected place so people like US would not guess to look there."

"Theo," I said, exasperated, "the Tome is hundreds of years old and the integral rule book for the society. She's not going to just put it out in plain view, where students could accidentally find it and destroy it. The supply room is the only room in the complex strictly off-limits to students. It has to be there." Before he could interject, as he had done so when we previously discussed the plan, I continued. "Now, the room is kept locked, but I happen to have a set of lock picks in my bag, and I've had extensive training on how to use them."

The sandy-haired boy looked at me quizzically, and I explained, "My brother taught me a thing or two… that is, before he went off to jail." I hoped Theo hadn't noticed my hesitation. Even though he was currently my closest friend, I still hadn't told him that Bart was hiding out next door. I didn't want to do ANYTHING that might jeopardize Bart's safety, even if it meant keeping secrets from my only confidant.

Theo nodded, accepting the explanation without question. It seems that Bart's infamy had spread around town, and even before he had left he had had rather a criminal reputation.

"Of course," I continued, "I want to spend as little time as possible in the classroom, because if someone walks in and finds me when I'm supposed to be home sick, that's going to raise a lot of unpleasant questions." I shifted my attention over to another piece of paper, this one detailing the first-floor plan. "But thanks to this discovery, I'll be able to avoid walking back through the main entrance."

This part of the plan was the part I was most proud of, because it had taken the most ingenuity to figure out. A long time ago, I had mentioned that I noticed how, despite being underground, the ceiling of the classroom seemed extremely high. Indeed, I was right; the top of the classroom actually stuck out from the ground, and was disguised as an all-purpose shed next to the soccer fields. I had investigated the towering shed a few days ago, and discovered that indeed, as soon as I picked open the cheap lock, I was faced with the wooden panels that constituted the ceiling of the classroom. It was easy enough to remove one, and I would be entering the classroom from forty feet up, climbing down a knotted rope with Theo giving me a belay from the ceiling… just in case.

"Once you've made sure I'm safely down, you'll have to pull up the ropes, just to make sure no one walks in and sees them. It may take me a few minutes to get the Tome, but you have to be ready to drop the ropes as soon as you see me leave the supply room. I'm going to have to get out pretty quickly."

Theo looked uneasy. "Remind me, again, why we didn't just do this some night when no one was around to catch us."

"The entire school is enabled with a high-security burglar alarm. As soon as I set foot in that classroom, the alarm would have gone off and system would have sent out a call to the cops. And plus, if the school is supposedly closed for the night then it would look VERY suspicious if anyone caught us wandering around out back, messing with the shed."

He nodded, and said, "And… remind me why you didn't just snatch the book earlier, stuff it in your bag, and leave in a more conventional way."

His questions were making me impatient, but I figured it was better to reassure him of the plan, than have him second-guessing it the entire time. "When you first walk into the Magnet rooms, there's a scanner that asks for your ID. I investigated the system – it's amazing the information you can find online – and read how it scans for suspicious or dangerous items whenever anyone passes under, as an added security measure. Considering the circumstances, I figured it wouldn't see rope and lock picks as suspicious items. God knows, this dress I'm wearing is covered in ornate cording and embroidery; the ropes could be pieces of it that fell off, or something. And lock picks can easily be mistaken for hairpins, which would make sense with all the complicated hairstyles.

"But I think, if I tried to walk out of there with a huge, archaic, valuable book, it would think something's up. I'm SURE Finch has the Tome flagged in some way to alert the scanner to it, if someone tried to take it. So it would have been a bad idea to try to get it out the main doors… but I'm sure no one considered that someone would try to get it out the ceiling."

"You've thought of everything, I guess," he responded. "So, now that you're sure your plan is foolproof…" I detected a hint of fear-based sarcasm coming from the sophomore, and I had to forgive him for that. Although it was MY plan, and although I had tried to consider it from all possible angles, I was still afraid that I was going to get caught, and Theo would get in trouble with me.

