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| This chapter will be the last one before a short hiatus. I need to deal with some at home issues and come up with some new material for the next major story line. Thank you for your patience. :) |
Chapter 12: Class Act, Part 1
The alarm began to ring as Maria was snapped out of the first night she's had without any nightmares. She groggily shook her head, she groaned and rolled over to try and turn off the alarm, but instead went careening over 6 feet to the floor with a loud thump. “Ow...” She groaned in pain, but the slam caused Jonah, sleeping underneath of her to quickly wake up in shock. “WHAT THE HELL!?” He shouted in surprise, looking down at Maria on the floor. Maria sighed and dusted herself off, throwing the blankets that went down with her back onto her bunk.
A small, white kitten with green eyes walked up to Maria and bumped his head against Maria's leg. Jonah got out of bed and revealed his blue full body pajamas with pictures of white roses on them.”You alright...?” He asked out of concern, but Maria shrugged her shoulders. “It happens... Is that a cat?” Maria replied, as Lily and Gabriel got out of their own bunks on the other side of the dorm room.
“Oh yeah, I forgot about that! That happened while you were gone yesterday, Maria. I thought maybe our dorm could have a pet or something to lighten up the mood. I know you lost your cat in the accident n' all.” Lily said, immediately contradicting her previous statement of lighting up said mood. Maria reached down to pick it up, staring at it face to face as it gave a friendly meow. “At least it looks cute enough.” She commented, the cat leaning up to bump it's nose against hers.
“What should we name it?” Jonah asked, Lily smiling and pointing her finger in the air as she spoke. “I was thinking... Snowy.” She suggested, Jonah looking at it with a squint and poking it with it's finger. “I was thinking something cool... Like Onyx.” He commented, Maria pulled it into her arms and it curled up as she looked at him nonplussed. “Onyx is a black gem, Idiot.” Maria corrected, staring down at it. “I know that... I was trying to be ironic.” Jonah complained, annoyed by Maria not being phased by his special sense of irony.
“Well, let's see what Maria thinks!” Lily suggested enthusiastically, Maria held up the cat eye to eye and stared at it. Her moody red ones meeting with it's green eyes of vacant stupidity. It meowed again at her and kicked it's feet some more. “How bout... Cat.” Maria stated with a completely straight face. Everyone else in the room just quietly face palmed. “Maria... That name sucks.” Jonah said with the most disappointed voice imaginable. Maria put the cat down and shrugged her shoulders, even while everyone couldn't even bother to look at her. “What...? I'm not that creative.”
Lily sighed and turned to Gabriel next. “Well... We haven't asked you yet, what do you think?” She requested of Gabriel, Lily picking up the cat to gently pet him in her arms. Gabriel started to scratch his chin as he fished for ideas. “Lord Tiberius Meowsby The Third.” Everyone look dumbfounded for a second, before Jonah cleared his throat. “Uhh... All in favor for not using that name...?” He asked, Maria raising her hand and quietly saying “Aye.”
“It was only just a suggestion!” Gabriel commented, chuckling to himself and walking over to his clothes drawer to get his uniform out. Maria sighed and rolled her eyes before heading to the drawer herself. “Oh crap...” She said, turning around and looking away. “What is it, Maria?” Lily asked, Not sure what her problem was this time. Maria crossed her arms in front of her chest as she looked away. “I didn't buy a replacement outfit after I got out of the hospital.” Maria explained, but Jonah quickly responded by pulling open the drawer and digging around a little bit. “You can wear my jacket and pants, Maria. Florence left his old ones in here and I could just wear those.”
The alarm began to ring as Maria was snapped out of the first night she's had without any nightmares. She groggily shook her head, she groaned and rolled over to try and turn off the alarm, but instead went careening over 6 feet to the floor with a loud thump. “Ow...” She groaned in pain, but the slam caused Jonah, sleeping underneath of her to quickly wake up in shock. “WHAT THE HELL!?” He shouted in surprise, looking down at Maria on the floor. Maria sighed and dusted herself off, throwing the blankets that went down with her back onto her bunk.
