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Post by notdomino on Sept 24, 2023 4:14:19 GMT
Femi's life had only just begun at the Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters. If he calculated right, it had only been a few weeks. Who really was keeping count? He was... obviously. It's not like he was going home anytime soon. The pale white orb scaled along a high tree branch. It seemed to have been following something. As long as there was a surface to glide along, Femi could keep an eye on this crafty fucker. There was a gap between the trees. The specter he created could go no further, but the target aimed to make a leap of faith. That was the time to strike. "THERE!" From two fingers he'd fling a glob of ectoplasm knocking a fleeing squirrel. Guns weren't allowed but it wouldn't stop him from hunting. He needed to keep himself sharp. The squirrel would splat onto the ground having its body frozen. The specter would dissolve as Femi removed his hand from the tree and hustled over to examine his kill. He was off-center, but squirrels were a small target.
Without much care, he'd scoop the poor thing up and drop it on the slowly growing pile of dead animals. There were a few birds and a few squirrels. The wild card hunt was a turtle... -quite a lucky day. He felt satisfied. His aim was getting better and better, and with how hard he could fling those globs of ectoplasm, they'd replace the need for a gun soon. He needed to learn how to give the projectiles more penetration. Like an arrow maybe? Part of him wanted to ask for help, but those weirdos kept wanting to talk about their feelings. As if he wanted to sit around all day crying about his mom shoving him ten states away. He looked in the direction of the dorms. He hoped his misdirection worked. In ectoplasm, he wrote "Keep Out" on his door and froze it shut. It would keep them occupied for a while, but he knew he'd get found. He always got found... -damn mutants...
With a furrowed brow, he stomped his way through the forest. There had to be more interesting things to see. Wasn't there a river close by? This big old estate... he wondered where the end of it was. Maybe if he found the nearest town, he could grab some food. He wouldn't make these man hunts a norm, but he wouldn't just stay in his room and let the school get complacent either. He'd create his own excitement.
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Post by Beriadan on Sept 24, 2023 6:35:58 GMT
Parsley was an inquisitive individual. Her time at Xavier's consisted of snooping more than learning, and a new arrival often sparked some interest within her. This one was a doozy, as well. Tall and handsome, but distracted. It was as if he didn't want to be here at all. He might not have been counting, but Parsley had watched him every day for the 23 days he had been here. He was intruiging.
Slipping out of her room was easy enough as well. Parsley was just lucky that nobody saw her, and nobody bumped into her. It was interesting that he had tried to keep people out by freezing his door shut, playing the angsty kid who didn't want disturbance. Parsley's fingers had found a way in. My lord, a renegade... she stared at an empty room, smirking to herself.
She couldn't really pinpoint why she chose this boy to follow, but something took her alone. Parsley found a nice overhead branch to watch him commit his animal genocide. How many was he going to kill? She was adverse to it, personally, but his commitment to training here alone...
"Hey, y'all quite done with the woodland folk genocide?"
Parsley spoke up from above Femi, legs dangling as she stared down at him. A faint, amused smirk played on her lips and in her eyes. Parsley felt like pushing some buttons of the interesting, handsome new kid.
"Shame you can't find any more decent targets that could fight back better. Kittens or puppies or babies or somethin'. Still, I guess squirrels could, like, band together and raid the school if they wanted."
Parsley dropped down, a fairly significant height, but landed with perfect ease. She straightened up, fixing him with a curious gaze.
"So I should thank you for keeping us safe, Femi Breaux Junior. Oh, sorry, that's the wrong way round! My name's Parsley. What's yours, Femi?"
