THURSDAY

Form B have General Studies in the mornings on Thursday, but it is evident by the way that Peter Kingsley fails to hold the attention of the class that their focus is elsewhere. Eiden is reading an entirely unrelated book that seems to be on the stranger side of Egyptian legends and myths.

“Hey, here’s an interesting one.” he says to Aubree, sat beside him. She cranes her head over the page he’s pointing to, to the point that her head is rubbing against his. He gives her a sidelong glance and she moves back a bit.

“Ahah. Sorry! Go on?”

“Well, apparently this one tells of a pharaoh who, when they died, was mummified in Original Cloth. It’s said that the pyramid was cursed, and when some grave robbers broke in, it activated a trap that applied a Power Patch to the mummy.”

“Whoa! That’s so cool! What happened?” asks Aubree. Eiden studies the page further.

“…Hm. Looks like he rose again as a shade of his former self, and consumed the souls of those who robbed his grave. Apparently there’s no basis in science for this, but on the other hand, nobody has tried applying a patch to a mummy wrapped in Original Cloth since…”

“Interesting!” Aubree says, looking at the drawings in the book.

Anastasia stares at the empty seat next to her and raises an eyebrow. “Anyone seen Zaphod today?”

“He was in registration this morning.” Eiden says.

“See!” Anastasia replies, turning to them with frenzy. “I knew I’d seen him there! But then he vanished in the free period, and hasn’t turned up to General Studies.”

“It was probably because he hadn’t done the homework – let’s be real.” Aubree smirks.

“Maybe…” Anastasia murmurs.

“Why are you so concerned, anyway?” Eiden asks. Turning red, Anastasia mutters something quietly and gets back to her work.

Phillis is proving himself to be quite adept at the science worksheet the class are doing, and has almost finished it. He leans back, pleased with himself, and flexes his arms. He has two additional tattoos: from his left shoulder to his hand is a long, coiling dragon, breathing fire, and along the other arm is the same dragon, breathing cold, icy breath. Currently, the blue dragon is pulsing quietly – Phillis is calm.

*

“Yaaaaah!” yells Zaphod, launching himself back into the sky and trying to control his movements. As he drops, he prepares the Rocket Heels, and manages to fire himself almost parallel to the ground, shooting across the field in a matter of seconds.

Zaphod sees Anastasia stood in front of him, having just exited the building, and tries to stop himself in time. He flips himself around in midair so he’s going feet-first, and Anastasia draws the knives of the Garrote Garter, using two of them to block the feet. She’s pushed back a few feet, but manages to slow Zaphod down.

“This is where you’ve been all morning?” Anastasia asks. Zaphod nods confidently.

“Yup! Practising hard, as always!”

“But… Zaphod, not at the cost of everything else!” Anastasia says forcefully.

Zaphod tilts his head and looks at her curiously.

“I’ve been watching you. You haven’t done any of your homework all week, and your grades are dropping. And this morning you didn’t even go to General Studies!”

“Oh, have I already been out here for that long?” Zaphod replies. “…Huh.”

“And look at how thin and pale you are. You can only fire the Rocket Heels three or four times before you get too dehydrated and hungry to do more. Have you been eating enough?”

Zaphod continues to argue his case with Anastasia, but feels himself become less and less sure as she continues to fret over him. “I, uh, brought along some nuts. For energy. That’s enough, right?”

“Yes, but if you’ve been practising with the Rocket Heels for two hours, lord knows how many times you’ve fired them off!”

“I was, um… I’ve been doing hand-to-hand combat training too…” Zaphod says, trailing off.

Anastasia fixes him with a worried look. “I know you want to do well in the competition, Zaphod. But it’s just a Practise Model Competition… please don’t forget all the other reasons you’ve come here, OK?”

“…OK.” Zaphod says, grinning at her. “Sorry to make you worry, Ana.”

“It’s alright.” Anastasia replies, looking down. “I was just worried.”

There’s a few moments of silence.

“So, uh, do we hug it out?” Zaphod asks. Blushing hotly, Anastasia nods and the pair embrace briefly.

*

Donovan has also been making use of his free period, and is currently working out, with his four clones working out with him, on one of the arenas outside. He is breathing heavily as he performs another press-up, and his clones are wavering.

“Donovan.” says a voice. In surprise, Donovan drops to the ground, and sits up to see Simon observing him.