"Don't worry," I said, digging around in my bag for the length of thick rope, expertly knotted with Bart's help. I handed this to Theo, who promptly began untangling it, while I pulled out the backpack I would use to transport the heavy Tome, and stuffed in my lock picks and a roll of duct-tape. Once Theo was done with the rope, I cast around for a good tying-off place, and ended up securing the rope to what I hoped was a sturdy support pole a few feet from the entrance. Then I dug out another rope, thinner, and tied it around my waist. Theo would be holding this end, to make sure that if I fell I wouldn't go splat on the classroom floor below. I handed him a pair of leather gloves to go along with it; rope burns can be very painful things.

"Well," I said, checking myself over one final time to make sure I had everything, "I guess there's no point in delaying the inevitable. The sooner I get this done with, the sooner I'll be safely back up and away with the Tome." I hesitated, then reached out both my arms to Theo, and after a moment's pause, he pulled me into a warm hug. I squeezed back, then let go, trying to muster up my courage.

"Ok," I said confidently, lowing the rope into the square opening. I paused to consider the sharp lip for a moment, hoping that the rope wouldn't rub and fray against the edge. I started fretting about this, and mentioned it to Theo… then realized that I was stalling, trying to avoid my task because I was afraid.

Even if you are afraid, you owe it to those snobs to do this. The insulted you and Theo… they insulted the rest of the school… they insulted your own FAMILY. If you let them get away with this – if you let them bully you and others – how will they ever get the punishment they deserve? But more importantly, how will YOU look at yourself in the mirror every day, knowing you betrayed your morals because you were a bit afraid? You have to do this thing, and you have to do it now.

Resolutely I walked over to the edge and grabbed the upraised wooden strip next to the opening. With my hands secure, I gently lowered myself over until I was dangling forty feet over the floor below. Hurriedly I moved my feet until they encountered the rope, and lowered them safely down onto one of the large knots. I then tentatively let go of the lip with one hand and grabbed one of the knots near my head. My other hand quickly joined it, and with the belay rope secure around my waist, I began to climb down.

There was, thankfully, nothing remarkable about the trip down. I had to hurry, in case someone walked into the room while I was still in midair and caught me. Once or twice one of my feet slipped, but I always managed to catch myself and make it safely down to the next knot. It was hard on my arms and upper body, and I wondered how I would have the strength to climb back UP the rope with the added weight of the Tome.

I was extremely glad when my feet finally met the carpeted floor below. I jumped off the rope, and untied the line around my waist. I stared up at the hole in the ceiling, and gestured to Theo to pull up the ropes. He compiled, and not a moment too soon – I could hear talking coming directly from the opposite side of the door, and I watched as the handle turned ever so slowly, about to let another occupant into the room.

Without pause, I jumped behind one of the nearby desks. I watched as the rope zoomed upward and disappeared through the hole in the wooden ceiling. The door opened, and two girls in pink and yellow ball gowns flounced in. They spent a few minutes redoing their elaborate makeup, and I prayed that they wouldn't look up to see the gaping hole in the ceiling. But fortunately, they were utterly self-absorbed and bent on looking their best, and didn't spare a glance away from their mirrors.

After what seemed like AGES, they stashed their makeup and pranced back out of the room. Immediately I hurried over to the door, and pulled out my roll of duct tape. I wound tape around both handles, making the doors impenetrable, or so I hoped. But my makeshift lock would be suspicious if anyone tried to open the doors, so I decided that I really had to hurry.

I strode over to the small door in the corner, pulling my lock picks from my backpack. It was a moment's work to open the lock. It almost seemed TOO easy, and I wondered if there might be some sort of silent alarm on the door to trigger when someone walked into the room. Holding my breath, I turned the handle and gently pushed the door open.

The room inside was dark, but I flipped on a light switch in the corner and the small area was flooded with bright lights. I looked around at the storeroom no student had ever entered before. I was a little disappointed to find that it looked exactly like an ordinary storeroom… a few filing cabinets, a table with some junk on it, and some cardboard boxes along the walls. I looked around the room, wondering where Mrs. Finch could have hidden the Tome.

"You have got to be kidding," I muttered under my breath as my eyes found a filing cabinet with a drawer marked 'Tome of Brethryn Corvyde'. "It's too easy… it has to be a trap."

But I wasn't one to pass up the opportunity. I considered my situation; even if the drawer was hooked to an alarm, and they knew someone was breaking in, it would take them a while to get through the duct tape on the strong doors. And if the book was within, I could have it out, and up the ladder, and away from the school before they could catch me. If they made it so easy to find the Tome, then so be it.

