Sapphire Shards

Bonn Starr was that unfortunate person.

"Thanks." She spoke with a raspy tone, one that fit well with her badly-dyed blonde hair and dark cyan eyes. As she stepped off the bus, her red tie blew onto her shoulder from the fierce wind that ruled the skies of Tuesday. A group of girls in an unfamiliar set of uniform passed by as Bonn stepped off the bus that violently closed its glass doors, almost trapping Bonn's hair with it as it sputtered off. Looking behind at the hoard of girls, Bonn sighed and frowned before embarking on the cruel journey ahead.

As she walked, she stared down at her black school shoes rather than the path ahead. She knew about all the roads she would have to pass, so she wasn't very concerned about accidentally walking in front of a moving car, but she would still occasionally raise her head to spy something unique or new, like something she had never seen before, but no. This is Arridale. And Arridale is in England. Nothing interesting happens in England, let alone this cheap city. The only detail put on the long walk of concrete was a lone bin. There was nothing around it and if she recalled correctly, there where no other public bins for miles. It's plain simplicity made many stare away, begging for something more appealing than an ordinary tin can. Bonn strangely felt at peace with it in her presence.

After a painfully long walk, Bonn arrived at the gates of the Arridale Secondary School and walked through the duo of set gates like she always had. Crowds of people, mostly groups of six that included people who possessed similar traits to each other passed her like she was invisible. Bonn paid no attention to this. In fact, Bonn herself didn't care for it at all. Her only real goal in life was to have fun and nothing past that. Her entire motive was to live in the moment and then later blame other people for her own mistakes if anything was to effect her badly in the future due to her foolishness. In other words, she fit perfectly into the stereotype 'Dumb Blonde'. Following her entrance, Bonn headed up to her tutor room that was set in the newly made English block in the school. Her teachers had been raving about how 'modern' and 'fancy' it all was while the rest of the school was stuck in the past. While English teachers would be happily presenting Shakespearian plays unfortunate language teachers were left with rooms that had a constant civil war between French and German displays above the sea of unorganized tables and chairs. Bonn was lucky to have this room.

Another thing Bonn was gifted with in education was her tutor. She was a wonderful woman. A kind hearted, sweet person full of love, life and joy. She made the most isolated individuals of humanity open up to her through her natural kindness. In fact, a student who was known to skip school often had admitted to attending school during English lessons due to it. And even if people were to treat her badly, she would smile and explain how she felt after their actions and offered advice rather than senselessly screaming at the student. Miss Tabb truly was a bundle of smiles and a pillar in the schools community. Even Bonn could admit that.

The door was pushed open. The majority of the class raised their heads and opened their mouths to welcome Miss Tabb into the classroom with a gleaming smile.

"Morning Miss Tabb-"

"...Morning... Class E3."

Rather than their beloved teacher, a titan made of raw strength and authority had just entered the room. The beast was wearing a green and black uniform that looked like it belonged to an army commander and their big, black boots created a stomping sound that made an angry pattern of thuds across the floor as they walked. The classroom, that was once full of life had fallen dead. This tyrant who had caused this unbalance of emotion was named Miss Lock, she was a P.E teacher who was known as the one who serves 'justice' across the school. She had suspended fifteen different students this month (and counting). Her senses were seemingly inhuman, being able to hear a pin drop among a room of unruly students who she had gathered for wearing hoodies in class, so if there was one person who you didn't want to get on your bad side, it was her. The sound of thumping across the floor came to a sudden stop as Miss Lock stood in the centre of the room, staring back at the class of terrified pupils. Her small eyes told the students everything they needed to know to survive the next half an hour.

"Just as expected." She spoke. Miss Lock's voice was just like you are imagining it to be. A deep, strong, boom of a tone that echoed in people's ears like bat sonar. "You bunch are learning how to shut your mouths! Good..." Miss Lock marched towards the chair Miss Tabb would have been sitting in to take the register. Her menacing posture put fear into the hearts of warriors and veterans who had walked through napalm fire and rain made entirely of lead bullets. For a spilt second, she scanned her eyes across the class and met eyes with every one of the students. She stared into Bonn's eyes for an extra 0.2 seconds and with that tiny amount of extended time, Bonn felt the metallic laser of eye contact shoot a cold-anxiety into her body through her shaking pupils, creating a sickening ripple of anxiety in her stomach. "SO." Her sudden yell made the student sitting next to Bonn flinch in their chair. "It's time for registration! I will announce you with your second name and expect you to respond to it! Failure to respond quickly will result in absence!"

As she stormed through every students second name, Miss Lock leaned backwards and stared back at the petrified classroom. She smacked her lips together before frowning.

"Willow."

Bonn felt her heart skip a beat. Normally, she wouldn't respond to her real second name as she felt it was an insult to her identity but in this dire situation she had no other choice but to comply with the tyrants orders.

"Yes miss Lock?" Bonn replied, standing up from her seat with her back straight. The tang of hopelessness shot around Bonn's mind as Miss Lock looked at the bulletin on the schools daily information tab.

