Chapter 17/Reminiscing and Revolution
Violet came back awhile later and knocked me in the head lightly with her foot to wake me up. I groaned and opened my eyes, squinting up at her although my black eye only opened partially.
"Did you have to kick me?" I demanded with a frown.
She smirked. "Would you rather I kissed you awake, Sleeping Beauty?" she asked.
I flushed and sat up quickly. "Noooooo," I said, and then grimaced as pain shot through my head at my sudden movement. Violet held her hand out to me to help me up. I grabbed it and she hauled me to my feet.
"Come on," she said, keeping a grip on my hand. She pushed up my sleeve and, not blinking an eye at my scars, strapped something around my thin wrist.
"What's this?" I asked, looking down at it. "And where are we going?"
"I told you," Violet said, giving my hand a light squeeze. "We're going for a walk. Now turn yourself invisible like a good boy and stop asking useless questions."
"How can I turn invisible," I asked, more than a little confused now. "The power neutralizers in the wall . . . ?" I gestured to the ceiling vaguely.
"The cuff I just gave you reinstates your powers," Violet said, and then nudged me urgently. "Now quick turn invisible and let's go before they realize I stole it."
Without any hesitation now, I turned myself invisible. I was surprised but before I could have time to think about what was really going on, Violet felt around for me, grabbed my sleeve when she found it, and dragged me out of the room.
"Now," she said, barely moving her lips as she hurried along the hallway. "It's going to look pretty silly with me grabbing thin air like this, so I'm going to let you go. However you have to promise to stick close to me, otherwise we'll both get caught and put in the Penalty Room. Got it?"
I nodded wordlessly, not realizing until afterward that she would not be able to see me. I dared not speak however, afraid she would be put in that hell-hole. I would not wish that punishment on anyone. Imagining Violet standing against that mammoth of a fighter in that last scenario gave me shivers. Although she was wiry and tough, she was my friend and I still feared for her.
"I have clearance for upper level access," Violet said, flashing some sort of ID tag at what seemed like a black ball on the wall beside two gates. Something clicked several times before the gates began to open. I pressed close to her side as she walked through so that the gates would close behind both of us, instead of just behind her and keep me inside.
It was only when we were in an elevator rising to the surface that she spoke again. "We still won't be able to leave the city," she told me in hushed tones. "The cuff doesn't neutralize the bolt inside of you that'll kill you if you step over the border." She suddenly smiled, white teeth flashing against cream-colored skin.
"But don't worry," she said, feeling for me with her hand. I caught it up in my own and her smile widened as she squeezed it. "I know a nice park within the borders where we can take a long, nice walk without being disturbed."
I gave her a slight smile of my own, even though I knew she could not see it. As the elevator rose upward, she turned away to watch the changing numbers and, since I was invisible, I took the opportunity to really study her.
She looked a lot like her sister, except older (which made sense since she was eighteen while Magenta was fifteen . . . my age). Black hair, almond-shaped eyes, coffee-and-cream colored skin, delicate facial features, short stature . . . it was all just like an older version of Magenta. But while Magenta's expressions were usually ones of sarcasm and exasperation at people's stupidity, Violet's were usually harsh and cold, like she was masking something.
I stretched out with my Empathy powers, searching to feel her emotions. I came across anger and hate and bitterness (that was to be expected), along with apprehension and fear, pain and loneliness. Those were all the surface emotions, I concentrated and searched deeper. There was homesickness and vulnerability (which surprised me a little). What surprised me a lot was, when I dug even deeper, I came across shame, remorse, self-hate, and . . . yearning. Yearning? Yearning for what?
However when I tried to crack open that little eggshell, I suddenly felt a sharp pain in my head and chest. I opened my eyes to see that I had been concentrating so hard on figuring Violet out, that I had let myself become visible and now Violet had me pinned against the wall of the elevator. It had stopped moving now and was waiting for us to leave. Unfortunately Violet still had me in her death grip.
"Don't . . . do that . . . again," she said, breathing deeply and emphasizing each word through gritted teeth.
I blinked and stared at her a moment before retreating my gaze to the floor the elevator. "Sorry," I mumbled, wondering vaguely what it was she did not want me to find out about her. She slowly released me and stepped back.
