She searched for any indication what she was guessing correctly. Papa was waiting for Mama, and Mama watched her with a confusing happiness. Only Papa was ever so excited to get her in trouble and teach her a lesson. She waited politely for them to explain themselves.

The baby was in the other room watching the T.V., so he - she decided that he was a boy baby despite the sailor dress - wouldn't notice her gone.

"Enakai, did your teacher tell you yet?" Asked Mama excitedly. In her hands was a little cardboard slat used to send hard copy messages. It unfolded continuously and could be folded up into a little cube to be destroyed after it served its function. When ENA shook her head, Mama unfolded the slat and passed it across the table, watching with bated eagerness as ENA took in the words with her own eyes.

Dear parents of Enakai Nakamura-An,

our daughter has shown remarkable improvement in her grades, and the Ed. Tech assigned to her has reported excellent behavior. He says that her ability to self-soothe and pay attention to her studies have allowed her to follow along with the rest of the class without issue. While there are some instances of emotional disturbance, they have lessened in number and severity, and do not disrupt the other students. We want to notify you that we intend to place her in a remedial class with three other students so that she can receive catch-up lessons so that she may enter the tenth grade with her peers by the time of the next school year. Please call or e-mail us if you have any questions.

She was skimming by the end, unable to contain herself. Still, she had to be sure. "This isn't a joke?"

Mama laughed, shaking her head as she leaned her head down to knock against her daughter's. "Ena, no! Of course not, you're doing really well for yourself, and we're both very happy for you! See, I always knew you could do it. You have talent, and you're very intelligent when you apply yourself." Mother coiled her long neck around her daughter in a hug.

Beside her, Papa pulled out a stack of pamphlets, spreading them out on the table. "I've gathered some brochures for colleges you can attend after you graduate. I'm unsure of what separate plans you've made, but I've compiled applications for reputable business schools. There’s a reasonable amount of choice involved here."

She chose a green flier and looked it over. On the front were some happy words about inviting 'you' to join their institution, promising to equip the applicant with the tools required to break new trail in the world of business administration, teaching marketing strategy, economics, and public relations, among other courses. "For olive oil?"

Papa smiled, something he did rarely now. She felt honored to earn it and gathered up the fliers to look at when she had the time. "Yes. I didn't succeed my parents' business, it was never my destined path. There’s no reason why my well-trained and improving daughter cannot take on such an esteemed role. Like your mother said, you're very smart and have the capacity for making certain choices when it comes down to it. You've showed excellent potential for adapting to change, not to mention the strength in your other lesser seen abilities. You won't be alone in this, but you could very well someday by a very important person. Lots of people will defer to you, look up to you. You could be everything, someday."

"Only if she wants to, Hara." Said Mama in voice that said 'business' more than Papa talked business. "Ena, if there was anything you really want to do in life, what would it be?"

ENA didn't even have to think. She pointed to the living room, where baby was watching a commercial for a new kind of fast food. She got up to grab the remote from the counter, changing the channel to something more educational, the show about people with too much stuff to fit in their houses, before resuming her place at the dinner table.

Mama and Papa looked at one another, Mama sorting her opinions after their own fashion, Mama thinking carefully about what she’d say, and Papa speaking without discretion.

"Childcare is possible while maintaining a proper work life, and I agree that family is very important, when all we have in this world is determined by success both in giving yourself a good reputation and having children to uphold and compliment that reputation."

Mama's tail flicked against the floor, providing a nice beat. "There are some who find good lives as stay-at-home mothers, but don't you want to consider something more...I'm not sure, something that's a job?"

"She's got a good place for herself already. My parents hired nannies."

"That's not the point, Hara."

"The point of your horns, it isn't! Having children is just the thing that women do, and she's born into a golden career opportunity already, which not many people let alone woman, let alone those that are mothers, have! I have the means of allowing my daughter to live comfortably in a good home with as many children as she wants, and if she chooses to continue the family name through the company as well as through descendants, that can allow for those children good lives and her a proper retirement." Without letting Mama answer, he turned to ENA. "You have two choices, sink or swim. Which do you choose?"

"Hara!" Mama hissed.

"Hush. Let her talk."

ENA looked between them and made her choice. She threw up a cudball and started to chew it, watching anxiously as her parents pondered over what that meant. When she was finished, she got up. "Excuse me, I hear the baby talking to me, and time doesn't count itself. I'll consider both of your options. Thank you for the meeting." She left parental in-fighting, going into the living room to check on baby. Parents bickering was troublesome, but normal. She squabbled with Moony all the time, which only proved it.

