The Bullworth Never Ending Story

[BloodChuckZ]

The rest of the School week seemed to go by pretty fast.  Relaxed, more relaxed than they had been in all the years they had been here, time seemed to slip and flow a bit quicker.  For the first time in the memory of many, there was Peace at Bullworth Academy.  Behind, in the far reaches of their minds, there was the realization that is was just an interlude, an intermission.  Trouble would be back, it was the nature of the Academy, the nature of the Vale Valley. 

Except for Nick, Johnny, Gord, and Troy, all the rest of the students that had been injured in the raid were released from the Clinics.  Back again, with their bandaged torsos and limbs, they were greeted like returning casualties of a great battle, who wore their war wounds like a crown.  There was celebration and camaraderie among the Cliques and even the Non-Clique students, all that was, except one....The remains of the Preps.  As Bif had predicted, Justin and Parker had gone to stay with Bryce at the Beach House instead of returning to Harrington House.  This further angered Tad, who spent his time brooding in the big chair by the fireplace, unapproachable to all except Vanessa.  Bif and Chad avoided him, staying only because they had no where else to go, no one else wanted them around, not even their former comrades.

Since the VX Nerve Gas had been spirited out of the Vale Valley by train, the Federal Agents had concentrated on their arrested captives, the late, unlamented Townies.  The Blue Skies Jail had been re-opened to house the few who could be moved there, where they were incarcerated there under heavy guard by the Soldiers.  More Solders guarded the rest of the Townies still in the Blue Skies Clinic, and the whole of Blue Skies was still under unofficial martial law and closed off to the rest of the Valley. 

Amidst the era of good feeling, one person knew, better than anyone, that this peaceful interaction would all too soon collapse like a house of cards.  Since the first day he had set foot in Bullworth Academy, he had been in the thick of all things bad.  Tony Calderone had come from a bad place, but not this kind of bad.  Unbelievable as it was, he had stepped into a world where a mentally unbalanced rogue runaway student had held a school and then a whole patchwork of small isolated towns in a reign of terror that had lasted the better part of the past year.  Even more unbelievable was that those who were nominally in authority were powerless to find and capture Jake and allowed other criminal elements such as the Townies and the Punks to run rampant in the Valley due to a vast network of corruption that involved the highest level of the rich that reached down to the Judge, the Chief of Police, and even the Head of Bullworth Academy itself. 

It was the peak of insanity to live in a place like this.  A person who had nothing to lose would leave this place and try to forget they were ever here.  But Tony couldn’t leave.  He had too much at stake now.  For one, there was Karen.  Where she was, he would be.  Had let her out of his sight at the wrong time, and he swore he would never let that happen again.  He had friends here, too.  Tony couldn’t bail on them either.  He had no choice but to stay.

But if he had to stay, he must do something.  Tony didn’t want to be what would amount to the Sheriff of Bullworth Academy for the next two years.  He wanted, more than anything, to be a normal student in a normal High School and go afterward to a normal College and then live a normal life....Hopefully, with Karen at his side.  He was the Mediator, and it was up to him.

So every night, he labored in the small Mediator’s Office for a permanent solution to the task before him....To implement a lasting balance at Bullworth Academy.  The old and the envisioned new meshed together into a new school order.  The same had been done by the enlightened ones on a world scale to allow hostile nations to co-exist with each other.  Tony’s task was smaller, but no different, and just as important. 

He was so glad that Karen was back, ecstatic in fact.  More than the presence of her sexy body, he craved her sharp mind, her insightful intuition, her brilliant observations.  Without her, Tony doubted he could craft such a thing as a Binding Agreement.  But with Karen’s invaluable knowledge of what had taken place in the time before he arrived at Bullworth, there was a better than an even chance that they could succeed. 

Tony had started off with a simple premise, and both added to it.  The list grew, and each new concern was shifted into specific categories that they devised.  By school week’s end, the category list read....

 1. THE RIGHT OF CLIQUES TO EXIST.
 2. CLIQUE TERRITORY AND OPEN AREAS.
 3. RIGHTS OF PROTECTION AND DEFENSE.
 4. RESOLUTION OF ALL DISPUTES.
 5. COMMERCE BETWEEN CLIQUES.
 6. RIGHTS OF WEAPONS PARITY.
 7. PAYMENTS AND REPARATIONS.
 8. CLIQUE MISSIONS AND ERRANDS
 9. COLLECTIVE DEFENSE AGAINST ATTACKS.
10. ENDORSEMENT OF THE ADMINISTRATION.
___________________________________________

[BloodChuckZ]

On Thursday night, Peanut and Binky were visiting Johnny in the Clinic.  Johnny had rallied, proving he was tough enough to take a Pellet to his ribs, even if it wasn’t a Bullet.  Lola was still keeping vigil with him, but unlike Melody she would go out from time to time to get something to eat for herself.  She seemed cheered that Johnny was better.

Peanut was telling Johnny how it was going with the Greasers, and how Lefty and Lucky had been released earlier in the day.  Ricky and Vance had already come back Tuesday.  For now, they were splitting their time between the Autoshop and Blue Balls Bar.  “Everybody’s been taking the change Ok”, Peanut told him, referring to his being the Clique leader once again.

“Theys should”, Johnny told him, “Since I ordered it.  Theys know that, right ?”

“Right, Johnny, right”, Peanut hasted to tell him, “They knows.  I tolds them it was a direct order from yous.  They ain’t got no problems wit that.”

“Dat’s good”, Johnny said, seeming to relax.  “If theys ever do, have thems come see me, I’se set dem straight.  Fact is, tell dems dey can come see me now if’n dey wants.  I be better now.  Wanna talk to dems anyway, bout our future, Lola’s and me.”

“What you gonna do, Johnny ?”, Peanut asked, “Got plans ?”

“Donts know yet...Figgered I’d help run Blue Balls fer awhile, till we get a stake, den me and Lola here, maybe we blow town, go somewheres else.”

“Back to Detroit again ?”, Peanut asked.

“Naw”, Johnny said, “Mebbe somewheres closer...Jersey, or New York.”

“What’choo gonna do there ?”, Peanut asked.

Johnny shrugged.  “Donno...We figgure somptin’ out, Lola and me, like before.”

And idea struck Peanut just then.  “Hey, Johnny, had you ever heard that Pinky became sort of a singing star whilst you was gone ?  She hooked up wit dat Rocker kid Kurt and his band, and wuz singing at the Golden Horseshoe, they got a packed house every time she was on.”

Johnny hadn’t heard, since no one had mentioned it to him until just now, and just shrugged again.  “So what ?”  He was a little mystified at the sudden change of subject.

“Well, I wuz thinkin’....Maybe Lola could do that.  She has a good voice, we’s all heard her hum and sings to herself”, Peanut said, “She sounds pretty good, I’se bet she could do’s that, even better than Pinky !”

“Me ?”, Lola interjected, “On a stage ?  With a microphone ?  I’d be too nervous !”

Johnny just looked blankly at him.  Peanut pressed on.  “No, no....You sing at the Blue Balls, to start with, no pressure or anything...You gets used to it, see, and later yous can get bookings and stuff around here...Get some recognition.  Den, Johnny can be your manager, make all the decisions on where you can go, like high-class nightclubs an’ stuff like they ain’t got around here.  They pay big money for acts like that.”

Johnny didn’t really know, but the part about money caught his attention.  Johnny had been to a few low-class clubs, usually referred to as 'Dives’ that had lousy singers, so he sort of caught on to what Peanut was talking about.  He turned his head and looked at Lola.  He would never dare tell it to anyone, but Lola sometimes sang him to sleep, and every night now this past week that he’d been injured...And she did have a good voice.  “Wadda think, Doll...Wanna give it a go ?”

“Gee, I...I don’t know”, Lola replied, suddenly all flustered.  “I mean...What if I...Can’t do it ?”

“You ?”, Peanut said, “The girl whose beat down that Townie ?  Sure you coulds !”

“But...There’s no band !”, Lola exclaimed, “I can’t be up there alone !”

Johnny frowned.  That was a problem.  “What’s happened to dat kid’s band, dat Kurt kid ?”

“Um...They in Jersey, I heered, Jersey City, I thinks”, Peanut said.  “But waits, one of dem is stills here....Guy named Winkie.  Plays Gituar or something.  He lives with Christy over in Bullworth Town.”

“Odd Name", Johnny commented.  “What’s this guy...Winkie...What’s he do now ?”

“He, uh, gets gigs with other bands right now, so’s I heard”, Peanut told him.  “I thinks I can get him to play for us, if the money’s right.”

“And, Pinky....She still sing with dem, or what ?”, Johnny asked.

“No...Not since Kurt disappeared”, Peanut told him.  “He wuz found later, all crazy I guess, dey sent him off to somewheres, I heard.”

