//------------------------------// // Chapter 2: Kindergarten // Story: The Life and Times of Azure Glide // by TheWingman //------------------------------// “Bwother, bwother wake up!” Cadance cheered as she shook her adoptive brother awake, “Time for your first day!” “Sistewr,” Azure groaned as he woke up, “can you pwease stop?” “Mommy told me to wake you up.” Clad in a sweater, leggings, and skirt, Amore walked up to the doorway with a warm smile, “Mommy, the sleepyhead is awake!” “That he is.” Amore chuckled as she entered the room. Little Cadance gave her mother a hug as she turned her attention to Azure, “Hello, little one. Come with me. We need to get you ready for your first day of school.” “Do I have to?” Griped Azure. “All kids have to go to school. You’ll like it, trust me. Come, let’s get you cleaned up.” After several minutes of bathing her adopted son, Amore got him clothed in shorts, t-shirt, and a hoodie he got for his birthday two months ago. Walking into the kitchen, the young boy’s eyes lit up at the sight of his favorite meal: silver dollar pancakes and bacon, all made by his father. Diamond Heart smiled as his adopted son chowed away at his breakfast with glee. “Looks like our little champ is hungry.” Diamond remarked, “You’re going to need all that fuel for your big day today.” “Daddy,” Azure said with his mouth full, “do I weally have to go to school?” “It’s something everyone has to go through, sweetie.” Amore patted Azure on the head, “Your father and I went through the same steps when we were your age. It shouldn’t be bad. This a good chance for you to make some friends.” “Fwends?” “Don’t worry, champ.” Diamond ruffled up Azure’s hair to his annoyance, “I’m sure you’ll have a great first day of kindergarten.” “Come on now, dearie. It’s time to go to school.” Following his mother to the car, Azure endured an eight-minute drive to Crystal Heart Elementary School. As Amore is the principal of the school, transportation for her children is a non-issue. To the north of their parking space are five buildings that keep the respective grade levels segregated. To the right of that, down a small flight of stone stairs was the area for preschoolers and kindergarteners, complete with a playground for both. As he stood at the head of the stairs, waiting to start his journey, Amore knelt down to his level with a smile. “My son, I know this might be a scary thing for but don’t think of it as such.” Amore said to a nervous Azure, “I have a feeling that you’ll have a great time here.” “R-Reawy?” Azure stuttered as Amore gives him a reassuring hug. “I promise… as your mother.” Amore takes his hand in hers, “Come, let’s introduce you to your teacher.” Entering the kindergarten room, the place was rife with toddlers interacting with their parents or one another. The sight of so many children there made Azure shy, even nervous. Hearing footsteps getting closer, Azure jumped as he turned around to see another woman around the same age as his mother. She had crimson hair in a ponytail, wore blue jeans, teal shirt, and a purple blazer. Yet, through all that, she carried a strangely calming aura with her. “Amore,” The woman greeted as she hugged her boss, “how are you?” “I’m doing great, Mrs. Autumn.” Amore greeted her colleague. She then noticed Azure hugging her leg as if he’s hiding behind it, “Oh, I almost forgot. This is my adopted son, Azure Glide.” Autumn then noticed the five-year-old child and looked upon him with a warm smile. “Oh, I didn’t notice you there, young one. I’m Mrs. Autumn and I’ll be your teacher for kindergarten. There’s no need to be scared. Your mother talked about you and I’m excited to have you here.” She reached out with her hand. Though hesitant at first, Azure reached out with his little hand and grabbed onto a few of her fingers. “See, there’s nothing for you to worry about, young man.” “Th-thank you, Ms.” Azure nervously replied. “I hope you’ll have a great time here, my son. I have to go to work now but I’ll take you home after I get done.” With a kiss to his forehead, Amore made for the door. “If anything happens with him be sure to let me know, okay?” “Will do, Mrs. Amore.” As his mother walked towards her office, Azure felt a sense of unease that his mother dropped him in a room full of people he didn’t know. But after his hand to hand contact with Mrs. Autumn, he felt that he was safe whenever she’s around. Mrs. Autumn knelt down and hugged the weary child. “You’ll be alright here. I promise.” Smiling at her