16th
Mission
Luke 7:36 - 50
The Pharisee, Simon, didn't offer the usual hospitality to Jesus.
The woman cleaning Jesus' feet.
- A risky act of adoration and worship.
Jesus sends off the woman in peace.
What does this say about mission?
We shouldn't have a lukewarm response to Jesus
Who are you like in this story?
- The woman?
- Or Simon?
Jesus sees people that no one else sees.
Brittany
considered patrolling as she left the Historia, but she knew Ashley-Amber would
get more suspicious if she was late for another night in a row. ‘I can catch up
with Quinn in the early hours,’ she thought.
SpiderGirl
headed out not long after midnight when she found that she couldn’t get to
sleep. The thoughts about Kevin and Oscorp together were keeping her awake.
After a short time listening to the town on the roof, she headed towards the
Jefferson Bridge.
Brittany
saw Quinn arrive as SpiderGirl and then unmask.
“You
think something is off too?” Quinn asked.
“Yes.
Something to do with Osborn may have been doing last night,” Brittany
responded.
“I
agree. But where? We can’t just assume it’s the Country Club.”
Brittany
nodded. “We could patrol, but miss what he might be up to.”
“And the
Country Club can’t be seen from the Historia or the Giant Strawberry.”
“Nor
from school.”
“But we
can check on it,” Quinn decided.
Brittany
nodded in agreement before pulling her mask on.
They
headed southeast from the Bridge, through the more well to do subdivisions of
Lawndale, and skirting Crewe Necke to the southwest.
They
were getting closed when SpiderGirl paused. “It’s not the glider, it’s
something else. Multiple other machines,” she said.
“That’s
not good,” Ninja Talon responded. “What do they sound like?”
“Not
sure. We have to get closer.”
They
swung over the last line of trees to find a line of snow machines working at
full pelt in an attempt to cover the fairways with snow.
They
both paused and swung back amongst foliage. “This is unexpected,” SpiderGirl
commented.
“Maybe
Osborn is using this to disrupt the Country Club.”
“That
makes sense, but we can’t just leap in and stop it.”
Ninja
Talon nodded. “We need to talk to some of the operators first.”
“I
agree.”
However,
as they came closer, they saw that one of the operators was Sam Elders. “I
suppose that’s one reason he was bailed,” SpiderGirl mused.
“We’ll
have to ask him,” Ninja Talon said.
“We’ll
do that right now.”
Sam
Elders was surprised when he heard the thwip of SpiderGirl’s webbing
over the din of the snow machine. He turned in the direction. “SpiderGirl!”
“What is
going on here?” SpiderGirl asked.
“Nothing
illegal,” he answered.
“It is
if the Country Club doesn’t agree,” Ninja Talon said after creeping up.
“All I
know is, this is a job,” Sam responded.
“Then
you don’t know who it is for?” SpiderGirl asked.
“No.”
“You
really should be asking questions,” SpiderGirl said.
“It’s
likely Norman Osborn at the top,” Ninja Talon added.
“That
doesn’t change anything!” Sam objected.
“What if
we told you that he may be responsible for Groundhog Day,” SpiderGirl said.
“I would
be skeptical,” Sam said. “Let me get on with this.”
“No.”
SpiderGirl said. “We need to get to the bottom of this.”
“There
isn’t much time,” Ninja Talon said. “Our contact may be asleep.”
“We may
need to wake them,” SpiderGirl said.
“A
contact?” Sam asked.
“No
comment!” Ninja Talon responded.
“So…” SpiderGirl
prompted.
“We’ll
wake them,” Ninja Talon responded.
Andrea hadn’t
been sleeping anyway, with the thoughts of what was going on in Lawndale, along
with O’Neill’s assignment and the passing fad being heavily on her mind. She
was about to dial up, when the phone rang. She picked it up without hesitation.
“Hello? Talon?” she asked, she asked as she was sure that Brittany was being
her heroine alter ego.
“Yes,
Andrea. Spidey and I need you to check something.”
“Why am
I not surprised?” she asked rhetorically. “Fill me in.”
