Daria arrived at
Jane’s house and knocked on the door. There was no answer. ‘Maybe
she is still asleep,’ she thought. She knew that Jane wasn’t a
morning person, often requiring coffee to properly function. She
found that the front door was unlocked. ‘figures, Trent forgot to
lock the door,’ she thought.
Jane
was on level 157 of Pac-Man
when Daria entered the room. “Did you
and Trent play games all night?” Daria asked.
A
ghost got Jane’s Pac-Man, bringing an end to the game. “Yo
Amiga!” Jane said, getting up stiffly and ensuring that she didn’t
disturb the sleeping form of Trent (although she knew that wouldn't
wake him anyway).
“Of
course,” Daria said. To say that Trent Lane fell asleep was
practically a tautology.
“So
what is this about a genie? And what it has to do with what happened
at school yesterday?” Jane asked.
“Mom
asked us about what happened at school and Quinn says that she
wouldn’t believe it,” Daria said.
“And?”
“Mom
then asked Quinn why wouldn’t she believe it, and Quinn said that
the events were totally
fantastical,
which they were,” Daria began.
“I
see,” Jane said.
Daria
then repeated everything that Quinn had said. (albiet, with
more sardonic commentary).
Jane then
told Daria about Tom and herself running into Sandi and Jean at the
bowling alley and her 11th birthday present from Trent.
Sandi and
Jean walked down the stairs to the kitchen, where Sam and Chris were
already having their breakfast. Sandi could tell that Sam hadn’t
told Chris about the emerald. She then went and grabbed her box of
low-carbohydrate cereal from the pantry. Jean put some toast into the
toaster. “What is your plan?” She asked.
“We
will go to school and, like, try to stay out of sight,” Sandi said,
wondering how it had come to that.
“Good
plan,” Jean said. She could see Linda come down the stairs.
“Good
morning!” Linda said.
Lawndale
Offices of Vitale, Davis, Horowitz, Rhiordan, Shrechter and Shrechter
8:00
Helen
looked up from her piles of paperwork to see her boss, Eric
Shrechter, walk into her office.
“Helen,
you wanted to see me?” he asked.
“Yes,
Eric. Something has come up regarding the High School, and I need
some time off this afternoon to talk to some of the other parents
about the issue,” Helen said.
“What
sort of issue?” Eric asked, wondering what had come up.
“That
is confidential and on a need to know basis,” Helen said strongly.
She didn’t want anyone else in the law firm to know about the
genie.
“Can’t
your husband be there?” Eric asked.
“He
could, and he may be, but I need to be there myself. I would like to
know more about this issue first hand,” Helen said.
Eric
thought. “It depends on how busy we are today,” he said, finally.
“Oh,
alright,” Helen said as Eric left the office. She immediately went
back to work.
“...In
conclusion we agree that Sandi having the genie is a bad thing and
that we need to sleep on it,” Stacy finished summarising the notes
from their discussion at Tiffany’s the previous afternoon.
“Very
good, Stacy,” Quinn said, encouragingly.
“So,
your sister said that we need to consider the fact that Mrs Griffin
or Ms Li may get the emerald?” Stacy asked.
“Cousin,”
Quinn corrected.
“Oh,
Quinn, we know that Daria is your sister,” Stacy said. ‘If this
isn’t the time for this, there is otherwise no time,’ she
thought.
“We
were just being polite about it,” Tiffany added.
“Oh,”
Quinn said. ‘Of course, there is an obvious resemblance, such as
there is between Mom and Aunt Rita,’ she thought. “Thanks.
Anyway, Stace, you were saying?”
“So,
Daria suggested that we need to consider the fact that Mrs. Griffin
or Ms. Li may get the emerald?” Stacy asked.
“Yes,”
Quinn said.
“Right,
which situation do we consider first, Mrs. Griffin or Ms. Li?”
Stacy asked as she took down the notes.
Quinn
thought about it for half a minute.
“Qui-inn?”
Tiffany asked, wondering if she had dozed off.
“Most
likely Ms. Li, because Sandi most likely will go to school today,”
Quinn said.
“Ok, so
you think that Jeans mischievous nature will cause her genie nature
to come to Ms Li’s attention?” Stacy asked. ‘A likely outcome!’
she thought.
“Exactly,”
Quinn said, although she was sure that she wouldn’t have had put it
exactly the way that Stacy had.
“But
there is no way to know what sort of events would happen as a result
of Jean’s mischief!” Stacy said, starting to hyperventilate
again.
“I
know, we may need to organise some sort of distraction,” Quinn
said.
“Bu-ut
what sort of dis-traction?” Tiffany asked, confused. ‘It would
have to be a very good distraction,’ she thought.
“I am
sure Daria would have an idea,” Quinn said.
“But
what do you think?” Stacy asked. ‘I am certain that she will come
up with something. She does come up with many of ideas in the Fashion
Club,’ she thought.
Quinn
thought and came up with an idea. ‘It seems crazy, but it might
just work,’ she thought. She then told the other two.
“But
are you sure that would work?” Stacy asked.
“It
would have to, unless Daria and her art friend can think of something
else,” Quinn said. ‘I am certain that Daria would help me improve
the plan,’ she thought.
“What
if it doesn’t work?” Tiffany asked.
“Then
Ms. Li may find out,” Quinn said.
“But it
must work!” Stacy said.
