quatre

Chapter Four:

It was official. Ekka did not like her new home.

The school itself was fine, and so were most of the teachers, especially her English one. He always helped her whenever she needed it, and was slowly teaching her how to read and write. Her science teacher, Mr. George, was nothing short of mean to her.

He would always choose Ekka when she didn't raise her hand to give an answer, and when she finally stuttered an answer, the entire class would laugh because it was wrong. It made her upset and feel stupid.

One of the students, Delilah Shepard, liked the fact that she knew little to nothing in science, or anything school related really. She would tease her relentlessly after, or during, class. She also had three friends, Samantha, Kendra, and Andrea, who joined her in her teasing. It was pretty harmless, so Ekka said nothing on it. A few taunts here, knocking down her books there, Ekka could live with that.

Ekka had, unknowingly, began to slip back into her old mindset at the Circus. Her father used to say that if they tried to get help from the people who came in, he would cut out their tongue, and they wouldn't get fed for the next two weeks. A few kids had tried, and true to his word, he cut their tongues out, and refused to feed them. Two children died because of that — blood loss and malnutrition wasn't a good combination.

Ekka didn't want that to happen to her, at the Circus and at school. She didn't want to get in trouble if she told someone what was going on. So, she kept it to herself. The only person who knew was Flutter, and she couldn't do much except ruthlessly peck at them.

Instead, Ekka focused on her studies whenever she was alone. She'd focus on writing as much as she could, or her math or science. When the teachers gave them homework, Ekka would finish it, then review it, then redo it on a different paper and see if she had gotten the same answers.

Once she finished studying, Ekka would sometimes go outside, and sit near the woods by herself. It was near November now, and it had been getting kind of chilly, and it was raining for a few days, but Ekka didn't mind. She had had colder nights back at the circus in the lion's cage. Although she had the warmth of several lions all pressed against her, that didn't stop the frostbite from nipping at her bare toes and her nose. Ekka was surprised she had never gotten hypothermia or pneumonia. She had gotten sick once or twice, but Father was always generous enough to treat to her illnesses. He did that to all his children. They were no use to him sick, after all.

Ekka sighed, looking at a squirrel who had been very interested in his nut. He glanced at her, tilted his head, then scurried off deeper into the forest.

Flutter, who had been playing with one of the flowers, hopped into her lap, pecking her long beak at Ekka's fingers. This usually meant she wanted to be rubbed. So, Ekka ran her coarse fingers over her hummingbird's soft coat. The bird made a few noises of pleasure. It was calm, Ekka enjoyed it. She liked the peace and serenity the forest brought. Ekka was never allowed this kind of peacefulness back at the Circus, so she was glad to have the chance here.

Something collided with the back of Ekka's head, and she gasped, jumping up. She felt her head, her fingers coming back with mud and dirt. Another one hit her, at her shirt this time. Ekka turned, trying to find the culprit, but instead found no one.

Then, she spotted a few balls of mud were floating in the air, and then zoomed in her direction. Ekka tried to dodge them, but if the didn't hit their target, it would come back around and try again. Ekka gave up, allowing herself to be pelted with the mud balls, and covered her face in the false hopes it wouldn't get in her eyes. That didn't help.

Once the attack finished, the mud was everywhere, coating her from top to bottom. Ekka opened her hands, where she hand kept Flutter in. She — thankfully — was safe of harm. However, she seemed worried about Ekka. Before she could assure her that she was fine, giggling rang through the air. Ekka looked up, to see Delilah, and her trio of friends, walking by her, giggling loudly.

"Did you have fun in the mud pit, piggy?" Delilah called out, and Ekka looked down, not meeting her eyes.

"I am not a pig," she replied, her voice barely audible, and her accent didn't do anything to help it.

"What was that? You want more mud?" Delilah motioned to Andrea, the only black girl in her group. Ekka remembered that she had an affinity with earth, which was why the mud was floating and not being thrown.

Two more mud balls hit her, one directly in the lower half of her face, the other on the side of her head. Ekka sputtered, try to get the mud out of her mouth, wiping at her mouth with one hand, and cradling Flutter in the other. The girls laughed at her attempt to clean it off, "Have fun playing, little piggy!" With that, the girls stalked off.

Ekka tried to get as much mud off as she could, but it was no use. There was too much. Ekka wanted to go inside and take a shower, but she remembered that there was a strict rule about not tracking mud in the school. Ekka believe that this exceeded the limit or redemption for breaking the rule.

