Lost and Confused
Feathers, Fur, and Shadows01. Lost and confusedby Assilsasta°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°
Delilah let the
bundle of books fall from her talons the short distance to the ground as she
landed. She brushed her black school uniform skirt down and straightened the
matching black vest and tie before letting the thick winter cloak fall over her
wings to block with chilled breeze, then pulled the fur trimmed hood over the
shirt feathers of her head. She was out early again, well before sunrise, at
the nearly deserted private school campus. The grouping of large gothic
buildings seemed eerie in the low light of the predawn hours. The red and white
stone structures loomed over her into the dark sky. When her father had first
brought her here in the daylight, nearly two weeks ago, the place seemed more
frightening and overwhelming to her. The students teaming the halls, rushing
from one class to the next, the noise and chatter of then passing furs as they
commented on her muddy brown colored feathers. She had listened and taken in
each word that was spoken, the rumors had started already and she did not know
what to expect.She picked up
the small bundle of books, held together with a leather strap, and clutched
them to her chest with her wings as she started toward the administration
building. The gothic architecture of the private school was more welcoming to
her in the quiet solitude of the early morning. The school itself housed all
the grades from kindergarten through high school, separated into the different
buildings on campus. She stopped at the door to the administration building,
which also housed most of the grade school classes only to find the door was
locked. She walked back down the stairs to the stone benches that sat around
the large lonely willow tree, it low hanging branches and foliage almost bowing
in welcome to her to the old world institution of learning. She pulled her legs
up into the cloak, crossing them and hiding her bare feet from the late winter
chill. She continued to clutch the small bundle of books to her chest as her
eyes closed and mind drifted in the dark early hours.It had been two
years since she had last attended school. The accident that took her mother
from them had taken its toll on her, both physically and mentally. She had
spent much of the first year after relearning how to walk and fly. The next
year had revealed the other, non-visible damage wrought by the accident. The
days of solitude and loneliness had their own effect on her as she was attended
to by nurses only when she needed, and visited by her father only in the dark
hours of the night when he could break free from his work. She had grown
accustomed to the silence and solitude as her body healed enough to begin the
therapy to rebuild her strength. Only when they had attempted to place her back
in the public school did they see her new aversion to crowds and people. Back
then, she did not think much of it, keeping to herself and studying her free
time away. The solitude had become her comfort, but also her undoing.Delilah was
snapped back to reality as she heard a heavy weight dropped into the bench next
to her. She looked out from under the hood to see a slightly older maned wolf
sitting beside her, his arms spread across the back of the bench, one even
behind her shoulder, as he looked up at the old willow tree. The red and black
fur of his face and muzzle seemed to have a sheen to it even in the fading moonlight.
She looked at the one blue eye that was near her as the white vapors of his
breath rolled out of his snout."Just cold
enough to snow," he started to say as he looked into the sky above, "But still
to warm for it to hold to the ground.""Excuse me?" she
asked not sure if he was talking to himself."The weather,"
He replied as he looked down at her, his mismatched blue and brown eyes meeting
hers, "It at that time of year where we can still see the snowfall, but it will
never land, rejected by the warming of the season." He smiled at her as he went
on, "I didn't expect to see anyone here this early. I'm still getting used to
the time change from Africa."His smile was as
confusing as his words. Why was he here? Why was he talking to her? Was he planning
something like her classmates from the public school? She licked her beak as
the memories of a year ago faded in and out of the edges of her mind, only the
faint memory of the taste of iron on her tongue. She only remembered fragments
of the night after the incident at the public school. Delilah was jarred back
into the moment as he continued to speak."I'm Jasper, by
the way," the large wolf said as he smiled down at her, "I just moved here from
Africa... well more like got dumped here on my cousin by my parents. They said
something about needing to get a proper finish to my education here in the
states. Not that I really mind, it's something new. I've never been to a school
like this before. Mostly attended small tribal schools that my mother thought, but
those were mostly just simple math and reading, mostly the Bible translated
into their language. She had me do," He tossed his paws up into air quotes as
he added "REAL studies after the classes were over. Math, science, history, all
that stuff could put me to sleep the way she went over it. I think I did better
when she would just leave me alone to figure it out." He looked down at her,
"so what's it like, going to a real school I mean. Having teachers that
actually know the subjects and aren't just stumbling through home school
curriculum?"She watched his
eyes as he spoke, still confused by the sudden intrusion of her solitude. He
seemed different for the school mates from a year ago, strange and disconnected
from the world. As she listened she could feel her heart race and her vision
began to blur. His words faded into a distant mumble as the dark morning seemed
to waver on the edge of her vision. She felt the books drop from her wings as
she looked into the washed-out visage of the wolf that now spoke at her
wordlessly. Her body began to move without her direction as she stood and
backed away from the strange smiling wolf. She watched to colorless wolf's
smile turn to a frown as she moved away slowly. She felt herself lifted into
the air as her wings flapped and the world slowed to a crawl around her.
