Chapter 10: People Like Us (By Kelly Clarkson)
Characters: Kiki, Peaches, Louis, Jade
Genre: Friendship
Request: Frostpinkloverfr
It was a lovely sunny day on the Hyrax Island; the sun was bright, and the sky was an exquisite blue, with no clouds in site to obscure the sun's positive glow, and Jade, Kiki, Louis, and Peaches loved spending this lovely day nothing more, than lying around, vegetating in the grassy glens near the waterfall, just to kill the time. They loved the feeling of a light spray of water hitting them so they don't dry up in the heat, not to mention it being easy and quick for them to get up and get a drink. Katie and Steffie usually joined them, but ever since a new girl, named Ophelia, and her family appeared on the Island, all of their peers seemed to have taken an over towering interest in her, including Katie and Steffie, who seem to always get roped into a challenge when it comes to popularity. Those two would do simply anything to be on top of everyone else... Apart from Jade of course, who's social status became quite high ever since she arrived. Everyone loved her warm personality, and adored being in her company, because she was always one to go to when you had problems, or a question in your head you needed answering, or even just to have a good laugh. Sometimes, when she couldn't help them with what they came to her for, she would sit there and listen, and be there when they needed to be consoled. They haven't even met this Ophelia yet, and she sounded like a undiscovered tribulation, and a possible hardship to handle alone.
"Do you guys wanna meet this Ophelia?" Kiki asked suddenly, lying on her back beside Louis and staring up into the wide spread leaves above them.
"Why?" Asked Louis. Kiki rolled her eyes towaards him briefly, before looking back up.
"No reason." She said.
"I think there is," Jade chuckled. "Someone's going into protective mode."
"Am not!" Louis laughed.
"Don't worry Kiki," he held her paw tightly to reassure her. "I would never have a reason to see this girl in that way. I don't think I even want to see her right now."
"Yeah," Jade rolled on her back and sighed deeply as the sun began to warm the fur on her stomach. "I'm too lazy."
"You wanna see what she's like anyways?" Jade rolled over onto her right side, and pulled herself up, and looked at Peaches, who continued to speak. "Never judge someone on what you hear, you never know what's their really like."
She stood up. "Let's go! I'd like to meet her anyways. You can just tell by her name that her family sound dead posh," Peaches posed like a Queen, facing Jade regally, before giving the tiger a reserved curtsy. "A real character."
"Her name is also from a character in William Shakespeare's character from his play Hamlet. She is a young noblewoman of Denmark, and the potential wife of Prince Hamlet. A real tragedy." Jade pointed out as she bowed back playfully. "But I'm sure this Ophelia won't meet her fate anytime soon."
"Ladies, are you gonna stand here and chat about death, or are you gonna to get going?" Louis asked impatiently.
"OK, OK Louis," Jade chuckled as she ruffled the fur on his head, making it stick out. "Don't get your little tail in a twist, we're going. What about you?"
"Nah, I'm gonna go see what Ethan and Shaw are up to."
"I think their with Katie and Steffie."
"Well then I might as well go with you so."
They eventually found themselves watching all their friends stand by a female dinictis; her sleek body rested smoothly on a sloped rock while her short legs flailed around with style. Jade could see the retractable claws at the end of her paws, the lining of her powerful jaws, and the long tail that swished about every now and again. Upon her right ear was a light pink Gardenia, sitting gracefully and loosely.
From what they could see, Katie and Steffie seemed to idol her, seeing they were forever asking if they looked OK or complement how pretty her yellow fur was brushed back, and wished that they had fur like that. Most of the boys were looking at her with a clear expression of interest. Ethan was there too, but to Peaches delight, he had a really bored look on his face.
"Like seriously, how can you have such beautiful fur?" Steffie whined. "I'm so jealous!"
Ophelia giggled, looking rather smug. "It's nothing really," her voice sounded like it was drowning in honey. Very sweet sounding. Ethan sighed quietly. "I just wash and brush it every morning, and this is how it turns out all the time." He sighed again, and nudged to Shaw and anothher male mammoth, who also looked bored, whispered something, and then, after those two nodded, they slowly walked away undetected. Soon, the other boys followed, which left almost every teenage girl on the Hyrax Island to stand around Ophelia with more space for one another.
"I'm gonna go follow them," and Louis before he disappeared, he whispered to Kiki, "and don't worry. Feline's are not my type."
"She seems quite flashy don't you think?" Peaches whispered to Kiki after he left. She said it slightly louder in case Jade wanted to join in. Soon enough, after she finished her sentence, Jade's ear flicked, which told the mammoth that the saber was listening, although her sight was also resuming to focus on Ophelia. "She's all sweet and sour and the same time."
"She's all that and a bag of chips as humans would say," Jade acknowledged. "There's a bit of Homo sapiens history for ya."
"Good to know," Kiki whispered, before all their attention returned to Ophelia, who yawned loudly while flicking her tail in boredom while Steffie and Katie continued to suck up to her,"Why do I feel that I still have yet to meet others on this island?" She said, propping herself up in a taller, and more elegant posture. "Is there anyone else here on the island?"
