For a while, I have been wanting to rewrite True Heritage, the plot was a clever idea to start but things weren't as executed as they should have been. An example being their fight in the first chapter and the way the adopted family had treated her. In my younger years, I read a book called Sweep and I wanted this to explore their family dynamic, but it was poorly executed. Add to that it made the story fit into one of those categories of next generation with Bloom's daughter ending up on Earth and the same-age children searching for her.
It wasn't at all how I had pictured it, so I wanted to rewrite it. If you support that idea, then here is how Chapter 1 should have gone and if you want me to rewrite the entire story, let me know. Quick warning though, it may take longer to come out considering all the other stories I'm working on. Rivals. With or Without You, Through the Looking Glass, and Gold and Silver Angels.
Summary: Hestia Warner has always felt like she didn't belong, between finding out she was adopted to the pure craziness that has surrounded her for years. When several new students transfer to her school in the sleepy town of Widowsvale halfway through her Senior year, she is intrigued by them and the mystery surrounding them. With the return of something she thought she had put behind her, she's about to find out that not everything is as it seems. Especially, concerning a mysterious boy that makes her feel things she thought herself incapable of feeling. But, seeking the truth behind all of it is a lot harder than it seems, especially when darkness is around every corner and she's not as safe as she thought she was. A rewriting of True Heritage.
I don't own Winx Club.
Chapter 1
Releasing a series of unladylike noises, Hestia tumbled out of the bed, landing on the floor in a heap of twisted comforter. She glared at the alarm clock that had released a bunch of siren-like screeches, which was behind her rather rude awakening, and slammed her palm down on the on/off button. The shower in between her and her sister's room was already turned on, a random song muffled inside the bathroom to disguise the squealing of the pipes. She unraveled herself from the blankets and wobbly stood to her feet, stifling a yawn.
Hestia dragged her feet as she trudged towards her small closet, pulling the door open and selecting a baggy maroon-colored shirt and throwing it onto the bed. She didn't bother with making her bed, instead searching her dresser for a pair of high-waisted white-washed jeans and some socks. She hated mornings, especially when she had to be rudely awoken by an alarm clock for school. She frowned to herself, before checking her phone.
The cracked screen flickered to life, as she shook her head tracing the jagged crack with her fingertips before unlocking her phone. Hestia waited for the ad to play for Pandora premium before turning on her playlist and banging on the bathroom door. "Hold your horses. I'm almost done." Her sister, Morgan, yelled through the thin-walls. The shower turned off and a minute later her sister opened the door wrapped in a lavender towel. "Happy now?" Morgan rolled her eyes.
"Immensely."
Spinning on her heel, her sister walked to her bedroom door on the opposite side of the bathroom. "You could have waited for at least a minute." Morgan huffed childishly before entering her room and shutting the door behind her. Hestia rolled her eyes, sticking her tongue out at the door in return before grabbing a purple towel and putting it on the sink. She brushed her teeth, kicking her own door closed with her foot, and turned her volume up louder.
Once finished, she eyed her sister's door before wiping down the fogged mirror that went from one wall to the next. Hestia toyed with the golden locket hanging at her throat before turning away from her reflection and stripping off her clothes and flicking the fan on. She turned the shower on and stepped underneath the pre-warmed water. Going through her morning routine, she sung along to the lyrics of 'Bad at Love' by Halsey.
"Morning sweetheart." Her father pushed his glasses up the crook of his nose, he was smiling and holding a mug of coffee with a 'Father of the Year' stamped across it in bold, dark letters. He was wearing a black suit and eating a piece of toast. Hestia stopped for a minute, kissing her father on the head before walking to her box of pop tarts. She grabbed and opened a package and popped it in the toaster while her father stared on disapprovingly.
Her mother handed Morgan a plate filled with eggs, toast, and sausage with a kiss on the forehead before turning to look at Hestia. "Are you sure you don't want eggs?" Her lips tilted down for a minute and Hestia shook her head. Tsking, her mother turned back to the stove and cracked an egg on the pan.
"Give up mom. She's never going to want to eat anything other than Pop tarts for the rest of her life." Morgan shoved a forkful of eggs into her mouth and chewed. Swallowing the eggs, she offered a fond smile. "Besides, more for us."
Grabbing a paper plate from the cupboard Hestia rolled her eyes and placed the popped tarts on the plate. "Well they're delicious." She announced turning around and sitting down between her sister and father. "Can I have a coffee?" Her parents both shared a look of silent communication before her mother shook her head indicating no. Frowning, Hestia tore a piece of the tart off and shoved it into her mouth.
"I don't know how you can want to drink coffee every morning, it's gross." Morgan wrinkled her nose.
Hestia smiled, "Coffee is the greatest gift to the world. I don't know how you can hate it." She countered but gave up on convincing her parents to give her a mug. Morgan opened her mouth to retort, before being cut off by a look from her father. Finished with the eggs, their mom sat down at the table with a plate and drank some green tea.
Lowering her mug, their mother glanced to and from the clock and Hestia and Morgan. "Shouldn't you two be heading off to school?" She quirked an eyebrow. Hestia glanced at the clock as well, sighing as she grabbed her car keys from the basket. Morgan took the extra time to put her plate in the sink, putting the remnants of her food in the garbage dispenser before kissing both her parents on the head.
Hestia resisted the tinge of envy that seeped into her heart, "Hurry up slow poke, or I'll leave you behind." She grabbed her bag and slung it over her shoulder. Morgan rolled her eyes, before complying and grabbing her pink and purple stripped bag. "See you tonight." Hestia lifted a hand in good-bye before opening the screen door and walking down the side-porch concrete steps. Morgan appeared a moment later, unbothered by the blindingly white sun.
