Jake Long III (Season Five)
Chapter/Episode Eight: All of Our Memories Part 1
On the Island of Draco, the next morning, Holly was all alone, seated in the Main Hall, going over some papers. She was so busy that she didn't notice Councilor Asil poking his head in through the doorway before he started to walk into the building. "Good morning, Councilor Jennings." He greeted her.
This made Holly lift her head up. "Oh." She said when she saw Asil stopping in front of the large table. She smiled. "Good morning." She returned.
"Councilor Jennings, I was just wondering if you were aware that your sister-in-law is in the hospital." Asil said.
"No." A look of confusion quickly appeared on Holly's face. "No, I wasn't aware." After she said this, a look of panic overcame the look of confusion. "Why?! Do you know why?! Did she have another heart attack?!"
"I don't know." Asil said softly. "I can see what you're doing is important. So, why don't I take over for you? That way, you'll be able to see what happened with her."
Hearing this offer, Holly couldn't help but smile thankfully. "Thank you." She told him. "Thank you so much."
LINE BREAK
A short time later, Holly turned and stepped into the hospital, where she saw Storm, in her human form, sitting in a hospital bed with Councilor Agata sitting in front of her, also in her human form. At the foot of the bed stood Carmela and Stennis, both in their human forms.
Without a word, Holly continued to walk into the room, stopping beside Carmela and Stennis. As she stared at Agata's back, she leaned to the side, inching closer to Carmela. "Something wrong?" She whispered.
Holly could hear Carmela gasp slightly before she turned her head to the side to look at her Aunt. Both Carmela and Holly looked into each other eyes for a few seconds before Carmela finally responded: "We don't know." She said softly.
"She didn't have another heart attack, did she?" Holly asked.
"No." Carmela replied.
"Okay..." The sound of Agata's voice made both Carmela and Holly turn their heads back to normal, both of them watching as Councilor Agata got off of the bed, looking down at Storm. "...I'll be back as soon as I inspect the results of your tests." As she said this, she held up a needle-like device.
"Okay." Storm said softly.
Giving Storm a smile, Agata turned and walked away, not even bothering to acknowledge Holly's presence. After Agata exited the room, Holly sighed, getting Storm to notice her. "Oh, Holly." She said.
"Storm, Councilor Asil told me that you were in the hospital." Holly explained. "I panicked, so I came here. But, you seem fine."
"Hopefully, I am fine." Storm said.
"Care to tell me what's wrong?" Holly asked.
"Like I said, hopefully it's nothing." Storm said.
"But you're here because you fear it's something." Holly countered. "Care to tell me, or will I just find out when Councilor Agata comes back?"
Storm sighed. "I've just...been feeling weird lately." She admitted.
"Weird?" Holly asked. "What do you mean?"
"For a few months-"
"How many months?"
"Since early July." Storm answered. "Since early July, I've been feeling weird. I've had back pain, I've lost some weight, I've been feeling really tired. I-It's probably nothing." She assured herself and her family. "It's probably nothing. It's just...aging."
"We can only hope, Mom." Stennis said.
"Why didn't you come here in July?" Holly asked.
"I didn't think anything of it." Storm replied. "I thought these were signs of my old age. I...I kind of thought that they would...fix themselves."
"Obviously, they didn't." Holly noted.
"It's probably nothing." Storm repeated. "I'll probably be told to take it easy. Maybe I'll be given some medication. Maybe I'll be told to eat more. I don't know. We'll just wait and see what she says."
Just a second later, Councilor Agata turned and walked into the room, a troubled look on her face. "Looks like we'll find out right now." Storm said with a small smile as Councilor Agata walked down the side of the bed and finally sat down in front of Storm.
"Well?" Storm asked.
Agata took a deep breath and exhaled before she opened her mouth, a look of confusion appearing on Storm's face. "Should...Should I be concerned?" She asked.
"There's no easy way to tell you this..." Agata reported. "...So I'll just come right out and say it..."
"Okay." Storm said.
"You have Ovarian Cancer." Agata said grimly. "I'm sorry, but it doesn't look good. You're at Stage III, and the cancer has already spread. Again, I am sorry." She finished, apologizing for a second time to the woman who had an unreadable expression on her face.
BLACKOUT; PLAY THEME SONG
BACK TO THE STORY/SHOW
Storm continued to sit on her hospital bed, while Holly, Stennis and Carmela were standing with Councilor Agata, who was standing in the doorway. "Is there anything you can do?" Stennis asked, while both Carmela and Holly stood together, lost in their own thoughts. "There has to be some kind of treatment."