Ekka sighed, when it got colder, the mud would harden, and that would let her go inside without tracking mud in. So, Ekka sat down, and continued to rub Flutter, waiting patiently.

~.•*•.~

It wasn't long before the sun set, and it became frigidly cold. Ekka sat on the forest floor, freezing. She didn't have on enough layers to keep the freezing cold breezes that pricked her skin at bay. She was still covered in mud, however, and did not want to make a mess inside.

Ekka supposed that it would be in her best interests to simply stay the night outside. Maybe, if she came back the next morning, she wouldn't get in as much trouble as she might've. Ekka silently hoped that the Professor wouldn't be cross with her. She wouldn't be able to live with herself if she knew that she'd upset him.

Flutter poked Ekka's cheek with her beak, tilting her head at her. Ekka sighed, stroking her head. "I apologize. I would not have you out here in the cold if your wing was healed." Ekka pushed herself against a tree and held Flutter close to her chest, in hopes to keep her warm. Flutter snuggled into her hands, tweeting gently. Ekka smiled at her small companion, slowly allowing her eyes to drift closed, and falling asleep.

~.•*•.~

Ekka woke up to someone shaking her. Her eyes fluttered open to see Charles Xavier staring at her, wide eyed and concerned. Ekka jumped back in surprise, clutching a rather startled awake Flutter to her chest. "Mr. Xavier...?" Ekka said, her voice for some reason feeling coarse and small. She couldn't help but let out a loud, sick cough, which left her lightheaded and dizzy.

"What on earth are you doing out here!?" Charles demanded. Ekka froze. She was in trouble now. Father would punish her severely. He was going to kill her just like he killed Fira! 

"I–I am sorry," Ekka murmured, simultaneously moving away from the man. She was in so much trouble now. She couldn't perform if she was sick! He was going to kill her if she was sick! Ekka curled in on herself, tears welling in her eyes, "I am sorry! I–I am sorry! I—"

"Hank, get her to the infirmary," Charles ordered. Ekka felt hands come up underneath her, and she tensed, scrambling away, accidentally releasing Flutter as well. Her scorched finger began to burn, and her missing pinky ached. She was vividly aware of all the marks of her lashings on her back, which made chills run down her spine.

'Ekka, please, calm down,' Mr. Xavier's voice echoed in her head. 'We're here to help. Let Mr. McCoy take you to the infirmary.' Ekka began to cry, ignoring his instructions. She was terrified, and he was going to punish her. She could feel Father's dark eyes boring into her skull. Ekka couldn't get her thoughts in order, everything was in a chaotic state. She didn't know whether to stand there and allow her punishment, or run. Of course, if she did, her punishment would be significantly worse.

Her mind shifted, priories changing completely. Flutter. Find Flutter. She heard her sharp tweeting, and looked down. Flutter was by her foot, pecking at her toes. She slowly picked up the small bird, rubbing her head and belly. The bird chirped in pleasure, despite the fact that Ekka's fingers were cold and trembling.

Someone picked her up again, and Ekka didn't protest, their fast movements to get her inside lulled her to sleep.

~.•*•.~

Ekka woke in a strange place. It was white and very clean. The windows were large, but closed and allowed sunlight to peek through the curtains. Ekka glanced around, nobody was there, but she did spot Flutter resting beside her on a nightstand with a small blanket to give her warmth.

The doors opened and Ekka fell back in the bed, pretending that she was asleep. Her heart beat wildly in her chest and she had to force herself to calm down. "I know you're awake, Miss Ekka," Xavier spoke up. Ekka peeked an eye at the man, who was in his wheelchair beside her bed.

"I apologize..." Ekka murmured, sitting up as well.

"Why is that?"

"I..." She bit her lip, "I was scared... I did not want to get in trouble, so I hid..."

"Don't worry about that," he said, waving it away. "Why were you sleeping outside, Miss Ekka?"

"I..." Ekka looked down, not meeting his eyes, "I did not want to bring dirt inside. I supposed that if I stayed outside, it would just harden, and–and then I could..." Ekka trailed off, feeling stupid.

"You are very smart, Miss Ekka, and I am pleased that you were being mindful of the house rules. However, that is not an excuse to get yourself sick." Ekka hung her head in shame. "Luckily, one of the upperclassmen with healing attributes was generous enough to heal you back to your original health. But, that doesn't excuse your actions." Ekka gave a small nod. "How did you get so muddy in the first place?"

"Flutter and I were playing in the mud, and it got out of hand," Ekka lied immediately. She didn't want to lose her tongue if she told the truth.