She opened the car door and slid into the front seat, putting the keys into the ignition and starting the car. "You could have kissed mom and dad bye, you know." Morgan turned the radio on, adjusting the stations until 'If I Die Young' reverberated through the stereo. Hestia tightened her grip on the stereo, counting to ten before unlocking her jaw.
"It's different Morgan." Hestia chose to say after a minute of debating on the proper words that would explain everything. "A lot of things have changed."
Morgan's gray-blue eyes flashed, "They don't have to."
But they do, because even if we call each other family, we're not. Hestia wanted to say but she bit her tongue, stopping at a red light. Morgan was right, they didn't have to change, she could easily go back to trying to belong in Morgan's family. The more she wanted to think that her argument was right, the less she wanted to say anything. "But they have."
"But, why?"
Hestia turned into the school parking lot, parking the car in the senior parking spot. "This conversation is over." I'm sorry. She ignored her sister's gaze burning into the side of her face. Huffing, Morgan unbuckled the seat belt and jumped out of the car, slamming the door behind her. Hestia sighed, watching her sister walk over to her group of friends. She grabbed her keys, unbuckling herself and exited the car, locking it.
Allison greeted her with two Starbucks cups of coffee. "Hey Hestia." She handed one cup over. "Everything good?" Her dark blue eyes flicked back and forth between Hestia and Morgan. Hestia shrugged, taking a long sip of her coffee before joining Ally over to their group of friends. Jessica was leaning against the tree, rummaging through her bag while her dirty blonde hair was held back in a ponytail and small strands fell into her face.
Tracy was beside her, typing on her phone in a fast manner. "Hey girls." She barely glanced up from her phone. Hestia shrugged half-heartedly, shifting her weight from side to side and lifting her hand in a pointless wave.
"So, how was your weekend?" Hestia asked. Jessica finally glanced up from her book bag, her phone tight in one hand as she zipped the bag closed with the other.
Jessica smiled, "It was fun. I went to the movies with Collin on Saturday night." She informed the group, flushing a bright pink but her green eyes beamed with happiness. Jessica toyed with a loose strand in her button up blue and green shirt before letting her hand fall to the side.
Ally wiggled her eyebrows, "Oh, so that's why you asked me what you should wear? I hope her behaved himself young lady." She pointed a finger at Jessica. "Anyways, I watched some Netflix all weekend." Ally fist-pumped the air like it was an actual accomplishment. Hestia raised an eyebrow but couldn't say anything, seeing as she had spent the entire weekend working on some coding.
"Sounds fun." Tracy drawled in a way that almost sounded sarcastic. Ally's smile fell off her face and Hestia stepped in between the two to prevent an oncoming fight. "I spent the weekend with my boyfriend Nick." Tracy smiled, observing her manicured nails. "Oh, guess what else, apparently we're getting some new students today. Chloe was texting about it all weekend. There's Brandon, Leanna, and Ryan who are the same age as us. Carter, Lyrica, Jason, and Aurora are a year younger than us." Tracy ticked off on her fingers, her phone shoved into her pocket.
Hestia raised an eyebrow, sharing a look with Ally. "That many?" She asked, before shaking her head. "Come on, we're going to be late." She dismissed the names from her mind, brushing a strand of strawberry blonde hair behind her ear. Jessica and Ally followed her, settling into a comfortable conversation that she only listened to with one ear while Tracy brought up the rear, once again on her phone.
Her first class was a whirl of noise and chatter as people caught up on their weekends, Hestia claimed her seat in the second row, dropping her book bag on the floor underneath her desk. Sadly, she wasn't seated anywhere near Jessica, the rest of the girls had different classes-another note of bad luck on her part-and instead was stuck next to a girl that didn't even talk to her.
The teacher was sifting through papers, a short man in his late fifties with thinning white hair that was combed back on his head neatly. He also wore varying shades of gray suits with brightly colored ties that contrasted with his grayed look. Hestia drummed her fingers on the table, peeking at her phone underneath the table as she waited for the bell to ring. She was working on a difficult piece of coding, when the bell finally did ring and the teacher stood up, shutting and locking the door.
He clasped his hands together, a terse smile showing off his pearly white teeth. Next to him was a boy and girl, the boy looking every bit disinterested with the amount of girls making eyes at him. While the girl looked nervous, but she held her chin up as she flicked her gaze around the room. "Today we will be having new students. Brandon and Leanna Shields." He gestured towards them before scanning the room, rubbing his prickly chin. "Brandon, I want you to sit in Cassidy's seat today, and Leanna sit next to Jonathon."
It was then that Hestia realized that her seat partner was strangely absent. The boy - now named Brandon Shields - walked to the seat next to her, dropping his black book bag on the floor and flashing her a charming smile. It took every ounce of willpower in Hestia's being for her to not slam her head against the table. Brandon didn't have the chance to make whatever sort of remark that went with his flirty smile because the teacher began droning on about English.
"I haven't had the chance to introduce myself, I'm Brandon." He leaned over to whisper, Hestia rolled her eyes, inching away from the strong scent of aftershave mixed with sunshine. Brandon didn't seem to acknowledge her eyeroll, sliding one chocolate eye into a wink. "What's your name gorgeous?" She eyed him out of the corner of her eye, he had messy, sandy blonde hair that went in different directions paired with deep chocolate eyes
Hestia wrinkled her nose, "The teacher kind of told us that already." She pointed out, copying down the notes from one slide as the teacher began fidgeting around his computer. Raising an eyebrow, she crossed her arms and watched as he flipped back and forth between slides, like they were out of order before finally finding another slide.
"Right." Brandon trailed off, peering down at her paper, "Your name's Hestia Warner." He read off the paper, leaning back in his seat as if he hadn't just invaded her personal space.
Resisting every bit of urge not to repeatedly slam her head against the desk, Hestia rolled her eyes and scooted a bit away from him.