Everything melted into shapeless blackness as the chill of the night air sifted
through her feathers. °º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º° Jasper watched
as the young finch lifted into the air wordlessly, her small bundle of books
discarded on the stone bench where she sat only moments ago, unsure of what he
had done wrong to make the girl flee. The maned wolf sat confused by the
visible change he saw as he tried to make small talk. The girl's expression had
shifted from surprise when he first looked down at her, through fear, to
something he could not place as she gracefully left the ground and flew into
the darkness above, the black uniform and cloak hiding her from him in the
night sky. He slumped down on the bench, held in place only by his arms draped
across the back.His cousin had
been right. Americans are different for the tribal Africans. He knew that well
enough, but he didn't think that just talking to someone would run them off.
Shelly had told him that his size was intimidating. He was only fifteen but
already stood six feet tall, and still growing. He stood head and shoulders
over most of the tribal jackals in Africa, but they seemed to accept him well
enough. He tried to run the explanation of cliques and social standings through
his mind again, his cousin's words still more confusing than anything he had
ever heard. He wondered just what clique he would end up in. He didn't think of
himself as a jock or sports nut, though he did love to play football."Soccer damn
it," he scolded himself for not translating the common world word for the
American naming of the sport, even after hours of practice after his cousin had
laughed at him for the use of the mis-matched sport name. So many things were
different now, almost like moving to a completely new world where nothing made
sense.He stood and
started to walk to the administration building as the first rays of the sun
started to peek over the eastern trees. He snatched up the bird girls bundle of
books, not wanting to be the person who let them get stolen or lost. As he
walked through the door to the administration building the hum of the
florescent lights invaded his ears. The strange new sound felt out of place and
disconcerting to him as he watched the few faculty members move through the
halls, into and out of different rooms.He scanned the
small signs that stood out from the walls near the doors as he passed one
office after another, until he came to one labeled Administration. As soon as
he stepped through the door the sound of the lights was drown out by the commotion
of students chatting as they waited in line before the three foot high wooden
counter that separated them from the three office workers. A young Maine coon
in her mid-twenties stood by the counter shuffling small pieces of paper as she
handed them to the mix of cub in line. Uncertain of the proper thing to do,
Jasper fell into place at the end of the line. He stood there contemplating the
number of students that were inline and the fact that none had passed by him
from the school entrance when he sat talking to the young bird girl.
Overwhelmed by Curiosity he tapped an opossum in front of him on the shoulder
to get his attention.As the slightly
older boy turned to look at the taller maned wolf with a look of discontent he
asked, "What do you want?" The opossum's discontent with being interrupted
evident in his voice.Slightly taken
back by the other student's attitude, Jasper asked apprehensively, "Um... When
did everyone get here?"The opossum
scoffed as he rolled his eyes, "Noob. This is the sick line for getting a pass
to the nurse's office before class. Everyone that stays in the dorms has to get
one if they need to go, or think they are sick or something."Stopping for a
moment, the thought of dorms and students staying on campus being one of the new
things his cousin had mentioned, He stumbled through an apology. "I'm.. Um
sorry. It's my first day, so it all kind of new to me.""No shit?" the
opossum retorted in a mocked voice of shock, "And I bet you're one of the
scholarship kids too. Mommy and Daddy proud of their little private school
charity case?"Unsure of what
to say to the smug boy, Jasper stood in stunned silence. His cousin had warned
him that things would be different here, but this was more than he had
expected. The reactions from the first two people he meet made him rethink his
entire plan of trying to fit in the way he had always done in the past. He ran
the distant memories of all the small tribes and tight knit family groups that
he had come to know as normal through his mind as he waited silently in line
for his turn. His mild disconnection from reality was broken when the voice of
the feline behind the counter asked, "And what are you in for, sore throat or
random P.E. excuse?""Um... I'm not...
