Post by tonilous on Aug 12, 2014 3:10:26 GMT -5
It was already dark. A fog had settled beyond the school grounds, turning the landscape past the West gate into a horror movie scene. It was cold, dimly lit, with the beams of the flashlights and lamps shooting rays.
The Hawthorne students crept out of the West gate in a file, one at a time, going into the brush that led to the woods that were not far from the school. It was a path that led to virtually nowhere, until you emerge past the woods and back into where it will inevitably lead you back to civilization, but there really had been no need for anyone to use this route—especially not at night, in the cold.
Which was another reason this was all the more amazing.
The Hawthornes stared as a huge group of students, well over a hundred of them, were gathered fifty feet away from the West gate. Majority of them were unfamiliar, shifting uncomfortably in the chill and awkwardly not meeting many of the students' gazes—as though it physically pained them to actually be there. In front of their group was a flock of girls, jackets of the green and white over the flimsy material of their cheerleading uniforms.
Charlotte's jaw dropped when she realized: the girls were the Banshees. And as for Damian, he was stunned to realize that the fleet of boys with them, in similar green and white-trimmed lettermans, were the St. Patrick Lions.
"What the…." Patrick managed to say once he'd overcome the initial shock of seeing the group there.
A bark of stunned laughter escaped Diana when she stared at their sporting archrivals. "What are you guys doing here?"
Margot Weller rolled her eyes as though the Hawthornes were simply too stupid to live, and shoved her hands into the pockets of her jacket. "Oh dear god, I'm starting to change my mind."
"Well you were the one who brought it up," a boy in a letterman jacket shot back. He looked as though he couldn't believe he was doing this, but he began to walk ahead towards the Hawthornes. "Hey! Kings! We want to talk to you."
"Oh god," grumbled Derek. "It's the mating call of the 'Great Woolly Jerkbag'. Quick, kick it in the balls and run."
"Oh you mean as opposed to your species, the 'Common Cheating Dirtbag'?" Casey leveled a stare at him, and Derek fell quiet.
Immediately, the Hawthorne Kings and the Pipers moved up to the front of the ranks to meet them. The battle line drawn between the two schools was there, but the gap shrank considerably. Damian, Patrick, and Diana pushed their way to the front, so they were now facing Hal Malachowski, the team captain of the Lions.
"Hal," Patrick nodded to him.
"Patrick." The other boy coughed.
The Kings nodded to the Lions, all familiar to them after repeated clashing on sporting arenas. Damian noticed that the day students, particularly Riley, also nodded to a boy over the other line, the one with 'Gallagher' on his jacket. The atmosphere was a familiar one to everyone, then.
Hal coughed again to get their attention. "Well. A couple of the cheerleaders and a bunch of other guys said they heard something about your school."
"That it nearly blew up? Who hasn't heard?" Patrick eyed them suspiciously. His eyes landed on Tabitha, and she cringed, turning her gaze away, staying close to her Banshee sisters. She also must've heard, from Derek.
Derek was standing next to Casey, who had arrived with the Terpsichores. Patrick looked at Damian with an expression that asked him to explain the complexities of teenage dating. Damian ignored him.
"Yeah, we heard about it," Hal nodded, and he looked annoyed. "Then they said that your school was closing down. It's stupid! Couldn't they just arrest the guy?"
"Isn't this good news for you guys?" Damian asked, confused. "You guys hate us. And we always butt heads during tournaments. And your cheerleaders confess to distracting our team on the field on purpose!"
"It's not our fault you don't think using the head that's on your shoulders," Margot replied coolly. "We just use it to our strategic advantage."
"Whoa—" Patrick made sure none of the others would retort to that, before moving forward. "What do you want, Malachowski?"
"I was getting to that." Hal shot Margot a look—she made a face at him in answer—before facing Damian again. "…well, some guys back in St. Patrick have friends from other schools, they said that you guys were rounding up people to help you stay in here. That you were going to stay in the school, try to convince them not to close it or something. And…well…we thought…."
He trailed off, furiously glowering at the grass like it mortally offended his entire family and his dog. Charlotte stared in amazement. "You guys…decided to come help us? You? Really?"
"Hey." Hal jabbed a finger towards Patrick. "We're only doing this because of the tournament. Without your team to mess with, the entire tourney's gonna be a wash out. We'd get accused of steroids, we'd work too hard."
"We beat you guys pretty soundly this year," Diana raised an eyebrow, smirking.
"Yeah well, that was like one time!" Hal protested, crimson with humiliation. But behind him, the Lions looked pleased, and so did the Banshees. "You may have the championship now, but we want it back, and we're getting it back! You guys don't get to waltz off into the sunset undefeated! We're going to crush you guys, you hear me? Even in fencing, McGinty, wipe that smirk off your face!"
"I like this," Shane grinned as Grace elbowed him.
Damian shook his head with a laugh, the Hawthornes starting to smile in spite of themselves. "So you're only doing this—you're only helping us—just for the trophy for next year. Right?"
"Right!" Hal yelled.
The cheerleader next to Tabitha snorted. "Speak for yourself, Malachowski. My boyfriend's in that school, I want to keep him."
All the Banshees turned and stared at her, agape. "What."
The cheerleader raised an eyebrow at them and simply shrugged in response. She turned towards the Hawthornes and waggled her fingers at them with a cheeky smirk. And to everyone's surprise, Thad waved back, flushed a little, and grinned.
"What." Derek gaped at him along with the Adams.
Thad only gave them a shrug that asked, "What?" in return.
And then one of the football players—'Gallagher'—cleared his throat and piped up, "Same, my boyfriend's here too, so…" He waved.