"You still have yet to meet Jade, Peaches, Kiki, and Louis." Steffie pointed out helpfully.
"Any of them interesting? Describe them to me darling! Paint me a picture with your words!" The cat demanded and urged the two mammoths at the same time.
"She's such a way with words!" Whispered a deer to the gang of girls near her. Steffie and Katie looked at one another quickly, and then began to talk, while... somewhat, "painting a picture" for Ophelia. "Peaches is half possum, half mammoth. Louis and Kiki are like, the cutest couple of mole hogs you'll ever meet! Did you know their a couple?"
Ophelia raised an eyebrow, and rolled her eyes. "No I didn't."
"Oh, well, and Jade is a saber, but she used to be a human!" This made Ophelia keep her mind focused towards the two mammoths. This certainly sparked her interest, and Peaches, and Kiki realized this before Jade did.
"What's Jade like?" This made Steffie and Katie explode with different things to say about Jade, who was sitting there and listening with a slight, but visible blush.
"She's super funny, sweet, smart, fun, friendly, brave..." Steffie ticked off her mental list.
"And she's awesome at creating little courses for us to do," Katie added with a giggle. "When she first came along as a human, she did an obstacle course, and she had to save Shaw's life!"
"By doing?" Ophelia asked.
"Let Jade just answer for herself, we'll go get her now!"
"No, let her come to us, you can go and act as a servant to everyone," Ophelia stretched out lazily. "It gives people the view of a lazy name, and it gives you the appearance of doing simply anything for anyone for no reason!" Jade rolled her eyes, and they all knew it was time to get out of their hiding spot as casually as they could make it look like they weren't spying on them. So, Kiki and Louis hopped up onto Jade's back, and they slowly backed away from the bush, and walked towards the group.
"Speaking of! Look! Here they are now!" Steffie smiled and waved at them.
"What's going on here?" Kiki asked as they walked up to Katie and Steffie. She was acting like they didn't know what was going on.
"Kiki!" Katie walked up to them, and once she was close enough, she hissed through gritted teeth. "Where's Louis?!" She must be that desperate to impress the girl.
"Hello to you too Katie, and he's gone off to find Ethan and Shaw." She replied sweetly, before looking at Ophelia with the same attitude. "Hey there! You must be Ophelia?"
"In the flesh," Ophelia preened herself as she spoke, flexing her claws. "And you're Kiki?"
"Indeed." Kiki smiled innocently, holding out her paw. "Pleased to meet you."
"Cute..." Ophelia replied, but she didn't seem to happy about the idea of making physical contact with the mole hog. Tentatively, she accepted the gesture for a brief second, before pulling back quickly. "Nice to meet you too." Kiki continued to smile, despite feeling a little offended by the cat's actions. Jade and Peaches didn't seem to happy about it either. They glanced at one another slowly.
"And this is Peaches and-"
"OK Stephanie," Ophelia stood up and jumped down from the rock. "They have mouths, and they have tongues, so they can speak for themselves." Steffie stopped moving, and nodded silently. Jade shuffled back one, tiny step, eyes widening by the way this girl stand before everyone, like she was a Queen of some sort.
"I'm Peaches," her mammoth friend entered from her left side.
"Half Possom lady? Pleasure." She heard her friend gulp uneasily.
"Yeah... that's me."
"No need to be ashamed of it Peaches," Jade piped up quickly. Ophelia batted her eyelashes before she looked Jade up and down.
"And your Jade I presume?" She preened again and sharpened her claws against the rock.
"Yeah," Jade narrowed her eyes. "Got a problem with that?" Ophelia froze in pose as the girls around them gasped loudly. Ophelia narrowed her eyes when she jumped down, directly in front of Jade.
"No not at all. What's your problem with this sour attitude of yours?"
"You're attitude towards my friends is making me sour." Jade straightened up, making her slightly taller than Ophelia's dainty frame. "I barely know you, and you barely know me, but lemme make myself clear on this. You don't look down on any of my friends when you've only just met them, and if you judge me by what I say now, I will return all judgement back to you." Ophelia narrowed her eyes, and hissed at Jade, who could feel the spittle spraying onto her cheeks, and around her mouth. Her eyes turned into slits. Very thin slits, that it made her eyes almost disappear completely...
"Well then, you better stir clear from me, and not get in my way." Jade growled lowly, and then slowly walked away through the thick and bushy canopy, with Peaches, Kiki, Steffie, Katie, and all the other girls stare in slight shock.