Charles narrowed his eyes, "Are you certain?"

"Y–Yes," Ekka nodded.

"You realize that there were strict rules for the students not to play in the mud after it rained?"

"Yes..." Ekka murmured. "I apologize. I will not do it again."

Xavier gave her another suspicious look, "Okay then..." He cleared his throat. "Since it is the rules, I'll have to give you two weeks of detention. No playing outside. And, you'll have to help clean up the dishes during meal times as well."

"Yes, Mr. Xavier," Ekka murmured, balling her hands around the sheets.

Xavier was quiet for a long while, "Are you positive nothing else happened, Miss Ekka?"

"Yes, Mr. Xavier," Ekka replied, her voice hollow. "I am the one at fault. I apologize."

Xavier pressed his lips into a thin line, "Goodbye, Miss Ekka. I'll send down the student to check your injuries again." He turned in his wheelchair and left.

~.•*•.~

The student with the healing powers was very nice to Ekka. His name was Issac. He had dark skin, tanned by the sun, and short hair that was no taller than a few inches. He asked her a lot of questions, like what her favourite colour was, or what her favourite animals were. Although Ekka couldn't answer them all — she didn't know how to say a few words in English, and he sometimes couldn't understand her with her accent — she still had a lot of fun.

Ekka was sad when he finished, but he gave her a sticker for being cooperative so she was happy again. Ekka had never had a sticker before and was very intrigued by it. "How does it work?" She asked, staring at how the flimsy paper star stuck to her finger.

"Just stick it on something," Issac explained. Ekka slowly placed the sticker on the back of her hand, then beamed. "Have you really never had a sticker before?"

"We did not have your... Stickers where I am from," Ekka admitted. It was the truth. The chance Father would reward them for anything, especially with stickers, was extremely unlikely.

Issac's eyes went soft and he smiled a little. "Well, then here. Have two," he peeled off another sticker and handed it to her. Ekka's eyes lit up with pure excitement. She gently took it from his finger and placed it on her hand again, this time a little lower than the last.

"Thank you!" Ekka beamed.

"Maybe if I see you again, you'll get a glittery sticker, okay?" Ekka nodded feeling her small stars and giggling to herself.

"Issac!" A voice shouted. Ekka jumped, her eyes widening. All traces of excitement left her eyes and was replaced with fear. A girl stood in the doorway of the infirmary. She was tall and had red hair with green eyes. She wore a blue sweater with a silly design of a cartoon heart, and jeans. She looked irritated, but not angry. Ekka allowed herself to relax a little. "We need to get going. The others are waiting on us." It took Ekka a second, but she remembered her as the girl from Halloween. Her name was Jean, if Ekka recalled.

"Let me finish up," he replied and turned back to Ekka. "You're all set. You can go to the shower now, and wash your hair, just in case."

"Yes, Mister Isaac." Isaac gave her a pat on the shoulder, and Ekka jumped, tensing immediately. Both students noticed it, but neither said anything about it.

"Well... Then, I'll see you later, Ekka," he smiled and Ekka slipped out of the bed, scooping up Flutter as she left.

Jean smiled down at her, making small dimples appear on her cheeks. "Hey, Ekka," she greeted, then looked to Flutter that was perched on her shoulder. "Hello Flutter!"

"Hello, Miss Jean," Ekka replied, giving the older student a small smile.

"I'd love to talk, but we have to get going. Professor said we can head into the city to buy our Christmas presents. And, I've got a long list from a bunch of friends who want us to run a few errands while we're out," Jean paused. "Do you have anything you want?"

"Uhm..." Ekka twisted her finger, "N–No... I do–do not think so..."

"Well, tell me, or the guys, if you think of anything, we'll get it for you," Jean beamed.

"Thank you..." Ekka replied softly, not quite knowing how to respond. She suddenly remembered that lunch would be starting soon, and she still needed to take a shower and straighten up the cafeteria, as apart of her punishment. "Goodbye, Miss Jean and Mister Isaac!" She called out as she hurried down the hall, quickly walking towards the cafeteria so she didn't break the 'no running' rule.

~.•*•.~

The next few days weren't so bad. All she had to do was clean down the tables after every meal time, and put away the dishes. A few other older students who were given the same punishment as her helped, but they did it begrudgingly, and often did not clean up fully. This meant Ekka had to straighten up after them, making her redo the dishes that were still dirty, and re-clean the tables that still held food stains. This extra work caused Ekka to be late for her classes after the meal times — her science and math class.

