A/N: Well, time to see how Riley's first day of school goes...
Disclaimer: Cartuneslover17 and I don't own Pixar's characters.
A week later, the three of them were driving to the school for Riley's first day. And Joy couldn't be more excited.
"So, what's 5x5?"
"25."
"What year did Cerebral City get founded?"
"1749."
"Right! See, you can totally do this!"
Riley smiled back at Joy, feeling more confident as she sat up in her seat. She glanced out the window, drinking in the sight that was officially her school. The inside of her stomach felt like balloons being aired, each one threatening to burst from excitement. Earlier this morning she had been so nervous she would have made Fear look like a brave knight. Yet as they neared the school, she felt more confident.
While a part of her was unsure about how her classmates would accept her, another part assured Riley that everything would turn out fine. After all, Mr. Bing Bong was her teacher, and how could it be any better than that?
Delight parked her car in the nearest lot, and Joy hurried Riley out of the car. With her supplies, lunch, and backpack in tow, Joy's mom gave her second daughter a peck on the cheek.
"Have a good first day of school, sweetheart!" she told her affectionately. "I'll be right here when school ends, okay?"
Riley grinned. "Okay!"
"Joy, you know where to take her?" Delight asked her first daughter.
"Of course!" the yellow emotion beamed. "It was my old class!"
Riley held her hand as Joy led her away, Delight waving farewell to her. The balloons in her belly were on the verge of popping from excitement and nervousness. But with everything going accordingly, Riley was sure her first day would turn out great. And with Mr. Bing Bong as her teacher, she was sure her social life would become even better. And Joy, Sadness, and Fear wouldn't be the only friends in her life.
As they neared the entered the hallway that would lead to Riley's classroom, Joy had a skip in her step as she hurried them along. Much to Riley's relief, the halls were empty, no one in sight. Meaning she would not receive any real attention until she was in her classroom. In her pocket was the piece of paper that declared that she was a student of Mr. Bing Bong's class, as according to the results of her test verified by the administration. She double-checked it to make sure it was there; last thing she wanted was any disaster on her first day.
"Isn't is just exciting?" she gushed. "We're almost there! Class hasn't started yet, so we're a little early. But that gives you time to look around and see your future friends!"
Riley smiled at the thought. "I wish you were with me though."
"Aw, me too," Joy responded sweetly. "But I got school, remember? We'll meet at home, and you tell me how everything goes!"
"I will," Riley promised.
They made it to the right door and Joy peered through the window. She grinned as she spotted the full classroom, followed by the appearance of her former teacher.
"Look, Mr. Bing Bong's in there!" she said happily. "And it looks like your whole class is present."
She felt her hand gripped much tighter and turned to Riley. The blonde appeared nervous right now, unsure and wishing Joy to never let go of her. Joy hated to leave Riley all by herself, but she was sure that she would do fine, especially under Mr. Bing Bong's wing.
"Hey, hey..." she said soothingly, reaching over and pushing a strand of hair away from Riley's face. "You'll be fine."
"I really don't like it when we're apart," Riley murmured.
"Don't worry," Joy assured her. "It'll only be a few hours, and then we'll see each other again before you know it."
Riley flinched as a ringing echoed throughout the school. Joy had mentioned that these sort of things happened at certain hours. She turned to the yellow emotion, her smile fading a bit.
"That's the final bell," she said encouragingly. "Now it's time for you to start school. You ready?"
"No..." Riley looked worriedly at Joy, still nervous. Especially as Joy let go of her hand.
"You'll be fine," Joy assured, giving her 'sister' a hug. "Mom and I will meet ya after school, okay?"
Riley nodded.
"Gotta go to my college now, Riley," Joy said. "I'll see ya later, okay?". She waved before starting to head off. "Good luck!"
Riley watched her go, feeling nervous all over again. But she knew that she had to go in without Joy. The more she waited, the more she'd stand out.
She took a shaky breath, placing her hand on the door and opened it.
She was met with stares from the entire class. A few leaned closer to their friends and started whispering. One light gray emotion looked like she would faint.
Riley held back a sigh. Not again.
