He pulls on a shirt and leaves the change room, his badminton racket in hand. The gym is full of people, half from his school, the rest from the hated St. Sebastian's School for Boys. Today's the end of the big tournament. Us vs. Them. Today's the day he's gonna kick a little ass.

"Hey Jeff."

He turns around to see Liam walking down the hallway, with a girl. "Hey, man," he says. "For awhile I didn't think you were gonna make it."

"As if I'd miss this. Today's the day we kick some ass!"

"You know it!"

They high-five, and the girl rolls her eyes. Liam introduces her. "Jeff, this is Elizabeth. Elizabeth, Jeff."

"Charmed," says Jeff, who's focusing on re-tying his shoe.

Elizabeth scrutinizes him briefly. "Hey, you're the guy who told me to shut up in science class last week."

"That's me. What can I say? You were really loud."

Elizabeth smirks. "So you're on the badminton team too, huh?"

"That's right! You got something against badminton?"

She raises her hands and smiles. "Hey, I didn't say a thing."

Liam cuts in. "Listen, the game's starting soon. I've gotta go. You're gonna stay for the whole thing, right?"

She shrugs and smiles at him. "Maybe."

"If I score the winning shot and you're not there it'll haunt me forever."

Jeff winces to himself. "C'mon, enough of this shit talking." He pushes Liam away from her. "Go get changed, already."

Elizabeth finds an open spot in the bleachers and sits down. Man, this is gonna be boring. She shifts a little. Uncomfortable, too.

After a few minutes she sees Liam step out onto the court, and the match starts. No, it hasn't started... they're just hitting the shuttle around. She thinks that she probably should have gone over the basic rules of badminton before the game.

"Hey!"

She looks up to see Ms. Cantrell taking a seat beside her. Surprised, she answers, "Hi..."

"Did I miss anything?"

"No, they're just... getting ready."

They glance at one another and smile.

Liam scans the bleachers, looking for Elizabeth, and notices her and Jennifer sitting together. They both wave to him, and he waves back, a little confused.

"Jesus," Jeff says to Lenny, their unofficial waterboy. "Check it out. Liam's practically got his own fan club up there."

Liam, still looking at the stands, says, "Ah, you're just jealous."

"You're damn right. That's way to much hot ass for one man, let alone a wee lad like you."

"It's not so bad. At least you've got that hot sister."

"Hey, shut up!"

Liam grins to himself and turns back to the court. It's time for the match to start.

"So," Elizabeth asks, looking over at Ms. Cantrell. "Do you come to these things often?"

"The badminton games? No, never. But he was telling me how it was the "big game", and how I should come."

"Yeah, he used that line on me too. I told him I didn't think there were any big games in badminton."

Jennifer laughs. "That's what I said!"

"We should probably be more supportive, but I dunno. Badminton just seems kinda gay."

Sweat rolls down Jeff's forehead as he stretches his arm in a desperate attempt to catch the shuttle – his entire being is focused on reaching as far out as he can. His racket barely connects, sending the shuttle flying wildly. He can only hope that it makes it across the net... he turns his head and sees it just barely slip over the top. Oh yeah. No doubt about it: he's got game.

"So how often do you call off classes, anyway? I've never heard of a teacher doing that."

Jennifer stretches down to rub one of her legs. "Not as often as I'd like to. This job really wears me out sometimes. All these kids are so desperate for validation, for someone to pay attention to them, and I just can't do it. They've got nothing to offer, nothing to build on, I've never seen such a bunch of hopeless shells of people. It's terrible."

Elizabeth smiles. "Jesus, you must be a wonder on parent/teacher night."

"Oh, I don't tell anyone what I really think. I just give them some bland generalities, and that's all they expect. I became a teacher because I thought I could really reach some people, I could be that one teacher they'd remember, but I just don't have the raw materials. These kids aren't clay to be shaped. They're hardly even rocks."

"Well, lucky thing you bumped into our boy Liam, then."

Jennifer squints a little. "Ah, he doesn't need my help. You either. You're both doing fine on your own. I just wanted to help open kids up. There were tons of people when I was in school who just needed that boost, and I thought I could give it, but something's different here."

"Wow. I mean, I always knew this town was full of idiots, but I didn't think it was that bad." Elizabeth pauses for a moment, watching the action on the court. "Or maybe things have just changed for you. I'm sure you must have at least a couple of insecure brain types you could give some enlightenment to, but maybe you just don't want to anymore. I know I wouldn't want to bother investing the time."