"You need to be in Mr Clifford's classroom. He needs to speak to you... Take your bags."

"I understand." Bonn lifted her bag from the floor beneath her. "Thank you for having me, miss."

As Bonn nervously trotted out of the classroom, she let out a sigh before thinking to herself.

"Thank god... I wouldn't have lasted another second in that room... I'll need to thank Mr Clifford when I get to his place... Even though he acts like a total bitch, I'd take him over that beast any day..."

With relief and a slight tint of annoyance, Bonn travelled down the hallway towards Mr Clifford's classroom. Since her classroom was in the third English room, Bonn only had to walk for a moment to arrive at E6. Pushing the door open, Bonn frowned as she saw the lifeless room ahead of her. A dark veil crept along the floor of the room and a crack of illumination shined through the window, lighting the seat Mr Clifford would sit on. It was empty.

"Weird... Guess he went to get some tea." Bonn stared blankly at the room before smirking at the thought of trashing the place for her own pleasure. She could imagine tossing the novels in yellow boxes labelled 'YEAR 7' all over Mr Clifford's desk while turning all the chairs the wrong way around. After that she would draw inappropriate drawings on the whiteboard, but she didn't have any markers so she would take one of his precious green markers and-

"I wouldn't do that if I was you."

There was a girl with short, silver hair and small blue eyes sitting in one of the many unused chairs. A tint of exhaustion could be gathered from her two pupils like how a puzzle fit together, except this puzzle had the outline of a set of weak pieces that had withered due to time. A grey patch was under her eyes, casting the portrait of a 'model student' all schools desired. Her green school uniform had a silver badge on it that took the form of an anchor.

"I know those eyes," The girl pointed. "You're going to tear this place apart, right?"

"No!..." Bonn looked at the floor for a moment. "Okay, maybe a little."

The girl stared blankly at Bonn.

"Why are you here?"

"I don't know yet. I was pulled out of tutor period for what ever Mr Clifford wants to yell at me for."

"Does this happen often?"

"Yeah."

"Right."

A silence filled the room as the two girls stood several meters apart from each other. Bonn sat on a nearby table before speaking again.

"So, what's your name?"

"Sorry?" The girl asked. She was looking at Bonn like she just said something indecipherable.

"...What's your name?"

"O-Oh... Triss. Triss Pane."

"Sweet." When Bonn said this, Triss turned her head to Bonn, focusing with her full attention. "I'm Bonn. Bonn Starr."

"Really? Is that your real name?"

"I wish... My good-for-nothing mother doesn't want me to change it." Bonn frowned for a moment. "My real names Bonnie Willow, but if you call me that, I'll punch you."

"Oh okay..." Triss spoke with a miserable tone. It made Bonn feel like she was talking to someone who never lived a day of their life entertained. She sounded like she was exhausted from a lack of rest.

"You sound tired. What time did you go to sleep?"

"Uhm... Will you laugh if I tell you?"

"Of course not! I never laugh in peoples faces!" Bonn smiled, pointing at her face.

"Okay..." Triss bit her lip before she spoke. "Three."

"T-Three?! That's like..." Bonn stuck her hand out and began counting her fingers.

"AM."

"Oh." Bonn looked at Triss. "Oh!"

"Can't you tell the time?"

"That doesn't matter, you went to sleep way too late! Do you know what lack of sleep can do to people?!"

"You tell me."

"...Um..."

"I know the dangers, I am just busy, okay?"

"Doing what?"

"Studying."

"Is... Is it really necessary to stay up that late for tests?"

"You mean exams, right?"

The word exams shot around Bonn's empty brain like a bullet ricocheting around her head.

"Hold on... How old are you? I thought you were in Year 8 or something..."

"I'm sixteen. Year 11."

"W-Wait... If I am in Year 11... and you are also in Year 11..." Triss nodded slightly, like she was silently saying 'You'll get there eventually, Bonn'. "You're super short!"

"Yep."

"Like... Koichi levels of short!"

"'Koichi?'"

"You wouldn't get it... How tall are you?"

"I'm one-hundred and thirty-two centre-meters tall."

"Damn! I thought the Year sevens were short... You know you can probably sneak in to get lunch early right?"

"...Don't tell anyone... But I've done that once."

"Really?!"

"Really! It was great... Usually the decent food is gone because of that stupid Year based entry thing they've been doing recently, but I managed to buy some great shortbread!"

"The shortbreads great. "

"Yeah..."

"Speaking of lunch, I've never seen you before. Where are you around that time, usually?"

"I spend most of my time in the canteen."

"Oh, that explains why I've never seen you around then." Bonn smirked. "I was banned from eating in the canteen, you see."

"Oh? Really?" Triss smiled. "What did you do?"

"You see, I threw a pizza slice at one of the lunch ladies because I was pissed..."

"You did what?!" Triss looked genuinely surprised, like she couldn't imagine someone who would do such a thing to be so casual around her.