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Post by notdomino on Oct 24, 2023 4:47:29 GMT
Femi's eye twitched in response to hearing a foreign voice. Had this been back home, he would have pointed his gun and shot, preferring to ask questions later. A beautiful thing about the South was that with all that Southern hospitality came the skill of minding one's own business. As friendly as people could be, if someone was a loner, it usually made sense to leave them be. It wasn't like that here. This school... -it had to have been some kid who figured out his escape route. He analyzed her, or at least attempted to as she spoke. He couldn't get a real read. She was an odd one. "Shame you can't find any more decent targets that could fight back better. Kittens or puppies or babies or somethin'. Still, I guess squirrels could, like, band together and raid the school if they wanted.""Funny," A grim expression and an eye roll followed his sarcastic sentiment. She had a weird sense of humor, and an even weirder sense of introducing herself. Before he could ask, she- "So I should thank you for keeping us safe, Femi Breaux Junior. Oh, sorry, that's the wrong way round! My name's Parsley. What's yours, Femi?"She knew his full name but asked him to introduce himself anyway... What a strange girl... He wanted no parts of this conversation. "Sounds like you did your research already. If you don't mind, I'm getting out of this dump." He sucked his teeth, and stomped further into the brush. With an intrusive type like her, she'd probably butt her nose in and follow. If she knew what was good for her she'd leave too, and explore the outside world, or she'd be some sort of teacher's pet and go snitch. He knew how to make himself scarce. So either option was fine with him. "You finna keep standin around or? " He stopped his march, and turned back toward her. What would her decision be? For whatever boring lesson they were going to teach today, this beat it by a long shot. He'd rather be in the wilderness than nose deep in some silly books. |
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Post by Beriadan on Oct 24, 2023 6:33:16 GMT
Parsley gave him a wide grin to counter his eye roll. She grasped her arms behind her back, head cocked as he spoke, eyes glinting with the hope of mischief and torment. Here was someone who had buttons all across his face, just ready to be pushed. Her heart skipped a beat as she observed him. Femi really was an interesting find.
"Research? Ah, nothin' like that. No, I just guessed it, right then 'n' there, and got real lucky."
Femi would turn, and find Parsley a few feet behind him. She had closed the distance silently, not even the crunch of dead leaves beneath her feet or a snapped twig to mark that she had moved. She was still smiling wide, her eyes twinkling as she watched him like a cat watches a baby bird.
"Y'all could say that I've got a lucky streak. Sometimes, I get enough good fortune for more than lil' old me. How about I share some with you tonight, Femi, hmm?"
She slipped around him, still facing him, until she was on the opposite side. The boy was hell-bent on escape, but this wasn't a prison. Those with the know-how could move in and out of the grounds if they felt like it. She knew Professor X could find them all in a heartbeat, but she was lucky. Parsley had snuck out a few times, just to see if she could, and her luck had held. As of yet, she hadn't been caught.
"So if you like, I could show you a way outta here. One that won't arouse suspicion, or have a trail of dead squirrel breadcrumbs leading to the culprit."
Parsley began walking backwards, not bothering to watch the treacherous forest floor in her path. Her eyes were on Femi the whole time. Still grinning, head cocked in curiosity.
"Though if y'all are tired of the woodland genocide, there's a cute little diner down the road that does some out-of-this-world pancakes. Just a guess, but I reckon you'll love these pancakes."
Her eyes danced mischief in the dark.
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Post by notdomino on Nov 1, 2023 7:32:23 GMT
Femi glared but said nothing on her first few comments. It took a moment for her words to sink in, but he got the gist that she could alter things in her favor. Something useful attached to someone so off-putting. He'd gouged the inside of his brains out in search of something nice to say. He wouldn't say anything, only trudging forward in his torrent of inner grieving feelings of abandonment. Outside of his target practice, he gathered a few things using Terror. One, this compound had quite a large acreage. In fact, the most his specter could spot from the highest tree was a single road. It likely was the winding driveway they took to enter... Two, most of the kids were docile and listened to what they were told. This girl seemed to be an exception to that. And third, kids tended to stick closer to the compound for some reason. He couldn't figure out why.
Pancakes? He knew there was food somewhere... he found it in a dream during one of his astral projecting dreams. Perhaps her luck curved her to the very place he was looking for. It also meant there was another way... -further than the path he was currently on. He could find it, but they'd get there quicker if she already knew the way... "I could eat." He'd finally respond, glazing by her comments about his habit for hunting. Hadn't she ever hunted before? Where was she even from? If she knew a way out, why she come back? He dug his hand into his curls and pulled it free. His hair bounced back into place, and he'd flick out any leaves he may have accumulated fooling around out here.