Her tardiness only irritated her teachers. Although Mrs. Kenny was annoyed, and gave her extra work, she didn't dwell on it. Mr. George, however, relished in it. Her tardiness irritated him, and he decided to punish her in his own... Unique way. He had moved her to the seat beside his desk without a table, and she was to work beside him there. Ekka was forced to write on her knees, and whenever no one would raise their hands for a question, Ekka was forced to answer.

Sometimes, nobody raised their hands, just to watch their peer nervously give an answer, that was usually wrong. It felt like torture, and Ekka hated it. She felt as if she were back at the Circus again, with hundreds of pairs of eyes watching her and her lions. At least then, she could try to do something that could entertain them — they wanted her lions to dance and sing, after all, not her. But this time, Ekka was alone, and stripped of her lions. She was their entertainment, and she was supposed to dance and sing like a loyal puppet attached to strings.

Everyday afterwards, Ekka felt like crying. She had never escaped Father, not really. There would always be a 'Father' in her life, just taking different forms. Mr. George, Delilah and her friends, they were both exactly like Father, and there would always be more. Ekka would never be able to escape him. Why had she even tried?

Would Father look for her? All the way in America? Could he? Ekka didn't know, and it made her feel sick to even think about the possibility.

Ekka continued to pick the dishes off the table, standing straight. This would be the evening of her fifth night cleaning, and she still had nine more to go. She didn't mind, though. Sometimes, Ekka liked to be alone with her thoughts, as long as they didn't stray too far, too fast, like they just had. It was almost like being in the forest again, listen to the sounds of nature all around her. She enjoyed it.

Ekka precariously balanced a few cups on a plate with several utensils shoved inside the cups, watching her steps carefully. This was her last load of dishes before she had to clean off the tables. All the other students left, having finished their jobs, and wanted to go to bed. Ekka was left with cleaning up the messes they forgot, and the dishes they discarded.

"Boo!" Someone shouted right in Ekka's ear. Ekka screamed, losing balance immediately. The dishes fell to the ground, the glass ones shattering into a million pieces. Ekka stumbled to get away, tripping over her own feet.

Her palms collided with the glass, shards embedding themselves deep in Ekka's skin, making her bleed immediately. She hissed in pain, bringing her hands to her chest.

The other girls began to laugh at her pain, "Did you see that!?" Samantha cackled.

"She jumped like eight feet!" Andrea replied, wiping tears from her eyes. Ekka looked down, focusing her attention on her bleeding hands. She tried to pull one of the bigger shards of glass out, but stopped when it began to hurt too much.

"Have fun cleaning, little piggy~," Delilah giggled, and the four students left.

Ekka stared at her hands before shakily beginning to try to pick up the dishes on the ground. The smallest movements of her hands caused burning hot pain, but it didn't stop Ekka. She had slowly began to make a small pile of shards, so she could clean them up. The shards lacerated her fingers in retaliation, but Ekka didn't complain.

A hand placed itself on Ekka's shoulder and she worked. She froze, looking up. Mr. Xavier was beside her, out of his wheelchair again. She blinked a few times realizing her sight had gone blurry, she barely stopped herself from using her hands to rub the tears from her eyes.

"What happened?" Xavier's voice was soft, understanding. He didn't sound like he was going to yell at her, but Ekka was still chary, and turned back to her work.

"I was playing and I tripped," Ekka whispered, "It is my fault. I should have been working."

"Miss Ekka—"

"I apologize," she continued. "I... Will deal with this, then go to bed." Ekka scooped up the glass and winced, even more shards cutting her skin. A few pieces even fell, embedding themselves in her bare feet as well. Ekka slowly threw them in the trash bin, mechanically turning to get the dishes.

"Are you lying to me, Miss Ekka?" Xavier asked. Ekka hinted a bit of disappointment in his tone. She looked at him, and smiled, a small, false smile.

"No."

~.•*•.~

The last and final days of her punishment passed, and Ekka felt relieved. Her hands were tightly bandaged, Isaac had exhausted his power to help a student who had fell from a tree and twisted his ankle. So, he had gotten a pair of tweezers and fixed her hands the old fashioned way.

Xavier had began to ask more questions about the mud and glass incident, but Ekka lied every time. She knew he knew she was lying, due to his abilities, but... He was doing nothing to help her. Almost as if he wanted her to say something, but at the same time, knew she wouldn't.

Christmas came. Ekka received a few presents from her teachers, Vera, Xavier — but he gave everyone a present though — and, Isaac.