"You heard me right!... Okay it might sound quite pretty bad, but I was having a really shit day..."

"Oh don't worry, I understand how you felt there. If I wasn't so scared of getting yelled at, I would do that too..." Triss laughed with Bonn.

"You're nice company, you know?"

"Am I?"

"Yeah. Do people tell you nice things often, Triss-"

"Ah! You remembered my name!"

"Yeah, it's a nice name... But do people tell you-"

"No one ever remembers my name... Thanks... It means a lot." Triss smiled gently as Bonn looked into Triss' eyes with apprehension.

"You know... I'll be happy to eat lunch with you."

"Really? You'd do that for me?" Bonn nodded as Triss nervously stuttered all over her sentences. "B-But... You can't even go into the canteen..."

"Do you think I really care about that dumb ban?"

"...Sorry?"

"You seem like a good girl, Triss." As she spoke, Triss' eyes lit up slightly. "That canteen ban won't stop me, they probably wont even recognise me anyways..."

Triss laughed with Bonn when she said this. It wasn't a laugh of simply understanding her joke, it was a laugh of relatability. It was a laugh of understanding. As they laughed, the creak of a door could be heard over their voices. The light for the room turned on, and made Triss hold her eyes in surprise. Bonn turned around and saw the figure of Mr Clifford standing in the door, holding a cup of tea in his hands.

"You're here early for a change, Bonnie."

"Oi!" Bonn frowned. "It's Bonn, bitch!"

"I'd give you a warning for that, but I can't be bothered with how unfiltered you are..." Mr Clifford adjusted his glasses before sipping on his tea. His long brown hair moved side to side as he navigated to his chair, sitting down in it with his legs crossed. Only now he noticed Triss standing behind Bonn. Unlike her, Bonn was quite tall, standing at 182cm. Because of this overwhelming difference in height, Triss was concealed from Mr Clifford's view.

"Ah! Look who it is!" His attitude changed very quickly. "My favourite student, Triss!"

Bonn opened her mouth but Mr Clifford was already too busy praising Triss to care about Bonn.

"What do you need? I can get it for you easily. I know you are concerned about your GCSE's, so I will help you out in any way I can, and..."

As Mr Clifford continued offering Triss advice, Bonn made an obnoxiously loud click from her mouth, diverting Mr Clifford's attention easily.

"What do you want?" Mr Clifford asked. "I'm busy giving a student advice."

"You're not giving her enough time to say 'yes' or 'no,' dumbass." Mr Clifford processed Bonn's words before speaking again.

"Right. Do you need anything, Triss?"

"Yeah, I was going to ask if I could borrow a copy of 'The Grapes of Wrath.'"

"Of course. I am sure you know what the exam is on, right?"

"I'm certain about that, sir."

"Great. Those are in the English storage cabinet. I would have to give you the key if it was more secure, but no one locks it so I can just grant you permission to take whatever you want from there."

"Oh, thanks sir!"

"You might want some help with them, though. They are on the top shelf near the left of the cabinet. I'd help you myself, but I don't want my drink to go cold and Bonn is here so she can help you out. They are all spares that haven't been used in ages because the head of English bought way too many. Speaking of which..." Mr Clifford sipped his tea again. "Can you come back here at break, Bonnie-"

"Bonn."

"...Bonn, sorry. Can you come back here at break? We are already running short of time thanks to the way tutor periods are scheduled on the timetables. I need to speak to you about that exam in question that Triss has so carefully been studying for. I know it's in a few weeks, but I need to explain its importance to you. In the meantime, can you help Triss get a book from the English storage? Like I said, tea is at its best when it is hot and I'd hate for it to go cold, and more importantly, I do need to be at the library soon anyways."

"For what? Study?"

"Of course not. I have to teach a bunch of Year 9's about Gothic literature... wish me luck." Mr Clifford sighed.

"Never-"

"Good luck sir!" Triss smiled, walking out of the classroom.

Bonn began walking out of the classroom before a loud tap rang through her ears. She turned around to face her English teacher.

"What?"

"I know you're probably not going to come to this room at break, it's a miracle you even mustered the will to walk here, so listen to me know."

Bonn rolled her eyes before staring towards Mr Clifford.

"I am concerned about you, Bonn." He sipped on his tea before continuing. To look up at Bonn with his green eyes. "And before you tell me that 'I only care for your results', let me speak further."

"When did you become a preacher-"

"Your grades are significantly lower than the average student. It's even comparable to some students who require extreme support to accomplish anything. You had been peforming well in previous years until Year 10. Tell me, did anything significant happen to you around then?"

Bonn turned to face the door.

"That proves my point. Do you have a role model, Bonn?"

"No."

Mr Clifford looked at Bonn like he was studying her.

"So just what do you want to do with your life?"

Bonn thought for a moment before speaking again.

"I'll see where life will take me."

"That's a completely irresponsible way to live your life. Have your parents ever mentioned that to you?"

"No."

"Then what have they said?"

