I've always wanted to be the kind of person that lit up a room when they walked in, the kind of person everyone stopped and paid attention to, because you knew they were important.
If you walked into our classroom period four, your eyes would immediately gravitate towards the golden-haired, bright blue-eyed, smiling viper that was Elizabeth Huntley. You might look past her - to the beautifully dark and serious Amber Sraftson, the Neo-Goth./herbal-wiccan/artistic genius who didn't so much as sit behind Elizabeth as she lounged, and who I envied greatly. They both had a presence, an energy that drew people towards them.
In fact, if you took a look around the Society and Comparative Religions class - room 263 of Lady Alexander Collegiate, Old New York - you'd probably notice everyone in there, except for me.
Pretty pathetic, huh? I'm practically invisible, completely nondescript. You'd probably figure I was exaggerating, but take Mr. Amir for example: I'd taken courses of his for the last four years- straight from grade nine. He still had to look at the seating plan to remember my name. And that was on a good day, when he remembered I was actually sitting in the back of the class. I was just one of those kids they always mention in vid reports- the ones who fall between the cracks. Yeah, that's me.
So you can understand how jealous I was when he knocked once on the door and breezed into the classroom. The whole room just stopped, frozen in place. I had to choke back a laugh at the picture it made - Karl was about to launch a spitwad at the back of Elizabeth's head, Jakie and Akash were mid-kiss in the corner opposite mine, toward the windows, and Mr. Amir had his back to us, the 'kick me' sign still taped to his back from his second period class. I was almost surprised that the staff left it on him during break, but everyone said Amir was too damn nice for the school and needed to be 'toughened up' before it killed him.
This kid just strolled in, nodded to the class (still frozen), walked up to Amir at the chalkboard, tapped his shoulder with one hand and lightly peeling the sign off his back with the other, crumpling it up into a ball before a very startled Amir could turn.
There was this kind of... surprised silence as we sized him up while Amir got his head together enough to ask the kid his name. It took him a few seconds, and while the kid waited I took a good look. He was about 5 '4 I'd guess. Wearing black jeans and a black leather jacket, sunglasses, his hair looked like it was in a ponytail tucked inside the jacket. He murmured back and forth with Amir for a few seconds, then turned and fixed us with a manic grin that looked a bit menacing to me, though I heard at least one girl sigh.
He was all angles and attitude. The glasses came off and the grin got bigger, if that was possible, as everyone digested the impossible shade of violet that his eyes held. He sketched a cocky bow and winked, presumably at the girl who had sighed. "I'm Max. Max Dodger. Nice to meet you all."
Amir looked distractedly around the class for an empty seat, and found the only one left in the over-crowded room, right next to mine. "Um, why don't you take a seat over there, next to," he paused, and I waited for him to search through his papers for the seating chart, "Dina?"
Max nodded and gave us the third shock of the day, shucking his jacket off and revealing the braid that went down to his waist. He... there's no other way to say it... he bounced down the aisle and plopped down in the chair, that blinding grin now directed at me. "Hey Dina, I'm Max," he offered his hand.
I attempted to return the grin, feeling somewhat overwhelmed and more than a little nervous from the conflicting emotions in my head, and shook his hand. "Welcome to Lady Alexander, Max. I'm Dita."
He raised an eyebrow at that, but nodded. "Ok, Dita. So what's this class like?"
I barked a short laugh, "A circus. Only with less talent. Don't worry about homework, Mr. Amir doesn't 'believe' in it, and the rest of the teachers know it's a waste of time, we ain't going to do nothing."
He blinked in surprise at that last comment, then looked around the class. I wondered where the hell he'd been going to school before now. Unless he hadn't been going anywhere. We did occasionally get the oddball undercover cop and dealer, respectively, in here. Max didn't look like a cop, which was good, since they didn't last long here anyway, but he might have been a dealer. I wondered what he was pressing if he was dealing, and whether he was the kind to test his own merch. Didn't look it. Red Eye and Angel Dust were the most popular around here, with Heroin still the 'poison of choice' for those looking for a really heavy hit. All three left some pretty obvious signs of use, Red Eye specifically, considering its name.
Max watched the class as they continued to ignore Amir's lesson - "Ancient Greece and You" - then turned back to me, the grin now wry. "Hey, Dita, tell me bout this class."
