Re-Evolution: Episode 1: The Shadow Over New Salem

As Greg strolled into shop class, he found that the teacher had already decided to assign partners to working stations around the room.

‘Looks like I won't have any say over who I'm spending the class with’. He sighed to himself, and gave Bobby in the corner a little wave as he looked around for where he'd been assigned.

Bobby shot him a pair of finger guns. It seemed to be his favorite gesture.

Greg had been assigned in the back of the class, to the desk by the window. A young man was there, leaning on his fingerless-gloved hand. Greg looked him over casually as he sidled up to the desk. He was tall, broad shouldered, and dressed in a pair of ripped jeans and a brown jean vest over a black band tee. His neck length brown hair fell around his pensive face as he stared out the window at the sunny day outside, looking listless and bored.

“Hey. I'm Greg." He pointed to the desk, where there was a tented 3.5 card with his name on it.

The boy glanced over at him with a low huff of breath, and pointed to his own card. "Name's Lance." After a moment, he turned from the window and looked Greg over. "Looks like we're gonna be partners for the year, huh?"

"Looks like," he nodded, and rubbed the back of his neck. "You a shop class kinda guy?"

"I'm pretty good with my hands, yeah," he said with a slight laugh. "Building birdhouses can't be that hard. Not like you need a degree in structural engineering or whatever"

"Good point. I'm pretty sure this class isn't going to be *quite* that advanced. Uh, I hope anyway."

"Not much of a shop guy yourself huh?" Lance asked. He glanced at Greg's tank top briefly before looking out the window again. "You look like you'd rather be at gym"

"Kinda, yeah," he admitted, flexing his arms subtly-- or at least as subtly as he could. "My last school didn't really do shop class. But I'm down to give it a shot."

Lance snorted through his nose. "Thought so." He stretched out, bringing his arms up to stretch out his back "Maybe we'll get lucky and get to work with an engine or something."

"That'd be pretty cool, honestly. Wouldn't know anymore about it than building a birdhouse to start with but supposedly that's the point of school I guess."

" 'Supposedly'. Trust me, anything useful I learned didn't come from frickin GC High."

Just as the bell rang for class to start, Greg glanced up to see the kid Bobby had called Toad shuffle into the classroom, and take his place.... next to Bobby.

"Oh wonderful," Greg grumbled.

Lance too had gleaned up to watch Todd take a seat, but unlike Greg he didn’t look particularly annoyed. He gave the kid a half wave, before turning back to Greg.

"You alright?"

Greg noticed the little wave-- and the kid's enthusiastic wave back-- and his mouth wrinkled. He shrugged. "Just caught that guy creeping on my sister earlier. Is he a friend of yours?"

"Ain't surprised. Todd can be kind of a creep sometimes." Lance snorted. "But yeah. I guess. We hang out."

"Guess everybody needs a friend," Greg shrugged.Wonderful.

"Todd's a good guy." Lance said with a shrug, "More than some other chumps in this dump, at least."

"Oh yeah? I'm uh, still trying to get the lay of the land around here, so to speak," he admitted cautiously. "any advice?"

Lance leaned on his hand, "New in town, huh? Well, first thing...don't let the rumor mill get to you. People around here like to latch onto things and try getting under your skin, you know? Especially the guys on the football team and their lackeys." He shot a dirty look at a young man with short black hair dressed in the school's letterman jacket. "People like Todd and I get a bad rap from idiots like that. But what ya hear ain't exactly always the truth."

Great, either this guy's a jock hater or the school team is a bunch of jerks. Either way, I'm not exactly thrilled.

"Yeah, I guess I've already seen how fast the rumor mill works around here," Greg grumbled, thinking of the incident in the gym earlier.

"Already huh?" Lance offered his gloved hand. "Welcome to the frickin club."

Greg took his hand a little hesitantly. He wasn’t sure he liked the vibe off of this guy, but he didn’t want to be making enemies with his class partner on the first day, either.. "Can't say I'm ecstatic about it, but thanks."

"Yeah, it ain't exactly an esteemed club or nothin'."

