Statistics, According to Microsoft Word:
Words: 2513
Passive Sentences: 1%
Flesch Reading Ease: 88.3
Flesch - Kincaid Grade Level: 3.2
Microsoft Word pages: 6~
Chapter Two
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Jack
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A small group of boys, and some girls, are on the other side of the door, which opens up to a common room. Some are chatting amongst themselves, others are just sitting, waiting –presumably for me. Everyone's heads turn when I open the door, and they pop to their feet. I see Norman in the back of the crowd, standing with one of the runner girls and the sandy-haired boy from earlier.
Everyone is shaking my hand and greeting me, suddenly. A boy with messy, brown hair who looks about fifteen years old, a nervous smile on his face. Another girl – the only other one in the room – with her blonde hair in a single braid, a brown leather headband around her head, and long bangs swept to the side – she has an air of authority. And finally, the boy with the top hat who gives a firm nod with an expressionless face, his arms crossed. He uncrosses his arms, putting his hand on my shoulder.
"Jack," He greets, with an Australian accent. "It's good to finally meet you. Your orientation took far longer than Norman's." He comments. Did it? I hadn't kept track of the time, but it didn't feel that long to me. Then again, I'm sure I was a lot more… troubling than Norman and Coraline.
There's a shout from down the hall, and the guy leads me to a room. There's another boy already in the room, and the blonde girl follows us inside. They both stand next to the door.
"It's quieter in here." He explains. "We can talk."
The room has a bunk bed, two desks, and a small sink and mirror. There are no sheets or pillows on the bed; it looks like no one occupies this room. He offers one of the desk chairs to me, and we both sit.
"The name's Bunnymund, but you can call me Bunny," He says.
The girl who ran after Eve's car – either Anna or Eep, according to Elsa – said not to listen to Bunny. I have no reason to trust them, other than the fact that they tried to run, which means they're heads are screwed on just a little straighter than everyone else.
"Elsa told you about the gangs?"
Gangs? The only thing I know about gangs is what's in the movies. These guys don't look the least bit threatening – though Bunny is a little intimidating. They're all clean-shaven, and their clothes are wrinkle-free.
"She told me a little about different groups, though she didn't call them gangs." I answer.
"They are gangs. They're dangerous and irresponsible. You'll find, Jack that there are a lot of kids who take this school as a free pass to do whatever they want. They love that there are no adults around here and think they can behave however they want."
"Sounds terrible," I say sarcastically.
"Here at the academy, we have a choice of how we want to live. We can be violent and cause trouble, or we can be civilized. You can bring order, or disorder."
There's a loud shout from the hallway, and Bunny motions for the other boy to close the door.
Bunny and the other two seem tense, like they're waiting for something. Maybe for me to join them.
"So," I start. "Let me get this straight. You're the nice gang? You follow the rules, just like what Elsa was talking about. Is Elsa one of you?" I ask.
"Yes, Elsa is one of us. But we're not a gang. We're not like the others, that's my point. They do nothing but fight and wallow. We recognize that there are problems here, but we have made a decision. We can be miserable and get ourselves killed, or we can thrive. We have chosen to thrive. We're not a gang. We're the Society."
I laugh. "Society? Isn't that just a fancy name for a gang?"
"We don't behave like a gang," He says. "We respect one another. We care for each other. We-"
He's interrupted by a loud crash on the other side of the door. The boy and girl straighten up and brace it. I hear muffled voices on the other side of the door.
"Listen," Bunny says urgently. "You can join us and be safe, we're the largest group, and no one dares to cause problems with us."
Judging by the pounding on the door, I doubt it's true.
"If you want to be happy, you also want to be with us. We don't get punished like the others, because we hold a strict code of conduct. We live right, and we do right."
"Don't you want to escape?"
"Nothing good ever comes from trying to escape. No one escapes, and those who try get punished."
"But look at you," I say. "You're obviously older than eighteen. You should be out of school by now."
"I'll wait here as long as it takes." He says simply, the slightest bit of annoyance in his voice. He grabs my shoulder. "We want you, Jack. We're the largest group, and we have the most contracts. We do security, medical, administration, teaching-"
"Students do security?"
"We do, as directed by the school." His eyes are on the door, and not a second later it bursts open.
A kid nonchalantly walks in, followed by another boy who looks remarkably similar, and a girl with wild, red hair. He's of average height and skinny, and has chocolate brown hair and eyes. He has a goatee, and I wonder just how old he is. He wears tan trousers, brown leather boots, and a white shirt with a denim vest. He looks like he just popped out of a fairytale.