“So, what about...Christy ?”, Johnny asked, “Won’t shes get...Wells, like crazy if’n he woirks fer us, with Lola singing ?”

That all set them to thinking.  Silent until now, Binky spoke up.  “Hire them both.”

“Whats ?”, Johnny asked.  “Hires dem both ?  What would she do ?”

“Because”, Peanut said, suddenly remembering, “Christy can play Piano !  I remembers now, I seen her doin’ that, in Music Class !  Hire dem boths as backups, and Lola can be the star !”

Johnny thought for a bit, in his slow way.  “Mebbe coulds work.”  Turning to Lola, he said, “Hows about it ?”

“I...I don’t know”, Lola said uncertainly.  Then a new thought struck her.  “Won’t you be....Jealous ?  Of me singing, if I did ?”

“I’se be your Manager, so’s I woulds be rights there, every time, so no funny business be goin’ on”, Johnny said firmly, “Rights ?  So com’on, youse in...Or not ?”

Lola looked around at the three.  Bashing a Townie was different from being on stage...It frightened her, but at the same time, excited her.  She remembered being repelled at Pinky being up on stage at the school Auditorium, but at the same time, a bit jealous of her...Well, more than a bit.  Maybe, here was the chance to have a little fame for herself ?  With the others looking at her expectantly, she gave in.  “Well....Ok.  I’ll try.  I can’t promise anything...But I can try.”

Johnny took her hand and squeezed it.  “Dat’s my goirl”, he said, smiling.  “Dis coulds be our ticket to fame.”

Lola wasn’t so sure about that, but gave a wain smile.  She had doubts, but she pushed them away.  If this was what Johnny wanted, she would do it....Or at least try to do it.  How it turned out would be anyone’s guess.

Johnny looked over at Binky.  “Dats some smart cookie you gots there, Larry”, he commented, using Peanut’s real name.  “She gots brains, dat one.”

“She gots the whole package”, Peanut replied, smiling, gripping Binky close.  “I thinks that what I’se was missing that whole year when yous was gone...But now, I know I’se can do a better job leading, with this fine one by my’s side.”

“Makes a real difference”, Johnny said, grasping Lola’s hand once again.

Binky said nothing, just flashed her lopsided smile.  She hadn’t known she would soon be the Clique Leader’s girl when she first came to Bullworth this summer, seeking the Greasers.  But here it was, and here she was.  Binky the Short had come up in the world.
______________________________________

[BloodChuckZ]

Gurney came aware in the Blue Skies Clinic that night.  Nick’s bashing him in the head over and over had given him a nasty concussion, and although he had become conscious a couple of days ago, he was not yet aware of his surroundings until just now.  The first thing he became aware of was the pain in his head and face.  What the hell had happened ?  He sought to remember, and couldn’t right away.  He tried to move his arms to his face and found he could, as he did he felt his left thumb throbbing.  That’s where that bitch bit me, he thought, and then the memories came flooding back.  He had been in that tunnel, dragging that little cunt Melody along while he and Omar were making their escape.  He remembered that Nick bastard catching up to them and challenging him, and himself pulling that bluff that caused Nick, and that Tony fuck who followed behind to drop their weapons.  Then, that BITCH bit him.  Although normally cool, he had lost his temper and slammed her to the wall in a flash of rage.

Gurney groaned.  That’s why he was laying here right now, because he’d lost his cool in a critical situation, got distracted by his sudden anger.  Because he took his eyes off his pursuers for just a second or two.  Because when he looked back, that Nick bastard was coming at him, feet first, like some kind of Kung Fu move.  He remembered getting a shot off at the boy, and then.....Nothing.  It was blank after that until now.  Gurney wondered if his shot had even hit Nick, he didn’t know.  He raised his right had to his face and felt around. 

Above his mouth and below his eyes was a heavy swath of gauze.  He felt for where his nose should be, found it, and winced.  It seemed flatter.  He probed gently with his fingers.  Definitely broken, he thought.  So the Karate Kid had nailed him after all.  But even so, why did his head hurt so much ?  It felt disjointed somehow, like his skull had been beaten on severely.  Gurney probed his head and found it to be heavily bandaged.  Again, he wondered, What the hell had happened ?

Blinking, he focused on his surroundings.  He recognized that he was in the Blue Skies Clinic, he had been here many times before.  Unlike the other Clinics in the Valley, there were no private patient rooms here, just a large ward of beds.  As Gurney’s eyes adjusted, he could see a few of his Townie friends on the other beds.  They all seemed to be bandaged in one way or another.  Some were awake and moving, he could see, but strangely nobody appeared to be talking.

“Heey !” he said weakly, trying to communicate.  “HEEEY !”  Several Townie heads turned his way, but nobody said anything.  It was a silent as a tomb.  A Nurse came hurrying his way from the side of his vision, and made her way to his bed. “You’re awake”, she said shortly.  “What do you want ?”

“Uhh...Water, I think”, Gurney said.  He was suddenly thirsty.  “Yeah, water.”  The Nurse turned to a side table out of his view, and Gurney heard water pouring.  A cup of water was then held under his mouth with a straw sticking out of it.  He grasped the straw and put it to his lips, sucking the water greedily.  His eyes moved to the Nurse.  He didn’t recognize her, in fact had never seen her before.  Her name tag read “Naomi”.  He thought he knew all the women in the Valley, but this one was a stranger.

Gurney finished, then asked, “Hey, uh, what’s happened ?  I gonna be all right ?”

The Nurse said, “No Talking.”  Her face was set in stone, and not an ounce of pity showed in her eyes. “There is to be No Talking here by anyone, or those men will see to it that you keep quiet.”

Gurney followed her nod towards the sides of the Ward, and he then saw something he hadn’t yet noticed.  At least four Soldiers lined the wall.  They stood attentive, and were holding serious weaponry.  As his eyes scanned the room, the Nurse hurried away just as fast as she came.  Gurney tried to sit up then and move his legs to the floor, but he couldn’t.  A clinking noise that he knew all too well let him know the reason why.  Lifting the covers, he saw his ankles shackled to the metal bed frame.

Gurney’s head flared pain from his efforts, and he laid back.  He had assumed they were under arrest,  but why were those Soldiers here, standing guard ?  Where were the inept Bullworth Cops ?  Why was he chained to this bed ?  Gurney felt a stab of fear.  Just what the Hell was going on ?
_________________________________________

[BloodChuckZ]

Friday after classes, Beatrice returned to her Dorm room.  It had been a trying week.  Stupidly, she had let her emotions overrule her smarts, and had gone to the Clinic to see Nick, the future Father of her unborn 2.3 children.  Then, she had made another mistake, assuming that Melody was still just a little kid, like Beatrice remembered she was. 

She had spent a few hours more in the Clinic than she bargained for, getting treated for what that little Bitch had done to her. Beatrice’s nose, although unbroken, still throbbed.  It was likely her Septum was Deviated, she self-diagnosed.  Her gut and boobs were still sore where she’d been punched and kicked by Melody.  Worse was the behind-her-back snickers and muffled laughter she heard when she went back to class after the unexpected attack.  Normally, she could blot out the cruelty of others by reciting the Periodic Table of the Elements or calculating the value of Pi to the hundredth decimal.  But not this time.

Beatrice sighed in frustration.  She had only returned to this shithole to make up credits which she should have been rightfully hers to begin with.  But after being welcomed back by her fellow Nerds of old, she had been ultimately snubbed by them.  Seems they wanted no part of the new ‘Human Sexuality’ experiments she had planned for them.  That was odd to her, since the boys at her Prep Med School had been more than eager to participate in her ‘Studies’ on the subject.  She just couldn’t understand their reactions.  Didn’t she look better now ?  Wasn’t she sexier ?  It was no use, she had concluded.  As Thad had told her, she had ‘Thanged’ too much.  She was still on good terms with Jimmette, and would sometimes go to the Observatory, but the Nerd boys only would acknowledge her with guarded looks and mumbled phrases, like they feared she would very suddenly strip off her clothes and attack them.  Unlike Jimmette, she had declined to go on the mission to the Chem Plant, fearing for her own safety, and that had put further distance between them.

So, she had set her sights on that new boy she had met on her first day back, that fellow named Nick.  He had been so kind and helpful, and such a stud !  For nearly a month, she had connived on how to get him alone somewhere in order to conduct a true human sexuality experiment with him.  But he always seemed busy, or was with that twit Melody, or out on some mission or other.  Then, she hit on a plan to lure him in....Hide her precious Diary in her worst antagonist’s Gym locker and send him after it on a mission of her own.  Then, while standing by the side of the Girl’s Dorm, wondering how she was going to track Nick down, he had suddenly appeared in the yard of the Dorm, looking about.  Quickly, she had sought the side steps, sat down, and went into her best crying act when she saw him approaching from around the corner. 