I shrugged, "What do you want to know? And yeah, Amir's lessons are always this boring."
"Well," He let his eyes travel around the room. "tell me about our classmates."
I thought about it for a minute or two. He was definitely prying for some info, all feigned innocence aside. I wasn't falling for it for a second, but that really didn't matter, since I also really didn't care. "Well... If you're looking for a hit or two, your best bet is Stevens, the guy with the red spikes. He's decently priced and his stuff's normally pretty pure. If you're looking for hardware, shop around. Jay's normally got the lighter stuff," I pointed to the small black teen seated in the front right corner, cleaning his nails with a stiletto, "and if you want something heavier, you need to talk to Raymond, D.Z, or Akash. Akash is the only one in this class, he's the one cleaning his girlfriend's plaque. Oh, and if you want to get to him, book the appointment through his girlfriend, she handles all his 'business'."
I nodded around at several people, keeping my voice low. "Three major gangs, two minor. Bandannas, baseball caps, wrist braces, they all show allegiance. Red is the Dogs. Pool hustling, minor stuff. Good if you need a hit in a hurry, almost all of 'em are on or selling something. The white and black bandannas are for the Crew. Big gang, no brains. Keep away from them if you can. They own or control almost every bar in this area, so watch your mouth and your drinks.Blue wristband on left arm is Disaster. Thugs mostly, and organized hits.
New leadership though, so they're beginning to fall apart. Red bandanna and black wristbands is the Bloods. New gang, mostly just in it for territory. They've got from the old church to Sikes Street, and everything from King to the tracks. Watch for tags to show you where you are." I blinked and looked at him, his mouth still smiling as his eyes were flat, and I paused for a few beats. "You do know how to read tags around here, right? Where were you living before?"
'Max "The Blade" Dodger' walked down the lime green concrete hallway and double checked the number on his printed schedule before stuffing the paper into his pocket. A final tug on his leather jacket, a check of his hair, and a small adjustment of the sunglasses and Duo was in full persona mode, ready to take on the world, or in this case, OZ. Wherever they were hiding in this city.
Attitude in place, he pushed the door open and walked into his first class of the day; period three, room 236 of Lady Alexander, a Society and Comparative Religions class. He sauntered across the front of the room, surprised at the total lack of discipline obvious immediately- maybe three students total were watching the front as the teacher scribbled on the chalkboard, the rest were chatting noisily and making the room feel more like an arcade, or perhaps a zoo, rather than a classroom.
And maybe the fact that the teacher was wearing a 'kick me' sign had something to do with it.
Careful to keep at least half an ear directed at the students as he sauntered forward, Duo immediately picked up a few comments before he reached the teacher, a young, harried-looking middle-eastern man, talking excitedly into the chalkboard as he scribbled out the names of various Greek Gods.
Duo tapped him lightly on his left shoulder, the one farthest from him, as he quickly peeled the sign off the teacher's back. Somehow, he just felt bad about leaving it there. Besides, he didn't exactly want the sign blamed on the 'new kid' later.
Duo all but blocked the teacher from his mind as the man stuttered for a few seconds before asking the normal questions and looking at Duo's crumpled schedule. Noting the large windows lining the far wall – a quick escape route, though a bit of a fall from the second floor of the tall building. The janitor's shed was underneath the far right window, he knew, so it would shorten the trip considerably.
A flash of metal caught his eye and he noticed that a kid sitting in front of the window was picking at his fingernails with a thin knife. And it probably wasn't the only weapon in the room, Duo thought with dry humor as the teacher gestured wildly and asked 'Max' to introduce himself. Removing his glasses he grinned inwardly at the few gasps and sighs a few feminine voices sent his way, while outwardly he winked at one girl and nodded as the teacher pointed to the back of the room, where another teenager sat next to an empty desk.
Her face was blank and dull, her eyes wide and cautious, obviously intelligent. As Duo removed his jacket and winked at another blonde, he kept his attention towards the girl, Dina. She wore a pair of faded black jeans and a black jean jacket, a dark brown shirt beneath it. All cut to fashion two or three years ago and all had seen better days. She seemed to simply... disappear into the grain work of the wall behind her.
