What Was The World Coming To?
Chapter 12
All because Of a Moon-Peach Tree
With the gifts given out the night before and her parents as well as her 'guests' sleeping in and the twins attending school she was left alone in the house.
Nadra surfed channels as she lay awkwardly on her couch. Her mind travelled back to the night before. The gifts her parents got her from Rome weren't traditional- sure they got her a golden circlet but when would she ever wear that? They got the twins matching clothes that were inspired by togas, but other than those they had got them stuff that they could have bought in Cali.
For Nadra they got gold and white vans much to Nadra's dismay. They also quote, quote said 'they'd be staying her dance competition' and 'we bought these because we knew it'd look perfect on you!' She groaned and stopped surfing channels when she reached channel 25- Spongebob was on.
For Aiden, her dad got him a white cap that said 'Daddy's Little Soldier', everyone thought the cap was cute, but it just made Nadra sad. One of her favourite episodes in the series was 'Tales of Ba Sing Se'. She remembered the whole song Iroh sang for Lu Ten and it just made her really emotional. Not like she showed it anyway…. Also they got him a black hoodie that had 'ANCIENT GLADIATOR TRAPPED INSIDE OF MY BODY' in white letters. Nadra didn't get it. For Addi, she had gotten a skin tight pale pink shirt that read 'Prettier than Aphrodite' which Nadra had to agree with. Addi has received some stunning jewellery and hair clips.
The raven haired teen was quite surprised everyone was sleeping in so much that day but didn't mind. It was nice to finally enjoy the silence she had been long deprived off. She didn't bother making breakfast or in this case, afternoon. Her parents could make lunch.
Nadra's stomach dropped as her dance crew would be coming over to rehearse and discuss about the judges. She couldn't bear to tell her parents she wouldn't be dancing- they bought her two hundred dollar vans just for her dance! If she could barely tell her parents, how the hell would she be able to tell her friends!
Nadra shifted onto her back and grabbed a nearby pillow and shoved it in her face and released her anger by screaming her guts out.
"I didn't know you were so stressed at this time of day."
Nadra rolled her eyes and lazily threw her pillow in the general direction of the husky voice. "Zuko, you're the reason I'm in this situation."
Without any effort he dodged the pillow and left it on the ground then walked over to the couch she was on and lifted her legs up so he could sit. "How many times do I have to apologize?"
Nadra sat upright, "You've apologized enough. I was just playin'." She admitted with a smirk. Zuko leaned his elbow on the couch rest and quirked a brow, "What are we watching?"
Nadra turned her head to the t.v which was currently showing Patrick tell a really crappy story to Spongebob.
'Once upon a time, there was an ugly barnacle. He was so ugly, that everybody died.'
Nadra cracked up, "Aw, shit. You gotta love Patrick." She wiped a fake tear and grinned at Zuko.
"I find it stupid. Why would he say that to his friend?"
Nadra face-palmed, "Are you serious? Dude, it's a cartoon. It's-" she shook her head, "I'm not gunna bother."
Zuko rolled his eyes and watched the cartoon reluctantly. Before either of them could strike up a conversation, the door bell rang.
"Oh shit." Nadra squeaked and got up slowly, "Oh God, please tell me it's not them…." She muttered.
"Who?" Zuko asked curiously straightening himself. Nadra looked back, "My dance crew. Speak when spoken to, okay?" she opened the door before he could reply.
"Hey, babe! How you doin'?" a fair skinned guy embraced Nadra in a hug and air kissed her. He wore purple skinny jeans with a white button up shirt with a pink vest. His black hair was tied back into a low slick ponytail. His eyes were a light green.
Nadra laughed, "Hey, Dwight."
He let himself in, "I brought your crew." He extended a hand revealing her crew which consisted of five people.
Nadra waved and smiled, "Come in girls."
The girls let themselves in and hugged her as they did. Ignoring Zuko, the girls plus Dwight gathered around the coffee table and sat on the couches.
Zuko raised a brow and inched away to make the biggest gap he could between Dwight and himself.