Speaking of her, they ‘married’ last week out of convenience. For ENA, it was to spare her the shame of having a baby out of wedlock, and for Moony, it was because she helped provide ENA with said baby. “So it’s your responsibility to marry me and preserve my honor.” Said ENA, repeating what her father said the night before. He had seen the baby and pestered her about finding a husband to prevent damage to her and her family’s social status. Until that point, she couldn’t tell anyone that she had a baby at all.

Merci, who overheard this, was fuming. He argued that such values were morally wrong and outdated, and told ENA that she didn’t have to marry anyone if she didn’t want to, that there were plenty of good mothers and women that had children on their own. Besides, giving a jab directly to Papa, ‘he shouldn’t give advice that he himself cannot exemplify.’

That’s why it took so long to get the deed done, but ENA made up her mind in the end, and Moony agreed to co-parent on the conditions that it was only technical, and that she not be married in public. “It would be embarrassing to be seen married in front of my friends, they’d think I was an old, taken lady.”

Really, ENA didn’t much like being married (technically) to Moony, either. There was no wedding reception, only lunch together, which disappointed ENA very much. She dressed up for the night out, but it wasn’t half as fulfilling as she imagined her wedding night would be. Besides that, Moony didn’t have a job and wasn’t about to look for one, which put the onus on ENA to put on the pants and earn some cash. She applied to cook at a local fast-food restaurant, inviting Papa to get drunk and complain about the embarrassment of having the daughter of a successful businessman working a low-income job for insufferable schmucks who couldn’t tell their heads from their asses let alone how to ‘prepare’ (in air quotes) a paper cup of tasteless, cheap coffee. “It’s for welfare-riders and highschool dropouts, neither of which you are nor ever will be so help me. If you want to take care of a family, get a real job.”

She ended up finding a place as a maid at a hotel, a job that she enjoyed despite the long hours and okay pay. She always enjoyed cleaning at the school; it was relaxing, repetitive, and gave her time to think and listen to the radio. On top of that, working paid for lunch, and Moony liked having her lunch paid for as well.

ENA was eternally glad baby didn’t have any needs other than constant physical affection. He hardly disagreed or argued with her, and during the times that he did, she'd find the answer within the next five minutes. For example, if he refused to go to sleep, it could be because he was cold and needed another blanket. Or, if he didn't want to sit and watch television, he might be hungry. After solving the problem, he'd usually go back to smiling and being happy and complacent, which she enjoyed for being able to just spend time with him.

As they argued in the kitchen, ENA picked up baby and held him so that he'd feel safer. When he settled down, his ear to her heart, she continued watching T.V., happy that she was a good student and mother. His closeness was warm, and because he was filled with rice, he had a sturdy weight that felt nice to hold.

She loved him so much it hurt sometimes.

Right now, however, she was pretty sure that the pain in her stomach was of a different kind, that can only be eased by the loving poison. She promised to stop drinking now that she had baby but giving up alcohol was harder than she first thought, and she didn't last the first night without getting shaky and very ill. Mama thought she had a stomach bug, but Papa knew better, and gave her a bottle with marks on it. "Drink only to the line when you feel you can't take it anymore. Then, take your medicine, and sleep."

The credits rolled. Baby was resting, but not asleep. He would see her if she went to take her allowance, which was not the mark of a good mother, so she tried to hold on if she could. She could stay for the next program.

By the first commercial break, she had to get up, leaving baby to lean against a throw pillow. She made a straight shot for the C-line, grabbing the receiver from the hook and holding it to her ear, listening for the dial tome before shakily entering 0 into the rotary. She heard Mama and Papa's voices in the kitchen but couldn't make out what they were saying. The receiver purred to her until there was a click sound, and someone's voice, "Hello, this is the operator, how can I assist you?"

"I'd like to speak to a moon, please."

There was a second's silence, "Understandable. Where do you live?"

"Clioux Mesa City, West Tsentre. Democratic Republic of the Jacobins."

"Of course, ma'am." She was away for a moment, and ENA played with the phone cord, tapping her foot. The T.V. kept going in the other room. She felt so sick she couldn't stand, so she had to pull up a chair, reaching so far with her leg to get it that she tore slightly the connection of magnetic space between it and her body. She yelped in pain, sitting down quick and rubbing her leg. "Are you alright, ma'am?"

"Just dandy." ENA snapped.

If the operator was offended, she didn't let it on. "You're looking to connect with Quarry Peak, right?"

"Yes, I am." More silence. "You should be patched into the main line, and from there, they'll direct you to your moon. Thank you for using SYY services, have a good day." She was immediately cut off by the sound of the phone buzzing, and then being redirected to Quarry Peak. ENA dragged a hand down her face. Her leg hurt, and she could imagine that baby was getting lonely without her. After forever and speaking to the man who gave the moons the phone, she finally, finally got in touch with Moony.