He could probably work her into telling him anything, he figured. Stick close enough so she thinks I might be interested, and I'd bet she'd spill a shitload of stuff. She looks like the kind of person who notices everything.
Duo had kept half an ear on the rest of the class as the girl shook his hand and corrected him on her name. Dita. Nice, though it seemed strange for the teacher to mispronounce it. She seemed to watch him with an appraising eye, and though she paused for a moment when he asked about the class, she seemed to come to a decision, nodding as she proceeded to answer.
Duo paid close attention as Dita started rattling off names and what the person was good for. Her voice was neutral, almost clinical, as she advised him on who was who and what they did. Surprised, Duo forced himself to reevaluate his opinion of the dark-haired girl as she saved him hours of tricky work figuring out gang alliances, territory, and patterns, within a few minutes of simple speech. She obviously didn't seem like much, so what was her game? Perhaps ganged up as well, though she wasn't wearing any of the marks or colours that she'd mentioned. Her speech was strange as well. Sometimes she'd be tossing off street slang and double negatives, the next she'd sound almost as good as Quatre on an off day. Ok, maybe Trowa. She'd half finished explaining territory when she turned to him, eyes critical and mouth in a thin line. "You do know how to read tags around here, right? Where were you living before?"
'Max (The Blade) Dodger' had come with a full background completely fabricated based on his life on the streets, so Duo nodded and smiled. "Been livin' on L2 for almost forever. Got a lift to Earth a week back. Figured here was as good a place as any to stay."
"Liar."
Duo blinked: unless the girl was psychic, there was no reason for her to disbelieve him. "Huh?"
"You're darkly tanned, not burned. Colony kids are as white as paper when they come, and then they burn since they're unused to so much sun. You don't talk like no L2 kid neither. Their accent is atrocious. And I honestly don't think you'd trade L2 for this dump, unless you were looking for something specific, or if you're running from somethin'. You have a deal go down bad colony-side and need some downtime or what?"
Duo blinked and mentally swore. He hadn't even thought about how dark his complexion would be, after that week on Howard's ship off the coast of Hawaii making repairs. But at least the girl thought he was dealing, not something more military. He mentally substituted "The Snake" for "The Blade" in the middle of his mental name tag and grinned ruefully, adding on to Max's persona as he spoke, grinning ruefully. "I might have had some problems with a local police force and wanted to slip out of sight for a while, possibly. Though I doubt anyone from the authorities would recognize my looks or name right now, if I were, theoretically, trying to set up some sort of business in Old New York."
Dita snorted a laugh, "Oh, I don't doubt. Max Dodger is a pretty cliché name to begin with, and besides, no one in their right mind would walk around with hair that long and purple eyes. It'd be a dead giveaway. How do you do it anyway, a hair-weave and contacts or what?"
"Class dismissed!" Mr. Amir called, "Don't forget to look up your favorite Greek God for tomorrow!"
"Hades," Duo muttered under his breath as he gathered his coat and bag in his hands, grateful for the escape. Dita was hitting a little too close to home, and was far too observant for his liking. If OZ had a few of her working for them, both he and the guys would probably be dead. Not to mention he was going to have to pick up some hash around town to fill out his new cover as pool hustler/dealer. He didn't want anyone approaching him without being fully prepared.
"The God of Death? Why him?" Dita had grabbed her bag and binder and was now watching 'Max' with open curiosity.
Max shrugged and I shouldered my bag, wondering if he actually knew anything about Hades or whether he'd just heard of him as the God of Death and thought it was 'cool.'
"He's just a God I'm well acquainted with," he shrugged again and moved to leave, dragging a crumpled piece of paper from his pocket. Checking it, he looked at me again and grinned broadly, "Lunchtime! So, what's the cafeteria like?"
I blinked, then shook my head. "They don't serve anything in the cafeteria anymore. Haven't for years. If you didn't bring anything, you can hit one of the fast food joints a block down. It'll be packed though."
He shrugged again, and walked beside me as I made my way down the hallway and towards the back stairs. I could literally see the gears turning around in this head as he strolled along. Coming to a decision, seemingly, he slung one arm around my shoulders and grinned, "Since I don't have anything better to do right now, why don't I join you? What do you do at lunch?"