A small, white kitten with green eyes walked up to Maria and bumped his head against Maria's leg. Jonah got out of bed and revealed his blue full body pajamas with pictures of white roses on them.”You alright...?” He asked out of concern, but Maria shrugged her shoulders. “It happens... Is that a cat?” Maria replied, as Lily and Gabriel got out of their own bunks on the other side of the dorm room.
“Oh yeah, I forgot about that! That happened while you were gone yesterday, Maria. I thought maybe our dorm could have a pet or something to lighten up the mood. I know you lost your cat in the accident n' all.” Lily said, immediately contradicting her previous statement of lighting up said mood. Maria reached down to pick it up, staring at it face to face as it gave a friendly meow. “At least it looks cute enough.” She commented, the cat leaning up to bump it's nose against hers.
“What should we name it?” Jonah asked, Lily smiling and pointing her finger in the air as she spoke. “I was thinking... Snowy.” She suggested, Jonah looking at it with a squint and poking it with it's finger. “I was thinking something cool... Like Onyx.” He commented, Maria pulled it into her arms and it curled up as she looked at him nonplussed. “Onyx is a black gem, Idiot.” Maria corrected, staring down at it. “I know that... I was trying to be ironic.” Jonah complained, annoyed by Maria not being phased by his special sense of irony.
“Well, let's see what Maria thinks!” Lily suggested enthusiastically, Maria held up the cat eye to eye and stared at it. Her moody red ones meeting with it's green eyes of vacant stupidity. It meowed again at her and kicked it's feet some more. “How bout... Cat.” Maria stated with a completely straight face. Everyone else in the room just quietly face palmed. “Maria... That name sucks.” Jonah said with the most disappointed voice imaginable. Maria put the cat down and shrugged her shoulders, even while everyone couldn't even bother to look at her. “What...? I'm not that creative.”
Lily sighed and turned to Gabriel next. “Well... We haven't asked you yet, what do you think?” She requested of Gabriel, Lily picking up the cat to gently pet him in her arms. Gabriel started to scratch his chin as he fished for ideas. “Lord Tiberius Meowsby The Third.” Everyone look dumbfounded for a second, before Jonah cleared his throat. “Uhh... All in favor for not using that name...?” He asked, Maria raising her hand and quietly saying “Aye.”
“It was only just a suggestion!” Gabriel commented, chuckling to himself and walking over to his clothes drawer to get his uniform out. Maria sighed and rolled her eyes before heading to the drawer herself. “Oh crap...” She said, turning around and looking away. “What is it, Maria?” Lily asked, Not sure what her problem was this time. Maria crossed her arms in front of her chest as she looked away. “I didn't buy a replacement outfit after I got out of the hospital.” Maria explained, but Jonah quickly responded by pulling open the drawer and digging around a little bit. “You can wear my jacket and pants, Maria. Florence left his old ones in here and I could just wear those.”
He explained, Maria blinking a bit as
Jonah pulled out his school uniform, handing it to her. “These
might not fit on you, but they'll do for now.” He commented, Maria
grabbing it and holding it up in front of her. “What do you mean it
won't fit?” She asked, but Jonah just looked at her face to face.
“You're like 5 inches shorter than me, Roth. It'll be kinda loose
on you.” He replied.
Maria sighed and tossed the jacket over her shoulder, grabbing her good shirt and his pair of pants and going into the bathroom to change. Jonah shook his head and took out Florence's pair for himself, folding it under his arm as Maria got the pants on, which were kind of baggy due to the height difference. Her jacket was longer than her waist, but she seemed to struggle when it came to buttoning it up. “This doesn't fit my chest...” She complained, but Jonah looked confused. “Doesn't fit your chest? But isn't it supposed to be loose?” He asked, But Gabriel lightly bumped Jonah on the shoulder, and it suddenly dawned on him what that really meant. “Oh!... Sorry Maria... I didn't expect that to be a problem for you.” He said, awkwardly rubbing the back of his head since he didn't know how else to address it.
“I'm not tiptoeing around the subject.” Maria commented, still trying to button the last button for her jacket. “They're really impractical, get in the way and I hate them with all of the hate I can muster.” She said, commenting about the fact she's happened to develop a larger than average chest over the past couple years. Lily, suddenly embarrassed by that looks away as she commented. “That never was a problem for me...” She said, shamefully, but Maria just glared at her. “I actually envy that.” She said, before giving up and just leaving her coat unbuttoned, and not even bothering with her tie. “Screw it, this will have to do until I get my clothes fitted again. I'm getting no money this month so I have no choice but to improvise.” She replied, but Lily just frowned at that.