Vera made her and Flutter a sweater, but really looked like a full body-warmer, since it only had two, wide holes. Ekka graciously accepted the gift, something she never had gotten herself before. Flutter's actually had holes, for her legs and wings — Vera had gotten Jess to help her for Flutter's gift — and the small bird wore it everyday with pride.

Xavier and the teachers all gave everyone the same gift. For Xavier, a snow globe that looked like the school, and from the teachers, a homework pass based on how many A's they had so far.

Her favourite present, was Isaac's. A book full of stickers of all kinds. When he gave it to her, Ekka was stunned. Then, she hugged him, the first hug she had really given anyone since... Fira.

Ekka flipped through the book, took out a great big sticker, a blue bird, and placed it on the back of his hand. Isaac laughed, naming the bird Flitter. Flutter, jealous of the bird, poked his hand, upset. Flutter's wing was taken out of her cast a few weeks earlier, and allowing her to be able to glide down from high places, but not quite 'fly' yet.

Then, there was 'Secret Santa'. Ekka had been lucky enough to get Xavier. Her present to him was a blanket she made that had the big 'X' with a circle around it. Then, she scraggily wrote his name with embroidery in the corner — with much help. The blanket itself was made out of the material of clothing she had found that the students grew out of and couldn't be worn again. The patches were meticulously arranged. It wasn't the prettiest thing in the world, but Ekka liked to think that her present had a piece of every student, and that was okay. It was big enough to fit over his legs on the wheelchair, so Ekka thought it would fit.

Charles loved it, and the idea that he had 'a little bit of everyone'. He put the blanket over his lower torso, with the 'X' sticking out.

After they had a party, and most of the students with somewhere to go went home, the few leftover took advantage of the several snow storms they received, building snow sculptures, having intense snow fights, or ice skating on the pond.

Ekka decided to ice skate on the pond, and left Flutter inside. It was too cold for her, and she didn't complain. Ekka waited until a student was willing to give up their shoes. When she finally gotten a pair of ice skates, she tried them on, the ground was slippery and it was very hard to balance. Several times, Ekka slipped and fell on the ice.

Ekka frowned in frustration, looking at all the other students. They seemed to be gliding on the ice, putting one foot in front of the other, balancing on the blades. Ekka moved towards the edge, before shakily standing and trying again.

Ekka copied their movements, pushing herself to glide on the ice, and it worked. She giggled, and continued to skate, occasionally glancing down to see if she was still standing.

As Ekka skated, her mind went back to her dancing routine with Fira. A small, nostalgic smile touched her lips, and she began the routine. It was a fast dance she and Fira performed in the Circus, and was almost hard to convey the same on ice. She struggled to remember a few of the moves, but as she skated, the memories came flooding back.

Ekka was flying on the ice. She was twisting and turning, jumping and spinning. She would skate along the very edge, picking up momentum, before she'd jump, soaring through the air. She felt like Fira was right beside her, laughing as she paralleled Ekka every move.

The dance originally finished with Ekka throwing Fira in the air, and performers on the trapezes catching her, but without a partner, Ekka simply threw her hands in the air, as if to say 'ta-da!'.

Ekka was surprised to hear clapping explode around her. She jumped, barely able to keep her balance. Everyone had been watching her and her pretend performance. Ekka looked down nervously, and began to skate away, embarrassed.

A chunk of ice slammed into the blade of Ekka's skates as she skated. She gasped, tripping forwards before her balance completely left her. She slammed unto the pond's surface, skidding towards the far side of the pond.

Everything was fine for a moment, and Ekka tried to get up. Then, she saw a mark under her hand. When she raised it, there was a crack in the ice. Ekka jumped, and began to run, but the ice was faster. Soon, there was no floor under her feet and Ekka fell through the ice, into the freezing cold water.

The feeling of a thousand needles, stabbing her all at once was what Ekka felt in the water. Her thoughts were scrambled, and she struggled to get back above water, but the weight of her clothes, and the skates dragged her down. Ekka gasped for air, bubbles leaving her mouth and water entering her lungs. She couldn't swim! She couldn't breath! She was going to die!

'Hold on Ekka! We're coming!' A voice sounded as far away and echoey. Ekka felt something wrap around her before her eyes slammed shut.

~.•*•.~

Ekka heard a slow beeping sound when her eyes opened again. She saw Flutter, resting on her chest. She moved to get up, but she was attach to so many wires and needles. So, she laid back down, trying to go back to sleep.

The door open just before her eyes closed. She looked over to see Hank and Xavier. "Hello Miss Ekka," Xavier greeted warmly.

