(Note: This isn't my best work ever because I'm getting ready for my GCSEs, which start on the 12th.) “Andy!” Andrew heard his mother call out to him. She hardly even knocked before she flung his door open dramatically. He sighed and asked her why she was in his room. She only responded with a giggle and shoved a piece of paper into his face. He half-heartedly swiped at the paper, removing it from his face and her hand in one deft movement so he could read it. “Mr Andrew D Terra, we are proud to welcome you into…” His voice trailed off as he read the rest of the letter silently, his excitement mixing with a slight sense of unease. “Mom, that’s an abyssalith school.” He stated once he was finished reading. She seemed a little deflated after hearing his comment, and her smile faded slightly, so he gave her a reassuring grin. “This is great, mom!” This seemed to help, and she left the room quietly celebrating to herself. Meanwhile, Andy continued to stare at the letter, a pit forming in his stomach. He swallowed hard. He was terrified… The school’s front was polished and Andrew almost had to shield his eyes from the glare of the light bouncing off of it. He could feel the gaze of his peers stick to him as he approached the front door, and they noticeably cleared out of his way faster than anyone ever would out of courtesy. No; this wasn’t them being polite… It got worse once he was through the doors. They could see how different he was. He was a cervithan; not an abyssalith. Not one of them. He pulled his hood up to cover his antlers, but that did nothing. He was different, and everyone could tell. He glanced at the scrap of paper in his hand. His locker number and code were on it. He repeated the number to himself in his head over and over. 247. 247. 2 4 7 … Locker 247 was surrounded. There was a crowd of abyssaliths swarming around it, and these ones didn’t move out of the way for Andy. “E-Excuse me? I need to use my-” “Nothing here is yours.” Andy paused. He was confused. Scared. “Pardon..?” His voice was quiet when he spoke. He could hear his own fear, and was doubtless that the one who had spoken to him could too. They looked like they did. The inside of the locker was dim, with the only light coming from through the few tiny slits in the door. He didn’t dare scream for help; he didn’t trust any of the abyssaliths in this school. He recalled the words of the bully as he stood stock still in the tight space. “This will never be your school. It’s OUR school. Not yours.” But it was his school. Right? He lived in the Abyss Society, just like them. It wasn’t his fault that his home world got destroyed… ‘Why do they all hate me so much…?’ ============================================= “That’s who the first cervithan in a regular school was.” Jane states with a grin. Terry looks uneasy. “And he just got bullied?” He mumbles. Jane sighs, and ruffles his hair, her face resting as a calm smile. “Don’t worry, Ter. He managed to graduate, and had friends. And things are even better now. Okay?” This seems to calm Terry’s nerves. He relaxes, and leans against his sister. Jane can feel the soft velvety texture of the surface of Terry’s tiny antlers. She’ll never let him be picked on for them. For who he is. For what he is. “I love you Jane.” “Love you too Ter.” He’s a good kid. ============================================= Andy stood before his classmates, his palms sweaty. He had no idea how he was meant to introduce himself. Especially after arriving late to class. “Um, hi. My name is Andrew Terra. I’m happy to be here…” He was lying about that last part. He was frightened of every person in that room, and they knew it. Lying was absolutely futile. He made his way over to the empty chair that had been left for him and sat down. He stared at the desk, rather than making eye contact with anyone in the room. The teacher announced that they were going to start the school year off with a group project to get acquainted with their peers. Andy gulped. He’d no doubt be alone. Then he felt a nudge beside him. “Looks like we’re working together, Andy.” Andy? But nobody other than his mom ever called him tha- Unless… Unless this abyssalith was just trying to be friendly. But why would they be friendly with him? Why didn’t they hate him like all of the others? But then again, why did his mother not hate him? ‘Some are just better,’ he figured. The abyssalith introduced herself as Darcy, and held out her hand for him to shake. He could feel her gaze boring into him as he declined. “This is meant to be something we work together on, Andy. If you can’t even shake my hand then we’ll never get it done.” Her hand was warm. Only slightly, but Andy noticed it. She was trustworthy. He could just tell. Her handshake was firm, but to a limited extent so as to not hurt him. A friend? Maybe. Maybe not. An ally? Definitely. ‘She’s a good friend.’