I shrugged his arm off and ignored his grin, "I study. There's a church up the street I sit by, since it's normally quiet. I certainly can't stop you if you want to come."
He stepped back, hands raised non-threateningly, "Hey, no biggie. I'll just go sniffing around, if you don't want the company," he let that thought trail off, and I bit my lip. Frankly, I'd have loved the company, but I still wasn't sure what his game was, and that made him dangerous. We'd made it outside, and were standing on the sidewalk I traveled every weekday to St. James Church. There was no one around, and I took a chance. "What do you really want?"
I don't know if it was my tone of voice, or the look in my eyes, or what, but his face went serious and he spoke evenly, "I'm just here to do some work for my higher ups and chill for a while. There was some heat on my tail I don't want back right now. What I want, right now, is to sit down for an hour and stare at the sky and not worry about 'proving myself' to a bunch of asses who think since I'm a newbie I don't know jack shit. I honestly doubt you're going to pull a Selik .22 on me and 'put a cap in my ass', as someone once put it."
I couldn't help it, I laughed. It wasn't all that funny, but just the way he's said it... I shook my head and decided that no matter what I did, I was probably going to end up liking this guy. I mean, he was talking to me period, and I was seriously lacking in the social department, seeing as most people didn't even know I breathed in.
He'd won. Damn him. I shrugged, "This way," and headed down the street, expecting him to follow. He did, close at my heels, and we walked in silence for few minutes as I led the way to the churchyard.
It's an old church, really old. There isn't a real congregation anymore, just a few stragglers who visit from time to time and those who stop by to get out of the cold. There was a hole in the roof to one side, the paint was peeling and the windows were broken or boarded over, and the garden was completely overrun. It was exactly my kind of place.
I followed the trail I'd slowly worn into the weeds and nodded to Father Jackson, who, as usual, was watching out the window at the world around. He smiled in return and I continued on, Max following a few seconds later.
We reached the fig tree that had been planted at the back of the tiny cemetery, and I immediately started up. Though the tree was stunted from lack of soil, fig trees are big trees, so it was more than capable of holding my weight twenty times over. I found my normal niche; a seat made by three meeting branches, and leaned back. Max was looking up at me, somewhat perplexed, and I called down to him, "Are you comin' or what? You're not afraid of heights, are you?"
He shook his head and scrabbled up the tree like a squirrel. It didn't take him all of a minute to find an adjoining seat next to mine, about a foot away. He leaned back and pulled his arms up behind his head, bracing his feet in front of him. Since he seemed happy to leave the talking for a while, I was only too glad to oblige. Relaxing, I leaned back and closed my eyes.
Duo cracked an eyelid and held back a chuckle - her eyes were still closed, but Dita was obviously thinking of something, the way her eyelids would trace back and forth. He decided to leave the questions for later, and simply relaxed, working through his plans for the night, grabbing a fig from the branch in front of him and letting it rest on his lips for a moment before he ate it.
"Don't eat the figs," drawled a quiet voice, "they'll give ya the shits."
Duo dropped the fig and looked at Dita, who hadn't moved an inch, eyes still closed. Damn, he thought, she doesn't miss much, does she?
She grimaced slightly as she explained, though she still looked as though she was asleep. "It's got to do with the water runoff and whatever. There's something in it that really warps the plants around here. I found out the hard way years ago," her eyes opened and she smiled, though Duo noticed the look never reached her eyes, "Wanna tour of the place? I feel bad just lettn' you trample round on your lonesome. Lookin' like that, some people are gonna get the wrong idea."
Duo chuckled darkly at the statement, "Hell, it wouldn't be the first time. 'Sides, aren't we supposed to go back to class?"
Now Dita chuckled, and Duo watched her pull away from branch and leaving the tree in a controlled fall he admired. While he was still admiring it, Dita was beneath him, lookin up, "No one'll care if we skip. Come on, there's a pool house down on Chester, and if you beat me I'll buy ya a drink."
Duo grinned. At least Dita had seemed to warm up to him. But she'd regret challenging him to pool- that was his game, after all. Climbing down, he called out over his shoulder, "You're on!" to the waiting girl.
And he'd probably be able to pick up some ideas on what the hell OZ was doing round here as well.
End Part 1
(:./elemental/ident1)
