A/N: THIS IS THE LAST CHAPTER OF HIDDEN FLAMES! I'm so happy! But you guys might not be so happy after you read this…. To explain myself for this kind of ending: originally Hidden Flames was supposed to be one whole story, but then it sort of got way too long, so I just decided to split it up. I know that nothing has been resolved as of this point… but it will be cleared up in the sequel. I'm sorry for leaving you guys hanging like this!
Thanks to everyone who reviewed! Good news: I have time to do individual thanks!
OneTreeHillCharmedFreakHehe, I did.
Davatari I was thinking about how harsh Andrew's reaction would be, and later I thought that maybe he was being a little too nice xD.
jasmin-roseUm… I have no idea what you said lol.
LMTranYeah, Faye is a major, major Mary Sue. :sigh: I didn't want her to be… I didn't even realize it until I read a very helpful article on Mary Sue's. Thanks for your encouragement! And I know all of my readers are probably dying for Sirius and Faye to make up… hehehehehe. I can't say when, though, so you'll just have to wait. Sorry!
Selenes SongHehe, thanks.
Torri-ChiobieMmhm… Sirius will come back into the story soon.
doctressI hope this ending isn't as bad as the last chapter's… though it's probably worse xD
Joy: Well… here's the sad ending that I promised you! At least I don't go into it very deeply. Thanks for the very, very, very long review! xD
Stephanie: Um… I don't remember what you said on my last chapter… but thanks!
AshNPadfoot: Don't worry about your Mary Sue, because you can still make it a good character and story if you accentuate the flaws. At least, that's what I did with Faye, who started out so Mary Sue I don't know how I lived with myself. xD
Kadasa-MoriYes, well, it is the summer, so Sirius obviously won't be meeting Faye right now.
kryptoniteblackThanks for pointing that out to me. You're right. In the sequel, there will be more trust and definitely more fluff.
Luksich: Haha, I'm glad you like Andrew so much. You're idea hits very close to what I was planning to do, you know!
Keirin-SamaThank you!
Radiant: Thanks. I really wanted to present Andrew as more than just a friend (or a sidekick, like you said). Thanks for your support, and your review! I hope this chapter doesn't disappoint.
Let Me BeYes… it would be nice for something to go right for a change. You're actually pretty close to what I was planning on doing… hah, I guess my plot is really cliché.
Vanatheeveryoung Thank you! You love their fights! That makes me so happy because… well, most of it is fights. XD Hehe, you'll read more about Andrew here!
Snowflake ProngsetteYou cried? Thanks! (Hehe, that sounds kind of weird.)
Under-the-Moonlight Here's the self-improvement program!
RainynDawn You'll see… :mysterious cackle:
RueNekoOoh, you're good xD Haha, I guess great minds think alike! ;
Xaien I thought I dropped a lot of hints on that matter.
Aubreianna: Thank you!
Cassiopeia BlackNope, that little bit of jealousy wasn't just you!
BlessedTortureYeah, it was too drastic a change. I don't really know about adding the distant part. Andrew would be very happy to see her that he'd forget about it for awhile, but then after Faye sort of brings it up, he'd be bound to remember his anger and why. Well, that's my justification.
Andy: A month… these days I'm starting to think that a month really isn't that long.
Lana: Well, I wouldn't go as far as to say that Faye's going to fall in love with Andrew. So far all I've hinted at is a one-sided, unrequited feeling. Yes, I want Sirius back as well, but that'll have to wait in the light of some important plot twists. Heh, sorry I didn't answer reviews in my last chapter; I was too busy.
Shinigami-Sama1 Thanks for the advice. I'll keep it in mind!
Silent Storm 2000Bwahaha, you'll have to wait to find out the answers to those!
DragonmountHere's the update!
LaUrEn321Ah! I'm sorry, did the chapter come too late for you to read? O.o Four essays? That's horrible! Hehe, thanks for the review!
MarkellaAre you Sirius? (haha, now isn't that funny?) No! This chapter might make it worse! No… it's always been Faye and Sirius!
Aka Yuki-himeYes, he does.
Vanessa-Black and ZabiniHehe, I don't have smelling salts for you. Sorry! Here's the update though.
dancer24/7: Thanks!
Nyx Nyght Oh, thanks for reminding me of that! I'd almost forgotten it myself!
SaxifrageWow, another really, really long review! Thanks! I love your ideas! Really funny! I do like the idea of the graduation ceremony… but you see, Faye didn't get there yet xDD. The thing is, I don't really want to reflect on how Andrew's year has been. It obviously wouldn't have been pleasant, and I don't think his pride would let him tell Faye how bad it really was. Haha, "Mm, boys are yummy!" Faye is going to get there… someday. With a certain someone's help. Yep, you guessed right… Andrew has a wittle crush on Faye. And I hope you enjoy their projects! And actually, the llama was really horrible to me! He peed under my desk and then climbed into my bed to sleep on it. What makes it worse is that he was out collecting fleas and ticks in my backyard, so now I have bites all over! Ooh, great, I hope Candy the wombat will be better! I need a muse xDDD I love reading your reviews!
