Monday, the only day of scheduled school this week before we started Spring Break, hit me square in the face. My groggy mind registered an email sent out to all members before anything else on my phone screen. I rubbed my eyes, rolled out of bed, and silenced my alarm of a frequently beaten up character from a television show shouting the word alarm at the top of his lungs. I pulled a shirt over my head and got dressed before reading the message. Once I procured a pair of pants, I slithered back to my bedside table and unlocked the phone again to read the exciting email.
'I am sunk beneath the water that cleanses,
safe in a container of breathable air.
A body hangs over me,
gloriously stretched out and gazing below.
The room smells of pristine pressed linen
and songbirds' voices resonate in the room.
Speak not when the leader speaks,
for xe will lead all down the correct path.
The lawless one, the serpent of old, is not welcome here,
though the doors are always standing open,
ready to welcome others in need of help or safety.
While the doors remain steadily open,
few walk the halls unless it is the day of rest.'
'The Opal Ring of Sanctitude is worth 300 points, boosts angelic or holy powers, and grants demon resistance to the owner. Have fun! - Ms. Spiefer'
The Opal Ring of Sanctitude sounded like something I wanted to get my hands on. Plus, it would help Nashita out. I could think about it today during my date. Rachel was supposed to come over and watch movies with me, and we would have the house to ourselves since my dad had practice until later tonight.
I headed towards the living room, but I stopped, beginning to think about what a mess today was going to be. I had to escort Taylor around the school, which meant I would be an instant Badger target. The werewolf would be out to get me any way he could, and tear me to shreds. I didn't want that masked weirdo breathing down my neck and sinking his claws into my shoulder.
"Fey, come here," I heard my dad call from the living room, luring me towards him. Why did he stay here this late in the morning? I walked in, and gazed upon a tired, worried figure. His eyes scanned a book, but upon hearing me enter, he looked up.
"You're home today?" I asked curiously, but smiled in greeting. He looked unbelievably nervous and unsteady, a rare emotion for him.
"Yes, I'm off today. The company has some supplies coming in." He answered, fidgeting with the spectacles on the end of his nose and closing his book after putting his bookmark into place. He never would fold the page over. I remember distinctly one time as a small kid when he scolded me for doing it. I usually use school info pamphlets for bookmarks now. "Fey, I wanted to talk to you. I should have brought it up sooner, but I didn't know how to approach it, so I waited." He took a breath, thought his words over, and then finally spoke up again.
"You're grounded as of today, and for the rest of Spring Break. I need your phone, and after you get home from school, you're going to stay home unless you go to practice with me, or to a showing. Opening Night is tomorrow, you know. I'm sorry." He shook his head, putting himself back on track. My heart sank into the depths of my stomach. The event was tomorrow, too. I wouldn't be able to go. I loved my dad's productions, but I planned to go to the play's second showing so that I could participate in the event. "I went to your room to wish you goodnight last night, and I couldn't find you, so I waited up. You didn't come home until around midnight!" He paused, regaining composure. "That concerns me, because I love you a lot. Too much for you to get hurt, especially in an unfamiliar town. I'm really sorry, Fey. I know you looked forward to that school event."
I wanted to be mad, but no anger surfaced. My stomach burned with guilt. I deserved this, honestly. I knew that he would be mad and concerned when he found out. "No, it's okay. I understand. I'm sorry, dad." My face flushed with guilt and embarrassment. I could feel the heat climb around my cheeks, choking me. My date with Rachel resurfaced in my mind, and a sparkle of hope lingered in my chest. " Can I still have my date with Rachel, since it will be here at home?"
The geeky man I knew as my loving father stopped to contemplate this for a moment, and then finally, he nodded. "Yes, but she can't spend the night. Okay?" He looked up at me, seemingly relieved that I did not throw a fit and start crying or something like popular movies show. Then again, my memory fails as to when my dad last grounded my. I behave well and stay on the straight and narrow; I snuck out for the first time last night. If I were not messing with this game, I would say with some certainty that my first time never would arrive.
"Okay, thank you." I forced a light smile, powerless to hide my crinkling nose and watery eyes. Regardless, nothing could change the wrong I committed. "Love you, dad. I'm sorry."
"It's okay. I just don't want it to happen again. I love you, too." I handed him my phone after turning it off, but those words hurt even more than the previous ones. I headed out the door, readjusting my bag and taking a deep breath. Those words hurt more because I knew I had to do it again just so I could go to the Big Event. I could make up for it afterwards, cook him dinner and apologize as much as I could. Despite everything, I had to make it to that event. I graduated this year, and that meant next year's event loitered just out of reach for me.
After a crowded bus ride, Taylor waited at the doors just as they said they would. They hadn't fixed their cape, opting to leave it torn and shredded. I thought it fit their character better, even though they behaved the exact opposite of any demon I've ever heard of.
"Hello, Fey. It's nice to see you doing well." Their eyes sparkled, genuinely glad to see that I arrived healthy and I wanted it to remain that way. If I wanted to make it to that event, no one could know my dad grounded me, especially as a Senior in High School.
"You too, Taylor." I smiled, approaching their side. A new thought occurred to me. "So, uh, how does this work? I've never been a hostage escort before."
"It's pretty simple." Taylor explained, fixing their frazzled hair that seemed to have a mind of its own. "You just have to walk around with me and 'protect' me from being rescued. Since these halls are technically a no-war zone, there's no worry. Here's your slip from Ms. Spiefer." They handed me a small, pink slip, with both of our details on it, indicating that I could be late to escort them. "They usually don't include class time in the escorts, you would go to your own class and I would go to mine, but since today is mostly a teacher conference day, Ms. Spiefer said it would be alright." I nodded, smiling on the outside, but my heart rammed in my ears. Despite the no-war zone, I expected a visit from everyone's least favorite werewolf.
