My snickering classmates bid me farewell when we entered the main hallway. They scurried in the direction of the cafeteria, eager to get first dibs on the good food before it was snatched up. I headed the opposite way, towards the library. Holding a binder close to my body, I was prepared for some serious note-taking in preparation of tonight's episode.
Are dragons weak against bazookas?
Cracking a small smile, the double doors leading into the library came into view. I picked up my slightly, craving the sacred silence the library gave.
A cluster of small, yellow pellets flashed in my peripheral, flying quickly at me. I held up my binder, feeling the mushy thuds. Something slimy bounced against my index finger and landed on the ground. I glanced at it- a piece of corn.
"Nice aim!" I lowered my binder, revealing a small cluster of students giggling. They looked to the one responsible- a boy with a lopsided smirk that matched the amusement in his black eyes. I think I've seen these kids hanging around Jane before. In fact, I remember this boy's face from the ranch incident.
"W-What was that for?" I said.
"Whaddya mean? We're just messing around. You're the one that walked right into that." the boy said. The others continued to smirk.
I sucked in a deep breath, maintaining a calm expression. I turned my binder over and scraped off most of the corn into my hand. I approached the boy.
"Here." I said. I patted the boy's shoulder, plopping the corn on his shirt. "Maybe if you step closer, you'd be able to make it."
I stepped back. The students hushed, each trying to burn a hole into me with their stares. The boy stared at the corn dribbling down his arm with a shocked, yet extremely peeved, look. He lifted his glare toward me.
"You're crossing into dangerous territory, Fattela." the boy hissed. "I'm never one to hit a girl."
"Oh, really?" I said. I stretched my arms out to the sides, exposing my upper body like a target. "Take your best shot."
The students cooed tauntingly. A crowd had gathered around us, anxious to see what happens. The boy ran his tongue along his teeth as he glanced around, trying to look tough in this moment of humiliation. His backpack slipped off his backpack, and he tossed it into the spectators. I remained in my place, watching him as he took slow, casual steps toward me. I raised an eyebrow, shoving my challenge further into his face.
He reeled his fist back and thrust it at my chin. I sidestepped a few inches. The fist sailed past me, and the boy followed after it. He stumbled a few steps before catching his balance and facing me again, steaming like a bull.
I found myself smiling. "No wonder you hit me with that corn. Your aim is terrible." I said. "I can hear the laughter from the broad side of a barn."
The boy threw another punch. I ducked and jabbed my fingers into his shoulder, right above his armpit. He yelped and gripped his shoulder, surprise flickering in his eyes.
"I know. The axillary artery hurts, huh?" I said, thankful to Robin for forcing me to memorize the arteries and pressure points in the body. Not only was it useful in combat, but it made me seem smarter. "You've got one more chance. You don't want to disappoint your fans."
I glanced around at the students, who were abuzz with chatter and shouts. One girl, I noticed, was recording everything on her phone. Insecurity swept over me.
The boy noticed my distracted state. He rushed up behind me, wrapping one arm around my neck and the other around my torso. The adrenaline kicked back in. As I flailed, I manage to wriggle to the side, allowing me the opportunity to shove my elbow into his stomach. Next, as he began to register the pain, I stomped on his foot as hard as I could. I brought my other elbow back, connecting with his nose. His head snapped back, and he doubled over in pain. I walked over to his side and gently shoved my foot into his torso. He teetered over and fell to the ground.
I realized the crowd had gone silent. A throat cleared behind me. A chill rushed down my spine, and I felt like I was thrust back into reality. I stared at the boy, clutching his nose that trickled blood, as horror flooded my stomach, making me nauseous.
"Ms. Brunson." a low voice said. A hand gripped my shoulder. I looked up and met eyes with the principal- a bald man with black stubble. His brown eyes were usually warm, but looking at me, they were as hard as ice. "Come with me. Now."
I gulped and nodded. I crouched down and picked up my binder, which I had dropped when the boy grabbed me. The crowds parted, allowing room for me and the principal to pass. I noticed the girl who recorded the event. She was texting furiously now. She glanced up at me for a brief moment before returning to her phone.
I picked off the last of my nail bed, my eyes refusing to look up. The principal sat quietly in his black office chair. His large, oval, mahogany desk filled the top of my peripheral, while my jeans covered the bottom.
The doorknob turned, and the door opened, startling me. I held my hands tightly in my lap as I heard my mother sit in the chair next to me.
"Thank you for taking time to meet with us today, Mrs. Brunson, to discuss your daughter's behavior." the principal said.
"I can assure you, sir, that Ciela has never acted this way before. I don't even know what could've caused this..." Mom said.