I.. um... A bird girl dropped this out front and flow off. I just thought I
should turn it into lost or found... or something."The Maine coon
looked up from her small stack of slips as she realized it was not another
nurse request. Her eyes went wide as she looked at the bundle of books held
together by the leather strap and the tall maned wolf that held them. "You must
be Jasper," she said as she stuffed the sick slips under the counter. "To be
honest I've never seen a maned wolf before. You're a lot taller than I
expected.""Excuse me?" He
asked as he tilted his head."Oh, I'm sorry,
" she started with a smile, "I'm Miss Adams, the student adviser for grades
sixth through eighth. So you're on my roster. I like to know my students so
it's nice that you came in and I didn't have to hunt you down like I usually
have to do." She scrunched her eyebrows together as she continued, "You're here
mighty early. Was there something wrong with your schedule or did you need
something?""Oh, no ma'am,"
he said as he looked down at her, "I just couldn't sleep, the time zone change
and all. But I came in because that girl dropped her books and...""Here, I can
take those," she said as he reached her paw toward him, "I'm sure whoever lost
them will come looking for them. Anyway, since you're already here, how about
we have a little talk in my office?""Well ma'am, I
should be getting to class, I don't want to be late on my first day."She smiled at
him as he placed her paw on his over the counter. "Your first class is
homeroom, where they basically just take attendance for the day. You won't miss
anything since you don't have any assignments to work on, and you can never get
in trouble for being in the office. I understand you're coming from a basic
home school environment where your Mother was teaching you while your family
traveled on mission trips. We don't expect you to learn the ropes in one day
and I am here to help you."Jasper's blushed
was hidden under his red fur he felt the soft touch of the main coon. He
glanced down at his paw a moment before he jerked away from her touch. "I
think.. Um.. I should... find... my way to class," he stammered as he took a few
steps backward. "th... thank you for holding onto that girl's books... Miss... um...
Adams." He swiftly turned and nearly slammed face first into the door before he
stopped just in time to grab the knob and retreat into the hallway. °º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º° Shellie Adams
watched as the obviously embarrassed wolf fled from the office. As the door
swung shut behind him, leaving only the office workers in the room, a pangolin
leaned back from her desk, the rusty brown of her thick scaled head a stark
contrast to the white fabric of her blouse, as she said, "Looks like you have
another one with a crush on his guidance counselor.""Shut it, Lexie,
he's just a young man not sure of the world around him." She turned and looked
at her companion as she continued, "Besides, It's his first time in a place
without his mother dictating what's right and wrong, he's bound to have
conflicting emotions when dealing with something THIS hot." The main coon waved her paws down her body as if Vanna
White presenting a prize on a game show.Lexxie rolled
her eyes as he looked back at the paperwork on her desk, "you are so full of
yourself Shelly. One of these days one of those boys is going to take your
flirting seriously and do something about it.""And if it is
that chunk of wolf hunk, I might just let him." Shellie stood up from her place
leaned against the counter and started across the open room to her side office
as she added, "and if we play our cards right, we both might get to play a
little.""You are such a
slut," the pangolin said with a smirk on her muzzle, "I Just hope you don't
bite off more than you can chew with these boys." °º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º° Delilah stood
for a moment as the cold wind cut through her feathers while she looked down
from the top of the bell tower. She wracked her brain as she thought through
the last few moments that she could remember. The tall wolf that had talked to
her was all that came to mind, his words lost in the sound of rushing blood and
her pounding heart. The winter cloak flowed behind her in the sudden strong
wind as she stood there unsure of why or how she had arrived at the lofty
perch. She looked down at her shaking hands as she turned them over looking for
hints of crimson, and licked her beak in search of the taste of iron, as her
mind grasped for fleeting images of red stained fur and dark fluid. Was it just
memories of a year ago, or were they new. The gaps in her memory seemed to come
more frequently, and the shadowy images less defined.As she stood,
shivering from both the cold and the fear of not remembering, one thing entered
her mind, Miss Adams, the Maine coon that she and her father had spoken with on
their visit to the school when she was registered. Her smile was welcoming and
she had said her office was always open if she needed someone to talk to. But
how could she talk about thing she couldn't even remember?She looked down
at the long shadows cast by the tall bell tower in the early dawn as students