SpiderGirl
waited as Ninja Talon filled Andrea in. As she did so, she stood just outside
the phone booth, listening. Although the din of the snow machines was still
quite close, she could listen to the town northwards. There wasn’t much
happening. Dogs barking in the distance, owls hooting along the Creek. She
couldn’t hear the gilder. That was certain. ‘Osborn is changing up his tactics.
Burying the Country Club in snow would be temporary disruption at best. What
would he get out of it?’
“So,
that’s it?” Andrea asked when Brittany had finished.
“Yes.
Find out what may be happening here. Spidey and I will try to stop it without
too much damage or hurting the operators.”
“SpiderGirl’s
webbing doesn’t seem to hurt anyone it restrains,” Andrea pointed out.
“That’s
true, but sometimes they struggle, and she’s not experienced with equipment
like this.”
“Got it.
But this would probably take till breakfast time. Either way, we will catch up
at school.”
“Sure.”
“I will
need to web up Sam, but maybe the other operators will be more reasonable,”
SpiderGirl said in a hopeful tone as Ninja Talon hung up.
“Hopefully.”
Sam
wasn’t that surprised when he heard a thwip! and found himself
restrained. “SpiderGirl! Decided to interfere anyway?”
“Exactly,”
SpiderGirl said as
Ninja
Talon turned the snow machine off. “On to the next one.”
“You
can’t just leave me here!” Sam said.
“You’ll
be safe,” SpiderGirl said. “Gotta go!”
“It did
sound suspicious, but I was desperate,” One of the others said.
“That’s
what we have been hearing,” SpiderGirl said.
“But if
you’re sure that the Country Club didn’t ask themselves…” the worker paused and
then switched off the machine himself.
“Five
down,” Ninja Talon said.
“However
many more to go,” SpiderGIrl added.
Norman
Osborn was awake. He was waiting for a report on the burial of the Country
Club. When the phone rang he picked it before second ring.
“Mr.
Osborn! Vigilantes have interfered as you suspected they would.”
“Which
ones?” he asked.
“SpiderGirl
and Ninja Talon, sir.”
“Of
course,” Norman groused.
“They’ve
turned them all off.”
“Of
course they did. Withdraw.”
“Aye,
sir,” the supervisor said before hanging up.
“SpiderGirl
and Ninja Talon…. But that leaves the Griffins, the Shadow and Dafoanairi. They
could be anywhere.”
SpiderGirl
and Ninja Talon finished shutting down the snow machines. “Done,” the former
said.
“But
what else?” Ninja Talon asked.
“It
could be anywhere,” SpiderGirl said as she looked back towards the center of
Lawndale. “Or maybe he wants us paranoid and running about in a panic.”
“We
could look over the town from the Historia and the Strawberry. If he’s up to
something, we may find it.”
“Even
with those vantage points we can’t see the entire town, but it’s a good
starting point. I’ll head to the Strawberry.”
“I’ll
take the Historia,” Ninja Talon agreed. “Then we can catch up at the Bridge or
at school.”
SpiderGirl
yawned. “Probably school.”
Ninja
Talon arrived at the Historia first, to find the Shadow there, sketching the
skyline.
“Ninja
Talon?” the latter asked.
“Hi,
Shadow. have you seen anything?”
“Not
much, although there was a low rumble to the south a short while ago.”
“That
was something Spidey and I dealt with,” Ninja Talon responded.
“What
was it?”
Ninja
Talon then told the Shadow about the snow machines that Oscorp might have been
behind them, but not about Sam.
SpiderGirl
arrived at the Giant Strawberry and found it deserted. It wasn’t that she had
expected anyone to be there, but that it was possible that either Kevin or the
Enigma could have been present.
First,
she looked out over the town, which seemed calm. ‘Resting,’ she thought.
She then
looked through the telescopes. She saw two figures on the Historia rooftop in
the distance. ‘Talon and someone else talking,’ she considered. She looked
elsewhere, but there was no suspicious activity other than the occasional
Oscorp agent on a rooftop. ‘They’re doing what they have usually been doing.’
She then
heard sirens to the northeast near the Interstate. “Responsibility calls,” she
said as she swung away.
The
Shadow thought about what Ninja Talon had revealed. A plot by Norman Osborn to
destroy the Country Club? It seemed rather petty. ‘It does line up with the
rumors about that meeting at Grace, Sloane and Page.’