"I understand that. I know Ciela is a good student. I've noticed her grades improving over these past few weeks, she's made some new acquaintances, and her attitude towards school seems to have changed significantly. And I certainly doubt this was something caused from home. Normally, behavior like this results in immediate suspension..." I tensed. The principal sighed. "Because is a first-time thing, this will be a warning. But If I find something like this happening again, I must take disciplinary action."
"Thank you. I assure you, this is the first and last time this will happen. I promise you that."
"Very well. Ciela is excused from her afternoon classes. I expect her back tomorrow morning, and I hope she feels better."
"Thank you."
My mother and the principal stood to shake hands. The door opened. I stood and walked out, staring at my shuffling feet. My mom closed the door behind her. Together, we walked out the front entrance and toward the car. Neither of us looked at nor spoke to the other. The guilty silence gnawed at my conscious. It wasn't until Mom turned on the car and began to drive that I finally spoke.
"Mom..." I said weakly. "I'm sorry. He started it, but I was the one who made it worse. It's my fault."
"Please, Ciela." Mom said. The firmness of her voice filled my eyes with tears. She kept her eyes on the road. The look on her face looked painfully familiar; where have I seen it before? "We'll discuss this later. For now, just... just let me think."
I gulped. My throat ached from how dry it became. I turned away to look out the window, taking deep breaths to try and calm the sickness crashing inside me. I didn't get to say what I really wanted- the cold truth of what happened.
I bullied someone.
I watched through the window high above. Below, my friends scurried around the training grounds. I watched Cyborg obliterate a couple of turrets with his cannon ray. Beast Boy wrestled with a robot, and he flipped it onto its back. Starfire flew through a field of obstacles. Raven and Robin were absent from the action.
There was a knock at my door, and it opened.
"It's time for training." Robin said, stepping into the room. "Aren't you coming?"
My folded arms tensed. I kept my back to Robin.
"Can we take a break today? I'm not in the mood." I said.
I felt Robin's frustration radiate from him as he sighed. "You can't skip training because you don't 'feel like it'. You need to stay on top of things."
"Robin." I hissed. I took a deep breath and forced my muscles to relax. "I can't keep learning how to hurt people. I'll just abuse it."
Robin didn't say a word, but he silently urged me to tell him more. I turned and walked past him, avoiding his nagging gaze.
"I'm going for a walk. I have some things I need to sort through." I said. "I'll be back before the episode is over."
I headed down the hallway. I passed by Raven, who quietly acknowledged me. I glanced over my shoulder as she walked.
Shouldn't she be in her room right now, reading the storybook?
I continued down the hallway. I wasn't in the mood to fight a dragon today.
A cluster of giggling children scurried in front of me as they chased after a soaring Frisbee. To my left, a couple picnicked on a red and white gingham blanket. The cement path wove through the park, coming together in a large circle that you could only see from a bird's-eye view. I found a bench and sat down on the end. I folded my arms, resting an elbow on the armrest, and leaned back. I wriggled my toes in my boots and stared at the cement path. Two joggers rushed by me, their breathing and their strikes against the ground synchronized well.
"What's the matter? Did you eat something sour?" a voice startled me. I whipped my head in the direction, meeting my gaze with a pair of pale pink eyes.
Jinx stood behind the bench, using her arms to lean against the back of it. She hovered uncomfortably close to me, and I leaned back to create more space.
"What are you doing here?" I said.
"I believe I asked you a question first." Jinx said.
"I... I came here to clear my head."
"Then I guess we're both in the same park... literally and figuratively." Jinx gripped the back of the bench and hoisted herself over. She plopped down next to me and crossed her legs. "School can be such a stress inducer. The park is the perfect place to let out some steam."
"Uh...?"
"See that kite?" I followed Jinx's slender finger to a yellow and green kite fluttering in the air. She tensed her finger, shooting a tiny beam of pink energy. It dissolved into the sky next to the kite, creating a sudden gust of wind that sent the kite careening into a tree. The child that owned it jumped frantically at the trunk, but the kite was well out of his reach.
Jinx snorted, her nose crinkled and her eyes glittering in amusement.
"The kids are the best to toy with." she said.
I stared at her with knitted eyebrows. "Why did you do that? He never did anything to you."
"I'm just messing around. What's the big deal?"
"Don't you ever feel... guilty when you do bad things?"
Jinx scoffed. "What are you, my mom? Bad things happen no matter what I do. I might as well embrace it and be the full cause of it."
I sat up straight. "All I hear is you giving up."
"I'm not giving up; I'm accepting what I am." Jinx shut her mouth and glared at me. "Knock it off! I'm not in the mood for a mushy heart-to-heart."
A smile twitched on the corners of my lip. "Okay, then... You'll definitely be the next time we meet?"
Jinx rolled her eyes. "The next time I see you, don't plan on me being nice."
"Why are you being nice to me now? We're supposed to be enemies."