“Sir! I was merely honing my body and pushing myself to the darkest limits of the human ability!”

“…Yeah, alright.” Simon replies, shrugging. He walks over to Donovan and eyes the clones that are sat around him. “I’m impressed. Your clones are still here.”

Donovan realises he’s correct. “Well! The impact of your surprise and me hitting the ground didn’t cause them to go. I must be mastering the arts of mental calmness!”

“Marion mentioned in the staffroom that it’s one of your weaknesses. Looks like you’ve already recognised that and you’re taking efforts to combat it.”

“Indeed.” Donovan replies. “Powerful though my ability to command the spirits and shades of myself are, when I am hit, I often lose my focus on them. Retaining focus on the clones whilst suffering blows… that would be the ultimate command over my power!”

“Mm. Sounds like a good idea. Also, have you been checked up lately?”

“Not at all.” Donovan replies.

Simon walks over to him, and Donovan gets up off the ground with some help from the clones. He dissipates them all and turns to Simon.

“I’d… recommend it. That little chest-explosion move is certainly effective, but it’s only doing that because you’re doing stuff with the Obfuscating Hood that you shouldn’t be. I’m concerned that repeated use will lead to permanent damage.”

“Yes, I suppose so.” Donovan replies. He doesn’t mention that his chest has been hurting as of late, and nods at Simon. “I will do that sometime soon, even though there is little wrong with me! Your concern for I, Donovan, is appreciated!”

Simon nods. “Uh, right. Anyway, that was all.”

He begins to walk away, leaving Donovan stood in the field, one hand gently touching the point on his chest where the pain is emanating from.

*

As lunch arrives, everyone gathers in the lunchroom to eat, though Cassandra only notices one person: Boo. As she sits down, Boo goes over to sit with her. She’s silent, but eats her lunch and glances over at the girl from time to time, until Cassandra finally speaks.

“You OK?”

“…Yeah.” Boo murmurs. “I… wondered if you were mad after Tuesday’s Combat Training.”

“A little.” Cassandra says, and Boo looks visibly worried. Cassandra smiles at her. “But I respect you, and I don’t think it’s fair to completely ostracise you for one bad thing. You can sit with me, OK? My friends are off doing god knows what today, I haven’t seen any of them.”

“Thank you.” Boo says, relaxing a little bit. “People… don’t seem to like me.”

“They’ll cool off.” Cassandra assures her. “Don’t worry about it.”

Somewhat happier, Boo sits next to Cassandra, and then she tries to say something, but it is too quiet for Cassandra to hear.

“Hm?”

“I said, um… would it be OK if I come to your party on Saturday?”

Cassandra looks surprised, but nods. “Of course! I didn’t think you’d want to, but I’d be happy to have you there.”

“Cool.” Boo says. “I… I’m meeting Xilog in the afternoon, but we can both come after that.”

With the expertise of a practised liar, Cassandra pretends to look surprised by this. “Oh, really? I had no idea you guys were meeting up. Well, enjoy yourselves, and head to mine around 7. Alright?”

“Yes.” Boo says. A soft smile graces her face.

*

The quiet of the library is suddenly disturbed when there is a loud stage whisper of “BOO”. Seconds later, Aubree runs up to the girl in question, who has been quietly doing some homework at a desk, and throws her arms around her.

“Aubree?” Boo cries as she wriggles in Aubree’s grasp.

“I’ve been meaning to do that for a while!” whispers Aubree as a librarian comes by, investigating the noise. “After what happened on Tuesday, you absolutely need a hug!”

“I, um, thank you.” Boo says, her dark skin being tinged with red as she blushes fiercely. Aubree giggles, watching her awkwardly react to the hug, then a few moments later, reciprocate.

Aubree grins, and feels a momentary pang of regret that Boo is going on a date with Xilog on Saturday.

“Hey, are you just into guys?” she asks. Boo looks surprised, and nods.

Aubree shrugs. “Figured. Anyway, what work are you doing?”

“Oh, um, my General Studies homework. I know it’s not due until next week, I just wanted to be ahead since this weekend is going to be busy…” Boo says.

With a grin, Aubree nods at her. “Makes sense! Maybe I should make a start on mine, too. I’ll be busy at the competition on Monday, after all!”

For a moment, Boo doesn’t say anything, but then she gives a little smile. “Maybe… we can work on it together?”

“Sounds good to me, friend.” Aubree says, smiling back widely. The two girls look at their worksheets and begin to write and compare answers.