"...Why do you care?!" Bonn suddenly grew angry. "They haven't said anything, of course! They have never asked me the fucking question!" Bonn gritted her teeth together before yelling again. "People like you would never, ever understand!... Not you... Not Isabelle... Not-"

"Look." Bonn looked at her teacher once again. She had slightly calmed down. "I don't know what happened to make you able to bring the class average down by 15% alone, but we need to know. Believe it or not but we want you to succeed. We really do. And if you could simply just tell us what went wrong, we could advance towards supporting you, in school and life in general. I know these words will have no meaning to you, but just stick them in your head, okay? I don't care what you do with those words, just remember them. Even if you laugh at them, just remember them and maybe one day you will-"

Bonn began walking out of the E6.

"Like hell I will." She turned around and faced Mr Clifford with a frown. "Last time I took advice like that, you know what happened? I was beaten to a pulp." Bonn exhaled sharply. "Don't you dare go around telling me all this motivational bullshit. I don't care. I will never listen to anyone like you... Not again. Not after what people like you do without thinking. Leave me and my life alone. You have nothing to do with it." Bonn bit her lip before marching out the room. She stopped and looked at Mr Clifford before sticking her tongue out and running away.

"Jesus Christ..." Mr Clifford sighed like he had predicted everything Bonn was going to say. He lifted his mug towards his face, sipping his tea. "I hate teenagers..." He looked at the doorway blankly. "What on earth is going on inside her head...?"

Bonn eventually caught up to Triss who was already inside the English storage room. She was staring up at the top shelf where the copies of 'The Grapes Of Wrath' where kept.

"Alright, It's that one up there. Do you think you can reach it without a stool or something?"

"I'm sure I'll be fine."

Triss stepped backwards as Bonn took her position and raised her arms upwards towards the box of books. Despite having a sudden outburst of emotion earlier, she seemed to have grown calm in Triss' presence. She grabbed hold of it and smiled before lifting it above her head. She could handle the weight of the books fairly easily due to the lack of weight they held. Bonn sighed before placing the box on the floor.

"Thanks Bonn! Do you want to take one too?"

"Nah, I'm sure I'll be fine."

"Alright! See you!" Triss began walking out of the storage room before suddenly turning around. "Oh- Remember, Lunch time!"

"I won't forget!" Bonn replied. "Cya, Triss!"

As Triss walked away, Bonn looked down at the box. She began thinking about what had just happened between them. "Triss Pane, huh?" Bonn smiled as she wrapped her fingers around the box. "Canteen Food Hall, Lunchtime, 1pm-Ish." She lifted the box up to her waist. "Out of all the people I've met, she is the only person who hasn't tossed me to the side... Why? Why did she decide I was worthy of being spoken to? Is this everyday for her?" Bonn lifted the box above her. "Lucky... Or am I just super unlucky?... Nevermind that. I'll have to get used to her friends if I want to keep up with that promise." While Bonn was busy thinking, she finally noticed a strange blue glimmer from the corner of the shelf. The light scared Bonn, making her yelp and drop the box she was holding.

"What the... Hell?" Bonn stepped backwards slightly, staring up at the shelf. The blue light was gone.

"What was that?... I swear I saw a crazy blue light shining from that shelf... Am I dreaming? I knew I was too lucky, getting to know someone like that so quickly... Let me check again..." Bonn peered over the shelf and saw a small blue fragment lying on its side shining a small blue aura over the shadow it would have cast. The light suddenly pulsed and grew, shining across the wall like it did earlier. Bonn watched in confusion and amazement as the blue hue projected images of stars along the ceiling of the storage cabinet. Bonn tripped over, causing the door to close behind her. The stars told a story of wars being fought by single people who guarded the world from unimaginable terrors. The patterns painted by the cyan beam changed form like a nightlight, shining the shapes of different holes onto the wall. Bonn's eyes widened as the patterns turned into arrows, alluding for her to take hold of the shard. Bonn being Bonn, stood up and walked towards the light like a bug heading into the course of a lightbulb. Her primal senses told her to stop. Her mind was telling her to stop, but something was drawing Bonn forwards and forwards towards the fragmented jewel. An undefeatable curiosity was dragging her towards the shard that belonged to a jewel, most likely a Sapphire, It was like a force was dragging Bonn forwards, alluring her to simply touch the shard.

Bonn was now only a meter away. Now ten centre-meters, now five, now 14 milometers. Then-

Zero.

As Bonn touched the shard, a cold feeling suddenly shot through her body like spears piercing her skin. She gasped to scream from the agony that cursed her, but she couldn't find the strength to even whisper. Soon, Bonn fell over, shaking like she had been shocked by a thousand volts of electricity over and over again. She hit the floor and passed out, sleeping on the cold, concreate floor.

Only one thing was passing through her mind. Rather than regret, fear or even mere remembrance, an unwilling statement inserted itself into Bonn's very mind. It stung, etched into her brain like a teaching of old, a law. But this was not a rule. Rather, it was a statement.

You are destined for greatness, Bonn Starr.

The next few weeks of your life will become very, very interesting indeed...