I reached out one hand and grasped the metal handle to the drawer. As I assumed, it was locked… but that didn't stop me from getting in. As I praised Bart's tutelage for the umpteenth time that night, I looked at my assortment of picks before selecting one. Just like the storeroom door, I found that it took very little time for me to get into the drawer. I slid it open, almost drooling from anticipation.

The drawer was lined with cushioning and red velvet, and in the center lay the Tome. Thanking Buddha and Allah and Jesus and SpongeBob, and whatever deities happened to be listening, I slowly reached down and removed the sacred book from its resting place. When my actions triggered no audible alarm, I grinned and slipped the book into my backpack. It was time to high tail it out of the school.

I reemerged into the classroom, and could hear voices on the other side of the large doors. "Mrs. Kirkpatrick, I tried but the doors won't open, and the handles are stuck!" The doors bent inwards a bit, but the duct-tape held strong. I inhaled, realizing that it wouldn't hold forever, and looked up anxiously at the hole in the ceiling.

I was nearly met with a face-full of rope. I managed to dodge the heavy falling lines, and glared up at the ceiling while Theo looked back a bit sheepishly. He mouthed 'Sorry,' and I just shook my head and commenced tying the thin rope around my waist. Giving the door one more anxious glance, I grasped the knotted rope, and pulled myself on.

If I thought it was bad descending, I found that it was easy compared to going back up. My arms were shot from descending, and the Tome pulled on my back like an overlarge, cumbersome monkey. The going was slow, because I had to rest often to alleviate my burning muscles and lungs. While I hung there, precariously, over twenty-five feet of open air, I swore to myself that I would get in better shape before I tried any more covert operations.

Fifteen feet to go… ten feet… five feet… With an almighty lunge, my arm shot up to grab at the familiar wooden lip. My other arm followed it, and with help from my feet pushing against one of the knots, I was able to heave myself over the edge. I lay on the ground, nearly faint from exhaustion, legs still dangling over open air. I would have fallen into a daze – heck, I might have fallen ASLEEP – if Theo hadn't shaken me and convinced me to move. While I lay a few feet away, recovering from my ordeal, he hefted up the heavy ropes and replaced the wooden panel of the ceiling. By the time he was done with that, I had recovered enough to untie the knotted rope from the pole. He shoved everything into my bag, and threw the bag over his shoulder like some sort of teenage Santa Claus.

"I did it…" I whispered, still numb from the shock of successfully executing the plan. "I actually got the Tome!"

Theo looked at me with twinkling eyes. "I knew you would. If anyone could manage, I KNEW it would be you!"

I could feel the adrenaline coursing though my body, and I blame it for my actions next. Without a second thought, I turned to face Theo, wrapped my arms around the back of his neck, and pulled him in for a kiss. Our lips made contact, and the shock of it intensified my supercharged feeling. I won't say it was the best kiss I've ever had in my whole life – that was my first true kiss, so I had nothing to compare it to – but I know it felt damn good, and I think Theo agreed. After a moment's hesitation, he kissed back, dropping the ropes and wrapping his arms around me in return.

I'm sure it was only a few moments, but it felt like a lifetime before we finally broke the kiss. Still embracing each other, I grinned up at him, and he grinned back down at me. I think we were both at a loss for words, but the heated silence between us spoke more than we ever could have. It was an intense silence, but a comfortable one. Finally, after all these months… after all these YEARS (on my part, at least)… we were able to tell each other exactly what we felt.

It was wonderful.

But the euphoria couldn't last. Despite having the Tome, we weren't in the clear yet, and there was still a strong chance that we could get caught. I regretfully tore myself from Theo, coughed, and said, "As great as this is – and believe me, this is GREAT – we really should get going."

He shook his head, probably trying to clear the heady feeling I was experiencing so strongly. "Y-yea," he stuttered, and I had to avoid the temptation to smooch him again for being so CUTE. But the weight of the Tome pulled on the shoulder straps of my bag, and bit into my shoulders, reminding me of my current perilous state.

Unfortunately, good things are usually too good to be true. In this case, as I turned to head out of the shed, my feeling of fuzzy satisfaction and triumph disappeared instantly, replaced by cold hard panic and denial.