*

In Combat Training that afternoon, Marion is well aware of a tension in the atmosphere. Eventually, as the lesson draws to a close, she sighs.

“Alright, last fight. Eiden and Phillis. Get to it!”

Phillis walks over to the field, and as his battle lust grows, the orange dragon begins to pulse. Eiden practically runs onto the field, and the long limbs of the Spider Snood grow out and carry his body for him.

“Begin!” Marion shouts.

Eiden immediately goes on the offensive, and there is a fierce determination in his eyes. As he lunges at Phillis, the larger boy tries to grab the arms of the Snood, but they wrap around his arm and throw him to the side. The tentacles are too weak to pick him up and throw him properly, but Eiden continues the assault by grabbing Phillis’ legs as he tries to stand and sending him down to the floor.

Visibly annoyed, Phillis grabs one of the arms of the Spider Snood and pulls on it, but Eiden pushes himself forward and kicks Phillis in the face. The momentary surprise of this assault gives Eiden enough time to wrap four of his arms around Phillis’ hands, two on each arm – this provides him with just enough strength to properly lift the boy, and he hoists Phillis into the air.

Phillis begins to wriggle with rage, and the flaming dragon tattoo begins to pulse intensely, but, unable to move, he can do nothing but watch as Eiden slams him into the ground. He lets out a gasp of shock as the air is knocked out of him, and with another heave, Eiden throws Phillis out of the arena, leaving him to land on the ground and crumple.

With a satisfied nod, he goes to sit back down.

“Holy shit, Eiden did not hold back.” Aubree says to Clocksworth, who is watching in awe.

“I didn’t know he was so strong. Clearly he’s been training.” she replies. Eiden comes to sit with them and she grins.

“Hey, Eiden!” Aubree says excitedly, getting in his face and smiling at him. “Well done!”

Eiden nods. “Thanks.”

A short while later, the class is finished, and Eiden catches Clocksworth as she begins walking back in. “Uh, hey.”

“Hm?”

“I feel kinda bad after our fight the other day. You want to practise together sometime?”

“Oh. Sure.” Clocksworth says, shrugging. “Sounds good.”

“Cool.” Eiden replies, and continues to stand and watch Clocksworth go back in with the rest of the class. Leaning against the wall for a bit to relax, he doesn’t have to wait long until Boo comes out.

“Hi.” she says as she reaches him. He waves.

“Hey; wasn’t sure if you’d come. We’ve got an hour before I have to go to Dance, so, uh, want to practise?”

“Yes.” Boo says, nodding. “I’ll, um, try my best to advise.”

They begin to spar, with Eiden moving acrobatically around using the Spider Snood, and Boo’s overpowering strength keeping him at bay. As she knocks back his attacks and tries to strike him down, she offers small tidbits of advice.

“The only way to become a skilled martial artist is to learn how to perform automatically.” she murmurs as she dodges past two of the Snood’s limbs. Eiden rolls around her as she whiffs a strike, and he goes to follow-up with one, but it glances harmlessly off Boo’s arm, raised to block the blow. “Channel the power from your back leg through your body and into your punch.”

“I’m trying.” grunts Eiden, gripping one of Boo’s legs and flipping her over. She punches the ground moments before she hits it, and the force of the blow hurls her the right way around again. Eiden descends on her with all eight of the Snood’s limbs striking out like a scorpion’s tail, being blocked and deflected by Boo; Eiden can see, however, that her attention is focussed. He’s pushing her to the limits.

Boo spots her opening, however – as the limbs strike, she throws one arm to her left with such force that a small draft of wind is created, knocking the Snood’s tentacles aside and leaving Eiden wide open. Her other arm delivers a solid punch to Eiden’s chest, hurling him across the field and to the ground.

“Success boils down to having a reflexive response to an attack.” Boo says. “You, um, did well. I wasn’t sure I was going to win there.”

“Reflexive response…” coughs Eiden, getting back to his feet. “…Right, I think I know what you mean. Let’s go again!”

Boo nods. “OK.”

FRIDAY

The next morning, Xilog finds Eiden already exercising hard when he arrives, sweating and tired.

“How long have you been here?”

“A while.” Eiden grunts as he completes another sit-up. “Gotta train hard for the Model Competition.”

“Do you not think that this is too hard?” Xilog asks. “Your body is honed by the twists and trials of modern life, the natural gym of existence.”