"Honestly, wasn't much different back in Maine. Guess you can't escape gossip." Greg crossed his arms once he had his hand back, growing at the memory.

"Maine, huh?" Lance raised his eyebrow. "What kinda rep did you have back there?"

"Mostly for going after anybody who talked shit about my sister," he admitted.

"Your sister huh? The one Todd hit on?" Lance shifted to face him, a half smile on his face "kind of the protective type, aintcha?"

"I'm assuming you don't have a sister." Greg felt himself becoming increasingly displeased with Lance's tone.

Lance snorted, leaning on his hand "I hardly even have a frickin' dad, no. I don't got a sister."

"Guess we've got the dad thing in common," Greg grumped, gazing up at the ceiling.

"Sorry I'm late, class," their teacher said, as she swooped into the room. "Let's get started, shall we?"

000

After school Morgan followed the signs for Cheerleading tryouts back to the gym. There'd been a big to-do when she'd joined the team at her last school, hopefully there wouldn't be as much of an... issue.... Here. She could only hope, given the trouble she’d already had earlier with the locker. Had that even been sorted out yet?

With her jaw set and her resolve steeled, remembering her conversation with Dorian. She stepped out into the gymnasium with all the confidence she could muster. She clawed her way onto the cheer team before, even if those backbiting bitches turned on her *again* once she...changed...But fuck it, shed she'd do it again here.

When Morgan stepped inside she found there were a *lot* of cheer hopefuls, standing in clumps or sitting on the bleachers, all of them in their gym clothes, waiting for their turn to make an attempt. Morgan had already changed into her black , midriff baring gym shirt and shorts, not wanting to risk more locker trouble. The proceedings were being run, it seemed, by a severe looking woman in a sharp suit, and a much smaller woman in a skirt she was ordering around..

One of the girls on the bleachers waved Morgan over as she came in. She waved back with a brief expression of surprise as she walked over and took a seat next to the girl

"Hey."

The bespectacled brunette was in a green tank top and a pair of khaki shorts, her hair pulled back high on her head in a scrunchy. She realized as she sat down beside her that she’d seen her once already today.

"Hey! Morgan, right? Theatre class?" she pointed to her with a grin.

"That's right." Morgan winked, crossing her incredibly pale legs as she leaned back on the bleacher behind her. "Darcy, right?"

"Got it in one! looks like we both aced this whole 'short term memory' thing."

Morgan snickered "Congrats to us, huh? Maybe we'll ace this bullshit too." She gestured out at the sea of hopefuls and leaned on her hand. "You're trying out for the cheer team too, huh?"

"I needed something that looks good on a transcript and community service requires a car," Darcy nodded. How practical.  "What about you? I wouldn't have thought that cheerleading would be your deal. Really bucking the whole spooky girl stereotype."

"What can I say, "I'm nothing if not full of surprises. Besides. Maybe I'm planning on turning the cheer team into my dark coven or something. Like this was some kind of cheesy B Movie." She wiggled her fingers at the girls currently trying out. "Cheerleaders from Hell 2: *Three Cheers to Die*"

"I think I saw that on skinemax," Darcy nodded. "Does that mean you're going to teach me some witchcraft if I get on the team?"

Morgan grinned but was careful to hide her teeth. "That's right. And we'll go , like, sacrifice a jock or two too."

"Oh shit we're getting hard core here, I think I need to get a permission slip from my mom for sacrificing anything bigger than a goat."

"Come on , Darcy, live on the wild side. "What's life without disobeying a mom or two? or a little casual dark sacrifice?"

"I'll take it under advisement, but no promises," Darcy nodded. She paused. "Unless it can help my chances for Vasser in which case hand me the ceremonial knife."

"I hear it looks real good on a resume." Morgan drawled with amusement.. "Right there under community service: 'dark witch' . Instant scholarship."

"Well shit, the things they don't teach you in those college application classes.”

"Blatant witch erasure. That's what it is." Morgan smirked. "Good luck with the tryouts, though. Here's hoping we both get on the squad."

"Here's hoping, witchy lady." Darcy raised her hand for a high five which Morgan accepted enthusiastically.

