Siren Song

Apples & Trees

Soleil

"So of course since it's an early sunday morning, we don't have any classes today, but there's a lot of clubs we can look into." Jane and I pass the gym. Boys and girls pass a ball to each other. "This is basketball. We have a ton of other options," Jane explained. "There's tourney, fencing, cheerleading, you should join!" Jane's eyes grow wide. "Cheer? What's that?"

"Well it's a little like dance and a little like gymnastics. We put those two completely different sports together, give it a little pep and bam! You've got cheer!" She exclaims and I nodded enthusiastically. What is gymnastics? "Come on, I'm in cheer too, so you'll have a friend there at least."

"We're friends?"

"Of course," Jane nods a look of confusion in her eyes, eyebrows furrowed deeply. "Did you think we weren't?" I shrug. "I just didn't think you'd want to be my friend."

"Why's that?" I didn't really understand how Auradon works, but who would ever want to be friends with a child from the Isle? I know Mal, Evie, Jay, Carlos, they were all good. I just don't know if I'm good enough to be here. "Well my mom is mother gothel. You know, the one who  kidnapped Rapunzel for years..." I trailed off. 

"Well we have a new saying here, even if the apple doesn't fall far from the tree, someday that tree won't be there anymore. And that apple will be able to form a tree all on it's own, without the help of the other tree, and no longer living in it's shadow. You are not like your mother."

"How can you be so sure?"

"You're here aren't you? These are the cheerleaders." Jane motioned ahead of us. I guess I am here. Was the the first step to being good? I can't tell if I'm good or not, I never had the space to rebel. "Audrey is the captain, so if you do try out, which try outs for this year's team already happened, but we're currently down a girl. One got really sick a few weeks ago." Jane suddenly looks so sad. "Oh, sorry to hear."

"It's okay. She's doing better now. But Audrey has been terrorizing people all week, trying to find a good enough replacement. There's a tryout tomorrow after school. You should come. It's about two hours long and you learn a routine from Audrey, show her, and she'll pick you if she thinks you got it." Jane shrugs nonchalantly. "I definitely do not got it." Jane rests a hand on my shoulder. "You know there's some sort of magic in Auradon. I too never thought I'd make it in. But my boyfriend Carlos thought it'd be a good idea. So I tried out, I got in. Come on, let's go find the tourney boys." A little farther onto school campus, there was a huge field. I watched their tourney matches on TV. I never realized that those girls who were skipping and bouncing around in the back were called cheerleaders. They deserve more than a 1 minute screen time, during half time.

I watched as the boys zoomed back and forth, thing's flying in the air. "My boyfriend plays tourney. There's a super big game coming up next month. It's the main reason Audrey is in such a fit trying to find a good enough replacement. I watched in awe as the boys ran across. One boy, the goalie, looked a little too recognizable for my liking. The build on him, his height. Which was strange since I haven't met any boys yet, except for that dweeb the night I got here. 

The coach blew the whistle for a break, and they all tore their masks off. I gasped as I watched the goalie take off his mask. It was in fact that dumb dweeb. "Watch out." Jane laughed as the team came running in. "Sunny, this is my boyfriend, Carlos." Jane and Carlos smiled at each other. Carlos stopped and talked to us for a few moments, but I was stuck looking at the dweeb. There's no way he played sports. "Yeah I just really hope you like Auradon," Carlos finished up and I nodded along, pretending to listen. Was it just me, or did dweeb multiply?