The Hawthornes gaped at him. All except Nicky of Washington—not to be confused with Nick of Adams, Thad's friend, as Charlotte had to remind herself—who turned crimson but nevertheless waved with a shy smile. The Washingtons stared at him as Charlotte tried to choke back a completely inappropriate burst of laughter.
"What…?" Nicky hissed, flushed.
Riley Paige dropped his face into his hand.
Hal turned to his player with a flailing "are you crazy" expression, completely astonished. "What—you're—?! And with the enemy—?!"
To which Gallagher only rolled his eyes. "You didn't know? Everyone knows."
"Everyone does not!" Hal shot back, flustered.
That was when the whole team and the Banshees just rolled their eyes at him with an impatient chorus of, "Yes, of course we know"s and "do you live under a rock"s.
Damian had to hide his face into Charlotte's shoulder for a moment, shaking with suppressed laughter.
"Oh my go—" Hal whirled around and dragged a hand down his face in a manner that all the Hawthorne prefects sympathized all too strongly with. "Alright, alright! Fine! Whatever!" He looked to the Hawthornes. "Are we gonna do this or what?!"
"Yes!" the Twins grinned, enjoying every moment.
"Welcome aboard." Damian extended a hand to them, and Hal shook it somberly. The team captain nodded to the contingent of St. Patrick students, and everyone headed back through the West gate.
They were waiting for Damian to emerge from the Headmasters' office when the Twins looked to Charlotte. "We—we really should apologize."
"For what?" Charlotte responded, perplexed.
"The um…the night before the siege." They watched her carefully. "We should've been more mindful of how you would feel. Everybody wanted some kind of bonfire party, but—"
Charlotte cut them off immediately, waving the concern away. "No. No, that's…. Sure, it'll take awhile for Grace and I to ever really want to get close to bonfire parties or anything…and I'm positive I'll stay away from Fourth of July fireworks madness, but that's just common sense given Jefferson's propensity for…flammables." She gave them a wan smile.
"We didn't mean to be insensitive."
"You weren't," Charlotte assured them. "I'm not delicate. I won't flinch at every flame—we live in the twenty-first century, there's going to be one at every corner. Besides I've seen what an out-of-control inferno looks like, and trust me, lighting stoves and matches aren't going to make me freak out after seeing what we did. Anyway…"
She stared out the window. "I'm glad Grace and I took that walk."
"What's Phase Three?" Grace asked, following Charlotte, as they followed the barricade. Like Charlotte, Grace was restless that night. The moon was rising high, it was getting late, and after spending twenty minutes near the bonfire party that comprised of four different school populations, Charlotte wanted to go take a walk so she didn't have to listen to the crackling.
Of course, the students still had that habit of treating any of them who had been in the fire as the number one priority. The moment Charlotte stood to walk, they swooped down and asked her if there was anything the matter, and if Charlotte wanted the bonfire put out.
It took five minutes of convincing and half a minute after opening a container of cookies before Charlotte managed to get away from them, Damian, Grace, and Shane following. The last they saw of them, Laura Bancroft was dangling in the air, trying to get one away from her older brother who hardly seemed to notice her hanging onto his arm. The rest of the Jeffersons were trying to hoard them away from the non-Hawthorne students, and Huntington sat eating, baffled and remarkably immune.
The bonfire didn't bother Charlotte, not really. She wasn't afraid of it, not when everyone made sure every precaution was taken—they did learn from the Art Hall—but it was still a reminder. The sound and the smell of it; it made her think of Mr. Pentland, who didn't make it out.
It made her think of the beams falling, and Juliet trapped behind them.
"Phase Three?" Charlotte asked, slowing to stay in step with Grace, who was wringing her hands. The little artist had been jittery with excitement, and for some reason the bonfire had only gave her more adrenaline.
"Phase One was the barricade, Phase Two was getting all the people…" Grace blinked. "What's Phase Three?"
"Well, I would've thought Phase Three was us doing the thing itself," Damian replied, confused.
"Phase Three is wondering what the heck we are going to do when all these parents realize that all their kids are in this school having a crazy party," Charlotte rolled her eyes. "We should've told them to come back in the morning!"
"We did!" Damian laughed.
"We should kick them all out now!"
"We're in high school. We've got parties. It's the most plausible explanation on the planet." Damian rubbed his arm. "They don't have to go until later…if you can convince them to." Damian grinned. "You can convince anyone to do anything."
"You guys just needed a little push, that's all it was." Charlotte shrugged.
"Whatever you say, Alice."
Charlotte stopped walking when she saw a shadow flutter somewhere she knew they shouldn't go. It walked off to the direction of the one spot in school Charlotte had stayed away from all this time. "Did you see that?"
"What?" Damian looked around. Grace turned so fast that she tripped, and Shane had to catch her.
Charlotte's breath caught. "I think I just saw someone."
In the long walk for the four of them, following the shadow, Charlotte wondered if she was seeing things for a moment. They circled past the fountains and the bonfires, behind the buildings at south and main. She could hear the footsteps now, a good distance from her.
And when she rounded the bend, she saw exactly what she expected.
The huge ruin was cordoned off now. It was blackened and it still smelled like smoke and ashes. It was surrounded by a tin barrier—a temporary band-aid in blocking the sight away from students. But it wasn't tall enough to hide the ruin of the Hall completely. The first floor was completely ruined, black and gone. The second floor did a little better.
The third floor's windows had all been blasted out. Charlotte couldn't recognize which one Adam and Juliet had jumped from. But she recognized very well the window that she and everyone else had jumped through for their lives.
In front of where the steps should have been stood Noel, with his dark hair in heavy locks around his pale face. He was wearing a black coat, and while this wouldn't be the first time, Charlotte saw the wildflowers in his hand and knew what the boy was here for.
Damian, who had been watching, felt his heart clench at the sight of the other boy standing so still. He moved forward, but Charlotte placed a hand on his arm to stop him. "Let me."