“What do
you think?”
“That
you’re right. Osborn is up to something. But it seems that it is just one plan
among many.”
“That’s
obvious,” Ninja Talon said seriously.
“But it
seems you two can’t do much more tonight.”
“I have got
in touch with a person I know who can hack.”
“I think
SpiderGirl mentioned that before,” the Shadow said.
“When
was that?”
“Just
after the robodactyl attack.”
SpiderGirl
arrived at the location and found Officer Peterson and her partner having
pulled over a drunk driver. “Oh!” she said.
“Not
much here,” Peterson said.
“I
know.”
“But did
you want to talk about something.”
“Yes,”
SpiderGirl said before filling Peterson in on both Kevin’s obsession and the
incident at the Country Club.
9th
Matthew 5:38 - 48
vs 40
Gr. Telos - a task that is completed
Gr. Teleos - A fully completed task
To be like God
- Loving your enemies
- Loving the unlovely
Do the full job
Romans 5:8
A practical, stark, message
vs 38, 39
Jesus is calling us to be humble and not to react aggressively
Matthew 5:9
Keep the peace. Be a peacemaker.
Jesus is calling us to calm down and realise that God is taking care of us.
vs 46
Calling us to talk to others.
Sandi
entered at that moment and saw Kevin making a fool of himself. “That’s enough,
Kevin. I was there last night at the Historia. There’s, like, no need for a
repeat.
“I heard
about that,” Mack said.
Daria
and Jane also entered the cafeteria behind Sandi. “Kevin, you haven’t been
listening to me,” the latter said.
Brittany
tried to ignore him and just took another bite from her meal.
“Embarrassed?”
her friend, Donna Bolton, asked.
“Not
really,” Brittany answered. “But I think it’s related to his kidnapping.”
Donna
nodded. “I mean, Anders did humiliate him in front of all of Lawndale.”
“And so,
this is how he’s coping.”
At the
same time, Quinn, Stacy and Tori entered the Science faculty office. “Ms.
Barch?” Tori asked.
“I’m
here,” Ms. Janet Barch said as she came out of her cubicle. “What do you want?”
“You
know about the assignment Mr. O’Neill put out?” Quinn asked.
“I do.
He was enthusiastic about it on Monday night.”
“Right,”
Quinn responded and then explained about the Language Arts lesson.
“I see,”
Janet said when Quinn had finished. “I’ll encourage him,” she added in as
neutral a tone as possible.
And
failed, as all three students looked uncomfortable, with Stacy the most so.
“Thanks for your time,” Quinn said.
Ms. Li
entered the cafeteria to see that the reports of the quarterback making a fool
of himself were not an exaggeration. “Mr. Thompson! Get off that table this
instant!”
Kevin
jumped off the table and would have fallen over if Mack didn’t grab him.
“Thanks, Mack Daddy.”
“I told
you not to call me that.”
The
principal approached him. “Tell me, what was the meaning of this?”
“Um, I
want to go out with SpiderGirl.”
“She may
have rescued you from Lynn Anders, but that doesn’t give you an excuse to make
a scene! You will have detention this afternoon!”
“Oh
man!”
“That
was predictable,” Jodie said as she sat with Daria, Jane, Harry and Sandi
several minutes later.
“Kevin
has it in his head that because SpiderGirl rescued him she likes him,” Daria
responded.
“Unfortunately,”
Jodie responded.
“But
that’s not all that’s happening, is it?” Jane asked.
“No,”
Jodie said. “But Dad hasn’t said anything about the rumors, other than to say
that if they are true, that he would fight to the last to retain control of the
company.”
“That
seems obstinate,” Harry said.
“You
don’t know my father,” Jodie said.
Harry
opened his mouth again.
“And he
would also say that race has nothing to do with it,” Jodie said.
“I
wasn’t going to say that,” Harry said.
“I
believe that,” Jane said.
“My
father doesn’t see race when he conducts business deals. Or at least he tells
himself that.”
Lawndale
High seemed tense throughout the rest of the school day. The favorite animal
fad was fading but the consequences of Mr. O’Neill’s assignment were growing.