This girl was a freak. They all were... How could they accept being here? His mind raced faster than his heart could. "Well... what's your deal anyway? Don't have someone else to annoy?" Standoffish was an understatement, but at least she got him talking.
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Post by Beriadan on Nov 2, 2023 11:57:29 GMT
Parsley cocked her head the other way. Her deal? Same as everyone else here. She smiled, but it wasn't as jovial as before. It was more of a sad smile as her eyes glazed over slightly. Remembering how it was before. Parsley assumed it was the same for most of the kids under Professor X's wing. Shunned, cast out and on the run. She turned as she walked, hands still behind her back, heading on a seemingly random route through the trees.
"There's plenty of time to annoy everyone in the world. Y'all just seem like the most interesting right now. There ain't much else to do this late at night, and I hate sleepin'. Feels like wastin' away what little time we got on this earth."
Parsley looked back over her shoulder. There was a slightly harder look to her eyes all of a sudden. Perhaps it was her thinking about what her deal was. Perhaps Femi's standoffish comment had got to her.
"My deal, your deal, everyone else's deal, it's all the same, Femi. What y'all call a dump, a lot of us call the only home we got left. You're not the first to wanna leave, and probably won't be the last. You know you can just walk out, right?"
She came to a halt, turning and looking at him with a scrutinous eye.
"But if you're like me, you came here for a reason. I ain't got anyone outside of this dump. Other kids are less lucky. They got people outside that didn't want them. Chased them off, wanted them dead. They got nowhere to be, in a world that doesn't want them. This dump wants us, though. Ain't that nice?"
She turned away, shoulders dropping in a deep sigh.
"I just thought you could do with some cheerin' up. Y'all looked sad, is all. Anyway, at least we can agree on pancakes. That's lucky, right?"
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Post by notdomino on Nov 8, 2023 7:29:45 GMT
"My deal, your deal, everyone else's deal, it's all the same, Femi. What y'all call a dump, a lot of us call the only home we got left. You're not the first to wanna leave, and probably won't be the last. You know you can just walk out, right?"
His fists balled tight, his glare intensifying. What did she know?!? She didn't know him! None of them had anywhere to go, but that didn't mean they had to pretend to enjoy it. "Well you can call this home all you want..." His eyes peered elsewhere as they walked. As if. His mother would never accept him being a mutant... It was the reason he was even here. He hated all of this, but there was nothing he could do to change his circumstances. His cold hands grazed a tree as he walked passed it, the icy residue chipping and crackling away at the bark as he walked past. While it seemed like he was throwing a fit, he'd done so to many of the trees over a large spread. It was to let him know where he was. Their soft glow would radiate in the darkness of the night. More importantly, it let him know where he hadn't been. There was so much more to this compound that he hadn't explored yet. By his estimate, he'd only explore about 15% of the school's acreage.
"But if you're like me, you came here for a reason. I ain't got anyone outside of this dump. Other kids are less lucky. They got people outside that didn't want them. Chased them off, wanted them dead. They got nowhere to be, in a world that doesn't want them. This dump wants us, though. Ain't that nice?"
With a sharp inhale, he- "Yeah well. I WASN'T wanted. Life was fine til these stupid powers showed up. I wish things could go back to how they were." There wasn't a direction in his hatred. He'd very well turn it on anyone, allowing him to bite down on even the kindest hand to offer him aid. Such was his existence in this school. Unwanted. Was it really, or was it a self-imposed feeling? Upon her remark of thinking of cheering him up, Femi fell silent.
"Pancakes are plenty lucky." He could give her that much, a short-lived smile even. "We're not far, are we?" He could tell from his dreams. The woods around the way out looked something like this. Femi paused to place his palm on another tree. Not to mark it, but to send his terror power up its branches. An opaque orb would fine itself at the tree top, giving Femi a glance of a nearby road. 'I see cars... which way are the pancakes?" He'd quickly deactivate his power.
