What Is Your Name?

Chapter 7: The Shadow (Sky)

Crap crap crap crap crap! First day and he'd already shown up! I pulled Lillian with me through the crowd of people clearly better trained than us. People stared at Lillian, but I guess I could pass for 18.

"'Yeah, well, neither am I'? That was the best comeback you could make?" Lillian teased.

"It was either that or sing 'I am 17 going on 18' so you be quiet," I retorted.

"Hey, you! You're not 18!" some random guy called.

"You're right, I'm 19, and may I just say, I love the diversity acceptance you've got going on here among midgets!" Lillian gave this line with a completely straight face. See, this is why I love this girl.

The guy turned to me. "Do you two need weapons?"

"That would be great," I agreed.

"Follow me," the guy ordered. He led us to some type of armory. "You prefer guns or blades?"

"Blades," we said in unison. Lillian and I each had a pocket knife, and they had led us through life as homeless people pretty well. Very multi-purpose.

"Ok, we got swords, daggers... hey, what are you doing?"

"I found katanas, les goooooo!" Lillian cheered.

"You have got to get out of the ninja phase," I sighed. "Pass me a katana; let's go."

"The ninja phase was, like, 4 years ago," Lillian grumbled, but she dutifully followed me outside.

Eli. Just like I remembered him: shaggy black hair, icy blue eyes, and a very flat nose from the time his mom punched him in the face. The only difference was really his choice in clothing. Oh, and the fact that he practiced dark magic now. Can't forget that.

I thought I hated everyone at this school, but I had to respect that they hated me because they hated Eli. And they really hated Eli. It showed in the fact that, I don't know, they were trying to kill him.

"Sky," Lillian whimpered. "Sky! Is that him? Is that my dad?" She looked like her heart was about to break. This was the man I had told Lillian awful, awful things about. This was the man who had killed my parents, gone on to kill so many others, had tried to kill us.

"Yes. This man is your father," I replied.

"Dad!" Lillian screamed. "Stop this now!"

The battle came to a complete standstill. Eli stared hard at Lillian. "Who do you think you are?" he asked.

"My name is Lillian Aubergine. You know who I am."

"Lillian?" Eli repeated.

"Eli, stay away from her!" I burst forward, waving my katana at him.

"And Sky! My, how you've grown! I thought you died in the fire," Eli mused.

"See, this is what happens when you let his family join the school! They won't even fight him!" Tempest practically screeched out the window. Lillian scowled and threw her katana right at Eli. Good girl. But he caught it in midair and dropped it at her feet.

"Lose something, sunflower? Your mother would be so disappointed."

Enough was enough. I hadn't spoken to Eli in 15 years, and I sure as hell had a lot to say to him now. "Really, Eli? Because my sister's whole life we always had the same goals. We always, always just wanted to make each other happy. And for 15 years, since before she died, I have been wanting to bring you pain the way you brought pain to her. And now you bring pain to me. And to your own daughter. Even without dark magic, thanks to you, two people were born, but four died. And my sister would never want that. She always wanted everyone to be happy, and purging the thing that has ruined so many lives, or at least trying to? Lillian is more related to my sister than she'll ever be to you."

"'Your sister, your sister, your sister'... Lillian, sunflower, you don't know your mother's name, do you?" Eli asked.

"I have a feeling this is where we shut him up, huh?" Grey was carrying a bazooka. Maybe Lillian was right; this guy was totally the kind of person I should be friends with. "I mean, like, before he names She-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named?"

"Fair point. Fire!" I screamed with glee.

And Eli disappeared. Magic: check. Eli corpse: still working on it.

"And not only did you sneak into the battle when you are clearly too young to fight, you interrupted the battle to have a family reunion with Daddy! I should expel you. In fact, the media will destroy me if I don't expel you! So tell me, why did you do what you did?" Needless to say, the great Lord Grantham himself was pissed.

"We did what we did because that's what we're here to do," I answered. "I didn't come to this school to avoid Eli. If that was my goal, I would've stayed on the street."

"You would be homeless if it weren't for me," Grantham spat. "All I asked in return was that you followed orders."

"With all due respect, Lord Grantham," Lillian cut in, "the announcement never ordered minors to stay in the classroom. And it didn't even say a word about not being allowed to talk to Eli. I never once heard the words, 'This is an order.' So, if you think about it, we didn't break any direct orders. Also, what you asked in return was information, which we gave. You have absolutely no valid reason to expel us, and the media is bullcrap for telling you otherwise."

I whistled. "Well spoken, Lil..."

Grantham gave said Lil a good, hard stare. "Have you considered a debate act for the talent show?"

Lillian smiled. "Way to change the subject. What talent show?"

"The annual LGSFA Talent Show. Don't you watch TV?" I swear, the man's a riot.

"Why the long face, Lillian?"

"Was Eli really about to tell me Mom's name?"

I sighed. "Probably. Why?"

"Are you ever going to tell me Mom's name?" I didn't want to answer her. She could tell.

"Are you going to sing in the talent show?"