A/N: I owe everyone a big apology. I went missing for a long time. Without much explanation I hope that you can forgive me! Anyways I am back. This chapter gave me so much trouble because I couldn't for the life of me figure out how I wanted it to go down. So this is what came out and I hope you enjoy it. Also, I am happy to announce that I have a baseline plan for the rest of the story and am in the works of planning the remaining chapters...I tell you there is going to be a lot. Here's to hoping nothing else gets in the way of me writing this. Again I am sooooooooooo sorry readers. I will take whatever punishment you give me.

Enjoy!

Chapter 5: New Friends and New Faces

Tuesday Morning, The Jones' Residence

The next morning Madeline woke up extra early to get ready for her first day at the new school. She was feeling much better after her talk with Alfred the night before. After she was able to think rationally again the Canadian teen realized that a lot of the things her half-brother told her had a lot of truth to them. Of course she didn't want to actually forget her mother but at that moment in time that seemed like the best solution. However now that she was thinking more clearly she found herself in a much better mood.

As the blonde was pulling her hair up into her signature pigtails, a small white ball of fluff emerged from underneath her covers. Seeing the adorable puff ball from the mirror of the vanity, Madeline couldn't help but smile.

"Good morning, Kumachichi," Madeline called to the polar bear.

"Good morning," he yawned in his high pitched voice. "Why are you up early?"

Clipping her favorite maple leaf hairpins in she replied softly, "Remember I have school today. Since I'm not part of any clubs or sports I will be home early. What are you going to do all day?"

"Probably nap and wonder around the house." Kumajiro answered.

"Just be careful and don't scare Malinda. I think she is finally starting to get used to the idea of having a polar bear in her house."

"I know. I know." The cub sassed. "Have a good day."

Tuesday Morning, School

Walking into her first period class she noticed that a lot of the students were busy chatting and messing around. The teacher didn't seem to pay much attention to the ruckus that was going on in his classroom. Swallowing her nervousness she walked up to the teacher's desk.

"Excuse me," her voice was almost a whisper. In return she was given no response. Mustering up a little more courage she tried to raise her voice. "Um, excuse me."

Finally the teacher looked up. "Yes?"

"I'm sorry to bother you but I'm Madeline Williams. I'm the new transfer student." The teen explained.

"Of course," the man replied. "I'm Mr. Collins. Welcome to Biology One. There is an empty seat at the back lab table. That will be your seat for the rest of the year. If you have any questions just ask me or one of the other students."

"Thank you, Mr. Collins," Madeline said and she headed towards the back of the room where her seat was.

As she got closer she noticed that every lab station around her was filled but hers was empty. Two lonely chairs sat at the lab table. She took a seat and pulled out the book that she had been given at the beginning of the day. Luckily most of the book looked like what she had learned at her old school in Canada. Surely this course would be easy enough.

Soon after the late bell rang, she noticed the seat next to hers was still empty. The teen was beginning to wonder if anyone actually sat there. Of course she would be fine with no one sitting there but it just felt weird since she was the only one without a partner.

"Good morning, class." The teacher began. "Today we are going to cover the basics of genetics. We're going to go over the basic punnett squares. Make sure you pay attention because this will be on the winter mid-term." He turned around to write on the whiteboard, effectively turning his back to the class.

Madeline began copying the notes he was writing, but was interrupted by a poke from the girl that sat at the table across from hers.

"I just wanted to wish you luck with your lab partner," the girl said almost sympathetically.

Confused, the Canadian asked, "What do you mean?"

"Let's just say he's a little," her classmate paused as if she were trying to find the right word. "Over the top."

This made Maddie curious. "What do you mean?"

Before she was able to answer, Mr. Collins interrupted the little conversation. "Ladies, is there an issue?"

Maddie's classmate straightened up and replied, "No, sir. Just welcoming the new girl."

"Very well, but I suggest both of you pay attention."

After that Madeline stayed focused and didn't talk the rest of the period. However, as she was gathering her things she noticed something engraved into the table. She curiously read,'Awesome sits here.' The Canadian was beginning to wonder if what her classmate warned her was really true.

Tuesday Lunchtime, School

As the teen went to her locker she felt the phone in her jacket pocket buzz. She carefully pulled it out to check and see who was messaging her. So far only three people had her number and she doubted her father or Malinda would be sending her messages during school hours.

As she suspected, it was indeed her half-brother.

