N.B: The classes used in the fic are based on the French system. If Phrixos were in a secondary school, then his class would be 2, then 1 then final year with his graduating tests. As he's the oldest in the class, he's 17 and a half as he was born at the end of the last school classifying year (noted as September - August and not January - December) while the rest are 16-17 depending. Kim says she's almost 17, which means she'll be born in November or December to be in the same class as Phrixos.
Just to clarify some things. ^^
The next Monday came round far quicker than Phrixos had wished. He woke up with a sore head and a mood, though why he couldn't explain quite why. Kim had been up for a while, and came to wake him up promptly.
"Wake up."
A groan.
"Hey, come on, wake up." And a shove.
Another groan, with a languid arm movement resembling a lazy slap through the air.
"Phrix! Wake up!" And she pulled the covers off. Which Phrixos put back.
The last straw was when she opened the windows, pulled the covers off and slammed the door once. He curled up into a ball and murmured that he was sick and couldn't get up, of course Kim just shoved him again. He moaned once, then obliged and got up.
He didn't even get to eat before she pushed him out of the door with his books and bag. Standing in the doorway with a gormless look on his face and she came out right after him. Yawning as loudly as he could, he caught sight of himself in the windows. His hair was a great raven mess, his green eyes dull and half-closed, and his school shirt collar flicked up like some crappy vampire Halloween costume. When he stopped, Kim carried on walking for a while, then did a double-take and turned back for him.
"C-mon, Phrixos. We'll be late." she said, tugging his arm like some kid to get her mother to come look at the toys in another shop. He ignored her and put a hand through his hair, he was going to make it look like it was ruffled and messed up on purpose. She tutted and pulled him away into the steadily filling corridors.
First hour was, on the whole, uneventful. He spent it in the receptionist's office, sitting sheepishly on a plastic chair while she made a few phone calls and got out lots of paper folders. One he recognised, Laura's, the one she'd brought to the asylum. The Student Head Director studied for a while, before turning her attention to the boy.
"Jack Caber?" she asked after reading it through again.
'Jack' nodded, better not confuse anyone yet.
"You'll be in the first year, then. But that will be sorted out promptly, I suppose."
He had no idea what she was talking about and just stayed silent.
He remembered something then, he thought it was lyrics, or a song. It was something his mother had had on at the house constantly.
Only dimly aware of a certain unease in the air…
The next hour was different, if you could use that word for something so opposite.
Class introduction.
Ick.
Phrixos had never been introduced into a new class ever, but always imagined it as like being in a zoo, ogled by the other kids and getting shoved right in the middle with the teacher saying that you'd 'fit right in' and everyone would 'make you feel welcome'.
Oh, so blissfully rose tinted.
Kim was worried for Phrixos. He hadn't seemed that good that morning and she'd seen how uncomfortable situations made him yesterday. She could only hope that he'd be in her class, or who knows what would happen.
She was also the first to hear the door open in French. Turning her head so fast it felt like it was going to dislocate, she saw a familiar SHD poke her head round the door and say
"2-3?"
Miss Parish looked up from her desk, and nodded.
The SHD came in, followed by a familiar Phrixos, who didn't look pleased at all with the situation.
"2-3, this is Jack Caber, a new student here in Greygrove. I trust you will make him feel welcome and part of our school."
That was it. Kim could see that he was just happy to find a seat at the back and breathe. Every pair of eyes were trained on him, but Miss Parish stood up and said
"Bon, classe, continuons avec notre travail, hmm?"
She watched them all turn back, all wonder who the tall skinny guy was.
When the bell went for recess, every student scrambled for the door. French was a dreaded subject, even if there was a new guy.
Kim walked over to Phrixos, hoisted the rucksack on her shoulder and grabbing her coat. He was busy stuffing his books into the recently repaired black bag.
"How are you, then?" she asked.
"Ecstatic." He answered sarcastically and looked up at her. She saw -thankfully- that a small smile was playing on his lips.
"Coming?"
He picked up the bag, nodded and followed Kim out.
"So, do you need no education?" asked the girl, laughing suddenly. He stopped and raised an eyebrow.
"What?"
"Oh, you don't get it." She sighed and rolled her eyes. "Not a Pink Floyd fan I take it."
He still didn't get it. Kim got a little mobile phone out of her pocket and pressed a button. Nothing happened. Taking a pair of headphones, she passed him one.