from off campus began to arrive at the school. The small figures seemed to
taunt her as she pulled her cloak out of the wind and back around her. She
crouched down, nearly sitting with her knees to her chest under the thick fabric,
her wings hugged tight to her chest as she looked over the courtyard in search
of her bundle of books from her lofty perch. She quivered at the thought of the
bundle being in the paws of another, the three old hardbound books had not left
her possession since the day she could hold them again. She had latched onto
the three literary classics after her recovery, the three last books her mother
had read with her before the accident. The thought of having lost the last
connection she had to the older finch brought the sound of blood being pumped
through her veins heavy and loud in her ears as she watched the tiny, distant
figures go about their lives, oblivious to her observation. Her only hope was
that maybe someone had taken them to the office and left them for her to
retrieve. °º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º° The grey beak of
the finch poked just past the edge of the fur trimmed hood of the cloak as she
moved through the crowded hall of students and faculty. The flowing torrent of
bodies seemed to part as she walked, as if pushed away by an unseen force that emanated
from her. She peered out from under her hood while she slowly navigated to her
destination. Her black eyes meet those of passersby for only an instant as they
quickly looked away from her, their expressions shifting between curiosity and
anxiety. Chatter fell silent in the small sphere of tension that surrounded her
as she moved. She watched as a pair of ferrets whispered between glances in her
direction, only to see them swiftly escape down a side hall at their first
opportunity to withdraw from her path.She felt the
change in the air as the door to the administration office closed behind her,
blocking out much of the commotion in the hall. She looked down at the gray
barber carpeting of the room, a soft and welcome change under her feet from the
dark black marble laced with white and gray veins of the main hall. She quiet
of the nearly deserted room was also a much needed deviation from the hallway
outside. Slowly she looked up to meet the eyes of the pangolin the stood at the
counter waiting for her to approach. Her soft smile seemed out of place in the
world around the young finch. The only one she had seen that day other than the
one on the maned wolf. The look was disconcerting to her, forcing her to
question the pangolin's motives. So many smiles had brought nothing but pain
and lies, smiles that only covered deceit and trickery. The melodic voice that
accompanied the smile gave nothing to add any comfort or reassurance. For
Delilah, as it felt like a distorted mimic of the voice and smile of her
mother, the last thing she could remember as the years slowly claimed the few
remnants of the older finch from her mind. She shook her head slightly as the
almost alien words came to her again, now audible and understandable."It's nice to
see you again Miss. Nicholson," the pangolin said as she leaned on the counter,
"How can I help you today?"Softly she
spoke, only audible due to the silence of the room, "I lost my books, my
mother's books.""Oh, dear, I
think a young man did bring a bundle of book in earlier, "the older woman said
as she knelt down behind the counter, "Let me see if I can find them."Delilah felt the
shivers of anxiety and confusion rush through her body as she suddenly felt
utterly alone in the room with the two remaining office workers. She looked
down at the carpeting again as she felt the rush of dizziness and the hollow
sound of her heartbeat grow distant. She looked up at the vacant counter as she
felt her beak move with the word, "Is Miss. Adams in?" only moments before
reality faded to darkness."You gave us a
bit of a scare Miss, Nicholson," an odd voice said as Delilah opened her eyes.
She found herself in a smaller office laid out on a couch. Across from her at a
small desk was the main coon cat that seemed to be the only person she had
found beyond her father that did not make her question motive or plans.
Something was different about her, about the way she felt. "Miss Broom found
your books. They were brought in earlier by a young wolf named Jasper Watson,
have you meet him?"Delilah's mind
drifted past the solid memories and she shadowy fragments as the morning's
events tried to play out. "He... he tried to talk to me.""Did you have
another episode?""Y-yes.""You know you
can tell me about them right?" the feline woman stood, walked over to the couch
and sat on the end by the young bird's feet, "That is part of why I am here, to
help you.""He... He was
talking..." Delilah paused for a moment as she tried to remember, the fragments
that she knew were from the past bleeding in, and new fragments, dreamlike
moments of cold dark skies. The sudden feel of something small crushed and torn
in her talons flowed in, clear as the vision of the gray and black striped fur
of the feline that sat intently listening to her. "I... I did something... I think...
