#bethany harvord

[nyxicnymph]

Horizon and Edge

#4: The Never-Ending Show

Bright lights. People are staring at me. Cameras filming me without permission. This is my worst nightmare!

I’m screaming, but no one hears me. WHY AM I HERE?!

Suddenly, someone is up in my face. He--I assume that he’s a he--is wearing a black and green outfit, with what appears to be night-vision goggles, so you can’t easily identify gender, or see his eyes.

He asks me, “Are you ready to play a game?”

I say, “Nnnnnnn....”

“I’ll take that as a ‘yes’.” He turns to the crowd. “Now, how shall we put her through her paces?”

Someone yells, “Make her recite poetry!”

I shudder. I do NOT like poetry. And someone knows that.

“Ah, yes,” he says, “Poetry. You must recite a set of poetry, of your choice. You may even recite your own poetry. You must recite three pieces, at least eight lines, of any type.” He pauses. “The only exception to the eight-line rule is haikus.”

I stare at him.

He stares right back. “You must start... Now.”

I think frantically. What am I going to recite?!

Haikus. I can do haikus. Five, seven, five. No rhyme necessary.

I take a deep breath. “I stare at the sky,  

Wondering about the night,  

Moonlight and starlight.”

That’s the first one. I’ll do one more haiku, and end with something... else.

I close my eyes. “My hands open wide,

reaching for inspiration,  

but cannot find it.”

This one last one... I hope I can do it.

“Rena's ring, ran away

Ran away to be safe.

Rena's rage, roars greatly

And asks the ring to abate.

Rena's ring, returns today

Rena’s rage roar fades away.

Rena's ring, returned at last,

Rena's rage, restored in the past.”

I stop. That’s the end of the poem, which I wrote for a school assignment about alliteration. But it works great here, too.

The guy contemplates me. “Hmm... That was some good poetry, what a way to finish the show! Am I right, everyone?”

The audience cheers, while I blink confusedly. But I thought that it had just started?

The show dude continues speaking: “Tune in next time, when you’ll hear me say...”

The world distorts around me, and everything goes... fuzzy, for lack of a better word.

“Welcome to the Never-Ending Show!”

“NO!” I yell. It’s been reset. I have to do the poetry all over again!!!

“Are you ready to play a game?”

“NOOO!”

“Well, too bad,” he says. “You’re going to play one anyway. How should we put our guest to the test?”

“A super high obstacle course! With spikes!”

“NOPE!” I yell, and attempt to walk off the stage.

The host grabs me around the waist with inhuman speed, and sets me right back onstage. “Ah, ah, ah. You can’t leave yet! You have to take the Hightly-rated Obstacle Course, With Spikes!”

I’m all of a sudden standing at the beginning. I see the path they mean for me to take, fraught with perilous balancing sections, and walls of fire. Oh, and spikes. Because I need more injuries, in the case of...GULP. Falling.

But... I also see another path. It’s a little trickier, and I’ll have to rely on some jungle-gym experience, but there’s less chance of dying... I hope.

I hear the buzzer ring, and I take off, heading in the “correct” direction, until I grab a metal support beam, and swing. The obstacle course goes halfway around the stage. I’ll get there way faster like this.

Until he starts pressing buttons.

A column of flame erupts right in front of me, nearly searing off my bangs. I yelp, and go around it. Then there is a storm of arrows, and a truly diabolical moment with some tesla arcs and metal wires. I finally reach the end, turn towards the host, and raise a pinky finger at him. Thank you, Annemarie.

The host chuckles. “We couldn’t let you have an easy win. That would have been boring. But, now, the show’s over. Good night, everyone, and tune in next time, when you’ll hear me say...”

The weird distortion happens again, and again I hear him say:

“Welcome to the Never-Ending Show!”

I scream at the ceiling. This is truly my worst nightmare.

**********************************************

I’ve been through so much tonight. They’ve made me swim with sharks, dance in front of people, do a VR skydiving simulation... The list goes on. I can’t catch a break. They even made me parse a sentence, without textbook help. That wasn’t so much a nightmare as much as me making shtuff up, and then screaming at the host.

I’m panting on the floor. The whole thing has just reset, again, and I’m waiting for my next trial.

POOF!