reassurances, Azure walked with the teacher over to the rest of the students, happily socializing around a circular rug. Once Mrs. Autumn gave the word to settle down, the class took their seats around the fuzzy circle with Azure being in the middle. After she introduced herself, the students introduced themselves one by one. But, when it was Azure’s turn, he didn’t bat an eye or stutter as he said his piece. He was as calm as he could ever be. He was ready to conquer the first big step in his life. After everything was said and done, the day went rather slow. On the first day, Mrs. Autumn saw it fit to devote that day to everyone to get to know one another. Glancing at Azure, she still saw him as being reserved but was slowly crawling out of his shell bit by bit. She was still worried if something would happen to him that but would be on the lookout for trouble as with all under her wing. Not too long after lunch, the kids were let out into the playground to laugh and play. Swinging around the jungle gyms, playing with bouncy balls or hopscotch, the air was alive with joyful laughter. It was the time of the day for the kids to let loose all that extra energy to calm them down for the rest of the day. Boredom was the bane of all kindergarteners. As Azure roamed the small playground, he found a small ball, red with stripes of blue and white. Picking it up, he bounced it around a bit, again and again. He didn’t know why but the sight of it hopping around the concrete brought a smile to his face and joy to his heart. Giggling as he bounced it against the walls, he was the happiest that he ever was. Then, the ball bounced away from him and he followed it, never taking his eyes off it… ...until it was stopped by a shoe. Looking up, Azure saw a boy: sand-colored skin, short cerulean hair, slightly taller than him and possibly a year older. He wore a mischievous grin on his face as if to intimidate him. Azure remembered his name as Thissleweed and he thought him to be a calm and down to earth peer. But, why would he do that to him? Why would he be stepping on the ball he was playing with? None of it made sense to Azure. “Oh,” Thissleweed scoffed, “were you looking for this?” “Y-Yes.” Azure nervously answered as he reached for his ball, only for it to be kicked up into Thissleweed’s hands, “Hey, that’s my ball!” “Sorry, it’s mine now.” The laugh from Thistleweed caused Azure to feel a mix of emotions he never felt before: sadness and anger. Trying to reach for his toy, Azure’s goal was out of reach as Thistleweed passed it to his friend, back and forth, while laughing and making teasing remarks. “Azure was adopted! Azure was adopted!” Adopted, what did that mean to Azure? He remembered hearing his mother saying that word when referring to him but what did it mean? Was it a bad thing? It sounded that way if they were laughing at him. As he was about to walk away, Thistleweed shoved him, sending him crashing to the concrete. The pain he felt from the fall and the mocking laughs from his fellow students caused him to cry. But, that only made it worse as they teased him harder. All Azure could do was cry. “Don’t tattle on me, crybaby!” Thistleweed said in a threatening manner. “If you do, I’ll make you cry harder.” Azure, feeling saddened at his treatment, kept away from the students for the remainder of recess. He now felt that his class hated him, seeing him as nothing more than a joke. When the time came to do work, Mrs. Autumn saw Azure sitting alone, looking down at his paper and not even making the slightest noise. For her, it was always a sign that something was wrong. “Azure, are you alright?” Autumn asked as she approached the despondent toddler, getting no response, “Did something happen at recess?” Though her tone was calm and loving, it did nothing to ease him into talking, further alarming the teacher, “Were you hurt?” Still, there was nothing but silence. Autumn then knew something at recess had happened. True to her word, she got on her phone and called his mother, Amore. “Hello?” Amore greeted. “Hey Amore, how’s work going?” “Well, the usual paperwork and whatnot. Sometimes, there’s comfort in such tasks. Is there something you need?” “Well… it’s about your son.” “Azure?” Amore asked with concern, “Is there something wrong?” “I’m not sure on the specifics but after recess, he seemed so down. I tried being calm with him but he didn’t even say a word, only some soft crying. If I had to guess, some of the kids picked on him. I’m very sorry, Amore.” “Don’t worry.” Amore