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The Glass Bowl

Short Story By T M. BLAKE

"Ichiroll hurry if we're going to make it to the portals in time!" Ichiro's mother yells. Ichiro stuffs the last of his breakfast in his mouth and deposes of his trash. He rushes to the door where his mother waits for him with her hand outstretched, taking it as they both exit their home.

It is a sunny day on the streets of Preo. They follow the familiar path to the portal station, blending in with the sea of tamers of all snakes and sizes.

When they reach their destination, Ichiro's mother leads him over to one of the oval-shaped portals that sucks in the air around it.

Squatting down to meet his eyes, Ichiro's mother fixes the collar of his shirt. "Have a good day my Ichiroll."

Ichiro gave her a quick hug before moving past her. He was scared of the kids from his school seeing him hugging his mother as if he was a small child.

Fighting against the wind of the portal as it swirls, Ichiro steps through, finding himself in front of a tan overwater bungalow hut. It has a grey roof and several square windows and it stands on stilts that led to the bottom of the ocean. Ichiro's sandals rest on the grey boardwalk that separates each line of huts. At the top of the door sat an elegant painting of a pygmy rattlesnake so he knows he is in the right place.

As his peers plop out of other portals around him, Ichiro gazes at his wrist nervously. When he comes to school every day, he strives to do his best to get closer and closer to his dream.

The memory of his father's last visit flashes through Ichiro's mind. His father is a well-known military General so he is rarely home. When he comes back home, Ichiro tries to make the most of the time his dad takes off to be with his family. They were sitting around the table. His father smiled down proudly at Ichiro as he told him that once he completed his training, he would become a warrior and fight under his father's command. If he worked hard, he would become a General himself.

Kano, his snake companion, sits on his wrist in the form of a knitted bracelet. It is a trick he learned a year ago, a simple altercation of the snake's original form. Hiroyuki snakes were magical creatures and Ichiro looked forward to each day he gets closer and closer to discovering Kano's full potential. Kano was a pygmy rattlesnake, granting him the power to make things invincible with physical touch.

Taking a deep breath, he climbs the short, wooden ladder and enters the hut. It is filled with small children and Ichiro's teacher, Sensei Misaki. She is wrapped in a pink and purple Kimono. Her black hair is longer than Ichiro's mother's hair, cascading down to her knees. She is instructing everyone to sit on the floor with their legs crossed. Once everyone was accounted for, she clasps her thin fingers together, her thin cherry-colored lips bending into a kind smile.

"Good morning class!"

"Good Morning Sensei Misaki!" the class says in unison.

Sensei Misaki's smile brightens. "Let's see. Does anyone remember what we've been studying in class for the last three weeks?"

Most of the students raise their hands, but Sensei Misaki points to a girl in the front.

"Water Damage and Shattering Prevention."

"That is right Hana-chan."

She holds out her hands as her brown pygmy rattlesnake slithers from inside the sleeve of her kimono, spiraling around her hands and fingers before turning into a purple glass bowl. The students jump in surprise when she lets it crash to the ground, watching it break into a thousand pieces. A second later, the pieces gravitate towards each other until they form a perfectly undamaged bowl again.

"Today, I will be measuring your skill level with each of these preventions. It is okay if everyone doesn't pass. I just want to assess where you are in your training so far."

She asks the three weekly helpers to bring a small table, a translucent square pail, a jar of seawater, and a stack of paper to the front of the classroom.

When it was their turn, each student takes a piece of paper, holding it for a moment, and then dips it into the pail of water. When they take it out of the water, the piece of paper is either a mushy white mess barely holding itself together or perfectly intact.

When it is Ichiro's turn, his belly rolls in anticipation. He'd practiced this exercise at home countless times. Still, he is scared of messing up in front of his teacher and classmates. He closes his eyes and holds the thin piece of paper, focusing his energy on his fingers. He images the paper coming out completely intact. Taking a deep breath, he opened his eyes and dipped the paper into the seawater. After holding it there for a couple of seconds, he brings a damped piece of paper back to the surface. The writing is still visible. His heart swells with triumph as he steps aside for the next person.

After everyone has their turn, Sensei Misaki switches to the shattering exercise. Sensei Misaki asks the three helpers to retrieve a stack of plain, porcelain bowls each. Once they sit them down in front of the class, Sensei Misaki touches the top of each stack before instructing everyone to take one. She then instructs the helpers to pass out arts and crafts supplies to the class.

Using the supplies, the students decorate their porcelain. Ichiro covers his paintbrush in a mixture of orange, yellow, and red, drawing random lines along the exterior of his bowl.

While the bowls dry, Sensei Misaki begins a history lesson. At the end of class, she lets everyone take their bowls home with an assignment.

"I want to congratulate you all for doing so well today. However, I've decided to give you guys one final test." The class erupted into mild chatter, but their teacher quickly shushes them. "You will be responsible for keeping your bowl unharmed for the rest of the day. Tomorrow, those that bring their bowl back undamaged will receive a special prize. I hope you guys have a good rest of the day!"

Ichiro and his classmates form a line as Sensei Misaki leads them to the portal station. It is crowded. Children from other huts wait for their parents and guardians.

His mother is waiting for him as always. He walks over to her and they take a portal back home.

Ichiro wraps his hand around his bowl protectively the entire time. When he gets home, he sits the bowl on a cushioned pillow, scared it might break. As he does his homework, he feels something small bounces off his head.