I jump, and almost yell. Edge is right in front of me, holding his index finger to his lips in the “shh” sign.

I never understood that sign. One finger does not keep someone’s mouth from running. Heck, in some cases, a whole two hands and a roll of duct tape wouldn’t do that. Not naming any names... *Cough, cough* Liam.

Anyway, I see him do that, and then he disappears. But not with a poof. He just fades, so I’m pretty sure he just turned invisible.

Right in my ear, I hear, “Just stay calm. I’m going to fix this.”

I nod ever-so-slightly. I feel a whisper of wind, and know that he’s  gone. I stand up and turn towards the host. I dunno what Edge is going to do, but I know what I’ve been itching to do ever since the tesla arcs.

I walk up to the host. “Hey, Mr. Host-dude.”

He turns to me. “Yes? We haven’t picked the task yet.”

I smile sinisterly. “But I have.”

He cocks his head. “Oh, really?” A skeptic if I’ve ever met one.

I flip my hair. “Yeah, it’s called, ‘What’s Super-hard and Can Be Shoved into a Super-jerk’s Face?’”

He strokes his chin, and I adjust my stance ever-so-slightly. Super-jerk is super-dumb.

“I haven’t heard of that one. Is it a game of riddles?”

I shake my head. “I’ll show you. Just come a little closer...”

He leans in... and I punch him in the mask-covered face.

He recovers and looks in my direction... or where I used to be. I run across the stage and jump off.

“HAILEY!” Edge yells at me. I just wink over my shoulder. I have no idea where he is, but, he’ll probably grab the bad guy, and keep me from being torn to pieces.

Probably.

I turn around, just in time to see Edge pummel the host, ripping through an illusion. Oh, boy. The real version of the host is super creepy. I’m mildly creeped out.

Edge is unphased, and continues to beat the host.

“You need to quit forcing people into living their nightmares, Nightmare Host!”

Well, at least his name makes sense.

Edge puts his foot in the small of Nightmare Host’s back, and raises his hands up. They begin to glow golden light, and then he aims at the villain, slashes through the air, and Nightmare Host vanishes.

The world distorts one last time, and I’m back in the dark street. I’m on my knees, peering at the world confusedly. A second later, I realize that Edge is right beside me, panting. He sounds like he just ran two consecutive marathons.

“Are you okay? Did you kill that guy?” I pause. “How long was I in there?”

He sits up a little straighter. “I didn’t kill him. I don’t do that. I simply banished him for a while. When he comes back, he’ll be powerless, and in jail.” He takes a deep breath. “I’m okay, just drained. That power takes a lot of energy, that’s all.” He stands up, only a little unsteady on his feet. He pulls me up as well. “You were only in there for a few minutes. It only seemed longer because it was a mindscape. He made it seem longer than it actually was.”

I nod. “Thanks for getting me out of there. If you hadn’t, I probably would have lost my mind.”

He looks at the sky above us. “And then I would have had to fight you, and get you out from under his control.”

I shudder. “I hate being controlled and manipulated,” I say. “And I’m glad that you don’t have to that.”

“Me, too.”

I begin to walk. “Guess I’ll see you around.”

“I guess so. Try and stay out of super-trouble,” he warns.

I turn around and roll my eyes. “I already do that. It’s trying to get trouble to stay away from me that’s the problem.” I pause, thinking to myself, This was the first time.

He chuckles. “Maybe you’re the trouble.”

I retort. “Sure, I’m trouble. Just my life.”

He smiles. “You better get home. You look like you need some sleep.”

I turn towards home, and remark, “After that game show of doom? Uh, yeah.”

He laughs again, then disappears.

Me, I head home.

[nyxicnymph]

Horizon and Edge

#3: Different people, different places

Hailey:

I wake up and stare at the ceiling. After apologizing to Edge last night, I definitely feel better.

I roll out of bed and get ready for school. Kaylee said that she and Beth have been planning something for me. And that I’ll get to see--Ooh, shorts over leggings, very nice--I’ll get to see it today.  

At school, Beth and Kay are super excited. I wish they would just tell me what’s going on. If I know that there is a surprise, I hate it. I’m also a naturally jumpy person, and hate surprises in general. And people. And social events. And convention, tradition, stereotypes, and all things normal. AGGG! I will never adjust to normal society!