Bing Bong was the only one who grinned. "Oh, Riley, just in time!" he exclaimed, hurrying over and putting an arm around her shoulder. "I was hoping you'd make it!". He patted her on the shoulder before turning to the rest of the class, pointing out an empty seat in front. "There's a seat left in front for you."
Riley swallowed her nervousness and sat down in the indicated seat. But she felt her heart sink as several of the students around her quickly scooted their desks away, not caring they were crashing into their classmates.
Riley winced. She had only been in here less than a minute and already she wasn't exactly making friends.
"Just put her in the back!" one exclaimed. "She kinda towers over us!"
"Then we can pretend she doesn't exist!"
Riley felt the happy balloons in her chest rapidly deflate.
Bing Bong frowned. "Be nice! Is that really how you want to treat your classmates?"
"Well, she can't belong here! She's a half-human freak who will never do what we can!"
"Bet ya can't even make a memory orb..."
Riley tried to make herself smaller in her seat.
Mr. Bing Bong frowned at his class. They had been all smiles and simple chatter earlier before Riley came along. Now they were being insensitive and overall just plain cruel. To think most people would change face when their so-called instincts called for it.
He remembered the recent call from Delight in regards to Riley. He was surprised of her worry with possible lack of acceptance from her classmates, thus pleaded with him to keep an extra eye should it worsen. Bing Bong accepted that promise, no questions asked. And from the looks of things, his job was already starting. He was quite saddened when he saw Riley lower herself in her seat, trying to hide from the other students.
True, she possessed a different complexion and didn't exactly have any particles about her form. She wasn't exactly like any other being on their planet. Well, Bing Bong wasn't either! Not everyone in the city looked the same! Others were various shapes and forms, like the people who worked at Dream Productions or his favorite Imagination Land. His pal Rainbow Unicorn's only sparkle was her rainbow-colored hair, not much else!
He reasoned with himself that it was just a start for everyone. He was sure as class resumed, the other kids would begin warming up to Riley.
But if things went worse, and if one of them tried anything...Imagination help him because he would not just stand aside and allow that to happen.
He reached his front desk before picking up a marker. Writing on the board, he hoped maybe this would become a huge ice breaker.
Riley slowly glanced up at the board. What the teacher wrote said:
About Me
Placing the marker down, Mr. Bing Bong turned to his class with a hopeful smile.
"So start us off today," he began cheerfully, "I would like for all of you to take out a paper and pencil, and write down describing yourself. What are you like. What are your interests. What are you hoping for in this class."
That last one came to Riley like a gentle push as she took out her materials. She dared not make eye contact with anyone. She could still feel some stares on her, a few whispers here and there, and suddenly it felt like she was sitting on an island. A very lonely island.
But maybe her paper would win them over. After all, she learned a lot since being meeting Joy. And there were just so many things she liked, she was certain she would find people in this class who shared the same.
Her pencil lightly tapped on the lined paper, thinking over what she would write.
Mr. Bing Bong sat at his desk, taking out his schedule for today as he watched everyone work. His eyes fell on Riley. She was writing at quite a rate, her blue eyes filled with excitement as words popped onto her paper.
Pizza...hockey...soccer...movies...shopping...
Riley felt her head buzz as if she had drank too much soda. She didn't want to miss one thing and added whatever she had done with Joy and the others. Everything and anything that came to mind that had made her smile, from the food she ate followed by the sports she loved. And she made sure to mention Joy and Delight as well, given that they were her family and their home was her home.
When it came to talking about herself, she simply wrote down everything Joy said of her. As well as Delight and Panic. Even Sadness and Fear. All good, lovely words she was sure would impress the class.
As for what she hoped for in this class...
She stopped her pencil. She almost wanted to write "Making friends, but decided against it. The others would think she was making a desperate attempt with this paper. So she just wrote down "Improve in learning" just to be safe.
After a few minutes, the students' writing pace slowed down before eventually stopping. Once everyone had set their pencils down, Bing Bong cleared his throat. Perhaps everyone would get along better after their activity.