"Hello..." She murmured.

"Isaac already paid you a visit, but you will still take a little while to recover."

"Okay..."

"Do you want anything hot? I can have some hot chocolate prepared for you." Ekka gave a small nod and Hank walked away, closing the door behind him. "Miss Ekka, do you know how this happened?" Ekka didn't respond quickly. She knew this had been another attack from Delilah, and the others. There was no uneven ice on the pond, the teachers cleaned it off, making it perfectly smooth too. Besides, the ice chunk was huge and came directly for Ekka.

"I tripped," Ekka lied. "I–I should not have tried to skate if I did not know what I was doing. I apologize."

"Is that true?"

"Yes, Mister Xavier."

"Well, I have four students outside saying that they were the reason you fell. What am I going to tell them?"

Ekka's eyes widened, "No! I did it! It was my fault I—" she stopped herself when Xavier rose his hand. She imagined Father, with a knife in his hand, glaring at her. Ekka turning away, trembling, tears in her eyes, "I–I am sorry, I...—" her heart was racing in her chest, and didn't seem to slow anytime soon.

"Miss Ekka," Xavier's voice was soft, calm. "Is there something you'd like to tell me?" Ekka shook her head violently, making messy, still damp curls fly from side to side. "Why?"

"Fa–Father said i–if we tried t–to get help, he wo–would take our tongues," At her confession, Charles's eyes went wide, shocked. "I–I was scared. I–I did not want to an–anger you, and I–I did not wa–want to be punished," Ekka stammered. "I... I apologize, I..." More tears left her eyes, and Ekka sank into the blankets for false security.

Xavier didn't say anything for a long moment. "Move over, Ekka." Ekka did, and, with much effort, he lifted himself onto her bed. "Let me remind you, I would never, ever take your tongue from you."

"I–I di–did not k–know..." Ekka whispered, and he smiled at her.

"I know. But, now you do. And, I would never not allow you to speak up if someone is bothering you. Please, tell me these things. I can help." Ekka nodded mutely. Xavier straightened on the bed, "Now, clarify something for me. When you were 'playing with mud', that was not your fault, correct?"

"I—"

"Yes, or no."

Ekka held her head in shame, "... No..."

"And, the dishes incident?"

"But... I..." She sighed when he saw the look he gave her, "No..."

"Okay, then. I'll decide a punishment for those girls, and let you recover."

"But, I do not want them to be punished!" Ekka exclaimed. "Then, it... It would be just like Father! I would be just like Father!" Xavier rose an eyebrow at her exclamation. "Please, do not punish them. Let... Let them talk, learn from their mistakes."

Charles gave Ekka a strange look, "These are the girls that assaulted you several times. Are you sure you want them to—" Ekka nodded frantically. "... If you believe that is the best." Xavier lifted himself off the bed and back into his wheelchair. "I believe Mr. McCoy has your hot chocolate, but there are some people who would like to see you first."

Xavier wheeled himself to the door, and pulled it open from the side. Students began flooding in, the first of them being Vera.

"Oh, my god, Ekka! You're okay!" Vera cried over the mass of talking people. She hugged Ekka from her half laying, half sitting position.

Ekka laughed a little, "Yes, I am."

Someone else stepped forward, Isaac. "Nice to see you're alright, short stuff." Vera moved and Isaac gave her a hug. All the other students began to pile in, either thanking Ekka for something that she had done for them, or their wishes in her getting back to normal health.

Ekka was surprised at the amount of people that greeted her. She felt a few tears roll down her cheeks, but she wiped at them, and smiled to the students. Ekka felt warm, despite falling into a froze river. She felt loved, and cared for, something she hadn't felt since she met Fira.

A smile touched Ekka's lips, and she replied, "Thank you."

~.•*•.~.•*•.~.•*•.~.•*•.~.•*•.~.•*•.~.•*•.~

Here ya go~! This isn't going to be the 'big' Christmas chapter, I have that reserved for someone else, heheh~...

This idea has been on my mind for a while, so I'm happy to finally get it out — and its 5,000+ words too!

I hope you like the idea! It's a little angsty, a little sweet. Valuable lessons learns, don't lie to a mind reader.

(Off topic question: Has anyone gotten snow yet!? We've been snow deprived and it's almost Christmas too 😞!)

I'll see y'all later, and remember...

Don't melt~!~ Happyritas <OOO

~.•*•.~.•*•.~.•*•.~.•*•.~.•*•.~.•*•.~

Edited: 3/19/17