DoNtLetMeGetMeHehe, thanks! Oh, I like your penname!
Shadowed Child of FlamesNyeh… Sirius is fighting to come back in xD
Goldfish682Hmm… well, you didn't see Henry and Diana here… but they will make more appearances.
Arano HonouIt's not just you!
warrior of tortallHehe, you're right!
EW4eva: O.o Suicide lane? Faye? No… they don't fit. And I also don't think I can adequately describe it, seeing as I've never been very depressed to the point of suicide. So you won't have to worry about that. Hehe, thanks for understanding about the updating thing.
Elven DaggerI'm really, really glad you liked this one. I think you're a great author, and it really makes me happy if you actually like my very clichéd story. You always leave very logical and good points, so THANKS! I really hope that this chapter doesn't disappoint you.
The REAL Cheese MonkeyBwaha, yes….
Chocolate-ChippsHehe, thanks for your review!
Ellilyo: You were in Andrew's position? O.o I don't really know what to say…. I hope it worked out all right.
justx4xfun04I can see where you're coming from. There was no real Marauder action, other than the times I slipped Sirius's name into conversations… and this chapter is the same. I'm sorry, but these few chapters are a turning point in the story that can't involve them.
AnotheranonymousHehe… you'll see!
Whew, I'm glad I'm done with those! Please don't be TOO angry at this chapter's end… you'll know what I'm talking about.
--
---Chapter Sixteen: The Calm Before the Storm---
--
"Betty, I'm going out for a while, all right?" I asked on my way to the door.
"Just be back in time for dinner, okay, dear?" she called from the living room.
"No problem," I answered, opening the door. I had to go meet Andrew to talk about my first "lesson" in my self-improvement program.
As soon as I opened the door, I came face to face with—Fiona. Oh, yes, lucky me. I flinched.
"Well, it's not like your face is any more soft on the eyes," Fiona snapped, obviously noting my flinch.
"Right. You keep on believing that," I raised my eyebrow at her. But I chose not to go further than that. I had plans with Andrew and I didn't want to be late. We were going to start on my self-improvement program! How could I miss that? So I merely brushed past Fiona. Maybe this could be my first lesson: controlling the urge to retort, snap back, and insult.
Perhaps I really was making progress—and I hadn't even started my program yet and I was already controlling my instinctive urge to retort! This was great! Tracy would be proud.
I whistled a little tune and turned towards Andrew and my chosen meeting place: The Tree, of course. I wondered what Andrew had in mind for me, for my training. We had agreed that I couldn't have any say in what I had to do to while in my self-improvement program, because I'd most likely try to "corrupt" Andrew's ideas, or so he said.
Andrew was already waiting for me at The Tree. He looked very happy and eager to get started.
Too eager.
Hadn't he been complaining for the whole while when I had first introduced this? Hm… there was something going on. Something evil.
"'Sup, Faye?" Andrew grinned toothily at me. I flashed back an uncertain smile.
"Hi…? Why are you so cheerful?" I asked suspiciously.
"No reason," he almost chirped. "Let's go. I have the perfect thing in mind for your first session. We're going to go get ice cream."
"Wha—?" I cut off my screech. And then I blinked. "What?" I asked in a more reasonably tone.
"I said, we're going to go get ice cream!" he repeated with exaggerated eye rolling. "Am I your coach or not? Come on."
There must have been some sort of trick in this. What kind of lesson was this supposed to be?
So we walked to the nearest local store, and we each bought an ice cream.
Okay…
This was my first lesson? Enjoying my ice cream?
I liked the way things were going.
We sat ourselves on the curb and I happily licked away at my ice cream cone. It was so freaking hot today! The sun glared down at us unmercifully, and I could see the heat waves rising off the ground, making the image of the road hazy and wavery.
"Okay, I'm done with mine," Andrew announced after several minutes of silence.
"Mmhmm…" I mumbled, still licking away.
"And I'll just take that," he continued on happily, reaching over—can you believe the nerve of him!—grabbed my ice cream out of my hand and proceeded to finish it for me.
"What the hell do you think you're doing?" I asked in a strangled voice. "That's mine, you know!"
"This is your first lesson," Andrew said in a mock-wise voice. "Sharing is caring, Faye, remember that."
"What—I—no!" I sputtered, unable to get my thoughts straight. The sight of him licking my ice cream was too much!
"What was that?" he asked sweetly, smacking his lips and letting out a satisfied burp.
"I'm going to buy another one," I snapped, getting up and doing just that. Andrew just sat there, looking at me with a smug grin on his face. Maybe if I kicked him in his crotch he wouldn't look so satisfied…. Hehe….
"You do that," Andrew replied, smirking in an absolutely insufferable fashion.
"I will!" I said huffily, stalking away. I bought another one, this time strawberry-flavored, and stalked back to where he was sitting, still finishing up my ice cream.