Behind them, the severe woman watched the last tryout with a sharp frown. "Ugh. Very... *nice*... young lady. But I'm afraid you're not quite what the team is looking for." She turned to shoot her smoldering glance Morgan's way "Miss Connelly, you're next."

Morgan grinned, and slipped to her feet. "Looks like it's my time to shine, Darcy. Wish me luck."

"Break a leg! except, like, not really. You know what I mean." She gave her a thumbs up.

Unfortunately, some of the girls hanging around the gym didn't look as enthusiastic about Morgan taking the floor as Darcy did. She heard someone scoff.

Morgan glanced over at them as she passed with a dark scowl, her fingers curling by her sides. If they wanted to scoff, she'd just do even *better* to shut them up.

The woman in charge checked her watch, before looking at Morgan. She was a tall, severe woman in her 40s with narrowed amber eyes behind rectangular frames. Her grey streaked black hair was pulled into a bun. She was, for her part, the very model of a strict principal. Like she came out of a box labeled 'Stock Teacher: Strict'.

"Take the floor, Miss Connelly. Don't dilly dally and waste my time."

Someone switched on some canned music for Morgan, and she was allowed to present a bit of freeform routine with the rest of the crowd watching, some more dubious than others.

Morgan took a deep breath as the music switched on. She prepared herself, remembering all she learned in the Red Oak Cheersquad as she let the music move her.

Despite her usual sardonic nature, she poured every damn ounce of cheer and enthusiasm into her routine, moving along with the music in rhythmic time with broad gestured and appealing twists and shakes of her slender body. She'd always been flexible and quick on her feet, and she poured every bit of sex appeal and attention-grabbing command into her cheering in the hopes of pumping up the audience, and making a good impression on the principal.

It had to be obvious to everyone there how talented Morgan was; she even managed to silence most of the whisperers. Though not all, as became clear when the music cut out, and it one suddenly all too easy to hear conversation.

--"was good, but, he shouldn't even *be here*."

Morgan stopped, her head snapping towards the sound of the voice.

He shouldn't even be here . The words played in her head as a familiar anger bubbled up inside her. Morgan's gaze found the girl who'd been speaking-- her mouth suddenly a hard line. She at least had the social understanding to look embarrassed-- but only at having been caught. She and her two blond friends had equally snide and disgusted looks on their early-nose-job faces.

From beside her, she heard an approving 'hmm' from the woman watching tryouts, and for a moment was ready for the worst. If  that on ewas siding against her she was done for. 

 "Now that's what I was hoping to see. That kind of enthusiasm is exactly what we need in this year's cheer team." There was a sound of pen on paper as the small woman beside her made a note on a clipboard. "You've got a good chance of making captain, young lady. Return to the bleachers."

With a jolt of surprise,Morgan headed back to her seat. She glowered at the girls as she settled back beside Darcy, her expression softening as she tore her eyes away from them and glanced at the bespectacled girl.

"Hey, wow, you didn't need that luck I wished you at all," Darcy said.

"I used to be on the cheer squad back home, believe it or not, " she explained with a half smile. "But I needed all the luck I could get."

"Principal Darkholme seemed to like you," Darcy shrugged. "Which is actually kinda spooky cause she doesn't like anybody."

"She doesn't seem the type." Morgan smirked. So that was the Principal… "She puts the dude from the breakfast club to shame on sheer authoritarian severity, doesn't she?... "but if I impressed her, I must have done a good job."

"Dude, you like, blew it out of the water. We're all going to look like a bunch of nerds compared to you." Darcy grinned. "I mean I *am* a nerd so like, fair play. But still. You did great. Looking forward to serving under you, captain."

Darcy gave her a mock salute and Morgan saluted her in return, grinning wider. 

"Looking forward to your service. Go knock their socks off, soldier." She winked. "Let's show these bitches and their cheap dye jobs what for."

"Skinemax cheer coven, here I come," Darcy declared, hopping up as the name 'Darcy Lewis' was called.

"I'm wishing you luck, Darcy!" She purred "enjoy!"

She settled into her seat and waited to watch.