“You're not get any money this month...?” Lily asked with a hint of sadness to her voice, as Jonah walked into the bathroom to change his clothes out as well. Maria crossed her arms and sighed. “Yeah, I got fined for wrecking the other dorm room and it left me in the red.” Maria responded, Lily frowning and pulling out her overly thick money clip once again. “Don't worry, I'll help you out.” She said, trying to grab the right Geld note to give to Maria, but Maria walked up and placed her hand over Lily's to get her to stop.
“I don't really want your pity, Lily.” Maria asserted to reject Lily's offer. Lily just looking slightly puzzled by her actions. “I'm trying to help, it isn't pity... how else are you going to get any food? Or replace your coat?” Lily observed, Maria shaking her head and releasing her hand from atop Lily's. “You have me on the food bit.. But at least let me buy my own coat. I want to feel like I have at least some semblance of responsibility.” Maria explained, Lily nodding and pulling a small note and handing it over to her to pay for lunch later. “If you need my help for anything, Just ask.” Lily replied, But Maria spun around and started to head for the door.
“Also, you need to go down to a pet shop and get the kitty's name ingrained on a tag. We're going with snowy.” Lily added as Maria opened the door and turned back to face the three of them.
“I'll be at the cafeteria.” Maria said, closing the door behind her. “Does she always cut off conversations like that?” Asked Gabriel. “No clue at this point.” Lily sighed, walking into the restroom after Jonah came back out to get dressed next. Maria went down the stairs and out of the dorm to head to the cafeteria for breakfast. The sky was still overcast from the recent cold front that brought all the rain along with it. She opened the doors and began to look around for a seat to take, once again finding the white haired girl sitting in a corner, but now flanked by a red haired boy and a dark skinned girl.
“Hey, Snowy.” He said with a mocking tone, Leaning his hands on the table as she quietly tried to eat her breakfast. “Did your Clan Chief tell you to come out of your igloo and move to the academy?” He assumed, The darker skinned girl giving a chuckle at that and leaning over to watch her eat. “Nah, she must be one of those espionage types.” She replied to his comment. “Watching her enemy behind enemy lines before wiring back to their leader about everything we're doing.” The boy shook his head and shrugged her shoulders. “Nah... They're probably too busy dancing around a campfire to do espionage.” The young man countered, the dark skinned girl chuckled and leaned in closer to Cassandra. “Well, what's the story? Why are you here?” She asked, Cassandra quietly bit into her sandwich once again as she tried to ignore them both.
The girl got impatient and scowled, grabbing Cassandra by her white hair and giving it a firm tug in her direction hard enough to get her to stand up and not let her hair get out. She winced and inhaled through her teeth as she looked up at the slightly taller girl. “Are you deaf or something? Tell me why you're here?” She said in a somewhat threatening voice, Cassandra sighed and quietly responded. “I have nothing to say to you.”
The brown haired girl gritted her teeth, but also had a kind of smirk to it as she reared back her fist. “What was that? I think you need to speak a little louder.” Cassandra was about to speak as she closed her eyes, getting ready for a punch when suddenly a voice shouted at the group of three from across the table. “Hey!” Maria shouted, glaring at them both as she walked in to them grabbing her acquaintance's hair.
The green eyed girl looked up at the angry redhead with a chuckle. “The hell do you want?” She said sarcastically amused. Maria stormed over around the table and grabbed the taller girl by the forearm, squeezing it firmly in her grip. The girl swung a punch and Maria quickly caught it in the other hand. The brown haired girl releasing Cassandra's hair from her hand as Cassandra quickly sat back down in her chair, looking away from them both.
“For both of you to fuck off.” Maria replied, The girl chuckled and placed her hands on her hips. “Oooh, Shorty has lip on her. And what do you expect to do about it?” She mused sarcastically, Maria grabbing her firmly by her tie and tugging her to eye level. “Listen up, You're gonna turn around and you walk away and leave both of us alone.” Maria barked at her, nearly close enough to bump their foreheads together. “Or I could make your teeth a fond memory.” She added as a threat, the brown haired girl responding by pushing her off, even if Maria pulled the tie off with the movement.