"I bet Bunny told you that you need to play nice, follow the rules. Didn't he?"
I try to stay calm, but can feel my muscles tense. Even though this new kid is obviously trying to get me to join his gang, he looks ready for a fight.
"We're Havoc," he says, staring me down. "We take care of our own." He takes a step back.
I speak, keeping my voice even. I don't want to make him mad, but I don't want to look weak either. "All the gangs take care of their own."
He raises an eyebrow and laughs. "Do they?" He puts out his hand, and I warily shake it. "My name's Flynn Rider," He introduces himself. "Leader of Havoc." The girl clears her throat pointedly. "Ahem, sorry, co-leader of Havoc."
He steps closer, his voice quiet. "Here's the thing, kid. You have a choice. We point the gun. You choose if you want to be standing in front of it or behind."
I take a breath. "I don't know who you think you are," I say quietly, watching Flynn's eyes. "But I've been pushed around by tougher guys than you – and I've pushed back."
He takes another step towards me.
"Back off," I say.
"Oh, so you're gonna join Bunny, huh?" He asks. "I'm sure you'll be a wonderful pair."
"No, I'm not going to join Bunny, and I'm not going to join you."
He raises his hands, and it seems like he's about to shove me before a girl steps in. She's the runner girl.
"Hey! That isn't any way to get someone to join your gang, now is it? He said he doesn't want to join Havoc or the Society," She says, a stern look on her face, but I can tell she's just the slightest bit nervous. "That means he's in the V's." She looks at me. "Isn't that right?"
"Sure," I say, though I'm not sure what I'm getting myself into here. Though I'm sure it's better than joining Havoc or the Society.
"Then let's get out of here."
We make our way into the hallway, but Flynn follows.
"Better watch out, Frosty."
"Run along, now." The girl shoos him off, a fake smile plastered on her face.
We walk down the long hallway, quickly entering another room. Norman and the sandy-haired boy are there.
"I'm Anna. The V's don't exactly have a leader, but I'm the closest thing to one. This here is Sandy. He's just about the friendliest guy I know, and you can go to him or his roommate, Hiccup, for help." She gestures towards the sandy-haired boy – I'm not sure if it's a nickname or his parents thought it would be funny – who smiles and waves. "He's mute, though, but he doesn't let that stop him!" Anna says cheerfully. "Most of the kids here don't know any sign language, so he has a little text-to-speech device to communicate."
"Hello," An automated voice comes from a device Sandy's holding, I hadn't noticed it before. He types quickly with one hand, the other supporting the device. "Do you know any sign language?"
"Actually, yes. One of my friends back home, Jamie, is deaf." Sandy has a grin on his face as I say it. I smile, but it fades quickly. I won't be seeing Jamie any time soon, if ever.
"Oh, that's great, then!" Anna exclaims, a bright smile on her face. "We've tried teaching the other kids a little bit of sign language, but some just aren't catching on. Anyways, Sandy will help you with your dorms and everything from here. I should be heading back to the girls dorm. It's been great meeting you guys!" She says, giving a small nod before leaving the room.
"So, I guess that means we should be going to our dorms, then." I say.
"This is supposed to be your dorm, but we're moving you to the V's side." Sandy explains with his device, I'm guessing for Norman's benefit. "The dorms aren't officially split up, but the gangs tend to group together. Both of you will be sharing a room, and it will be across the hall from me."
Norman and I nod, and Sandy leads the way. We come to an intersection, and I have no problem guessing which way leads to the Society and Havoc. To the left, everything is neat and tidy, polished nameplates on a few doors. To the right, it's chaos. There's some graffiti on one wall, and loose papers and dirty clothes are on the floor. Christmas tree lights are hanging sloppily from the ceiling.
We continue going straight, where everything seems ordinary, and take the first right, and then the next two lefts. We reach the end of the hallway, which has a window that faces the side of the school. A small boy with shaggy brown hair is standing in front of the last door on the left, waiting for us. He's the same boy from earlier, greeting me like the others.
"I'm assuming you're Hiccup?" I ask.
"Yep. Hiccup." He doesn't seem to like the name. "Don't ask about it, okay?" I nod. "I should have taken that opportunity…" I hear him mutter.
"What opportunity?" I ask, before realizing he probably hadn't meant to say that out loud.