Alfred (11:38 am): Hey Mads! I gotta check something with 1 of the teach. Go 2 lunch without me. I'll b there asap. It's the 3rd table from the back.

Madeline rolled her eyes. Of course he would be the type to use the texting shortcuts. She quickly typed a short reply and grabbed her lunch bag. Luckily the cafeteria wasn't too far from her locker, so she had non trouble finding it.

Since her Algebra class was released a little earlier than usual, the cafeteria was nearly barren. There were a few other students just standing around near the serving bar. The room seemed spacious even though there were long tables scattered throughout it.

The blonde teen found the table that her half-brother had directed her to and she was surprised to find that she wasn't the first one there. When she got closer she realized that something seemed oddly familiar about the golden locks and the posture of the person sitting at the table. As soon as she sat her lunch bag on the flat surface of the lunch table and the boy turned to face her, she knew immediately that she actually recognized him.

As soon as her violet eyes met his blue ones, she let out a quiet gasp. "Mon dieu. Francis, est que tu?" (My goodness. Francis, is that you?)

A smile spread across the French teens lips as he stood up to greet her. "Oui, c'est moi. Cela fait des années que je ne t'ai pas vue, Madeline." (Yes, it's me. I haven't seen you for years, Madeline.)

She let herself be pulled into a tight hug by Francis. Letting out a small giggle, she even decided to give him one back. "J'avais environ huit ans lorsque votre famille est revenue en France." (I was about eight years old when your family moved back to France.)

A sad look appeared in his eyes before he replied. "Oui. Maman et Papa déménagent beaucoup à cause de leur travail. Je pense que nous sommes finalement installés ici en Amérique." (Yes. Mom and Dad moved a lot because of their work. I think we finally settled here in America.)

Knowing how much Francis loved his birth country, she could understand the sadness behind those eyes. However Maddie could also feel a sense of relief coming from him. "C'est bon." She finally said. "Comment va tante Julia quand même?" (That's good. How's Aunt Julia, anyway?)

Towards the front of the lunch room there was a loud commotion. Francis frowned and mumbled something before turning back to Madeline. "Très bien. Tu devrais venir dîner un jour. Elle aimerait ça." (Very well. You should come to dinner one day. She would like that.)

Before Madeline could reply something caught her eye about five tables away. There stood Alfred staring at them with a miffed look on his face. As he began approaching again with heavy steps, Maddie turned her attention back to Francis. "Oui. J'ai quelques questions sur Maman que je veux lui poser." (Yes. I have some questions about mom that I want to ask her.)

Within seconds the American teen was standing beside them. "Didn't I tell you to stay five feet away from her?! I warned you, Fenchie." He huffed.

For that moment it seemed as if Francis was pretending that her brother was not there, because he just continued the conversation that they were having. "Je suis sûr qu'elle sera ravie de répondre à vos questions. De plus, je suis désolé de n'avoir pu assister aux funérailles de tante Celia." (I am sure she will be happy to answer your questions. Also, I'm sorry I could not attend Aunt Celia's funeral.)

Madeline had to hold back a laugh as the angry look deepened on Alfred's face and contorted his expression. He was obviously so upset about not getting the attention that he wanted. As her gaze fell back on the oldest of the three, there was a gleam that asked for her to humor him a bit longer. "Non, non." She waved her hands back and forth. "C'est d'accord. Tu pourrais peut-être rejoindre Papa et moi quand nous irons visiter la tombe de Maman pendant les vacances de printemps." (No, no. It's okay. Maybe you can join Dad and me when we visit Mom's grave during spring break.)

Francis smiled as he replied. "Smiled as he replied. "J'aimerais cela." (I would like that.) He rolled his eyes as Madeline heard Alfred spouting off angry insults again. However, the next thing that was said shut the American up instantly. "She is my cousin, Alfred. I do not date family."

At that moment the Canadian could no longer control her giggles due to the look of shock on Alfred's face. "What do you mean, Frenchie?"

"Our Mamans are sisters," Madeline squeaked out between giggles. "His maman was the whole reason mine was able to stay sane through the issues after I was born. He's telling the truth. From the time I was four until I was about eight, we were inseparable. Just ask Aunt Julia."

She could tell that Alfred was processing what he had just learned. After a few minutes of silence, the short haired teen huffed, "Fine. But keep your hands off."

Madeline could only shake her head. Her father's wife warned her that Alfred could tend to have an overprotective streak here and there. Honestly, she wasn't surprised that he was just then after her break down the night before and it being her first day at a new school.