Jane
looked out at Lawndale from the roof as school let out. She quickly rough
sketched the Historia in the distance. The theater building looked as usual but
she was still thinking about Kevin’s new obsession with SpiderGirl. ‘If it is
now an obsession, then that means that Kevin may now be dangerous. A different
danger than Oscorp or Beck, but a danger nonetheless.’
She was
about to change to the Shadow when she heard the door open. She turned and saw
that it was Sandi. “Oh, it’s you.”
“Yes.
I’m sure you know that Daria’s tutoring Brittany.”
“Of
course.”
“I look
over the town from here sometimes,” Sandi said. “You, like, look like you’re
thinking about something.”
“Oh,
mostly about Kevin going down a dangerous path.”
“You
think he’s obsessed?”
“Yes!”
Jane answered.
Sandi
thought about that. “If he isn’t, he probably soon would be. Have you told
Daria, or one of the teachers?”
“Not
much the teachers can do outside the school. Ms. Li seems to be already on it.”
“Being
on detention is probably, like, counterproductive in his case. Stacy probably
will tell her mother.”
“But
that would only help at the Historia. Kevin still goes to the Pizza place as
well,” Jane responded.
Sandi
sighed as she stepped closer. “True.” She looked at Jane again. “That outfit
suits you.”
“Now you
compliment me? When I’m dressed in a way that you find suitable?”
“Um,
yes.”
“I’m
being conventional because I’m experimenting. And just because you and Daria
have hit it off over investigating what’s happening in Lawndale doesn’t mean
we’re friends. And whatever connection you two have to the fourth vigilante and
maybe Dafoanairi? I’m looking into that too.”
Sandi
took that in. “Go ahead.”
“I
will,” Jane proclaimed.
Jane
left the rooftop in a huff. She had found other places in the school where she
could change to the Shadow before leaving for the day.
Sandi
looked out towards the Historia. ‘The last rehearsal will be later, but I doubt
anyone would want to disrupt Tempest at this stage.’ She paused. ‘Kevin
won’t.’ Still, something seemed unsettled. ‘I will patrol around there anyway,
and watch out for any Oscorp agents.’
It
turned out that the afternoon was calmer than usual. Daria reflected on this as
she entered the Historia’s café just after sunset. ‘But there is still a lot
going on,’ she thought as she looked to where, Stacy was behind the counter.
She went up to order something before going to the rehearsal.
“So,
you’re ready for Tempest to be over?” Stacy asked after she had taken
her order.
“It
won’t really be over. There will be encore productions, including at the Story
Oak,” Daria responded, referring to theater in Oakwood that had been inspired
by the Historia.
“You
know what I mean.”
Daria
sighed. “Actually, I am. I mean I’ll miss it, but it also less stress. More
time for… other things.”
Stacy
nodded knowingly before turning to the coffee machine.
After
dinner, Sandi was ready for another search. ‘Of course, it’s likely if
SpiderGirl is her secret identity at the time, that I wouldn’t be able to
notice it’s her,’ she thought. She paused. She had already considered that
possibility. ‘But I haven’t told Daria.’ She shook her head as she grabbed the
yearbook. She noticed that Quinn was only the fifth after the current one. ‘One
search at a time!’
She
calmed herself and drank the energy drink. “Findu mann sem heiter: Rachel
Lincoln!”
She
found Rachel at Mr. Fun’s Arcade playing against Ted Dewit Clinton.
“Ted,
right.”
She
grabbed the list of extracurricular activities again.
Lawndale Lowdown – Student Newspaper
“Maybe,
but alongside both Morgendorffers,” she murmured. That would be quite awkward,
especially with Quinn. “Maybe not.”
Her
thoughts drifted back to her conservation with Jane on the rooftop about Kevin.
Were the nightly searches an indication that she was also obsessed with
SpiderGirl?
‘Maybe,
but if so, it is different to Kevin. Confrontation, yes, but after that we’d
just be rivals, not each other’s nemeses.’ Even so, she realized she wanted
Daria’s opinion on the matter. ‘But I know what she’s going to say.’
She
continued looking through the list.
Later,
the rehearsal was concluding.
“Was t
well done?” Brittany asked as Ariel.