Although I was hoping a reliable person would discover it, this is something I am far more invested in. Your mind is suitable... No, perfect for what perils await.

I am looking forward for what you can achieve. Do not disappoint me.

Four Hours Later...

There was a pain in Bonn's head. It was like a migraine, but casted a different feeling into her skull. Her eyes were blurry and a constant yelling could be heard in her ears. After a moment, Bonn's senses pulled together and she realized that the constant yelling was her English teacher, Mr Clifford.

"...What do you want...?"

"Bonnie?!"

"It's... Bonn..."

"Where the hell have you been? Did you fall over or something? Did you hit your head?"

"What?"

"Look around you! This place is a bloody mess! Thank god no one uses it..."

Bonn sat up and looked around. The English Storage was a complete mess. As she stood, a sudden pain hit her body and forced her down on the floor. It felt like all the mess in the room had been flung towards her like they were prices of metal and she was covered head to toe in magnets.

"Jesus... What the fuck happened?"

"I would assume that it was you, but seeing as you have fallen victim to some of the 'furniture's attack,' I can't see you being completely responsible for this."

"Yeah, right. How would I single-handedly tear down several shelves and then get crushed by them, only to kick them back and then fall asleep?"

"I don't know, all I know is that you have missed four entire lessons and you're now missing your lunch."

"Shit..."

"You still have enough time to get food, the Year 8's have only just got in so you have ten minutes until you actually lose something, seeing as your lessons mean nothing to you."

"Oh. That's not that bad."

"But, if you want to eat anything for lunch I advice that you leave for food now."

"Wasn't planning on sticking around, thanks." Bonn held her head before walking out of the storage room.

"Are you sure you are okay? You look like you have had a hangover."

"I'm. Fine."

"... Are you sure?"

Bonn looked at Mr Clifford with annoyance before stepping past him.

"Yeah. Now let me go to lunch cause I missed breakfast this morning and I'm hungry, so fuck off."

Mr Clifford watched as Bonn walked past him and then down the hallway like nothing had even happened to begin with. He sighed before turning to the utter mess caused, looking at the mountain of books in denial. He slowly took his key out of his pocket and closed the door, locking it.

Throughout ancient history, the legendary Wood Warrior roamed and ruled the land that is now Britain.

But even though the powerful fighter was overqualified for his craft, his outstanding power had withered during 'The battle of Bones', where he was betrayed by his own clan and killed out of fear.

"What'cha reading?" Bonn was leaning over Triss' head, reading her book.

"GAH-" Triss had jumped up, slamming her forehead into Bonn's chest.

"Kuh-"

"S-Sorry! You scared me!"

"It's... Fine." Bonn groaned, falling into the seat next to Triss. "You have a hard head... Ow..." Triss was about to start apologising again, but Bonn quickly spoke again. "What time is it?"

"I though you couldn't tell the time."

"... How much time do we have left?"

"Half an hour."

"Great! I only missed ten minutes!"

"Did you get into trouble or something?"

"Probably."

"'Probably?'"

"Probably."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Well, to put it simply, I don't remember."

"How?"

"I don't know, I don't get on well with many people, so it's quite hard to keep track of what exactly I have done."

"Oh well... Thanks for coming, I was getting worried you forgot."

"I wouldn't forget something like this!.. Well I almost did but I remembered right before lunch so it's fine."

"That's not very promising."

"I'm not a very promising person."

The two sat there for a moment. Triss stared blankly at her book while Bonn looked down at the table.

"You're not very good at talking either, are you?" Bonn began.

"Wait- how did you figure that out?"

"I was just assuming." Bonn leaned back in her chair. "And also, the fact that neither of us seem to be able to start a confersation."

"Well, you're right." Triss sighed. After this, they fell silent again.

"So when are your friends coming over?" Bonn asked. "You know, people who can actually socialise." Triss looked at Bonn, puzzled.

"Um... How do I say this..."

"What?" Bonn blinked twice before speaking again. "Am I missing something?"

"Well..."

"Triss?"

"Uh..." Triss chuckled slightly. "Okay I'll just say it!" Triss slammed her book shut before making a strange smile. "I don't have any friends."

"Really?"

"Really."

Bonn and Triss stared blankly at each other for a moment. Neither of them knew what to say.

"Well..." Triss chuckled sadly. "This is... Awkward."

"So you're telling me, you sit here all by yourself everyday alone?!"

"Yeah." Triss' voice became casual, opposed to the nervous tone she possessed earlier. "I had friends, but they went to a different school."

"So you haven't had friends since primary school?!"

"Yeah, you?"

"Uhm." Bonn looked down at the table. "I have never had any consistent friendship groups..."

"Currently?"

"I like to sit near the science block. There are these really cool trees I like to climb up and just vibe for most of lunch. I do have to leave for food and then I can't take it back up with me... But that's fine."

"So you're alone, then?"

Bonn sighed. "I don't like to phrase it that way..."