"Those new kids are hot." Tracy slurped loudly from her milkshake as they sat huddled around the table. They had gone out for lunch, since seniors were given permission to being practical adults and went to a nearby diner that served breakfast 24/7. Hestia quirked an eyebrow, "I mean, I already have Nick, but if I didn't. I would be all over Brandon or Ryan." Tracy drummed her acrylic nails on the table, her half-eaten salad sitting in front of her.
Ally rolled her caramel-colored eyes, "I don't see that much attraction. Brandon is already charming every girl in the school. Ryan is kind of quiet and I'm pretty sure him and that Leanna chick are a thing. Carter doesn't seem that interested in anyone. And Jason and Aurora are definitely a thing." She ticked off on her fingers, before taking a bite of her burger, shaking her head. "Plus, they're a group so I wouldn't think you would want to weasel your way into that."
Tracy glared, "I'm not hungry anymore." She stood up abruptly, plastering a smile on her face even though her teeth gritted together. "See you at school."
"Wait, you can't just expect us to pay for your meal." Ally stood up as well, narrowing her eyes and Tracy rolled her own before throwing some money on the table and stalking off. "Good riddance." Ally muttered before sitting down and taking another bite from her burger as if she hadn't just kicked their friend away from the table.
Jessica crossed her arms, "Ally! You can't just treat her like that. She's our friend." Jessica pinched the bridge of her nose, "Can't you two just try to get along, for even one lunch?" She asked, sounding exasperated.
"But she's become such a bitch since last summer. I get it, Jacob totally cheated on her, but it doesn't mean she gets to become such a brat to us and try to act like the preps." Ally protested, before sighing. "Fine. I'll try as long as she starts being the friend I know." Sounding defeated, Ally pushed her empty plate towards the center of the table, placing Tracy's half-finished salad on top.
Hestia sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose as she glanced outside. Silhouetted against the sun she could have sworn she saw something against a building across the street, a figure facing her direction and staring right at her. She blinked, and the shadow disappeared as if it never had been there. Glancing down at her watch, she watched the hands move, keenly aware of how exposed she suddenly felt.
Like someone was still watching her.
Drumming her pen against her paper, Hestia bit her lip as she contemplated the equation in front of her. Last year, taking Advanced Placement classes had seemed like a fantastic idea, it could get her an academic scholarship, and she needed anything she could get if she wanted to even have a chance of going to college. Now, with the workload and the stress of the exam on the horizon, it seemed far from perfect. She sighed, dropping her pencil in favor of rubbing her forehead to soothe away the strain building behind her eyes.
She turned her phone screen on and browsed her notifications, before sighing and returning to her homework assignment. The door creaked open and her mom poked her head through the crack, "Hestia-" She started, disappointment painting across her face.
"I know, mom." Hestia said dryly, "I know, it's past bedtime and I shouldn't save stuff for the last minute. This got assigned today and I have several other assignments to do before I can even think of going to bed. I really need to focus and I don't need your 'I'm so disappointed in you' speech." She was lashing out, she knew that, it was just exhausting, and her brain was a little sleep-deprived.
Her mom inched the door open wider, fire igniting in her eyes before it diminished. "Alright, see you in the morning Hestia." No sweet pet names. Just exhausted deflation and Hestia sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose as her mom closed the door.
Instantly, she felt guilty. It wasn't her mom's fault that school was exhausting and tiring. It wasn't her mom's fault that her birth parents hadn't cared enough to reach out to her. She pressed the heels of her hands into her eyes, pushing back the tears building at the edges of her eyes. She laughed to herself, bitter, this wasn't the time for fretting over the details of her life prior to adoption or even figuring out her own identity, it was time for math and equations and questions that had answers.
Hestia flicked her gaze back to her school work, slouching forwards, her back aching and she pressed her fingers into her lower spine. Grabbing her pencil, that had rolled away after she had put it down, she tapped it against her lower lip, before scribbling down the equation again and running through it to try and get her answer.
It was slowly starting to make sense to her, and she quickly worked through the rest of the problems and then bringing out her AP Lit homework, gaze briefly sliding over to check the time.
12:37.
Well, crap. Hestia winced, double checking her sticky note to see what assignments had built up and the due dates. She had one major assignment that was due tomorrow, but she supposed she could push it off to her free period, which was thankfully in the morning. Then again, that would mean less time to work on the other assignments on the list. Pinching herself, she stifled a yawn and stood up, stretching her aching muscles.
She eyed her bed thoughtfully, drawn to go to sleep, but Hestia shook her head, dismissing the idea to the back of her head. Just one more thing, then she could go to sleep. God, she really needed caffeine. Hestia mentally debated tip-toeing down the stairs to grab some coffee, but the idea was a pipe dream, seeing as that would require turning on the coffee maker, which would fill the house up with the smell of it, and therefore, wake everyone up. Plus, the stairway was dark and with her luck, she would trip and hurt herself.
Sighing huffily to herself, she plopped down in her chair and dragged herself over to her desk.
The hairs on the back of her neck suddenly stood on edge and she froze, she felt like she was being watched again. Hestia stood up, whirling around the room, eyes feverishly tracing over every detail, something wasn't right, every cell in her screamed it. Her gaze lingered on the window, and she walked forward, ignoring the voice in the back of her mind that screamed at her to get back, to get away. She lifted the curtains suddenly, exhaling shakily as she observed the moonlit street beneath her window.
Streetlamps cast the street in an eerie glow and contrasting slightly with the dark blue cast by the moon shifting behind the clouds. Hestia sighed to herself, eyes watching the street for anything amiss, but her gaze found nothing. The hairs on the back of her neck, however, were still prickling, somehow even more on edge than before. She scanned the street again, eyes wide when her gaze landed on something.