"You should really get a T-line and an arm, it'd be so much easier." ENA groused, rubbing her leg. Mama and Papa went by, hurriedly going someplace. They noticed she was on the line and didn't interrupt, but gestured upstairs, presumably where they'd be. ENA nodded, and they left.

"If you pay for it, they're expensive. I did cop a pretty sick arm from some loser the other day, he had some nice tats. Now I do. So, what's up?"

"My dear wife, I need you to provide me with a timely distraction. I'm uneasy under my skin. Did you know that I'm doing so good in school, I might get to run a business? Papa said that it meant I get to keep my baby, but at what cost?"

"That's good." Moony said in way that sounded like she didn't really care. "How is Egor, anyway?” Moony wanted to call the baby Egor, like the silly henchman from scary movies. ENA wasn't sure how she felt about that, so she only called him Egor when Moony was there to hear. She hadn't come up with a good name yet, procrastination on such an important decision was stupid on her part. Despite having spent a long time pouring over articles on the computer and reading books with many good name suggestions, even having a list of the ones she liked in her room, she still hadn't found one that stuck. She looked to the living room, at the light from the T.V. flashing on the wallpaper, feeling bad for leaving him unsupervised. "His current disposition is most alright. I, on the opposite hoof, am a twig over a waterfall, overtaken."

Moony clucked her tongue. "Is this one of your daymares again? Last time you imagined we went to take the wool from the hospital lab testing personnel. I'd be down for pantsing a sheep, but you totally dreamed that up. Maybe you should go lie down, and get back to me before you dream up another plane of existence, alright?" She hadn't even allowed ENA to respond, giving ENA the dial tone.

“Love you, too.” She hung the receiver back up on the hook and got up from the chair, using Khet to fix her leg.

From the corner, something flashed.

When she went to see what it was, the kitchen was lit oddly purple. Chills went down her back, and she hurried to the living room to pick up baby, who had started crying. He clung to her tightly, and she grabbed a throw blanket to wrap him up in. Somewhere outside her field of vision was a subtle but constant banging noise, accompanied by the howls of a mourning creature. She imagined a grave with many bodies, a memorial dedicated to the lost but never retrieved. There was a man of great importance who guarded the memorial, and sealed ENA inside her house to keep her poison from reaching the pure souls of the fallen. She didn't fight his barrier, keeping baby close and bringing him up to her room. The stairs tilted, and so did she. The walls were unnaturally colored, the stripes sliding off.

When she got to her room, she made quick work of tucking baby into bed and getting out the bottle. Disregarding the lines on the side, she removed the cap and tossed it to the ground, getting down a solid mouthful. She could care less for the taste than the feeling it gave her afterwards, but her stomach was too uneasy to handle he drink and pushed it right back up in a wet, disgusting mess on her floor. She took a smaller amount next time, feeling it burning in her mouth and down her throat. Catching her breath and staring at the stinking pile spreading across the hardwood, she grabbed a towel and covered it up, her energy to care or do anything more completely drained.

She went to get her medicine, taking a cupful and knocking it back. She left the medicine bottle on her desk, grabbing a baby's pacifier and heading to bed. Everything had slowed down, the noises had grown less harsh, and the world settled into a twisted but calm distortion. She buried herself and baby under the blankets, focusing on her son, the way he needed her like she needed him. She kissed him over and over, closing her eyes and trying to ignore the feeling of panic that made everything feel nonsensical and unreal. Humming a song to her back and the million eyes watching her back, she felt the medicine taking effect, and she was asleep before she knew.

When ENA woke up again, Merci was shaking her shoulder. The only coherent thing she heard was, "I already packed your lunch." He was already washed up, she could smell the overpowering odor of 'too much body spray' and shampoo. "What happened to your floor?"

She forced her eyes open. "Stuff." She stretched. Baby was laying against her side. "I think I had another day-mare. Then a nightmare. Now here we are."

Merci frowned. "That doesn't sound good, Ena. I think you should tell the doctor about it. If that puddle is any indicator."

"Puddle 's nunyer business. I get up'n a second. Gimme a moment." He didn't, grabbing her hand and helping her out of bed, making her body ache terribly. "Ow, hey! If you're going to twist my arm, wait until I have some good information to give!"

He scoffed. "Don't be dramatic. 아침에 너의 헛소리를 듣고 싶지 않아. It's too late for you to have breakfast, so just get dressed and let's go." He yanked the covers off, his usual style, and walked out of the room before ENA could either grab him or throw something at his head.

Baby complained. She tucked him in, at least he could sleep while she was out. Mama took care of him while she was out, so she wasn’t worried about him not getting breakfast. There was a schedule on the fridge of when he woke up, ate, listened to the portable radio ENA bought from the daily auction, took an afternoon nap and woke up to see ENA home from school. Mama, to ENA's knowledge, was diligent and took her duties as babysitter and grandmother seriously, and baby was always waiting for her on the couch when she returned home.