“Bravely
and diligent. You Shall be free,” Tom said as Prospero.
The
Rehearsal concluded and Daria called the cast together.
“I must
say, that this production has been very successful. That despite Quentin Beck’s
disruption and cast members sustaining injuries. We have proven that the
Historia can be successful as a theater and a safe space in Lawndale at this
time.”
Brittany
met up with Daria as she headed out. “That was a good speech.”
“Thanks,
but it’s something I have been saying all this time,” Daria said.
“Not all
the time,” Brittany said as she twirled a pigtail “But some of the time.”
“I must
say that you’ve been improving as Ariel.”
“Thanks.”
“But we
haven’t really investigated Lawndale’s issues together since the brownouts,”
Daria said.
“I’d
like to compare notes,” Brittany said as they emerged into the foyer.
Tom was
still there. “Is that one reason why you were visiting last night?”
“Yes,”
Brittany said.
“What
was this?” Daria asked.
“Mostly
about the past two days,” Brittany answered.
“So, you
two had been investigating what’s going on?” Tom asked.
“Briefly.
From Groundhog Day until the brownouts. Then we’ve been busy with the play,”
Daria responded.
“I heard
that both of you were involved in exposing Lynn Anders regarding that fake
interview with SpiderGirl,” Tom said.
“That
was an urgent situation,” Daria responded.
“I
suppose so,” Tom allowed.
Brittany
twirled a pigtail. “And we have been gathering information separately.”
2nd
Matthew 5:17 - 20
Judgement
Human judgement is on a spectrum of subjectivity.
The needle or the nail
vs 17
Fulfill, or accomplish
Gr: Pieroo
- Bring to completion
- Ship arriving at port.
The Pharisees were patriotic Israelites engaging in legalistic righteousness.
Torah - Law
Not an electric fence but a trellis for a vine.
Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil
Before eating
- Side by side with God.
- God defines morality.
Know God = know goodness
After eating
- Humanity as judge
- varied morality.
SHAME
The weight of morality is exhausting.
Perfectionism - Self worth through performance based metrics
Always chasing the next thing
Book of Judges - 'They did what was good in their eyes'.
- True righteousness is a transformation of the heart.
vs 20
Righteousness
- Right relationships
- Justice
- Restoring brokenness
- Faithfulness within a community.
Generosity
Justice expressed
Care for others
Matthew 6:22
Mark 12:12 - 25
- Jesus challenging a fruitless religious system
- Fig leaves were the original shame
- 'Fig leaves' continued to be sold in the Temple
External behaviour is not enough.
It is an internal transformation.
The Cross - 'It is finished'.
The Pharisees persued righteousness by avoiding
Jesus invites us into a righteousness that persues love.
SpiderGirl
was listening to Lawndale on the Sloane mansion’s roof. It was the usual for a
late Wednesday evening. She then got a message.
Talon:
I’m going to be a while. We can catch up later at the Bridge?
Spidey:
I knew that was going to happen. I’ll see you at dawn.
Talon:
Sure! See you then.
“I
better get home. I don’t usually take this long on a Wednesday,” SpiderGirl
murmured after reading Ninja Talon’s reply.
Brittany
put the phone away as Kay came back into the room with the cocoa.
“You’re
concerned about what Osborn may be up to?” Kay asked, as she handed the cocoa
over.
“You
were listening in?” Brittany asked.
“Not
really,” Kay answered. “But I did hear his name.”
“Right,”
Brittany said as she sipped the cocoa.
“I’m
also worried about what Osborn might have been after, but Angier hasn’t said
anything.”
“So,
he’s not saying.”
“No, but
then he’s always reticent about talking about work.”
“So, you
have been interested in Shakespeare for a while?” Kay asked.
“Quite a
while. I read Romeo and Juliet early,” Britany answered. “Despite the
tragedy, it is romantic.”
“So that
lead to his other plays?”
“That’s
right.”
“Mom,
stop with the fifty questions,” Tom said.
“What?
You have hardly talked about the other people in the play, other than saying
that they are good at acting for teenagers.”
“Because,
that’s all you needed to hear,” Tom responded.