"Yes, there is." Agata confirmed. "But cancer treatment is hard on the body. Your mother is in her eighties. I don't know if she can handle it."
"Of...Of course she can!" Stennis insisted.
"If she thinks she can handle the treatment..." Agata told him. "...Then the Council will get her in contact with a good magical surgeon. However, that is up for you to decide as a family."
"There's nothing to decide!" Stennis declared. "Of course she'll try treatment!"
"I didn't hear her say that." Agata remarked.
Growling with frustration, Stennis turned and walked over to the bed his mother was sitting on. "Mom, tell her that you're up for the treatment." Storm said nothing in response to this; she just continued to sit in place. "Mom?" Stennis asked as he turned around the corner of the bed, starting to slowly step down the bed's side. "Mom, please answer me." Stennis calmly pleaded as he walked along the bed and finally sat down with his mother. "Mom?" He asked, gently reaching out and touching Storm's cheek. "Mom, please give me an answer. I want to help you. Tell her that you're up for it."
Storm just blinked before she finally responded: "Stennis..." This got a small smile from her son. Here it came. She was going to agree to go through with the treatment. "...I...I don't want to go through the treatment..."
Storm's answer swiped the smile right off of Stennis' face. "What?!" He asked. "Mom, no! Don't give up like this!"
Storm reached up and gently took hold of her son's wrist before she spoke again. With a small smile, she told him: "There's no point. I'm old and I've lost my husband."
"Exactly!" Stennis said. "Carmela and I lost our father. We don't want to lose our mother so quickly."
"But I'm ready." Storm told him. "I'm sorry, Stennis, but I'm ready. I'm tired of fighting. Right now, I think it'd be best if I just went out silently, hopefully in peace."
LINE BREAK
Meanwhile, in the cafeteria, Demetria, Dynean, Phoebe, Haley and Jake III were sitting at a table, Jake and Haley on one side, while Demetria, Dynean and Phoebe sat on the other. Jake had just finished once again explaining what had happened at the Animal Guardian Academy, only this time to Demetria, Dynean and Phoebe.
"Exciting." Demetria encouraged him.
"Well, seeing as you three are dragons..." Jake replied. "...I'm thinking that you've had your fair share of exciting moments like that."
"Oh, you think so?" Dynean asked.
"Yeah." Jake replied.
"Well, we've been in a few dangerous situations..." Demetria said. "...However, I think you'd be surprised to find out that the most exciting memory for me was when I first met my friends."
"Did something happen?" Jake asked.
"Oh, yes." Haley smiled. "They all found out that they had something in common. They found out that they were all dragons."
"It was 2048 and it was my first day of high school..." Demetria started.
FLASHBACK
Several teenagers were entering the campus of a high school on the very first day of a new school year. Across the street, two dragons, one an adult and one a teenager with a backpack on, landed, quickly reverting to their human forms.
Demetria stood with Ebony Bluford, her Dragon Master, who put her hands on her hips. "Well, go on." She said. Demetria started to listen to her Dragon Master, but after only one step, Ebony reached out and put a hand on her shoulder, stopping her. Turning her head to the side, Demetria stared at her Dragon Master. "What time do you get out of school?" Ebony asked.
"Um, three o'clock, I believe." Demetria answered.
"Dragon Training." Ebony told her sternly. "Three-fifteen. Central Park. Be there at exactly that time, or else you'll be spending your entire weekend with me. Got it?"
"Yes, Master." Demetria replied.
"Good." Ebony told her as she took her hand off of Demetria's shoulder.
With that, Demetria stepped down into the street and walked across. A few seconds later, Demetria reached the school, stepped up onto the sidewalk and walk through the entrance of the school.
LINE BREAK
A few seconds later, the bell rang, telling all students on the campus that it was time to get to class. Panting, Demetria ran around a corner, only to gasp as she ran into another girl. In response, both girls were forced to the side and the both fell down, landing on their hands and knees.
After catching herself, Demetria's eyes widened as she heard a cry coming from the other girl. Quickly turning her head to the side, Demetria could see that the other girl had a brace around her right wrist. With a look of pain on her face, the other girl turned so that she could sit down.
"Oh my-I'm...I'm sorry." Demetria tried to apologize, turning and sitting on her knees so that she could apologize to the other girl's face as the other girl took hold of her injured wrist. "I'm so sorry. I should have looked where I was going. I was just in a hurry."