I don't know... All I remember is looking down from the bell tower... before coming
here.""It's okay
Delilah, you didn't hurt anyone," Shelly looked into the finch's black eyes
with as much reassurance as she could manage. "Do you want me to call your
father?"She sat up
quickly as the words sprang from her beak, almost as if beyond her control,
"NO!" she froze for a moment as the look of surprise and shock faded from the Maine
coon's face. "I... I don't want to leave. I want to stay... for now.""Okay," Shellie said
the reassuring smile once again on her face, "Then let's get you to class, your
first period should be starting soon. If you have any problems just come back
here." °º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º° Most of his day
passed just as his cousin had described it to him. Home room was no more than
taking attendance, morning announcements and a quick introduction of him by the
teacher, only to be rushed off to the next class a few minutes later. Everyone
seemed to be in a hurry as he made his way between the classes. He started to
see the cliques his cousin had talked about between classes and even
congregating in the rooms until class started. Jasper had almost made a game of
trying to figure out how the groups fit together from one class to another.
Often it was easy, the jocks and sports players were easy to pick out, there
were the obvious bookworms or nerds as she had called them. Other groups were
not as easy to decipher and in every class there was one or two that did not
fit into any group, though he had seen some of them later in their defined
space in the schools ecology. He found it almost amusing until he thought about
how he fit into this little world.He found that
unlike the others he was often in one of two places in all of his classes.
Either he was well ahead of the curriculum and felt out of place or behind and
somewhat mocked by his teachers and peers for his rudimentary knowledge of what
must have been considered common sense. He knew his parents and the other
missionary teachers had done their best to get him ready for this transition
into traditional school, but now it all seemed so distant. He was fluent in ten
different African languages, but was looked down upon when he only knew basic
Spanish. He was even further confused by the looked of anger and animosity he
got when a group of girls gathered around him during a break in class and
nearly forced him to speak in and explain other languages. The social dynamics
of this co-ed system of boy being taught alongside girls seem wrong. The
openness of girls talking to and even touching boys felt almost taboo. even
though his parents and cousin had told him about it many times over the years.He had got used
to the idea of needing to wait for the class instructor to introduce him before
assigning him a seat. As he entered his one advanced class, chemistry, he
watched the collection of what his cousin would call science geeks rolled in
and take their places at the small workstations, each situated with beakers,
test tubes and gas nozzles for the Bunsen burners. Among the class was one or
maybe two jocks, he was still getting used to classifying his fellow students
by their posture and demeanor. He waited patiently as the bell rang signaling
the beginning of class with no instructor in sight. Jasper began to get nervous
as the quiet conversations between the paired up students slowly got louder and
eventually moved across tables and groups. He felt almost as if he was on
display for the entertainment of those around him. Several times he heard his
name mentioned in hushed tones as one or more students would look his was.He was suddenly
relieved when a large owl walked through the door and the room fell almost eerily
silent. That was until he saw the small cloaked figure that followed him into
the room. It was the bird that had fled from him earlier in the day. As she
passed him in her close pursuit of the teacher, the whispers began again, so
hushed that he could not make out a word. The entire class jumped as a wooded
pointer smacked against the podium at the front of the room."Good morning
class," the owl began, "Today we have two new students joining us. The first
some of you may have meet in other classes, Mister Jasper Watson. We also have
the young Miss Delilah Nicholson joining us as an advanced student from the
middle school." Almost as soon as the owl said her name the whispers erupted
between the students once again. With a second loud crack of the long wooden
pointer against the podium he added, "We will have none of that in this
classroom." His stern voice almost frightening to Jasper. "Miss. Sweets, Please
move to the back desk and pair up with Miss. Nicholson so that you can help her
get up to speed. Mister Watson, Please take the seat Miss. Sweats left next to
Mister Turner. Everyone else begin where we left off Friday with the project on
page 127."Jasper watched
as the rabbit girl grudgingly grabbed her stuff and moved to the vacant
workstation at the back of the room. Before she moved, the young brown
feathered girl looked up at him, her black eyes meeting his mismatched blue and
brown. He was suddenly drawn deep into the emotionless black pools as she said
softly, "I am a finch, not a sparrow." he cocked his head to the side slightly
confused by her comment as she walked to the table with the rabbit girl. He
continued to watch her as he walked to the table by the gazelle boy. She sat on
the high stool, still short in comparison to her older lab partner, but she
seemed more out of place than her actual size, as if she was from an entirely
