Twisted // A Fundamental Paper Education AU

Chapter 1

The first day out of quarantine was a great day for Claire. Finally she was out of that stuffy little room and would meet her fellow pupils. They were supposed to be some of the smartest in the world. Even in times like these, it was amazing to her that she'd be studying among the future of the dwindling population of humanity.

Miss Emily was the one to guide her from quarantine and out into the hall for the first time. Claire would have her in her schedule, as there weren't too many teachers here. Just the bare minimum of four core subjects, as well as music and an optional art class.

The hall was as bustling as a post-apocalyptic academic refuge could be. There were students walking around, chatting at open lockers filled with books and a jacket or two. There were occasional posters on the walls, saying things like "Learning is Fun!" and "Follow the Rules!" All of them were quite faded and dull, as they hadn't been replaced in years.

Across the tiled floor Miss Emily and Claire walked until they arrived at what seemed to be a library. There were books on shelves that reached up into a second level, reached by a pair of staircases on either side of the room. Weirdly, there was a hole very inconveniently placed in the middle of the room with railing around it. Very odd.

Among one of the desks scattered around there was a boy sitting, hunched over a few papers that he was writing on. There was another girl next to him, her nonexistent face seemingly framed with floating bubbles. A duck and a toothbrush sat on top of them. When Claire got closer, she saw that the papers included a variety of algebra and geometry problems.

"Engel?" Miss Emily said to get his attention.

Engel looked up from his homework, the two feathers stuck in his hair bobbing a little at the sudden movement. He had his long hair tied in a low ponytail, and wore black overalls with a white, short-sleeved collared shirt underneath. There was a red and blue stripe on the left sleeve, corresponding to the two feathers.

"Yes, Miss Emily?" Engel asked the teacher with a smile. With a black clawed hand he set his pencil down. Claire noticed his eyes flickering to her with curiosity.

"This is Claire. Claire, this is Engel and Bubble," Miss Emily introduced them. "Engel, I would like you to be Claire's tour guide for the day."

Engel smiled and gave Claire a small wave. "Hi. Sure, I'll be her tour guide."

"I'd show her around before school starts," Miss Emily said. "And if she needs any help after that, you or Bubble can help her out. Okay?"

Engel and Bubble both nodded.

Miss Emily smiled. "Good. You kids have a great day!"

"Bye," Claire said with a wave. Miss Emily walked away from the children and out of the library.

"New student, huh?" Engel said. Claire nodded, hand tight on the strap of her backpack. "Cool. We don't get many of those, glad to see there's still other kids out there."

The girl appropriately named Bubble seemed to smile, even with having no mouth. And defying this fact once again, she spoke.

"I'm sure you're gonna love it here. If you stay on the teachers' good sides, that is."

She chuckled a little nervously.

"Anyway," Engel continued. He stuck some of the papers into a folder and stuffed it into his backpack. Bubble did the same, only she gently slid the folder into her bag instead of shoving it in. "Want me to take you on a grand tour of the school?"

Claire smiled. "Sure."

Engel and Bubble led Claire out of the library and into the hallway. There weren't many large crowds of people shoving to get through the hallway like Claire's heard her mother describe, so it was easy for her to keep one eye on her guides as she walked through the corridors. The thought of her mom brought a sad feeling to her heart, but she pushed those feelings away and tried to focus on the right now.