ORIGINAL: SnowFire - 3

[batsutousai]

3

Edana woke to a pounding on her door and grumpily called, "What?"

Seth poked his head in with a large grin. "Are you up yet?"

The boy wisely ducked out of the doorway in time to avoid a pillow that would have hit him dead-on, otherwise.

Edana sighed and got out of bed.

Ten minutes later, Edana joined Ally and Seth at a table full of pancakes. "Mom already off to work?" she inquired, bathing her pancakes in syrup.

Ally looked at the sticky mess in disgust. "Yeah. Delilah is plotting something again and needs her precious secretary there at all hours. Honestly, if Mom didn't have two kids to come home to, I don't think she'd be allowed out of the office."

Edana sighed. "Sometimes, I wonder why Mom doesn't just quit. She hates her boss, and she can easily get a better job..."

"Because Delilah's a bitch, but she's an interesting bitch?" Seth suggested. "I mean, think about it, every week she's got something new up her sleeve. And she's always surrounded by men..."

"I wonder, occasionally, how Mom's kept that job so long, considering she's one of five women in that building," Ally added drily.

"Because a man in Mom's place would be so twisted by Delilah's charms that nothing would ever get done," Edana replied in the same tone. "Duh."

Ally grinned at her sister and stuffed the last bite of her plain pancakes in her mouth. "Yeah, I know. What I wouldn't give to have that job..."

"You're a nutcase," Seth decided, glancing at his watch. "Oops. Hurry up, Yuki."

Edana stole his wrist with one hand to see his watch, then quickly stuffed her face with the last of her pile, ignoring Ally's disgusted face. "Right!" she finally said, carefully putting her plate in the dishwasher. "Let's scat!"

"Oh, I'm so glad I don't have a class with you. When you crash from all that sugar, you're going to be a nightmare," Ally complained, grabbing her bag and heading for the door.

Edana and Seth traded grins and followed her, starting up a discussion about their homework for math, which Seth had chosen not to do, like always.

-

Edana and Seth were just settling in when the final bell rang and Miss Howe entered the room. Phoenix walked in behind her, looking nervous. His eyes brightened when he saw Seth and Edana, and the two waved at him happily.

"Class, this is Phoenix Vito. He'll be starting here today. Is there anyone willing to show him around?"

Edana immediately rose her hand. "Miss Howe, if it's okay, Phoenix and I already know each other."

Miss Howe smiled at her. "Wonderful, Edana. Phoenix, why don't you take that open seat next to Seth – don't try anything for at least a week, Seth, it's not right!" she added hastily, misinterpreting the grin on Seth's face.

"Nah, Red and I are already friends, Miss Howe," Seth replied as Phoenix took the mentioned desk.

Miss Howe looked at him suspiciously, making most of the class laugh. Before anything more could be said, the announcements started, so she motioned them to be quiet.

"I have a sinking feeling I've made friends with the trouble-maker of the school," Phoenix muttered. Seth grinned at him while Edana shrugged.

Once the announcements were over, Miss Howe pulled out her book and said, "I plan to finish up The Tempest today, if you'll all behave? Phoenix, if you don't know anything about the play, don't worry about it."

Phoenix shook his head. "No, it's fine. We did The Tempest last year in my old school."

The girls in the class all cooed at his accent and Phoenix shrunk down in his chair.

"Really?" Seth said, looking hopeful. "So can I copy off you for the test at the end of the year?"

Phoenix looked helplessly at Edana while the class laughed and Miss Howe rolled her eyes. Edana quickly shook her head and mouthed 'No.'

"Traitor!" Seth declared and gently shoved Edana, who promptly mimed falling out of her seat and flailing helplessly.

By the time Miss Howe got everyone to calm down and talk about the book, the girls of the class had stopped being enamored with Phoenix's accent.

-

"Thanks, Seth," Phoenix muttered as they met back up again for lunch. Edana had managed to have most of her classes for the rest of the day with Phoenix, but Seth had been on his own until lunch.

"What ever for?" Seth inquired, dropping his tray onto the table with a 'thud' and a disgusted look.

"For drawing the attention away in English," Phoenix explained. "I've never considered that my accent might attract that much attention." He blushed faintly.

"You're new, and I don't think we've ever had anyone British before," Seth commented.

"Even someone with such a faint accent," Edana agreed.