Bing Bong had become a teacher to help those under his watch become better both in knowledge and character. He just hoped that acceptance was something these students would be able to learn soon—from what he had seen and what Delight had told him, Riley was a very sensitive girl, and very close to her family. She needed friends here if she wanted to expand her social boundaries and becoming used to the world.
And he'd help resolve this problem as if his life depended on it.
"Okay, everyone finished?"
A chorus of yeses and nods responded.
"Wonderful! Any volunteers?"
One student, a pale blue, thin person that Riley assumed was an emotion, raised his hand. "Do we have to stand up?"
"Only if you want to."
Riley at least felt relieved at that. She didn't want to tower over the others even more than she already did.
"I'll go," one voice volunteered, standing up. It was the emotion who had taunted Riley earlier. "I'm Bitterness, and I like movies, travel, and stargazing. Oh, and I'm grateful to be here instead of on Earth..." She glanced over in Riley's direction.
Riley looked away. True, she wasnt human, not fully, but Earthstuff had been used to make her. But clearly Bitterness saw her as more like a human than something from their world.
"As for what I want from this class, just to learn the best I can."
"Good," Bing Bong said, even though he wasn't pleased at how Bitterness had behaved. "Anyone else?"
After a few more had gone, Riley raised her hand. With a nod of encouragement from her teacher, she spoke.
"My name is Riley," she began, "and learning about the world is something i'm really fond of. I haven't lived here very long, but I'm trying the best I can to try new things and learn what it's like to live here."
She swallowed, continuing, trying to ignore the others talking. "I like pizza, soccer and hockey, movies, shopping, riding the Plutchik Wheel—"
"Who doesn't?" a female voice near the back said.
Riley could help but smile just a bit at that. "And being with my family and friends. I may still be learning things, but I'm inquisitive, curious, and... and I may not be physically bright—"
"Or mentally," she (and clearly Bing Bong) heard before the speaker yelped. "Ow! What was that for, Surpriise?"
"Be nice!". Riley recognized Surprise as the voice who commented about the Plutchik Wheel.
Riley tried to focus on finishing. "But.. I have an inner brightness that I hope will shine through. And I hope that this year I'll be able to improve in learning."
Even though there were still hostile stares toward Riley, Surprise sat in the back, quietly clapping.
Of course, so quiet that no one could hear her palms smacking against each other. But Riley was at least grateful for that one provision of support. The rest of the kids still regarded her almost maliciously. Bitterness, of course, appeared bored by what Riley had spoken about herself.
Riley smiled nervously, swallowing it all in as she sat back in her seat. She pressed herself further against her chair, feeling all the stares on her backside. Mr. Bing Bong smiled, lifting from his desk.
"A good introduction for yourself, Riley," he said supportively. "Very unique."
The blonde smiled with gratitude, looking over her paper once more. She couldn't wait to show it to Joy and Delight once she got home. The day was still new, so Riley was sure there was still time for her to possibly interact with her class on a positive level.
"Suck up..." she heard one of the kids mutter.
Riley tensed a bit, unsure of what to think of this. Was the comment referring to her or Mr. Bing Bong? She began to thought that over as the teacher, having not heard it, called in another student to share. The rest of her classmates shared interesting details about themselves, some saying they too liked pizza and a little sports (none of them hockey), and especially considered themselves highly with what words they used to define them.
Special, creative, "I think of myself as the best", everything spoken with a curtsy expression of almost brash confidence. Of course, Riley didn't mind any of it. The students wrote as they wanted, just as she did with hers. Although maybe she should have come up with better terms to describe herself, show the class she also thought of herself as "best"...
After everyone had finished, Mr. Bing Bong turned back to the board and wrote something new. The class watched as he began to put in some math problems. Riley heard a few groan behind her, muttering about how much he or she hated math and that there was no use for it today.
The problems consisted of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and especially division. Everything that had been taught to her. The equations didn't look to hard to comprehend, and Sadness had taught her how to answer them in her head.
After writing them the final problem, Mr. Bing Bong turned to his class. "Alright, let's start with a little math," he declared. "After that we'll go right to reading."