After a while, a low beat played, and he heard
We don't need no education,
We don't need no though control.
No dark sarcasm in the classroom
Teacher, leave them kids alone
…
Hey! Teacher, leave them kids alone!
They listened to it through the corridors, avoiding deftly the bustle of students running back and forth. Books flew from one side to the other and bags lay strewn on the floor and by the lockers. It's chaos, he thought, utter chaos.
They took up a bench outside and Kim turned over to another song.
A cling of coins, a till, what kind of song was this? Before long, a steady beat and a guitar riff cut through the noises.
Money, get away
Get a good job with polay hockey…
"Polay hockey?" he asked confusedly, to which Kim answered with a chuckle
"Get a good job with good pay and you're okay."
He mouthed an ohand continued to listen
Money, it's a gas
Grab that money with both hands and make a stash
New car, caviar, four star daydream
Think I'll buy me a football team.
"What?" Phrixos asked, raising a thin black eyebrow.
"Stop doing that!" she said
"Doing…?"
"Raising one eyebrow at me. I hate people who do that."
A short moment of nothing.
"Can you do it?" came his cocky reply.
"Jack! Where are you, I need your opinion on these blueprints!" cried Mayor through the iron speakerphone. Several nearby Towners covered their ears as a tall thin Skellington strode towards him.
"Blueprints?" asked Jack, taking one and studying it. A ghastly contraption, black and spiky. He liked spiky. Spikes were good.
"Yes Jack. Doctor Finklestein sent them over this morning. They're for some sort of…erm…" he stopped short and took a glance at the sheet.
"What is it?"
He scurried off to find the Doctor to ask that very question.
Jack took this as an opportunity to marvel at his town's newest marvels for the up-coming and marvellous Halloween.
Bat-spiders, good. Bear traps, always needed a few bear traps. The old trick balloons, Jack didn't get too near to them. Weird slimy green gunk, great idea but it didn't smell rotten. Try again.
"Jack!"
The Mayor came pottering over, another bunch of rolled up paper in one hand and a strange type of top hat with bat wings in the other.
He passed the Pumpkin King the papers and promptly tried to open the hat to read it. With a fluster, he swapped them and said
"It's a hat, Jack."
"I can see that, Mayor." He said with a smirk.
"No, no Jack, it's a bat-hat. You see, it's…" he stopped. trying to conjure up a suitable argument. "It's…got wings." He finished lamely and passed Jack the papers. Looking around, Jack placed the hat on the passing Corpse Kid's head and looked at the papers. A startled cry came from beside them, and they looked around to find its source.
Hovering a few feet above them, the Corpse Kid was desperately trying to take the bat-hat off his head, which had stuck itself over his sewn-up eyes and taken flight. The Halloween Towners stopped their trick making and observed the flying kid.
A smile, a genuine smile crossed Jack Skellington's skull, this was going on the list of things to take to the Human World.
"Mayor?" he said dreamily, still staring at the Corpse Kid, who was currently being brought back down to earth by the and Clown.
"Tell the Doctor to make a dozen new bat-hats."
Mayor nodded and hummed the Halloween tune as he went to see Doctor Finklestein again.
"Oh and Mayor?"
He stopped and looked.
"Tell him to make it a baker's dozen?" He added finally. Mayor smiled and continued on his way.
Jack was back in the study, sat on a comfy chair with Zero at his feet. Today had been good, but there was nothing on Libitina's behalf. She was supposed to contact Jack if she saw Phrixos and watch over him.
He yawned and picked up a book at random from the pile next to the chair. A fairly new one, with a brown leather cover. The title read 'Halloween History' and described the origins of the humans' Halloween and Halloween Towns former Pumpkin Kings and the like. He flipped through all the pages, ignoring the parts with too much writing and the parts with nothing at all.
"The human tradition of Halloween (also called Hallowe'en, All Hallows Eve, All Saints' Eve, Samhain, Spooky Day, Snap-Apple Night, Costume Day/Día de los Disfrazes and Pooky Night) is observed by many English-speaking nations, including the USA, Ireland, Scotland, England, Canada, sometimes Australia and New Zealand. It is a mostly cultural holiday with many significances that takes place on October 31st. It is celebrated with activities such as trick-or-treating, bobbing for apples, costume parties, craving jack-o'-lanterns…"
Imagine. If the Pumpkin King ever told his Halloween Towners that they were making Pooky Night this year, instead of Halloween.