"What Yuki said. It's natural for the girls to go a little nutters."

Phoenix blinked. "Yuki?"

Edana sighed while Seth grinned brightly. "Seth got into Japanese anime a couple years ago. Apparently, 'Yuki' is a popular girls name that means snow, and since I'm so pale..."

"Ah." Phoenix nodded in understanding. "Just you, then? Seth didn't come up with one for himself?"

Seth huffed. "I tried, but it didn't take," he complained.

Edana rolled her eyes. "Seth, I'm sorry, but you don't look like a kazoo to me."

"Not kazoo," Seth tried for what seemed to be the hundredth time. "Kazu. It's a name, not an instrument. If you can even call a kazoo an instrument."

Phoenix laughed while Edana shook her head helplessly.

"Oiy, who's the kid?" an angry voice asked from behind Edana.

Edana looked back at Sinclair and smiled. "Hey, Thunder. This is Phoenix; he's new in town." She looked at Phoenix, who was eyeing Sinclair like one might a feral tiger let out of its cage. "Phoenix, this is Thunder. I told you about him yesterday?"

Phoenix nodded warily. "Yeah. I remember."

Sinclair looked Phoenix up and down curiously, then calmly took the seat next to the boy, eyeing Edana. "He's behaving himself?"

Edana huffed. "Of course he is. God, Thunder. I can take care of myself, you know."

"Would it help you to know Red's more like me and less like you?" Seth asked drily. When Sinclair narrowed his eyes threateningly, Seth threw his hands up in surrender. "Dude, I'm not a threat. Thought we'd gone over that already."

Sinclair sneered. "You are always a threat, Redmond." He turned to Edana and his expression softened. "Well, if he's not acting out..."

"I'm glad you approve," Edana said, rolling her eyes. "Just tell your gang to leave him alone, okay?"

Sinclair eyed Phoenix again for a moment, then nodded. "Okay. But only because you asked so nicely!" he added, seeing Seth smile.

"Wrapped around your little finger," Seth whispered to Edana, earning him a light swat from the girl.

Thunder quickly started up a conversation about Edana's classes, much to Seth and Phoenix's amusement, and the rest of lunch passed much more calmly.

-

At the end of the day, the three sophomores met up with Ally in front of the school. "Hey, Phoenix," Ally said, smiling at him in an almost flirting manner. "How was your first day at the school?"

Edana cleared her throat and grabbed her sister's arm to drag her ahead of the two bemused boys. "Ally, he's been hit on practically all day because of his accent. Tone it down, right?"

Ally poked her lower lip out sadly. "Spoilsport."

"Yup. That's me." Edana rolled her eyes behind her sunglasses. "Just give him a week before you start acting like a girl, okay? The rest of the school is already making life hard for him."

Ally sighed and tugged Edana into a brief hug, smiling when the younger girl squeaked. "Yeah, okay. But you owe me."

"I always owe you," Edana commented drily, then motioned for the two boys that they could catch up.

"Finished talking about us?" Seth teased, draping an arm across Edana's shoulders and leaning on her briefly. "What did you decide? Who's cuter?"

Edana elbowed him in the stomach and muttered, "Ixnay on the ithay."

Seth blinked and mentally translated the pig Latin, then rolled his eyes. "Girls."

Edana elbowed him again.

"My day was fine," Phoenix told Ally, eyeing the two friends oddly. "Bit different from Albany, but okay. It's the first time I've actually had a friend to spend classes with, so that was kinda nice." He blinked at Ally and cocked his head to one side curiously. "Does Seth ever do his work?"

Ally snorted. "No. I sometimes think he's only passed on virtue of his entertainment value."

"Hey! I heard that!"

Ally grinned nastily. "And he cheats off whoever's sitting next to him for tests, of course."

"Ally!"

Edana grinned at Phoenix. "He does. I always bring a binder for tests and put it around my test."

"Yuki!"

"Hmm. Could be a good idea," Phoenix decided.

"Red!"

The other three laughed while Seth did his best to look like a kicked puppy.

When they reached Phoenix's house, the two sisters and Seth waved good-bye and continued on. Once they got to the Spellman house, they made their ways to their favorite spots while waiting for Maris to get home.

Chapters:
One ||| Two ||| Three
Four ||| Five ||| Six
Summary & Character Info
Incomplete
.