He gestured toward the first problem.
"Does anyone know what 85 times 3 is?"
No one raised their hand. Eyes were averted, and some even kept their phones hidden beneath their desk, texting away and hoping the teacher wouldn't spot them. Riley scanned the problem for a moment. Sadness had taught her about longer multiplication; one had to start with the first bottom number on the right, then the second one.
"Anyone?" Mr. Bing Bong called again.
It took some self-coaxing, but Riley slowly lifted her hand up. Mr. Bing Bong smiled at this, gesturing toward her.
"Riley?" he asked encouragingly.
The blonde tensed a bit, feeling all the stares on her as well. She lifted her head up, trying to find the voice to speak.
"255?" she asked hopefully.
The teacher beamed. "That's right!" he said before writing down the answer under the problem. "85 times 3 is 255! Great job, Ms. Riley!"
She smiled sheepishly, her cheeks heating up. However, the feeling didn't last long as she heard some of the students murmur insensitively about her once more.
"How did she even figure that out so fast?"
"She must be a robot. They look weird and can do good math."
"Smart freak..."
She tensed once more, lowering herself into her seat as far as she could. This was all becoming too unsettling for her...
The math portion of home room went by quickly, Riley trying to answer only some simpler ones that the others wouldn't call her a freak for getting without writing them out.
Next it was time for discussing their texts.
"Alright, now did everyone bring their copy of Mind and Memory?"
Riley nodded along with the others, glad she could do so as she got out her book. She had only flipped through some of it, but at least knew some of what it covered. Imagination, energy, and all the different things that the energy beings of their world did.
Things Riley hoped she could do.
"Riley, would you like to start reading the first few pages of Chapter 1?"
"Uh...". Riley didn't want to seem like a suck up, but she wanted to prove she was worth something to the class. "Sure."
"Excellent! Now, we won't really be starting these kind of activities until next week, but it's important that the basics are known for when we do."
Riley took a deep breath and opened her mouth to start reading, but someone stopped her.
"Hold it!" A light orange girl with bright red hair stood up, walking up toward the front. Riley recognized the voice as the one who called her a "smart freak". She winced.
"Why should she get to read?" the girl pointed out, "she doesn't belong here!". She looked at Mr. Bing Bong. "She likely can't make a memory orb—"
"Not everyone can, Wrath," Bing Bong said. "But that doesn't mean—"
"That she can't do anything like us?" Wrath said. "Look at her! It's likely she can't do any sort of energy abilities whatsoever!" She looked at the teacher in exasperation. "Then again, that's what I'd expect from an experiment!"
The others in the class started muttering much to Riley's alarm.
"So she's really the experiment?"
"I thought it would've died!"
"I forgot all about that!"
"I didn't know it was gonna be a person!"
"No wonder she seems like she could be mentally deficient and yet can still do math!"
"It was called R.I. Or something—"
"THAT'S why her name's Riley!"
"And she has that band on her arm!"
"She's too human-looking!"
"She belongs more on Earth, see if we care!"
Riley felt as if the words were flying at her like physical punches from every side. She cowered in her chair, vaguely noticing her bracelet drop a few points.
"Wrath, all of you!" Bing Bong exclaimed, his tone rising almost angrily. "You're out of order!"
"No," Wrath shouted, her red hair sparking as she pointed harshly at Riley, "SHE'S 'out of order'!"
Riley's eyes widened in dismay, unable to believe that just when she thought this was her special day...it all just had to come crashing down! Suddenly she wished Joy or Delight were here, to straighten all this out. As pathetic and dependent as that sounded, she couldn't even deny Anger's own words. How could she even deny her classmate's when she had practically the entire room pinned against her?
She lowered further into her seat, hiding her almost teary eyes under her blonde locks. She suddenly wished she never came to this place, that Aggravation must have made a point.
And these children were actually aware that Riley had been an experiment? How did they even get word of that? But none of that mattered right now. None of these people were accepting of her, and she could feel her level drop with every painful reminder that she was different.
She didn't belong here.
Mr. Bing Bong could only hold his patience for so long. He was never one to get angry, but he was firm when he needed to.
