Chapter 2: First School Day

"Hey, Sean," Scott said from the school bus seat behind the boy with the wild red hair. "Why don't you and Megan walk into the school, separate from us, just to see what happens."

"What do you mean by 'to see what happens'?" Sean asked suspiciously. Scott was the only person that Sean had met that liked pulling jokes on other people as much as Sean did. Any time Scott wanted someone else 'to see what happened', Sean was suspicious.

"Well, the bullies, ah, idiots, um, other students know us and they know not to mess with us," Scott said innocently.

"Now what would give you that idea?" AJ asked laughing. "Was it the dislocated shoulder of that linebacker that tried to get friendly Bell?"

"Hey, that was an accident," she protested. "His arm should have broke before his shoulder came loose. Besides, he was trying to get more than just friendly."

"Maybe they don't mess with us because of AJ causing half the football team to miss a couple of games with sprains and strains," Lilly said drily.

"At least I didn't break anything and keep them out the rest of the season, like Bell did," AJ protested.

"I couldn't help it, AJ," Bell complained and sounding frustrated. "He was too big to be gentle with."

"I could have taken care of it for you," Scott said reasonably.

"Oh, yeah," Bell scoffed. "What would have made the Neanderthals angrier? Being taken out by a five foot four inch girl that's a Junior, or a Sophomore boy that wasn't much bigger? They would have been laying for you around every corner. At least with me, they could claim, publicly, that it was an accident."

"Okay, okay," Sean said laughing and holding up his hands. "You want to see how the bullies will react to Megan and I, but they won't do anything if we're with you. Is that about right?"

"I don't like bullies," Megan said flatly. "If a bully messes with me, I'm going to break him."

"Now, Megan," Sean said, smiling at the diminutive blonde sitting beside him. "Momma warned us about breaking people before we left, this morning. There are other ways to solve the problem of a bully without damaging them severely."

"How about if the damage isn't severe?" Megan asked hopefully.

"This is going to be so much fun," chortled Scott.

"You've got that right, little brother," Lilly laughed with him and gave him a high five.

"Look, Sean," AJ said reasonably. "I'm supposed to try to watch out for you. Right?" He didn't wait for an answer. "I know these guys aren't a threat to you; but according to Brennan, protecting you from yourself, is nearly as important as protecting you from others. That's why Brennan still won't let Cory drive after all these years in America. I don't want you getting kicked out of school for fighting on the first day."

AJ turned to Scott and scolded him. "You're supposed to be one of his Seconds. How is getting him into a situation that could get him kicked out of school protecting him?"

"By creating a situation that we can control, if necessary," Scott retorted. "Sean doesn't look imposing does he?"

Scott turned to Sean and asked, "What are you now? Five foot six or five foot seven?"

"I'm five eight," Sean said wincing, and a little defensively. "Barely," he said under his breath, "When I push a little with my toes".

He had hoped to be as tall as his birth father who was six foot tall. That hope dimmed with each month that passed. He wasn't ashamed of his height, or even embarrassed by it. But, Sean had noticed that people often seemed to overlook him because of his height. He didn't want to be an imposing figure, but he didn't want to be ignored because someone else was taller either.

Udit had explained that it was an ego thing and Sean's mind drifted back to that conversation. "Everyone has an ego," the old Shaman had explained. "The good thing about that is, the ego is what helps you strive to succeed. The bad thing about the ego is that, everyone has a soft spot in it that is sensitive. For some people it's their weight. For others it's their fear of someone finding out how scared they are as they go through life. For you, it's your height. The thing for you to remember is, your height isn't what defines you. If a person is overweight, does that make them a good person or a bad person?"

"No! Of course not," Sean had retorted.

"Does it make you a good person or a bad person if you're short or tall?" the Shaman had asked, demanded.

"No," Sean had answered in a softer voice.

"Then, get over it. Accept what is. Look at the reality in life, just like you would in a battle," Udit had ordered before turning and walking away.

The bus hit a bump, and Sean snapped back to the conversation.

Scott nodded, ignoring Sean's wince when mentioning his height, and the way his face blanked when his mind wandered. They were used to Sean seeming to go in and out of the present. He turned back to AJ. "We know two things, AJ. The idiots will take a shot at Sean because he's smaller than most of them, and new to the school. They'll see him as fresh meat. I don't think any of them could be a danger to him, but I'd rather get it out of the way in a situation we can control so we know he won't be in danger."