Mrs. Finch stood right outside the shed door, watching us intently. Though she was a diminutive woman, at that moment she radiated fierce power on every line of her face, and it's not unreasonable to say that I was more than a little afraid.

I was expecting her to yell, or hiss, but when she started talking I was thrown off by her casual tone. "So, you decided to take a little detour on your way home, Lisa?"

I knew we were in for it, so I didn't even try to feign illness. I merely stood my ground, looking back into her eyes resolutely.

"I have to give you credit for your methods," she continued. "I don't think we've ever had anyone try to break in though the roof before." She held out one hand. "I'd like to inform you that we have a lovely set of hidden fiber-optic cameras around the room. Your execution of your plan was nearly flawless, so I'll have to congratulate you for that too. Now kindly give me back the Tome."

I instinctively shook my head. If worse came to worse, I would relinquish the book, but my eyes darted around the shed and though the door, looking for a way out of this situation. I hadn't come so far – I hadn't practically KILLED myself on that rope – to just give in now.

"By all means, go ahead," said Mrs. Finch levelly. "You can run for it. I'm old and out of shape; I won't stop you. You can bolt away, into the night; you can have the Tome thrown off an overpass within the hour."

I eyed her. I knew it wouldn't be so simple… there HAD to be more.

"But I'm afraid the consequences of your actions would be somewhat severe. I'm not sure if you know it, but the Corvids are a very close-knit society. We look out for one another, and help one another. And if one of us is wronged, the perpetrator is faced with a society of powerful, intelligent, and very irate individuals.

"So you can go, steal the Tome and run. I won't even tell the police who it was that broke in and stole the Tome. But you might want to consider whether it's worth it. The Society knows your names. It knows where you live. And it will be more than eager to exact revenge upon you two. Politicians, mob bosses, business tycoons… they will use their wealth, influence, and resources to hunt you down. And you can be certain that the punishment they deliver to you will be most detrimental. You'd be lucky if you and your families survived it."

I shuddered, and backed into Theo for reassurance. What Mrs. Finch had just said was the EPITOME of what I was trying to stand up against, and trying to destroy. Elitists who used and abused their power… Mrs. Finch was threatening us with cold and calculating, purely intentional murder. And I knew that, if we took the Tome, she would act on it. Threatening our lives was bad enough, but threatening our families was outrageous! It didn't matter so much to me – my dad was in Canada, and everyone thought Bart was still on the lamb – but I would NEVER subject Theo's loving family to such torture. My morals and ethics weren't worth this. I knew what I had to do.

Slowly, I slung my bag off one shoulder, and unzipped it. I pulled the leather-bound, jewel-encrusted Tome from within and, feeling nothing but burning hatred for Mrs. Finch, handed her the book.

"I knew you would see things reasonably," she said, her voice still even. "I expect to see you both in school on Monday. We'll keep quiet about this indiscretion, because I think you've both learned your lessons by now." With that, she turned on her heels and marched back towards the main building, holding the Tome securely in both hands.

I stalked out of the shed and started across the field. It was a clear, moonlit night, but the stars were blurred and obscured by the hot tears forming in my eyes. I was furious and scared, a far cry from my elation shortly before.

Theo caught up with me, lugging the sack. "Lisa? Are you okay?" he asked tentatively.

"Of COURSE I'm not okay!" I replied bitterly, sticking to my rapid pace. I wanted to be away from that accursed school as fast as humanly possible.

"Well… is there anything I can do?" he asked gently.

"No," I spat. "There's nothing you can do, and there's nothing I can do." I stopped dead in the middle of the field, and looked at him. "They won, they beat me. I shouldn't even try."

"Well, yes, they beat you but only if you let them." He stared seriously at me. "You're feeling crappy right now, and that's understandable. But I'm sure, in a few days, you'll be more determined than ever to pay them back."

"I CAN'T!" I yelled, turning away. "I shouldn't even try."

"I didn't fall in love with a quitter," he said softly, taking me gently into his arms. "I fell in love with a girl who keeps trying, no matter what she has to overcome." I turned and leaned my head on his shoulder, crying into the green velvet below. Call me sappy, call me girly, call me what you will… but at that moment, suffering from such a humiliating defeat, his loving embrace helped calm me like nothing else could.

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