The only good thing about dying was coming back. Kenny loved the feeling when he woke up after being dead. It was as if he just woke up from a long, relaxing nap. His body would feel a bit strange and almost foreign, but besides that, he always felt eager to get up and go back to living. He also appreciated life so much more than his friends ever could. After all, how could you not appreciate life when you spent half of the time being dead?

So it tore him apart to have to stand so far apart from his friends, and ignore them while they were at school. He hated it. Instead of looking at his friends that Thursday morning, he chose to stare down at his red sneakers. He could then pretend that they were standing right next to him instead of a few feet away.

"To be honest, it's really weird to be wearing it again."

Kyle had said that before they had all moved apart. Kenny quietly pondered this sentence as he studied the scuff on his right shoe. He wondered what it would be like to don his infamous hoodie again, and decided that although it may feel familiar, it would also be incredibly strange.

They didn't speak anymore, since they knew the bus would arrive any second. As if on cue, the bus screeched to a halt in front of them, and they quickly climbed aboard, starting their long day of pretending to hate each other.

Kenny never liked acting that much.

-.-.-.-.-.

Joining with the other kids who had changed their clothes was easy. Kenny's classmates were used to Kenny disappearing for long periods of time, so it wasn't like they suspected anything. None of them realized it was because he was dead, though. After all, when Kenny came back to life, no one remembered that he had died at all. Kenny was still surprised, therefore, that his friends remembered him dying this last time. He wasn't so surprised, however, that the entire school, and his family, didn't remember the occurrence.

He sighed softly. He didn't like that he had to be around people he normally didn't hang around. If he had his eyes set on a woman, he didn't mind spending time with her. However, he had to hang around guys and girls that he had no interest in, and it just made him miss his friends more.

But it was all for the greater good, he reminded himself.

He focused his efforts on socializing with as many people as possible, in an effort to get "in" with some of the leaders. It didn't take long for him to figure out who the most proactive kids in the group were. They were the ones that complained the loudest about those who opposed them.

He spent time with them after school that day, mostly observing and listening rather than joining into the conversations. He learned several things that Kyle had been unable to. One, that the leaders were nothing like the kids they had been a few weeks ago, and two, that they were willing to do whatever it took to continue their charade.

He also learned that they planned on marching against the other group in a showdown that Saturday.

-.-.-.-.-.

Merely an hour and a half later, Kenny was climbing up the old ladder up to Stan's old tree house. He noticed that there had been some renovations since the last time he had been there, but he didn't really give it much thought. After all, he had more on his mind than reminiscing about the good old days.

The moment he had found out about the plan, he had texted everyone that they had to meet ASAP. Stan suggested his tree house, since his parents weren't home and it would be the easiest location to meet on such a short notice. Kenny was the last to arrive, since he tried to learn more about the plan from the others.

They were all naturally sitting in an arc, facing the entrance, so Kenny sat down to complete the circle.

"So what's up?" Kyle asked. He had taken off his hat and set it on his lap. His bandage had been taken off, since he had the appointment after school. Kenny felt sorry for him, since his hair was shaved where the surgery took place, and overall, he just looked a little sad.

Kenny shook his head, snapping his brain back into action. "We have a problem. I figured out who the most influential people in my group are, and hung out with them after school. Cartman… you set up a meeting with the mayor, right?"

Cartman nodded, but frowned. "Yeah, but how the hell did you know? I haven't told you guys yet."

"Well, somehow these kids found out."

"Shit…" Cartman muttered. "I had the mayor agree to talk to me, along with some adults who I've found who are on our side. I was going to get Wendy to bring any students along that she's found as well. We were going to discuss the problem, and some possible solutions that would prevent more riots and general fighting."

"Well, the leaders of my group are organizing everyone," Kenny continued. "They plan to tell everyone about the event tomorrow, and get everyone on board. They want everyone to march, with the adults who are on their side, before the meeting."

"March?" Kyle echoed softly, his eyebrows turned down in concern.

"Yeah. I guess they want to protest the meeting, since they don't want any restrictions. They argue that the mayor can't force them to change back to how they were, and that they have a right to dress and act the way they want."

"This isn't good," Wendy said, pursing her lips. "Cartman was trying to keep the meeting as quiet as possible, and he only just told me about it today. I was planning on talking to the few people I found who are willing to support us tomorrow. They've been keeping rather low, since they don't want anything bad to happen to them, but I figured I could convince them to go to a private meeting that no one knew about. Now, I'm not so sure they'd be comfortable going."

"If they are marching, most likely the other group will catch wind of it and march too. It could turn into a huge disaster," Kyle pointed out softly, staring pensively down at the boarded floor.

"Have you heard anything yet from your group, Stan?" Cartman asked quickly.

"No," Stan admitted. "But to be honest, most likely Kyle's right. Once they find out about it, which they most certainly will, they'll march too."

"This really isn't good," Cartman complained.

"What time is the meeting?" Kenny asked.

"Five," Cartman answered. "Maybe I could move the meeting up… At least get the mayor prepared for the disaster that I accidently brought to her doorstep."