Okay, ignore the diatribe.

I breeze through math, which is unusual. I usually struggle, and there is much throwing of pencils. Then I get lectured for throwing the thirty-cents-worth of pencil.

Science was science. English made me want to scream obscenities in French, and German. Not that I know any swear words in German, but still... AGH! MUFFIN-FUDGING ENGLISH THREE!!!!

Anyway, after school, I’m just sitting on the steps. Beth and Kay come out of the monstrous building that is our school, and tell me to follow them. I do so, wondering what they’re going to show me.

Thirty minutes later, we are standing in front of a... tiny house. It’s a tiny house. AHHAHHAHHAH-HAHHAHHAH!!

“Nice clubhouse,” I remark.

Behind me, I hear Beth ask, “Kaylee, are you all right?”

Kaylee bursts out: “IT’S NOT A CLUBHOUSE! It’s a place for us and our friends to get together and hang out! To play games and do homework and to get to know each other! It’s not a clubhouse!”

“Okay.” I turn to Beth. “So... it’s basically a clubhouse?”

Beth nods. “Yeah, pretty much. She just won’t admit it.”

“OMIGOSH IT’S NOT A FREAKING CLUBHOUSE!!!!” Kaylee explodes.

I laugh, and pat her on the shoulder, then I walk in. I almost run into Rick, who is one of the two guys that the girls introduced me to yesterday. The other guy is really grumpy. His name is Cole.

“Sorry!” I exclaim, trying to get around. He blocks me.

“Nice to see you again. Kaylee brought you here?” He asks.

Agh, why must people speak to me?! “Yes,” I say, then duck underneath his arm. Both thank the cheezits for and curse the muffin-fudging tall people!

I take in the room. Clearly, the tiny clubhouse only has one room. There’s an old couch, some old tables, an old fridge, etc. Clearly, most of this stuff is third- or even fourth-hand furniture. Probably from the Quintants’ parents.

I see Cole. He sees me. He waves at me, and says, “Hi, Persephone.”

PERSPHONE??!!

I clear my throat. “Excuse me, but that’s not my name.”

“All right, Persephone.”

“DON’T CALL ME PERSEPHONE!!!”

“Yes, Persephone.”

I yell in frustration, and walk to the other end of the room. Until I see Erik. Then I stop walking, and just stand there. I feel dumb, but...

1. I don’t like Erik very much.

2. I don’t like boys very much.

3. I don’t know these kids very well.

4. I don’t exactly know why I’m here.

5. I’m not a social person.

6. Bethany and Kaylee are talking to Rick, and I don’t want to talk to him again.

7. Better to feel dumb and not talk to people you don’t want to talk to, then to talk to them and dislike them even more.

8. It’s a small clubhouse, and I don’t have anywhere else to go.

Anyway, I’m not talking.

I glance at one of the tables, and sit down at it. Then I pull out my sketchbook, and some pencils. I might as well do something.

I’m getting along pretty well, drawing my favorite horse, Stella, being tended to by James, our ranch-hand, until I sense someone behind me, watching me. I turn around, and see Rick. He is really close.

“Um...” I can’t say anything else. I can’t talk to boys, except to yell at them for being dumb. Never have. Well, I can do it to Liam, but he’s my brother. Different circumstances.

Rick starts, then turns bright red. His hair is a subdued brown red, so he looks kind of like an upside-down fence post.

“Sorry,” he says, “I was just looking. You draw really well.”

Suddenly, my tongue is loosened. “It’s not star quality.”

He brightens, like he wasn’t expecting me to speak, but now that I have, maybe we can get along.

We’ll see.

“It’s better than mine. I prefer to draw stick figures, and horses never show up. How did you get so good?” He asks. He’s genuinely curious. I suppose I better tell him. Lying’s not my shtick, anyway.

“Well, I’ve lived on a ranch for most of my life. So, besides doing all my chores, and amassing useful skills, I began to draw in my small amounts of free time. Growing up on a ranch gives a good idea of how any kind of body works, so I began to start drawing people and animals. I’m also fairly decent at landscapes, though not at the same level as my people.” I stop for a breath, and to see if he wants to add something to the conversation.

Because that’s how conversation works.

Rick looks at me. “You grew up on a ranch?”