"Mmh… Yum," he mumbled.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah, stop shoving it my face," I growled.
"Tsk, tsk," Andrew chided gently. "Is that any way to talk to your coach?"
"Would you rather me just shove this up your ass to save my breath instead?" I asked sourly, wildly gesturing with my strawberry ice cream.
"Faye, we're not going to get anywhere if you keep on going on with disrespect," he scolded, still in that motherly fashion that was—I swear—even more annoying than Sirius.
But then again… maybe not.
"I'm your coach, so you'll have to treat me as such. For example, when I say, 'Go get me another ice cream,' you say—"
"Go to hell," I supplied.
"—what flavor," he finished sternly. "Am I making myself clear?"
"Crystal," I answered, rolling my eyes and bringing my ice cream up to my mouth to dig in.
"Oh, and Faye?"
Sighing impatiently, I lowered my tempting food and glowered at Andrew, who was grinning so hard that I was amazed his mouth hadn't ripped. "What?"
"I'm still hungry."
"So?" I snapped.
"So… since you are a kind, caring, and generous soul"—he reached over and plucked my ice cream cone out of my hands—"you will give me your ice cream, with no hard, envious, or bitter feelings. Right?"
I watched, fuming, as Andrew gleefully licked my ice cream. Mine! He saw me watching him—glaring at him was more like it—and he only grinned at me cheekily.
Oh, he was going to get it now.
"Absolutely," I said, my voice coated with sugar. "And since I'm such a nice, kind-hearted person, I'll even go buy you another one."
"Sure. Go ahead," he answered, unaware of what was coming.
I stood, and for the third time, I went and got another ice cream. God, the lady at the cash register even told me to stop coming back for more, or else I'd lose my figure. Okay, whatever holding back I had originally planned on was now successfully tied, gagged, and shut behind locked doors. I got the mint chocolate chip flavor, the one with the distinguishing green color. Oh, it did help that there were also hard, sharp bits of chocolate inside it.
I walked cheerfully back to where Andrew was sitting on the curb.
"So, Andrew, here it is," I announced, standing right in front of him.
"Thanks. If you could just set it down for a moment while I finish this one, that'd be great," Andrew replied without looking up.
"Sure thing," I smiled.
I hefted the ice cream in my hand, and then brought the whole thing, top first, right smack dab onto Andrew's forehead. The resulting yelp was very satisfying. Oh, yes, very satisfying indeed.
"Oh, I'm so sorry about that! My hand just… slipped." I said with fake remorse. "Here, let me help you get that off."
I reached down, and out of pure spite, wiped the ice cream all over Andrew's not-so-happy face.
"There we go," I leaned back in satisfaction to survey my handiwork. "Now you look much better."
Smiling, I basked in my triumph as I watched Andrew sputter some profanities and try to wipe his face clean. And he even whimpered in pain several times.
Ah… sharp bits of frozen chocolate really did work wonders.
After some hard working, Andrew finally managed to uncover both of his eyes. He glared up at me sullenly.
"Well, this was a great lesson," I said conversationally, sitting down next to him as if I hadn't just smeared his face with dangerous ice cream. I then ostentatiously wiped my hands clean on his shirt.
"Oh, you'd better get cleaned up," I frowned at him, baring my teeth in a fake, sympathetic smile. "You look a mess. We still have a whole day to go, remember? Hm… for the first lesson, you really know how to keep things enjoyable, coach."
He gave me the evil eye.
"I don't think we're getting anywhere," Andrew glowered, grabbing the cone that was still sticking up on his forehead. "The whole point of that was to teach to you share and not overreact to anything a person might do, no matter how mean."
"That was hardly overreacting," I sniffed. "You ate my ice cream! My ice cream! Mine! I can't just sit and watch you take my stuff! The nerve of you!"
"You see? I rest my case," Andrew sighed, dropping his head onto his hands.
I smiled when he jerked his face upwards again, wincing when—I suppose—the chocolate chips dug into his face. He glared at me resentfully while I burst into laughter.
"Well, Faye, I'm really very sorry about taking your ice cream," he said with fake sorrow and penitence. "I guess I'll have to make it up to you some time."
"Yeah, I guess you will," I gasped, wiping tears of laughter from my eyes.
A slap of ice-cold, creamy, and soft stuff it my nose. And there were also sharp bits poking into my skin.
"There you go. Now we're even. Aren't you glad I'm not the kind of person who'd let you get away with all the kindness?"
I growled at him through my faceful of ice cream.
ll----ll
"Hey, Faye, you can fold my clothes today," Andrew said, opening the door to his room and ushering me through.
"What?" I complained, disappointed. "I keep coming back here, hoping for a partway decent lesson, but all you give me is chores!"
"They're to help you be patient, helpful, and slow to anger. It's prefect! You can't possibly deny it," he said quirkily.
"Whatever," I mumbled.
"You know, I never would have thought that you'd stoop this low, folding my clothes and doing my chores and stuff," Andrew said thoughtfully. "What made you so fixated on improving yourself?"