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Post by Beriadan on Nov 8, 2023 12:00:45 GMT
Parsley shrugged as she walked, as his angry outburst had been no more than a whisper. She recalled her own father, though she really didn't want to. What she had taken as Femi simply being an angry young man was in fact am anger at the injustice of it all. He was hurting bad, and from his mother, no less. She knew how that felt. Then - was that a smile she caught out of the corner of her eye? Parsley grinned back, the coldness that settled on her shoulders melting away like snow under the morning sun. "We ain't far off, no. Cars are a good sign! It's left down the road. First we gotta scale the wall."Between them and freedom was an old wall, tall even for Femi, perhaps ten feet high and made of bricks. It must have been there for centuries, and was covered in holes, cracks and footholds. Parsley paused at the base of it. "It's a fancy power you have. You know that they're a part of us, right? At least, that's what the teachers are sayin'. It's... it's not nice to be unwanted because of who we really are. Jus' don't take it out on the rest of us, mmk?"
She turned her head with another slightly sad smile. Parsley saw that there was a good guy under the standoffish, angry exterior of Femi. Pushing his buttons felt mean, now she knew what sue did. Parsley placed a hand on the cold brick surface. "Can y'all climb?"Without a second thought, she was scaling the wall. Her lucky fingers found holes easily, her feet pushing into pockets and cracks as she surged upwards, a monkey up a tree. Parsley reached the zenith, straddling the wall with a leg over both side, looking down with a grin. "Y'all comin', or what?" |
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Post by notdomino on Nov 14, 2023 6:19:39 GMT
"Fancy? Call it fancy when you get astral projected to the middle of a real life bank robbery when you're sposed to be havin a peaceful dream. " He said eyeing the wall in front of him. Parsley had a nice time climbing it. In fact, she almost effortlessly did so. His approach was much more aggressive. He'd charge at it with two strong steps, before leaping upward, one leg hiked up higher than the other. His hands would catch the ledge, allowing him to push hard and hoist himself up in a fit or muscle and effort. "Good enough?" He passed her a superior look, already dropping down to the other side.
Outside of the walls... well, admittedly it wasn't all that different than the inside. Trees. He huffed. With some walking, the road wouldn't be far. This meant the sizzling of bacon, the sweet smell of syrup-y goodness, and the crisp taste of orange juice was not far. He could taste it. "Let's go." A command he'd exhale, mainly to hide his excitement. He hated the food at school.
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Post by Beriadan on Nov 14, 2023 18:16:19 GMT
"No way. Y'all can astral project?"
Parsley landed beside him, crouching slightly to cushion the fall. She looked at him quizzically, an eyebrow slightly raised with a smile on her lips. Then she took off, following another seemingly random trail through the already thinning woodland.
"I mean, I ain't got a right to talk. I got pretty lucky with what manifested in me. Not everyone gets that. Y'all ain't happy with your power, and that's that, I guess."
She paused as lights flashed ahead. Headlights from a lone car. They weren't far from the road.
"But, y'know, it could be worse. I heard from Billy that Tabitha told Scott that there was one kid whose power was just to melt everyone around him. Like, that's so messed up, right? Puberty hits and... splat! All your friends and family..."
She paused at the word family, going silent for a moment. Their feet found the road, and Parsley peered off to the right down an empty strip of tarmac.
"Anyway. They had it bad. Grass is always greener, but, like, sometimes it's more yellow and dying. Some people have a real shit time. But y'all know your power better than I do."
Parsley looked at him again, scrutinising the boy. Then she shrugged.
"It's a bad, bad world out there. At least this place understands us."
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Post by notdomino on Nov 19, 2023 7:49:44 GMT
"No... yes.... mmm..n-no? My power is the same as a poltergeist, I call it Terror. I can create my own specter and chilling ectoplasm. -The stuff I massacred the squirrels with. Astral projection only happens in my sleep. Freak car accidents, murder scenes, tv sets. The weirdest shit... It's why I call it Terror. It's short for Night Terrors." He explained shooting a recall to her description earlier. Hmmm, he'd never really told anyone but the administrators this. Was she his friend now or something? Friends? OVER PANCAKES? ...Gross. Femi followed behind while falling behind in the conversation. Tabitha, Scott, Billy. Who the hell were these people? Being brutally honest, Femi paid no attention at all to his surrounding peers... Were they peers? Older? Younger? He'd just nod along pretending to know what Parsley was talking about. A place that understands them, eh?