AJ nodded slowly and said, "That almost makes sense, Scott. What's the second thing?"

Scott took a deep breath and looked at Megan from the corner of his eye before replying. "Megan's a new girl in the school and she's really good looking, too. They're going to hit on her early, and often, unless we nip it in the bud. If we do this right, we can solve both problems today."

Scott had a crush on Megan. He knew that Megan and Sean were an item, and would never intrude on their relationship. The fact still remained that Scott believed the sun rose in the morning, simply to shine on Megan.

"He does make sense," Bell said thoughtfully. "I can be with Megan most of the time, because most of our classes are together. I'm uncomfortable with the times I can't be with her though. I'm for anything that adds an extra layer of protection to her, when I'm not around."

"Just because you're one of my Seconds, doesn't mean that you're my babysitter," Megan complained. "This whole high school thing is supposed to expose us to the reality of everyday society. If you guys are going to wrap us in cocoons, then what's the point?"

"Oh, you'll be exposed to the reality of everyday society," Lilly said drily. "Sanding off some of the rough edges of that exposure before it becomes a problem isn't a bad idea, though, even if it was my brother's idea."

"Hey," Scott protested good naturedly. "I thought big sisters are supposed to encourage their little brothers."

"Nope," Lilly replied before sticking her nose in the air and continuing. "The misconception that big sisters are supposed to encourage little brothers is caused by fiction writers. That's because that's the only place it happens." Then she giggled.

"Okay," AJ said, deep in thought, as he considered the different ways such a confrontation would work. "Here's how we'll do this..."

AJ considered himself and Scott as Sean's Seconds, or helpers. Lilly and Bell were Megan's Seconds but, AJ was the acknowledged leader of the four.

The school bus stopped in front of Prescott High School and the door opened. One of the first students off the bus was a slender kid with a wild mop of red hair. He looked like he was almost five foot eight inches tall but he couldn't have weighed more than a hundred-forty pounds. He paused after he stepped down. Looking back, he offered his hand to a tiny blonde girl that was stepping down behind him. The blonde girl may have been as tall as five-one ... if she was wearing high heels ... but she would never have reached one hundred pounds even if she was soaking wet.

The pair of them took a few steps away from the bus, to look around, and to give other students room to exit. This would be their world for the next nine months. Sean was also monitoring AJ, as he made his way towards the front of the bus.

AJ had pointed out the group of guys Sean and Megan needed to watch out for. They were lounging on the front steps of the school, as if they were kings surveying their domain.

"This will be a pleasure," Megan growled under her breath. She saw one of the group sitting on the steps trip a very young looking kid hurrying towards the doors. He was probably a freshman. She started stalking forward but Sean grabbed her arm and held her back.

"Stick with the plan," Sean said quietly. "We're trying to make a point here and, maybe, gain a little respect."

"I don't give a damn about respect," Megan spat. "I'll bet they fear me when I'm through, though."

"And this whole going to school thing comes to a screeching halt?" Sean asked calmly. "We'll take care of them and give them notice at the same time. Just follow the plan. AJ's getting ready to get off. Let's go."

Sean and Megan started walking towards the front doors of the high school. They continued looking around like country hicks in the big city. Their route took them near the group of guys. Behind them, AJ and Scott went one direction while Lilly and Bell went the other. The four of them didn't exactly flank Sean and Megan. They were far enough away that no one would suspect they were together, but close enough to respond the way they had planned.

To Sean, it was easy to tell which of the group of guys would take action. He was the largest of the guys and he looked like he was swaggering, even while sitting on the step. The boy was at least six inches taller than Sean and out weighted him by a good fifty pounds. He was the obvious leader of the group and he slowly stood up as Sean and Megan approached the stairs.

Sean used a tendril of air to gently untie the shoelaces of the boy's tennis shoe that seemed most likely to be the foot he stepped off on. He wedged the shoelace under the other shoe so that, when he tried to take a step, his foot wouldn't move. He was prepared to catch the bully when he fell. Of course, he would use a little air to assist him.