The red haired man spoke up as Maria glared sharply at the taller girl. “Just forget this crap, Elaine... We have a fighting club meeting in an hour.” He responded, The girl shrugged her shoulders and then spat at Cassandra, the saliva smacking one side of her face. She quickly grabbed her sleeve and wiped it off without saying anything, looking down more at the table. “You're both lucky.” She commented conceitedly, before turning around with the red haired boy and walking away.
“You forgot your tie, dipshit.” Maria commented, slinging the fabric so it smacked the back of her head. Elaine growled and grabbed her tie and balled it in her fist as she left the cafeteria with the boy. Maria sighed and the anger faded from her face as she scooted the chair back beside Cassandra to sit right next to her. “So... How often does that happen to you?” Maria asked, lightly rubbing on the back of her shoulder for a second before turning to the table.
“More often than I'm okay with...” Cassandra said, her voice trembling slightly from being upset. She lifted her hands up to rest her chin on them, looking at nothing in particular.
“Well... Do you know that brown haired bitch?” Maria replied, looking at her as Cassandra reached up to fix her pulled hair back into it's natural position; a shoulder length layered/curly look. “Elaine's dad was killed by Astrians in the war 20 years ago, I overheard that one time in a conversation.” She answered, frowning just a bit as she lightly traced circles on the table. “That doesn't mean every Astrian killed her dad, I don't get why people aren't over that already” Maria commented, but Cassandra just gave a soft chuckle and looked up at the florescent lights slightly flickering. “Yeah, but it's not that easy.” She replied, sounding deflated somewhat.
Maria leaned up and put her elbows on the table to look a bit at her face. “What do you mean?” Maria wondered, tilting her head slightly as she listened to Cassandra. “No matter how much you want it to happen, Maria. The world will never change the way you want it to.. The push and pull of one person against the world is pretty negligible.” She explained, Maria sighing and leaning back in her chair in frustration. “Ugh.. whatever I guess...” She shrugged off, not really sure as how to reply to that as the door suddenly opened and three familiar friends came walking in shoulder to shoulder.
“Hey! Over here!” Maria shouted, raising one of her arms and swaying it around to try and get their attention. They quickly noticed and approached the nearly empty table, Jonah, Lily and Gabriel all sitting down together. “Hey, who's the friend?” Jonah asked Maria, looking at the white haired girl with curiosity. She seemed kind of pretty to him, but she didn't look like she was in the best of moods either.
“Cassandra, she's more of an acquaintance really.” Maria explained, the room was filled with chattering that all blended together in the echoes of the gray painted walls of the huge cafeteria. Maria quickly stood up and grabbed her tray, turning around and eyeing the food area. “I forgot why we came here for a minute...” Maria said with an awkward chuckle. Jonah quickly shouted over her shoulder as she was preparing to walk off, making her step stutter. “Hey, Get me an omelet while you're there, too!” He requested, Maria looking back and giving him a semi-annoyed glare. “Am I your waitress now? Get your own damn omelet.” Maria snapped back, before calmly walking off to get her own food. Jonah just looked down and sighed in disappointment.
“Why does that never work?” Jonah asked himself, before Gabriel lightly patted him on the back and gave him a reassuring grin. “It's okay, Jonah. You'll acquiesce an omelet from a random girl someday.” He said, Jonah just staring at him and blinking a couple of times. Gabriel had this habit of saying weird stuff to try and lighten the mood, though he wasn't entirely sure he was always like that. “Ooookay then.”
Gabriel finished his small espresso and stood back up. “Actually, I forgot to call my sister. I should go n' do that” He said, quietly walking off as Maria got back to the table, now a folded egg and cheese omelet next to a glass of milk. “They charged me 5 bucks for an omelet, it's nuts how much they gouge you here...” Maria complained, using her plastic fork to cut into the side of the fluffy omelet, quickly starting to eat it, speaking whenever she swallowed. “How much does it cost to make a damn omelet? I bet it's like 50 cents for like 2 friggen eggs, a Geld for the salt and pepper shakers and you can reuse those...” She ranted on, Cassandra looking at her and giving her a smile.