"Guess so." He could melt all his problems away if he had that ability. It sounded cooler than a specter and ghost goop. She was so different than him, their viewpoints opposing on almost every topic. In this case, even as he beginning to want to open up more, he feared they'd just disagree on more things. "What makes you so... optimistic?"
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Post by Beriadan on Nov 21, 2023 12:29:08 GMT
"A Poltergeist? Well, shit! That ain't half interestin'!"
Parsley let out a laugh, her eyes glittering in the dark of the roadside. Ahead, a few more minutes, was the glow of the diner. She turned to Femi with a grin, hands behind her back again, taking a few casual steps backwards.
"Sorry you got a bit of a duff edge to it though. Hell, as I said, I got lucky with my power. Like, literally."
She paused, fishing around in her pocket and pulling out a coin.
"Watch this. I'm callin' heads."
Parsley tossed the coin, still walking backwards, and caught it. Slapped it on the back of her hand, and revealed it. Heads.
"Now tails."
She did it again, and about half a dozen more times. Every time she called it right.
"Now I call neither."
The coin rose as she flicked it upwards, and landed on the back of her hand... sideways, spinning like a top. She watched him, smiling.
"See? I can control my luck. Guessing names, or improbable things. Stuff like tryin' to open a door, an' it always being unlocked. Always havin' the right amount of change in my pocket."
She shrugged, turning to walk straight on again. The diner rose up ahead.
"If I wasn't optimistic, I'd probably just be dead. Like, life ain't been kind to me. I've been lucky, but... I've had my own share of shit."
She shrugged again, flipping the coin, whispering the call under her breath.
"You ever killed anyone, Femi? 'Cause I have. Part of my power, I just hit a lucky strike each time. The knife just... found its way to the place where it would do the most damage."
Parsley looked back, her gaze level, impassive. She watched him for a moment, as they reached the diner.
"I don't think I would have done it either, not without this power. So, I dunno, I gotta be positive, right? Otherwise you start drowning."
Parsley pushed into the diner, greeting the older waitress like an old friend.
"Hey, Bettie, how are you tonight? Can Iget the usual? Pot of coffee, strong as you like! Femi is gaspin' for pancakes, so whatever he likes too."
It was clear Parsley had snuck off often. She picked a table, right by the door, and motioned for Femi to join her. She was smiling, feeling like Femi was warming up to her. Parsley wanted him too. He was tall, handsome, and also interesting. Not the most friendly kid, but she'd had plenty of run-ins with Wolverine, and Femi was the happiest man on earth compared to him.
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Post by notdomino on Nov 23, 2023 11:00:10 GMT
Femi listened about as closely as he watched. Luck... Like the melting power, he thought how life would be if her were lucky. Honestly, he'd just pretend not to have a power. That seemed the easiest way, especially with his want to be home. It was when she mentioned killing someone, that he'd raise a brow. No. "No..." That felt cold... He'd continue with a more full answer. "just beat a few kids up, but never killed anyone. Musta been tough. He kicked a rock as they walked. Everyone had their own problems, didn't they? Killing someone to stay alive didn't really sound like a problem. It sounded like survival, something the boy respected. If asked to do the same, he would without a question. Was there really that much to question? Yet... -she questioned it anyway, and maybe that was natural.
"I don't think I would have done it either, not without this power. So, I dunno, I gotta be positive, right? Otherwise you start drowning."
As if comparing to a pool, he- "The waters' just fine." He grumbled under his breath, as the two entered. He'd drown for the both of them. He was fine with seeing the world for how shitty it was. It kept him sharp, and as much as it pained him, it kept him in check. For whatever reason, he never acted out too much. Maybe it happen, maybe the school would help. He was going to be here regardless and that was that. As Parsley greeted Bettie with a chipper attitude, Femi exuded the opposite. He'd stare before just saying "Hey... can I get a stack of hotcakes? Extra bacon... Orange Juice." He'd stare again, before very manually forcing a please out. He didn't have the Southern hospitality his people were known for.