It didn't look human, a large shadow like a giant splotch under an orange streetlamp, the shape bending and twisting and snarled teeth glared at her from its mouth. The shadow twisted upwards, rising higher and higher, mangled hand reaching out for her, thin, unlike the rest of it, with gaunt fingers that were like when someone looked at an x-ray. It reached closer and closer to her window and she froze, staring uncomprehendingly at it, taking small steps backwards, inching away.
Suddenly, the shadowy creature dispersed, tendrils sliding away like a design transition on power point. Hestia slammed her curtains closed, heart thudding unevenly and pressed her hands against her chest, her entire body was shaking. She ran her fingers through her hair, curling into a ball on her mattress, homework assignment far from her mind. Hestia was terrified, pure, unaltered terror snaking along her mind. She squeezed her eyes shut tightly, willing herself to breathe.
Count to ten. One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Six-
Slowly, her body stopped shaking, mind calming and the roaring storm that had echoed and resounded so strongly in her ear dissipating with each large inhale and exhale.
Opening her eyes, Hestia wiped the dampness along her cheeks, and ran her fingers through her hair again, glancing once more at the clock. She hobbled out of bed and stumbled into the bathroom, flicking on the light. Her gaze stalled on herself in the mirror, she looked half-insane, cheeks flushed red, eyes wide and glassy, hair askew and hanging around her head in knots. She eyed her reflection warily, before shaking her head and opening the medicine cabinet in the mirror and grabbing a container of medicine.
She shook the bottle and grabbed two pills, putting them in her mouth and tilting her head under the sink, one hand braced against the sink and the other holding her hair away from her face, to wash the pills down. Hestia glanced at the label on the bottle, feeling even more depressed, she had had another hallucination.
When she was little, she had hallucinations all the time, constantly seeing shadows and dark creatures following and chasing her. After her first hallucination, no one had believed her, they said she was over imaginative and chided her when she cried to them over it. Then, the bad hallucination had happened, she didn't even remember it, but her parents did. They said they had found her screaming and tearing at her skin until it bled.
That had been the part that made her parents realize that she wasn't playing a practical joke. That she was seeing things no one else did.
They had taken her to the psychiatric hospital, where she had been put under observation for two months. It had been exhausting, locked in that room, unable to come home, with people always staring. They never stopped staring, cameras watching her every move. Eventually, the two months had crawled by and she had been prescribed medication, which she had to take every two days initially.
At first, the medication had helped, the shadows became normal and there was no screaming and night terrors. Then, she had had one a few years later, and they had upped her dosage to once a day and prescribed that she had to go to therapy once a week. That treatment had last for a few years, until both her adoptive parents and the doctors agreed that she no longer needed to do it every day, that it had been like a phase and she had grown out of it. They docked off therapy, but had given her pills to take once a week.
It had been three years since that decision, and even longer since her last hallucination.
The return of hallucinations and the sense of craziness made her sigh and rest her head against the cool glass of the mirror. So, that had been when the feeling was, her sanity and sense of reality washing away to reveal the crazy girl. Hestia pinched herself, pulling back from the mirror and cupping her hands around the faucet to drink some tap water. Shutting off the light, she exited the bathroom and collapsed on her bed, deciding not to do the homework and instead stare at the wall.
Hestia sighed heavily, feeling tears build along the corners of her eyes but she stubbornly swallowed her tears and pinched the skin of her arm in between her fingers until the feeling went away. She wasn't going to tell her parents, not now, not when she felt like she couldn't talk to them. Rubbing her temple, she turned to lay on her back, hands underneath her head and stared at the swirling fan above her, the light bulb off and the beads attached to it moving gently in the breeze created by the fan.
Hestia fought a wry smile, she had always been warm, so much so that she sometimes got too hot in the dead of winter, when snow blanketed the ground outside and icicles hung from the roof. Yawning, she turned to lay on her other side and checked that her phone was still plugged in, it was, and that her school laptop was charging, before she turned off her lamp and slid under the thin blanket.
"You look terrible." Ally said the next morning, wrapped in a bubble-coat with her red hair tucked underneath a black beanie. "Did you sleep at all last night?" She frowned in concern, reaching to brush some wayward strands off of Hestia's forehead. Since Morgan had grabbed a ride with a friend, Hestia had been tasked with getting some coffee for them, and she rolled her eyes before handing Ally a cup.
"I did." Hestia said defensively, taking a sip from her cup, immediately grateful for the warm caffeine traveling down her throat. "I just had a bit of homework to do." She lied, it wasn't that she didn't trust Ally. It was the fact that Ally would tell her to go to her parents, like she did the first time Hestia relapsed, and would most likely guilt-trip her into doing so. She didn't want to go to her parents, it happened once, it wasn't like it was going to happen again, she took her pill this morning.
Besides the more she thought about it, the more excuses she could come up with her. The pill from the last week must have been wearing off, that's all. No need to worry and fret over it, she had taken it this morning, she would be fine. "That's why I'm good with the two AP courses I'm taking." Ally replied, seeming to accept the lie as she locked her elbow with Hestia's and dragged her over to the school, entering and going to the stairway, where Jessica and Tracy were already waiting. When it was cold, they always came here, and yesterday had probably been the last day of agreeable warmth for a long time, seeing as a new cold front had entered.
Hestia blamed it on global warming.
"Morning girls." Jessica waved, sitting on a stairstep with an easy-going grin on her face, an open notebook was in front of her and she was holding a pencil in her opposite hand.
"Morning." Hestia yawned, sitting next to her, taking another swig of her coffee to wake herself up. "Have you finished the AP Chem assignment yet? I was meaning to text you about it yesterday, but I got called down for dinner."
Jessica nodded. "Yeah, it got really easy once I reread the article. It's long, but all of the answers are in there. I can point out the paragraph for you, if you like." She brushed a strand behind one ear.