"Well you don't have to anymore." Triss smiled. "You can stay with me, if you want. I'll be happy to be your friend."

"Really?"

"Real-ly."

Bonn looked at Triss for a moment before smiling. "Thanks, Triss."

"It's my pleasure."

The two sat still for a moment before Bonn spoke again. "So I can just come here?"

"Yeah, what did you think?"

"I thought you would have been super strict about it..."

"Of course not! That's not how socialising works... You make it sound like I'm being paid to be your friend!"

The word friend made Bonn's eyes light up. She smiled before laughing. "Right, sorry!" Bonn leaned backwards on her stool. She was slowly losing more and more balance. "I didn't expect today to go so well, Triss. You're super nice, you know-"

Suddenly, Bonn fell backwards onto the floor. She had completely forgotten that she was sitting on a stool! She tried to grab the seat to fling herself forward, but it was no use!

"Argh- Owch!"

"Are you okay?!"

"I'm fine!" Bonn yelled, stepping upwards again. "Weird..."

"What?"

"I must of broken the stool when I fell down." The stool was strangely bent, like the world's strongest man had grabbed it and pushed it downward on one of its sides. It looked like the side of a mountain, sloping down. Triss looked as equally confused as Bonn was.

"Maybe it was super old or something."

"Yeah, that would make sense... But I swear it... Never mind." Bonn pulled out another stool from under the table and sat back down. As she dropped into it, she leaned back and forward to ensure her safety. "Do stools break like this often?"

"No, I think you might be the first."

"Feels cursed. Like a ghost is trying to mess with me or something." Bonn said, putting her elbows on the table.

"You believe in ghosts?"

"No, they're just easy to blame."

Triss chuckled at this statement. She yawned before rubbing her eyes. "I think they exist, but not here."

"'Not here?'"

"Well, ghosts are dead people right?" Bonn nodded. "And where do you think dead people go when they die?"

"Hell or Heaven. Depends on the person."

"Well, in your case, the ghosts exist but they are all in heaven (or hell), so they cannot possibly exist here. Therefore, all unexplainable things are products of science!"

"Let me guess..." Bonn sat upwards "Triple science?"

"Yeah."

Bonn laughed for a moment before looking back at the stool again. She was still confused at the sight of the stool breaking like that.

"I am not a scientist and all, but I really don't think stools break like that."

"Let me take a closer look." Triss inspected the stool. As she squatted down, Bonn noticed Triss' eyes widen. "How bizarre..." She ran her finger across the slope. "Looking at it from that angle, it really looks like a normal breakage... But now I can see it up close..." Triss seemed infatuated with the damaged stool. Bonn exhaled with disappointment as Triss put her entire attention on it.

"Didn't you see this earlier before you went on about ghosts and stuff?"

"I just said that I didn't notice how extraordinary this was until now!" Triss beamed, turning the stool closer towards her. Bonn looked at the canteen's exit before slowly looking back at Triss.

"You... Done?"

"No."

Twenty seconds passed before Triss stood up again. "Do you break stuff like this often?"

"Not like that..." Triss looked at Bonn with annoyance. "Seriously, I don't!"

"Well you have to have some idea of how something like this could have even happened! Stuff like this doesn't just happen by itself, you were the one who was sitting on it so you should have some idea of what could've possibly lead to this!"

"Well, I don't. I don't have a clue. Explain it to me miss Triple Science."

"Well if you are going to take it that way, it looks like the plastic itself was melted. That shouldn't be possible."

"Well that impossible thing just happened."

"So it would be labelled an 'Anomaly'."

"What's that even supposed to mean?!"

"It means-"

Suddenly, the bell rang out and stole the attention of all who heard it. Triss looked up with annoyance before looking back at the stool rapidly, picking it up and staring determinedly at the exit.

"Whoa- We still have a period left!... You're seriously not just going to-"

"It's fine, teachers are biased for people like me anyways, so it won't do much harm."

"You're skiving?"

"Well, only for a little bit!"

"Over that stool?"

"Yes!"

Bonn looked at Triss with disappointment before smirking slightly. Before she knew it, Triss was already yelling her goodbyes before running out the canteen doors, a stool wrapped in her arms.

Period Five, Maths, M5, 14:55

Bonn sat with her legs crossed, staring down at a plain worksheet full of algebra below her. The class was like a hurricane. Students throwing balls of crunched up paper towards the board that was covered with desperate inky attempts at educating a class of unruly people while an unfortunate teacher was cursed with an hour of constant disrespect. Although Bonn never did any of the work in the lesson, she was one of Mrs Cherrie's top three favourite students (In this class).

"Uhm... Everyone?" She weakly called out. "Guys...?" Her tiny cry for attention was responded with the interrupting voices growing louder. From listening to her as she spoke, you could tell that a maths teacher was not exactly what she wanted to be growing up. She was sat down in her chair, staring blankly at the class as they continued to riot.

"Miss, I finished."

A girl was sitting neatly at her desk with her arms crossed. Miss Cherrie looked at her with approval, standing up from her chair.