Luckily it didn't take much convincing for him to leave poor Francis alone. By the time their table began to fill up, Alfred had returned to his hyper, happy self. The happy-go-lucky teen began to introduce his half-sister to everyone.

She felt a little overwhelmed at all the attention she was getting. Quickly she realized that her brother had a lot of friends with different cultural backgrounds. They also seemed to be a very interesting bunch.

"That's Yao and Kiko. They are half-brothers. Yao was born in China and Kiku was born in Japan." Alfred gestured to the asian brothers at the end of the table, who were in a deep conversation about something from a book that they were both looking at. "They have a couple of younger siblings that are in the middle school down the road."

Pretty soon Maddie was introduced to the entire table. Elizabeta, who she found out was from Hungary, seemed to take an interest in the young Canadian. She was very cheerful and offered her help wherever she was needed. Maddie felt like they were going to be very good friends.

On the other hand, the siblings that sat across the table from Yao and Kiku seemed a little more on the scary side. The tall pale blond-haired senior seemed to have an intimidating aura about him and she found it hard to read him. He didn't seem to talk much unless it was directed towards Yao. His sister also seemed to have a scariness to her, but Elizabeta assured her that it was just a front that she put on around certain people. Maddie also discovered that her and Natalia were in the same grade level but didn't have any classes together.

Before she could have a further conversation with Natalia some commotion from the opposite end of the tabe caught the Canadian's attention.

"Watch your mouth, tomato bas-," the grumpy looking Italian was yelling at the darker haired boy sitting beside him before being cut off by the cafeteria's monitor.

"Mr. Vargas, I would watch your language and keep it down." The monitor warned. "Or next time you will be sent off to detention."

The Italian stuck his tongue out at the teacher, who in turn just shook his head. Putting his attention back on the dark haired boy. "If you say anything about last weekend again I will make sure that you don't make it out of practice with both legs intact." He hissed.

The other student that he was threatening let out a laugh, "Oh, Lovi. You are so cute when you are angry." This caused Lovi to go on a rant in his native tongue and left Madeline concerned.

Maddie turned and asked her half-brother about them, to which he replied, "The angry one is Lovino Vargus. He has a younger brother in our grade. He has a short temper. The other guy is Antonio. He loves to rile Lovino up. Believe it or not, they are actually really good friends."

"Even though he looks like he's ready to kill him?" The Canadian asked, pointing at Lovino.

"Yeah. It is like this every day at lunch. Our table is usually the loudest and most lively. It's actually pretty tame today. We are missing a few people." Alfred said as he shoved a handful of french fries into his mouth. Not evening waiting to finish chewing he turns to the grumpy Italian and asks, "Yo, dude. Where is your, bro?"

"Don't dude me," Lovino scoffed. "Feli is working on his art piece for the fair. Even though it is still two months away."

Alfred shrugged and turned back to talking with Arthur, leaving Madeline wondering who Feli was and how this table could possibly get any crazier. That's when an even louder commotion came from the other side of the cafeteria.

Across the table from her, Elizabeta let out a sigh. "Can't I just get one day without that idiot?"

The blonde was about to ask her new friend who she was talking about but the answer was about to present itself.

"Awesome has arrived." From between the lunch tables two boys emerged. One was blond and had striking blue eyes that seemed overly serious. The other, however, seemed to catch Madeline's eye instantly. He had hair that was almost snow white but not like an old person. His eyes were the most fascinating eyes that she had ever seen. They were a deep red and very unique.

Before long the two males were standing at the table that Madeline was sitting at. Maddie turned back to the remnant of her lunch so that she wouldn't be staring.

The more serious of the two muttered something in what sounded like German. Maddie was sure it was a greeting because he got several hellos in return.

"Vati got in a wreck on the way here this morning. We spent most of the morning sitting at the police department. The other person was totally unawesome and was yelling at us like it was our fault." There was a brief pause. "Who's this pigtailed girl sitting in my spot?" the red eyed boy asked.

"I-I'm sorry, I didn't reali-" Maddie said, starting to stand up.

However, Alfred pulled on her arm bringing her back down to her original sitting position. "There's room for you." He pointed to the opposite side of his sister. "Or is that not enough room for your ego, Gilbert?"

"Whatever," he replied and plopped down beside Maddie. "So, what's your name?"

"M-madeline," she stuttered. For some reason she felt slightly intimidated by the loud Gilbert.

"Well, I'm Gilbert the Awesome!"