“I did MOST of my growing up on a ranch. I’m finishing my growing up here in the City,” I correct him.

“Right, right, of course. But I guess that explains your ‘different-type-of-girl’ aura.”

“Um, aura?” I question. “You mean how I carry myself, right? Because I don’t believe in magic and stuff like that.” And I don’t glow.

Rick nods. “Yeah, it’s in the way you carry yourself, the way you look at problems and find solutions, the way you interact with people.”

“Cautiously?”

“Um, yeah. Though that’s really an understatement. You are clearly used to non-human companionship.” He laughs. “You actually seem afraid of people.”

I cringe. “That obvious, huh?” I sigh. “It’s more of a fear of... not understanding them. I was raised differently, even from other kids on ranches, and I know it. I’m more afraid of not understanding society, but at the same time, I kind of... embrace it.”

Rick shrugs. “Hey, I understand embracing the unconventional. I’m different, too. Even from my family. But you are like... thirteen times as different.”

I raise an eyebrow. “Thirteen? Really embracing the unconventional, aren’t we?”

He laughs.

**********************************************

Later, I’m out wandering. I told my parents, I have a GPS, and I told them I’d probably be home by ten o’clock. I’m set.

As I turn down a dark street, I see a patch of light that stands out. Naturally. But I mean, it’s different from the other patches, like those from streetlamps.

I step closer, and look at it from a closer distance. It seems more like it’s moving light, or moving light and sound. Or just a really bright flashlight.

I creep a little closer. It doesn’t seem to change. It’s really bright...

I accidentally touch it, and get sucked down into a mess of sound and light distortion. As I land on a hard surface, I hear someone shouting:

“Welcome to the Never-Ending Show!”

Oh, no.

[nyxicnymph]

Horizon and Edge

#2: Cause-and-effect

Later, I’m in the gym. I joined the rifle team, but I’m the only one who showed up today. I’m just clicking away. Shooting all-standing. Killer on the feet.

I reach for a pellet and grab the last one in the pellet box.

“Last one,” I mutter to no one in particular. I’m not concerned. I’ve been shooting fairly well. A lot of nines, several tens, and only two eights. This shot will be great.

I bring the rifle up, breathe in, breathe out. I sight in, then check my Natural Point of Aim. Open my eyes. I’m on target. Pull the trigger....

**********************************************

Erik:

I walk down the gym hallway, looking for my sister. I hear a THWAP! Click-click come from the open gym doors. I peek in, and see Hailey standing sideways, wearing a thick outfit.

She’ll know where Kay is.

“Hey!” I shout, trying to get her attention.

There’s another loud THWAP! And she sets something down hard. She turns her head slightly sideways, and I see what she was holding: a lightweight air rifle.

She puts the rifle down in a rack, and sticks a length of orange weed string inside the chamber, and takes off her jacket. She brings a long black box close to an orange line on the floor, and then puts her rifle inside it. Only then does she turn around. She smiles very brightly at me.

Warning bells go off inside my head. What did I do?

“Can I help you?” she says through her teeth.

“Uh, uhm,” I stammer. I’d almost forgotten why I was here. I get my thoughts together and continue, “Have you seen my sister? She’s your best friend, so I figured....” I trail off.

She raises an eyebrow. “I didn’t know Beth had a brother.” She’s dropped the smile.

Ouch. That’s way below the belt. I wince and reply, “Actually, I’m Kaylee’s brother, Erik.”

**********************************************

Hailey:

I knew it. “Oh,” I say. “She’s with Beth.”

“Which is... Where?” he asks.

“I wouldn’t know,” I say, turning around, my braid whipping around behind me.

“’Kay, thanks!” He says waving. “I’m going to go now....”

I turn back towards him. “And WHERE do you think you’re going?”

“Um... home? I think...?”

I smile grimly. “Oh, no. No, you aren’t. I don’t think so.” I grab him by the ear and drag him over to where my coach is standing. “You are going to explain to my coach why my last shot is off!” I tell him.

He now stands in front of my coach, and, wincing in pain, explains.

While he’s doing that, I ignore him, and continue packing up my gear. I have to get home....

**********************************************

Erik:

I head on home. I called Kaylee on the phone, and I’ll see her when I get home.