"Maybe... One way or the other, it's time for a career change. I just don't know what to move on to."

"You and me both. But hey, there's always options. I think kids at this school are gonna remember you just fine, and it's not just validation they want from you, believe me. I'm sure we could head down to some strip joint and make a mint."

Jennifer turns to her. "Did Liam tell you about that?"

She looks confused. "Did Liam tell me about what?"

"Oh, nothing. Forget it. Hey, look, they scored a point!"

Elizabeth raises an eyebrow, then turns her attention back to the game.

Liam and Jeff relax briefly in the break between sets. Lenny brings them each a bottle of water.

Liam takes a quick drink. "Alright, we can win this. We've got the first set. We just have to concentrate."

"Yeah." Jeff towels the sweat from his face. "But it's rough. I don't think I've ever played this hard."

"Yeah, they're good. But we can beat 'em. We can beat 'em into the fucking ground!"

"Yeah!"

"Alright! Let's go!"

As the game continues on, Jennifer and Elizabeth find themselves paying less and less attention to it. They've turned toward one another and several people around them have moved away, to escape their incessant talking.

"I've noticed a lot lately," Jennifer says, "that when I'm walking around, just through town, among people, I get this terrible scowl on my face. I don't even notice it at first, it usually takes about twenty minutes, and that's when I know there's something wrong. It shouldn't put me in that kind of mood, on the defensive, just walking around downtown. But there's something about the whole atmosphere that I just don't like at all. Not just in this town, but everywhere."

Elizabeth nods empathetically. "Well, you'll have to get used to it, 'cause things aren't gonna change any time soon. Sometimes I just..." She trails off when she notices Jennifer looking over her shoulder.

She turns around and finds Steven sitting next to her. "Hi, Elizabeth. Hi Ms. Cantrell."

"Jesus! What are you doing, following me around now?"

Steven looks taken aback. "No, I was just here watching the game, and I saw you two. I thought I'd say hi."

"Well, hello. I'm kind of busy, so I'll talk to you later, alright?"

For a moment he's silent, then sounding vaguely frustrated says, "...Okay. Bye." He looks to Jennifer. "Goodbye, Ms. Cantrell."

Jennifer tries to give him as genuine a smile as she can and says, "See you in class, Steven." After he leaves she says, "That was a little rough of you, wasn't it?"

"I don't know. I guess so. Something about that guy just really bugs me. No backbone at all. You must now what I mean, if he's in your class."

She considers for a moment. "He's a good example of what I was talking about, actually. Is that who I came here to help out? The Steven Parkers of the world? I feel like my talents are being wasted. But it's hard to explain, because it's hard to say exactly what my talents are. I know what they are, but I can't tell other people. Either they understand or they don't. Maybe it's just that I don't want to be around the mediocre. The fact that they give me a headache is a sort of talent, I guess."

"You know, it's too bad I'm not in one of your classes," Elizabeth says, smiling. "You and Liam must run circles around everybody."

"Yeah, they haven't got a clue what's going on. The best they can come up with is "Liam got to bang the hot teacher". It's kinda sad, really."

"You heard that? Geez, you'd think people would be a little more discreet."

"No, they want me to hear it. You wouldn't believe the things I've heard, from people you'd never expect it from. Not just students, but faculty. That's one reason I've got to get out of here. I feel like I'm on the butcher's table half the time."

"Well," Elizabeth says, glancing down at Jennifer's clothes, "It probably wouldn't hurt to alter the wardrobe a bit. Some of the skirts I've seen on you could wake the dead."

Jennifer grins. "Well, thank you. But in the end I doubt it would make that much difference what I wore. So I just wear what I like."

Elizabeth shrugs and concedes the point, then turns back to the game. "Hey, look, the match is almost over. The score's close, too. We should give Liam some cheerleading."

The game is coming to a close, and the score is close. One more point for Liam's side and they'll win. One more point for the other team and they won't have lost yet, but it'll come. He can feel it. These next few moments are crucial. This next hit is crucial. He sees one of his opponents pull his racket back, preparing to return, and he knows that at any second he'll have to be ready with a return of his own.

He hears some voices in the distance yell, "Liam!" and "C'mon, Liam! You can do it!" He glances over at Elizabeth and Jennifer and sees them standing up, cheering loudly. The first thought that springs through his mind is: "If they were real fans, they'd at least lift up their shirts."