"Let's go," she said quietly, nodding to the door. It had opened during our tense moment and now I stepped out of it slowly, Violet right beside me. I wondered how no one had noticed an elevator popping up in the middle of nowhere, until I realized that the elevator was actually hidden inside a tree. The doors opened but a holographic project screen kept the side of the tree we stepped out of looking completely solid.
She cocked her head to the side in a silent gesture to tell me to follow her. I did so meekly. After several long moments of silence she reached over and squeezed my hand gently. I started in surprise but did not pull away, instead I watched her warily.
"I'm sorry Alex," she said. "I should not have reacted so strongly. But you know it's very rude to use your kinds of powers on people without asking their permission first." She gave me a pointed look.
"How did you even know I was using my powers?" I asked, frowning slightly in confusion.
Violet hesitated but kept walking so briskly I found it a bit difficult to keep up with her. Luckily I was more than a couple inches taller than her so that gave me an advantage.
"Well, for one thing you turned visible after a while and you were staring at me rather strangely." She glanced at me with a look. "But that wasn't when I first realized you were doing it." She stared straight ahead again and fell so silent I was afraid she was not going to explain.
"I could . . . feel your presence," she said softly in a voice barely over a whisper. I narrowed my eyes at her but she did not meet my gaze. "Your . . . touch if you will, reaching out for my emotions. I could sense it." She shrugged. "I don't know how to explain it."
I began to feel slightly uncomfortable. However before that feeling could escalate to something I would run from, Violet suddenly stopped and pointed ahead to a grove of trees.
"That's a good place," she said, moving towards it resolutely. I followed warily, wondering where in the world she was taking me and why we were on this jaunt in the first place. She did not speak again as we walk so I did not try to bring up any type of conversation. I could hear the sound of civilization not far away and it suddenly hit me that I was above ground. I was in the open, fresh air for the first time in a little over a month.
Stopping abruptly in the middle of the park's path, I closed my eyes and tilted my head back, lifting my hands slightly to the sides as I soaked in the sun's warmth. My pale white skin complained somewhat, but I did not care. Taking several deep breaths of the fresh air, it took a moment before I realized someone was staring at me. I lowered my head and opened my eyes to meet the gaze of Violet. She smiled slightly.
"I know. You take it for granted, don't you?" she asked; her eyes seemed somewhat sad.
I tilted my head to the side, my black hair swinging over to cover one of my eyes. "I guess so," I said, knowing she was right. When you spend your life under the sun you expect its warmth and light to always be there. When that normality is taken away and you're shut away underground for long periods of time, you begin to forget how wonderful the sun really is. I didn't usually think much on bright things, but the sun was a necessity so I welcomed it joyfully.
"Come on," Violet said, gesturing for me to follow her. I did so, noticing that we were delving deep into the trees, farther and farther away from people. It was only when we reached a small clearing in the park that she stopped, sitting down and grabbing my hand to pull me down to sit cross-legged next to her.
"So," she said. "I bet you're wondering why I brought you all the way out here."
I could not deny it. I nodded. She sighed. "I'm here to talk about me. Why I came to the Academy."
I raised an eyebrow but remained silent, pushing my hair behind my ear and leaning back, resting my hands behind me as I watched her expectantly.
Violet took a deep breath and let it out slowly, sitting up straight as a board, staring out straight ahead of her, so that only her profile was facing me.
"I grew up in a nice enough family. We didn't always get along, but we were a family. I was well liked in Middle School and I knew that when I went to Sky High I would be liked there too. I took it for granted. I was preppy, beautiful, and had a great personality. I always got good grades and teachers adored me." She chuckled softly. "I drove Magenta crazy for a while." She glanced at me then away when I made no sound or movement.
"Then I fell into the wrong crowd. They took advantage of my friendliness. They introduced me to wild kids and taught me how to have a blast at crazy parties. I became a rebel; a wild child. Of course my parents would have thrown a fit and grounded me for life, so I kept my night-life a secret, being the same happy-go-lucky chic girl they always knew." She took a deep breath then let it go shakily.