"Oh… I dunno," I replied uneasily. "Just stuff that a guy said."
"Oh. Right." His face darkened. "Steve, or something like that, right?"
"Sirius," I corrected, feeling a bit peeved that someone would think Sirius's name was Steve. "Sirius Black."
"Yeah. Him," Andrew said with an undercurrent of dislike.
"Why don't you like him?" I frowned. "You haven't even met him."
"Well, maybe it's because of everything you told me about in your letters," he replied snappishly.
"Come off it," I chided, waving my hand. "I already told you he wasn't that bad, didn't I?"
He mumbled something unintelligible, and I decided to let it go. However, I was sure that it would be brought up again, someday, judging from Andrew's scowl.
"Anyways, that's the pile," Andrew indicated a huge mound of clothes that had been dumped on his bed. "You can go ahead and get started."
I blew a wet raspberry at him—I know, so immature, but I couldn't help myself. I hated doing chores and other housekeeping work. Bleh.
"Faye," Andrew scolded. "Don't you remember what I told you about using immature methods like blowing raspberries?"
I sighed angrily, blowing my hair out of my face. "That immature taunts only leads to trouble, bickering, and pointless fights."
"Good girl," he said approvingly. "You should get a cookie for that."
"Oh, really?" I asked, perking up.
He cocked his head, making a great show of thinking hard. "Actually, on second thought, no. I'm hungry."
"So what?" I snapped waspishly. "Don't you ever think about me and my needs?"
"Of course," he nodded. "It's because of you that I'm taking it upon myself to eat anything that you'd want to eat. I'm saving your figure! God, I'm such a nice coach…"
"Psh," I rolled my eyes.
"I know that was a grunt of agreement. Now you can go fold my clothes. Yeesh, you really have to stop distracting me. It's not a very good thing to do, you know."
I rolled my eyes at him and headed grudgingly over to his heap of clothes. I sat myself on his bed and picked up a red shirt on the top of the pile. Sighing, I smoothed it over and stared at it resentfully.
"You have to work faster, Faye, if you want to get done in time for dinner," Andrew declared wickedly. I sent him a death glare, hoping that he'd just shrivel up and die.
I grudgingly folded the shirt and set it down on a clear space on Andrew's cluttered bed. And then I reached out for another, and another, and another, while Andrew sat in a corner, obviously engrossed in some sort of computer game.
"Stupid. Brainless. Lump," I growled angrily, violently flapping one of Andrew's jeans to get the creases out. But the evil thing retaliated and a pant leg came whipping back to whop me a good one on my face.
"Ugh!"
I slammed the unruly jeans onto the bed. I took several breaths to calm myself before reaching out to pull another article of clothing out of the heap. This time, however, my fingers met with an unusually soft and brightly colored fabric. Curious, I leaned closer and tugged a bit harder. When it finally came out, I took it all in.
So.
Andrew wore Dragon Ball Z boxers with a picture of—what was that? Goku, or Gohan?—on it.
I stifled my laughter, glancing over to where Andrew was still playing his computer game.
I dug into the heap, throwing clothes aside, trying to find any other interesting shorts that Andrew was hiding. In no time at all, I had three beautifully colored boxers laid out before me.
Really, what was up with guys and gay boxers? Sirius, James, Remus, Peter… and now even Andrew all had these. It made me wonder….
"Oh… Andrew!" I called out cheerily.
"Uh," he grunted, his gaze still locked on the screen. I smirked.
"I didn't know you had such nice boxers," I cackled, picking up the one with flower prints all over it. "I especially love this one—the one with the… hm… what kind of flowers are they? Hey, when did you switch from tidy-whities to boxers?"
"Huh?" Andrew blustered stupidly.
"You boxers, dearie. Would you give me a pair?" I asked sweetly. "Oh, I really do love the ones with the Blue Bear theme."
"What?" he screeched. I noted with satisfaction that his voice had climbed quite high.
"I'll take that as a yes, then," I nodded happily, picking it up and waving it around. "Thanks!"
"Wha—no! Stop! Don't look at those! Those are my boxers!" he yelped, finally catching on. He dashed across the room and leapt onto the bed, trying to grab the shorts out of my hands, scattering articles of clothing left and right.
I leapt up, laughing maniacally, the Blue Bear boxers gripped tightly in my hands.
"Aw… does wittle ol' Andy-poo like his boxers so much that he won't even give one to me?" I mocked in my best whiny voice.
"Wha—no—I—don't—!" he sputtered speechlessly, looking particularly disheveled with another boxer draped over his ear. "Those aren't mine!" he finally got out.
"Really?" I grinned mischievously.
"Okay—well, they are—mine…. But! But—I don't wear them! My mom gave them to me! Yeah, that's right. I didn't want them! I don't use them!" he cried.
"Oh, really?" I shouted triumphantly. "Then why were they in the just-washed pile, hm?" Hah, there was no way he could talk his way out of this one.