My ear throbs, and I rub it. Hailey can grip harder than anyone else I’ve ever met. Ow.

I sigh. Am I just doomed to be hated by her forever? This runs through my head again. I really got on her bad side today. Way to ruin a first impression, Erik. On either side.

I reach the front door. Before I enter, I take a deep breath in, then blow it out. This is going to be difficult. Probably the most difficult thing I’ve ever done.

I enter my house. Kaylee somehow beat me here. She must have been shopping at the dollar store around the corner. Mom is just visible in the kitchen, and Dad is sitting in his easy chair, scrolling down his phone. Kaylee is just sitting on a footrest, reading a magazine.

Mom asks me how school went, and I answer with a generic, “Okay.” I don’t lie (most of the time, and only for very good reasons), but I’m not particularly interested in telling her that the new girl at school dragged me halfway across the gym. Mostly because I was a dum-dum.

I set my bag down. Then I nervously begin to speak. “Mom, Dad, Kaylee... I have something to tell you.”

“You have a crush?” Mom.

“You have a girlfriend?” Dad.

“You have a date this weekend?” Kaylee.

Why did they all just jump to what is essentially the same conclusion? “No.” I breathe in, then out. Then I jump in. “I’m Edge.”

There. It’s out. They might be in danger, but they need to know. Besides, I can easily protect them! Plus, it’s easier for me to save the city-slash-state-slash-country-slash-world if they know. Less lying involved.

“That’s nice, dear.” Mom.

“Oh, I already knew.” Dad.

Kaylee just releases a pterodactyl-like screech.

“Kaylee? Are you okay?” I ask.

She twitches. “I... I...” She regains her composure. Temporarily. What’s her problem? “I THOUGHT YOU WERE CUTE!!!!!” She yells at me.

Oh.

“That’s not my fault!” I yell right back, while recovering from my semi-defensive pose. “Sheesh.”

“You two settle down!” Mom chides, stirring the mashed potatoes. “Erik, finish your schoolwork. Kaylee, clean your room.”

Sometimes I wonder if Mom has superpowers, too.

**********************************************

I stand on my rooftop. Mom and Dad have been informed of where I’m going (nowhere in particular; it’s a patrol), and when I’ll try to get back (11:30 by the latest).

As for why I’m standing; I don’t particularly like flying. It’s really unnerving. No, thank you.

As I begin to cross the City, I hear voices. I run a mental filter, trying to distinguish who has bad intents or not, but sometimes random thoughts still pop in.

Children laughing, the TV screen, running water, the street (Viewed from the front passenger’s seat), sizzling meat. Then something really stands out.

I probably shouldn’t have yelled. It’s a girl. She’s just thinking to herself. Why does this concern me? She continues: But maybe now he’ll pay attention. Ugh! I can’t sleep, I feel so bad.

Okay, pretty sure I know who this is.

“I need some fresh air.”

So, she’ll be coming up, huh? I wonder which roof she’ll be on. This is the business district, so there are a lot of flat roofs. Some people live above their shops, too. I’m guessing her family is one of those.

I see a figure across the street come up and sit down on the edge of the building.

I wonder what exactly she’s up to? I should go check. With that thought, I head that way.

“But when would I apologize?” She asks herself. Yep. It’s Hailey.

I crouch down behind her. “You could start now,” I whisper.

She totally freaks. Oops. She also nearly falls off the building. Double oops.

I catch her by the wrist. “Gotcha!”

She bangs into the building, lets out an “oof!” then looks up at me. “Let go of me, flea-brain!”

Um, is that supposed to be an insult?

“You sure about that?” I tease.

She looks down, then back up. “Please, pull me up.” In the back of my mind, I hear her think, Don’t antagonize the person who’s trying to help you!

I pull her up and set her safely on the building.

She says, “Thanks.” She’s standing with her back to me, but I’m pretty sure she’s as red as a tomato.

“No prob,” I remark. “It’s kind of my job.”

“Ha-ha.” She’s not really laughing. It’s a “That’s super cheesy” kind of laugh.

“Look, I’m sorry I was so mean to you,” she says. That’s mildly out of the blue.

“Are you now?” I wonder. She ignores me.

“I guess I’m still adjusting to the City, and then you scared me!”

“So, you’re new, then?” I ask.