"Alright," one of the girls that looked a lot like Nadra laid down a printed paper of a man in his early twenties, "This is one of the judges. He looks at the footwork, it has to be absolute perfection."
"Wait, before we go any farther, I've got something to say." Nadra slammed her hand down on the coffee table. The group of people looked at her and stopped moving.
"Well, what is it? Tomorrow is the contest, we've got to move fast today." Dwight pointed out.
"Well," she hesitated and looked at Zuko for help. He looked away and hid his face behind his shaggy hair, "You see…..I'm not going to be able to dance tomorrow…..."
Zita and Will sat in silence at the table eating 'Kellogs'. Will kept his eyes on the older girl sitting across from him in case she would do something fishy or throw the salt shaker in his eyes.
"Calm down, I'm not going to throw a salt shaker in your face." She rolled his eyes and took another bite of her cereal. Will flinched and rolled his eyes, "I know that Zorro." He scoffed.
"Whatever you say, Fredward."
They sat in silence for a little more until Will finally spoke up, "Since I don't trust you with my house, you're going to have to do grocery shopping with me."
"Fair enough." She half shrugged. He was right not to trust her with his house. Who knows what horrible things she could do…..the possibilities were endless, "I need new clothes too right?"
Will looked the girl over, "Yah, I guess." He nodded. Zita grinned, "Sweet, the gold you aren't going to use for food, I get to use for my essentials."
The boy groaned and let his head fall and make a large thump sound as his head collided with the table, "Wonderful." He replied sarcastically.
"Oh come on, it's not that bad." Zita pointed out, "I mean seriously, all I'm going to buy is a couple pairs of clothing and some private crap and boom bam, I are done."
Will lifted his head, "Alright….if you say so." Somehow he couldn't just trust her when she said that. Oh Agni….
"Alright!" Spade fist-pumped the air and grabbed her purse that hung on the door knob, "Let's bounce!" she unlocked the door and let her guests exit first.
"Minya, where are we going?" Iroh asked the younger girl. Spade grinned at both Iroh and Toph, "Well, usually I'd steal or scam some clothes from my neighbours for you guys, but I thought I'd just bring you to the mall instead."
Toph raised a brow, "Spade, you scam?" she grinned. Spade nodded, "Mmhm, it's a gift. I know you scam." She chuckled. Toph puffed out her chest, "Well, you know." She bragged.
Iroh shook his head, he would let them talk about this and that for now but he was slightly at unease with all the talk of scamming and thieving. What if someone heard them? Or recognized Minya?
Spade, noticing Iroh's worrisome expression patted him on the back, "Don't worry Iroh. I never get caught and no one ever recognizes me." She told him reassuringly.
Iroh nodded and returned a hesitant smile, "Of course, Minya. I trust you with that."
Spade nodded, "Good. We'll catch the bus here." She leaned against the bus stop pole. Before Toph could ask what a bus was Spade explained and cleared it up.
Toph and Iroh clutched the pole inside the bus as he ran over the bumps and stopped hard. Spade laughed, "Bring it on down." She lowered her hand, "We'll be at the mall soon."
Toph loosened her grip on the pole and looked out the window- no matter ow many times she saw the world or the colors, the shapes she would never get tired of it. She couldn't wait to get back to her world and explore the world with her new found vision.
Iroh still held on tight to the pole but shifted slightly to look out the scratched plastic glass. It was so much different from home. The houses looked different and they didn't have dirt roads, the roads were covered with 'cement'. The machines on wheels were similar to the machines at the Fire Nation, but the machines here didn't bring destruction to anyone they only helped the people with transportation.
"I must admit, these things are very useful when travelling."
Spade nodded, "Yah, some people don't really like walking so they take busses and cars and skytrains and stuff."
Toph looked at her, "You have trains that fly!"
Spade laughed as Toph got strange looks from people on the bus, "No, 'skytrains' aren't trains in the sky." She tapped her chin thinking of a way to explain the machine, "We'll ride the skytrain on our way home."
The two agreed with the statement as the bus rolled into its stop at the mall, Spade stood up proudly, "We're finally here."