The plan went off beautifully, as Nick 'recovered’ the Diary from Mandy’s Gym locker and brought it back to her in her room.  In exchange for a trivial bit of information that could have been looked up in any Encyclopedia, Beatrice had gotten Nick to agree to the experiment.  It turned out to be the most thrilling sexual encounter of her life. 

Afterwards, Nick seemed to avoid her like the plague.  The reason became apparent when the news of the Chem Plant raid had broken.  He had been intent on rescuing his little twit Melody, and had gotten seriously hurt in the process.  Blaming Melody for the damage of the merchandise, which was Nick, Beatrice had rashly (as it had turned out) decided to visit Nick in the Clinic.  She was running out of things to write about their future in her Diary.  It was time to let him know, in his hour of need, that they were intended for each other.

But little Melody had been there, it looked like she was LIVING there.  How Pathetic.  No matter, the Twit needed to know just what the score was, and that was, that Beatrice and Nick belonged together, and were going to be together, that’s all there was to it.  But then the little BITCH had ATTACKED her, and had actually HURT her.  How RUDE was that ?  And now, Beatrice was in a quandary.  How was she going to get Nick alone, so they could plan their future together ?

Things always came to her better when she wrote.  She went to her desk to get her Diary.  But pulling open the drawer, she got a shock.  It wasn’t there, where she knew she had left it.  Nervously, then frantically, she pulled open one drawer after another.  The Diary was gone.

“Looking for This ?”, a voice from her doorway spoke.  Beatrice whirled around and saw Mandy, with an evil grin on her face, holding her Diary. 
_______________________________________

[BloodChuckZ]

Trent wasn’t really surprised to see Amber in the Boy’s Dorm yard after school, looking forlorn.  After all, Russell hadn’t gone to school in days, and maybe never would again.  The other Bullies had been stunned by Russell’s decision, but seemed accepting of Trent’s once more taking over the leadership.  But Russell had overlooked Amber in making up his mind to go out on top, as he put it.  In his funk, he had forgotten his girl.

Trent went over to her.  “Looking for Russell ?”, he asked.

It was a windy day, and Amber brushed her dirty-blonde hair from her face as she squinted at Trent.  “Yeth”. she said, “I look fer Russell.  Whereth he be ?”

“Um...Well actually, he’s at his house”, Trent told her, “Do you know where that’s at ?”

Amber shook her head.  “Will youth showa me ?”, she pleaded.

Trent hesitated.  Russell’s place was clear across the Towns, practically.  “Well...I don’t know...”

“Pleese ?”, Amber pleaded.  Trent looked about.  Tom and Davis were standing nearby, eavesdropping, seeing what their Leader would do.  “All right”, Trent relented.  “Let’s go.”

Still nursing their wounds, none of the Bullies offered to come along.  It had turned into a hot day, and they were too lazy to want to walk in the heat.  Trent didn’t want to either, but as they cleared the front gates, he spied the bike rack and saw he was in luck.  A battered BMX was there, along with a couple other bikes, one for a girl.  Probably Edna the Cook’s bike.  Trent went over and pulled it from the rack as Amber followed. 

“Know how to ride ?”, Trent asked, wondering.  Amber nodded her head Yes.  Trent gave her the bike and she got on.  It occurred to Trent that she was probably unaware they were stealing the bikes, since she was such a dim bulb.  He took the battered BMX and off they went to the Vale.

The going wasn’t fast, but about 20 minutes later they arrived at Russell’s house, parking the bikes in front.  Trent led Amber into the house.  Russell was in front of the TV, as usual.

“Russell, look who I brought !”, Trent said loudly enough for Russell to hear.

Russell looked around and saw who it was.  His morose face broke into a smile.  “AMBY !”, he said gleefully, thrusting his arms open.

Amber ran to him and  leapt into his arms with obvious relief.  It had only been a few days, but felt far longer to her.  Russell beamed at her for a moment.  Then, remembering Trent, he looked over at him.  “RUSSELL THANK TRENT FOR BRINGING AMBY.”  Amber giggled at Russell’s booming voice.  Russell toned down his next remark.  “So How Things Going ?”

“Just fine, Big Boy, just fine, Trent said.  “Soon as they’re all healed up, the boys are gonna come see you.  They’re all back but Troy.”

But Russell’s attention was back on Amber.  She snuggled up next to him in the big chair.  Trent stood around awhile, and then finally said, “Um...Russell, we got to be getting back....I got, um, things to do....”

“AMBY CAN STAY”, Russell announced, “IT WEEKEND NOW.”

“Um...Sure”, Trent shrugged.  “I’ll come back later for her, I guess.”

“NO NEED”, Russell said.  “RUSSELL SHOW AMBY WHERE BUS STOP DOWN STREET IS, SHE CAN RIDE BUS BACK.”

“Um...Well, Ok”, Trent shrugged again.  “Guess I’ll be going then...See you later, hey ?”

Russell didn’t answer, his full attention was on Amber as he held that goofy smile on his face.  Trent left without another word.  Outside, he stashed the battered BMX bike in Russell’s garage, deciding to ride Edna the Cook’s bike back to school and return it to the rack.  He certainly didn’t want to be blamed for taking Edna’s bike, if that’s whose it was, since he didn’t fancy having a dead Raccoon in his Lunch Stew come Monday.
_______________________________________

[BloodChuckZ]

Tony and Karen had left right after school and walked to Bullworth Town's new Electronics Store to get her, and Melody, new Cell Phones.  Overlooked in the rush of things, Karen had reminded Tony that she barely had the time to even use her previous Cell Phone.  The fate of that phone was unknown...The Townies took both, of course, Tony had found (or been given ? - It was still fuzzy) Melody’s Cell Phone in that Church, which he had turned over to the Authorities.  But the fate of Karen’s Cell Phone was unknown.  Tony thought Omar was probably the one to have had it last, and if the Feds had found it on his body, they hadn’t said. 

Anyway, it all boiled down to one fact...Both girls needed new phones.  Security of the girls was a top priority now, even though all the known threats against them had been removed.  The Vale Valley’s apparent lack of adequate Law Enforcement for so many years was bring touted about the Internet as the “Wild East”.  Hordes of strangers were now entering the Towns by it’s lone road to take a look at this seemingly lawless place, where petty crime included thievery, robbery, physical assault, kidnapping, rape, and even murder, that had went unchallenged and unchecked for so long.  Things would change, oh yes....Outside scrutiny and pressure would force change.  But right now, things were in flux....Any crazed or perverted individual could grab their claim to fame, or any group with bad intentions could move in and establish themselves in the Valley with ease.

A Cell Phone wouldn’t fix things, they both knew that.  Both Karen and Melody had Cell Phones on them when they were abducted, and they had been of no use then, only later, when one of them had shown up in the old Church.  But it was something, if even only a little bit of something.  Tony couldn’t watch Karen every second of every day and night.  There was still danger, even if only the chance of it.  But the Cell Phone was still something.

As a point of fact, more and more of the Students were getting Cell Phones, those who could afford them.  In time, all would have them.  This was something that Tony would have to keep in mind as he was crafting the Binding Agreement.  Soon, it would be possible for Cliques to just call each other instead of meeting face to face.  And soon, it would be possible to text threats instead of shouting them.  Social Media served also to enhance Social Problems.

New Cell Phone in hand, and one for Melody, they left the Electronics Store and headed for the Vale Clinic.  It was time for their daily visit with Nick.
_______________________________________

[BloodChuckZ]

Beatrice’s face registered the shock she felt in seeing Mandy holding her Diary.  Speechless for the moment, she took a couple steps forward, a look of angst in her eyes.

“You know, for a Brainiac, you’re rather stupid, keeping this thing right in that desk drawer, where just anyone can find it”, Mandy said, her voice analytical.  “Seems a really bright person would lock up something so valuable, or at least hide it under their mattress.”

Beatrice’s mouth moved like a fish, opening and closing, as she beheld her precious Diary in the hands of her worst enemy on Campus.  Finally, she burst out with, “Give It Back !!  That’s Mine !!  You Have No Right....”

“I Have EVERY Right”, Mandy interrupted her.  “I TOLD You To Stay Away From Nick, But Did You Listen ?  Nooooo.”  Mandy took a couple steps into the room.  “Now, Your Diary Is Going To Pay The Price, Diddle-Brain !!”

“Oh...No, No, You Can’t !!”, Beatrice cried, a horrible feeling sweeping through her.

“Oh, Yes, I Can !”, Mandy shot back.  “I think this Trash belongs in the School Furnace !”

A feeling of utter terror swept through Beatrice at the thought of her Diary burning up in the School Furnace.  It didn’t occur to her that the Furnace was shut off for the summer.  The shocking statement propelled her to momentarily overcome her fear of Mandy.  Beatrice rushed at Mandy, screaming, “GIVE IT BACK, GIVE IT BACK, GIVE IT BACK !!!!”