"Because… because—my mom put them in!" he nodded unconvincingly. "Yeah, that's right."
"Don't blame everything on your mommy," I said, rolling my eyes. "Wow, it looks like your bum is pretty large, if it needs this much room…"
With a panicked shout, Andrew launched himself at me, trying to rip the boxers out of my hands.
Laughing my head off, I bolted out the room and down the stairs, at the same time snapping the tight-fitting boxer onto my head. I heard Andrew's roar of rage behind me, which only served to make my laugh even harder.
That was my downfall. Just as I had my face scrunched up from laughing so hard, I just had to run straight into Andrew's wall, rebound violently, and crash against a low wooden table, getting a hard jab right square onto my right butt cheek.
Ow….
That hurt.
My butt was throbbing, sending sharp stabs of pain all throughout my body. I couldn't even move for a second. I lay there in a fetal position, groaning. I swear, this had to hurt as much as when a guy got kicked in the crotch… not that I had ever experienced it first-hand, but… you know.
"Haha!" Andrew's voice floated down from somewhere above me. I felt him grab the boxers off my head. "Now I have the evidence!"
"Yeah, yeah," I managed to grit out. "They're probably dirty anyways." I tried to sit up, only to be rewarded with an onslaught of pain from my butt.
"Hey, are you all right?" he chirped, apparently just noticing that I had suffered a severe crash in his dangerous house.
"Yeah. I'm just peachy," I said sarcastically. "I only slammed face-first into your wall and jabbed my butt on this stupid, life-threatening table!"
"Hah!" Andrew hooted gleefully with laughter. "Oh, yeah, you should have seen yourself!"
"Shut up, before I jam your butt against this sharp corner and see how you like it," I growled grimly, rubbing my very, very sore butt cheek. "I swear, I'm gonna get a triangle shaped bruise right here," I moaned.
"Do you want me make it feel better?" Andrew asked innocently.
"Get away from me, you pervert!" I yelled, thwacking him hard on the shoulder.
"Ouch! God, I was just trying to help!" he pouted.
"Help, my ass," I snapped.
"Hey, it's not my fault that you just happened to be so stupid as to crash into a wall. It's the daytime, hello!"
"Shut it," I snapped irritably. "Aren't you supposed to be inquiring after my health and physical well-being, being the kind and considerate coach you are?"
"So you're absolutely positive you don't want me to massage your bruise? I'm really good—!"
"GET YOUR BLOODY ARSE AWAY FROM ME!" I hollered.
"Um… I'm not even going to ask," a new voice interrupted our argument. We both looked up to see Andrew's mom, staring at us with an eyebrow raised.
Well, to her credit, we must have looked a mess, especially with Andrew holding up his boxer (the boxer draping over his ear still hadn't been removed) and me rubbing my ass, probably with a huge red bump on my forehead from my encounter with the wall.
ll----ll
"I think it's about time we graduated to the next level," Andrew announced after two weeks of torturous training. I had washed his clothes—though he kept his boxers hidden after that episode—washed the dishes, cleaned his windows, swept the garden, trimmed the hedges, watered the plants, and waited on him bloody hand and foot!
"Yes!" I cried eagerly. "Finally, no more chores and housework!"
"Yeah," Andrew smirked. My smile wavered and died; that smirk did not signify anything even remotely pleasant. "I've decided that these chores won't really do anything but make you a better housewife. So I've devised a whole, new, even better method."
"What is it?" I asked suspiciously.
"Oh, you'll see," Andrew grinned. "Come on. We have to get there, first."
"Aw… do we have to?" I groaned. "It's freaking hot out there!" And it was. It was a sweltering 100 degrees Fahrenheit, which was no light matter.
"Stop being such a baby," he ordered, pushing me out the door.
"Andrew!" I whined as he dragged me along the streets. "What is it? Can't you just tell me?"
"No!" he said firmly. "It's supposed to be a nice, big, pleasant surprise."
"It's going to make my life hell, isn't it?" I asked grimly.
"What makes you say that?"
"Oh, I don't know," I answered tartly. "Maybe it's your fake innocence, hmm? Or maybe your refusal to tell me where the hell we're going!"
"God, what's up with this attitude?" Andrew shook his head disappointedly. "And I thought I brought you up better than this!"
"You didn't bring me up, period," I said waspishly. He stopped walking. "What? We're here already?" I asked, looking around curiously. "Where is it?"
"Right there," Andrew pointed.
I followed his finger… and my gaze landed on a very colorfully painted house which Winnie the Pooh with his head stuck in a pot of honey, Snow White singing with the Seven Dwarves, and the Little Mermaid combing her unnaturally red hair.
Holy shit.
We were at the neighborhood daycare center. The daycare center for kids. Kids as in little, obnoxious children.
"No," I breathed. "You are not going to make me do this. No way in bloody hell. Over your dead body!"