“Nah.” sighs Eiden, finishing his sit-ups and collapsing on the ground to catch his breath. “I… just needed… to work harder…”

“I see.” Xilog replies, walking over to the treadmills and preparing one of them.

“I was practising with Boo last night.” Eiden says, hopping onto the treadmill next to Xilog’s. “She’s tough. But I think I learned a lot – managed to really work on my Snood’s strength. I only beat her twice, though.”

“She is indeed strong.” Xilog agrees. “It is a shame she isn’t performing in the Model Competition. She would do quite well.”

“I don’t think she has the confidence for it.” Eiden replies. “No offence, of course. Why aren’t you entering, can I ask?”

“It’s not my scene. I’m focussed on my goal of being a Peacekeeper.” Xilog says.

Eiden nods. “Makes sense. Haah… fuck, I’m tired already.”

Smirking, Xilog looks over and sees that Eiden’s treadmill is going twice as fast as his own. “Somehow, Eiden, I am not surprised.”

*

As usual, Cassandra, Ten, Donovan and Jackson are hanging out during lunchtime. Boo is sitting with them, but is sitting closest to Cassandra, and still evidently quite nervous. However, Ten notices that she’s at least contributing to the conversation more than Jackson is.

“Hey, Jackson, are you good?” she asks.

Jackson looks up in surprise. “Oh! Yes, sorry. I’m busy with work and the competition and stuff, that’s all.”

“Understandable.” Cassandra says. “I’m looking forward to seeing you perform!”

“I have one question for you, man of the shadows!” Donovan says. “Who is your designer?”

“Ahah, doesn’t matter. Let me just focus, OK? The competition is literally Monday.” Jackson replies, brushing off the comments and returning to his work on Eiden’s mask.

At another nearby table, Aubree is also cramming for the competition, talking strategy and outfit design with Eiden. There’s a slight air of panic as the slow realisation that the competition is three days away permeates throughout the college.

*

The afternoon is quite busy for Eiden, who has plenty of classes on, but the real concern for him is the end of Performing Arts, when he walks up to Louisa.

“Ah, mon étoile! What can I do for you today?”

“I, um, was wondering whether there’s anything I could do in regards to… uh, extra lessons?” Eiden asks. “I spoke to Romein the other day after my friend said she’s arranged an apprenticehsip with him after half-term. I got the same offer from him, but I wanted to ask whether you could do extra lessons or extracurricular training in regards to textiles. That’s what I want to do in the future, so I thought…”

“Hm, intéressant…” Louisa murmurs, considering the question for a few moments. “I will speak to Headmaster Pinnacle next week, but some additional textile lessons might be good. It has been so long since I had a protégé!”

Eiden looks up at her, his eyes shining. “So that’s a yes?”

“If Monsieur Pinnacle agrees. We shall see what happens, ma lumière!” Louisa replies. She walks over to her desk and studies the timetable, nodding to herself and muttering quietly.

Louisa gives a final nod and turns to Eiden. “Quite so. We are happy to help our students with additional lessons, though, bien sûr, that is something that is much more relevant in the second year.”

“Thank you!” Eiden says.

With a spring in his step and a smile on his face, hidden by his mask, Eiden exits the classroom and heads to the training arena where Knock ‘Em Dead Club has begun. Most of the students have already been knocked out by Simon, and as Eiden runs up, Xilog is running onto the field.

The students are surprised as Xilog puts on a burst of speed, and Eiden reaches Cassandra and Ten.

“He’s got the Speed Sneakers!” Cassandra notes. “This’ll be interesting.”

Simon activates his own Speed Sneakers as Xilog dashes towards him. Xilog’s first punch misses Simon by several feet, as he has dodged aside, and Simon prepares to strike with the huge hand of his Phantom Overcoat. Xilog dashes around the falling fist, too fast to hit, and lunges at Simon once again.

Simon has prepared for this, however, and slams his own gigantic shadowy arm into his own body, just as Xilog reaches him. Both he and Xilog are hurled across the arena, and in the confusion, Simon kicks Xilog’s stomach and knocks him into the air. A well-thrown punch knocks him out of the arena.

“Damn!” Eiden says, wincing. “I was really rooting for him.”

“Of course he’s going to know how to deal with his own clothing more than anything.” Ten says. “But the extra speed is really nice for avoiding his punches.”