Mandy was taken at a bit of surprise as Beatrice rushed at her, fists wildly swinging.  She held the Diary out of reach as Beatrice came at her and landed a couple of ineffective weak punches.  When Beatrice started pulling her hair, Mandy really got pissed off.  She kneed Beatrice in the crotch and punched her in the eye with her free fist, finishing off by kicking her left leg by the knee.  Beatrice went down like a small sack of potatoes.

“Oh, boo-hoo-hoo”, Beatrice started to cry.  “Give it back...Please...Give it b-b-back...”

Mandy was unshaken by Beatrice’s unexpected attack, but realized there must be some really juicy stuff in her stupid Diary to make her try to attack her over it.  A new thought occurred to her.  “Oh, you’ll get it back...But only if you never trick Nick in to one of your ‘experiments’ again, or even talk to him or look at him again.”  Mandy calculated.  “There’s...about 3 weeks left for Summer School.  During that time, if you behave yourself and leave Nick alone, then you’ll get this back...But then you must leave Bullworth Academy forever.”

Beatrice slowed her crying. Her eye, knee, and crotch were hurting, but she could barely believe what Mandy was saying.  “F-forever ?  I can’t....Just leave...Like that !”

“That’s the deal, zits-for-brains”, Mandy said.  “When classes are done, you’ll have what you came back here for.  You can go back to your fancy Prep School then, and diddle those aspiring young Doctors.”

“But...My Diary...”, Beatrice blubbered, “You’ve got to give it back !”

“The day you leave out the front gate with your baggage for the last time, I will personally hand it over to you”, Mandy said.  “Otherwise, this Diary gets cremated, burned up, Poof !”  Mandy stepped over to the prone Beatrice and grabbed her hair, yanking her head up.  “Mess with Nick just one more time, and this is history”, Mandy threatened, waving the Diary in Beatrice’s face.  “And you’ll get beaten to a bloody pulp by me, or Karen, or Melody.  Maybe all of us together.  We’ll take you to the Hole and pound your ass, Pig-Face.  Do we understand each other ?”

Beatrice leaked fresh tears, but nodded her head yes. Mandy let go of Beatrice’s hair and dropped her head.  “Good.  I’ll be watching you”, Mandy said.  "Don’t screw up.”

Mandy exited the room with the Diary in her hand, leaving Beatrice sobbing on the floor.
_________________________________________

[BloodChuckZ]

Saturday came, dawning bright and hot.  Tony went and met Karen in front of the Girl’s Dorm about a hour after waking up, then they went for a walk around Campus.  They decided to take the day for themselves and take a break, as all work and no rest make for dull minds.  Besides, there was really nothing to do until tonight, when the Nerds were going to Council.  Melvin had told Tony Friday at school what time it would be.  Getting the Nerds to again produce weapons for the entire school would be a crucial first step on the road to the Binding Agreement.

The Campus was calm.  The News people had stuck to their agreement not to try to invade the School Campus in the wake of the News Conference, although they still lurked in Bullworth Town and the Vale.  They were barred from entering the Clinics, but not from the streets.  Even so, their presence was dwindling as more and more Students were released from the Clinics; the Press would interview them there on the spot.  The released Students were more than eager to relate their adventures at the Chem Plant Raid and the Reporters lapped it up.  But by Saturday, only the four who had been seriously injured remained at the Vale Clinic, and it would be some time before they would be recovered enough to be released.

Moving about campus, they greeted those others who were out and about.  Many were heading down to the Pool, for it promised to be a hot day.  The only ones who were not around were the Preps, or what remained of them.  Justin and Parker had returned to Harrington House, only to leave the following day and join Bryce at the Beach House, unable to stomach Tad’s increasingly hostile attitude.  Rumors swirled about the apparent new split in the Prep ranks, but none of the Preps were talking and the speculations went unanswered.

After a while, Karen got the Idea to go riding on the Go-Kart.  Tony agreed, it was too hot a day to just walk around.  They went to the Garage area on the North end of the Autoshop, facing the Parking Lot, and got the Go-Kart out.  Riding out the Parking Lot gate and down the access road, the toured the Valley.  It had been awhile since they had been out riding.  Karen often thought of it during her captivity, trying to keep her sanity, and had wondered if she would ever get to ride again.  Now, on this day, more than a week after her rescue, it was an exhilaration for her.

For two hours, they just rode, even going into New Coventry after motoring about Bullworth Town for awhile.  They stopped and spoke to a few of the Greasers outside of the Blue Balls Bar, and then were off again, Karen showing Tony where the Junkyard was at along a long winding dirt road to the East.  They dallied there for awhile, and then Karen asked Tony to ride her over to the Vale.  There was a place she had to go to, she knew....The scene of the crime, the place of her Kidnapping.

Tony was appalled.  “You can’t possibly want to go back there !”, he exclaimed.

“I have to”, Karen told him.  “I have to face what happened, and face where it happened....Don’t you see ?”

“But...You’re not ready”, Tony said, shaking his head.  “Maybe later....”

“I’m ready now”,  Karen insisted stubbornly.  "It’s time.  Tony, Please ?”

Karen gazed at him with soulful eyes, and Tony knew he could not deny her this.  He reluctantly agreed, and the got back in the Go-Kart.  They wound their way back the way they came along the dirt road, and then through New Coventry back to Bullworth Town, taking a left onto the Great Bridge.  Soon, they were cruising Vale Valley Boulevard, the waters of the Bay to their left.  Taking the turn on Hill Street, Tony motored up to the Burger Joint and parked the Go-Kart in the small adjacent lot.  Karen dismounted, and Tony followed after as Karen approached the Sidewalk and then just stood there, looking down.

“This...Was where”, she finally indicated, pointing at a spot just before the drive-thru lane.  “Where....They grabbed me.  I think they got Melody first, I heard something wrong, then....”  She trailed off.  Tony put his arm around her and pulled her close.  Karen’s eyes were full of tears.  “Mel was walking behind me, she had to pee....I should have been watching her closer...”

“It wouldn’t have mattered”, Tony comforted her.  “They would have taken you both anyway, if not then, then on the way back.  But it was actually a good thing they took you here, when they did.”

“What do you mean ?”, Karen asked him.  Tony then related how Laurent had spotted the trail of pee from a knocked out Melody, and how they had followed it back to the archway and the stairs that led to Vale Valley Road. “Then Ray found your shoe on the first landing, so right then I knew something had happened to you.  When we reached the road up top, the pee trail ended...I guess they must have carried the both of you off, somehow.  But...If the pee trail hadn’t been there, we wouldn’t have known.”

“That’s...So ironic”, Karen said, and thinking about it, she uttered a short laugh.  “A pee trail, imagine that.”  Karen loosened herself from Tony’s embrace and walked along the sidewalk to the archway as Tony followed behind.  She looked around for a bit and drew a deep breath.  “I’m not afraid of this place....It’s not evil, they were.”  She turned to Tony.  “I feel better now”, she declared.  Tony nodded to show he understood.  She had needed this.  Together, they headed back to where the Go-Kart was parked.

“Tony...Let’s go to the Overlook”, Karen said suddenly.  “We haven’t been there since....”

Tony hesitated, then nodded, understanding.  The Overlook was the place of many of their visits over the time they had been together.  Karen needed to see the place again, to remember it as theirs, and not the as the place she had last been to the night of her Kidnapping.  They got in the Go-Kart and headed off, taking the road routes instead of trying to power the Go-Cart on a very bumpy ride up the stairs to Vale Valley Road.

Arriving at the Lighthouse Overlook, Tony parked the Go-Cart, and they walked to the rail together.  It was mid-afternoon, and the place was empty, probably because of the hot day.  Karen gazed out on the Bay below, her eyes searching for Pirate Island.  “Remember our first night up here ?”, she said, reminiscing.  “I wanted to go to that Island.”  She laughed.  “When we finally did go there, it was all rocky and barren, after the Tornado.”

“Yeah”, Tony replied.  “Funny how that chunk of rock played such a big part of things.”

“But we got to see some better Islands later”, Karen went on.  “Those, I’d like to go back to.”

“Maybe something can be arranged”, Tony smiled, “After Summer session is over and before Fall term starts.  We need a vacation after all we’ve had to deal with.”

Karen knew what she had dealt with, but Tony had yet to relate all the events leading up to the Chem Plant Raid.  She turned to him and said, “Tony, you ought to tell me what all you and Nick did to find us...I was always sure you would, but how did you do it ?”

Tony sighed.  “It’s a long story....Maybe we should go sit in the shade, and I’ll tell you about it.”  Karen agreed, and the went to the West part of the small park, where they sat in the shade of the huge boulder wall that bounded the Overlook.  For the next two hours, Tony related the events of that frantic time, carefully leaving out his encounters with Pinky and Lola.  He finished up with the start of the Raid, the events of which Karen already knew about.