We walked through the doors, and for the first time since walking into the crazy place, scrutinous eyes scoured our figures. Usually, whenever anyone walked in through a door, people would look over at who entered and then go back to their own thing. Today, all eyes trapped us within their gazes. The word quickly got around that the Phoenixes captured the Badger's Moderator. The two people that Rowdy, Leighton, and I saw in the diner looked over, and both their views fused with hatred. Jacy and Dexter wanted me gone, too. All of the Badgers seemed so vicious, except for the one standing next to me. In order to get my mind off all the piercing, curious eyes, I decided to make some sort of conversation.
"I never got to ask you, Taylor. Why did you join the Badgers, anyway?" I inquired nervously; I rubbed my arms as they led the way to their first class, even though the bell had not rang yet. Relief washed over me as the action led me away from all the murderous intent in the hallway. "Not to be mean, but you are the opposite of their vibe."
"Oh." The demon answered, looking off in a different direction. My heart raged in guilt, now realizing the rudeness in my question. An answer finally left their throat anyway. "When I came to this school, I signed up for Dreamveil like most others. Unfortunately, when I applied to the groups, no one accepted me. Ms. Spiefer told me I was welcome to make my own group from scratch, that she would find me a base, or that I could apply again." They sighed, twiddling their fingers. "I also had the option to be a rogue character, like Zeke before he joined the Badgers. Rogue characters can be mercenaries for either side and do what they want, but that didn't feel like me."
"So I applied again, since I knew about the lack of space for a new group. Even then, only one group said yes; the Badgers accepted me. Abigail took me in like a best friend, and helped me with everything." A dreamy look crossed their eyes- a look of forlorn hope and admiration. "She's really great, even though she can be mean sometimes. She was the only one to take me in and let me have a team I could call home. I assume the others didn't want me because of my leg. That's alright, though, I understand. Most people see me and think I'm not capable of much." They looked over to me, smiling, but the happiness stopped at their smile. It refused to invade their eyes with joy like their other smiles often did. No, bitterness still slept on their lips.
"Abigail is that nice to you?" I asked with disbelief. My heart rocked. My mind denied picturing Abigail treating anyone kindly, and the way that she regarded Taylor on the day of my screening scared me. Then, realizing that might make them feel worse, I spoke again. "Sorry, I just haven't been around her that much. I don't really know what she acts like."
"Aw, jeez, Fey, I wish you knew. She's my universe." The person paused to release a happy sigh. "She takes amazing care of me and treats me better than my parents or how the other teams did." They said, eyes sparkling and a bit of red tinge entering their cheeks. "I mean, sometimes she can be kind of mean, but everyone's human, you know?" They answered, completely believing every word falling out of their mouth with conviction. Doubt infected my expression.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, look! It's the fat, flightless, faggot bird!" That sneering voice hit my ears, stopping both Taylor and I in our tracks. "And the disabled, damnable deserter trails along after her." Zeke hissed, moving from behind us to in front of our field of vision. His mask twitched a little bit with every word, and if he moved his head, the red beaded necklace around his neck made a small tinkling sound.
"What's up, furry fleabag? Did you leave your collar at home, Fido? I don't have a spare." I didn't miss a beat, and I raised an eyebrow in intimidation. I grew used to the fat and gay insults at my home town school, so they didn't bother me anymore. I could snap back faster than those stupid little metallic slap bracelets. However, I did have to admit, flightless bird was a new one.
"I swear to God, I am not a furry!" The boy barked, face turning red, and immediately the regret of starting this conversation with an insult soaked into his eyes. Yeah, that's right, Flynn, you picked the wrong girl to pick a word duel with. Taylor's eyes instantly hit the floor, upset, and unable to respond. I looked over, concern robbing me of my hatred for Zeke, but not for long.
"That traitor is just mad because their 'girlfriend' would rather take off my costume than theirs." He let out an odd, wheezing laugh that reminded me of a hyena. Taylor seemed even more upset at this, and my heart burned.
"Abigail's your girlfriend?" I asked, my dark eyes swarming them for a sign of a way I could help. The demon beside me whispered a weak 'no'.
"Exactly. She's mine and they know it, so it pisses them off." I listened as Zeke purposely stumbled over their pronouns, which gave me the impression of Zeke being an even bigger jerk than I knew him to be.
"Would you just leave Taylor alone? They're not a traitor, Leighton captured them, so they have to travel with me. That's the rules." I hissed, and a laugh echoed into my ears in response. Sometimes I wondered if the only sound Zeke could produce besides talking was cruel laughter.
"Sure, sure, believe what you want." He waved my words away before those eyes that I associated so much with brutality scorned my body. For the first time in a long time, my insecurities came back. The redhead's lips parted in a sneer of chaos that I couldn't see for the faux maw of a snarling werewolf. "That's alright though. We'll get them back, and make you guys pay for it. No biggie." The beast stalked off down the hallway, leaving me in the wake of my own thoughts.
"Just ignore him," Taylor whispered, eyes finally lifting as they slowly forced themself to walk forward again. "He's like that all the time, to everybody. Let's just get this over with, it'll be okay." Our final words to each other faded away, leaving the school day mostly silent.
Leighton met me at the end of seventh period, promising to take Taylor home since they lived on the same time of town. I didn't really mind, that gave me more time to prepare for not only my date, but for the event, too.