A/N: Hey guys, thanks so much for all the awesome reviews! I appreciate them so much! Sorry I had to change the name, but FF wouldn't let the symbols through. :P Last "set up" chapter, I promise!

The lights in the bedroom on the second floor of the suburban house were programmed to come on automatically at the stroke of 6:15 am, and that Monday morning was no different. The bundle under the blankets shifted, disturbed by the light that was now encroaching on her slumber, forcing its way through the delicate skin of her eyelids. She made a sound halfway between a sigh and a gurgle, and rolled over to push the blankets off her small frame. Her eyes scanned the room before she stood and moved to grab the clothes that had been slung over her chair the night before. Thankfully, her uniform had arrived before school actually began, so she wouldn't stand out as much.

The less attention she could draw to herself at this new school, the better.

Her arm stretched out to turn on her stereo, but then she remembered what had happened the last time, and removed her hand. She would dress in silence today. Ha! That was ironic. She pulled her uniform on as quickly as she could, tugging her Oxfords on while she bounced towards the bathroom. A door opened just as she passed by and she nearly ran into her older sister, who scowled and brushed past her. "Watch where you're going," her sister growled. She just shrugged and ignored her.

She got to the bathroom first, and bolted the door so that she would have some space to herself. She resolved to take longer than necessary, just to annoy her sister. Bridget was spoiled anyway. Her hair took no time at all. It never did. She just pulled it up into its generic ponytail and grabbed the book that she always hid behind the toilet and sat down on the bathtub's edge to read for a few minutes, keeping a careful eye on the time. It would never do to be late for the first day of school, even if it was for a noble cause like teaching her sister to leave her alone.

Bridget, meanwhile, had resolved to trudging downstairs and squeezing into the downstairs bathroom with her younger brother, but not before complaining to her mom. "Mom, Clare's taking up the bathroom again," she whined, sounding seven instead of seventeen. "She won't get out. Do something!"

Mrs. Edwards, however, did not take kindly to this statement and command. "There's nothing I can do, Bridget, and you know it." She turned towards her husband, who was trying to scarf down some breakfast before he rushed off to work again. "You see what she's doing to this family? Why didn't you send her away?"

Her husband put down his piece of toast and glared at his wife. "Helen, she's our daughter. You can't just send her away when she gets too difficult!"

"Oh, so now this is my fault?"

"I didn't say that! I simply said-"

Even Bridget knew when to give up.

Twenty minutes later, Mr. Edwards had stormed out of the house, Mrs. Edwards was slamming every door she could as she packed the kid's lunches, and everyone was waiting for Clare. "Clare! Hurry up!" Bridget yelled. "You're going to make me late, you dweeb!"

"Bridget, stop it," Mrs. Edwards commanded, annoyed. "You know that that doesn't do any good."

Bridget whirled on her. "It makes me feel better," she said as she snatched her lunch bag off the table and pranced towards the door.

Helen Edwards sighed once she heard the back door slam. Where had her family gone? She felt a tug on her pant leg and looked down at her shy little boy. "Mommy, do I have to go to school?"

Mrs. Edwards smiled and bent down to hug her son tightly. "Sorry James, yes you do." She pounded on the wall, hoping her daughter would get the message, and couldn't resist yelling, "Clare! Let's go!" even though she knew it would do no good.

An hour later, Clare Edwards was twisting her purity ring around and around on her finger, and trying very hard not to squirm in her seat. The principal had already let Bridget go to class, but he was still trying to talk Mrs. Edwards out of leaving Clare in his care. "It's not that we don't want her here," he assured them again, not quite able to take his eyes off of her test scores that had been sent over from her last school. "It's just that I'm not sure how well she'd be able to cope. We only have a small group of students that are even fluent in-"

"I believe my daughter will be fine," Mrs. Edwards cut in, standing up abruptly. "She just needs some time to get used to the new school. Now, I need to get to work, and Clare needs to get to class. Unless, of course, I should take my tuition check back…."

"No, no," the principal said, quickly placing his hand unconsciously on the piece of paper that was going to pay for all of the food and drinks for the next dance, and studied the girl in front of him, who was continuously watching his face. She seemed sweet, and even with her…interesting requirements, he was surprised that her parents would pay so much money to keep her out of their hair. What could possibly go wrong?

Famous last words, right?

"Well, Miss Edwards," he said, grabbing her card from his drawer and handing it to her so that she could put it around her neck. "Welcome to Degrassi. You'd best say goodbye to your mother, and then I'll take you to your English class."

A/N: Hope you guys liked this one too. Sorry it's so short, but things should start speeding up soon, starting next chapter. Thanks for reading! :D