She turns around and laughs. “New indeed! I’ve only been here for two weeks!”

I sit on the precipice of the building. “Two weeks?” I remark. “Well, you seem to have found good friends.” I’m just trying to not make her angry again. She’s actually pretty cool when she’s not yelling.

“Yeah, four of them!” She states, then lists them: “Kaylee, Beth, Grumpy... er... Cole, and Rick!”

“Four?” I ask. I guess Kaylee must have introduced her to my friends, Rick and Cole, but what about....

“Well, one of them has a... Well, she has brother named Erik, but I’m not sure I like him.”

Me....

It’s a good thing she’s turned away, or she would have seen my face, and probably realized that I’m totally Erik. I want to be her friend, too!

When she’s not yelling.

I compose myself. “If you don’t mind me asking,” I begin, “why?”

She stares out over the City. “He just didn’t make a good impression.”

All right, that’s fair. I stand up. “Look,” I say, “I should be going. Stay safe.”

“Okay.”

Before I leave, I turn back. “Um, good night,” I tell her.

“Same to you,” she replies.

I leave, feeling very mixed up on the inside.

[nyxicnymph]

Horizon and Edge

#1: Introductions:

Hailey:

I stare up at my new home. My new home, in the city. The City, where I've never been. Well, except for once or twice a year when visiting my maternal grandparents. The city is scary to me. And I'm almost sixteen. Okay, I'm fifteen and four months. That totally counts as "almost sixteen"!

I drag my stack of boxes in and set them on the table in the downstairs "business" area. This will soon be our café. Le Café De Jardin. It's got a nice ring to it, doesn't it?

I stretch. I've lifted so many boxes today; I don't even want to count. Liam was of no help at all, and Annemarie is nursing a pulled muscle, so it was mostly me, Mom, and Dad.

Anyway.

I step outside, just as Dad drives the moving truck away. Okay. I guess we're done, then. I turn to follow Mom inside—

“Ow!”

"Sorry! I wasn't paying attention!" A female voice says from above me.

I run the voice through my head. I don't know this girl. I look up... Right into the sun. Ouch.

Blinking, I say, "You and me both." As I stand up, the blood rushes from my head, and nearest lamppost is too far away. I fall right back over. I blame low blood pressure.

"Are you okay?" Another girl.

"Well, I didn't faint, so I assume I'm okay." This is my response as I stand up just a bit slower. I finally look at them.

Okay, only two of them, but the voices told me that much. One is tall, wearing a purple shirt, is tan, with brown hair and eyes. The other is pinker, with reddish hair, and hazel-y eyes. About my age.

"What grade are you in?" I blurt. Stupid non-existent social skills.

The brown one just tosses it out there. "Junior year."

"Hailey--Oh, hello." That's my mom. Just rolling with whatever life throws at her. She sizes up the two girls, then cocks her head. "You're Hailey's age. Why don't you show her around the City? So she won't get lost, if she takes to wandering."

I shake my head at my mom, desperately trying to convey the fact that I, the most anti-social butterfly EVER, would not just go wandering around a place filled with so many people. But it's too late. I'm practically being dragged down the street....

**********************************************

Two weeks later. Sigh. I’ve started school and hang around with Bethany and Kaylee--those two girls I met on my first day in The City--mostly because I’m too scared--or lazy--to go make other friends.

Bethany is very quiet. She lets other people do most of the talking. However, when she speaks up, she’s worth listening to. She has a lot of common sense, and a head for dealing with problems. She also has a sense of humor.

Kay is almost the exact opposite. She really likes to talk. And she’ll talk to anything. No, I mean, ABOUT anything. Shopping, her brother, dessert, her brother, shoes, her brother, church, her brother’s friends, and her brother are just a few of her favorite subjects. She really likes her big brother. Kaylee is very sensitive, however. She noticed that I don’t like people, and so hasn’t forced me to meet anyone new. Yet.

I’m the one who talks to things. I’m ex-homeschooled, and weird beyond belief. When I’m with Beth and Kay, I feel strange. It’s almost like... I made friends, darn it. I’m not quite sure what I’m supposed to do with these feelings, though, so usually I’m just shy.