Hestia shook her head. "No thanks. The best way to learn the material is to do it myself. But I'll probably text you for help during first period." She slid one eye closed into a wink and Jessica giggled, before tucking her notebook away.
"That's contradicting." Tracy sneered.
Hestia blinked, folding her arms across her chest. She had had just about enough of Tracy's new attitude. She had been a genuinely nice girl last year, but now she was turning out to be a total bitch, and the complete 180 was so not appreciated. "I'd like to see you try and take all AP. You'd have to take some time off of your high horse to do it, though, such a pity." Hestia retorted bitingly. "Maybe, you'd get a life outside of your boyfriend too."
Tracy glared, a low growl budding in her throat. "How dare you?"
"How dare I? Really, Tracy?" Hestia rolled her eyes. "I don't know what the hell happened to you last year, but I've just about had enough of your bitchiness. If you're going to keep looking down on me like you have some high moral ground, then I don't think we should be friends anymore." She slung her book bag over her shoulder, listening to the warning bell chime loudly in her ear. "I've got to get to free period. See you girls around." Hestia nodded to Jessica and Ally, giving Tracy one last glare, before turning on her heel and walking to the library.
She pushed the library doors open a few seconds later, grateful for the silence that greeted her. The librarian was arranging a few books on the cart by her desk, with a few of her usual helpers surrounding her. Hestia had met them on a few occasions and talked to them a little bit, but she didn't like them much. For one thing, they were dramatic as hell, turning small things into earth-shattering life-ending things, and constantly tried to be as involved with the drama as possible.
To her, it was annoying as hell. Sure, Jessica got along with them and could even consider them friends, but they were just a bit too immature to Hestia.
Then again, she had no high moral ground on maturity level. Hestia exhaled heavily, setting her backpack down near one of the library computers. "Good morning Mrs. Adams." Hestia greeted, signing herself in on the sign-in sheet. She waved cordially to the other girl sitting at the desk, a lean girl with pin-straight short brown hair and square-shaped glasses, who waved shyly back before taking wheeling a stack of books over to the section they belonged in.
Mrs. Adams clicked a few things on her computer, eyebrow furrowed. "Good morning." She greeted distractedly, eyes still glued to the screen and Hestia leaned forward to peer at the screen.
"Oh, my dad had the same problem on his laptop last week. Here, I can help you fix it." Hestia offered, waiting for the woman's nod before walking around the desk and dragging a stool over to the computer. She took over the keyboard momentarily and typed a few things onto the keyboard, eyes flicking between the monitor and the keyboard as she recalled the exact code she had had to enter into her father's computer a week ago.
The error bar disappeared, and the screen returned to the web browser a few seconds later and the woman sighed in relief. "Thank you, so much. You're a lifesaver." Mrs. Adams minimized the screen and spun around in her wheeled chair, Hestia was already making her way back to her things, grabbing a few sticky notes and pressing them against the table. She wiped her hands on her pants and settled down in the seat, turning the computer on.
Sure, she had her laptop, but it was small and cramped and didn't give her as much freedom with her hands. Hestia entered the school-issued login into the computer and tapped her fingernail against the mouse as she waited for the desktop screen to appear.
"So, how many assignments did you put off to the last minute this week?" The librarian sounded bemused, sorting through the books that had been returned over breakfast. A few students trickled in, returning books before exiting wordlessly and returning to whatever class they had come from.
Hestia smiled innocently. "Not many." She answered in a chirp, opening the Word document and entering into her lab report that was due next class. "I just have to finish up and print a lab report and read and answer a few comprehension questions for my English class." She surveyed her lab report thoughtfully, before using the mouse to click on a sentence that didn't sound right to her and adjusting it.
The teacher had been oddly specific about the use of I, you, we, me, and anything that indicated that the lab report had been documented by anything other than a robot. So, Hestia had to make a few more adjustments to make sure the offending words were not in her lab report. "That seems like a lot to me." Mrs. Adams lifted an eyebrow.
Hestia offered a half-hearted smile over her shoulder. "It's really not, despite how that sounds. I'm almost done, I just had to adjust my wording a few times and add a picture." She unzipped the front pocket of her book bag to grab her charger so she could plug in her phone to the computer so she could download the picture file onto the computer and put it in the Word document. She pulled up the files and copied and pasted it into her AP Chem folder before closing out of the window and unplugging her phone.
"Hello? How can I help you?" Mrs. Adams greeted a student that entered, warm smile in place. Hestia tilted her head so she could see who it was from behind the librarian. It was one of the new kids. Jason, she believed his name was. He had thick, curly dark brown hair, darkly tanned skin with a tattoo swirling around his upper arm, partially hidden by his button-up t-shirt. He was attractive, Hestia supposed with her face heating up slightly, but he seemed a little goofy and flirty.
Jason rubbed the back of his neck. "I have study hall this block and was told to come here." He pulled a crinkled-up piece of paper from his pocket and handed it to her.
Mrs. Adams scanned the paper momentarily, before handing it back to him with a smile. "Oh, so you must be one of the new students, then?" At his nod, she gestured around her, "Well, sit anywhere. There aren't any assigned seats or anything like that here so you're free to sit wherever you like."
Jason smiled, before scanning the library and deciding to head over to a seat a few seats away from Hestia. "Hey. I'm Jason." He greeted with a wave, before turning his computer on, eyeing it a little weirdly.
Hestia nodded, a corner of her mouth lifting in a half-smile. "Nice to meet you. I'm Hestia." She introduced herself, before turning back to her computer and clicking on file before selecting print and hooking it up to the school printer. When she turned back to Jason, after sending her document off to the school printer, he was staring at his computer, a little confused smile on his face. "Did guidance give you your account info?" Hestia leaned over.