"Let me guess, you finished the worksheet?"

"Yes, Miss." The girl spoke with formality like she was raised by Miss Lock.

"Ah." Miss Cherrie smiled blankly. "I mean... You've completed all my spare word searches... Have you done the maths crossword?"

"Yes."

"And what about the Crypogram I made especially for you?"

"I finished that weeks ago, miss."

"I-I see..." She smiled nervously. "I'll just put another five positive points on the system for you then..."

Bonn was seated behind this girl, so she had to look at the back of her head most of the time. While it was better than maths, it still didn't hold up to be a very entertaining substitute. She always completed the work to the satisfaction of her teachers and surpassed their expectations for what she could achieve. Although she wasn't exactly 'smart', she was extremely reliable, not missing a single day off school since year 7 were she had caught Flu. Her name was Charlotte, and she had made it very clear to Bonn that she wanted absolutely nothing to do with her. In fact, she is bold enough to refer to Bonn as 'Bonnie,' and if you know Bonn, that was part of the large range of things that would set her into an mood. But Charlotte was persistent, and this combination of traits was a 'perfect rival' (In Bonn's mind) for her. The peak of this rivalry was when Bonn and Charlotte got into a fight over her name. During this short conflict, Bonn was utterly destroyed by Charlotte in one swift movement from the back of her hand. After this incident, they haven't spoken since. But even though this conflict conspired two years ago, a sense of vengeance brew in Bonn's heart, waiting for the right moment to make a fool of Charlotte just like she did so long ago.

"Alright..." Miss Cherrie turned her attention back to the class. "If you guys want to go home I would advise staying in your seats.". The word 'home' made the entire class fall silent. Miss Cherrie frowned at this. "Charlotte, Bonn, you two can go early."

"Eh? Sorry?" Bonn asked.

"You can leave."

"Why- Actually, don't answer that. Cya!" Bonn happily walked out of her classroom, heading towards the stairs. She smiled before jumping over several steps, landing on her feet at the bend where the next set of stairs lay. In Bonn's mind, the sound of shattering glass sounded like she had jumped onto a window, smashing through it. But this wasn't entirely her mind, for a set of felt-tip pens came rolling down the steps Bonn just leapt from. She slowly looked up at who stood above her. It was Charlotte. But this time, her face was one of disbelief rather than plotting like Bonn had expected, like she had just dropped her entire pencil case on the steps below her by complete mistake.

"...What?" Bonn growled, looking up at the dissapointed girl above her.

"If I wanted to speak to you, I would have spoken." Charlotte sighed, hopping down the steps one by one. She grabbed her blue pencil sharpener off the floor. "What's your problem?"

"You back-handed me in Year 9, of course I am gonna be pissed at you."

Charlotte refused to make eye contact with Bonn as she picked up the rest of her stationery. She focused her eyes on her felt-tip pens that laid below Bonn's legs.

"I don't remember hitting you. Who are you again?"

"Bonn. Bonn Starr."

"Oh. Oh, right." Charlotte smirked for a moment. "I remember now."

"That means you still hate me, don't you? Well, counterwise."

"...No not really."

"What?!"

"You shouldn't go around senselessly hating people years after an event like that occurred. You should forgive them, regardless of whether you are the context if it limits to a spat like that."

"It wasn't a 'spat!'"

"...Oh yeah, you're right. I took you down with a single blow. Would 'destruction' suit your taste?"

"Guh- No! What's your problem, bitch?!"

"Nothing, I just forgot that it even happened." Charlotte stuffed her stationery into her pencil case. "You seem quite bent on getting back at me, though."

"You're damn right I am! I was super hyped about getting into my first fight and it was barely even fair!"

"If I recall correctly, you were the one who let me hit first."

"... Really?" Bonn asked, looking at Charlotte with confusion.

"I took the advantage to end it before it evolved into an actual fight." Charlotte sighed. "Look, I think you may not realize it, but you're a massive idiot."

"What?!" Bonn pointed at Charlotte angrily. "Who are you calling stupid, stupid?!"

"You."

"What- You're not supposed to actually answer that!... You're supposed to be all offended and-"

"I don't care. My point is-"

"You never made a point!" Bonn yelled. Charlotte continued her casual gaze

"...My point is, you are way too busy despising people for no reason. It happened last year with Emily and Megan, and the year before with Daniel and Archie all because you set off at them for no reason. You're full of hate, Bonn. Fix yourself." Charlotte pointed at the felt-tip pen below Bonn's legs. "And you can start today by tossing me that pen."

Bonn looked up at Charlotte who had just lowered her arm casually. Bonn didn't trust this at all.

"What, did you turn this pen into a bomb or something?"

"...What? Just give me the damn pen. If you take too long, I'll just get it myself."

Bonn stared up at Charlotte who looked down with annoyance in her eyes. Cautiously, Bonn tossed the pen towards Charlotte, hitting her in the chest. She caught it with her hands.

"Ha. Strike."