sighed in understanding, “It’s not your fault. I kinda anticipated something would happen. I just finished with my work early so I’ll be able to take him home when class is over. Maybe if I talk to him, he’ll be receptive to me.” “I hope so.” Autumn takes a quick glance at Azure, seeing him draw on a paper with a dour look on his face, “I don’t know what shook him up, though.” “I hope he comes around. I’ll talk to you later. I’ll make sure he’s alright.” Watching Azure from a distance, Autumn contemplated going over and giving him a hug. But, fearing that it would make things worse, she could bring herself to as much as she wanted. She showed deep concern for him but saw it fit that his mother was best suited to handle it. When Amore and Cadance came to pick him up, she wasted no time in giving him a hug which he returned without a sound. Picking him up, she brought him and Cadance to her van and drove them home. All throughout the ride, he said nothing, not even to his sister. Returning home, mother and son walked into the living room, noting a lack of Diamond Heart. Prior to them returning, he went out for groceries and pizza for dinner. Amore saw it as a good enough time to talk to Azure She didn’t care that her daughter was present. She knew that she’ll want to ensure that her brother was okay. “Azure, my son,” Amore softly spoke as she sat next to him, “is there something wrong?” She got nothing, only a sigh, “Dearie, Mrs. Autumn spoke to me over the phone about what happened. I’m not upset with you. I just want to be sure you’re okay.” Still getting nothing, Amore brought the child to her lap and gave him a big hug. Feeling the warmth of maternal love envelop him, he began to cry as he wrapped his arms around his mother. Cadance, seeing the display, came to the couch and joined in on the hug. The amount of love coming from his mother and sister was enough to calm Azure down. He never wanted to leave their embrace. “Th-The others,” Azure muttered, “they were mean to me.” “How so?” Amore answered. “I was playing with a ball and one of the other kids took my ball, laughed at me, and that meanie pushed me down.” “Who?” Amore replied with a concerned look, “Who hurt you?” “Thistleweed.” “Well, I’ll be sure to talk to his parents when I get the chance. Don’t worry, dearie.” Amore then saw Azure looking away, further alarming her, “Is there something else?” Azure remembered the other kids calling him an orphan, thinking it was a bad thing. “They… “ Azure sniffed, “They called me an orphan. What does that mean?” Amore sat there as she heard those words from him. She knew that she’d eventually have to tell him one day. Yet, she often worried about what effect it would have on him if she did. Still, the fact that she loved him no matter what would never change. With a sigh and a collection of her thoughts, Amore braced herself. “Azure, an orphan… an orphan is someone whose parents are no longer around or lost.” Amore calmly explained, finding a fine line between explaining in a way he’d understand. Azure, to say the least, was shocked. He realized his mommy wasn’t really his all along. Tears were beginning to develop in his eyes as he struggled to comprehend her words. “W-why?” He tearfully asked, “I don’t understand, mommy. Where did they go?” Sensing his developing unease, Amore hugged him once more as she rocked him back and forth. “I don’t know, dearie. I honestly don’t. But, what matters is that you’re with us and we love you very much. I love you very much and nothing in the world will change that for me.” “Bwother,” Cadance softly spoke as Amore let go of him, “I’ll always be your sister no matter what. I love you.” Reaching forward, Cadance pulled Azure into a hug. Though they’ve done so many times before, Cadance never liked seeing her little brother upset like that. When she first met him, she knew she’d protect and look after him. Sensing his crying had ended, she broke the hug. “Is my bwother alright?” “Y-yes.” Azure answered to her happiness. “I know one thing that’ll make you happy.” Amore answered. “What?” Then, Diamond Heart walked through the door with three boxes of fresh pizza in his arms, grinning gleefully. “PIZZA TIME!” Diamond cheered to his children’s joy. Throughout dinner, Azure was able to take his mind off the ordeal from earlier as he indulged in his favorite food. Still, the worry of  things would improve continue to eat away at his mind. Yet, as bad as things would get at school, he knew his family loved him and always will.