"Look, we can't give up, guys." Kyle finally looked up, his eyes burning in that familiar, stubborn passion that they always did. "Cartman, you can call the mayor, and tell her to meet with you earlier. No one can find out about this. If you can't meet with her before the march, then we're in trouble. Also, you're going to have to warn her about the marching."

"I'll make sure that she knows, and that they triple security," Cartman agreed. "When I ask people to come to the meeting, I'll still say that it's at five. Wendy, Kyle, and I will meet with her privately in the morning, to warn her about the event." Cartman paused before continuing. "No one must find out about the private meeting in the morning. I don't want to risk another leak. I'd suggest that we all go to it, but Kenny and Stan have to keep their cover as long as possible. We need you both feeding us the happenings of both groups, especially now."

Kenny simply nodded in agreement.

"I want everyone checking in the moment they hear anything new," Cartman continued, taking over the meeting with his natural leadership. "Anything." He whipped out his phone, continuing as his fingers flew across the keys. "I want everyone to also check in regularly, so that we know everyone is ok leading up to the event. Most likely, the tension in the school is going to triple tomorrow because of the march." His phone beeped. "I sent you all a random text message. All you have to do is hit 'reply to all' whenever you check in. This will make it easy so you're not finding all the addresses in your phone books, or only sending your information to one person. This way, we all know what's going on, at all times."

"What about me?" Kenny asked softly. His phone was super old, and he couldn't even text with it. He felt the familiar sickening in his stomach. Sure, he was used to being the poor one, but he hated it whenever he had to point it out.

"Actually," Cartman said, pulling something out of his pocket. "Kyle and I were discussing this last night, and we decided that it was a problem with the way things are with you not having a phone that can text. Plus, it's just super annoying. So, I asked my mom to get me another one. You know how she is." He tossed a phone in Kenny's direction.

He gasped, fumbling the phone a bit. "W-what?" he breathed, not really believing this.

"It's not like it's fancy," Cartman grumbled, obviously embarrassed. "Besides, it's attached to my account, so it was cheaper."

"Thanks a lot Cartman," he smiled. He seriously still couldn't believe this.

"Whatever," Cartman muttered.

Kenny promised himself that if he ever could, he would pay all of his friends back tenfold for everything they had ever done for him. But now wasn't the time. He flipped open his phone, relishing in the fact that he finally could text his friends. He opened the text Cartman sent. Cartman had already programmed everyone's numbers into his phone.

Kenny was glad for his best friend.

"Well, I got to get going before my mom figures out I'm missing. I told her I would be catching up on homework in my room, and didn't tell them I left."

"You shouldn't crawl out of your window with your head inj-!" Cartman began to complain loudly.

"Shut up. I'm fine. It's not like it's that big of a deal anyway. The doctor looked at it today and said it's healing rather nicely."

"I don't trust those stupid doctors…"

"Kenny?" Kyle continued, easily ignoring Cartman. "Are you coming over tonight?"

"If you don't mind. I was going to sneak over."

"No, that's cool. I mean, my parents already know that we aren't enemies. Hopefully that doesn't blow our cover later, but there really isn't anything we can do about it now."

Kyle slowly got up, and the rest of them did as well.

"Well, see you losers later," Cartman said before leading the way down the ladder. Kenny let Kyle go first, since he had to get home before Kenny got there anyway. Kenny glanced at Stan and Wendy.

"Stay safe, you two," he grinned.

"Thanks," Stan smiled in return.

"I'm glad you're back," Wendy smiled.

"You remembered I died too?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

She seemed to think about it. "Well, Stan told me about how normally no one notices that you were dead after you come back. However, we both figure that we remembered because your death was so traumatic this time. I mean, Stan and Kyle were fighting, Stan felt guilty because he shoved you in the street, Cartman almost killed Stan for killing you, and overall, a lot of things were just going on. It would be hard to forget about all of that happening. But to be honest, I wasn't convinced you'd be coming back. I never knew that you died in the past. So… I'm glad you came back, Kenny." She hugged him gently, and he wrapped his arms around her to return the friendly hug.

"Thanks Wendy," he said truthfully. "That really means a lot to me. Stan's lucky to have you."

"That I am," Stan agreed warmly.

He pulled away, quickly saluting them. "Until Saturday," he said before heading down the ladder. He quickly started heading toward the Broflovski house, and despite the dire circumstances, he felt happier than he had in a while.

-.-.-.-.-.

The next morning, Kenny was asked by many people if he had heard about the march and if he planned on going. He of course told them he was, and realized that before school had even started, everyone he associated with knew of the event. During first period, he quickly whipped out his new cell phone and texted the others.

-Things look bad. Everyone in my group knows about Saturday and plans to come.

He double checked to make sure that his phone was set on vibrate and shoved it into his pants pocket. Only a few seconds later, however, it vibrated against his leg.

The text was from Stan: -Yeah, some guys know about it now and plan to get everyone involved. They don't sound too happy.

Kenny pursed his lips. He wasn't happy either. The tension in the air was too thick. He hoped that no matter what happened, he'd be able to live through the weekend. He didn't want to be dead again after only a few days of living.

That would just suck.