Passing Through

Chapter 11: Caged

   I had my shoulder cleaned and bandaged again. The nice lady told me to be careful about using my right arm, but I had already known that. The pain was enough of a reminder.

   She had also cut my hair. Only a few inches, mind you. But enough for me to feel different when tying it up in a ponytail. Nice Lady said it was getting long, and it would be easier for me to train with a few inches off. So I had nodded silently and watched her in the mirror as she neatly clipped off 3 inches. It was okay, though. My hair would grow out again. 

    At least, that's what Nice Lady told me.

  After all that, Claire led me to the gym to meet the infamous Jay. I mindlessly stared at her back as we walked, thinking about nothing in particular. I felt...lost. Disoriented. Confused.

 Many things, in fact. I felt as if the world around me was flying by, my internal mind unable to keep up.

Deep, I know.

   My mood had suddenly dropped in the past half an hour, the whole situation around me finally getting to my head. The entirety of it all hadn't occurred to me until after my talk with The Raven, not to mention my fight with Gwen. And why would it? I didn't understand anything; I had been relying on my wit to keep me alive. Now I felt broken, practically helpless. I didn't have anyone. Not Reese, not Nikki, not my cousins, not my family. I didn't know where they were, if they were okay. And the only allies I had had been wrenched away from me. Gwen had her mind altered, and Ryder was sent off somewhere into Neverland. I was alone. 

And the full impact of it was starting to hit.

When we entered the gym, I barely bothered to look around. If it was important, it would come to my attention sooner or later. Claire led me to Jay, who was flinging knives at a dartboard in a corner of the large room.

"Uncle, we're here. Let's go."

Jay, formerly known as Bob the Very Violent Dude, threw one last knife--which hit the target perfectly, by the way-- and turned around. He gave me an amused smile. I was content with simply blinking in response.

   "How are you, darling?" Bob--aka Jay-- asked me.

  I nodded, which wasn't much of an appropriate response, but let's face it: who even cared?

 "Mute today, I see. Have you run out of your sharp answers and insults?" Bob taunted.

  I fixed him with a glare. I wasn't in the mood for banter and teasing. All I wanted was to go home. Back to where I was supposed to be. Claire, probably noting my silence, spoke up.

"Uncle, don't bother her. Just go with the necessary material." She tucked a strand of her red hair behind her ear. "She's in a traumatic position."

   I silently appreciated her putting a stop to the nonsensical crap Jay was ever so fond of. I sighed as Jay smirked at Claire. "I'll try, Clary, but it's real hard, you know," he drawled. She gave him a patient half smile. "Well, I know for a fact that you're strong enough to do it."

"One of the few things you have a point in, my dear," Jay replied. He turned to me before Claire could indignantly answer him, and became more serious. "Now, you. Stand up straight, and show me what you can do. And speak, for God's sake."

I sighed internally and slowly straightened up. "What am I supposed to do?"

"Well, for starters, you can show me how much you excel at Passing Through that wall over there," he said, pointing to one of the walls of the gym room. I realized that he was holding back a grin and turned away.

"Fine." I dragged myself over to the wall, keeping a few yards away from it. There were no lines on the ground to tell me where to stand, so I had to guess the distance. I remembered my failed test back at school, and immediately shoved the thought away. I had to focus on the task at hand. I stood facing the wall, trying to settle my breathing. It felt like a lifetime ago that my main goal was just to Pass correctly. Now, I could care less. I wanted to go home, to see my family, my friends, my teachers. Get my life back.