"It's okay." The other girl replied, taking her hand away from her injured wrist.
"Are you sure?" Demetria checked.
"Yeah." The girl replied. "The pain is already going away. Besides, I wasn't watching where I was going either."
"What happened to your wrist?" Demetria questioned.
"Hurt it during training." The other girl replied.
"Training?"
"Yeah." The other girl said before she grunted, starting to get to her feet. "Need a hand?" She offered Demetria her good hand as Demetria looked up at her.
"Thanks." Demetria gave her a small smile as she took the hand, getting to her feet. "How did you hurt your wrist during training?"
"Can we not talk about it now?" The other girl asked. "I need to get to class before the bell rings."
"Yeah, me too." Demetria replied. "I don't know where to go, though. It's my first day."
"It's mine, too." The other girl told her. "Where are you going? What class do you have?"
"History." Demetria said. "Room 508."
"Me, too." The other girl smiled. "Why don't we look for it together, seeing as we're both completely lost?"
"That sounds good." Demetria said before she took a step to the side and turned, starting to walk back down the hall with the other girl.
"I think the classroom is this way." The other girl told Demetria.
"I like the idea of just following you." Demetria said, the two of them turning around the corner.
"Hey, do you mind if I ask you something?" The other girl asked.
"I guess not.
"What's that accent you have?"
"Oh, I'm from Ireland." Demetria said with a chuckle. "I moved here with my family a few years ago. Can I ask you something?"
"Go for it."
"What's your name?" Demetria asked.
"Dynean Prestwich." The other girl responded. "What's yours?"
"Demetria O'Grady."
BLACKOUT; COMMERCIAL
BACK TO THE STORY/SHOW
The final bell rang throughout the school. It was time for the first class of the day to begin. Now, there were only a few people out in the halls. Dynean and Demetria were two of them.
"I wonder if we're any closer..." Dynean said. "...Our first day of high school, and already, we'll probably get detention."
"I hope not." Demetria said.
As the two passed by the open door of one of the classrooms in the hall, a male teacher stepped out of the room, watching them walk by. "Um, girls?" He called, making Demetria and Dynean stop in their tracks.
Both girls slowly turned to face him, the teacher turning so that his side was facing the interior of his classroom. He smiled warmly at them. "Your first day?" He asked them.
"Yes." Dynean admitted.
"You both lost?" The teacher crossed his arms.
"Yes." Demetria spoke this time.
"What're your destinations?"
"We're both looking for room 508." Dynean said. "History class."
"Well..." The teacher's smile widened. "...You just so happen to be in luck. That would be my classroom. Can I ask what your names are?"
"I'm Dynean Prestwich, and she's Demetria O'Grady." Dynean finished, putting a hand on Demetria's shoulder.
"Aw, yes." The teacher nodded once. "Yes, your names are on the roll."
"Did you mark us absent?" Dynean asked before she and Demetria started to walk back towards the classroom.
"No." The teacher answered as the two girls reached him. He took a step back, allowing Demetria and Dynean to turn and enter the classroom. "There are quite a few people who haven't shown up yet." He said before he turned and followed them in. "Seeing as it is the first day at a new school for all of you, I've decided to wait a while for everyone to find their way. It's understandable that they'd get a little lost."
In the classroom, Dynean and Demetria found that it was set up like an elementary school classroom would be set up. The desks weren't in a line, but instead were in groups of four. The groups of four desks were in four rows of five. Some of the rows had every desk taken, and some had all but one seat taken. There was only one group that had two seats available: the one in the far left corner of the room, where two girls sat, across from each other.
"We can sit there." Dynean said, starting to walk over to that group of desks.
"Okay." Demetria replied, starting to follow her.
Within a few seconds, Dynean and Demetria reached the group of desks, both silently sitting down after taking off their backpacks.
"Okay..." The teacher said as he reached the front of the room, turning to face his class. "...While any extra students wander in, why don't you all get acquainted with one another?"
Hearing this, Dynean leaned in closer to the girl who was sitting next to her. "Hey, I'm Dynean." She said, offering her hand as the girl beside her glanced to the side.
"Phoebe." The girl next to her replied, offering Dynean her own hand. They shook.
"So, how do you like high school so far?" Dynean asked, turning her head to the side.
Phoebe smirked. "Class hasn't even started yet." She replied. "Therefore, I really can't tell you."
"Did you have any trouble finding this class?" Dynean asked.