Brittany
gulped more of the cocoa. She didn’t want to be involved in another family’s
drama. “I better be going.”
“Are you
sure?” Kay asked. “Tom usually doesn’t talk about things much. I usually hear
of issues second hand.”
“Oh,”
Brittany said as she twirled a pigtail.
“Sorry
about all that,” Tom said after show Brittany back to the back door about ten
minutes later.
“It
happens,” Brittany said with a shrug and pigtail twirl.
After
Tom had closed the door, Brittany looked to the northeast towards where her
mansion was. ‘I can take time. Ashley-Amber knows I am out some evenings,’ she
thought before heading behind one of the Sloanes’ outbuildings to change to
Ninja Talon to patrol for a short while.
After
only four hours sleep, as was usual for a weeknight, Quinn waited beneath the
Jefferson Bridge as the pre-dawn light grew brighter.
It
wasn’t long before Brittany arrived as Talon and unmasked.
“Turns
out I didn’t stay all that long,” she said.
“Oh?”
Quinn asked.
“Mrs.
Sloane was nosey. It could be that she’s thinking I might be into Tom!”
Quinn
could see otherwise. “It’s not long after Kevin.”
“Exactly,”
Brittany said before explaining about the fad being at Fielding and what Tom
and his mother had said about Osborn being at Grace, Sloane and Page.
“Not
much to go on,” Quinn commented when Brittany had finished. “It’s not
surprising that the fad is at Fielding.”
“And
Angier not sharing work stuff with Kay is similar to Dad not really sharing
work stuff with Ashley-Amber.”
“Really?”
Quinn asked, as her grief welled up as it usually did when she thought about
her father. “Because Daddy used to complain about not getting many clients all
the time.” She wiped a tear.
Brittany
placed a hand on her shoulder in a reassuring way. “He probably was different;
more likely to share.”
“That
makes sense,” Quinn said as she looked at the brightening dawn.
Brittany
waited as Quinn composed herself. It was obvious that Quinn’s grief was still
quite raw.
“Right,”
Quinn said. “We still don’t know what Osborn is up to, using the Glider to
scout out the Country Club.”
“Or the
hostile takeover.”
“Somehow,
I don’t think the Landons are in the Country Club either.”
“That
may be something to look into,” Brittany responded.
“Along
with everything else,” Quinn said with determination.
Lawndale
Sun-Herald
Thursday,
March 15, 2001
Page
2
Why
Are Students Talking About Favorite Animals
Daria
looked at the byline. Melinda Parris. ‘Of course,’ she thought. It had to be
that particular journalist, not Penelope Jericho, nor any of the others. She
closed the paper and went to the counter.
Jane was
waiting for Daria outside the convenience store. “There was a time when we
bought the paper after school.”
“I feel
like I need to know earlier in the day,” Daria answered. “How did it go with
Kevin
last night, by the way?”
“Oh, we
managed to talk him down. It was mostly Stacy and Dafoanairi.”
Daria
was then in thought. “But I’m sure he’s still fixated on the idea.”
“Oh
absolutely.”
As they
arrived at school, Lawndale High’s students barely mentioned their favorite
animals, having had talked it out over the past two days.
“It’s
gone,” Stacy said to Quinn after met near one of the front doors.
“Not gone,”
Tori said as she came up. “Just subdued.”
“Good
point,” Quinn responded. “But we still have to deal with the assignment.”
“Oh
yeah!” Stacy said. “But at least I succeeded in stopping Kevin from doing
something stupid last night.”
“I’m
sure you did very well,” Tori said.
Timothy
O’Niell saw that his first period Sophomore Language Arts Class was… subdued.
But then he himself was subdued, as he had tried to ‘succeed at failing’
something.
“Hello,
class. Um today we're going to do...not do anything. Why bother? Who knows what
damage I might do this time? I just want to say that...” he paused as he
sobbed. “I'm a failure as a teacher, as a mentor, nay, as a human being. Don't
waste another minute listening to my misguided drivel, for I realize now, that
my only talent lies in leading youth astray. Please, go.”
“Alright!” Kevin said. He paused and added. “I’m still
going to ask out SpiderGirl!”
The
class stayed, but talked, mostly about their assignments.
