Humans, I was here to analyze them, to “judge” them, yet I still found them rather tasteless, well, I did before. My later findings about the two individuals that shared my classroom had been rather surprising and a bit embarrassing. I had been too self-centered, too blind. It was time to get my crap together and really get my work done.
On my way out of the cell known as “2nd Grade, group E” I eyed the two kids I had been observing today; one was smaller than me, with dark, short hair and rather baggy clothes, while the other was somehow taller and seemed stronger than many of the guys I had seen before. There was certainly something different in them, but I still couldn’t see what and that was frustrating.
With my head cast down and making yet again the mistake of not paying any attention to my surroundings, I bumped harshly against someone else. I stumbled backwards and barely recovered my equilibrium. I looked up and realized that whom had nearly made me fall was a boy of my age, taller than me just by a few inches. His hair was dark in color and all spiked up in a bizarre way.
Despite his strange hairdo and the fact that he was also wearing brown military boots, everything else looked normal in him.
Still… something wasn’t normal, and that was why I was staring at him. he didn’t seem to like that too much and glared back at me silently. The world moved around us but we were in a stalemate, I was not going to turn away until he did so and I was… curious, very curious. I wanted to know if he (despite his rather formal looking clothes), along with the others I had seen today, was anything like me.
He suddenly moved his arm to reach something in his pocket, my body tensed and I reached up towards the necklace chain around my neck. Did this bastard think he could combat me? That was nearly laughable...
However we never got to even get our weapons out, because one of our prison wards, those we called “teachers”, approached us. One last glance to each other and we broke our stances in the most natural way possible.
I wasn’t sure about his reasons not to defy the “authority” of this place. I, for one, was bored of trying to do so and I had a rendezvous at home.
“You shall meet this Fateless Soldier once again, stranger,” the dark-haired boy warned as we walked in opposite directions, not looking back. However, I did try to glance at his pockets once he was a yard or such away, at least to be prepared the next time we met. Whatever that was, it seemed like plastic.
I resumed my way home, more confused than ever. Plastic in a battle, wouldn’t that give him a great disadvantage? Or maybe it was like my own weapon that could be hidden from mere human eyes? But then again, I was not a mere human, so why hadn’t I seen his true weapon? Was he just mocking me like many others had?
He seemed kind of serious, though. So now I was looking forward to our next encounter.
Just before I crossed the gates I did something I hadn’t done in years: I stopped, turned and took a look to what was around me. Most students seemed to be just that, students immersed in their preteen years. How many remarkable ones were hiding under that veil of normalcy?
In the distance I saw who seemed to be my last discovery of the day; a gal, sitting near a tree with several cards around her. Even when her attire was normal, the quick movements she made with her hands attracted the attention of anyone who wasn’t self-focused.
I had seen her before, of that I was sure, just like I had seen the militia boy. They were my age and grade, but were in another group.
A gust of wind came, making some girls yelp in surprise. This forced the gal I was observing to stand and chase some of the cards that said wind was taking away from her, reminding me that I had to get my butt home.
I would think about all of this once I got there.
The way to my house was uneventful and rather boring, just seeing people pass by me, ignoring me just as I ignored them. All of it was a routine by now so I could distract myself a bit and wonder: What was this all about and how were the kids I’ve seen today so different from the others and so alike me? Also, how could I have been so self-centered to never notice them before?
I arrived home faster than I expected and with a sigh I opened the door. The first to greet me was a white haired adult whose mustache and beard I often found funny to look at. He, as always, began to fuss over me, questioning about my day and demanding that I ate dinner this time.
“I know, I know,” I replied with a light smile over his worried words and overacted gestures. He cared a lot about me but at times he was just too immersed into showing it. “Just let me serve the kiddo some dinner first, else she’ll have a fit.”
Getting to my room, I threw my backpack against the bed, as always. The wardens and others could go to oblivion with their stupid forced work: my house, my rules. And that meant in my house I did not do homework; I did it in the library with the inspiration and energy of last minute panic, just like it should be done.
While I hated studying and working for that jail, I was well aware that in the human world we did as humans did. Else they would go into a rambling mode that would not only bore me, but also waste my valuable time. That was not an option so I did the minimum effort until the moment when deadlines came.
While I got into some more comfortable clothes, I tried to come up with a plan to actually contact my first decided target. It was, in my opinion, currently much more important than anything else. I then felt someone jump on my back and grumble.
“I’m hungry,” the girl, about my age, complained angrily.
“I know, let me serve you some food,” I grumbled, trying to balance her so she wouldn’t fall while I searched for the small container where her food was. Once I served her the thin and long high-protein snacks, I sat down and looked up.
“So, what took you so long? Wanted to starve me to death?” The child of orange eyes asked of me, making me chuckle for the first time that day. I don’t know, there was something with how she glanced at me, eyes filled with mischief and suspicion and the way she cocked her head to the side when eating that just cracked me up.
“I was… thinking,” I admitted, leaning towards her as she took another bite of the food.
“Now that’s something, didcha over-heat?” The small kid teased me, mouth half full.
“Nearly,” I grumbled. “And close your mouth, geez.”
“Awww, you’re afraid that you might feel like having some of my food?” She laughed again, giving me a wide grin. “At least mine has some actual proteins, not like that junk food you eat.”
“You win this time…” I had to accept and for a while, there was a pseudo-silence which was interrupted by her constant chewing and gulping.
“So,” the reddish haired kid asked once her plate was empty and clean. “Watcha were thinking about? It’s not usually a habit for you.”
Ignoring the bait I closed my eyes and sighed deeply. “It seems there are others like me: others who are different, who might see more than what the normal guys see. Today I noticed four of ‘em at prison… and it also seems that one wants to fight me now.”
“Well, see what I say when I say that you don’t think?” She asked, pushing her plate away and jumping behind me. “You really, really thought you were the only one who was different, you were of the bunch that claims not to be of the bunch,” the orange-eyed girl said before I turned to see her face; she was smiling.
“Maybe I was an idiot and all, but still I have to see more into this and that’s kinda worrisome, because I don’t know exactly how to do that. I mean, I ignored the others for long for a reason.”
Opening my mouth to say something else proved to be useless as her voice interrupted me right away.
“You’re a bit of an idiot, so let me give you some pointers. First of all, you gotta change your point of view if you wanna see what’s really going on around you. You gotta be more impersonal. You took a year in seeing that there are others like ya out there, now you gotta have some balls and do your work. Even confront ‘em if necessary, remember you’re here to observe and you’re kinda failing epically in that.” She explained, making me wince. I hated how she seemed to be younger than me, yet at times she got all “sage and wise” like.
And I also hated that she was right, so right.
“Ok… Tomorrow I begin my observation, I even have my subject,” I told her.
“Just don’t get in trouble please, miss,” the old man said. He had come to my room unnoticed and hence had nearly made me jump off my chair. I managed to smile a bit at him and nod, trying to reassure him before I feel something pulling on my hair.
“Don’t worry, ol’ geezer, I’ll go with her!” The reddish haired one said, making me sigh. Well, it seemed that I had no say in the matter. There was nothing else to do more than wait until the next day.
No comments:
Post a Comment