“Wow, what a twisted trail that was !”, Karen exclaimed.  She was particularly fascinated with the story of the Church and Tony’s vague remembrances of the Monks.  “And then, the Asylum, and then those Tunnels under Blue Skies....Who knew ?”

“Well, everybody does now, I guess”, Tony said, and they both laughed.  Their talk drifted over to what was ahead of them, and their work on the Binding Agreement.  Tony told her he had to meet with the Nerds in a few hours, at 9 P.M.  “I hope it works out and I can get them to agree to start making Weapons to supply everyone equally.  It’s important for Parity.  Trouble is, I’m going in blind....if I only could send Constantinos around to see what’s going on...”

Karen frowned, then said, “Just where is Constantinos, anyway ?  I haven’t seen him around lately.”

“I guess he’s....”, Tony began, then stopped.  Where was Constantinos ?  Tony hadn’t seen him since....Well, since the Chem Plant Raid.  Constantinos was well known for disappearing for long periods of time, a day or two was not uncommon.  But it had been more that a week now.  “I...Don’t know”, Tony amended.  “That’s strange....I don’t know where he is at all.”
_____________________________________

[BloodChuckZ]

Constantinos, at that moment, was in fact preparing to return to Bullworth. 

The greater part of it was mental preparation.  He was still consumed with enormous guilt for what had happened to Tiffany.  He had failed to protect her.  Worse, he had gone along with her participation in the Chem Plant Raid, even though he hadn’t taken her there and she showed up on her own.  Worse still, he had given her the Spud Gun and told her she would have to fight like the rest of them. 

“What did you expect ?” the Voice Of Reason had said derisively. “That she was a seasoned fighter with Spud Guns and Air Rifles ?"

“Nooooo....”, Comnstantinos had moaned.  “She...She was a fighter....In Reform School...She was eager to fight them...”

The Voice of Reason had chuckled, a sound like dirt in a storm sewer.  “So, this little girl, weighing all of a hundred pounds, was a seasoned fighter, all right.  So seasoned that she exposes herself while firing shots which had little effect on her target, is that it ?"

“It...Wasn’t like that”, Constantinos had protested, “It was...Was....”

“No ?”, the Voice of Reason had uttered snidely, “How WAS it then ?”

Constantinos had stuck his thumbs in his eyes, using pain to blot out the Voice of Reason in his head.  It had worked, that time.  Now, he was trying not to dwell on the recent past.  But it was hard to do, seeing as how it was the reason he was there.  He looked about the huge waiting room.  The place was crowded, it was always crowded day and night.  Mostly, he slept here, but sometimes in the big trash bin out back, sometimes in the unkempt park across the street.

She was very sick.  The three Pellets had been removed from her Intestines in a delicate operation.  But those had carried something evil into her.  Infection.  Septicemia, they called it, although there was a new name for it now, Bacteremia.  Her whole tiny system was in Septic shock.  The Sepsis was caused by her immune system's response to the serious infection, caused by the shooting.  She had been kept in a Controlled Coma since she had been Airlifted here.

“I....I think I...Love you....Really...Love you....So strange.....I’ve never....Loved anyone....Before....”   Her last words to him still echoed in his mind, as they had every day and night for more than the past week.  Their strange relationship had made a turning point that night on the Chem Plant roof, only he didn’t realize it just then.  It was only when he heard those last words of hers.  Tiffany had stopped using him and had grown to love him.  If they had gotten through the night, they would have had a real relationship, not one based on the Klepto fantasies in the darker parts of her mind.

Tiffany had no family, he found out.  She was an orphan, a street urchin, at a young age, going from Foster Home to Foster Home in-between, and finally to the streets when barely a teenager.  Eventually, she fell in with other street-dwelling bad girls, committing crimes, and was sent to the Girl's Reform School.  This he learned by eavesdropping on the Hospital personnel and the occasional Police Detectives who were trying to locate her family.  Constantinos was good at being unobtrusive, and they never even knew that he had heard.  Constantinos’ own Greek Parents had dumped him at Bullworth a long time ago, and he hadn’t heard from them since.  They had probably returned to Greece.  An only child, he could kind of relate to Tiffany’s situation.  She had no one, he had no one.  They had no one except each other.

Constantinos had sat with Tiffany every day when he could.  In Intensive Care, only 1-hour visits were allowed at a time, and he had done far more waiting than being with her.  He used the spare time caging something to eat.  Sometimes, he ventured late night to Fast-Food dumpsters, where the day’s perfectly good cholesterol-laden burgers and fries had been thrown out.  Sometimes, strangers at the Hospital took pity on him and got him a meal from the Cafeteria, of a snack from the Vending Machines.  Constantinos ate mechanically, but he ate, for he knew what he must do.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“You know who’s responsible for this besides yourself ?”, the Voice of Reason had asked rhetorically.  “The Shooter bears the Ultimate Responsibility for what he did, firing at a girl.  What kind of scum does that ?"

Constantinos hadn’t minded listening to the Voice of Reason that time.  In fact he was eager, so eager, to listen.  “Yes”, he had whispered, “The Shooter....”

“You saw him, remember ?” the Voice of Reason had whispered in his mind.  “They took him down, the others, but you saw him.  The darkest one of their bunch, the most despicable one.  You know who shot her....Don’t you ?"

“Yes”, Constantinos had answered himself.  “It was....Leon.”

“You must return to Bullworth, and take revenge.  It’s the only way to keep our sanity", the Voice of Reason had said.  “He Must Be Punished !”

“But...The Feds have them !”, Constantinos had exclaimed.  It was a good thing he was behind a Burger Joint in the dark at the time, else somebody might have heard him.  “They’ve probably taken him away by now !”

“You’re not thinking straight”, the Voice of Reason had said.  “Those Townies were all injured, those left in the Level.  They can’t transport injured prisoners until they recover enough to be moved."

“Of Course !”, Constantinos had whispered.  He struggled to remember.  He HAD seen Leon taken down, and had seen others gathered about him, yelling something.  Damon, maybe ?  He now recalled Damon rushing by him, heading for Leon, who was down....He HAD been hit.  But how seriously ?  Enough to warrant an extended stay in one of the Clinics ?

“We must go back”, the Voice of Reason had said.  “It will soon be too late.”

“Yes”, Constantinos had agreed with himself.  “We must.  She must be Avenged.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Now, he sat at Tiffany’s bedside for the last time, holding her small hand that was now limp.  There had been power in that small hand, as it grabbed his junk and changed his world forever.  If she recovered, the strength would come back, he knew.  There was nothing he could do for her here, that was up to a higher power.  But what he could do....MIGHT be able to do....was to remove the future threat to her, forever, that of the Shooter Leon.

He rose and bent down, placing a kiss on her cheek.  Then, he left Boston General Hospital without being noticed and began walking down the street to the West, out of the City.
____________________________________________

[BloodChuckZ]

Tony stood at the access door through the large barricade that separated the Football Field from the Nerds’ Observatory area.  He was alone, electing not to bring Karen along on this, his first foray into negotiations.  This wasn’t a social call, and Tony didn’t want it to be viewed as such.  This was business, important business, even if nobody knew it yet. 

He punched in the access code to get through the door, then entered.  But instead of going right to the gates of the Observatory, he cut across through the scattered boulders and went through the open area to the tunnel that led out to the old rail line.  The locking gate that the Nerds had been promised for this tunnel had not yet been installed, and that had turned out to be a good thing, considering many of the Students who had fought at the Chem Plant had come through here.  Tony then crossed over the large cavern-like area and entered the tunnel that led to the Asylum.  A ways down, he used his lighter to find the special rock that opened the passage to Jimmy’s secret cave.

Once inside, he located the lantern and lit the place up.  He had been over here earlier in the week to get the money he had given to Melvin, but he now needed more, a lot more if his plan was to succeed.  Going to the large bin where Jimmy had secreted the cash he had left for him to use, Tony unlocked the locks and opened it up.  The large array of outfits and Weapons were still there and intact.  Tony debated briefly on taking a Spud Gun, then decided against it.  The cash would be his Persuader, not a weapon.

Tony accessed the cash box, and he was realizing that the money stock was getting far lower than he thought.  He would probably have to get a job when the new term started, maybe a shift at the Burger Joint or maybe a Paper Route.  Or maybe he could ask Mr. Galloway for pay for being Mediator...This was certainly an job, and an unpaid one at that.  He smirked at that thought.  Taking out what he needed, he put the cash box back and then closed and locked up the large bin.

Looking around at the cave before he left, he saw nothing out of place.  It was just as Jimmy, and Zoe, had left it.  Tony hadn’t been here but a handful of times since they had departed the School.  Unlike Jimmy, Tony didn’t care much for caves.  He didn’t see how Jimmy could have stayed here for months, only sneaking out every once in a while, mostly at night.  Tony recalled how Vance had been trapped in that cave over on Pirate Island until they had found him, and shuddered. 