At that moment he notices the shuttle flying toward him. He connects with it almost entirely through reflex, and watches it fly across the net. One of his opponents dives to intercept it, but it bounces harmless against the floor. That's it; it's over. He raises his arms as a cheer sweeps across the auditorium. He looks over at Jeff, who's jumping around, laughing. The smile on Liam's face grows huge as he thinks:

We won.

"So I'll see you later, man."

"Yeah, see you." Jeff leaves the locker room, still beaming from the win, but pokes his head back in a second later. "Hey," he says quietly. "There's a couple of fan-girls out here looking to sandwich you between their fantastic bodies."

"Oh yeah? Thanks for the warning."

Jeff goes and Liam finishes buttoning his pants, then walks out into the hallway. Jennifer and Elizabeth stand together, talking. He smiles and walks toward them.

Jennifer is the first to notice him. "Good game, Liam!" She smirks, and says, "By keeping that white thing in the air, I think you really helped your team."

"It was especially good at the end when you won," adds Elizabeth.

"Thank you, thank you..." They start to walk down the hall and he finds himself between them, so he slips his arms casually around their waists.

"Hey!" Elizabeth says, slapping his arm away. Jennifer doesn't protest, but he decides he'd better move his other arm anyway. "So, what are we doing for a victory celebration?" he asks. "A few lines, maybe a little E?"

"I was thinking ice-cream," Jennifer says. "Would you kids like some ice-cream?"

Elizabeth smiles and rolls her eyes. "Yes, teacher, ice-cream would be yummy tasty. Can we please have some?"

"As long as you're good. Should we take my car, or Liam's?"

"Oh, you're just full of the jokes today," he says. "But I can drive if you want."

"Have you got a license?"

He shrugs. "I'm sure I can wing it."

"Well, I'll let you sit up front. Then you can pretend you're driving."

Elizabeth frowns. "Aw."

Elizabeth says, "I'll go get the ice-cream. You guys get a seat. What do you want?"

Jennifer says banana split while Liam goes with a raspberry sundae. They find a booth and sit down across from each other.

"Thanks for the cheering," he says. "It was actually kinda distracting, but I liked it. And if all my friends didn't think I was having sex with two chicks before, they certainly think so now."

"Mm, yes. It was actually Elizabeth's idea." She glances over at Elizabeth, who's talking with the boy at the counter.

"Look at this," Liam says. "This is how you can tell she's in a good mood. Watch while she tries to flirt with that guy."

"From the looks of it, it's working."

"Yeah, it usually does. Christ look at that... she's twirling her hair and everything."

Jennifer is silent for a moment, then says, "It's strange how fast she changed. She really didn't like me at all the other day."

"How did this truce come about, anyway? I was a little surprised. I was almost disappointed, actually – there wasn't even any hair pulling."

She laughs. "Jesus, reel in the ego a little. I don't know how it happened. She just came in to my classroom and apologized. She even gave me an apple."

"Stealing my material." He leans against an elbow. "It's weird how her mood will just change like that. It only takes a few seconds, some days. There's always a trigger, though. She'll be in a perfectly good mood and then somebody will bring up communism or something, and she has to go into Battle Mode. Facts, statistics an epic speech or two... it's kinda ridiculous sometimes. I mean what is this, 1950? Most people don't know what hit 'em."

"That does seem a little weird. But with you hip intellectual youth, communism seems to be the default answer."

"Yeah, that much hasn't changed in the last half a dozen decades. That's actually what she rails on people for the most: that casual condoning on something they really don't understand. I'm sure if she ever bumped into a true, full-on communist she'd be happy as hell, 'cause at least then she'd have somebody to spar with. The people we always talk to are just jerky kids hanging around the school, or the occasional knob-headed "college boy". You know how people are always saying that communism would work fine if it weren't for people? I want to get a t-shirt that says that, just so she'd have to resist the urge to kick my ass into the ground whenever she saw me."

"Well, I don't think she's got too much to worry about. Communism's not exactly at the political forefront these days."

"Yeah. But she's got all these theories about how the same principles have trickled down into more user-friendly terms. I think she just doesn't like to be told what to do, when you get right down to it. Under the right circumstances she'll go pretty far out of her way to help somebody, but as soon as you order her to do it she spits in your face and vacates. One time she said she'd rather be in the jungle alone than in a cage with everybody else."

Jennifer smiles. "So what you're saying is she wants to be a cowboy."