Jinx crossed her arms and stared forward. "I 'fessed up. Now, tell me more about why you're here."
Seeing her side of the conversation was officially closed, and not wanting to risk a sinkhole opening underneath my feet, I leaned back and looked forward.
"I hurt another person. It's never happened before, and I didn't mean to, but... I guess my cockiness got the best of me. Now I've disappointed someone really important to me... and I don't know what to do."
"Did you apologize to them?" Jinx said.
"Yes, but I don't know if she believes me." I imagined the stony look on my mother's face on the drive back to our house. A dead weight bore down on my chest.
"Have you proven you've changed?"
I looked at Jinx and raised a confused eyebrow. Jinx heaved a sigh.
"Whoever this person is, if you want to fix things, then you've got to prove to them that whatever you did was a mistake. Express it in your actions or words, and be sincere. Clear the air between each other. The best antidote is a vulnerable spirit, free of any secrets."
I stared at Jinx, flabbergasted. The twitch in my lips returned, and I covered my mouth and giggled. Jinx whipped her head towards me, her eyes glowing.
"What's so funny?!" she said.
"You know, for a villain, you give advice like a good guy." I said.
Jinx scowled and stood up. "Whatever. I have an essay I need to take care of. I'm out of here."
I watched Jinx take a few steps. I stood. "Hey, Jinx..." I said. Jinx stopped, her back to me. She turned her head slightly, glancing back at me. "Thanks."
Jinx answered with a quiet "hmph" and quickly walked through the grass. She disappeared behind a line of trees.
How can I prove to my mom that I'm not doomed to become exactly what I've been suffering from?
A child's wail snapped me back. I looked and saw the young child still standing under the tree, sitting on the ground and crying. His kite teased him as it dangled above him on the branch. I approached him. He watched me with big, wet eyes as I reached up and pulled it from the leaves, careful not to snag it on a branch and rip it. Once the kite was free, I crouched down and handed the child his kite. A big grin covered his face, clearing away all signs of sadness. He leaped back onto his feet and scurried away to go play more.
A gust of cool air swept over me as I entered Titans Tower. However, as I took a deep breath, a pungent smell filled my nostrils. I coughed and plugged my nose as I headed up to the living room.
"What is that awful smell?!" I said. I yelped and pressed my back against the wall as Beast Boy tumbled across the hallway, his face covered in a ball of dirty socks. The smell seeped through my pinched sinuses and my eyes watered.
"Booyah! Point, Cyborg!" Cyborg screamed from the end of the hallway. Beast Boy pried the ball off his face and sat up with a pout. "You better shape up, BB, 'cause you're getting your butt handed to you!"
"Oh, yeah?! How about you come over here and see what I'm capable of?!" Beast Boy jumped to his feet and sprinted after Cyborg, chasing him around the corner and away, taking the horrible smell with him.
I entered the living room, and the first thing to catch my eye was Raven sitting on the couch. I approached her and looked over her shoulder.
"What are you reading?" I said.
Raven jumped, just noticing my appearance, and sighed. "A book."
I rolled my eyes. "I can see that. Is it good?"
"Yup. At least, a lot better than that one." Raven pointed her chin to the large, white book sitting on the coffee table.
I raised my eyebrows; it was the book this episode was shaped around.
"Did... you not find the battle interesting?" I said. "Fighting a dragon is usually a good read."
"Dragon? There's mention of one, but there's no fight that you speak of." Raven said, her eyes fixated on the pages under her nose.
I gawked at Raven. I hurried around the couch and picked up the book.
"Hey-" Raven said, but I opened the book and flipped through the pages.
The book told the story of Rorek of Nol, a powerful White Wizard who lived in Europe one thousand years ago. He was the enemy of Malchior, a great and evil dragon. In the end pages, it spoke of Rorek roaming the lands in search of Malchior, hoping to once and for all end his destruction.
...But he never found Malchior.
The book slipped out of my hands. Raven used her magic to catch it, shooting me a glare. However, seeing the look in my eyes, her expression softened.
"Are you okay?" she said.
"The story! It's completely wrong!" I said. "Rorek and Malchior were supposed to get into a fight. At the end, Rorek would use his powers to trap Malchior inside this book, but Malchior would drag Rorek into it, too. Malchior then used what powers he had left to change the book so when you read it, you would think he was the good guy and you would... you would..."
My eyes grew wide. Raven watched me curiously.
"It's okay, Ciela. It's just a book." she said. "I'm fine. I didn't get deceived by a dragon. I'm not dumb."
I ran out of the living room. I placed a hand against the wall and caught my breath.
Raven was supposed to release Malchior from the book, but at least she realized her mistake and sent him back in. If he's not in there, then that means...
My vision faded to black.
Someone beat her to it.