She was actually just going to remind Mama in case she forgot and ended up being the one reminded. Mama was preparing dinner, a large sea bug that was to be marinated, roasted, and seasoned. It was a fancy dinner, and ENA wondered the occasion. "You don't want to miss your first day of new classes!" Mama mentioned as she uncapped a jar of spice and tapped it out over the bug's yellow, exposed belly. It giggled.

"My what."

"Merci will fill you in. You slept a long time, I couldn't even call you down for supper! That's alright, you should be wide awake today, then!" No kindness, no sympathy, none. Mama kissed her on the forehead, the cheeks, the lips, "Papa and I spoke last night, and we want to let you know that you can be anything you'd like when you grow up, no pressure." Without a moment to rest, ENA was almost pushed out the front door after being handed her backpack and lunch pail.

They met up with Moony at the usual spot. "Hey, Ena, Mercy. How's it hangin'?"

Merci shrugged. "The usual. I still haven't heard back from any of the schools I chose. What about you?"

"Bummer, man. I couldn't choose between the Ygrov-Centair School for Aspiring Astrological Beings, or the Hither Calls the Mighty Warrior of the Deep Blue Sky Center of the Lunar Arts. So I just filled out both. I can't wait to see them fight over me." Her grin was malicious and full of dark joy. "You've got good marks, don't see why they can't at least respond on time. Also, I heard online that Ena's going to be joining us today, is that right?" She didn’t even seem to believe it until ENA tagged along where they would normally split off at the staircase. "Well, good luck in your catch-up classes."

"Thank you kindly, Moony. Good luck to all of yours, and to you too, brother." She kissed them both on the cheek, Moony seemed to shy away this time, and didn’t reciprocate when Merci did.

At least her brother was kind. "I'll be thinking of you. I'll see you soon, and don't worry, you'll do great!" Merci hugged her, a quick but loving squeeze, before he went down the hall with Moony, leaving ENA to enter the classroom.

Just like all the other rooms in the school, it had an aesthetic of bright colors and old re-used decorations. It wasn't untidy, but there were hints of it being left alone for many years, such as the blue paint chipping on the walls, revealing an ugly tan underneath. The floors were scuffed up, and the furniture was scratched, dinged, and spattered with paint. It was like a room lost a decade ago, left alone until recently, when the school found a new purpose for it. That purpose appeared to be holding four students and a teacher.

ENA gave a quick once-over of everyone in the room. Papa said once that it was good to perform a simple analysis of everyone she met before they formally greeted one another, so that she could make note of any suspicious details or assumptions that could prove useful. Further probing would be performed during those first several conversations, especially if they were going to be spending time together. This should be done with every one of them.

At least it kept her from being antisocial.

"Welcome and good morning! You must be our newest addition! It's a pleasure to meet you, and I pray that you enjoy your time here! With my help, you'll navigate the maze of learning, dive into the sea of discovery, and resurface with a treasure of undefeatable knowledge! My name is Robert DeVany, you can call me Robert. After all, we're going to know each other well, and friends who know each other well use their names." He said this all in only a couple of breaths, and ENA almost couldn't keep up with the information thrown at her. He was the teacher, and had an outgoing personality. His lackadaisical demeanor could be used to soften any edges and make her let her guard down. She would have to keep a close eye on him. "Take a seat and meet your classmates!" Sitting in a little hovercraft, he went to the front of the room to position himself behind a podium.

ENA did as she was instructed and chose a seat. They were positioned in rows of four, going down three rows. In the first row, on top of the first desk, was a little furry elephant. He was about the size of a teacup and cute as a button, but she wouldn't say it out loud to him lest she step on a nerve. In front of him, presumably to assist with notetaking and classwork, was a tiny computer. He gazed someplace in the distance, waving his itty-bitty trunk. No danger here, at least outwardly.

Next to the mini-mammoth was a boy who slouched like he didn't care about rules. His backpack was looked like it carried many important objects in it that ENA would keep an eye on. The overall dark mood made ENA suspicious from the get-go, but judging those by their species was unkindly, so she tried to not be biased. She couldn't get a good look at his face, which might be a good thing as she thought his eyes might be scary, if the rest of him was any giveaway. He was dark in color, with short fur all over his body, and very long legs and arms. He had a ridge of long hair going down his back, that she could see it standing up underneath his jacket. His nose was fat and long, and tapped against the desk, picking up scents.