This wasn't the first time Charlotte had to be the one to try and break Noel away. She had done it once before, one dark anniversary that Charlotte had empathized with. And now, as it would appear, there was something else to share with the strange little hunter.
Charlotte made sure her footsteps were heard before coming to a stop behind Noel, who made no movement. Noel wasn't startled and did not react when Charlotte laid her hand on his shoulder. "Come on," Charlotte told him quietly. "You shouldn't be here."
The younger boy didn't respond immediately as he blinked up at the cordoned-off ruin and the blackness of the scorched building. He thought it would smolder still, but maybe it was just his imagination.
"Come on," Charlotte prompted softly again, but more firmly this time. When Noel looked at her, she smiled a little now that she had his attention. "Now we're both a little haunted, aren't we?"
"I always have been, I think." Noel made one more glance back, before he began walking with Charlotte back.
"I think everyone is, a little." Charlotte nodded.
If Charlotte noticed that Noel held onto the cuff of Charlotte's sleeve with two fingers, like a little boy letting an older sister guide him, she made no comment on it. Damian was smiling when they reached him, and Grace was looking hopeful and encouraging. Noel glanced up at the older teens and nodded once. "I was just a little…." Noel shrugged, turning his gaze to the distance, releasing the sleeve.
"Sealing the place up properly with some iron and salt?" Damian asked.
But Noel shook his head. "…Maybe I'm actually…hoping for a ghost this time."
"Not him," Shane replied, elbowing him a little, making the other boy grumble. "I'm pretty sure he gets the express train to a better place. No waiting around. Right?"
Noel glanced at him and nodded almost begrudgingly. "…I guess so." After a pause, he added, "Well…I figured he'd stay for Ms. Gregor."
"Yeah, he might want to look after the baby," Grace beamed.
Charlotte shot daggers at a paling Grace before the statement sank in and Noel did a double take. "Wait, Ms. Gregor is pregnant? How did you—and why would Mr. Pentland stay for—" Realization hit Noel like a brick. "HOLY CAS—"
"Shhh!" Charlotte and Grace struggled to clap their hands over his mouth.
"Wait—what?!" the McGintys stared.
"Can we all just go back to the barricade?" Charlotte hissed and Grace groaned, wilting as Charlotte led them all away from the Art Hall. "We do not talk about this. We will not talk about this, okay?"
"Ms. Gregor is carrying Mr. Pentland's baby?!" Noel squeaked in soft horror.
"You will not tell anyone, understand?" Charlotte shot back.
"Oh that poor lady…." Shane looked crestfallen as the group hastily beat a path back towards the barricade. "She loses the baby's father and now she's going to lose her job in this school…. How will she manage?"
"How did you even find out? Can't we tell the others?" Damian asked, looking worried. "We can pool money or something, try to help! It's the least we can do for Ms. Gregor—"
"We will tell no one," Charlotte said firmly. "It's Gregor's secret. No one knows she's pregnant or who the father is except us."
"I don't like it," Noel huffed. "That baby deserves to know who his father is. I'd want to if I was in that position."
"I agree," Grace mumbled, still furious with herself for that slip, "But…it's not really our secret to tell, is it?"
"If you're trying to keep secrets, this school isn't the place to do it, everyone finds out." All of them jumped when Han crackled into the glowered at it.
"Ix-nay on the eavesdropping-ay." Damian muttered, noting the look on Charlotte's face.
"Charlotte, come to the front barricade."
"More people?" Charlotte sighed and grabbed onto the com. "Caterpillar?"
"I think it's more kids coming to support. It's safe, I'm still watching out. But I think you should take a look, Charlotte. Someone you know is out there. I decided not to alert all the others about him."
"Him? Him, who…?"
-8-
The visitor was Vince Fitzpatrick.
He was walking down the railing down the entrance lane of the school, staring at the barricade beyond it, with no small astonishment. He seemed more interested in the barricade than where the other scattering of kids who were looking for a way in.
"Why is he here?" Damian whispered after a few moments watching him.
"My guess? He heard from the other students about what's going on. News is moving fast. I can't believe how much support we're getting, really. Getting a little worried—someone's parents will hear soon."
Charlotte watched as Fitzpatrick stared incredulously at the giant prow of a viking boat—prop from the drama club—that was in the barricade along with everything else. "I'm going to go talk to him."
"What?! Wait, Charlotte!" Damian and Grace scrambled after her. Charlotte was striding towards the main gate, where a small detachment of Washingtons and Day students were standing guard. "You can't just go out there!"
"It's fine," Charlotte assured them. "I told you, he and I have talked about it. There's nothing to worry about." She paused before adding, "I think I trust him."
"This is the guy that…the things he did to you, Charlotte, I'm—" Damian shook his head. "I don't want you going out there to meet him alone. Not after last time."
"It's alright," Charlotte replied, slipping a hand over Damian's that was now resting on her arm. "If it helps, Han's still watching. But I told you. He and I have come to an…understanding. It's going to be alright, I just want to see why he's here."
Damian didn't look happy. He stood at the gate, almost reluctant to release Charlotte who slipped away into the cold night air beyond the safety of their barricade.
It was still misty. The lights on the ground shone and made the road look almost slick. Fitzpatrick looked as though he had no idea why he was there either, glowering at the barricade.
"Hey."
He jumped when Charlotte's voice sounded. "Jeez. What's wrong with the water here? Why is your school all boarded up?"
"You know, I think." Charlotte walked up to him.
"I heard you guys were planning a sit-in of some kind, not…this." Fitzpatrick gestured to the wall. "This is a whole new level of crazy even for you people."
"Why are you here?" Charlotte cut to the chase, staring at him.