Jason nodded, laying the small slip of paper flat on the desk. "Yeah. It's just a little different than what I'm used to." He gave a nervous laugh and Hestia eyed him weirdly, before reading his information to herself and entering it into the computer, watching as his desktop loaded. "Thanks." The tips of his ears turned pink.
"No problem." Hestia returned with a thumbs-up. "So, where are you from that doesn't have these types of computers?" She tilted her head to the side.
Jason rested his elbows on the table, showing off a few of his muscles. Hestia was completely unamused by the obvious attempt to change the subject, one eyebrow lifted, but she opted not to confront him on the topic. "Just around. I was home schooled and my parents are super strict." He sighed, leaning back in his chair, arms folded across his chest.
"Oh, that sounds fun." Hestia replied. "So, are you a junior or a senior?"
"Junior, you?"
Hestia sighed heavily. "Senior. A.K.A. the time of my life where I have to figure out what exactly I want to do with my life." She closed the word document and unzipped another pocket of her bag to get out her English textbook.
Jason laughed. "You sound so enthusiastic about that." He said, laughter making his eyes sparkle blue-purple with mirth.
Hestia rolled her eyes, "Of course I am. Who wouldn't be excited about figuring out what they want to do with their life and stamping a deadline on it?" Sarcasm dripped from her tongue. "I can't even figure out if I want to stay here or go somewhere else. Literally, every time they give us that college paper to fill out, I always color in both." Hestia shook her head, smile on her face. "Enough about me, do you have any idea what you want to do, Junior?"
Jason chuckled dryly. "Nope, but I have some time to figure it out, don't I?" He rubbed the back of his neck. "Besides, I'm pretty sure my parents have it prepped for me to become a part of the family business." He practically deflated at that.
"That sucks." Hestia responded simply. "Are these the same parents that decided to move halfway through the school year?" She inquired.
"Yeah." He frowned, drumming his fingers against the desk. "Which kind of sucks. I really like this club I was a part of, but they don't have it here. Especially considering my parents sent me alone to live here with a distant family friend of ours. I have some friends that were sent with me, but the entire parent-dictating-your-life-thing majorly sucks." Jason shook his head to himself to clear, whistling slightly. "Wow, sorry, I don't usually unload all that on strangers."
Hestia nodded understandingly. "I completely understand. I guess I'm just that easy to talk to." She flicked her hair, mimicking being a brainless barbie. Jason snorted, before pulling out a few crinkled sheets of paper. "Ok, dude, I wasn't going to say anything, but I feel that it would be good for our future friendship if you invested in folders."
Jason flicked her shoulder. "I get it. I get it." He muttered. "I just got here Sunday and none of my friends have let me drive the car."
"Ouch, the fun part of friends." Hestia teased lightly, "They never let you drive if you're a terrible driver."
"Hey." Jason said indignantly. "I'm not that bad."
"I'm pretty sure the friends have spoken." Hestia retorted. She hadn't had this much talking to a guy in such a long time, most likely never. There was just something about Jason that was friendly and hilarious. He was almost like what she envisioned when she thought about a little brother. "Anyways, if you need a lift. I can give you one after school, I don't have any plans and I've been meaning to get some sticky notes and colored pens." She offered.
Jason grinned. "That sounds great." He then narrowed his eyes, but the joking glint remained in his eyes. "I'm trusting that you won't drive me out to the middle of nowhere and take advantage of little ol' me." He draped an arm across his forehead melodramatically.
Hestia chuckled, smirking. "Careful who you trust." She winked. "Anyways, what do you have next?" Hestia inquired and watching in slight distaste as he pulled the crinkled paper from earlier out of his pocket and handed it to her. She smoothed it down on the desk, and peered at his schedule. "We don't have any class together, but we do have both lunches together." Hestia rolled her eyes at his frown.
"Damn, that sucks." Jason sighed. "But hey, at least I have someone in my second lunch. I mean there's Brandon, but we're not exactly best friends." He elaborated.
Hestia nodded. "Yeah, I get it. In sophomore year, I literally had no one on A day and only a few on B day." She could sympathize with him there. It sucked having to eat lunch alone every other day, it was rather lonely and when she got really into escaping to the library during lunch. "Well," she elbowed him, "you now have me. I mean my friends and I aren't that cool or popular, but we always have room for me." Hestia suddenly frowned, remembering that she didn't have lunch today with anyone aside from Tracy and she was absolutely not going there.
Jason chuckled, "Thanks. My first official invitation to a table." He was beaming, "But hey, maybe Rory will be joining us, she had to get a few things moved around on her schedule so she might have gotten switched into our lunch." A hint of a flush crossed his features.
"Oh." Hestia caught on. "Looks like someone has a crush." She nudged him playfully and he flicked her.
"I do not." Jason immediately denied, "she's just so amazing and brave and beautiful." He sighed dreamily, completely disproving his protest. Hestia giggled at the sappy look that crossed his features, before remembering that she had a bit of homework to do, and grabbing a sparse sheet of paper. She began answering a few questions while she waited for him to come back to Earth. Jason's head were in the clouds for roughly eight minutes, before he jumped at a sudden sound, hand immediately jumping to his belt.
Hestia quirked an eyebrow. "Chill dude." She said, eyeing him curiously. "Just so you know, you were in la-la land for like ten minutes." Hestia reminded him and his eyes went wide. "Don't even try to deny that you have crush, it's written all over your face."
Jason sighed heavily, resting his head on his arms as he watched her work through a few more problems. "How are you able to focus on all that stuff? It gets so repetitive." He eyed her homework distastefully and Hestia stifled a laugh at his expression. He really didn't like school, that much was obvious.
Welcome to the club.
"Anyways, when is C lunch in this place?" Jason patted his stomach. "I had a light breakfast that consisted of coffee, coffee, and more coffee."