"Do you want to be a good person or not?" Andrew asked smugly. "The best way to do it is to handle little kids day in and day out. You have to be patient and cajoling and happy and joking and attentive and indulgent. Never lose your temper, never take out any frustration on them. It is here"—he gestured dramatically—"that the final phase of your program will commence."
"You've got to be bloody kidding me," I said flatly. "I don't care about my damn program; I'm not doing this. End of story."
But apparently Andrew wouldn't take no for a bloody answer. He grabbed a handful of my hair and tugged hard.
I swore loudly. I swear, my scalp was coming off!
"Let go of me, you bloody goat!" I shrieked, clawing at his hand.
"That's hardly suitable language for little kids," Andrew reprimanded me.
"I'm going to kill you, you freaking asshole!"
We were in the doorway by this time, and I could see wide eyes in fat, chubby faces staring at me with apprehension. I growled at them. "Well, what are you looking at, shrimp?" I scowled at them. "Get back to your little play stuff!"
Andrew clubbed me on the head. "Stop being mean to the little kids!"
"Shut up," I snapped at him. He still hadn't let go of my hair. Damn, he knew me too well. I'd bolt out the door in an instant.
"It's okay. She doesn't really mean it," he assured the kids kindly, ignoring me.
I stamped my foot impatiently. "Let go of my hair this instant!"
"See? She's throwing a temper tantrum. She's really not all that different from you guys."
That was the last straw. I closed my hand into a fist and reared back, preparing to land a good one on Andrew's smiling face…
"What is going on here?"
All the noise seemed to cease. I swung around to face a harassed-looking woman in her thirties, wisps her brown hair coming out of her bun.
"Um… nothing?" Andrew supplied. He let go of my hair.
"Were you about to hit that young man?" she asked me accusingly.
"Huh?" I started, smiling. "Me? Uh… no!" I realized my hand was still fisted, and I unclenched it hastily. I tried to smile brighter. "Of course not."
"We were only putting on a play for the kids' benefit," Andrew nodded solemnly.
"Well, I don't want any of you teaching the little kids to be violent," she said sternly.
"Sorry about that, ma'am," Andrew replied for the both of us.
"Apology accepted," she said briskly. "Now… what brings two teens to the daycare?"
"Oh, she just wants to help with the kids," Andrew said hastily before I could open my mouth. "She really likes them."
"And you?" She fixed him with a stern glare.
I couldn't let Andrew get away! "He wants to help, too," I cut in. "He didn't say it before because he was embarrassed. It's the, you know, man pride."
Andrew scowled at me while I smiled persuasively at the woman. She had raised her eyebrows rather skeptically, but nodded.
"All right. Since I need all the help I can get," she sighed. "I'm Deborah Cummings, in charge of the daycare center."
"Hi, I'm Faye Prewitt," I responded with a fake smile.
"Andrew Lin," Andrew said a bit sulkily.
"Great! You two can get started right away. I just want you to keep several kids busy. You know, play with them, and amuse them for a bit. Follow me."
"You just had to go and drag me into this, too, didn't you?" Andrew muttered as we trailed along behind Deborah.
"Well, I couldn't let you get away with putting me in here," I retorted acidly. "It just wouldn't be right."
"Oh, shut up," he scowled.
"Here we are," Deborah announced before I could snap back at Andrew. "The little boy's name is Derek, the other blonde boy is Michael, and the girl is Shelly. Have fun."
She left us rather hastily.
I exchanged a cautious glance with Andrew before stepping inside the room.
"Um… hi?" I offered tentatively. The three little kids sitting in there were already watching me with their huge eyes. Their smiles were far too innocent for me to like them.
"My name is Faye," I continued soothingly. "I'm going to be…uh… taking care of you guys today."
"What about him?" one boy—I'm pretty sure he was Derek—asked. He pointed a chubby finger at Andrew.
"Oh, he's here to play, too," I assured Derek. "We're all going to have so much fun together."
I was proud that I didn't choke over my words.
In an hour or two, I was wishing that I had never uttered that foul lie. These kids were—there was no nice way to say it—demonic little freaks! They pulled on my hair, my pants, my sleeves, whatever they could get a hold of! To make things worse, they talked to me about the latest movies, such as Spiderman Two.
"Hey, hey, hey! Faye!" Derek squawked.
I forced a indulgent—I hope!—smile onto my face as I turned around to face demonic little hellion.
"Yes?" I ground out. I swear, they were even more annoying than Sirius!
Wait… how did he manage to sneak into my thoughts once again?
"Who did you like better, Harry or Peter?" he bounced against my legs, looking at me expectantly.
"I don't know," I told him. "I never watched the sod—I mean—suspenseful thing."
"Okay, well, Harry is Peter's best friend, but he's like turning evil! Because… because he wants to kill Spiderman because he thinks Spiderman killed his daddy, but Spiderman didn't really kill his daddy; his daddy killed himself by pressing that button on the glider. And his daddy was evil anyway; he put on this scary mask and tried to kill Spiderman! And—and Peter—hey, you should know Peter! He's Spiderman! Did I tell you about everything he did?"
