//------------------------------// // Rock Bottom // Story: Curse of the Siren // by Nephilinae //------------------------------// I finally pulled myself out of my stupor when a something glowed a bright red at my throat. "Fut the wuck?" I asked myself groggily. I looked down to see a bright red jewel hanging off a black choker. Now I was really confused. FIRST of all... I didn't put that on... SECOND of all, I didn't have a black choker with a ruby inset... THIRD of all... I don't have ANY fucking jewelry... I reached behind my neck to find the clasp... Only to find smooth fabric. "Now this is getting fucked up..." I said out loud. I checked the time... nearly Midnight... Mom should be asleep by now... I think I could sneak into the bathroom to look at what's clamped around my neck. So I began tiptoeing down the hall towards the bathroom. For some strange reason the hallway was dark, but not dark enough to be considered the dead of night... I could see things clearly, like when it's dawn and light just starts showing where everything is. But it was midnight! Ish... There WASN'T any light to do that! I shook my head and entered the bathroom, turning on the light as I crept in. I looked into the mirror... And nearly fainted. It was... Well... Me... But, different... I still looked the same, but everything just seemed... Different... I couldn't put my finger on it exactly... But something was... Weird. Ugh! Damn it! I guess I'm trying to say weird good not weird bad! In fact... I kinda liked the difference... Was it that pendent that I didn't put on? I poked the glowing gem with a finger... No... That isn't it... Red was never my color... Not that I cared about that kind of thing or anything... I shook my head. I was here to look at this thing around my neck! Not ogle at myself in the mirror! I leaned in closer towards the mirror, getting a better view of the new addition. The only thing fancy about it was the gem that rested on my collarbone. The black fabric seemed to be silk... But I was never an expert on fabrics. Eh... Despite what the mirror says... I'll look ridiculous with this tomorrow... If I do go to school tomorrow that is... I began looking for some sort of release mechanism... All I found was smooth seamless silk. Welllllll... Fuck. I threw some thoughts around to see how I could get it off. I finally settled on a pair of scissors for the silk. By now the gem had stopped glowing for some reason. Oh well, the glow was a pain anyway. I exited the bathroom to try and find a pair of scissors. While I was preforming my search, I found our VERY observant cat by stepping on his tail. REEEOW! "AH!" I yelled as Nickel suddenly arched his back at me and half hissed half screamed in surprise. I froze in place as I expected Mom to get up and start asking questions. I stood still for several minutes, ears perked to listen for the creaking floor boards. I eventually sighed in relief as I heard nothing. I looked down at our cat. I've never been able to scare him before... Well... I guess there's a first time for everything... Eh, maybe he was getting old? Nah, he was only three? Four years old? To Tartarus with it... I had scissors to find. Wait... When did I start saying "Tartarus" instead of heck? I shook my head. It was probably some video or movie I recently watched or something. I eventually found a decent pair and tiptoed my way back to the bathroom.When I stood in front of the mirror once again, I slide one of the blades under the silk and snipped, expecting the entire thing to fall off like the rules of physics stated... Instead my ears were met with a. CRUNCH. I pulled the scissors out to find a perfect indent in the blades were I presumed I had tried to cut the silk. This was getting weirder and weirder... I put the ruined scissors down and looked in the mirror again. I guess I could go ONE day with it... Maybe have an expert look at it or something... Maybe Mr. Burns the chemistry teacher... I'm sure he would enjoy looking for something that dissolved silk but not skin... Oh who was I kidding? This wasn't silk... I suddenly yawned. Oh yeah, it's the middle of the night... I'll sleep on it. Maybe something will come up in the morning... ~~~ "Come on sweetie... It's time to get up..." I heard my Mother knock on the door. My eyes opened up in realization, no iPod, no music, no alarm clock... I was probably late. I burst out of my warm comfy bed into the cold morning air, shivering as I did so. I quickly found a change of clothes and put them on. I didn't know why I WANTED to go to school, but i just felt that I needed to despite yesterday. But still, it was odd without my iPod... I caught myself several times reaching towards it's usual location only to realize it wasn't there any more... I was about to enter the hallway when I realized that the strange gem was showing in the neck of my hoodie. I pulled off both my shirt and hoodie and got a t-shirt that would cover it up better. Mother would most CERTAINLY notice if I suddenly had a strange pendent thing... I readjusted everything and found it satisfactory. I then made my way to the bathroom to brush my teeth like any normal person would... I usually take showers before I go to bed so I didn't have to stand in the cold while waiting for the water to heat up... Oh I'm probably going to smell... Oh well. When I was done, I readjusted my hoodie again so it covered up the ruby again, and made my way down stairs. I soon found myself browsing through cereal and was about to pick what sounded best when suddenly a feeling hit me. I... I couldn't really put it into words... I'll try anyway, but I won't be able to truly describe it. It was kind of oppressive and heavy... It hung in the air like a cloud. I turned around to find my Mom looking at me with worry in her eyes. Worry... That was what the feeling was... I suddenly realized that I was feeling the oppressive feeling THROUGH the JEWEL around my neck... It was... Weird... I took a step backwards, away from Mom. She looked crestfallen for some reason, and walked out of the kitchen without a word, the oppression followed suit. I let loose a breath I didn't realize I was holding. I turned back around and picked my favorite