But Wrath needed more than a firm scolding right now. And from the looks of it, Riley was on the verge of having a breakdown. Delight had warned him about the band on her arm, and how Riley was still learning about living, let alone how to properly deal with feelings. He didn't further any questions, but he was well aware what it meant when the percentage dropped; he didn't want to find out what happened if it hit zero.
The class was talking loudly among themselves, speaking about Riley as if she was a caged animal they could just poke fun at. This was not what their school was famous for, and the teacher immediately had to put an end to it.
He never smacked his desk before. Seemed he didn't know his own strength as he slammed a fist straight onto the surface. The sound echoed throughout the entire room, quickly shutting all the students up as they sat upward in their seats. Even Wrath snapped to attention, body completely stiffened as she looked straight. All eyes turned to him, silent and stunned. Riley only barely looked up.
"Is this what your parents teach you now?" he almost barked as he moved away from his desk. Some pencils and a few smaller supplies spilled from the impact but he didn't notice.
He gestured to Riley, who flinched as his eyes fell on her.
"Keep in mind that not everyone is an emotion!" he added. "We're all different here. You think I've ever seen another person who looks like this?"
He pointed to himself, whiskers twitching as his trunk extended out. No one said a word. Riley stared at him, shocked.
"I didn't think so," he said matter-of-factly. "Some of you are emotions. Some of you are not. Do you see a second copy of yourselves anywhere? No? My point across."
He turned to Wrath, his eyes narrowing with disapproval.
"With no disrespect I'm glad there isn't another you, Ms. Wrath."
She just gawked at him, as if he had spat right in her face that she was expelled.
But there were worst things than being kicked out of this school...
"I'm going to have to call your parents about your behavior," he said sternly. "This is not how we treat people, especially on the first day of school. After the lessons, I want you to sit in the back of the room and write. A full page that says 'I will not disrespect my classmates'."
Her jaw fell, while Riley's eyes rose.
"But she's-" Wrath began.
"Do I make myself clear?" he said.
She gritted her teeth, fuming like a firecracker that threatened to explode. Tightening her fists, she averted her gaze toward the floor.
"Yes, sir..." she mumbled.
He nodded at this before turning to the rest of the class.
"If none of you wish to receive the same punishment as your classmate here, I suggest you keep your opinions to yourself. Anyone saying anything negative about Riley will receive the writing punishment too."
His eyes then fell on the blonde, who just stared at him, still overwhelmed but quite amazed at what he done.
"Riley, I'll just read this," he said, gesturing to their book. "It's fine."
She nodded at this, feeling a little sick in the stomach to open her mouth. Mr. Bing Bong turned to his class, mentally sighing that their title was soon to be stripped from them at this rate.
"Alright, now that that's over..." he said uneasily. "Let's all go back to our books. Ms. Wrath..." He glanced at the emotion next to him. "Please take your seat."
She said nothing, returning to her desk. A dark cloud almost formed above her head as she ground her teeth together.
As Mr. Bing Bong began to read, Riley was hardly paying attention. Looking over the pages, she wished she was back home right now.
She didn't want to be here at all.
Riley was torn between wishing homeroom was over and not wanting it to end. On the one hand, leaving meant she hopefully wouldny be around Wrath or Bitterness. On the other hand, the same situation might repeat itself in her other classes. And Bing Bong wouldn't be there to help her.
She made sure to take notes diligently though, not focusing on the whispers of her classmates and just on her work. She was pretty sure that Mr. Bing Bong's kindness and perserverence was the only thing that kept her feeling there was a bright side to being in here.
She chanced a look at the clock. 9:28. She then looked at the schedule she had been given. Bing Bong was apparently the teacher for Energy Education. That explained the textbook. Though, as Riley found out, basic math and science were used in honing such abilities, so a little bit of that was taught as well, even though it wasn't the main focus class.
Two more minutes and she'd head off for Science class with Mr. Orion. She hoped he'd be as nice as Mr. Bing Bong. Or what if just started seeing her as an experiment too?