He didn't answer. He fidgeted a little, and Charlotte recognized that expression on his face. It was the same kind that Hal had earlier. "Here to help?" Charlotte asked with a bit of a grimace, pulling him out of the water before it got too deep.
"How've you…how've you been, anyway?" He forced it out. "The school caught fire and you were one of the guys in it. Geraghty was pissy for days."
"Clearly, I got out of that one okay," Charlotte replied. Something nagged at her, and she added, "Is this a social visit? You really came all this way to ask how I was?"
"God, I knew this was a bad idea." He was walking away.
"Hey! Excuse me, we are not done talking!" Charlotte hurried up to him a little closer. "You haven't learned by now that you do not walk away from me? That's not how you have a polite conversation with people! Now that you've asked how I was, it's my turn. Hello, Vince, how have you been?" She looked expectantly, willing a human conversation devoid of locker shoves to happen.
Fitzpatrick looked frustrated, dragging a hand down his face. "I'm…fine. Trying to get my grades up."
"Yeah, the last time your dad mentioned something about that…"
"Hired a tutor. He's nice, he's our age."
"Great! Good! Now." And with endless patience, Charlotte stared up at him. "Why exactly are you here at nine pm?"
The boy rolled his eyes and sighed. "I guess…I came to wish you idiots luck. I don't think any of this is really going to help but…well, I didn't think I'd get sprayed by some loony with holy water last time I got here either. So…yeah. I hope it works out for you guys, Summers."
Charlotte was inwardly pleased at the statement. If someone had told her that this was ever going to happen, she would've laughed in derision. But this, by far, was really not the craziest thing she'd seen all week. It was strange, but it was good…that Fitzpatrick was here, wishing her well just because she could. She smiled indulgently. "Thank you. I'll be sure to pass the word."
"I'm getting out of here now. My record's got enough problems as it is without this…thing you guys have going."
"Thank you, Fitzpatrick. Really."
"…Thank you, Summers."
It sounded like he was thanking her for something else. Charlotte wasn't sure she could identify what it was.
Charlotte watched his red jacket vanish into the mist before she headed back to the gate. She was surprised how much things had changed. It felt like a very long time since the last time Fitzpatrick came to visit. Charlotte wondered when she stopped being afraid. It felt different, facing him down and not feeling fear.
It wasn't that Damian and the others were standing guard this time. It wasn't the surprising civility. Somehow, in the span of time she had spent at Hawthorne Academy, she had started to grow into herself, and earned her courage. After everything she and her friends have been through, she felt courage come so easily now. It had been there when she had fought through the hall. It was there when she urged the others to stand up for their school with her.
Courage felt like a fire blanket around her shoulders, embers bouncing off it.
On the way there, she saw Darren standing outside of the gate. Damian stood next to him. "You alright?" Darren asked.
Charlotte stared at him, then narrowed her eyes at Damian. "Oh no. You two are not doing this tag-team thing, okay, go away, I have somewhere to be, stop fussing over me like a pair of father hens!" She shooed them out of her way and strode back into campus.
Damian started after her. "We were not! I swear, he just walked right out! Hey!" He swatted at Darren with a grumble before going after Charlotte.
Darren stared at them in disbelief, not even sure what just happened. "What?" These two are insane, no wonder they're so into each other.
Of course there was the part of him that casually reminded him of the fact that he himself had decided to fall for one of them.
Traitor, he grumbled to himself.
"Excuse me."
He almost jumped and turned around. A boy who looked like he would be a freshman was standing out in the road. Like the kids from the other schools who were milling around, trying to see if they could get into the campus, he was looking from the wall and to Darren and back again.
"Do you go to school here?" the boy asked.
"I do." Darren faced him fully. He studied this blond freshman, who was now looking at him intently. "Why do you ask? Are you here to…join the others, I guess?"
"No," the boy replied with a piercing blue stare. "Actually…I came here to see the school. I was supposed to come here for the incoming year, as a freshman. But when I got here, I heard they were closing the school down. So…"
Darren gave the kid a once over. "What did you say your name was?"
"I didn't say it." He paused, and then added, "Austin. …Is it closing down? Really?"
"Maybe not. Not if we can do anything about it." Darren looked at the school with a frown. "Do you know what house you're to be in? Did you ask for one?"
"I heard new people and freshmen are given houses more or less random, but…you're allowed to choose one?"
"Sometimes. And choose wisely, because your sanity depends on it."
"I was hoping for Adams House."
Surprised, Darren saw the young boy studiously looking at the road. Darren's lips curled to a smirk and he almost laughed. "I said choose wisely. You're another masochist who's into punishing workloads and unhealthy amounts of coffee?"
The boy stared. "What?"
Darren shook his head. "You'll get it at some point."
Simultaneously, all devices from the Hawthornes went off with a message from the Caterpillar with the heading: "Decision has been reached."
Darren pulled out his own phone and stared at the full contents message for a long moment. When he pushed his phone back into his pocket, he told the boy, "I'll tell you something, though. Go tell your parents to get you into Adams House if you want it." He started storming straight back into the gates. "Because this school isn't closing down if we have anything to say about it."
Bewildered, the freshman watched him go. "O-okay…."
Han coughed again and read from the tablet. "The second message I sent to them was: Decision has been reached. Hawthorne Academy is to formally close down tomorrow morning. The presence of the board, Legacy, parents, and staff will be expected. Hawthorne Academy students have been allowed one last night at campus, where, in the morning, they will take part in the closing.'"
Han looked to the camera. "I added something else."
"And what would that be?"
"I told them…."
Charlotte, surrounded by the students of Jefferson, the firelight from the bonfire illuminating her face, now lowered her phone. She stared into the fire that she had already faced down once before.
"'The siege begins now.'"
And the Hawthorne students scattered into all directions, leaving Charlotte sitting very still, back straight. Damian squeezed her shoulder before he moved away.