He laughs. "You got that right. Truth, justice and the unceremonious defeat of evil varmints... Seriously, if you really want to piss her off, just tell her that you think humankind sucks. Tell her that people are scum and that the world would be better off without us, so that the trees and cute little bunnies could live in peace and harmony together, and she'll bite your head off."

Jennifer raises an eyebrow. "Oh yeah?"

Liam nods solemnly. "I wish I was kidding. It's brutal. I wish I'd known her before, to see if she was like that when she was younger."

"So how did you two meet?"

"At first I think she just liked the look of me, frankly. I'd like to think we kept hanging out 'cause I'm smart as a whip, but it might be just that I'm the only person who ever told her sincerely that I don't think humans suck either. It's a pivotal issue."

Jennifer glances back to Elizabeth. "Boy, you weren't kidding about the flirting. How long does it take to order ice-cream?"

He grins. "The last time we were in here she actually complained that guys were staring at her. Who can fathom." He stands up. "I've gotta go to the bathroom; don't eat my ice-cream."

Gerald is nervous. Why is this girl being so nice? Is she coming on to me? Did she just look at my ass while I was getting that banana split? This is too weird... what am I supposed to do?

He turns back around and puts the banana split on the tray between them. "There, that's everything. It comes to, uh, $6.58."

Instead of handing him money she leans against the counter, looking him straight in the eye. She smiles. "How long have you been working here, Gerald?"

"Um, about 3 months."

"Is it fun?"

"Yeah–" he clears his throat. "Yeah, it's pretty good."

What was she doing? Does she not want to pay for her ice cream? Maybe she wants to offer something in return for free food. Yeah right, as if... besides, she's with that guy over there anyway. That guy who's with another chick... Who the hell is that guy? Why the hell isn't he paying for the ice cream? What the f–

The girl says "Hey," and his thoughts come to an abrupt halt.

"Yes?"

"I just want to tell you that I think you're doing a really good job." She continues to look straight at him, and he can't look away. Her eyes look so perceptive. He finds himself smiling at her almost unconsciously.

"Here you go," she says, handing him some money. "You can keep the change."

She gives him one final, beaming smile, then picks up the tray and walks to her table. He watches her go, but turns away when the other girl looks over and winks at him. He opens the till, then realizes that she had only given him a five dollar bill. Damn. What a fucked up job.

Elizabeth sits across from Jennifer, placing the tray on the table. "Here's the stuff. Where's Liam?"

"Bathroom." She takes a bite of her banana split and says, "That was quite the conversation you were having with the ice-cream guy."

"You could hear that?"

"No, me and Liam were just watching." She looks toward the counter. "The guy looks kinda crestfallen. I think you let him down."

"At least he'll have something to remember about today. Why were you guys looking? Was Liam jealous?"

"No. Should he have been?"

"No, I guess not. Well, I don't know. Maybe a little." Elizabeth takes a small lick of her ice-cream cone and glances at Jennifer. She watches as Jennifer puts a spoonful of ice-cream in her mouth, unaware of being watched, then pulls the spoon slowly from between her lips.

"Man, you would not believe what I just saw," Liam says, sitting down beside Elizabeth. "This guy was sitting at a table back there with his gorgeous french girlfriend, and he was telling her all about Dungeons and Dragons. Dungeons and fucking Dragons! I felt like it was my duty to swoop in and save her. Not that I did."

"Yeah," Elizabeth says. "Maybe you could have taken her to a badminton game or something."

"Damn right. Now that's a sporting event." He starts eating his sundae and says, "Thanks for not eating my ice-cream."

"No problem," Jennifer says. She pokes her spoon absently into her banana split and says, "You know, I've been thinking lately... about how people just... suck... and how the earth would be better off without us. So the trees... and cute bunnies... could live in, y'know... harmony."

She tries to keep a straight face, but breaks into a grin a few moments later. Liam smiles and says, "Yeah, I was just thinking that myself." Elizabeth looks mildly indignant.

"Jesus. I can't even leave you two alone. Did Liam tell you about the birthmark on my tit too?"

Liam raises his eyebrows slightly. "You never told me about that."

"I didn't?" She pauses, then takes another lick of ice-cream and says, "Ah, you're all a bunch of communists anyway..."

She and Jennifer laugh. Liam chuckles, but his mind has wandered slightly. He's thinking about Halfling Thieves and Dwarven Clerics... he thinks he could probably convince Elizabeth to play D&D with him and the boys, but she'd almost certainly insist on being chaotic neutral, and that would fuck up the party dynamic...

Bah, what's he thinking? As if Jeff would ever want to play D&D.