Tony left through the narrow passageway into the tunnel and then traveled back to the Observatory.  At the gate, he pushed the buzzer that the Nerds had installed outside and waited.  It was a bit after 9 P.M. and they should have started their meeting by now.  Tony waited, and after a minute impatiently pushed the buzzer again.  A few seconds later, a voice came through the squawk box speaker mounted above the buzzer.

“Tony, is that you ?”, the anxious voice of Melvin asked through the speaker.

“Yeah, it’s me”, Tony answered.  “What gives ?  Thought someone would be here to meet me.”

“I’ll be right out to let you in”, Melvin said hurriedly, and then in a whispery voice said, “We started the Knights Council already, and....It’s not going well.”   

Tony grimaced.  It was already beginning to look like this was going to be a tough sell.
__________________________________________

[BloodChuckZ]

Just a bit earlier, Ted and Mandy were sitting on the short steps out in front of the Jock’s Clubhouse.  It had just been too hot to stay inside, particularly after what they had just finished doing.  The Clubhouse had no Air Conditioning as yet, in fact that was one upgrade that no place on campus had gotten, and probably wouldn’t until it turned cool in the Fall.

Some of the other Jocks were playing a pick-up game on the Field, others had gone to Bullworth Town, notably Damon and Laurent with their respective girlfriends, Gloria and Nina.  There was a light breeze blowing across the Football Field, it served to somewhat cool the heat of the day just ended.  Mandy snuggled next to Ted, and they talked of their future.

“Just a few more months left of this place”, Ted said, “And we’ll be out of here.”  Both Ted and Mandy were set to Graduate mid-term the following January, if this make-up summer went right.  One more Football season in High School.  It was unlikely they would play beyond the regular season, no matter what Coach Sanders would try to have them believe.  Come the first of December, Ted’s High School Football career would be over, as would Mandy’s High School Cheerleading career.  But both vowed they would go out on top, at least by Bullworth standards.

“You got any good Scholarship offers yet ?”, Mandy asked, her head on Ted’s shoulder.

“Got one”, Ted smirked, “From Alcorn State.”

“Alcorn ?”, Mandy asked.  “Where’s that at ?”

“It’s, uh....Down in Mississippi, somewhere”, Ted answered.  “It’s an...A Black school.”

“A Black school ?”, Mandy echoed.  “Why would they want you ?”

“If you haven’t noticed, most Quarterbacks are White”, Ted answered.  “There are a few Blacks that do it, but most Blacks are Linesmen, Running Backs, or Wide Receivers.  I think that Recruiter came here to take a look at Damon, although he has another year to go, at least.”

“Oh”, Mandy said, thinking.  “I wonder if I could get on the Cheerleading Squad in a place like that.”

Ted smiled.  “You would sure be a novelty down there.”

“Well...You know I’ll go where you do, even if it means....”, Mandy said.

Ted interrupted her. “Don’t you worry...I might get other offers...We’re sorta famous now, and all...I’ll bet other Recruiters will show up this Fall, now that they know how to find the place.  If we can have a halfway decent season, maybe one or more will want to pick me up for their College.”

“I sure hope so”, Many sighed.  “Mississippi sounds really far away.”

“I’m sure some will come.  They’ll want to see how the famous Jock fighters play on the Football Field.”  Ted grinned.  “Plus, I’m hale and healthy now, and can throw the pigskin like a rocket.  Nobody in this whole state has a better arm than I do...All I need is Receivers who can catch the ball without dropping it.”

Mandy settled back into Ted’s arms.  “Well, it’s a good thing you didn’t get hurt this time, after getting shot last Spring.  That would’ve been a disaster, you wouldn’t have been able to play.”

“It was dangerous, sure”, Ted said, “But look at the opportunity it’s gonna give us...All that publicity will draw those Recruiters in to see the Hero Quarterback that done helped rescue them kidnapped girls, instead of just the Quarterback who was shot down on his own Field last Spring.  It’s gonna be a lock, you’ll see.”

“I hope you’re right”, Mandy said.  “But don’t a lot of your plays depend on what the Coach has you do ?  What if he just sends in running plays all the time instead of passing plays ?”

“Why would he do that ?”, Ted asked.  “He wants to win, he told us so !  I can throw more Touchdown passes than those Running Backs can score, that’s for sure.”

“You know, maybe you’re right”, Mandy said thoughtfully, “I’m sure that’s just what that man will do.”

“What do you mean ?”, Ted asked, unsure of what Mandy was getting at.

“Maybe...”, Mandy said, “Maybe he likes other players better than you, is all....Like Wide Receivers.”

Ted frowned.  “Just what are you going on about ?”

Mandy shook her head.  “Honestly, Ted, you know I love you dearly, but you can be such a dunderhead sometimes.”

“And just what does that mean ?”, Ted asked, beginning to feel offended.

Mandy pulled away from him and faced him.  “Doesn’t it seem strange to you that Coach Sanders always has Kirby Olsen hanging around him ?”

Ted was confused.  “So what ?  Kirby’s was injured, there’s some workouts he’s restricted from doing for awhile....”

“So you don’t find it odd that he’s always standing next to Sanders when he’s not working out ?” Mandy went on, “Or the fact that Sanders was doing ‘Special Workouts’ with him before he was hurt in the Chem Plant Raid ?”

“Ahh, the Coach was just doing those sessions trying to make him a better runner and have him catch passes better", Ted replied.  “I’m glad, because the more passes he catches, the more glory for me.  What’s the big deal about that ?”

“The big deal is”, Mandy said slowly, “Is that Sanders touches that boy when none of you are looking....I’ve seen him doing it when I’ve been doing Cheerleading practice.”

“Touches him where ?”, Ted asked quizzically, still not understanding what Mandy was getting at. 

“On the shoulder, on the back, on the head...”, Mandy said.  “Maybe other places, too.  Ted, I’m just saying, there’s something wrong here.  Sanders doesn’t touch any of you other guys like that, not that I’ve seen....And another thing, Burton was always staring at me as if I was naked, he probably had one of those posters of me hid away somewhere.  But Sanders has not so much as looked at me, ever.  I could be a piece of furniture.  I don’t think that man likes girls at all...I think he likes boys....Special boys.”

Ted stared out at the Football Field as he digested what Mandy had said.  Sure, Kirby was odd and all, and sort of isolated from the rest of the Jocks since....Well, since they had found out he was queer.  But he had trouble thinking his new horsefaced Coach could be some kind of...Predator.  He refused to believe something like that.  Casting his eyes about, he found an excuse to change this troubling subject.  From far across the Field, he saw Tony Calderone walking to the Nerds Observatory Barricade.  “Hey, Isn’t that Tony over there ?”, he asked, pointing.

Distracted, Mandy squinted through the glare of the sodium-arc lights which came on when it got dark, so that the Football Field was always lit.  “It...Kinda looks like him.  What’s he doing ?”

Ted watched as the figure disappeared through the small door set into the Barricade.  “Going to see the Nerds, I guess.  Hope he’s having them make some Weapons for us again.  We’re the biggest Clique on Campus, but we still need to be able to protect ourselves.”

Their conversation turned to the need to keep the Jocks protected and uninjured for the next few months, and Mandy’s suspicions were not brought up again.  But, in the back of her mind, Mandy remained troubled, convinced that there was something really wrong with their new Coach.
__________________________________________

[BloodChuckZ]

“How bad is it ?”, Tony asked Melvin, as they walked through the Observatory.

“They don’t want to agree”, Melvin said, a bare tremor in his voice, “On Anything !”

Tony paused on the steps leading down to the Observatory’s basement.  “And here I thought you were the great orator Knight.  Are you losing control, Melvin ?”

“Ohh, don’t be mean !”, Melvin exclaimed.  “They just don’t want to listen !”

Tony paused a few seconds longer, then started down.  “Well, I’m just going to have to make them listen, then.” 

He could hear them chattering as he walked down the stairs.  As soon as he emerged and the Nerds could see him, they went quiet, as if a switch had been flipped. Tony walked to their Council Table, while Melvin followed behind.  Tony didn’t take a chair, he just stood as Melvin scurried to his own chair at the head of the table, next to Jimmette. 

Tony had learned one thing.  Standing commanded more the appearance of power than sitting.  He cast his eyes around at the seated Nerds,his face set with a stern look.  “So.  I’m going to assume that Melvin has told you what I’ve requested of you.  What is your answer ?”

Tony’s hard face roamed from one Nerd to another.  Only Fatty, sitting with his arms crossed, had the nerve to answer.  “We’re not making Weapons for everybody again.  Why should we ?  Nobody will dare attack us now.  We have the upper hand.”

Tony said nothing, just gave them all the best glare he could summon for all of 30 seconds.  Then harshly, he said, “For a bunch of supposedly smart fellows, you Nerds are pretty dumb.”  The Nerds began to fidget.  Tony didn’t usually talk mean to them.  “We’ve been through this before, what, twice ?  Do I have to explain about Parity again ?”