"Well, a lot of the kids here took advantage of the fact that we're all alone here to create new identities for themselves. You'll encounter quite a few kids who don't go by their real name, like Bunny. I probably should have taken that opportunity instead of using my real name. So, is there any name you would like to give yourself, Jack?" He asks.
We enter the room, similar to the others, though it's bigger and has a little more furniture. I pause for a moment, trying to think of a new name for myself.
"I… don't know. Any ideas?" I ask, directing my question to everyone.
There's a silence.
"Well, do you have any nicknames?" Hiccup asks.
"Jack is my nickname." I point out.
"No, I mean something other than that. I'm sure someone has said something about that hair of yours. Why is it like that anyway?"
"Oh, I, uh, dyed it. My sister and I kind of have this obsession with winter and ice skating. I lost a bet, and she wanted my hair to look like… frost." I tell them the lie Grandpa Nick came up with, but trail off at the end.
"So, you want to be called Frost, then?" Hiccup asks.
"No, that doesn't sound right… Something else…"
"How about Jack Frost," Norman, who's been quiet this whole time, suggests.
I laugh. "You're suggesting calling me Jack Frost? After a winter spirit who brings ice and snow?" I continue laughing, but then it hits me. "That's perfect!" I can feel it getting colder with my excitement, and I try to calm myself down. Luckily, no one notices.
Both Hiccup and Norman are laughing now, and Sandy has a wide grin on his face.
After a moment, I kick off my shoes and sit on a desk chair. There's a small nook that seems to be a reading area across from the door, a closet in the corner and an empty bookshelf next to it, with two armchairs and a warm light above them. Next to the nook is the bunk bed, with sheets, blankets, and pillows already set up. There are two windows, with about five feet of empty space between them. Beside the door, there are two desks, with a sink and mirror separating them.
"I call top bunk!" I yell, tossing my bag up to it and quickly climbing up the ladder, feeling like an eight year old rather than a seventeen year old.
Norman doesn't seem to mind and puts his bag on his bed, sitting down on it quietly. Hiccup laughs at my childish behaviour, sitting on the closest desk chair. Sandy closes the door and moves the other chair on the side of the desk, so he can type and look at us at the same time.
"Do you have any questions?" His device asks.
"What does the V stand for?" Norman asks. I didn't even think of that before now.
"It stands for Variant." Hiccup says.
It's quiet for a moment before I ask "So, what is this place?"
"Who knows?" Hiccup says. "Everyone's been here for a year now, and nobody really knows."
"I think they're testing us, like an experiment." Sandy shares.
"That's what a lot of people think. Others think they're training us for something, and a few think this really is a prison."
"And what do you think?" I ask.
"I agree with Sandy. Sometimes they do weird things, they seem random. I think they're trying to see how we react to it. Any more questions?"
Norman and I shake our heads, and Sandy and Hiccup get up to leave. Before they do, Hiccup points to something in the reading nook. I lean out from the bunk bed and see what he's pointing at. There are two small laptops on the bookshelf, and above it there is a small screen with a schedule.
"The schedule changes daily, so watch out for that. It also acts as an alarm." He explains before they both walk out, Sandy waving.
And then it's quiet.
A/N: Okay, so I'm not the happiest with the length, but I don't want to keep you guys waiting too long, so...
So around here is when it will all be written by me. Some of this (But not as much as the first chapter, thankfully) is taken directly from the book, but my own words are in here, too! I hope the characters didn't seem OOC, particularly Flynn. In the actual book, there is a fight, and the character is in a chokehold before the leader of the V's cuts in. I decided that that's not very Flynn-like and tried to work my way around it, but still wanted Anna to cut in. I hope it's not awful... I just wanted to point that out, because, well, the main character was in a chokehold, things were bloody, and it gets you wondering what exactly a violent fight is. And I hope I brought up Sandy being mute in a respectful way!
Be sure to go to my user page and vote! It's at the top of the page, it only takes a few seconds!
And I'm not sure if I said it in the last chapter, but the Hiccstrid VS Merricup check-in's are only going to be occasionally now. If it's requested enough, I may do it for the next chapter, though.
Review Replies:
A guest asked if everyone has powers. The answer is no, but there is a reason why everyone is there. It's kinda sorta implied in Anna's character profile and her POV in the prologue.
Dontmindme (Guest): I agree with you all the way, all my ships (Except Jelsa. Jelsa is the outsider.) are canon, or were canon in the past (*cough* Makorra *cough*).
A guest's review only contained "hiccstrid" 90-ish times and... yeah. Can everyone just vote in the poll?
And to everyone else: Thank you so much!
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