"No." Phoebe replied, turning her head to the side as well. "My mom is friends with our teacher. They went to college together, and apparently kept in touch after. I didn't meet him until this morning, but he showed me around."
"So, perhaps he could help me around the school later today?" Dynean asked with a small smile.
"Sure he could." Phoebe smiled. "He helped me, so I'm sure he'd help you."
"What class do you have next?" Dynean asked.
"Um, PE." Phoebe replied. "You?"
"Math." Dynean said.
After Dynean said this, she and Phoebe turned their heads back to normal to see that Demetria and the girl sitting next to her were watching them. "Demetria, did you talk to this girl?" Dynean asked.
"I do have a name, you know." The girl sitting next to Demetria said defensively.
"And what is it, exactly?" Phoebe asked.
"Socorro." The girl sitting next to Demetria said with a smile. "And you two are?"
"I'm Phoebe." Phoebe said. "This is Dynean."
"Did Demetria tell you her name?" Dynean asked.
Socorro smirked. "Yes, she did." Socorro replied. "But if she hadn't before, she wouldn't need to now."
Meanwhile, the teacher continued to watch the door to see if anymore students were entering. After seeing two more boys and one girl entering together, all three of them moving towards empty seats, the teacher smiled and crossed his arms.
"Alright, everyone..." He said. "...I think I've waited long enough. Hopefully everyone is here now, because it's time to start the introduction to this class..."
LINE BREAK
A few hours later, at lunch, as hundreds of high school students sat at the tables, Demetria, after receiving her tray and exiting the food line, stood all alone, not knowing where to sit. From where she was standing, it looked like all of the tables were completely full (or at least so crowded that, even if there was a place for her to sit, she would probably feel incredibly uncomfortable).
"Demetria!" However, the sound of Dynean's voice made her turn her head to the side, seeing Dynean standing near the front doorway. Smiling, Dynean waved at her. Smiling, Demetria turned and started to walk over to her, meeting up with her within a few seconds.
"Hey." Demetria said as she stopped in front of Dynean.
Dynean smiled. "It looks pretty crowded in here." She noted.
"It is." Demetria replied, disappointed. "I don't think I'll be able to find a place to sit. That's saying a lot, considering that I'm pretty small. I don't take up that much room."
"What, you're just going to sit alone?" Dynean asked.
"Eh..." Was Demetria's response as she raised her shoulders, trying her best to shrug even though she was holding her food.
"We can't have that." Dynean said, crossing her arms. "We really can't. I think you should sit with us."
"I can sit with you?" Demetria asked with a small smile.
"Of course you can." Dynean continued to smile as she put her hands on Demetria's shoulders. "How else are you going to make friends?"
"Wait." Demetria added, her smile fading. "You said 'us'. Who is 'us'?"
"Phoebe and Socorro." Dynean took her hands off of Demetria's shoulders. "I hope you don't mind that it's kind of like having history class twice in one day."
"It's fine with me." Demetria replied.
"Then follow me." Dynean said before she turned and walked out of the cafeteria. Without another word, Demetria started to follow her, quickly catching up and walking alongside her.
"Hey, Dynean, can I ask you something?" Demetria turned her head to the side.
"Sure, go for it."
"This morning, you told me that you hurt your wrist during training." Demetria recalled. "When I asked you what exactly happened, you told me that we could talk about it later."
"I did indeed." Dynean replied before she turned her head to the side to look at Demetria.
"So, what happened?" Demetria asked. "What kind of training were you doing?"
Dynean chuckled nervously. "What would you say if I told you that I could turn into a big, fire-breathing reptile?" She asked.
"You're a dragon?!" Demetria's eyes widened.
"You don't...have a problem with that, do you?"
"No!" Demetria said, now smiling. "Dynean, look!" Upon saying this, bright lights appeared around her ears, turning them into her pointy, scaled dragon ears.
"You're a dragon, too?" Dynean asked.
"Uh-huh." Demetria said before she reverted her ears back to human form. "So, you hurt your wrist during dragon training. How'd that happen?"
"My Dragon Master and I were sparring." Dynean said as she turned her head back to normal. "He lifted his foot up and kicked. I tried to block it with my hand. I missed, and instead of blocking it with my hand, I blocked it with my wrist."
"Ouch."
"Well..." Dynean smirked as she turned her head back to the side. "...At least he didn't break it."
"How did your Dragon Master react?" Demetria asked.
"Oh, he felt really bad about it." Dynean answered. "I think he still does. It was an accident, though, so it's not a big deal."