I shook my head numbly. Derek's voice was getting on my nerves. He couldn't seem to stem the flow of words issuing non-stop out of his big mouth.
"Well, first, he was at this field-trip thing, and then—and then this hybrid spider dropped down and bit him! Oh, this was in the first movie… and then—he—like—got all weirded! And then at school…"
I rubbed my head and tried to ignore the insistent tugs on my jeans.
Why wouldn't this kid just shut up?
Was that too much to ask?
"Faye!"
I winced.
"Are you listening? If you're not, I'm going to tell on you to Deborah!" Derek whined in his annoying singsong voice.
The two other kids must have heard as well, and they joined in with Derek's little chant.
"We're gonna tell on you to De-borah! We're gonna tell on you to De-borah!"
I was itching to place my hands around their necks and throttle them.
"Shut up, you little—!" I was cut off by a hand clapped over my mouth. Furious, I licked the hand, causing Andrew to pull back in disgust.
"That's disgusting!" he cried, wiping his hand on his jacket.
"Well, you were asking for it," I defended myself. I crossed my arms and advanced on him, determined to take my anger out on something.
He looked up and probably sensed my murderous intentions.
"Hey… why are you so mad?" he grinned.
"Why…?" I snarled. "Why? I'll tell you why, you bonehead! Because you decided to drag me here to play with snotty little kids, is why!"
"Faye!" Andrew remonstrated. "You'll hurt their feelings!"
"Do I look like I care?" I shouted.
"Faye…" he said warningly. "You were the one who wanted to go on this self-improvement program in the first place."
I was about to sling back another retort, but then I realized that he was right. Damn it.
"What were you two fighting about?" Derek asked, his eyes big and innocent. Hah! I knew better than that.
"None of your business," I replied, crossing my arms.
"My auntie says that when a girl and a guy fight, they're having a lover's spat," he continued in his annoying voice. "Is that what's going on? You guys are having a lover's spat!"
"Oooh!" the other kids chorused.
"Andrew and Faye, sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G…"
Fuck. That song.
"Andrew! Make them shut up," I cried in exasperation. "They are so immature!"
"… Then comes the baby in the baby carriage!"
"Here! Feed them this!" Andrew said hurriedly, pulling out a packet of gum. I grabbed it and hastily shoved pieces of gum into those kids' obnoxious mouths.
Thank the heavens above. They stopped singing to chew the gum with expressions of glee.
"Don't swallow it," Andrew warned them.
The kids only stared at him before retreating to their little play mats on the ground, chewing the gum loudly. I gave a relieved sigh.
"They are the most horrid things to walk this earth," I muttered, kicking a bright green Lego cube.
"Hey, but you're really improving," Andrew said encouragingly. "You didn't even attack them yet!"
"Har har," I said sarcastically. "That's certainly an improvement."
"Faye!" I heard Derek's tinny voice right behind me, and I felt a tug on my hair. "Wow, your hair's really, really long! Really, really, really, really…"
I closed my eyes and counted to ten, trying to still my twitching hands.
"Can you bend down for a moment?" he asked. "Please, please, please, please…"
"Alright!" I hissed, bending my knees reluctantly.
Shelly and Michael raced over as well, and after a moment, all three of them raced away. Hm… that was suspicious behavior. What was going on?
"Andrew? What did they do?" I asked, turning around and frowning at him.
He was staring at me, his mouth wide with horror. "Um… I'd rather not say…"
"Why?" I crossed my arms.
"You know, you should never blame the messenger," he stated.
"What did they do?" I asked again, panic rising in me. Then, in a flash, it all clicked. Derek had been looking at my hair. They had all been chewing gum. I grabbed a fistful of my hair and jerked it over my shoulder so I could look at it.
"DAMN YOU! COME BACK HERE, YOU LITTLE CRETINS! YOU'RE GOING TO GET WHAT'S COMING TO YOU!" I roared. Andrew leapt up and tried to restrain me from clawing those devils' eyes out as they deserved.
"Let—me—go!" I panted angrily. "Look what they did! My hair! The gum! That's disgusting!"
"Calm down," Andrew ordered. "We'll just go get it cut, all right? And once you get back to school, you can regrow it."
"All I want is an axe so I can do what I bloody should have done an hour ago!" I screamed. My head was going to pop.
The door slammed open, and Deborah stood there, her hair in disarray and her eyes barely half open. She had obviously just woken up from a nap. Bum.
"W—where's the fire?" she asked stupidly.
"Here!" I shrieked, shaking a handful of my gum-filled hair at her. "This is what those little cretins did to me!"
Deborah took one brief look at the mess and stared at me in disapproval. Disapproval! I was the victim here!
"Faye—it's Faye, right?" I nodded, and then she continued. "I don't think you're the right person to work with these children. Just today, I've witnessed a violent nature within you that could influence these children in a harmful way. I don't think you should come back here."
"What?" I asked, flabbergasted. "But I was doing so well—keeping it all inside—!"