Hestia snorted. "Yeah, that's a great breakfast, smart guy." She retorted sarcastically. "It's at 12:15. You're in luck because I grabbed a bag of chips this morning, forgetting that I hadn't eaten yesterday's snack." She unzipped her bag and tossed him one. He caught it easily and settled in to open. "You might not want to do that. Mrs. Adams is sweet and all, but she has a strict, no-eating rule in here."
Jason pouted, but put the bag in his satchel. "So, when am I supposed to eat it?" He inquired.
She shrugged, "During second period. Don't worry, Mr. Lewis is cool, he'll let you eat." Hestia remembered when she had him her sophomore year, he had been one of the coolest teachers she had ever had, good at teaching English, as well as very easy to get along with. He had made English very easy, in her opinion, and he basically let them get away with anything, including being on their phones.
"Nice." Jason answered, before fumbling for something in his pocket and pulling his phone out. "I might need your phone number for that ride after school." He unlocked his phone and handed it to her.
Hestia accepted the newer model of phone, briefly wondering how he had such a new phone, before entering the contacts and thumbing in her number. She saved her contact before handing the phone back to him. Jason grinned at her cheekily and before she knew it-or had time to smile-he had taken a picture and saved it as her contact picture. Hestia glared at him playfully, "Ugh, couldn't you have given me a little more warning." Hestia clicked her tongue, flipping her hair like she was a preppy girl.
Jason mimed wiping a tear from his eyes. "No way. This is comedy gold."
"I hate you." Hestia stuck her tongue out.
Jason flattened a hand against his chest. "Ow, my feelings." He deadpanned.
Hestia laughed before returning to her work, occasionally poking fun at Jason. A warm feeling grew in her chest, it was the first time she had made a friend so fast and been able to joke around and poke fun at someone so seamlessly. Briefly, she wondered if meeting his friends would evoke a similar reaction, like puzzle pieces sliding together after so long of being a part. It was weird, but he was like a breath of fresh air, like something she didn't even know she didn't have before it existed and presented itself to her.
She eyed him out of the corner of her eye, curious and wondering. There was a bond there, but there was also something else about him that was otherworldly.
The bell rang obnoxiously, but Hestia was grateful for the ending of her third block, it had been a dull lesson, enough so that her brain felt like slush in her head. She quickly packed her things up and shouldered her bag, so far, she had managed to avoid her friends all morning. Tracy, well it was rather easy to avoid her since she didn't seem to keen on talking to Hestia earlier, rushed past her to lunch, completely ignoring her existence and Hestia shoved down the fresh hurt.
Yes, she had been the one to bring the topic up, but she was just so, so sick of it. Tracy had been rude and bitchy and cruel over the past year, as her friend, Hestia should be able to call her friend out on her bullshit. She sighed heavily, it seemed that she wouldn't be talking to Tracy for a while, since Tracy was stubborn and would probably not admit that some of the confrontation had been a bit of her. Not that Hestia wanted to place the full blame on Tracy, but there were some parts of it that had led back to her.
She sighed again, exiting the classroom with a fake smile and wave at the teacher, before she followed the crowd of her classmates, bringing up the rear. "Hestia! Hey!" Jason waved her over and Hestia quickly walked over to him, weaving her way through the crowd. A tall, curvy girl stood next to him with sun-kissed tan skin, green-blue eyes and black hair, that looked almost blue. "Rory, this is Hestia, she helped me understand the library computer. Hestia, this is Rory, my girlfriend."
Rory smiled, the same cheeriness rolling off her as her boyfriend had. "Wow. I love your hair, is it natural?" She reached forward hesitantly, mindful of personal space and Hestia subtly nodded.
Hestia grinned, bemused. "Nice to meet you too, Rory." She returned the unsaid greeting, toying with her hair in between her fingers. "And yup, completely natural." Hestia responded to the question, before gesturing forwards. "We should be going if we want to claim a good table this year." It was the first year she was safely able to say that she could sit at the senior tables, which in itself was weird.
Jason nodded, slinging an arm around Rory as they walked down the hallway. Aww. Hestia thought, those two were so damn cute, like the kind of relationship other people want to have. "Don't even think of teasing me about this morning." He suddenly broke the comfortable silence, waging a finger at her.
Hestia grinned, "Well, now I'm definitely saying something." She dodged his elbow, turning to Rory, who was watching them with an eyebrow raised. "I'm not even joking, he went into la-la land for ten minutes when you were brought up in the conversation. I tried everything I could to bring him back down to Earth, but sadly, he was too busy." Hestia winked at the younger girl.
Rory grinned, ruffling her boyfriend's hair. "Aww, that's so cute." She kissed his cheek, making the tips of his ears turn pink.
"Don't even lie." Jason pouted. "You literally went back to doing your homework." He pointed out childishly as they settled at an empty, circular, table.
Hestia nodded, grin still firmly on her face. "But you didn't even deny it, meaning that, he was totally thinking about you." She turned to face Rory, who grinned back, looking thoroughly amused by the situation.
"Alright. I think my poor boyfriend has had enough of your cruel words Tia." Rory took pity on her boyfriend and patted his hand, though she was still slightly mocking. Hestia just continued to laugh, glancing over at the line for food, there were still a lot of people there, equaling a very long wait. She rested her forearms on the table, pulling out her phone and checking the time. "So, I heard that you offered to give him a ride to get some school supplies. Could I tag along?" Rory gestured to her bag for extra emphasis, it was put together, but only a little more than her boyfriend's.
Hestia shrugged, "Sure." She wagged a finger at them, "but absolutely no making out in my car. I will smack you with your own book bags."
Rory flushed slightly. "Wouldn't dream of it, isn't that right sweetie-pie?" She elbowed her boyfriend
"Sweetie-pie?" Hestia tried to stifle her laughter, but it was really hard, especially with the devilish look Rory was giving her, smirk indicating that she knew exactly how Hestia was going to tease Jason with the nicknames.
