Ocean Rose

His Beginning

While walking to school, Phoenix Ashton Featherstone had a great feeling deep in the pit of his stomach.

This was going to be the day.

This was going to be the day he found out his true identity. 

This was going to be the day, he proved to the world that Ash Featherstone means something.

That he would change the world. 

And then when he got to school, he saw the flashes of color as kids were running around and chattering. But one thing caught his eye.

She had beautiful gray jewels as eyes and very dark hair. Her shirt was pure black and her jeans the darkest of denim he had ever seen. And no, she had no piercings of any sort. She was just this normal kid, it seemed. But something about her bothered him.

Maybe it was the fierce scowl she had on her face and the fact that she was standing like a complete statue with her eyes sending dark notions in every direction. She looked like she was about to go into battle.  

A battle where she was against everyone.

And that was when his stupid feet led him up to her. He didn't know what to say. Her eyes were averted, but then she suddently spun and slapped her dark hair against his face.  The strings of her  hair pelted him in their fury.

But his smile was glued to his face. He blurted out a few meaningless words asking her what class she was in. His own paper was in his hand, clutched tightly.

It said in black font ''Class 807'' at the top. His future was marked on this paper. His whole life written down. This was where it started. 

She shot him a grave look. If Ash didn't know better,he might have thought she was sending him to the gallows. What a neat adventure that would be. He'd have to find a way to escape the rope. Maybe travel through forests, rage through rivers, etc. 

She said nothing. Her lips were shaped into a thin line of disapproval. Maybe her first day jitters was making her act this way. 

''Yah, I don't feel like talking much on the first day,too.'', he felt himself say. What was wrong with him? Why couldn't he act and react?

The snaps of her sharp walking brought him to life again.She had walked away a look of pride glinting in her eyes.

It wasn't the end of the world, though. He started to smile again. It was only a beginning. And with that, he raced over to the line marked ''807''. His sneakers rubbed against the gravel and he stopped with a tight ''squeak!'' at the line to his future.

There is a line for everything, he guessed. He looked at the other kids, shuffling their feet. Ash brushed his red hair away from his face. He stood up straight as his teacher arrived.

She  had a  black skirt that billowed in the wind. Her shirt was bright pink. Her eyes were big and blue, taking in the world around her.Her hair was in a blond messy bun. Her smiled proved how happy she was to see them.

To Ash, this was an oppurtunity. He quickly scanned his paper and his eye caught on the homeroom teacher ''Ms.Fedora''.

A pretty girl like her wasn't married?

''Hello Ms.Fedora. How are you?''.

She smiled and said, ''Well, I'm very excited to meet you young,spirited students. We are going to have a little fun at school now, right?''. 

She waited expectantly.

''Yes Ms. Fedora'', murmured the kids.

''What was that?'', she asked and leaned forward.

''Yes Ms. Fedora'', the kids said with higher volume.

She nodded and walked towards the huge school. Her nod indicated them to follow her. They reached the blue stairs.

Ashton's eyes glowed. The stairs were the steep sides of a mountain. He gripped his gear and gritted his teeth from the sharp wind. He walked with heavy footsteps and as he gradually came to the top, he rubbed his brow and laughed a heroic laugh.

There was the treasure. An open door. A new key. He struggled to reach up and then gripping the rock that stuck out farther than the others he climbed. He had made it!

He smelled the pencil shavings, clay,and paper. Here he was. In the middle of books and pencils. He plunked his seat down in arandom chair, only to find the same girl from the field next to him. He panicked. He never was good with girls.

But then he remembered, this was only the beginning.