Charlotte stared at the fire and frowned at it.
"Six impossible things."
The Hawthorne students crept out of the West gate in a file, one at a time, going into the brush that led to the woods that were not far from the school. It was a path that led to virtually nowhere, until you emerge past the woods and back into where it will inevitably lead you back to civilization, but there really had been no need for anyone to use this route—especially not at night, in the cold.
Which was another reason this was all the more amazing.
The Hawthornes stared as a huge group of students, well over a hundred of them, were gathered fifty feet away from the West gate. Majority of them were unfamiliar, shifting uncomfortably in the chill and awkwardly not meeting many of the students' gazes—as though it physically pained them to actually be there. In front of their group was a flock of girls, jackets of the green and white over the flimsy material of their cheerleading uniforms.
Charlotte's jaw dropped when she realized: the girls were the Banshees. And as for Damian, he was stunned to realize that the fleet of boys with them, in similar green and white-trimmed lettermans, were the St. Patrick Lions.
"What the…." Patrick managed to say once he'd overcome the initial shock of seeing the group there.
A bark of stunned laughter escaped Diana when she stared at their sporting archrivals. "What are you guys doing here?"
Margot Weller rolled her eyes as though the Hawthornes were simply too stupid to live, and shoved her hands into the pockets of her jacket. "Oh dear god, I'm starting to change my mind."
"Well you were the one who brought it up," a boy in a letterman jacket shot back. He looked as though he couldn't believe he was doing this, but he began to walk ahead towards the Hawthornes. "Hey! Kings! We want to talk to you."
"Oh god," grumbled Derek. "It's the mating call of the 'Great Woolly Jerkbag'. Quick, kick it in the balls and run."
"Oh you mean as opposed to your species, the 'Common Cheating Dirtbag'?" Casey leveled a stare at him, and Derek fell quiet.
Immediately, the Hawthorne Kings and the Pipers moved up to the front of the ranks to meet them. The battle line drawn between the two schools was there, but the gap shrank considerably. Damian, Patrick, and Diana pushed their way to the front, so they were now facing Hal Malachowski, the team captain of the Lions.
"Hal," Patrick nodded to him.
"Patrick." The other boy coughed.
The Kings nodded to the Lions, all familiar to them after repeated clashing on sporting arenas. Damian noticed that the day students, particularly Riley, also nodded to a boy over the other line, the one with 'Gallagher' on his jacket. The atmosphere was a familiar one to everyone, then.
Hal coughed again to get their attention. "Well. A couple of the cheerleaders and a bunch of other guys said they heard something about your school."
"That it nearly blew up? Who hasn't heard?" Patrick eyed them suspiciously. His eyes landed on Tabitha, and she cringed, turning her gaze away, staying close to her Banshee sisters. She also must've heard, from Derek.
Derek was standing next to Casey, who had arrived with the Terpsichores. Patrick looked at Damian with an expression that asked him to explain the complexities of teenage dating. Damian ignored him.
"Yeah, we heard about it," Hal nodded, and he looked annoyed. "Then they said that your school was closing down. It's stupid! Couldn't they just arrest the guy?"
"Isn't this good news for you guys?" Damian asked, confused. "You guys hate us. And we always butt heads during tournaments. And your cheerleaders confess to distracting our team on the field on purpose!"
"It's not our fault you don't think using the head that's on your shoulders," Margot replied coolly. "We just use it to our strategic advantage."
"Whoa—" Patrick made sure none of the others would retort to that, before moving forward. "What do you want, Malachowski?"
"I was getting to that." Hal shot Margot a look—she made a face at him in answer—before facing Damian again. "…well, some guys back in St. Patrick have friends from other schools, they said that you guys were rounding up people to help you stay in here. That you were going to stay in the school, try to convince them not to close it or something. And…well…we thought…."
He trailed off, furiously glowering at the grass like it mortally offended his entire family and his dog. Charlotte stared in amazement. "You guys…decided to come help us? You? Really?"
"Hey." Hal jabbed a finger towards Patrick. "We're only doing this because of the tournament. Without your team to mess with, the entire tourney's gonna be a wash out. We'd get accused of steroids, we'd work too hard."
"We beat you guys pretty soundly this year," Diana raised an eyebrow, smirking.
"Yeah well, that was like one time!" Hal protested, crimson with humiliation. But behind him, the Lions looked pleased, and so did the Banshees. "You may have the championship now, but we want it back, and we're getting it back! You guys don't get to waltz off into the sunset undefeated! We're going to crush you guys, you hear me? Even in fencing, McGinty, wipe that smirk off your face!"
"I like this," Shane grinned as Grace elbowed him.
Damian shook his head with a laugh, the Hawthornes starting to smile in spite of themselves. "So you're only doing this—you're only helping us—just for the trophy for next year. Right?"
"Right!" Hal yelled.
The cheerleader next to Tabitha snorted. "Speak for yourself, Malachowski. My boyfriend's in that school, I want to keep him."
All the Banshees turned and stared at her, agape. "What."
The cheerleader raised an eyebrow at them and simply shrugged in response. She turned towards the Hawthornes and waggled her fingers at them with a cheeky smirk. And to everyone's surprise, Thad waved back, flushed a little, and grinned.
"What." Derek gaped at him along with the Adams.
Thad only gave them a shrug that asked, "What?" in return.
And then one of the football players—'Gallagher'—cleared his throat and piped up, "Same, my boyfriend's here too, so…" He waved.
The Hawthornes gaped at him. All except Nicky of Washington—not to be confused with Nick of Adams, Thad's friend, as Charlotte had to remind herself—who turned crimson but nevertheless waved with a shy smile. The Washingtons stared at him as Charlotte tried to choke back a completely inappropriate burst of laughter.