Jason quickly recovered. "Of course, honeybun." Rory blanched and Hestia flat out laughed at them, before tensing when she realized that someone had taken a seat beside her. "Hey Brandy." Jason greeted, Hestia somewhat relaxed, realizing that this was the same guy she had sat next to a few times yesterday. "How's your day going?"
Brandon shrugged. "It just got better. Afternoon Hestia." He was grinning flirtatiously at her.
Unamused, Hestia rolled her eyes at him. "Good for you." Sarcasm dripped from her words like venom. She turned back to Rory and Jason. "Because my day just got worse." Hestia deadpanned.
"Aww, my poor feelings." Brandon mimed wiping a tear from his eye. "Besides, you know seeing all of this-" He gestured vaguely to his body, "-is the best part of any girl's day." He grinned at her, mischievous and daring and very annoying.
Annoyingly attractive, Hestia blanched, ordering her inner voice to shut up. But the heat rising up her neck was a dead giveaway that he made her nervous and shaky. Damn bastard. He knew exactly how attractive he was. "Keep dreaming. Maybe one day it will come true." Hestia retorted, patting his head mockingly. She stood up, seeing that the line had gone down. "I'm going up for lunch, you guys coming?"
Rory immediately stood up, linking their arms and practically dragging Hestia to the line. "Ugh, sorry about him. He has no sense of boundary. I don't know how he's related to Leanna, she's the sweetest thing ever." She frowned over her shoulder at him, unlinking their arms in favor of leaning against the wall cautiously, making sure there was no gum there first. "Anyways, what's your favorite hobby?"
Hestia gave her a look.
"What?" Rory shrugged. "I'm trying to get to know you. So, answer the question."
Hestia cracked a smile. "I'm good at hacking and coding and everything technical. What about you? Fashion designing?"
Rory grinned. "Nope, but thanks for acknowledging how fashionable I am." She flicked her hair. "I'm into photography, y'know capturing the moment, all the hippie, flower child stuff." She selected a tray, wrinkling her nose slightly at the 'food' on the tray before grabbing a few fruits and milk. Hestia copied the same movements, positive that she was probably going to grab a snack after school, a stop at McDonald's would be a bit better than this.
"I'll probably go to McDonald's after school, you guys have money, right? Or do I need to drop you off at your house to get some money?" Hestia inquired, grabbing the plastic silverware after she entered in her lunch number and proceeding to their table. Brandon and Jason were gone, probably having went into line after them, and they had the table to themselves for the moment.
Rory shook her head. "Nah. My aunt dropped off some money from our parents for us at the main office. We'll just go get it at the end of the day." She answered, scooping up some fruit and putting it in her mouth. "Anyways, back to my questions. What's your favorite food? Definitely not this stuff, right?"
Hestia chewed thoughtfully on the school lunch. "I'd have to say baked potatoes, I love those things. What about you? Favorite food?"
"Loaded baked potatoes sound really good right now. But I'd have to say, cheeseburgers, especially with fries." Rory answered thoughtfully. "Ok, favorite dessert?"
"Chocolate chip cookies or brownies. They're pretty neck and neck."
"Cheesecake for me." Rory sighed, almost dreamily. "I'd kill for a good cheesecake right about now, yum." She licked her lips and Hestia burst out laughing at the expression on her face. "Don't laugh at me, cheesecake is delicious."
Hestia held her hands up in surrender. "I won't argue against truth."
"Favorite color?" Rory moved on.
Hestia pondered thoughtfully. "Red, I think. What about you? Blue and green?"
"Teal." Rory nodded. Jason and Brandon arrived back at that moment, setting their trays down before they sat down themselves. "Bet you guys wish you would've joined us in line." Rory teased her boyfriend lightly, pressing a light kiss against his cheek, as he grumbled about not having enough time to eat. Hestia chuckled at them, but she still felt slightly uncomfortable with Brandon around.
There was something intense and dangerous and strange about him. Like there was darkness trapped in his eyes, always just beneath the outer layer. Hestia shivered, the feeling of being watched, the feeling that always stayed and never left, made her skin prickle with goosebumps and when she turned in the direction, she felt the gaze from, she met his eyes. They were narrowed as if he was seeing right through her and knew exactly what ran through her head.
It was strange and intimate and she hated it. She narrowed her cyan-blue eyes at him, suspicious and he frowned, but the look soon faded and he turned his attention away from her. Hestia sighed, this was going to be a long year.
Hey everybody, it's been a while, hasn't it? I've been writing stories, a lot of them (I have a crap ton of stuff that's just floating around my head and when I get an idea, I tend to be like 'ok, let's see where this goes' but I tend to avoid posting them because a. they're not that good and b. because I've tried my hand at writing for Fullmetal Alchemist after watching Brotherhood and falling in love with the anime, but I haven't finished anything and I want to finish or have a plot or something) I've also written a Brella (or Bella) story that I have avoided posting, partially because I'm not finished and partially because it has a lot of dark stuff (depression, mainly along with another detail that I'm sitting on) and the characters, mainly Stella are incredibly OOC to start with. Again, I've been writing, but I've avoided posting, until now, that is because I would really appreciate some feedback because I'm my own worst critic.
Another thing is that I'm about to be a senior in high school, I've grown up (well, I'd like to think that I have) and some stories that I've previously posted are not my favorite. I will be continuing and hopefully finishing Rivals, With or Without you, and Through the Looking glass. But, stories like Amicix (the sequel) I sadly won't be finishing, as well as the Selection, Camping Trips and Love, among others that I've forgotten to mention. Again, I'm really sorry about that and my loss of motivation with those stories other than the select few I promised I'd finish.
Thank you all for bearing with me.