We come into this world unknown
*Jade found herself where she, Peaches, Kiki, and Louis were lazing around in the first place. *
But know that we are not alone
*It seemed more unsettling than it was before they even went to meet Ophelia, and Jade regretted going in the first place.*
They try and knock us down
*How she despised that girl with a passion, but how she despised herself for judging her so quick...*
But change is coming, it's our time now
* Maybe she was a bit irrational.*
Jade:
Hey… everybody loses it,
*Maybe she was a little too harsh...*
Everybody wants to throw it all away sometimes
*But Jade had her right to put the feline in her place.*
And hey… yeah I know what you're going through
*She sits and lets the sun hit her face.*
Don't let it get the best of you, you'll make it out alive
*Kiki, Peaches, Steffie, and Katie around the area looking for Jade. They soon heard her singing and followed the sound.*
Oh
People like us, we've gotta stick together
*Jade stops singing after they started, stands and they watch her from the distance.*
Keep your head up, nothing lasts forever
*She walks to the stream, and looks at her reflection.*
Here's to the damned, to the lost and forgotten
*Her expression slowly turns to anger.*
It's hard to get high when you're living on the bottom
*She slaps the water with an angry swipe of her paw.*
Oh whoa oh oh whoa oh
*She looks at the green embankment across the stream.*
We are all misfits living in a world on fire!
*Kiki, Peaches, Katie, and Steffie draw closer, making her jump in surprise when they sang.*
Kiki, Peaches, Katie, and Steffie:
Oh whoa oh oh whoa oh
Sing it for the people like us,
*Jade smiles, and joins them again.*
The people like us
Kiki:
Hey, this is not a funeral
It's a revolution, after all your tears have turned to rage.
Jade:
Just wait, everything will be okay
Even when you're feeling like it's going down in flames
Oh
Peaches:
People like us,
Katie and Steffie:
We've gotta stick together
Jade:
Keep your head up
Katie and Steffie:
Nothing lasts forever
Katie:
Here's to the damned,
Steffie:
To the lost
Kiki:
And forgotten
Peaches:
It's hard to get high when
Jade:
You're living on the bottom
*Amid her gossiping, Ophelia and the group of girls could hear the singing from their hangout spot. Curious, they all went to investigate.*
All *With the teenage girls joining in*:
Oh whoa oh oh whoa oh
Jade:
We are all misfits living in a world on fire
All:
*Ophelia and the girls come into the clearing.*
Oh whoa oh oh whoa oh
Kiki:
Sing it for the people like us, the people like us!
*Ophelia stares at her with a look of surprise.*
Oh whoa oh oh whoa oh
Jade:
You've just gotta turn it up loud when the flames get higher!
*Ophelia watches in envy as the group of girls join and sing with them.*
All:
Oh whoa oh oh whoa oh
Sing it for the people like us, the people like us!
Group of Girls:
They can't do nothing to you,
Jade:
They can't do nothing to me
Peaches:
This is the life that we choose, this is the life that we bleed
Kiki:
So throw your fists in the air,
*Ophelia narrowed her eyes at Kiki when she pointed at her.*
Come out, come out if you dare
Tonight we're gonna change forever
*Ophelia looked around through gritted teeth.*
Katie:
Everybody loses it...
*"Your telling me..." Ophelia muttered.*
Steffie:
Everybody wants to throw it all away sometimes...
Oh
Jade:
*Stepping close towards Ophelia.*
People like us, we've gotta stick together
Keep your head up nothing lasts forever
Here's to the damned, to the lost and forgotten
It's hard to get high when you're living on the bottom!
*She sang the last bit right in Ophelia's face, who jumped back and growled.*
All:
Oh whoa oh oh whoa oh!
Jade:
We are all misfits living in a world on fire
All:
Oh whoa oh oh whoa oh
Jade:
*Pointing at Ophelia.*
Sing it for the people like us, the people like us!
All:
Oh whoa oh oh whoa oh
Jade:
You've just got to turn it up loud when the flames get higher!
All:
*Ophelia's nose twitched in quick thought.*
Oh whoa oh oh whoa oh
Ophelia:
*With Jade glaring at her.*
Sing it for the people like us, the people like us
All:
Oh whoa oh oh whoa oh
We're all misfits living in a world on fire
Oh whoa oh oh whoa oh
Sing it for the people like us, the people like us
Oh whoa oh oh whoa oh
Jade:
You've just got to turn it up loud when the flames get higher
All:
Oh whoa oh oh whoa oh
Jade and Ophelia:
Sing it for the people like us, the people like us...
Jade stood in front of Ophelia with everyone else surrounded her. They all watched the Dinictis stare back.
"Do you understand?" Jade asked.
Ophelia scoffed. "Of course I did. I ain't stupid."
"Then stop the judging, and start loving girl!" Jade smiled, as if to forget everything that erupted between them. Ophelia just sighed, nodded and left them alone. It took her some time, but slowly, but surly, she learned that Jade, despite their fight, was willing to accept her... and she also learned to stop judging too.
Ophelia is a fictional character in the play Hamlet by William Shakespeare. She is a young noblewoman of Denmark, the daughter of Polonius, sister of Laertes, and potential wife of Prince Hamlet.
Homo sapiens is another word for humans, and I did reseach for Ophelia and I came across Dinictis (Die-Nick-Tiss) which is a genus of the Nimravidae, an extinct family of feliform mammalian carnivores, also known as "false saber-toothed cats"!
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