“Actually, if you're part of the Cooking Club you get a 20% discount.” She stated, Maria dropping her plastic fork onto her plate in pure shock from this serious revelation. “For real?” She asked, Cassandra nodded. “On top of that, if you're in Advanced Cooking you get a 40% discount, but I just make all my own food instead.” She said, and Maria's jaw hit the proverbial floor.
Maria looked seriously at her, lowering her brow and glaring at Cassandra. “This injustice must be rectified... Tell me of this mythical Advanced Cooking Class.” She said very melodramatically, causing a groan from pretty much everyone else on the table. Jonah leaned back up and gave an amused chuckle. “100 years ago called, Maria. They want their vocabulary back.” He said, sarcastically. Maria growled and stood up, slamming her hands on the table.
“YOU WILL NOT STOP THIS FOOD RELATED RETRIBUTION!” Maria shouted, causing students from other tables to stare out of her from pure confusion. “Uhh.. Maria, you're causing a scene...” He remarked quietly, trying to get her to calm down. “I AM LOUDER THAN YOU!” She shouted to try and prove a point. Possibly a point that didn't even matter in the long scheme of things, since she was currently making a fool out of herself.
Cassandra shrugged off Maria's loud confusing antics and explained. “Well... The school requires you to pick a minimum of 2 electives. Those are side activities you can do between your combat training, it goes from life skills like cooking and sewing, to hobbies like playing chess or tennis. There are also classes you can take instead that actually give you credits for when you go into a college. I'm taking a college credit course along with advanced cooking.” She finished, looking at everyone else sitting along with her, she wasn't used to talking so much around so many strangers.
Everyone started to converse among themselves to discuss the possibilities. “Awesome! I was the leader of my sewing club back in high school... I could join them again!” Jonah said with a casual enthusiasm, Maria kind of glaring down at him out of pure curiosity and slight disdain. “You're really devoted to the sewing thing, aren't you?” She remarked, Jonah staring up at her and cocking a brow. “Well, that means I could get your scarf fixed while I join.” He explained, Maria suddenly turning around her opinion on the issue. “Oh, you should totally do that.” She said flatly, Jonah gave an amused sigh as Lily started to speak up.
“College credits seem kind of beneficial... “ She said quietly to herself, as Cassandra continued the role of explaining things to the younger freshman of the school. “You could probably find a lot of pamphlets about it up at the front desk. Keep in mind you have 4-6 hours of physical training for the next couple of months, you should build around that schedule.” Cassandra clarified, finishing her sandwich and rolling up the baggie she put it in into one of her palms.
Maria stood up, pulling her hands from the table and stuffing them in her pockets, she was wearing a sly grin on her pale face as she turned to look at the door. “Well I know where I'm going.” She stated eagerly, walking away from the table and toward the front door. “I'll be seeing you guys once I get a discount!” She shouted to everyone else. Lily looked back at everyone else and rested her chin on one of her palms, going up to adjust her eye patch a little bit once again. “I think that was the first time I've ever heard Maria excited for anything.” She commented, Jonah nodding his head and leaning back for a yawn.
“Yeah, but we should get our food...” He complained, they were talking for nearly 15 minutes and didn't even bother to start eating anything, Jonah slid his chair back and got up, only to be surprised by Maria standing right in front of him. “Woah! I thought you just left?!” He exclaimed, Maria nodding some as she looked down at the table.
“Yeah, I forgot my omelet.” She said slightly dumbfounded, grabbing her food off the table and wrapping it up in a napkin before she turned away to walk off. “Okay, for real this time.” She said as she left once again.
Maria sighed and tossed the jacket over her shoulder, grabbing her good shirt and his pair of pants and going into the bathroom to change. Jonah shook his head and took out Florence's pair for himself, folding it under his arm as Maria got the pants on, which were kind of baggy due to the height difference. Her jacket was longer than her waist, but she seemed to struggle when it came to buttoning it up. “This doesn't fit my chest...” She complained, but Jonah looked confused. “Doesn't fit your chest? But isn't it supposed to be loose?” He asked, But Gabriel lightly bumped Jonah on the shoulder, and it suddenly dawned on him what that really meant. “Oh!... Sorry Maria... I didn't expect that to be a problem for you.” He said, awkwardly rubbing the back of his head since he didn't know how else to address it.