Speaking of big noses, the last student was prettier aesthetically, dressed in a fashion many years out of style, as far as she could stretch it while still conforming to the school dress code. Her shoulder-length hair had been dyed purple and was now fading to show the original black. She had a very long, very, very pointy nose that stuck out in front of her face, the end twitching just slightly. She had no visible ears, but she assumed they would be twitchy, too. "Who are you looking at?"

Was she being that obvious? Papa would be steaming. "You, ma'am. I'm getting to know my classmates."

The girl looked at her from the side, with the way her face was structured, she couldn't look at someone head-on. Her eye looked ENA up and down, and she disliked the feeling of being scrutinized but put up with it to not anger the big-nosed girl any further. "Ma'am." The girl scoffed. "I'm a miss, to you, pal!"

"Miss, then. My name is ENA, may I ask yours?" Because non-users couldn't see the manipulatable anatomies, she brought out Ba, who was good for reading hidden intentions. Ka would be for observing the power of others' souls, but Ka had so far been the most difficult of the three to grasp, so she thought Ba would be enough.

"No."

There was a spike of energy, and ENA felt alarmed by how sudden and strong it was. On her tongue was a bitter, spicy taste, like she had bitten into a foul-tasting plant. "Alright then!" She sat down in the seat closest to her, concealing Ba again. What was that? When she practiced with Papa on citizens at the mall, they never gave her such strong feedback. She couldn't spend much time dwelling on it, the other students seemed to gain more confidence, turning their heads to look at her. The little mammoth turned his whole body to see.

The first thing she noticed was that she was right about the dark boy's eyes - big, orange, and set into his head, surrounded by raggedy black fur. He must have shaved recently, as bits of hair dropped down onto the desk to make a pile. He stared.

And stared.

ENA looked away to Robert, and back. Still staring.

Had his eyes gotten bigger? His nose wriggled ceaselessly, and his tongue, long and thin, came out to taste the air.

Although she was afraid of what she might feel, she brought out Ba and used one of its hooves to reach into the other student's heart. A steady beat, deep inside was his own Ba, flowing undisturbed by its user, like all other creatures with the manipulatable heart. 'What is up with this?' She thought, retracting Ba. Her own heartbeat raced.

"Alright, everyone!" Robert clapped his hands together. ENA hoped that the beginning of class would deter the weird boy from staring. "Let's start roll call. I'd also like to introduce to you our newest member of the team! We'll get to that in a second - Justin! I see you there, yes."

Justin was the mammoth, waving his trunk in the air to get Robert to notice him. It made a sound like the lightest toot of a horn.

Robert continued. "Taikai, you're actually present today. I assume you recovered your lost project?"

"Yes." The hairy boy said, after remembering that he had indeed done that.

"Good. Keya, you're here. How's your mother?"

Keya turned her head to make eye contact. Her nose pointed in ENA's direction, and when she opened her mouth, the whole thing split down the middle, showing of rows upon rows of little, needle-sharp teeth. "She's doing well. She'll never swallow her dinner whole again. We need to remind her to eat it in small bites." She said it slowly, so that her tongue flicked around her teeth.

"I'm glad to hear it. It's always good to chew your food thoroughly. Lastly, we have our newest addition. Everyone, please welcome Enakai to our ecosystem. Or, does she prefer to be called Ena, I heard? And does she prefer 'she' or 'he?' Your voice, I can't quite tell."

ENA spoke up so that everyone could hear her confidence and control over herself. "My friends call me Ena, but you can call me what you like. I am a female for the most part. The uniform.” She gestured to herself. “I understand the confusion, and I want to assure anyone that I forgive these mistakes in advance." She tried to make it less confusing, growing out her hair, but there was an incident and Papa had to save it by cutting it short on one side. She wouldn't let him cut the rest. Though she wouldn't say such vulgarities out loud to a public audience, she had all the correct feminine parts, and so considered herself wholly and fully a lady. Mr. Happy was only a part of her, and recently, he hadn’t been showing up, so she assumed that he took a much-needed forever-vacation. If only her voice didn't confuse so many people she met. She didn't mind it, really, and she liked her voices. There was a phase when she was younger that she mourned not having two female voices but came to terms with it after some self-searching.

The class didn't need to hear about that, however.

"That's good to know! Thank you for telling me." He shuffled a stack of papers and cleared his throat. "We begin with some simple math problems. I've been told that you're currently at the third-grade level, so we can start with some review problems. I want you all to make a simple word problem and we'll pass them to each other clockwise around the room. Write your answer in your notebooks. Ena, do you have a notebook?"

Did she? She didn't look in her bag that morning. Thankfully, Merci thought of everything, and she opened up to a blank page. She decided that she'd take a swing at division, something tough so that they would think she's on their level and not stuck in third grade. It was about a mule who wanted to know how many carrots to eat during which time of day, out of a pile of a hundred, allowing herself only a certain amount each day.

