{1} Tempest {Sweet Pea}

X

She looked up to see a bunch of Ghoulies standing in front of her and when she turned to look behind her, a crowd of them was back there and the group was laughin' as they were all in, standing there.

"I'm one of the Serpents. So, I suggest that you get out of my way." Storm for the first time in a long time, heard her own voice shaking, as she fought to be the one to keep it steady.

"Ooh. Big scary Serpents. You know what we deal in, little girl? I'm not a Serpent. We don't respect little girls. I think we should leave her bruised for the Serpents to find. Anyone know the closet place to dump a body?"

The main Ghoulie kid asked, and every piece of Storm's near endless fighting experience had vanished from her mind, as she backed quickly up towards the lockers.

When the cold metal was against her back, she knew that her luck had run out. Why the hell did I stay so long?

She wondered to herself, before suddenly the Ghoulies were backing away from her. She looked over to see the Serpents standing there Fangs and Sweet Pea at their head, to absolutely, no one's surprise at all.

"You all right?" Toni asked and Storm's hands were shaking, but she nodded at her, then jams her shaking hands back into her pockets quickly.

"She's one of us. Stay away from her druggies, or you will pay and know of the consequences. You all have seen it before." Toni says coldly as the two all faced off with each other.

"She's a Northsider." The main Ghoulie accused and Storm looked at him, and her eyes grew brighter with anger.

"I am a Northsider. But that doesn't mean that I am anything like them. At all. I may be born on that side of the tracks, but I'm a Serpent. That is who I am, not where I live. My home doesn't define me." Storm spoke sharply, the tone of uncertainty long gone, as now it had been replaced with a fury, that couldn't be matched.

"Watch your back Northsider, if you ever come here again. We weren't the only ones watching." The Ghoulies all walked away and then as soon as they were gone Storm looked quite like she was gonna be sick.

"Are you okay? I thought you could fight against huge numbers, on your own?" Toni asks her gently, as Storm lowered her head and her breathing was ragged, as if it was a panic attack.

"I've never had a paralyzing fear like that. Not since..." She shakes her head at them. "Never mind guys, thanks for the help." She said and they nodded at her.

"Next time, call." Fangs says as the bell rang, and most of the Serpents went back around for all their daily business.

Storm walked outside and sat at one of the picnic tables, and she rubbed a spot just below her lungs, that always hurt when she had a panic attack.

"Are you really all right?" Sweet Pea asked her, as he sat down across from her, and she looked away from him.

"Don't you have classes, to get to Sweet Pea? I'll be fine." Storm insisted but he still didn't move from his spot.

"You're a Northsider, and yet, you prefer to call yourself Tempest now to all of us. So, what is your real name?"

He asked and she looked up at him, shaking her head slightly, as she felt a sharp, stabbing pain yet again in her lower chest.

"Tempest is a nickname, given to me by my old man. Real name is Storm. I have about twelve of them, and all of them different nicknames. Hurricane, Tempest, Cyclone, Tsunami, Lightning Thunder, Stormy. Take your pick, or if it works for you, just make your own."

She murmured and he said nothing and she finally looked back up to see him still sitting there. "Do you need a helping hand to find something?" She asked and he looked at her.

"No, just wondering why you would hide your real name from us." He says and she looked down slightly. "I'm not angry at you. I get it you didn't fully in a huge, awkward moment. With a fair bit of weakness, you wouldn't want to be sharing everything with us." She was surprised to hear something like understanding in his voice.

"You're usually angry and sullen when anyone tries to talk to you Pea, so why are you always so nice to me?"

She asked him and he looked at her and then looks around as Ghoulies all began to approach them. "Come on I'll take you home. You should not still be here. Especially not since they know about where you come from." He says and she nods. "Come on. I'll walk you home." He said, standing up.

Taking the hint, she follows him quickly not really wanting to stay any longer then she's needed to anyways.

"So, why are you always so nice to me?" She asked and looked up slightly so that she was lookin' him in the eyes and he chuckled slightly.

"You're gonna think that this is so stupid." He mumbles to himself and her both, as they continued together to walk towards her house.

"Okay, let me stop you right there Sweet Pea." She said, quite literally stepping in front of him, and he was indeed forced to stop, lest he run her over. "I will never think that anything you say is stupid. Least of all, before it comes out of your mouth. All right?" A tone of seriousness was in her voice.

"All right, I get it." Sweet Pea raised his hands in surrender and she smiles at him slightly, as they walked toward her house.

"It made no sense to me, that somehow I knew you when it seemed like you had just moved back here but it hit me. You and your mom helped a lot of us, with legal affairs for parents, and stuff. You ended up helping me as well, out of trouble quite a few times."

He says quietly, hands in his pockets.

Then she looked at her garage, or her room as of now, and then she was just smiling slightly up at him.

"You wanna come inside?" She asked and suddenly thunder rumbled and a bout of rain was starting, as lightning, it was crackling across the sky.

Sweet Pea laughed at her quickly as she ran towards the garage, and pulls the door up. "Well come on then!" She calls and he ducked inside quickly.