“I'm not tiptoeing around the subject.” Maria commented, still trying to button the last button for her jacket. “They're really impractical, get in the way and I hate them with all of the hate I can muster.” She said, commenting about the fact she's happened to develop a larger than average chest over the past couple years. Lily, suddenly embarrassed by that looks away as she commented. “That never was a problem for me...” She said, shamefully, but Maria just glared at her. “I actually envy that.” She said, before giving up and just leaving her coat unbuttoned, and not even bothering with her tie. “Screw it, this will have to do until I get my clothes fitted again. I'm getting no money this month so I have no choice but to improvise.” She replied, but Lily just frowned at that.
“You're not get any money this month...?” Lily asked with a hint of sadness to her voice, as Jonah walked into the bathroom to change his clothes out as well. Maria crossed her arms and sighed. “Yeah, I got fined for wrecking the other dorm room and it left me in the red.” Maria responded, Lily frowning and pulling out her overly thick money clip once again. “Don't worry, I'll help you out.” She said, trying to grab the right Geld note to give to Maria, but Maria walked up and placed her hand over Lily's to get her to stop.
“I don't really want your pity, Lily.” Maria asserted to reject Lily's offer. Lily just looking slightly puzzled by her actions. “I'm trying to help, it isn't pity... how else are you going to get any food? Or replace your coat?” Lily observed, Maria shaking her head and releasing her hand from atop Lily's. “You have me on the food bit.. But at least let me buy my own coat. I want to feel like I have at least some semblance of responsibility.” Maria explained, Lily nodding and pulling a small note and handing it over to her to pay for lunch later. “If you need my help for anything, Just ask.” Lily replied, But Maria spun around and started to head for the door.
“Also, you need to go down to a pet shop and get the kitty's name ingrained on a tag. We're going with snowy.” Lily added as Maria opened the door and turned back to face the three of them.
“I'll be at the cafeteria.” Maria said, closing the door behind her. “Does she always cut off conversations like that?” Asked Gabriel. “No clue at this point.” Lily sighed, walking into the restroom after Jonah came back out to get dressed next. Maria went down the stairs and out of the dorm to head to the cafeteria for breakfast. The sky was still overcast from the recent cold front that brought all the rain along with it. She opened the doors and began to look around for a seat to take, once again finding the white haired girl sitting in a corner, but now flanked by a red haired boy and a dark skinned girl.
“Hey, Snowy.” He said with a mocking tone, Leaning his hands on the table as she quietly tried to eat her breakfast. “Did your Clan Chief tell you to come out of your igloo and move to the academy?” He assumed, The darker skinned girl giving a chuckle at that and leaning over to watch her eat. “Nah, she must be one of those espionage types.” She replied to his comment. “Watching her enemy behind enemy lines before wiring back to their leader about everything we're doing.” The boy shook his head and shrugged her shoulders. “Nah... They're probably too busy dancing around a campfire to do espionage.” The young man countered, the dark skinned girl chuckled and leaned in closer to Cassandra. “Well, what's the story? Why are you here?” She asked, Cassandra quietly bit into her sandwich once again as she tried to ignore them both.
The girl got impatient and scowled, grabbing Cassandra by her white hair and giving it a firm tug in her direction hard enough to get her to stand up and not let her hair get out. She winced and inhaled through her teeth as she looked up at the slightly taller girl. “Are you deaf or something? Tell me why you're here?” She said in a somewhat threatening voice, Cassandra sighed and quietly responded. “I have nothing to say to you.”
The brown haired girl gritted her teeth, but also had a kind of smirk to it as she reared back her fist. “What was that? I think you need to speak a little louder.” Cassandra was about to speak as she closed her eyes, getting ready for a punch when suddenly a voice shouted at the group of three from across the table. “Hey!” Maria shouted, glaring at them both as she walked in to them grabbing her acquaintance's hair.