"At least you can return a pen... Kind of." Charlotte sighed, stepping down to Bonn's level. "But now you've wasted four minutes complaining about picking up a pen and the rest of the class are going to come falling down these stairs. Let's move."

"Let's move?" Bonn frowned. "Like hell I'll walk with you, I'm running!" She began running forward, leaving Charlotte at the level Bonn was just at.

"What's it with you and running away from all your problems?"

As Bonn disappeared from Charlotte's sight, she smiled at the thought of tossing her to the ground and expressing total victory, regaining the pride she had lost so long ago. Even though her pen 'strike' was powerful, in Bonn's brain, It clearly wasn't for Charlotte who had already began picking up the rest of her stationary, already pushing Bonn's existence out of her mind. Bonn stopped running with a smile on her face, looking at the empty bus bay ahead of her.

Arridale Town Centre, 16:52

The town centre was idle and plain. Whichever robot decided that this town would suit the rest of the country somehow made the town centre of Arridale a beacon of boredom. Take an ordinary British world and make is ten times more ordinary to the point were it is the bane of textbooks. That's Arridale for you. Bonn, living in the town centre, was subject to a variaty of situations daily, some of which included old people yelling at kids or kids yelling at old people. It depended on the day, really. And today, it was Monday.

Step, step, step, step...

A trial of footsteps was following behind Bonn. She paid no attention to this, but couldn't help notice how obnoxiously loud this person was. It sounded like they had big boots and stamped onto the group with every step, but this person wasn't wearing boots, no, they didn't even have any shoes. Bonn didn't know this, though. She was too lazy to simply look around at the source of the thumping noise, so she carried on. This continued until she heard the footsteps grow quicker. Suddenly, the stench of vinegar grew close. Bonn looked around slightly, hoping to prove her explanation with the local fish bar, but there wasn't one in sight. After a moment more of the atrocious smell, Bonn finally turned around and stated the person in the eyes. They stated back through a mask that portrayed joy.

"He~llo?" Bonn inspected the persons clothing closely. "What do you want?" The figure was extremely tall, standing at a colossal 8ft. Bonn didn't know how to measure feet, so she just labelled this as 'Super tall.' Another striking feature of this mysterious shape was its navy blue robe that spiralled around the length of its body like a snake holding its prey still. Bonn was slightly intimidated by the overwhelming size difference.

"I am looking for the library." The figure spoke. Its voice was surprisingly high for such an intimating figure. It almost sounded feminine. "Do you happen to know where it is?"

"No." Bonn was lying. "I've recently moved here, actually." This was also a lie. "And I was told to buy some groceries before I got back home." This too, was a lie. "And I was put on a time limit because my mom is super worried about me." This was another lie.

"... You have to make it so complicated..."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"I'll get to the point." The person bent down and looked around. A few groups of people were approaching their location, it would likely be thirty seconds before they past the two. "You have a shard if a crystal somewhere in your body. I don't care if you believe me or not, but you do. And I need it back." Bonn looked up at the person with confusion.

"What ever weird role pay you're into, I am not into it."

"It's not a performance, child." The person pointed at Bonn angrily. "You must have at least a premonition of at least something to do with a crystal shard... swear on Poseidon if you truly don't have it!"

"Who's Poseidon?"

"...Really?"

"I think I've heard that in Greek Mythology somewhere... or was it Nordic... I wasn't paying attention-"

"MYTHOLOGY?! Has humanity swooped so low to call it mythology?! Stories of fiction?! Legends?!" The person's voice was growing impatient.

"I think so."

"...That's blasphemy! How dare you call an entire foundation of belief mere 'Mythology!' Zeus would smite you! It's history, what is history to you, fool?!"

"...Vikings, Egyptians, Napoleon, I saw an animated video about some French dude called 'Tearre' once... Uh... Oh yeah, two wars happened in the last hundred years or so."

"...That doesn't matter! Your belief and knowledge is meaningless! In the eyes of 'Cupidas', your fate has been sealed and its undoing is my personal choice!... So I stress you make it easy for me and hand yourself over. There is only one known way to extract 'shards' from human bodies, and that is to rip it out by force!" Bonn felt her heart skip a beat as the figure pointed towards Bonn's chest. "And luckily for you, the shard seems to reside right next to your heart..." As they pointed towards Bonn's chest, she felt her heart slowing down slightly. At this very moment, Bonn's primal senses shot into action as a glimmer shined in her eyes!

CHINK!

Bonn suddenly kicked a bit of metal towards the being's mask, stunning them! While they regained their balance, they had realized that Bonn was already 15 meters away!

"You fool... I'll show you for trying to trick the great 'Infernum!' I'll leave, with unfiltered rage!

"Humans DARE dishonour demons! I will murder you, Bonnie Willow!" Bonn's eyes grew narrow as Infernum screamed.

"Whoever you are... Whatever you are... I don't care at all." Bonn raised her fists. "But I am certainly, certainly, not afraid!" Infernum swung her gloved arm down towards Bonn, who had dashed forward!

"Human or not... Here I come!"