Rising Shards

It was a bit dicey flying and teleporting back to school, especially dodging prefects because I did not want to explain why we were outside in a void storm to them. I was tapped out on all fronts, physically exhausted—though surprisingly not as sore as one would think I’d be after getting thrown into a building—mentally drained, I was in no shape to come up with a story, and I doubted Aira and Syval could either.

I didn’t wanna be all, “Go team! Let’s do this again next week!” before we split up, but I also didn’t want to go the opposite direction and tell them I’d never do that again. I just said we should talk about this sometime and went back to my room.

”So you’re just not gonna say anything to me, huh?” Nikki asked.

I froze in place and started stammering excuses out immediately. It took me a second to realize Nikki wasn’t talking to me, but to her girlfriend P.D. as the two passed by me. Nikki stopped by my side, and my brain processor nearly crashed trying to figure out what to do. P.D. didn’t stop with Nikki, just continuing on, their helmet almost sparkling under the ceiling lights.

”Alright, talk to you later, I guess,” Nikki said. ”Or just stand by you while you don’t say anything.”

“What’s going on?” I asked. I didn’t get as intense flutters looking at Nikki anymore, but the bittersweet pangs of a crush that didn’t work out still hurt.

“Pfft,” Nikki blew her hair out of her face. “Hell if I know, dude.”

”Well, uh,” I started, desperately begging myself not to say something stupid. “If you need someone to talk it out with, give me a holler.”

“Sure,” Nikki said, leaving in a huff. I’m pretty sure she didn’t hear a word I said, which caused another hit from the whole failed crush situation.

I started to wonder what I would do if Nikki and P.D. broke up, but tossed that aside because that was a pretty selfish thing to think moments after seeing a fight, and because my brain was too beat to deal with any of it.

My room looked empty when I got there, but I still stuffed my cosplay jacket under my shirt just in case. I guess that would have been harder to explain than if I just had it on, but again, I was pretty fried mentally so the part of my brain that could scheme and strategize was lost in static.

I shoved the jacket back into the closet bin I was keeping it in, piling up some clothes on top of it.

“Dude,” Marmalade said.

”What? Huh?” I shuffled out to see Marmalade rolling out of her bed.

”Dude.”

Did she see any of that? How would I explain this to her?

“Oh, uh, hey Marms,” I said, not sounding at all suspicious.

“Did you hear what happened?” Marmalade asked. ”I slept through the whole damn thing!”

I almost asked if Tokickaman’s latest fight made the news, which would mean I made the news.

”With...?”

“The group chat’s going crazy, didn’t you see?” Marmalade said.

“I forgot my phone,” I said.

“Penteldtam got beat up by Chickadee, P.D., that freaky Caeda chick, and a bunch of new girls that everyone is saying are devils.”

“Wait, wait, wait,” I said. ”What do you mean beat up? Did they get expelled?”

Guess that explains what Nikki and P.D. were fighting about.

“That’s the thing, I guess the school board wanted them to beat up Penteldtam, because he got fired!” Marmalade said.

“No way,” I said. “This school system’s so messed up, but I can’t deny I’d be glad to never hear that dude sing or read us one of his poems again. Who’s replacing him?”

“…hold on…” Marmalade scrolled through her phone. “Kitty.”

I was too tired to respond any other way but swearing very loudly.

“…and...” Marmalade kept scrolling. ”Caya?”

”Like...co-principals?” I said.

”I guess,” Marmalade said. ”That’s how they do it at Falling Shards. But there’s this whole thing about the devils needing to be trained and a bunch of other groups coming, too.”

”What the hell do you mean by devils?” I asked.

The lab notes flashed in my head. That junk about a school program training...

No way, it couldn’t be the same thing.

“I bet one of them is bird Cani,” Marmalade said. “You ever see a bird Cani? I even heard we’re getting Echela cadets coming in to keep this in line. I wonder if they’re gonna be in those body suits, those uh, heh, they’re pretty great—”

After the day I had, and a lot of thoughts spent about potentially losing all my friends going down this heroic path, it hit me how much of a relief it was to have my roommate yapping at me, hair still all messy from bed. I wrapped my arms around her, needing to hold her. I was too tired to question doing anything else.

“Uh…hey!” Marmalade said. “Everything alright?”

Whatever I do, I can’t lose her. Or any of my friends.

“Yeah, I just needed to hug you, I guess,” I said. “Sorry, I’m just really beat, I’m probably being weird.”

“No, no,” Marmalade said. “No need to be sorry. This is…really cool. I mean, I’m cool with it. Is what I mean.”

I yawned as Marms hugged me back.

“Where’d you go that’s got you this beat?” Marmalade asked.

”I, er,” I said.

Should I just tell her?

”I was outside when the storm hit,” I said. ”Because I’m a dumbass.”

Not really lying. Still feels bad, though.

”Oh my god,” Marmalade said. ”You good? No wonder you’re beat.”

”I’m...alright, I guess,” I said. ”I could really use a nap.”

”I recommend you take one, then,” Marmalade said. ”I can be on guard duty in case Zeta is loud when she gets here.”

”Thanks, but I’d probably sleep through it, so you don’t have to,” I said, pulling away from the hug, my fingertips brushing against Marmalade’s forearm.

”Ah!” She yelped.

I felt something on my hand scratch her, like my nail was suddenly longer than I thought it was. I must’ve looked completely freaked out going by Marmalade’s reaction when I saw I actually drew blood.

”All good all good!” she said. ”Just a little cut.”

The hell? I looked at my hand, kind of expecting to see a total beast hand with huge claws, but it looked normal.

”I er...” I said. ”Grew a single nail out for self defense?”

”What?” Marmalade laughed.

”That’s something Roux said, that was probably just a hangnail. My bad.” I said.

”It’s alright!” Marmalade patted my shoulder. ”Go get some sleep, Kalei.”

I hauled myself onto bed, nearly zonking out instantly. Another yawn and a bit more sleepiness whittled down my usual talking filter even more. ”You’re so damn awesome, Marms. Don’t ever let me forget that.”

I didn’t lift my head up to see her reaction, I knew I’d be asleep in a few minutes.

”Um...OK? I’ll...try my best!” Marmalade said.

I think I managed a thumbs up to her before sleep took me, but I dunno if she saw.