The green eyed girl looked up at the angry redhead with a chuckle. “The hell do you want?” She said sarcastically amused. Maria stormed over around the table and grabbed the taller girl by the forearm, squeezing it firmly in her grip. The girl swung a punch and Maria quickly caught it in the other hand. The brown haired girl releasing Cassandra's hair from her hand as Cassandra quickly sat back down in her chair, looking away from them both.
“For both of you to fuck off.” Maria replied, The girl chuckled and placed her hands on her hips. “Oooh, Shorty has lip on her. And what do you expect to do about it?” She mused sarcastically, Maria grabbing her firmly by her tie and tugging her to eye level. “Listen up, You're gonna turn around and you walk away and leave both of us alone.” Maria barked at her, nearly close enough to bump their foreheads together. “Or I could make your teeth a fond memory.” She added as a threat, the brown haired girl responding by pushing her off, even if Maria pulled the tie off with the movement.
The red haired man spoke up as Maria glared sharply at the taller girl. “Just forget this crap, Elaine... We have a fighting club meeting in an hour.” He responded, The girl shrugged her shoulders and then spat at Cassandra, the saliva smacking one side of her face. She quickly grabbed her sleeve and wiped it off without saying anything, looking down more at the table. “You're both lucky.” She commented conceitedly, before turning around with the red haired boy and walking away.
“You forgot your tie, dipshit.” Maria commented, slinging the fabric so it smacked the back of her head. Elaine growled and grabbed her tie and balled it in her fist as she left the cafeteria with the boy. Maria sighed and the anger faded from her face as she scooted the chair back beside Cassandra to sit right next to her. “So... How often does that happen to you?” Maria asked, lightly rubbing on the back of her shoulder for a second before turning to the table.
“More often than I'm okay with...” Cassandra said, her voice trembling slightly from being upset. She lifted her hands up to rest her chin on them, looking at nothing in particular.
“Well... Do you know that brown haired bitch?” Maria replied, looking at her as Cassandra reached up to fix her pulled hair back into it's natural position; a shoulder length layered/curly look. “Elaine's dad was killed by Astrians in the war 20 years ago, I overheard that one time in a conversation.” She answered, frowning just a bit as she lightly traced circles on the table. “That doesn't mean every Astrian killed her dad, I don't get why people aren't over that already” Maria commented, but Cassandra just gave a soft chuckle and looked up at the florescent lights slightly flickering. “Yeah, but it's not that easy.” She replied, sounding deflated somewhat.
Maria leaned up and put her elbows on the table to look a bit at her face. “What do you mean?” Maria wondered, tilting her head slightly as she listened to Cassandra. “No matter how much you want it to happen, Maria. The world will never change the way you want it to.. The push and pull of one person against the world is pretty negligible.” She explained, Maria sighing and leaning back in her chair in frustration. “Ugh.. whatever I guess...” She shrugged off, not really sure as how to reply to that as the door suddenly opened and three familiar friends came walking in shoulder to shoulder.
“Hey! Over here!” Maria shouted, raising one of her arms and swaying it around to try and get their attention. They quickly noticed and approached the nearly empty table, Jonah, Lily and Gabriel all sitting down together. “Hey, who's the friend?” Jonah asked Maria, looking at the white haired girl with curiosity. She seemed kind of pretty to him, but she didn't look like she was in the best of moods either.
“Cassandra, she's more of an acquaintance really.” Maria explained, the room was filled with chattering that all blended together in the echoes of the gray painted walls of the huge cafeteria. Maria quickly stood up and grabbed her tray, turning around and eyeing the food area. “I forgot why we came here for a minute...” Maria said with an awkward chuckle. Jonah quickly shouted over her shoulder as she was preparing to walk off, making her step stutter. “Hey, Get me an omelet while you're there, too!” He requested, Maria looking back and giving him a semi-annoyed glare. “Am I your waitress now? Get your own damn omelet.” Maria snapped back, before calmly walking off to get her own food. Jonah just looked down and sighed in disappointment.
“Why does that never work?” Jonah asked himself, before Gabriel lightly patted him on the back and gave him a reassuring grin. “It's okay, Jonah. You'll acquiesce an omelet from a random girl someday.” He said, Jonah just staring at him and blinking a couple of times. Gabriel had this habit of saying weird stuff to try and lighten the mood, though he wasn't entirely sure he was always like that. “Ooookay then.”
