What Remains of the Old World

Chapter 5: The Old World

"Isaiah, come on! We're gonna be late for school!" Serenity yells. "Coming! Sorry, Serenity! I wasted a bit too much time watching TV last night!" He says. He had brown hair, dark blue eyes, and soft beige skin "It's fine! Just get ready, and let's go! I don't wanna be late!" Serenity says. Isaiah then got ready and followed Serenity out of the door. They then saw that their mother was already in the car. "Hey, kiddos. You two finally ready?" She says, with her usual smile. "Yeah. Sorry, Mom," Isaiah says. "It's okay, Isaiah. Sometimes you just want to laze around. I don't blame you." Their mother says. She had brown hair, dark blue eyes, and beige skin. "Now hop on in, you two!" She says before they get in. She then started driving. "So, I assume you stayed up watching "The Temptation of the Priest" last night?" She asks. Serenity snickered. "That show has such B-movie quality." She says. "Hey! Sure, it might not have the best budget, but I still like it!" Isaiah says. "I never said that meant it was bad! I actually get invested in the lives of Calidora and Zachary." Serenity says. "Same here. Though, it can be quite cliché and cheesy at times. Like, one line I remember off the top of my head: "Oh, Zachary. Every moment without you feels like the most tremendous torture imaginable! I do so wish you would allow me to bite you. Then, we could be together forever!" Their mother says, quoting Calidora. "No, I could never! I'm sorry, Calidora, but allowing you to taint my blood with your unholy venom is explicitly prohibited by the great Asmata!" She says, mimicking the poses that Zachary was making at that moment. She then laughed before noticing that Isaiah had a grumpy pout. "Aw, come on, Izzy! We're just messing around!" She says, rubbing his head with her hand. He then chuckles. "I know. I'm not actually mad!" He says. "Also, now that we're on this topic, what have you been doing, Serenity?" Their mother says. "Oh, you know... Practice and stuff. Unlike Isaiah, I don't usually have enough time for TV shows." Serenity says. "Hey! I do other things too, you know?" Isaiah says. "I know, I know! I've been to your little gaming nights. But do those really count as "physical activity?" Serenity says, with air quotes. "Mmm... No... I guess not..." He says. "I'm not trying to berate you or anything, Izzy! I just want you to exercise more! You're getting kinda chubby." Serenity says. "It's not that noticeable, is it?" Isaiah asks, placing his hands over his stomach. "Well, no, but I don't want it to become noticeable, ya know?" Serenity says. "Yeah, I guess I get what you're saying. I'll try to exercise more, okay?" Isaiah says. "Good! I just want you to be healthy, Izzy!" Serenity says. "And... I also want you to be able to protect yourself. This world has some dangerous people." She adds. "I know, Serenity. You tell me that all the time." Isaiah says. Their mother then chuckles. "It's so sweet that you worry about Isaiah this much, Serenity." She says. "Yeah... Well, someone has to look out for this dork while he's at school." Serenity says, giving him a noogie. Isaiah laughs. "Stop, stop! You're gonna mess up my hair!" He says. Serenity then laughs, letting go of him. "Sorry, Izzy." She says. A few moments pass, and they arrive at school. "I hope you two have a great day!" Their mother says. "You too, mom!" Serenity says with a wave before they both get out. Eventually, they have to go to their classes. As Isaiah was walking to his class, he noticed a familiar young woman pinning another young woman to a locker. "Althea, what's going on?" He asks, running up to them. "Oh, hey Izz. Sorry about this little scene. This punk decided to pick a fight with me." Althea says. She had deep brown skin, curly brown hair, and silver eyes. "But, don't worry. This'll be over quick." She adds, before punching her in the gut. The woman grunts. "Wait! Let me talk to her, okay?" Isaiah says. Althea looks at him for a moment. "Eh, knock yourself out, Izz. I've got better things to do." She says, letting go of her and walking away. "So, what's your name?" Isaiah asks as she dusts herself off. She had black hair, amber eyes, and bright-white skin. "You may call me Abrianna. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to get to class." She says before she starts to walk off. "Hey, wait a second! I wasn't done talking to you!" He says. "What else could you possibly need?" She asks, turning around. "I want to know why you decided to pick a fight with one of my friends!" He says. "Well, I had noticed that she's clearly the "Alpha" of the school, and I wanted to earn respect by defeating her in a competition. But, I suppose I underestimated her strength." She says. "Earn respect?" Oh! You're from Katashi, aren't you?" He says. "Yes, why do you ask?" She says. "Because I've heard things about Katashi, and Halix is very different. We don't have those animalistic hierarchies here." He says. "Oh, I apologize. I had no idea." She says. "It's fine. It was just a misunderstanding. Say: I'm sure you could use a friend since you're new here. So, would you like to be friends?" He says. Abrianna is silent for a long moment as she looks at him. "Hey! You there?" He says, waving. "Ah, I'm sorry... It's just... No one's ever asked me that before. But, yes... I suppose that sounds... quite nice..." She says. "Okay, cool! Oh, wait, sorry! I almost forgot! My name's Isaiah." He says. "Pleasure meeting you, Isaiah." She says with a bow as she grabs his left hand lightly and kisses the back of it. His face turns a tad red. "I hope this is the beginning of something beautiful." She adds with a smirk. "Ah, but we should really get to class." She realizes. "R-right, of course! Uh, I'll s-see you later, okay?" Isaiah says. "Very well. Farewell, for now, Isaiah." She says. "Bye!" He says, running off.