"What…?" Nicky hissed, flushed.
Riley Paige dropped his face into his hand.
Hal turned to his player with a flailing "are you crazy" expression, completely astonished. "What—you're—?! And with the enemy—?!"
To which Gallagher only rolled his eyes. "You didn't know? Everyone knows."
"Everyone does not!" Hal shot back, flustered.
That was when the whole team and the Banshees just rolled their eyes at him with an impatient chorus of, "Yes, of course we know"s and "do you live under a rock"s.
Damian had to hide his face into Charlotte's shoulder for a moment, shaking with suppressed laughter.
"Oh my go—" Hal whirled around and dragged a hand down his face in a manner that all the Hawthorne prefects sympathized all too strongly with. "Alright, alright! Fine! Whatever!" He looked to the Hawthornes. "Are we gonna do this or what?!"
"Yes!" the Twins grinned, enjoying every moment.
"Welcome aboard." Damian extended a hand to them, and Hal shook it somberly. The team captain nodded to the contingent of St. Patrick students, and everyone headed back through the West gate.
They were waiting for Damian to emerge from the Headmasters' office when the Twins looked to Charlotte. "We—we really should apologize."
"For what?" Charlotte responded, perplexed.
"The um…the night before the siege." They watched her carefully. "We should've been more mindful of how you would feel. Everybody wanted some kind of bonfire party, but—"
Charlotte cut them off immediately, waving the concern away. "No. No, that's…. Sure, it'll take awhile for Grace and I to ever really want to get close to bonfire parties or anything…and I'm positive I'll stay away from Fourth of July fireworks madness, but that's just common sense given Jefferson's propensity for…flammables." She gave them a wan smile.
"We didn't mean to be insensitive."
"You weren't," Charlotte assured them. "I'm not delicate. I won't flinch at every flame—we live in the twenty-first century, there's going to be one at every corner. Besides I've seen what an out-of-control inferno looks like, and trust me, lighting stoves and matches aren't going to make me freak out after seeing what we did. Anyway…"
She stared out the window. "I'm glad Grace and I took that walk."
"What's Phase Three?" Grace asked, following Charlotte, as they followed the barricade. Like Charlotte, Grace was restless that night. The moon was rising high, it was getting late, and after spending twenty minutes near the bonfire party that comprised of four different school populations, Charlotte wanted to go take a walk so she didn't have to listen to the crackling.
Of course, the students still had that habit of treating any of them who had been in the fire as the number one priority. The moment Charlotte stood to walk, they swooped down and asked her if there was anything the matter, and if Charlotte wanted the bonfire put out.
It took five minutes of convincing and half a minute after opening a container of cookies before Charlotte managed to get away from them, Damian, Grace, and Shane following. The last they saw of them, Laura Bancroft was dangling in the air, trying to get one away from her older brother who hardly seemed to notice her hanging onto his arm. The rest of the Jeffersons were trying to hoard them away from the non-Hawthorne students, and Huntington sat eating, baffled and remarkably immune.
The bonfire didn't bother Charlotte, not really. She wasn't afraid of it, not when everyone made sure every precaution was taken—they did learn from the Art Hall—but it was still a reminder. The sound and the smell of it; it made her think of Mr. Pentland, who didn't make it out.
It made her think of the beams falling, and Juliet trapped behind them.
"Phase Three?" Charlotte asked, slowing to stay in step with Grace, who was wringing her hands. The little artist had been jittery with excitement, and for some reason the bonfire had only gave her more adrenaline.
"Phase One was the barricade, Phase Two was getting all the people…" Grace blinked. "What's Phase Three?"
"Well, I would've thought Phase Three was us doing the thing itself," Damian replied, confused.
"Phase Three is wondering what the heck we are going to do when all these parents realize that all their kids are in this school having a crazy party," Charlotte rolled her eyes. "We should've told them to come back in the morning!"
"We did!" Damian laughed.
"We should kick them all out now!"
"We're in high school. We've got parties. It's the most plausible explanation on the planet." Damian rubbed his arm. "They don't have to go until later…if you can convince them to." Damian grinned. "You can convince anyone to do anything."
"You guys just needed a little push, that's all it was." Charlotte shrugged.
"Whatever you say, Alice."
Charlotte stopped walking when she saw a shadow flutter somewhere she knew they shouldn't go. It walked off to the direction of the one spot in school Charlotte had stayed away from all this time. "Did you see that?"
"What?" Damian looked around. Grace turned so fast that she tripped, and Shane had to catch her.
Charlotte's breath caught. "I think I just saw someone."
In the long walk for the four of them, following the shadow, Charlotte wondered if she was seeing things for a moment. They circled past the fountains and the bonfires, behind the buildings at south and main. She could hear the footsteps now, a good distance from her.
And when she rounded the bend, she saw exactly what she expected.
The huge ruin was cordoned off now. It was blackened and it still smelled like smoke and ashes. It was surrounded by a tin barrier—a temporary band-aid in blocking the sight away from students. But it wasn't tall enough to hide the ruin of the Hall completely. The first floor was completely ruined, black and gone. The second floor did a little better.
The third floor's windows had all been blasted out. Charlotte couldn't recognize which one Adam and Juliet had jumped from. But she recognized very well the window that she and everyone else had jumped through for their lives.
In front of where the steps should have been stood Noel, with his dark hair in heavy locks around his pale face. He was wearing a black coat, and while this wouldn't be the first time, Charlotte saw the wildflowers in his hand and knew what the boy was here for.
Damian, who had been watching, felt his heart clench at the sight of the other boy standing so still. He moved forward, but Charlotte placed a hand on his arm to stop him. "Let me."
