Starlight

Prologue 7 - Scaredy Cat (Elysia POV)

"So how was your first day?" Mei asks earnestly, leaning over the table she was scrubbing down in the eating area of the Inn.

"It was alright..." I mutter under my breath, holding my head up with my palm to my cheek against the table.

"Then you want to explain why you smell and look like dog vomit?" Mei turns away to snicker to herself a bit, I can't believe she would relish in my suffering like this!!!

"I spilled something on mysel-"

"She puked all over herself and a couple girls in her class."

The sound of Eve's voice sends shivers down my spine, why would she say that! "Evelynn..." I growl, shakily turning to face her behind me. Eve sets her backpack down in the door way and takes a seat next to me casually before scooting away from me slightly. I must've gone nose blind by now, but I know I've gotta reek to high heaven.

"Jeez Ely, did you get sick off the school lunch?! I'll start packing you lunches in the morning then." Mei says, moving to the next table to continue scrubbing.

I let out a deep sigh and trace the edge of my face with my index finger nervously. "Yeah... Thanks sis."

"You're not being bullied are you? Who did it!" The sudden voice in my ear from behind startles me more than when Eve barged in. How did Mei get behind me so stealthily... Can she really tell I got bullied today. My mind wanders to Veronika and how she saved me from that black eye in the bathroom... She's a bit strange but I think she's a good person deep down.

"Nobody bullied me, Mei." I say, pouting in my arms with my head down on the table. Eve nudges me and scoffs. "Oh don't lie, Veronika totally fed you dirt!"

"Dirt!?" Mei exclaims horrified.

"And worms." Eve replies matter-of-factly.

"WORMS!?" Mei seems to be rising more and more out of her own skin with each revelation from miss loud mouth next to me.

"Okay, okay, I did NOT eat a worm... It just had a worm in it." I make sure to murmur the last part as quietly as I can.

Mei slams her hands down on the table across from me, do I dare take a peek at her... She's probably beet red. "Who the hell is this Veronika!?... What kinda name is that anyways?"

"Not that Elysia doesn't have a strange name herself..." Eve says sarcastically.

"Hey I'll have you know I named Ely myself!"

Eve retreats into herself a bit embarrassedly. "Not that strange is bad, I just mean it's unique. And pretty!"

"You guys can stop talking about me like I'm not here now..." I groan, the sound of their voices going back and forth accompanied with that creepy cat clock on the wall ticking over and over is starting to give me a headache. Mr. Sato seriously needs to invest in a radio or music player for this place.

"Plus Veronika actually saved me from those two girls I vomited all over... She's not mean she's just weird, I think she likes me actually." I say, blushing to myself a bit remembering how she totally kicked Masako and Satsuki's butts. Veronika really is more powerful than she looks, I wonder if she is in any sports?

"Veronika is the one who beat them up? I saw them hobbling to the school nurse going back and forth about how scary 'she' was. Not surprised to hear it was Veronika though... She gives me the heebie-jeebies." Eve says this as if she doesn't get heebie-jeebies from the breeze.

"You're scared of your own shadow! But i guess you're right, she's a bit intimidating." I concede, it would be remiss of me to ignore the fact she fed me worm pudding and beat up two girls all in the same day. So abrasive yet so popular, guess being bold and beautiful has it's perks after all.

Mei puts her cleaning supplies away in a big bucket on the floor and wipes her hands clean to prepare for closing the dining room. "Well, sounds like this Veronika girl is nothing but trouble. You be careful around those ones! And if she ever bullies you again I'll be making a visit to the school myself!" My first instinct is to disregard Mei's protective antics but if there's anything I know about my big sis, it's that she doesn't play when it comes to my safety.

I nod my head silently in defeat as Mei trudges off, bucket in tow whilst muttering under her breath angrily about how stupid kids are. Ironically Mei is only a couple years older than the average senior in high school. I always find it funny how she acts like some old lady who's been around to see the ice age, must be a big sister thing.

"I'm sorry for telling her so much... I figure she should know, and I don't mean to make light of what happened today either. I just figured if we can joke around about it a little, maybe it isn't so bad." Eve says empathetically.

"Thanks Eve, you're right." I reply, eve rubs my shoulder as she turns to leave the room.

"You're still a scaredy cat though."

"What!" Eve snatches my book bag and pulls Mochi out from the bottom. "Who's the scaredy cat now!" She jeers before running out of the room and upstairs with Mochi's stuffed limbs flailing about in her hand.

"Hey give him back!" I yell upstairs as I rush after her. Ugh when I catch her I'll give her something to be scared of for real this time!