"What do you like most about going to school out here?"
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Post by Beriadan on Nov 23, 2023 22:52:16 GMT
"Fine, huh?"
Parsley gave him a look, all raised eyebrows and grimace. She shook her head, grasping the cup of hot, terrible coffee. Hey, it was the only one around for Miles, and she really wasn't complaining. Parsley pondered his question as she drank. He didn't know much about her. Well, now he did. She frowned, wondering why she had told him. Was she trying to prove something? Parsley smiled instead, a cheeky little grin, leaning forward and leaning her chin on her hands.
"Well, it's close to the best diner in this county. And it's got good teachers... decent garden. I mean, it's better than slummin' it in the wilds, which is what I had to do for a long time."
She sat back, frowning again, staring at Femi.
"My stars, I feel like I'm spillin' my heart to you, Femi Breux Junior. I ain't told anyone any of this... save for Professor X an' his special form of therapy."
She tapped the side of her head, mimicking Xavier's famous pose.
"I ain't got any family anymore. No home, no friends. The school took me in, no questions. They treat me normal, y'see? When I'm in school, I feel... normal."
Parsley tapped a finger to her chin, watching Femi with a faint smile.
"An' you? There must be somethin' you actually like, right? Don't worry. I told you my secret, now why not tell me one of yours?"
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Post by notdomino on Nov 26, 2023 6:52:44 GMT
"My stars, I feel like I'm spillin' my heart to you, Femi Breux Junior. I ain't told anyone any of this... save for Professor X an' his special form of therapy."
"Shouldn't I be getting paid as your shrink?" He'd reply dryly with a hand out. He had a sense of humor after all. It was just buried under all that...
The boy would listen and listen well. Whaaaaat? She felt normal in a school full of freaks. Being around other freaks didn't make themselves any less freaky. Femi couldn't comprehend. His eyebrows furrowed before relaxing into a normal state. He wouldn't let his comment slip. They were practically from different planets when it came to opinions. He needed to drill that into his head. He flinched when she pointed the question back at him. "You mean, something I like about being heeeeere?" Well shit. Nothing... was that a good enough answer? The vaguely remembered Xavier... aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand... He hated classes, he hated the faceless npcs known as his classmates, he hated the teachers, the classes, that weird sense of optimism they had, all of it. His only stand-out moments so far were skipping class, or being wrangled in because he was skipping. Outside the very person in front of him, he couldn't even place anyone notable at the tip of his tongue. Rather give her a fake answer, he'd just sigh and say, "...Skipping" Nothing beat being sincere. He wouldn't sugarcoat for her. He couldn't stand being there, but like her, there was no longer a home to go to. He was stuck in every sense and unlike her, he didn't find it homey. Instead of harping on that, he'd just carry on to at least give her insight on something he did like. It had nothing to do with school, but in general he-
" I like nature. I'd much rather be own than uncomfortable in that school." This was one way to look at it. It was also because he'd given no effort to trying to assimilate. While it was a testament to his individualism, it was harming him just as much as it made him feel empowered. "I can bring my guitar out there, and hum the day away. If I find a big enough creek, I'll start goin fishing too. If I wanna get better at my power, I can do that on my own too." A true lone wolf. He couldn't shake the title if he tried. He nestled his chin into his palm as he leaned closer to the glass window. He felt caged, and yet as a mutant, it felt like there was no true free world to return to if he did break out... His eyes drifted from the scenery outside, back to Parsley.
"Don't worry, me hating school won't affect us being friends." He'd say a feint softness wiggled its way out of his usual leering stare. In all honesty, he didn't want her to think their differences mattered. He also wanted to her to know they were cool enough to be friends, without being all mushy and gross about it.
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" He stopped his march, and turned back toward her. What would her decision be? For whatever boring lesson they were going to teach today, this beat it by a long shot. He'd rather be in the wilderness than nose deep in some silly books. 