Beth, Kay, and I are walking to school one day, when we’re suddenly run over by a blue-and-green blur. The blur continues ahead of us, and we are left behind with a dust storm and the epitome of a bad hair day.

“Ugh,” I exclaim, staring ahead of us, “Who...” I flip my hair back where it’s supposed to lay and fix my bangs, then continue, “Or, rather, WHAT was that?”

Kaylee flattens her hair. “Our local superhero,” she says. “Great at stopping supervillains. Not so much at avoiding the local population.”

“No kidding,” I grumble. Beth agrees with one of her customary “Mm-hm’s”.

I look at Kay. “So, what’s her name?”

Kay looks at Beth. “You explain.”

“Okay!” Beth says. “Um... Not a she... Not a...” She sighs. “HIS name is Edge.”

I stop. “Oh! Why didn’t you say so?” Now I’m embarrassed and tune out of the conversation.

Ten minutes later, I tune back in to hear Kay saying something about, “But he’s a good guy in general! Get it? Good guy?”

I manage a small, “Heh” as Beth goes “Dang.”

I pause. Sure, it wasn’t that great a joke, but there’s no need to be rude.

“Look!” Beth says to me. Oh. “You can actually see him! Wow!”

I turn. Standing not thirty yards away is a young man in a jumpsuit. He’s pointing at a pair of bad guys and saying something like, “...you’re going to JAIL!”

“Whoa!” I can’t help it. He’s a real live superhero!

Beside me, I hear Kaylee mention “He’s cute!” and Bethany muttering, “Call the police and the firemen....”

They’re kind of right...but I’ll never tell them that. He looks more like a boy in his late teens instead of a young man. But age is no guarantee of power. I mean, just look at Kaylee. She’s only fifteen and a half, but if you tell her that there’s a sale (On anything, from trash bags to oranges), she will bulldoze anyone and everyone out of her way to get to it.

I shake myself and start walking. Beth and Kay turn towards me.

“Uh, Hailey? Where are you going?” Kay says.

“Yeah, where?” Beth adds.

“To give that guy a piece of my mind,” I reply darkly.

Beth leans back her head and gives an embarrassed laugh, while Kay tries to stop me with a “Hailey, no!”

Too late, girls.

**********************************************

Edge:

“Hey, you!” I hear from behind me. I turn around, and take in the girl. Average height, blonde hair, heterochromatic. Her heterochromia is a unique combination; she has a blue right eye, and a brown left eye.

She is clearly upset about something, and her overall appearance, plus the emotion coming off of her in waves, makes me blush, though I’m not sure why.  

I see two more girls standing behind her, and suddenly everything makes sense. This is Kaylee’s weird new friend. I can’t remember her name, though.

I respond to her as best as I can. “H-hello, citizen,” I say. Why is my voice doing that?! I continue, “Is there something I can do for you?”

Suddenly, I hear one of her thoughts: Stop talking in macho voice?

She moves on, saying, “Yes, actually.”

“Fire away,” I tell her. Then I chuckle at myself, “Heh, fire.”

She takes a deep breath, and then truly just yells at me, “STOP RUNNING ME OVER!”

I hear Kaylee and Bethany mutter, almost in unison, “It was one time…”

I merely say, “Oops.”

Ladies and gentlemen, that is the extent of my speech capabilities currently.

Kaylee walks up to the girl, and provides me with a name, at least. Kay says, “Hailey, it was one time. ONE.”

Hailey turns around, beginning to walk off. “Yeah. Don’t do it again.”

I automatically turn to Kaylee and ask, “What’s her deal?”

Kay looks at me, and responds, “Why are you asking me?”

Panic floods through my brain. She doesn’t know who I am yet! I quickly turn away, muttering, “Sorry, wrong number.”

Confusion comes off Kaylee in waves, but then her other friend, Bethany, calls her over, and they all walk off; Beth and Kay are lecturing Hailey on dealing with superheroes properly.

**********************************************

Hailey:

“You don’t treat heroes like that!” Beth scolds.

I reply offhandedly, “So? Maybe he’ll stop.”

Kay sighs. “That’s not the point!”

I shrug, but they continue to lecture me. I don’t encourage it, but I am listening to them. Maybe I did make a mistake. By the time we get to school, I have “listened” enough to appease them. I’m ready to roll.

Or so I think.