Gabriel finished his small espresso and stood back up. “Actually, I forgot to call my sister. I should go n' do that” He said, quietly walking off as Maria got back to the table, now a folded egg and cheese omelet next to a glass of milk. “They charged me 5 bucks for an omelet, it's nuts how much they gouge you here...” Maria complained, using her plastic fork to cut into the side of the fluffy omelet, quickly starting to eat it, speaking whenever she swallowed. “How much does it cost to make a damn omelet? I bet it's like 50 cents for like 2 friggen eggs, a Geld for the salt and pepper shakers and you can reuse those...” She ranted on, Cassandra looking at her and giving her a smile.
“Actually, if you're part of the Cooking Club you get a 20% discount.” She stated, Maria dropping her plastic fork onto her plate in pure shock from this serious revelation. “For real?” She asked, Cassandra nodded. “On top of that, if you're in Advanced Cooking you get a 40% discount, but I just make all my own food instead.” She said, and Maria's jaw hit the proverbial floor.
Maria looked seriously at her, lowering her brow and glaring at Cassandra. “This injustice must be rectified... Tell me of this mythical Advanced Cooking Class.” She said very melodramatically, causing a groan from pretty much everyone else on the table. Jonah leaned back up and gave an amused chuckle. “100 years ago called, Maria. They want their vocabulary back.” He said, sarcastically. Maria growled and stood up, slamming her hands on the table.
“YOU WILL NOT STOP THIS FOOD RELATED RETRIBUTION!” Maria shouted, causing students from other tables to stare out of her from pure confusion. “Uhh.. Maria, you're causing a scene...” He remarked quietly, trying to get her to calm down. “I AM LOUDER THAN YOU!” She shouted to try and prove a point. Possibly a point that didn't even matter in the long scheme of things, since she was currently making a fool out of herself.
Cassandra shrugged off Maria's loud confusing antics and explained. “Well... The school requires you to pick a minimum of 2 electives. Those are side activities you can do between your combat training, it goes from life skills like cooking and sewing, to hobbies like playing chess or tennis. There are also classes you can take instead that actually give you credits for when you go into a college. I'm taking a college credit course along with advanced cooking.” She finished, looking at everyone else sitting along with her, she wasn't used to talking so much around so many strangers.
Everyone started to converse among themselves to discuss the possibilities. “Awesome! I was the leader of my sewing club back in high school... I could join them again!” Jonah said with a casual enthusiasm, Maria kind of glaring down at him out of pure curiosity and slight disdain. “You're really devoted to the sewing thing, aren't you?” She remarked, Jonah staring up at her and cocking a brow. “Well, that means I could get your scarf fixed while I join.” He explained, Maria suddenly turning around her opinion on the issue. “Oh, you should totally do that.” She said flatly, Jonah gave an amused sigh as Lily started to speak up.
“College credits seem kind of beneficial... “ She said quietly to herself, as Cassandra continued the role of explaining things to the younger freshman of the school. “You could probably find a lot of pamphlets about it up at the front desk. Keep in mind you have 4-6 hours of physical training for the next couple of months, you should build around that schedule.” Cassandra clarified, finishing her sandwich and rolling up the baggie she put it in into one of her palms.
Maria stood up, pulling her hands from the table and stuffing them in her pockets, she was wearing a sly grin on her pale face as she turned to look at the door. “Well I know where I'm going.” She stated eagerly, walking away from the table and toward the front door. “I'll be seeing you guys once I get a discount!” She shouted to everyone else. Lily looked back at everyone else and rested her chin on one of her palms, going up to adjust her eye patch a little bit once again. “I think that was the first time I've ever heard Maria excited for anything.” She commented, Jonah nodding his head and leaning back for a yawn.
“Yeah, but we should get our food...” He complained, they were talking for nearly 15 minutes and didn't even bother to start eating anything, Jonah slid his chair back and got up, only to be surprised by Maria standing right in front of him. “Woah! I thought you just left?!” He exclaimed, Maria nodding some as she looked down at the table.
“Yeah, I forgot my omelet.” She said slightly dumbfounded, grabbing her food off the table and wrapping it up in a napkin before she turned away to walk off. “Okay, for real this time.” She said as she left once again.
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