The rest of Knock ‘Em Dead Club goes about as expected – Simon cleans house with the student body and sends them all packing; they go home, a little battered, but perfectly happy with the week. There’s a growing sense of interest as the students begin to discuss Monday – for some, it’s a well-earned day off from college, for others, it’s the beginning of a difficult and rigorous competition. But first, they have the weekend to relax.

SATURDAY

On Saturday afternoon, Boo arrives at the nearby coffee shop in Macew, Cairo Coffee. Xilog is already waiting inside at a table, and he looks up and gives a brief smile as she enters. She’s dressed up for the occasion, with knee-length denim shorts and a comfortable top, plus some heavier makeup than she typically wears. Xilog is wearing his usual, but has made the effort to wear a button-up shirt with a crisp, ironed collar.

She smiles and sits down. A hooded figure at a table on the far side of the coffee shop, just out of view of Xilog and Boo nods.

“Begin, dark confederacy! She’s arrived!” Donovan whispers. Cassandra, Ten, Jackson, Phillis, Clocksworth, Zaphod, Eiden, Aubree and Anastasia have come along with Donovan to tail the date.

“This is gonna be interesting.” Cassandra murmurs, observing the pair and trying to listen to their conversation.

“You made it.” Xilog says to Boo as she sits down. Boo nods.

“Um, were you waiting long?”

“I arrived five minutes early. I thought it best to try and get a table.” Xilog says.

“Ah.” Boo says.

There’s an awkward moment of silence.

“You look nice.” Xilog says. “Have you done much else today, besides this?”

“No, no.” Boo replies. “Just schoolwork.”

“I see.”

Another pause.

“Um, shall we get drinks?”

“Can do.” Xilog replies. They stand and walk over to the counter, which leads to a very hurried rush of hats and coats as Donovan’s group hide themselves.

“Seems awkward so far.” Zaphod says.

“Quite, just what I was thinking.” Donovan replies. “He needs to capture her heart with his manly passion!”

“He just needs to be nice. That’s all she’s looking for, most likely.” Cassandra asserts. Donovan immediately corrects himself.

“Oh, of course! Being nice is key to winning a girl’s heart… I shall remember that.”

Ten watches Donovan carefully – his gaze lingers on Cassandra for just a few seconds too long.

After they buy drinks and some cakes, Xilog and Boo begin to ease up a little. They discuss the Model Competition, the Aranea attack, and other such sundries, but Xilog seems to have been overly prepared for the date.

“I wanted to have a quick look at your family history. You must have an interesting one – why would you be in the UK if not?”

“Oh…” Boo murmurs. “Um, OK. Wh-what did you find?”

“Your father, Tony Viejo, is a Peacekeeper, correct?”

“Um, yes.” Boo answers.

Xilog gestures as he fixes his eyes on Boo. “I found that he was a famous Peacekeeper here, but moved to the US after meeting and falling in love with your mother.”

“Yes.” Boo says. “He had to give up his work here and get a transfer to the US Peacekeeping system. That’s why I was born and raised in Texas.”

“I see. What brings you back here, then?”

“Oh, um…” Boo replies, blushing a little. “I’ve always wanted to be a Peacekeeper, ever since I was a little girl. Dad disagreed with the way they teach it over there, so when they realised I was dead set on it… we arranged to move to Macew. We only did the move last summer.”

“I see.” Xilog murmurs. “Explains why you miss your home.”

“Yeah.” Boo answers, clutching her Texas pin badge. “Um… what about you?”

“There isn’t much to say.” Xilog replies. “I haven’t seen my parents in years. Not since… I’ve been living with other family, distant relatives. Don’t really spend much time with them though. I keep to myself, mostly.”

“Oh, that’s… I’m sorry.” Boo says, looking at the table and taking a sip of her coffee. Xilog shrugs and leans back in his chair.

“What are parents, at the end of the day? People who brought you into the world, but hold no such qualms about just abandoning you in it. Your real parents are the people who raise you. You were lucky enough to have your parents. I raised myself, and maybe that’s why I spend my time wandering in fields and trying weird mushrooms in my spare time. Maybe that’s why people think I’m strange.” Xilog muses. “You lose yourself in a world of colours and questions, wondering whether you deserve to be loved at all and who the people that will love you are. For such empty spaces, the fields and forests here can be quite loud…”

Over the next few hours, Xilog and Boo find themselves taking an interest in one another’s lives. Boo’s stories about her childhood in Texas and her long, arduous years of learning karate and combat pique Xilog’s interest, and Boo finds herself enamoured by the strange rhetoric that Xilog often gives when he is feeling introspective.