No. Joy had said the teachers here were nice. Riley trusted Joy. But then, Joy had last attended 5th grade 8 years earlier. Some teachers may have been replaced. Or they'd look at her strangely just like the students. She wasn't looking forward to that.
Riley looked over the others. Language, Math... Lunch and Recess. Safe havens. She could find somewhere away from the people who kept taunting her and eat lunch on her own... but she wished Joy and Delight were with her.
Then back to the classrooms. Art, then History, then Astronomy.
Then 3:00. School would be over. She could go home. And she was wanting to stay there.
A ringing sounded through the school that caused Riley to jump. The bell. Class was over.
As the students hurriedly tried to gather their things, Bing Bong raised his voice. "And I don't want to hear about any more cruelty like this morning, is that clear?"
The students murmured in response, though some confirmations seemed half-hearted.
Riley stayed behind, waiting for everyone else to leave before heading off to leave herself.
"Riley?" Bing Bong said gently.
Riley, startled, flinched and looked up at him. "Y-Yeah?"
He sighed. "Don't let what those kids said in home room get to you. I'll try to help things get sorted out the best I can alright?". He patted her on the back. "I know you have to go to your next class right now, but... if you ever need anything, just let me know."
Riley felt a little better by his sincere words. He reminded her so well of both Panic and Delight. She deeply wished he would be teaching all her classes, but that just wasn't the case with school.
She gave him a stiff yet grateful nod. "Thank you..." she murmured.
"No problem, Riley," he told her, patting her back. "Now you better hurry to your next class. See you soon, okay?"
"Okay," she responded quietly as she was the last one out the door.
The hallways were filled with students pushing and passing to get to their next class. Many stopped and stared as she came in, causing many to part and press themselves to the wall. Almost as if she was some contagious disease. Riley's temporary lift of her mood then crashed down, her head bowed as she tried not to make eye contact. The whispers just got louder, and she could feel many pointing in her direction.
Experiment...arm band...no purpose...human...
Joy often told her to take things with a grain of salt...whatever that meant. But the emotional wounds from earlier still stung, and just right now it was like they were throwing salt straight at the open cuts. Riley felt her body shiver with even more uncertainty, both wanting to just go home and wishing her education could have been more private.
She found herself missing Mr. Bing Bong more and more the further she was away from his class. The next one was Mr. Orion, which, according to Joy, was the name of a star. So he must not be an emotion, but still able to fit among this society, like Bing Bong and other unique individuals. Riley would never forget what her own classmates looked like, or how they looked at her. She just wanted to get it all out of her head before she had to go to the next class.
Unfortunately, it was on the second floor. So having everyone immediately part in her presence was not exactly a confidence booster. Riley dipped her head even lower as she walked up the steps, children gasping and pressing themselves deeper to the walls. The murmurs and rumors only got worse, many watching her carefully as if she were an animal who could only pent up so much rage.
Part of Riley wanted to just get angry.
When she made it to the second floor, she had to lift her head up to see where she was going. Mr. Orion's class was nearby, and she kept a lookout for that door number. When she found it, students were just starting to pile in. The moment they noticed her, they stiffened, and Riley found herself having to cut through the paused line just so she would get inside.
The teacher was nowhere in sight, but the room was quite full. And just the same as her previous.
Students took one look at her before already the talking commenced. This was probably something she would have to deal with for the time she would be in school. And the idea of making friends was already tossed out the window. Her newest goal was simply to just survive until she could finally go home to Joy and Delight.
This time she didn't take a seat at the front. She chose somewhere in the way back. That way she wouldn't feel stares behind her, or hear the conversations as well either. This would also give her a great opportunity to avoid being chosen by the teacher, then no one would call her a suck up.
Taking her seat, Riley kept her eyes focused on her desk as she placed her belongings down. She settled for a piece of paper and laid them on the surface. She was prepared to take only notes, forget about answering questions even though she would probably know them.
Glancing up at the clock, it was almost time for class to start. Somehow the device was mocking her. Every second seemed to take longer than the previous.
Every second before she would finally go home.
A/N: Poor Riley, not a good day so far... hopefully the rest will be better.