The first person she had to pass it to was Keya, who she could have sworn gave her quite the hairy eyeball. She brought out Ba again as Robert handed her Justin's work. He had re-printed it big-size so that she could see. Both seemed to be non-users, their life energy mute to them, which relaxed her a bit.

Justin's work was an addition problem about peanuts that ENA could easily solve. Finishing quickly, she passed it on without looking Keya in the eye, receiving Taikai's from Robert after.

Where Justin’s was easy, this one was a doozy, and she skimmed over the contents to make sure she didn't receive an essay by accident. She looked to Robert, who seemed to understand. "Do you need help?"

"No, thank you." Said ENA, not wanting to look stupid in front of her new classmates. She read the page again, trying to take in all the variables and leave out the stuff that didn't have to do with the problem. As she kept reading, however, she grew frustrated and desperate, more and more unsure of what mattered and what was part of the story.

It started with a little girl whose name was Fujiko, who lived by herself in a big house with no-one to share it with. She spent every day going out into the town and looking for someone who would live with her, but no-one wanted to because they thought she was unattractive and stupid. She was very hurt and sad but tried again because she wanted someone to keep her company that badly. There was a whole paragraph dedicated to what candy she likes, and where it started to have a hope of being a math problem, when she didn’t have enough money to pay, the story solved itself when a nice man paid for the candy instead.

ENA kept reading and re-reading the text, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't find any trace of an actual math problem. It was just a soap opera in written form...

She decided to pretend that she knew what he was talking about, passing it on to Keya and taking hers from Robert. "How did it go?" He asked, looking at the blank space on the sheet of paper.

"Creatively. Good English lesson." At least Keya understood the program. Hers was also creative, a cryptogram that could be solved by going through simple addition and subtraction problems, the resulting number being equal to a letter in the English alphabet. It was fun up until she filled in all the letters.

I W I L L B U R Y Y O U

P G R O U N D A. S C H.

Keya looked at her with the one eye narrowed and made a gesture with her finger.

ENA felt her soul wilt.

"Yup. She wants to brawl." Said Moony when ENA showed her the message at lunch. Merci was with his friends, so he couldn't join them that time. "You're going to have to square up."

"But I don't know how to square up! I never passed geometry!" ENA wailed. It was hopeless! How could the day be so disastrous?!

"Put up your dukes, at least you have them. Just fight her. I know Keya, seen her a couple times in computer class. Pop her in the schnozzle and call it a day."

ENA would have liked to have gone home anyway but knew that if she ran out on the fight, Papa would call her a coward and probably disown her. So, regretfully, ENA stood outside the playground, trying to precisely predict a schnozzle-popping scheme that would result in her success and Keya's defeat.

"So, you've finally showed!" Came a braggadocious voice. Keya was perched on top of a wire structure, her head turned to the side and grinning at ENA. Over her face was a mask of black, and spreading out on the ground was a tall, dark shadow. When Keya tilted back her pointy head to laugh, the shadow laughed too, making a deep rumbling chuckle.

ENA felt light-headed, watching it bounce around like a dog on the end of a chain. Sometimes, it got up from the ground, leaping into the air as a glob of oozing, black tar, creating gaps from which many mouths emerged.

"So, you can see my Ba, can you? You don't know how long I've been waiting for this! I thought that me and Teacher were the only ones with this power, but when I saw you foolishly take out your weak-ass Ba during class, I couldn't help myself! I've been itching for a duel for sooooooooo looooooooooonnnnnnggggg!" Her mouth opened and her teeth poked out like razors. She cackled loudly, a whooping squeal that ENA couldn't stand to hear.

"Enough of this! I give in, I lose! I always do, it won't be worth it to fight me! If you're going to do it anyway, just make sure to kill me quickly, alright! It's about time someone did finally it!" She buried her face in her hands, unable to watch her own death. She knew it would be painful, and it was just what she deserved, someone to finally take her to the place where she was destined to go all along.

Someone’s hand was on her back, and from it came a strange and unexpected warmth. Her hand starting to stroke down her back. It left a fuzzy feeling in ENA, who looked up at the big-nose girl from between her fingers. She was overcome with emotion and shaking all over, but it was slowly dissipating. Still, she had to ask, "What's with you? Don't you realize how futile that is! Fighting is worthless, just end me! I know you want to, I can read your mind! Everything I do on this earth amounts to nothing, even you can see that? Don't you have any pity in that big snoot of yours?" ENA choked on her own tears, coughing and gagging as she fell to the playground's asphalt. She could just bash her head open on the ground, but it was better for her enemy to do that, or to stomp on her like she was a spoiled fruit. She could hear Keya coming closer, it was curtains for her! The end, the curse on this world will be lifted!