This wasn't the first time Charlotte had to be the one to try and break Noel away. She had done it once before, one dark anniversary that Charlotte had empathized with. And now, as it would appear, there was something else to share with the strange little hunter.
Charlotte made sure her footsteps were heard before coming to a stop behind Noel, who made no movement. Noel wasn't startled and did not react when Charlotte laid her hand on his shoulder. "Come on," Charlotte told him quietly. "You shouldn't be here."
The younger boy didn't respond immediately as he blinked up at the cordoned-off ruin and the blackness of the scorched building. He thought it would smolder still, but maybe it was just his imagination.
"Come on," Charlotte prompted softly again, but more firmly this time. When Noel looked at her, she smiled a little now that she had his attention. "Now we're both a little haunted, aren't we?"
"I always have been, I think." Noel made one more glance back, before he began walking with Charlotte back.
"I think everyone is, a little." Charlotte nodded.
If Charlotte noticed that Noel held onto the cuff of Charlotte's sleeve with two fingers, like a little boy letting an older sister guide him, she made no comment on it. Damian was smiling when they reached him, and Grace was looking hopeful and encouraging. Noel glanced up at the older teens and nodded once. "I was just a little…." Noel shrugged, turning his gaze to the distance, releasing the sleeve.
"Sealing the place up properly with some iron and salt?" Damian asked.
But Noel shook his head. "…Maybe I'm actually…hoping for a ghost this time."
"Not him," Shane replied, elbowing him a little, making the other boy grumble. "I'm pretty sure he gets the express train to a better place. No waiting around. Right?"
Noel glanced at him and nodded almost begrudgingly. "…I guess so." After a pause, he added, "Well…I figured he'd stay for Ms. Gregor."
"Yeah, he might want to look after the baby," Grace beamed.
Charlotte shot daggers at a paling Grace before the statement sank in and Noel did a double take. "Wait, Ms. Gregor is pregnant? How did you—and why would Mr. Pentland stay for—" Realization hit Noel like a brick. "HOLY CAS—"
"Shhh!" Charlotte and Grace struggled to clap their hands over his mouth.
"Wait—what?!" the McGintys stared.
"Can we all just go back to the barricade?" Charlotte hissed and Grace groaned, wilting as Charlotte led them all away from the Art Hall. "We do not talk about this. We will not talk about this, okay?"
"Ms. Gregor is carrying Mr. Pentland's baby?!" Noel squeaked in soft horror.
"You will not tell anyone, understand?" Charlotte shot back.
"Oh that poor lady…." Shane looked crestfallen as the group hastily beat a path back towards the barricade. "She loses the baby's father and now she's going to lose her job in this school…. How will she manage?"
"How did you even find out? Can't we tell the others?" Damian asked, looking worried. "We can pool money or something, try to help! It's the least we can do for Ms. Gregor—"
"We will tell no one," Charlotte said firmly. "It's Gregor's secret. No one knows she's pregnant or who the father is except us."
"I don't like it," Noel huffed. "That baby deserves to know who his father is. I'd want to if I was in that position."
"I agree," Grace mumbled, still furious with herself for that slip, "But…it's not really our secret to tell, is it?"
"If you're trying to keep secrets, this school isn't the place to do it, everyone finds out." All of them jumped when Han crackled into the glowered at it.
"Ix-nay on the eavesdropping-ay." Damian muttered, noting the look on Charlotte's face.
"Charlotte, come to the front barricade."
"More people?" Charlotte sighed and grabbed onto the com. "Caterpillar?"
"I think it's more kids coming to support. It's safe, I'm still watching out. But I think you should take a look, Charlotte. Someone you know is out there. I decided not to alert all the others about him."
"Him? Him, who…?"
-8-
The visitor was Vince Fitzpatrick.
He was walking down the railing down the entrance lane of the school, staring at the barricade beyond it, with no small astonishment. He seemed more interested in the barricade than where the other scattering of kids who were looking for a way in.
"Why is he here?" Damian whispered after a few moments watching him.
"My guess? He heard from the other students about what's going on. News is moving fast. I can't believe how much support we're getting, really. Getting a little worried—someone's parents will hear soon."
Charlotte watched as Fitzpatrick stared incredulously at the giant prow of a viking boat—prop from the drama club—that was in the barricade along with everything else. "I'm going to go talk to him."
"What?! Wait, Charlotte!" Damian and Grace scrambled after her. Charlotte was striding towards the main gate, where a small detachment of Washingtons and Day students were standing guard. "You can't just go out there!"
"It's fine," Charlotte assured them. "I told you, he and I have talked about it. There's nothing to worry about." She paused before adding, "I think I trust him."
"This is the guy that…the things he did to you, Charlotte, I'm—" Damian shook his head. "I don't want you going out there to meet him alone. Not after last time."
"It's alright," Charlotte replied, slipping a hand over Damian's that was now resting on her arm. "If it helps, Han's still watching. But I told you. He and I have come to an…understanding. It's going to be alright, I just want to see why he's here."
Damian didn't look happy. He stood at the gate, almost reluctant to release Charlotte who slipped away into the cold night air beyond the safety of their barricade.
It was still misty. The lights on the ground shone and made the road look almost slick. Fitzpatrick looked as though he had no idea why he was there either, glowering at the barricade.
"Hey."
He jumped when Charlotte's voice sounded. "Jeez. What's wrong with the water here? Why is your school all boarded up?"
"You know, I think." Charlotte walked up to him.
"I heard you guys were planning a sit-in of some kind, not…this." Fitzpatrick gestured to the wall. "This is a whole new level of crazy even for you people."
"Why are you here?" Charlotte cut to the chase, staring at him.
He didn't answer. He fidgeted a little, and Charlotte recognized that expression on his face. It was the same kind that Hal had earlier. "Here to help?" Charlotte asked with a bit of a grimace, pulling him out of the water before it got too deep.