“We’re just tired of arming the other Cliques”, Fatty said, somewhat uneasily.  “It’s not really necessary....”

“But arming yourselves is no problem, now is it ?”, Tony asked.  “How do you think the other Cliques will take that ?”

The Nerds looked at each other and blinked at the unexpected question.  “I suppose...Like before...”, Fatty said, hesitantly.

“Like before ?”, Tony interjected, “You mean, like before Christmas ?  When one of you single-handedly attacked all the other Cliques ?  Before there was any such thing as Parity ?”

The Nerds shifted around uncomfortably.  They didn’t like being reminded of what Algie had done, even though he had done those attacks seeking revenge for having his Nut blown off with an M-80 as he slept in the basement of the Dragon’s Wing. “He attacked us too”, Fatty grumbled.  “Broke my leg because of him.  Besides, he’s been Outcast.”

“That's not the point”, Tony said.  “The fact is, the other Cliques won’t take kindly to you Nerds being armed while they’re not.  They’ll remember what one Nerd can do, and eventually they’ll attack you in force and take your weapons from you.”

“B-but, we’re all at peace now”, Bucky ventured timidly.  “It shouldn’t matter !”

“This won’t last”, Tony told them.  “You boys should be smart enough to know that.  People here...The Cliques here....Are too different to get along well for long.”  Tony paused, then put on a friendlier face.  “Look, Jimmy told me stories, about how it was here before....How you Nerds were the most bullied group on Campus.  Told me one story, matter of fact, of how he had to fight off the whole Jock Clique with that Spud Cannon you all used to have up there above the gates out there, cause you fellows were too afraid.  He beat them all, and you called him 'Defender Of The Castle’, or something like that."  Tony looked about.  “Although, this Observatory was pretty much a wreck then.  Point is, you had Weapons then, and they didn’t, and if not for Jimmy, those Jocks would have still beat you senseless.  Is that what you want to go back to ?”

“Do you think we’re Morons or something ?”, Donald suddenly said.  “If we have Weapons and they don’t, we have the advantage in a fight !”

Tony fixed Donald with a withering gaze.  “Yeah, that’s worked out real great in the past, hasn’t it ?  Guess you want to go back to getting Swirlies every day, is that it ?”

“They’ll all be sorry for that one day !”, Donald said back unconvincingly.

“Sure they will”, Tony said, and Cornelius snickered.  “Point is, boys, since Parity was instituted, all that kind of nonsense like that stopped, didn’t it ?   When’s the last time any of you were bullied, and I mean really bullied, or attacked by ANY of the other Cliques ?”

The Nerds just sat in silence, unable to answer, as Tony hoped they would.  He had no idea whether they had been really bullied in some time, since he had always seemed to be occupied with other things.  “Now, I’m sure you’ve all preformed bravely at certain times, like when battling outside forces, such as when Jake and the Townies tried to take over the whole Academy.  Fact, the bravest I’ve seen was when Melvin was firing that Super Spud Gun at them, on the Chem Plant roof and down in the Levels.  But, all our enemies are gone now.  It’s going to be a brand-new era from here on....And the first step to that is to equalize everybody so that the old ways don’t return.  So whadda say ?”

The Nerds sat in silence thinking it over.  Jimmette was the first to speak, surprising Tony most of all when she said, “I think you boys ought to make the Weapons.”

Even stranger, Thad muttered, “Yeath, we thould make Weapons forth everyone.”  Thad had only recently come out of his self-imposed hiding in the Library, shying away from the other Nerds after they questioned his story of bravery in fighting on the third level.

A pause ensued.  Tony could feel the moment was at hand.  “And as an incentive, I’m prepared to offer you all $500 dollars to make them.  Melvin, do you want to call a vote ?”

Melvin looked at Fatty, who shrugged.  Clearing his voice, Melvin said formally, “The issue up for consideration is to manufacture Weapons for everyone in the School in the interest of Parity.  All in favor ?”

Hands slowly raised, all but Fatty’s.  Melvin glanced at him.  “You voting nay ?”

“I’m abstaining”, Fatty said shortly.  “I’ll make them, under protest.”

Melvin cleared his throat.  “Well, then, the measure is passed, with 6 yea votes and 1 abstention.  If there is no other business, I declare this Council of the Knights closed.”

There wasn’t, and the Nerds began to rise from their chairs.  Tony gave a nod to Jimmette for her help, and Melvin escorted Tony back outside to the Observatory gate.  Opening it, he said, “Um...You got something for me, like you said ?”

Tony dug in his pocket and handed Melvin a bill.  Melvin looked at it and saw it was a $100 dollar bill.  “Uh, wasn’t there supposed to be more ?”

“That’s for Jimmette”, Tony told him.  “Spend it on her, like I suggested. You’re lucky to even get that, since you were supposed to do the convincing, and I had to wind up doing it.”

Melvin’s face grew red with shame, but he nodded.  “How soon...Do you want the Weapons ?”

“In about a week”, Tony told him.  “I’ll be back to collect and pay then....And something else.”

“Something else ?”, Melvin asked apprehensively.  “What else ?”

Tony almost laughed at Melvin’s fears, but didn’t.  “I’m working on a Master Plan for the protection of all the Cliques”, Tony told him. “I’ll present the details to all of you then.”

“What kind of....Master Plan ?”, Melvin asked uncertainly.

“One that everyone will join in, a Binding Agreement to govern the affairs of the School from now on”, Tony said.  “A Plan to bring an end to the senseless violence at this School, just like Pete wanted.  It’s a new era, like I said.  Don’t you boys get left out now.  See you.”

With that, Tony sauntered away, leaving Melvin to gape behind him, thinking.  A Binding Agreement ?  What could that be ?
_______________________________________

[BloodChuckZ]

Tad sat alone in the big chair at Harrington House that evening, brooding.  His eyes were on the recently-installed TV that he had ordered hooked up from the new Electronics Store.  Ironically, they had also installed a a Dish off just off the third floor balcony.  In the not-so-past days gone by, Receiving Dishes had been outlawed in the Vale Valley, as part of the bans that the rich had instituted to isolate the area.  Only controlled access had been allowed, though the rich themselves had access to news of the outside world.  There had also been some black-market Dishes in the Blue Skies area, but they were destroyed when found.  Now, the gates were thrown open, and the whole Valley could access the goings-on outside of the confines of the mountains that ringed it. 

A news report was on, just a squib in the day’s events before the weather report.  The Federal Trials of the Prep Fathers had been set to begin in late October.  New charges had been added, that of the manufacture and distribution of a banned substance, although the report didn’t specify just what that was.  There was also the mention of a sealed indictment to be brought against them.

Unlike Derby’s Father, Mr. Spencer had not spirited Tad out of the country, but had left him to face the fallout.  Perhaps he believed that by turning State’s Evidence, he would be immune from prosecution, but it hadn’t quite worked out that way.  These new Federal charges would not be covered under the Immunity Deal his lawyers had brokered, nor the new indictment.  Just from watching the short report, he knew his family’s money was going to be at serious risk.

It was the way of the rich to hide their assets in all sorts of places, however.  Even though the bulk of the Spencer assets had been frozen, Tad still had access to his own accounts of around a couple hundred thousand dollars.  That would last Tad through his final year of Bullworth Academy, and be enough to get him started in Business College, but then what ?  Tad didn’t really know.  His only hope, it seemed, was to marry into another rich family unconnected with the scandal and collapse that had befallen the rich men of the Vale Valley.     

In the house that evening were Biff and Chad, upstairs in the parlor room, playing cards.  Vanessa was up in their bedroom, having retired early.  Nobody, it seems, wanted to be around him just lately.  In a moment of brutal honesty with himself, he knew that his troubles had began when he invited Vanessa to live at Harrington House.  He just had not been able to help himself, he had been instantly drawn to her the first time he’d seen her at the Independence Dance.  In part, he was tired of Pinky mooning after Tony Calderone every time she was around him, and figured that maybe it was time for him to give some mooning looks at someone himself.  But there was more to it than that.

In his arrogance, Tad had started courting Vanessa when Pinky wasn’t around, first by just touching her arms or shoulders.  Vanessa didn’t seem to mind, and Tad grew bolder, turning the touching into caresses, which became longer caresses as time went by on both their parts.  It had all culminated one night when all of them went to the Prep’s Gym in the Vale.  Pinky had begged off, saying she wasn’t feeling well and having cramps.  While the others were down in the Boxing Ring staging fights, Vanessa made her move by giving Tad a blow job upstairs in the Prep’s Private Clubroom, behind the bar counter.  Ironically, that was the same night that Pinky had stolen out to the Beach House to seduce Tony in exchange for giving him information on the Monks.