Again, there was the hand, and this time Keya had started to poke her face with her snout. “Oh, poor creature. It seems I misjudged how to use my Ba. Now you don’t want to fight?”

ENA shook her head, finally feeling understood.

“That’s just too effin bad.” She didn’t have time to process it before she received a fist to the face, snapping her head back so far it might have come off if the punch was any harder. Her ears rang and her neck hurt horrifically. She laid out on the pavement and it took a moment of just doing that to get her vision back.

She was poked.

Poked, like a little tap. After being completely walloped.

WHY IS EVERYONE BEING SO MADDENING AND NOT DELIVERING THE KILLING BLOW?

“Why aren’t you killing me?” ENA whispered.

The bird girl scoffed. "Rude. Do you know how disappointing this is? You're the first real user of the manipulatable anatomies that I've found in this world, and you turn out to be a self-loathing suicide-fetishist. This sucks. I heard you had a brother, though. I'm going to see if he's a loser like you, or he's got some merit to him. You can stay there, I'm not interested in helping you get off." The beaked girl got up from where she had been crouching, looking at ENA down her nose.

She turned to walk away.

Mistake.

General Napoleon de Corsica was full of himself when he was alive. He thought he could control the world with his military prowess. He even wrote a book of tactics to instruct future military leaders. Of course, ENA read it. She could hear a voice in her head, perhaps Napoleon's guiding her to -

never turn your back on your enemy, even when it seems that you’ve got them beat.

The second that ENA's fist made contact with her spine, the beak-girl made a noise like a dying corvid. Her whole body leaped into the air, stiffening to try and protect herself from further assault.

act quickly while the enemy is dazed. don’t wait for them to recover. if they do, find their weakest point, cut down their defenses, and aim for the artery.

ENA ran underneath her, bringing out her Khet and reaching up to grab Keya's leg to examine her strengths and weaknesses. Almost instantly, she was cut off, pushed back by having her feet pulled out from under her. She landed hard on the tar, knocking the breath out of her lungs.

never accept defeat

Above her, Keya circled in the air, letting out a screech of joy. "You'd best catch me before I get to your brother, you miserable wench! I won't waste any more time with you!" She landed, ENA predicting where she'd go and swiping below. Keya threw a punch with her shadow, a big, black glob that splashed over ENA and momentarily blinded her. "You idiot! This is my victory, Nakamura!- Ow!"

The shadows disappeared. ENA could open her eyes, jumping up to take what she thought was a good defensive posture. Keya had stepped back, rubbing at her face and whining. "That really hurt! Who did that? Who interrupts an honorable battle? And at my high point, too..."

"What are you talking abo-ouch!" She was shot! In the chest! Someone aimed for lethal results.

About damn time.

"See?! Whoever's doing it, show yourselves! You better have a good reason for keeping me from beating the stuffing out of this weakling, here!"

"Oh, weakling? You know that if we hadn't been sniped right now, you'd be on the ground."

"Up yours, Nakamura. Say, is that paint? Or do you bleed green?"

ENA looked down at her shirt. Sure enough, it was a lovely shade of emerald. She touched her finger to it, smelling the green residue. "Paint. It's on your face, too."

"Put up your Khet. Someone's coming, I can sense him. From behind the school, over there. I'll bet you ten fatty-catties that's the motherfucker that interrupted my wiping the floor with your stupid face."

"I'll take it. And language, there might be kids here."

Keya was halfway between another bickering comment when she was interrupted by the interloper. ENA almost didn't believe it when the scary kid from class, Taikai, came sauntering out into the open lot, carried on tall, stilt-like legs. Was all this class trying to kill her? They were doing a really terrible job, and, no offense, she wasn't going to count on Justin to carry them to a last-minute victory. "She's right, you know. It's not very polite to swear in public."

"You wanna go, asshole?" Keya spat. ENA watched her bristle, her Khet prepared for the attack. ENA extended hers. She could feel Taikai’s Khet, stronger than it was in class.

Where he was giving Keya a glowering look, he turned his attention to ENA instead, immediately changing his tune. It was the first time that she noticed the four tusks coming from his mouth, two on the bottom and two on top. They were short, easily overlooked at first glance. She watched them as he talked, “So, you’ve noticed my Khet? You’re not very good at concealing your anatomies, are you? They’re so very pretty, your anatomies.”

ENA looked down. Her skin was white with her Khet. She hadn’t considered him to be subject to opinion of prettiness. “Thanks, I made him myself.”

Keya growled in annoyance. “He means your tits, deadbrain.” She gestured to ENA’s chest, which she immediately covered up with her arms. She still had a shirt on, what were they talking about? Did this school have asbestos in the food supply? Good thing she brought her own lunch… “There’s better ways of flirting than shooting people, Taikai. Then again, you never were a master of getting your dick wet.”