"You're being released." Yew-Ta unlocked the door. Cindy snorted and woke up instantly, "Say what now? I'm being released?"
Yew-Ta nodded, "You're released. From the cell." He added with a smirk. Cindy pouted, "So….I still needa stay on the ship, but I get to leave the cell?"
Yew-Ta nodded, "Basically and for as long as you're on this ship you have to stay with me."
"Oh em gee! I can barely contain my bodily fluids!" Cindy jumped up in down in fake enthusiasm. Her face was dead pan after. Yew-Ta rolled his eyes, "Wonderful, I'm stuck with a retard."
Cindy smirked, "Oh well!" she shrugged and walked out of the cell, "You know what the first thing I'm going to do is?"
Yew-Ta closed the cell door and began walking to the door, "What?"
"I'm going to….TAKE A SHOWER!" she grabbed his wrist and spun him around so he faced her and screamed in his face.
Yew-Ta grabbed his wrist back and walked out of the door, "Joyous."
Cindy grinned happily and followed him out, "You know, this whole thing was all because of a trip to a moon peach tree."
"All because of a moon peach tree, eh?" Yew-Ta pondered upon the fact.
Three seven year olds stood out on the courtyard waiting for the school bell. They had been excused from class earlier for being 'good role models'. Though, if you looked, it didn't really look like it...
"Hey!" Aiden stood in front of his sister in attempts to protect her from the bully. Addi held back tears and got back on her feet, blood trickling down her knee.
"Awww, are you crying?" the bully put a finger to her lip innocently, "Is the big baby hurt?" the bully laughed.
Aiden pushed his sister behind him and glared, "Oh shut up Ivy! Besides, all Addi was doing was telling the truth. In the dance competition tomorrow, Nadra's dance group will win against Envy's." He scoffed with a smirk.
Ivy was the best looking girl in their grade. If girls didn`t have cooties the guys would be all over her. Her skin was mocha coloured and her eyes were a light hazelnut color. Her hair was coal black and stopped a little below her shoulder. Her side bangs almost covered her right eye. She wore a hot pink tube top with black skinny jeans. Her flats were silver.
Ivy growled and grabbed his collar jerking him forward, "You wanna bet, boy?"
Addi limped forward a couple steps and grabbed her brother back, "Back off, Ivy!" she said protectively. Ignoring his sisters attempt to protect him, he walked up dangerously close to Ivy and japed her chest, "I do wanna bet."
Ivy pushed him back and he stumbled at the force into Addi's arms. "Are you sure you want to do this?" Addi whispered worriedly. Aiden nodded, "Of course."
Ivy smirked, "Alright. If Envy wins, which everyone knows she will," she flipped her hair, "then you'll convince your sister to quit dance."
"It's not like she'll listen to us." Addi stepped forward only to cringe at her knee scrape. Aiden nodded, "Yah, dancing is her dream."
Ivy laughed, "Nadra will obey anything you ask her. You two are her family- her whole life. If you word it correctly, she'll quit."
Aiden glared, "If Envy is so good, then why do you want Nadra to quit? Is she some kind of threat?" he smirked.
Ivy remained silent for a split second before speaking up, "Maybe she is." she shrugged.
"Fine then. If Nadra wins, which everyone knows she will," Addi imitated in a snobby voice while twirling her hair between her fingers, "you have to leave me and my brother alone and you have to tell your stupid sister to back off of Nadra."
Ivy shrugged, "Alright, I don't really care. Nadra's going to lose anyway, Envy heard she couldn't dance from some freak fire accident."
Aiden and Addi exchanged looks, "Where'd you hear that?"
Ivy laughed, "Oh! So it's true? Now, I really have nothing to worry about."
Aiden clenched his fists' no one ever talked about his sister like that.
"It's not like it matters, Nadra always comes out on top." Addi replied.
Ivy yawned, uninterested, "We'll see about that."
The school bell rang and kids pooled out of their classes as Ivy blended in with the crowd.
Aiden helped his sister walk home as they both knew no one would be coming to pick them up that day.
Who knew grade 2 was so dramatic?
TBC