“Relax,
Stacy, we may come up with something else,” Quinn said. ‘Multiple
plans, and contingency plans for all of them. Definitely Daria’s
territory or maybe of that tycoon guy on that cartoon about those
living statues,’ she thought.
They
continued their discussion.
“Quite
an interesting situation, it would be worthy of a Sick Sad World
episode!” Jane said when Daria had finished her commentary.
“And
most viewers would say ‘what the hell are they thinking’,”
Daria said.
“’A
genie in a Maryland suburban High School? Magic in the burbs, next on
Sick Sad World!” Jane said, imitating the usual SSW
announcer.
“It may
work,” Daria said, with a tiny smirk.
“Told
ya,” Jane said.
“Besides,
we need to be going if we are going to meet Quinn, Stacy and Tiffany
with sufficient time before homeroom,” Daria said.
“Whose
idea was that again?” Jane asked.
“Mine.”
“And
Quinn agreed?”
“Jane,
if we’re going to stop this problem before it gets out of control,
we need all the help we can get!”
“True,
but the fashion fiends?” Jane asked. ‘Unless they’re growing up
somehow,’ she thought.
“They
aren’t as dumb as they appear; at least Quinn and Stacy aren’t,”
Daria said.
“I
guess so,” Jane said, unconvinced. Daria noticed the ET game
cartridge where Jane had thrown it aside earlier. She picked it up.
“Isn’t
this the worst game of all time?”
“According
to Trent, Wind bought it,”
“That
sort of makes sense. Not only is he a failure at relationships, he is
also a failure as a gamer,” Daria said.
“Yeah,”
Jane said as she lead the way out of the room.
“Do you
think it would be safe to leave Trent in your room?”
“He
knows not to mess with my stuff.”
Lawndale
High School 8:40
After
arriving early to school Anna Pearce was looking for Jean. She was
curious to know why Jean was a genie and curious as to what the
emerald could do...
“Anna?
What are you doing?” Her friend, Lisbeth Siobhan ‘Chipmunk’
Ogden, asked as they appeared to be aimlessly wandering the school’s
corridors.
“There
was a genie at school yesterday, and I am sure that it will be here
today,” Anna said.
“Maybe,”
Chipmunk (Chip for short) said. Whilst she had heard of the rumours
the previous day and had seen the extra floor on the science block,
she was sceptical.
“You
were here yesterday,” Anna said, as they entered the Industrial
Arts Block.
“It is
rather fantastical, even with that extra floor.”
“Maybe
if you went to the library with me after school, instead of going to
Track training, you would have better deductive reasoning skills,”
Anna said.
Chip
wasn’t sure what Anna was talking about. “But I am good at it!”
she said, referring to her position in the Track team.
“Oh
sure,” Anna said, in a teasing tone. Chip rolled her eyes.
Jeffy
Brown’s car pulled into the LHS student parking lot, close to the
school. “Thanks for the ride, Jeffy,” Quinn said.
“Anything
for you, Quinn,” Jeffy said, sincerely. Stacy and Tiffany got out
of the back seat, Stacy remembered to lock the door, but Tiffany
didn’t.
“Do you
know where to meet Daria and Jane?” Stacy asked.
As if on
cue; Trent’s Plymouth coupé, being driven by Jane, pulled in next
to Jeffy’s car. Jane turned off the engine and got out. Daria also
got out.
“Oh,”
Stacy said.
“I see
that taking Trent’s car was a good idea,” Jane said.
“Wasting
time searching for them would not have been well spent,” Daria
said.
“Hi,
Daria, have you and Jane come up with anything?” Quinn asked.
The
Fashionable Trio plus Jeffy and the Amiga Outcasts filled each other
in on their discussions as they walked towards the school.
Daria
reached the door first. “That is a good idea, Quinn,” she said.
She was going to say something else (with a mixture of encouragement
and sarcasm), but she was interrupted by Jane.
“Quite
surprising that you would come up with it,” she said.
“Well,
Jane, this situation is quite shocking. As a result, I have started
to re-evaluate what is important,” Quinn said, seriously.
“Oh!”
Jane said, at a loss for words at the (slight) change in Quinn.
Daria
didn’t know what to think about it either. She knew, however, that
the changes in Quinn were slight. ‘It is at least a few steps in
the right direction,’ she thought.
“But
how are you going to set it into motion, Quinn?” Jeffy asked.
“We
need to find a few others and talk to them about it. The bigger the
distraction, the better,” Quinn said.
“The
question is; who would be suitable?” Jane said.
“Andrea,
Jodie, Mack, and though I loath to admit it, Upchuck,” Daria said.
“Upchuck?
Really? Eeeeww!” Quinn said.
“There
are brains in our grade who would do it better than Upchuck!” Stacy
offered.
“Ok,
Upchuck as a last resort. That leaves the other 3, and those other
‘brains’ that Stacy mentioned,” Daria said.
The group
turned a corner, heading towards the HSIE block.
“Now to
find one of those people, preferably Jodie and Mack,” Jane said.
“Joey
and Jamie can help as well!” Jeffy said, as he trailed behind.
‘They aren’t as dumb as you think either,’ he thought.
Whilst
Anna and Chip were passing through the Industrial Arts block and the
Amiga Outcasts, Fashionable Trio and Jeffy were discussing whom would
help them in their planned distraction of Ms. Li from Jean’s
nature, Elias exited the library on his own search for Jean. He was
sure that she needed a friend. He also wanted to keep an eye on
Sandi, to ensure that she wouldn’t make any wishes that would
change Lawndale any further.