different world. As her winter cloak fell away from her smaller frame he noted
that unlike the other female uniforms, hers had no sleeves. Both the shirt and
jacket were more vests than those around her. He assumed that the thick ridged
primary feathers were the reason she differed from the others.As Jasper took
his place next to the other boy he heard him say in a hushed tone, "You really
dodged a bullet on that one, I just feel bad for Sweets.""What do you
mean?" Jasper asked, nearly unable to keep his voice to a controlled low."You really are
new here, aren't you? The Nicholson girl, she a freak. They tried to put her in
the public school last year. My cousin goes there, he said that during their
P.E. class, something happened and she fell, or got hurt or something." The
gazelle looked around as if trying to see who else was listening. "Well, her
shirt got torn and he said she had scars and stitches all over her chest."Jasper scrunched
his brow confused, "So she got hurt some time before, what does that have to do
with anything?""No, you don't
get it," The gazelle glanced around again as he spoke in a more hushed tone,
"Her dad is some kind of mad scientist. Does all sorts of experiments on ferals
and stuff. Something about genetic manipulation or blending, something like
that. See how she is brown like most finches, well her dad is bright red. They
say its from all the blood from his experiments stained the white from his
feathers.""I'm still not
following you here?"""What are you,
some kind of fucktard? He experimented on her, that's why she hasn't been in
school until now, might even be why she's taking all these advanced classes. I
hear that she's not even really his daughter, but something he made in his lab
after his wife and real daughter died in a horrible car accident. I'm telling
you, it's best to just stay away from her if you can."Jasper looked
over his shoulder at the rabbit girl as she grudgingly showed the finch where
they were in the lessons. "Dude, I think you are a few sandwiches short of a
picnic.""What?""The scars on
her chest could be from that accident you said her and her mother were in. And
maybe she's really just smart. I know a lot of smart kids that have a hard time
interacting with people. Their brains work different, it's hard for them to
relate.""Fine, dude, you
can think what you want, but I'm telling you, weird stuff happens to people
that mess with her. I'd stay clear if I were you.""Whatever, let's
just get to what we are supposed to be doing here. I'm already a few month
behind the power curve here." Jasper pulled the book out and turned to the page
mentioned by the instructor and began to read. Just as he was getting up to
speed with the project from what he had learned from the kits and curriculum he
could get on the mission field the sound for breaking glass got the attention
of the entire class."What the fuck,
you little freak?""I'm sorry.""That's fucking
acid, and you almost got it one me.""Watch your
language Miss Sweets. Now what's going on?""She dropped the
beaker of acid on the desk." the rabbit girl nearly yelled as she backed away
from the workspace. "Look, it's even on her cloths.... and her..."Before the
rabbit could complete the thought the owls pushed her aside, picked up the
finch and ran to the wash station where he submerged her hand and wing into a
quick stream of running water that erupted from the faucet with his foot on the
pedal at the base. "Okay, I need a volunteer to take Miss Nicholson to the
nurse's office."After several
moments of quiet murmuring, Jasper looked around the room at the questioning,
and odd looks of the other students as the whispered to one another. "I'll take
her," he finally spoke up."I'm fine, I can
go alone." The finch pushed her way out of the owl's grasp as she walked back
to the workstation to get her things.Jasper swiftly
moved from his spot to the where the finches bundle of books sat, snatching
them up only a moment before she could reach for them. "I'm sorry Miss
Nicholson, but But Mr. Fuller said someone needs to help you get to the nurse's
office."She looked at
him with an almost emotionless expression as she turned to leave the classroom.
He quickly trotted after her, not sure exactly why he felt to need to help her.
The young girl seemed even more ostracized and outcast than he was. He followed
her not really sure where the nurse's office was in the large school. Eager to
break the silence she looked down at her and asked, "So.. Um.. what happened, Miss
Nicholson?""Delilah.""What?""My name is
Delilah, you are Jasper Watson. You tried to talk to me this morning and..." She
trailed off as the two continued down the hall, "I... Just dropped the vial, it
happened.""But, the acid...
on your hand... didn't that hurt?"She stopped,
turned and looked up at him, her black eyes once again meeting his mismatched
pair, "No, it didn't, I didn't feel anything. I never do." He looked into her
eyes, unsure of what emotion, or anything she might be feeling at that moment.
"You've heard stories about me. You should listen to them and stay far away
from me. I don't care where you go, or what you do. Just give me my books and
go away." She reached up and took the small bundle of three books from his paw
and turned to walk away.Dumbfounded and
slack jawed, Jasper stood and watched her disappear down the hall, but he could
not bring himself to let her go alone. No one deserved to be alone and of
everyone he had meet, this young finch was the only other person that did not
fit into any of the cliques like him.