LINE BREAK
A short time later, Dynean and Demetria arrived at the table that Socorro and Phoebe were seated at, which was in-between two rows of classrooms. Upon reaching the table, the two of them split up, Dynean walking down one side of the table, while Demetria walked around the other side. As Phoebe and Socorro watched, Demetria and Dynean sat down together, facing them.
"Hi." Phoebe addressed Demetria.
"Hey." Demetria returned.
"She was going to sit alone." Dynean said. "Now she has a place to eat."
"Where she won't be alone." Phoebe added, stating the obvious.
""And hopefully..." Dynean said with a smirk. "...She'll continue to sit with us."
"Unless she gets sick of us..." Phoebe joked.
"I don't think that's going to happen." Demetria told her.
"Are you sure?" Phoebe continued to joke around. "If you'd like, I can be as obnoxious as I possibly can."
"We should make it a game." Socorro chimed in. "Whichever one of us manages to push her away first wins."
Demetria chuckled. "Why would you want to do that?" She asked them.
"We don't know." Was Phoebe's response.
Throughout the remainder of lunch, Demetria, Dynean, Socorro and Phoebe continued to talk to one another, starting to get to know each other better.
LINE BREAK
At the end of the school day, after the final bell that dismissed all students had rung, many students were crowding out of the school. Amongst them was Demetria. As all of the other students kept walking, crossing the street, Demetria stopped at the edge of the sidewalk.
"Demetria?" Upon hearing the sound of Dynean's voice, Demetria turned her head to the side, seeing the smiling Dynean exiting the school.
As Dynean met up with Demetria, Demetria turned around to face her. "Demetria, do you have any plans for this afternoon?" Dynean asked.
"Y...Yeah." Demetria said. "I'm...I'm actually kind of surprised that you're asking me."
"W...Why?" Dynean looked confused.
"You're a dragon." Demetria said. "Aren't you busy with Dragon Training?"
"No, not today." Dynean smiled. "First of all, my Dragon Master is going a little easier on me after he hurt my wrist. Second of all, he gave me the day off because it was my first day at a new school. It's a big change, you know."
"Yeah..." Demetria agreed.
"That's not the case for you?" Dynean asked.
"No." Demetria said, sounding disappointed. "I have to meet my Dragon Master in Central Park in about fifteen minutes. If I'm not there at exactly 3:15, I'll be spending my weekend doing more training."
"Oh." Dynean said before she smiled. "Well, then I guess I should let you get going."
"Yeah."
"Well..." Dynean's smile widened. "...Then I will see you tomorrow."
"Definitely." Demetria smiled. "Lunch at the same spot, us four?"
"Definitely." Dynean replied.
END FLASHBACK
On the Island of Draco, Councilor Asil was seated alone at the large table inside the Main Hall. There were only two more papers for him to go through. After finishing one, he turned it face-down and put it with the others. Quickly, Asil went over the last piece of paper as the devastated Holly turned and slowly made her way back into the building.
After finishing with the last piece of paper, Asil turned it face-down on top of the pile and then moved the pile of papers closer to him. Taking the stack in both hands, Asil stood up, and as he looked up, he could see Holly stop in front of the table, an unreadable look on her face.
Asil smiled at her. "Councilor Jennings, you'll be happy to know that I finished going through these papers. Um, why were you going through them, again?"
Holly didn't answer him. Instead, her lips trembled for a few seconds before she finally broke down. Squeezing her eyes shut and gritting her teeth, she failed to keep a mournful sob in. Seeing this, Asil's smile quickly faded. "Um, Councilor?" He asked.
Holly didn't respond. Instead, she only whimpered as she lowered her head, looking at the floor.
"Councilor?" Asil asked again, setting down the stack of papers and then hurrying around the table to get over to Holly's side. "Councilor Jennings, please tell me what's wrong."
Holly sniffled before she lifted her head back up. "Storm has cancer." Holly said before she turned her head to the side.
"Cancer?" Asil asked.
"Her prognosis is grim." Holly said. "First Riley and now Storm."
"Councilor..." Asil had no idea what to say, but he tried anyway. "...I...I...I'm sorry. Is...Is there anything I can do?"
"No." Holly said bluntly.
"How is she taking it?" Asil asked.
"Pretty well." Holly's voice cracked. "Better than me. Better than Stennis. Better than Carmela. Better than she should be taking it."
BLACKOUT; END EPISODE
A/N: Please review.