"One night I was out joy-riding with a friend of mine. We were both drunk. I crossed those solid yellow lines and crashed head-on with another car. The woman driving was killed instantly. Her daughter was in the back. She suffered a blow to the head that sent her into a coma that she still hasn't come out of." She clenched her jaw tightly and I could see tears gathering in her eyes. I adjusted my position so that I was leaning forward with my elbows on my knees.
Hesitantly I reached forward for her hand but she pulled away, holding up a finger, telling me to wait.
"There's more. I tried to talk to my parents about it. But they were having a hard time in their marriage and could not come to terms that their perfect daughter had done such a terrible thing. They invented a cover story, said I wasn't the one driving. My friend had been the one to kill that woman and send her daughter to the hospital, probably never to recover.
"I couldn't speak to them. They completely lost it, telling me if I didn't shape up I would need to be sent away until I was fit to return. That crushed me. I did not need judgment, I needed a listening ear. I ran back to those 'friends' of mine. They were the ones that brought me to the Academy. I figured: my parents were already disappointed with me, might as well show everyone else who I really was. A wild-child. A drunk. A murderer."
I blinked, frowning slightly. I understood her logic . . . somewhat. But a lot of things still did not make sense.
"But you see what's going on there," I spoke up finally. "You can't tell me that's right."
"It's not right, Alex," she said in a soft voice. She finally looked over at me, holding my gaze. "But what else is there for me? My flawless reputation ended with that accident. All the staff there knows how much of disappointment Violet Walker turned out to be. I can't go there. I can't go home. I can't live a normal life. I belong at the Academy. At least there I can do something with myself."
I bowed my head, staring at the grass. I didn't know what I could say to convince her of the good that I saw in her. Sure she was broken and dead inside, but so was I . . . and I still knew this, everything about the Academy, was all wrong.
'It's because of David and Ana Lucia,'I realized. They had helped shape me and the person I was becoming. Violet had too and in a way that showed me she was not the horrible person she thought she was. I wondered what strange twist of fate had led us to come to same place and put us in the same circle where we interacted almost on a daily basis.
A hand, dark against my pasty skin, came over and placed itself underneath my chin, lifting my head up to look into questioning brown eyes.
"Do you see now?" she asked softly. "Do you see why I have stayed?"
I gritted my teeth. "Yes," I growled softly, then grabbed her wrist, pulling it away from my face and moving closer so that I was sitting directly in front of her, frowning deeply as I leaned forward to look intently into her gaze. "But I don't believe a word of it," I spat.
She started in surprise at my vehement tone. "But Alex, I just told you—"
I cut her off. "I don't give a dang rat's arse," I said, growing angry. "Shut up and listen to me." I reached over and grabbed her shoulders, shaking her and scaring myself with this sudden roughness almost as much I was scaring her. "Shut up and listen to me."
Her eyes were wide and her mouth shut abruptly. It was strange, but it was almost as if I could hear David in my head, telling me what to say. The words did sound a lot like him as they marched their way out of my mouth.
"Where do you think I'd be without you?" I demanded, my nostrils flaring. "I would be just like all those other guys down there in Megan's clutches. I would be one of her flunkeys or whatever." I let go of her shoulders and pushed up my sleeves roughly, showing her the scars on my arms. "And look. Look! I would still be cutting if it weren't for you and your support. You were always there for me, helping me, showing me how not to become one of them, even if you didn't know it. You're not a villain, Vi. Completely the opposite! You're a hero. You're my hero. And that should be enough by itself."
My heart was beating rapidly. It was the most I had ever spoken. By Violet's shocked expression, I knew she had never heard anything of the like from me either. Slowly she lifted a hand and pushed back the hair that had fallen into my face during my heated speech. She looked into my eyes and I frowned into hers, willing her, needing her to understand me.
Hesitantly, her hand left my head and trailed its fingers slowly down my pale, thin cheek. They lingered at my mouth before dropping away.
"Wow," she said, and her voice was hoarse. "Alex, I—I don't know what to say really."
"Say you'll escape with me," I said urgently, leaning forward so that our foreheads were touching. I shut my eyes tightly. "Please," I murmured. "I can't leave you in that awful place. We both know you can do better than that."