At this point, I saw Derek's smirking face in a corner of the room.
"It's all your fault!" I screamed angrily.
He only fixed an innocent expression on his face and held up a pair of scissors. "Do you need help, Faye?"
I saw red. With an inarticulate cry of rage, I launched myself at him, fully intent on doing some bodily harm. It took both Andrew and Deborah to drag me away from that slimy produce of earth.
And in just a few minutes, both Andrew and I were kicked out of the daycare.
"Well…" Andrew said reflectively after a moment. "That didn't go too well, did it? I don't think you can graduate quite yet…"
"I'm going to go cut my hair myself," I muttered, stalking off. I almost couldn't bear the thought of me with short hair. What would Sirius think…?
Wait. Why did I care?
ll----ll
I yawned as I trudged back to my temporary home. The darkness of the night pressed in on me, and the silent streets frightened me more than I was willing to admit. Traversing these streets alone had always been my thing… but tonight everything seemed strange, alien, and unfriendly. The demons of my past seemed all too willing to come alive and jump out at me from behind the shadows.
I was turning seventeen in a week. And in less than a week, I was going back to England. I threw back my head and looked up at the stars, trying to assess my feelings. Was I happy that my stay was almost over?
No, I couldn't say that I was. I just wanted to stay here forever, living with the affectionate Betty and Charles, out all day to hang with Andrew, and not seeing a hair of either Henry or Diana. But I also wanted to go back to England and Hogwarts, fix things with Grace, and prove to Sirius that I wasn't the person he thought I was, that I was better than that…. There were so many things I wanted to, and there wasn't enough time to do it.
The cool night air caressed my cheeks as I thought back to those nights, all those years ago, when the streets were my haven, not a place of bad memories. And thinking of that inevitably led me back to thoughts of the past.
In the weeks following the discover of my abuse, many people told me that it was over, that it was now a part of my past, and that they couldn't hurt me anymore. How wrong those people are. Forgive and forget, they told me. How can I forgive when Henry and Diana did so many unforgivable things to me? How can I forget when it's ingrained in my mind, my nature, and affects everything I do?
Walking alone afforded way too much time for thought. I was relieved when I reached the front porch of Charles and Betty's house.
But before I could put my hand on the doorknob, the door flew open and I encountered Betty's worried face.
"Faye! You're finally back," she cried in relief. "Come in, there's someone who wants to see you."
"Me?" I repeated disbelievingly. "Who would want to see me?"
I followed her into the living room.
A thin, balding man who wore the strangest combination of clothes stood in the middle of the living room with a distraught, sobbing Fiona and a grim-faced Charles. I immediately assumed that oddly dressed man was a wizard of some sort that was trying to pass for a muggle… coming here with some sort of news.
"Faye Prewitt?" the older wizard asked in a worried voice.
"Yes," I said cautiously, glancing from him to Fiona to Betty and Charles and back to him. Fiona's face was as baffled as I was sure mine was.
"I am Drew Brown," the wizard said quietly. "I'm from the Ministry of Magic in England."
I raised my eyebrow, at the same time working enough moisture in my mouth to speak. "So? What are you here for?"
"I must carry out one of the more unpleasant duties of being part of the Ministry," he said nervously, twisting his cap around in his hands. I stared at that cap. It was easier than looking at Mr. Brown in the face. I didn't want to see the worry, anxiety, fatigue, and… pity in his gaze. There was something going on here, an undercurrent that I could sense very easily.
Tension stretched the air tight. I felt a tight, sick feeling in my heart, like I couldn't get enough air…. A faint pounding thumped away in my ears.
I was starting to panic a little by now. What had happened? What kind of thing was serious enough to warrant this sort of attitude from a ministry official, all the way from England to boot?
And pity? For Fiona and me?
"Faye…" Mr. Brown began softly, "This may come as a shock to you…"
"What is it?" I asked.
"Death Eaters under Lord Voldemort recently attacked the muggle city of Southampton. It was their third attack on muggle places this summer."
There was dead silence throughout the room while we contemplated this.
Southampton… that was where…
Where we lived.
"No…" I breathed. The sharp, throbbing feeling in my chest intensified painfully. No… it couldn't be…. This wasn't happening…
Please—let it not be happening, I begged the sky, the earth, heaven, hell—whatever would actually grant my wish. It couldn't be what I thought it was—preposterous.
"Your guardians, David and Tracy Prewitt… are…"
"STOP IT!" I yelled, my voice now rising in volume as fear consumed me at the mention of Tracy and David's names. "NOTHING'S WRONG!"
"…Dead."
That one word shattered my world—the world that had just seemed to feel secure.
--
THE END!
--
A/N: Ok… be on the lookout for the sequel: Firestorm!
I also finished my first picture of Faye. If anyone wants to take a look, here's the link:
http/ i3.photobucket. com/albums/y73/chaye710/1001137.jpg
(I put some spaces in between them because the editor didn't allow the whole link, so just put it back together in the address bar xD)