Brittany
went up to Mr. O’Neill. “Don’t you want to hear about how we did?”
“Why
bother?” O’Neill asked.
“Because
that’s your job,” Brittany said.
“Uh,
good point,” O’Neill conceded. “I may as well evaluate the damage.”
“No
damage.”
“Are you
sure?”
“Not to
me. I am learning the science stuff with Daria’s help,” Brittany answered.
“That’s
good,” O’Neill perked up. “Attention everyone. If you have had a positive
experience, feel free to share, starting with Brittany.”
“That
was unexpected,” Jane said.
“Brittany
is putting the effort in to her studies now,” Daria responded. “And I see that
you have a positive story?” she added looking at Jane’s conventional clothes.
Jane
shrugged. “We’ve been talking about change. I’d like to see you this
conventional phase goes. I’m still an artist. I’m still hanging around the
Historia, helping with the set design.”
“I
wasn’t questioning that part,” Daria responded as she subconsciously touched
one of her hairclips.
“Who
else would like to share?” O’Neill asked once Brittany had sat down. “Kevin?”
“I
haven’t met SpiderGIrl yet,” Kevin said.
Jane
stood up. “But we had a talk about that last night.”
“Um, we
did,” Kevin said.
“Let,
Kevin tell his story, Jane. I’ll ask you later.”
Over the
next several minutes, O’Neill got the broad strokes of what had happened on the
Historia’s rooftop the night before.
“You got
to meet Dafoanairi, the apparent snarky one. That has to count for something,
right?”
“I
suppose,” Kevin responded.
“See,
you did succeed.”
“I don’t
think so. The fourth vigilante also rescued me, but I don’t have a crush on
her.”
“Right,
but did you talk to Dafoanairi?” O’Niell asked.
“Maybe.”
“Then
you talked to a vigilante.”
“But not
SpiderGirl,” Kevin insisted.
“Oh
dear!” O’Neill said. “Anyone else.”
Jane
stood up. “I have been dressing more conventionally.”
“And
you’re happy about that?” O”Neill asked.
Jane
shrugged. “I’m expressing myself a little differently, but I’m still me.”
“Well,
that wasn’t much of a class,” Jane said to Daria after the period had finished.
“Unfortunately,”
Daria commented. “But we have history next. DeMartino will be as usual.”
“That’s
obvious.”
O’Neill
wasn’t as subdued when the sophomore class started. “I know it only has been
two days, but I would like to know if anyone has anything positive to say about
the assignment.”
Quinn
raised her hand.
“Quinn!”
O’Neill said. “What do you have to share.”
“I chose
as my assignment to read a classic novel,” Quinn said as she stood.
“May I
ask which novel?”
“Little
Dorrit by Charles Dickens,” Quinn answered. “Daria recommended it.”
“Well,
Daria has good instincts,” O’Neill responded.
“I
haven’t read much of course, but the story of Arthur and Amy is interesting so
far.”
“I would
be happy to hear how you found it when you finish.”
Quinn
sat.
“Anyone
else.”
Sandi
saw that most of the class was dissatisfied. She knew that she was. She had
been unable to chose one activity from the list of extracurricular activities.
‘But maybe I’m overthinking it! I could just try one and see how it goes,’ she
thought.
O’Neill
was getting depressed again. Quinn was the only one who had volunteered her
experience.
Stacy
noticed this and drew Quinn’s attention to it.
“What
can we do?” Quinn asked Stacy.
“I’m not
sure either,” Stacy answered.
“We
could encourage him,” Tiffany suggested.
“I know,
but how?” Stacy asked.
Quinn
tossed one of her pigtails. “Not sure. Maybe talk to, you know…”
“Barch?”
Stacy asked with a shudder.
“Someone
may ask her,” Quinn said.
“You
probably can’t help the teachers the way you’re helping Anna and Angie,” Stacy
said.
“Maybe,
but I have to try,” Quinn said.
Lunch
was as usual in the school’s cafeteria, except that Kevin was standing on one
of the tables. “I know that not everyone is here right now, but I know
SpiderGirl is a fellow student.”
“Get off
there, Kevin,” his team mate, Michael ‘Mack’ Mackenzie, said.