Tad thought nothing of it.  After all, he’d been banging Pinky while she had been with Derby, and so what ?  It was a Prep Man’s prerogative to have a mistress on the side, wasn’t that what his Daddy taught him ?  It was just the way things were in High Society, any Prep knew that.  And besides, hadn’t Pinky been having him on the side while cheating on Derby ?  To Tad’s mind, things had only come full circle and aligned themselves where they belonged.

But things had soon started going sour after that.  Pinky had caught them on that Sunday morning, the big fight had ensued, and Pinky had moved out in a huff.  Then, a few days later, Bryce. who never did much at all but punch the large bag at the Prep’s Glass Jaw Boxing Club, approached them all and fired up a few of the Preps to go on an insane mission to actually aid that trash Tony and his equally trashy friend Nick in the battle to free those slutty girlfriends of theirs.

Tad declined to help those faggots in any way, but he inexplicably let those Preps who wanted to go on the mission leave with Bryce, and made no move to stop them from taking along the Harrington House Shields.  Then, after the big Chem Plant battle, Bryce returned with the Shields but not the other Preps, they had been shot with Pellets.  Angry, Tad had accused Bryce of being an incompetent fool, blaming Bryce for getting the others injured.  Words were exchanged, with Bryce finally declaring he was quitting the Preps and telling Tad he could go wank himself before storming out. Worse, as Biff had predicted, the other Preps who had gone along with Bryce elected to go with him, thereby splitting the Clique once again.

It was all a big mess.  More so now, since Biff had made a veiled threat to his leadership, likely causing a loss of respect from the only Preps who were still left with him, Chad and worst of all, Vanessa.  He must do something. Brooding for much of the night, a germ of an idea occurred to him.  It was outrageous, but it just might work.  Tomorrow, to get such a plan started, he would have to venture into the underbelly of the Vale Valley....The Docks.
___________________________________________

[BloodChuckZ]

Sunday promised to be another hot day in the Vale Valley.  Even in the morning, the Temperatures were spiking up past 80 degrees.  The beachfront would be crowded with Townspeople and outsiders alike, seeking relief from the impending heat. 

Shortly after dawn, a figure stole along Vale Valley Boulevard.  He was dressed in somewhat Preppy clothes, though not of Aquaberry design.  His face was partly hidden by the large jaunty incognito hat he was wearing.  It may have looked silly, but the few people he passed by on the way to his destination totally ignored him.  Still, he was nervous having to travel these streets alone, unlike the streets in New Coventry, where he felt more at ease.

His destination was the Vale Clinic.  Reaching it, he eased inside, unseen, and made his way to the back rooms, making sure that he slouched along the opposite wall as he passed the room Johnny Vincent was in.  He would see him later, with the other ones in his Clique, but not just now, and not in disguise like this.  He reached what he thought was the right room.  Pushing the door open, he eased inside, looking at the figure in the bed and feeling relief that he’d made the right choice, and that the patient was alone.

Gord looked up in surprise from the bed.  “I say, who are you ?’

“Gord, it’s me”, Vance said, closing the door and pulling off his hat.  “See ?”

Gord’s tensed face relaxed.  “Oh, my...It’s so good to see you !”

“Yeah, wells I'se be glad dat nobody else is here”, Vance said.

“Ahh, the other Chaps...They haven’t been around to see me”, Gord replied, rather sadly.

“Did you really expects thems to ?”, Vance asked sarcastically.

“No, I suppose not”, Gord sighed.  “That Tony and Karen were here to see me....
Bryce is the only Chap who’s been around.  He split from Tad, and said that Justin and Parker were moving in at the Beach House with him....I’ll probably go there too, I guess.”

“Dat’s whats I wasnts to talk to yous about”, Vance said.  “Johnny is retiring, and Peanuts is taking over da Greasers again.  I thinks mebbe we shoulds go live on Pirate Island, yous and me.”

Gord reacted in surprise.  “On the Island ?  But that place....It’s just a pile of rocks now !  You said all the trees had been blown down.  Where would we live, in the cave ?”

“I don’t means just rights now”, Vance told him, “I means later....Listen...”  Vance hunkered down in a chair by Gord’s bed and began to tell him what he had in mind.  “We shoulds build us a Resort dere.  With alls the people commin’ into the Valley, it woulds be a perfect spot.  Like, what I means is a high-class place....We coulds build it rights by the beach dere, and there’d be boats to brings out da paying guests, like a remote get-away but not that far aways, don’cha see whats I Means ?  We could live out dere and run the joint !”

A bit of excitement stirred in Gord.  “But....That would cost a lot of money !”, he exclaimed.  “It’s a fine idea, a Capitol idea, but where would we get....”

“We gets them, what-you-callit, Investors, rights ?”, Vance interrupted.  “Alls on credit, you knows how dat works.  I can’t do’s dat, but yous could !  I could gets the builders and line up whats we’d needs for materials and all.”

Wordlessly, Gord settled back in bed and considered.  It just MIGHT be possible.  His family’s money was at risk, as were all the Prep families involved with the Harringtons.  But his Daddy was the Prep’s Lawyer, and as of yet hadn’t been charged with the excessive crimes the others had.  His family also owned various Hotels, and he might be able to convince them to make an investment, thereby tying up some assets in a dummy corporation.  “Maybe...We Could !”, he exclaimed.

For the next couple of hours, Vance and Gord talked on excitedly on the plans for what one day would be the Pirate Bay Resort, the most sought-after accommodations in the Vale Valley.
___________________________________________

[BloodChuckZ]

That morning, Mr. Galloway was also at the Clinic, but the one over at Bullworth Town.  He had come to visit and sit with Ms. Phillips, who was still recovering from her three-story fall from Bethany Jones’ apartment.  Her right arm had been broken, and it was encased in a cast still.  Both of her Kneecaps had been broken also, but they were far less serious that had been at first believed.  They were healing nicely, and within just a few days, she would be trying to walk again.  She had also suffered a slight concussion, but had quickly gotten over that.  Sadly though, her ear would never be the same.

Compared to Bethany Jones’ injuries, Ms. Phillips had gotten off lucky.  Bethany had a badly twisted and broken leg, a broken nose, back injuries, and worst of all, had suffered a serious head injury when she struck the pavement, Ms. Phillips had found out.  The head injury had caused brain swelling, and Miss Jones had been sent off to a Hospital in Provenience to have holes drilled in her head to reduce the pressure.  She was still in a coma, Ms. Phillips had learned, and had never regained consciousness.

This was a big worry to Ms. Phillips.  Not because she was one bit sorry for having had it out with Bethany Jones, but rather she was regretful for the way the fight had ended.  Her goal had been achieved...Miss Jones wouldn’t be messing with her man, or any man, for quite a long time to come.  But her worry was, what would happen to her if that bitch woke up and tried to get her charged with assault, or even attempted murder ?

Mr. Galloway was trying to sooth her from her fears.  “But, you weren’t charged with anything, now were you ?  The Chief found no probable cause to do so, now did he ?”

“No”, Ms. Phillips conceded, “But he only has my side of the story.”

“Well, she attacked first, right ?”, Mr. Galloway asked.  “Certainly you didn’t start attacking as soon as she opened the door.”

Ms. Phillips shook her head.  “I....Threw an empty bottle at her.  It...Hit her TV.  Then she charged at me, so I maced her in the face.  Then she slammed my head.  So...I suppose I started it.”

“But you didn’t mean to push her out the window, now did you ?”, Mr. Galloway persisted.

“Of course not”, Ms. Phillips replied.  “It just happened in the heat of the fight.  But she had more injuries than me, so they might think...”

“What did Chief O’Rouke say ?”, Mr. Galloway interrupted.  “You told him all this, didn’t you ?”

Ms. Phillips nodded. “Yes...He called it....Accidental Mis-adventure.”

“See ?”, Mr. Galloway smiled.  “I think you’re worrying for nothing.  It’s all going to be alright, you’ll see.”

Ms. Phillips grabbed his sleeve with her free hand. “Really, Lionel ?  Do you really think ?”

Mr. Galloway nodded emphatically.  “I’m sure.  If you want me to, I’ll talk to Chief O’Rouke.”

“Oh, would you ?”, Ms. Phillips asked.  “It would set my mind at ease.”

“Sure thing”, Mr. Galloway said.  “It’ll be all right, dear.  You’ll see.”

Ms. Phillips still had ahold of his sleeve.  She tugged on it and said, “Oh, Lionel...You seem so...Self-assured.  What has happened to you ?”

“I’m the Captain of my own Destiny”, Lionel Galloway replied. “I’m in charge now, and there are going to be some changes, starting with the School.  Together, we can remake the whole thing, from top to bottom.”

“We can ?”, Ms. Phillips asked, her fear over the repercussions from her fight temporarily forgotten. 

“Sure we can”, Mr. Galloway answered.  “And I think Tony Calderone has a plan to help us do just that.”
______________________________________