It was strange, hearing David's words coming out of my mouth. They weren't his words exactly. I couldn't remember him saying any of them to me. But it still felt like him talking. It was as if he was speaking to me too. I was changing inside, I could feel it. For the first time in a long time I felt something. Something that very closely resembled . . . hope.
"Alex, they won't accept me back," Violet whispered, her warm breath mingling with mine. I could feel her trembling underneath my forehead and wondered why. I did not sense enough fear to cause her to shake.
"Then prove to them that you're no longer the kind of girl they think you are," I said, pulling back so that I could look at her again.
I could see the wheels turning in her brain as she suddenly looked incredibly thoughtful. After a few silent moments of this, she suddenly brightened slightly. I sat up straighter.
"What?" I asked eagerly.
"A coup."
The word's meaning escaped me. I blinked. "Huh?"
"The Academy has been planning to stage a coup on Sky High. They're in the final preparations. The takeover should take place in the near future. If we can get enough students to follow our lead, we could go into battle, and then switch the odds of the fight toward Sky High's side. The Academy won't see it coming and maybe that could be the advantage Sky High needs to take them down." Violet's eyes were glowing now that she had a hope to grasp on to as well. I could feel my heartbeat start to race again as her idea drew me in.
"Do you think that could work?" I asked, crossing my fingers. "I mean, is there that many students in the Academy that would turn?"
Violet looked thoughtful. "Well I know of a few that have been simply bullied into the Academy. I can think of two right now who would be happy to join us."
I thought for a moment. "Karl and Diane," I surmised. Violet smirked.
"Exactly." She was positively radiant now as hope for a better future for all of Maxville settled down on us. She now had a plan, she had motivation, and she had a way to be free of the chains the Academy had placed her in. And I had never seen her look more beautiful than she did in that moment. Her eyes flashed, her cheeks were flushed, and her lips were curled in a smug smile that caused me to grin back.
"This could work," I said in slight awe.
"We'll make it work," she said with determination. She stood in one fluid movement and held a hand out to me. I grabbed it and pulled myself to my feet.
"Shouldn't we warn Sky High?" I asked suddenly, as the thought occurred to me that a lot of students could get hurt, possibly die, in this 'coup' of the Academy's.
Violet pursed her lips. "We can't risk it," she said apologetically. "If word leaked out and got back to the Academy somehow, the Elridges won't do it. Instead they would either retreat back into hiding until a more opportune moment."
"But my friends go there!" I said, growing rather indignant. A flicker of pain passed over Violet's face.
"And so does my sister," she reminded me. I winced slightly. Looking over my battered features, Violet slowly smiled.
"Don't worry," she said. "We'll make sure our plan is foolproof. We'll get this done right." She glanced up at the sky. "Now let's return to the Academy before they send out a search party." She surprised me by reaching over and taking my hand as we walked back toward the path that led in and out of the park. I did not protest at all and simply let her hold it. Her slender hand felt warm in my own and I could feel her calluses.
When we reached the edge of the park, she stopped and tugged on my hand to stop me as well. I paused and turned to her, puzzled. I looked at her questioningly. Slowly moving forward, she slipped her arms underneath mine and hugged me gently, being careful of my ribs, resting her chin on my shoulder. I hesitated briefly before hugging her back.
"Thank you," she whispered softly across my ear before pulling away. "I think you just saved my life." She smirked slightly and reached up to push my hair back once more.
"My hero," she murmured with the smallest of winks. Then she took my hand again and together we walked back toward the tree which held the elevator. I held her hand firmly in mine as her words played over and over in my head like a mantra.
My hero. My hero. My hero.
She was the second one to call me that. Could it be possible that I could end up as one after all? Suddenly David's strong, kind face arose in my memory. He smiled down at me and inclined his head slightly, as if giving his approval. Then the image faded and we were at the elevator once more.
This ended up waaaaaay longer than I thought it would. Heehee. Please review and tell me what you think! :-D
Oh, and I just wanted to give a shout-out to all my wonderful reviewers. Ya'll really keep me going and I know for a fact that my stories would not be as successful if it weren't for ya'll. So thanks a whole bunch! :-D Btw, the idea of getting fellow Academy students a chance to fight against the Academy was borrowed somewhat from Jeune Chat's story War and Peace in Mind. However I had thought of it before I read her story. :-P