In a mixture of curiosity and irritation, he picks up a pebble that hit him. Looking in the direction the pebble came from, he finds his window halfway ajar. Kano, who had been peacefully sleeping, arose and hisses at the window. Peeping out, he comes face to face with two of his classmates, Itsuki and Kai. He plays with them sometimes when he's not at school, practicing, or doing homework.

"Hi Ichiro-san," they say in unison.

"Hai Itsuki-san and Kai-san."

Itsuki is the first to speak. "Tough assignment Sensei gave us. I didn't get a good look at the paintings on yours. Can you bring it out here so we can get a better look? We'll see who's looks the coolest."

I don't know if that's a good idea, Kano's voice is thick with concern and uncertainty. Ichiro quickly reassures him with a meer thought. It is rude to respond to the voice of your snake spirit in front of other people. He learned that the hard way.

"Hmm. It's not safe for it to come out there."

"You used your powers on it Ichiro," Itsuki smirks. "It can't break. You're the top of the class so this should be an easy assignment for you."

"I guess you're right. Hold on." Ichiro hurries away from the window, grabbing the bowl and tucking it under his arm. "I'll be out."

"Where are you going?" Ichiro's mother asks once he comes out of his room. She is in the living room with one of her clients.

"Outside to play with some friends" Ichiro answers, zooming out the door before his mother could see what he is carrying.

"Okay, stay where I can see you!"

He meets Kai and Itsuki on the side of Kai's house. They both lean forward as Ichiro shows them the bowl.

"Can I hold it?" Kai asks. He holds out his hands, a mischievous smile spreading on his face.

"I—I don't think so." Ichiro backs away from the two boys, but they only walk closer. His eyes wander to their empty hands. "Where are your bowls?"

"C'mon Ichiro, give us the bowl." A crooked smile spreads over Itsuki, his words spitting like acid.

"What are you going to do with it?"

"We're to break it, of course, Ichiro — or should I say Ichiroll."

Heat rises to Ichiro's cheeks at the sound of his mother's nickname for him. "W—w—why would you do that?"

"Because you act like your better than everyone else. You're the general's son and we know you get special treatment. Your rich dad is probably paying Sensei to give you private lessons. That's why you're so good. The best in the class."

"Special treatment? Sensei Misaki treats me like anyone else. I just practice and study. You're supposed to be my friends."

"You were supposed to be our friend Ichiro." Itsuki and Kai came closer to him, ready to snatch the bowl from his hands. Their smiles had turned into glares. They circled Ichiro ready to pounce. "But friends don't cheat!"

Itsuki jumps at Ichiro first. Ichiro quickly dodges his attackers and dashes into Kai's front yard.

The boys chase Ichiro through the neighborhood. They nearly bulldoze stands, clotheslines, animals, and people. After zigzagging through the neighborhood, Ichiro finds himself at a dead end. Looking around, he tries to find a way out of this sticky situation.

Ichiro! Kano's deep voice echoed through his skull. Throw me on the ground!

Ichiro rips the bracelet from his wrist and tosses it to the ground. A big brown mud puddle appears before him. He plunges into it, surrounding himself with dark water.

Itsuki and Kai arrive a second later looking around for Ichiro. He watches through the murky water as they look around before turning around. He waits a couple of minutes before climbing out of the mud puddle, his clothes surprisingly dry.

He clinches the bowl to his chest as he thinks of a shortcut home. He is about to walk forward when his toe bumps against a rock mounted in the ground. His toe curls in pain and he quickly nurses it. The bowl slips out of his grasp. Its fragile form collides with the ground, breaking into pieces.

A cloud of shame surrounds Ichiro as he walks home without the bowl. He'd let everyone down. Sensei Misaki. His mother. His father. Himself. He is stripped of his confidence.

His mother waits for him outside the house. Her hands are crossed over her chest and the disappointed look on her face makes Ichiro drain of color.

His mother already knows. She always knows about everything. He doesn't have to say a word before she points a stern finger towards the house.

Within minutes, he finds himself in his room. As he lays on his bed, Kano slithers from around his wrist and morphs into a pillow. Ichiro lays on his side and hugs the pillow close to him.

His mother enters his room shortly after. She sits on his bed. "I'll have to talk to Kai and Itsuki's parents and contact your teacher to tell her what happened." His mother's voice was softer than when he got home. "It's okay my little Ichiroll. It will all be okay."

"Can you not call me that? It's embarrassing." Ichiro's heart is halfway into the words are they slip out of his mouth. He loves his mother's nickname for him, but not if it was going to cause his peers to laugh at him.

"What? You are my little Ichiroll. You will always be my little Ichiroll no matter how strong or handsome you become. You shouldn't be ashamed of me showing you that. You're lucky to have a loving parent like me. Some children don't ever get to hear their mother's voices or feel their embrace. If your friends make fun of you loving your mother, they don't deserve to be friends with an amazing person like you."

Ichiro's cheeks are covered with tears as he turns to look at her. "But they said that I wasn't a good friend because I cheated. Misaki Sensei is giving me special treatment and that is why I'm at the top of my class. I just practice and study."

"They don't understand. They don't see how hard you work. I thought they were good boys too. You have to understand that with everything comes a price. They're just jealous that you work hard and receive promising results."

"But what am I going to do about the bowl? Sensei Misaki will be disappointed and I will fail my test."

"I will handle the situation. I know they were your friends Ichiroll and they betrayed you today. Keep working hard and don't let jealous people stop you."

Ichiro lets go of Kano in pillow form. He hugs his mother, his father's last visit coming back to him. He would work hard to make him proud no matter what it took. He decided from that day forward that no one was going to get in the way of that ever again.

No one.