"How've you…how've you been, anyway?" He forced it out. "The school caught fire and you were one of the guys in it. Geraghty was pissy for days."
"Clearly, I got out of that one okay," Charlotte replied. Something nagged at her, and she added, "Is this a social visit? You really came all this way to ask how I was?"
"God, I knew this was a bad idea." He was walking away.
"Hey! Excuse me, we are not done talking!" Charlotte hurried up to him a little closer. "You haven't learned by now that you do not walk away from me? That's not how you have a polite conversation with people! Now that you've asked how I was, it's my turn. Hello, Vince, how have you been?" She looked expectantly, willing a human conversation devoid of locker shoves to happen.
Fitzpatrick looked frustrated, dragging a hand down his face. "I'm…fine. Trying to get my grades up."
"Yeah, the last time your dad mentioned something about that…"
"Hired a tutor. He's nice, he's our age."
"Great! Good! Now." And with endless patience, Charlotte stared up at him. "Why exactly are you here at nine pm?"
The boy rolled his eyes and sighed. "I guess…I came to wish you idiots luck. I don't think any of this is really going to help but…well, I didn't think I'd get sprayed by some loony with holy water last time I got here either. So…yeah. I hope it works out for you guys, Summers."
Charlotte was inwardly pleased at the statement. If someone had told her that this was ever going to happen, she would've laughed in derision. But this, by far, was really not the craziest thing she'd seen all week. It was strange, but it was good…that Fitzpatrick was here, wishing her well just because she could. She smiled indulgently. "Thank you. I'll be sure to pass the word."
"I'm getting out of here now. My record's got enough problems as it is without this…thing you guys have going."
"Thank you, Fitzpatrick. Really."
"…Thank you, Summers."
It sounded like he was thanking her for something else. Charlotte wasn't sure she could identify what it was.
Charlotte watched his red jacket vanish into the mist before she headed back to the gate. She was surprised how much things had changed. It felt like a very long time since the last time Fitzpatrick came to visit. Charlotte wondered when she stopped being afraid. It felt different, facing him down and not feeling fear.
It wasn't that Damian and the others were standing guard this time. It wasn't the surprising civility. Somehow, in the span of time she had spent at Hawthorne Academy, she had started to grow into herself, and earned her courage. After everything she and her friends have been through, she felt courage come so easily now. It had been there when she had fought through the hall. It was there when she urged the others to stand up for their school with her.
Courage felt like a fire blanket around her shoulders, embers bouncing off it.
On the way there, she saw Darren standing outside of the gate. Damian stood next to him. "You alright?" Darren asked.
Charlotte stared at him, then narrowed her eyes at Damian. "Oh no. You two are not doing this tag-team thing, okay, go away, I have somewhere to be, stop fussing over me like a pair of father hens!" She shooed them out of her way and strode back into campus.
Damian started after her. "We were not! I swear, he just walked right out! Hey!" He swatted at Darren with a grumble before going after Charlotte.
Darren stared at them in disbelief, not even sure what just happened. "What?" These two are insane, no wonder they're so into each other.
Of course there was the part of him that casually reminded him of the fact that he himself had decided to fall for one of them.
Traitor, he grumbled to himself.
"Excuse me."
He almost jumped and turned around. A boy who looked like he would be a freshman was standing out in the road. Like the kids from the other schools who were milling around, trying to see if they could get into the campus, he was looking from the wall and to Darren and back again.
"Do you go to school here?" the boy asked.
"I do." Darren faced him fully. He studied this blond freshman, who was now looking at him intently. "Why do you ask? Are you here to…join the others, I guess?"
"No," the boy replied with a piercing blue stare. "Actually…I came here to see the school. I was supposed to come here for the incoming year, as a freshman. But when I got here, I heard they were closing the school down. So…"
Darren gave the kid a once over. "What did you say your name was?"
"I didn't say it." He paused, and then added, "Austin. …Is it closing down? Really?"
"Maybe not. Not if we can do anything about it." Darren looked at the school with a frown. "Do you know what house you're to be in? Did you ask for one?"
"I heard new people and freshmen are given houses more or less random, but…you're allowed to choose one?"
"Sometimes. And choose wisely, because your sanity depends on it."
"I was hoping for Adams House."
Surprised, Darren saw the young boy studiously looking at the road. Darren's lips curled to a smirk and he almost laughed. "I said choose wisely. You're another masochist who's into punishing workloads and unhealthy amounts of coffee?"
The boy stared. "What?"
Darren shook his head. "You'll get it at some point."
Simultaneously, all devices from the Hawthornes went off with a message from the Caterpillar with the heading: "Decision has been reached."
Darren pulled out his own phone and stared at the full contents message for a long moment. When he pushed his phone back into his pocket, he told the boy, "I'll tell you something, though. Go tell your parents to get you into Adams House if you want it." He started storming straight back into the gates. "Because this school isn't closing down if we have anything to say about it."
Bewildered, the freshman watched him go. "O-okay…."
Han coughed again and read from the tablet. "The second message I sent to them was: Decision has been reached. Hawthorne Academy is to formally close down tomorrow morning. The presence of the board, Legacy, parents, and staff will be expected. Hawthorne Academy students have been allowed one last night at campus, where, in the morning, they will take part in the closing.'"
Han looked to the camera. "I added something else."
"And what would that be?"
"I told them…."
Charlotte, surrounded by the students of Jefferson, the firelight from the bonfire illuminating her face, now lowered her phone. She stared into the fire that she had already faced down once before.
"'The siege begins now.'"
And the Hawthorne students scattered into all directions, leaving Charlotte sitting very still, back straight. Damian squeezed her shoulder before he moved away.
Charlotte stared at the fire and frowned at it.
"Six impossible things."