He shrugged, holding the paint gun in the air and trying to act cool when he was clearly flustered by her words. “That’s not at all my intentions, Keya. I was just making an observation, you can’t say that she isn’t a very pretty girl. Besides, I couldn’t just let my classmates kill each other before we’ve really had a chance to introduce ourselves. If you want someone to spar as much as you keep mentioning, it would perhaps be more productive to keep them alive instead of killing them first thing. You've been slacking on practicing concealment, too.”

Keya's eye twitched. "Why, you-!"

"No, no. He's got a point. It’s getting late, and I’m glad we could spend some time together, but I've got a baby to get back to. See you two tomorrow!" ENA smiled as politely as she could make it and started to walk away, keeping Khet out just in case anyone tried to stab, or shoot, her in the back.

Worse, they ran to catch up.

"Wait, waitwaitwait a minute!" Taikai easily caught up with his big gait, even as ENA sped up. She could feel Keya following behind them. "You have a baby? With whom? Who is he? He can't make you happy if you're resorting to fighting to get your frustrations out." He seemed pretty ticked.

"You heard me correctly. He looks just like me, though I didn't give birth to him. My friend Moony - she's very scary, she knows geometry, if you must know - gave him to me. She found him, and I'm not sure that's how babies are made, but he's mine now, and I'd like to get home to him. I'm running late, and I must be going. I'll. See. You. Tomorrow. Sir." She must have said the right thing, and felt good saying it, because he stopped following her at the gates, about the time that Merci came to get her. He had stayed after school with his club, and she was just in time to see him. She broke into a run as soon as she noticed that neither Taikai nor Keya were following her.

“Hey, Ena. I guess art class went well?”

She lied and said it did. She also lied about fighting, that she had a good day with no complaints. Injuries? No, you were seeing wrong.

As always, Baby was waiting on the couch. ENA went to sit down with him, happy that baby asked no questions. Still, she couldn’t help but dwell on how much that boy didn’t like baby. How do you dislike someone you’ve never met? She pulled her legs up onto the sofa, holding baby in her lap. She didn't really feel much like being a mother right now. To take her mind off it, she turned on the T.V. and went to get a snack, hoping that she'd shake the feeling and go back to loving her baby like she did that morning.

The baby leaned against her. ‘It’s okay. I can meet him tomorrow, and he’ll like me.’

ENA thought about it. “He’s kind of scary.”

‘Not when you’re here.’

She smiled and hugged him tight. “Thank you. Say, how do you feel about the name ‘Napoleon?’

"Big brother?" She was laying on his bed again.

"What's up?" He was practicing mimicking carrying bricks.

"You guys forgot. At least my baby remembered."

He looked at her, an eyebrow up. "Forgot what? I thought I put everything in your bag. You know, you shouldn't rely on me to get your things done. That's your responsibility, you're getting older and I shouldn't have to look after you anymore! You shouldn't have had any homework to turn in, not that I saw. I put in your lunch, a notebook, because I knew you weren't going to do it yourself. Actually, I think I'm going to get you a planner and an alarm clock. I know you were sloshed last night." He gave her a very hard look, hands on his hips. "I get that you're going through some changes, and that it's been hard lately for all of us, but that's no reason for you to engage in such delinquent behavior!

Maybe I shouldn't be so hard on you. You were probably just watching us. I know I've been hitting it a little hard lately, but still! I don't want to see you end up on the streets! You have so much potential to be better than all of us put together, and I swear to Runas I'm not going to let you throw that away for some stuffy old guys a thousand leagues away!

I also know that it's not good for you to see us fighting all the time, and every time it happens, I feel bad about it. Maybe there's something I could do to stop it, but it's hard when it's Hara. He's a rotten bastard. After all these years, could never tell me that I'm his son. It couldn't kill him to just reach out a little bit? All this time! And what about Mom? She had, and still has, no reason to stay loyal to him, especially now that he's getting to be even more of an asshole.

Sorry, I'm getting heated.

What was it we forgot?"

"You know, day before yesterday, day of the goat. The 'Dad works late, we eat microwave dinners, Mom and Merci stay up to loudly discuss family trouble over fermented grapes' day. That day. Or, perhaps this is less important, maybe it would get in the way of your soul-searching, but it was also my birthday." The clock chimed seven. "My show's on. See you later."

She left down the hall, leaving him frozen in position. She sat down and turned the knob on the television. It sparked to life, and the news report came on, detailing a report on a recent car wreck.

"-in downtown Snakeroot Pass, the couple was purportedly drunk-"

"Fuck-!"