Under the watchful eyes of Donovan and the rest of the class, the date goes off without a hitch, and soon, it is almost time for the party to begin.

“We should get going.” Cassandra murmurs. “Party’s in half an hour and we need to some prep. My aunt’ll kill us if we don’t help her set it up before she goes out.”

“Where’s she off to tonight?” Ten asks.

“Night shift somewhere.” Cassandra says, shrugging. “Picked up a Saturday night gig for a little extra money since I started college. Anyway, come on, you guys. Let’s get going.”

“And keep yourselves hidden!” orders Donovan.

Xilog and Boo are so engrossed in their conversation that they completely miss the group of nine of their fellow students sneaking their way out of the coffee shop, one at a time. As the clock moves ahead, Xilog notices the movement of the hands.

“Hm. We should think about making a move. I’m going to Cassandra’s party tonight – uh, unless you’d prefer we hang out more?”

“No, that’s fine.” Boo says. “I was going to come to this party. I’d like it if you were there.”

“I will.” Xilog replies, standing up and preparing to leave. “I… enjoyed this.”

“So did I.” Boo says, smiling softly. “Thank you, P.”

*

“Hey, welcome!” Cassandra says as she answers the door to find Xilog and Boo arriving, with Donovan just behind them, having gone out to ‘procure’ some drinks.

“Let us begin the party, now that I have delivered the dark juice!” grins Donovan, entering the room to a rousing cheer. Phillis is lounging on one of the sofas, with the affable Clocksworth perched on the other end. The other sofa is occupied by Ten, with Cassandra taking her seat on the arm, and Zaphod and Anastasia, sat together.

Eiden is between the two sofas, relaxing on the floor next to Aubree. Jackson has pulled up some chairs from Cassandra’s kitchen, and offers the other two to Boo and Xilog. Donovan places the carton of drinks on the table in the centre of the chairs and sofas, and the group begin to dole them out. Donovan parks himself at the foot of the sofa where Ten is sat.

The music is playing, the drinks are flowing, and everyone is having a good time.

“Zaphod, you’re looking a little less wild tonight.” Anastasia remarks. Zaphod laughs.

“I can’t drink as much as I did last time! Besides, now I’ve got to know you all a bit, there’s a lady or two I want to impress.” he replies, winking. Anastasia blushes and turns to speak to Clocksworth as she waits for her redness of face to die down.

“You alright, Phillis?” Cassandra calls across the room. With a drink in his hand and his eyes closed, he gives a thumbs-up. It’s clear he’s drinking in moderation.

Eiden uses his straw attachment to begin drinking, and turns to Aubree. “Oh, right, I was meaning to ask. Uh, hey, I was wondering… would you perhaps want to become co-designers with me in the future? We could revolutionise the world of Battle Clothing!”

“Goodness.” Aubree replies, a little taken aback. She begins to fidget with her fingers. “Well, I can’t really say what’s going to happen in the future, but for now, I like working with you!”

 A huge weight begins to lift from Eiden’s shoulders and he smiles behind his mask. “That’s good enough for me. I like working with you too.”

“Urgh…” Zaphod grunts. “I only had the one drink, and I’m still feeling rough.”

Ten laughs as she downs her drink. “Wow, you really can’t hold your drink, can you?”

“It doesn’t help that he’s drinking on an empty stomach.” Anastasia replies, cutting back into the conversation. “You really need to eat more instead of practising so hard!”

“I know, I know, babe.” Zaphod says, pacifying Anastasia with a hand-waving gesture. Anastasia fights down her blush this time and nods.

“Good!”

“You’re both too cute.” Cassandra says with a wry smile.

“Oh, by the way!” Jackson says, catching the attention of the group. “I brought Clothes Against Humanity if anyone wants to play that.”

“Oh, fun!” Aubree says, grinning. “That’s the card game where you give people silly outfits, right?”

Jackson gets out the party game and begins to sort through cards. “Yeah!”

“Sounds like a good time. Let’s do it.” Cassandra says. “Who’s in?”

As everyone plays the game, drinking to varying degrees and enjoying their time spent with their classmates, the sun sets on a happy Saturday night.