cereal out of the pantry. I then poured a bowl and drowned said bowl in milk. Sitting down, I prepared for the corn flaky goodness that was Corn Flakes. I put a spoonful in my mouth and almost gagged. Instead of the sugar coated sweetened grain I was expecting, it was... Bland. It was like the flavor was heavily muted or something... I grudgingly ate more of the cardboard flavored cereal. "Why the long face?" I looked up to see Mom standing there with a questioning look on her face. I pushed the cereal towards her, unable to stomach more of the cardboard. The oppressive feeling was there, but not in the same quantities as before. "Does this taste weird to you?" I asked. She looked at me weirdly. She took my former spoon and tasted the what was left. "It's the same sugary trash you usually eat..." she stated nonchalantly. The oppression started to return in force. "So... It DOESN'T taste like cardboard to you?" I asked with a frown. Something was going on, and I had no idea what it was. Was it... No, it couldn't be the pendent on my neck, jewelry didn't change your taste buds... Did it? "No, it tastes like sugar coated corn flakes..." Mom said, looking at me with a worried frown. "You can have it then..." I stated, looking out the window to check if I "missed" the school bus yet. "Are you feeling alright Circe?" Mom asked. Honestly? No I wasn't. My only past time was just ruined for a few months, my favorite cereal now tasted like cardboard, and I have this weird fucking necklace thingy that just randomly appeared during the night that makes me a freaking empath! But I couldn't tell her that... Who knew what stupid thing she would do to "Get it looked at." "Perfectly fine." I smoothly lied. She raised an eyebrow at me. "Mom, I am perfectly able to function in normal society." She rolled her eyes at me and the oppressive worry nearly vanished. "Well hurry up and function, I can see the bus." She said as she pointed out the window. "Oh darn." I said slowly as I got up. I realized I had left my book bag at school in my retreat, so odds were I would have to go to Ms. Van's room to pick it up... Ugh... More unnecessary things to do... The bus barreled past the window with out even stopping. Welp... I waved good bye to Mom as I went outside and began my walk towards the school. When I arrived at the educational facility... Things were normal. But then I showed up. For some reason everyone just gave me a wide berth and was just staring at me. I had no idea why, I couldn't have smelled THAT bad... But every one just kind of shut up anyway when I came into view... But I couldn't give it much thought as the multitude of feelings and auras distracted me. It was like walking through a rainbow of emotion, everything from springy happy feelings to the slow simmering of rage. Most of the feelings that I felt around me were more of a... Um... In awe? Kind of emotion... Well, maybe "impressed" would be a better description for it. As I said before, it's kind of hard to explain... But the hidden gem at my throat sucked in all the attention like a black hole from science class... It felt... Good, surprisingly... Anyway, after I got my bag from a silent Ms. Van, I made my way to home room. In home room, things were exactly like they were in the hallways. People usually sat at least two seats away, and kept glancing at me. Despite the gem eating the attention like a starved hound, it was getting a little annoying... I've always been a little self-conscious, wearing loose jeans and hoodies most of the time, so this attention was starting to grate on me. I did my best to ignore them though. Suddenly the intercom started it's buzzing noise that happened when someone turned it on. "Would Circe Adams report to the office please..." Stated the announcement lady. I shrugged to the teacher and pulled my book bag over my shoulder while I was walking out the door. What did they want in the office? The only thing I could think of was to get my story on what happened yesterday... My sadness and depression started to return. No, if I was going to get vengeance on Jerkwad for what he did, I'd have to let it all out where someone with authority could see it... So I stuffed the depression in an airtight can and sealed it. I regained my composure and entered the office. When the office ladies saw who entered, all they did was point towards the Principle's office. Not wholly unexpected... But it was still nerve wracking. I noted that they seemed to reek of... Pity? Yeah, I think it was pity... But it was too much pity to just be about an iPod... Well, at least to them anyway... I ignored them and entered Mrs. Norman's office. Just a quick fill in... Josaline Norman was a hard task master. She suffered no B-S under her watch. No one EVER honeyed words around her for long. And she wasn't one for showing emotion, positive or negative. It was one of the things I admired about her, quick, straight to the point, and no horsing around getting things done... Sometimes I wondered how the heck she was married with those traits... I cleared my thoughts and sat down in one of the chairs in front of her desk. Mrs. Norman's own chair was facing the window behind her desk. It was often joked in class that she liked to have guilty students come in at 10:36 as the sun was positioned JUST right so it made her a silhouette and made the light shine in the student's eyes, using the sun as a psychological weapon. Fortunately the sun was just starting to peak over the buildings across the street, so I wasn't blinded by sunlight. "Do you know why you're here Circe?" Mrs. Norman asked as she swiveled her chair towards me, hands folded in the cliche villain steeple. A cloud of pity also misted around her. But her posture didn't show it. "I do not Mrs. Norman..." I stated. No B-S... No problems. "You skipped school yesterday." She stated. "Y... Yes I did." I admitted. "But! Did you not see... Sal..." I took a moment to remember Jerkwad's 'name' "Break my iPod on the security cameras?" I asked. "We did find a broken iPod in the hall yesterday... But no, the cameras were not recording yesterday..." She stated. "What." I deadpanned. The. Cameras. Weren't. Recording... I drew a blank. "I'm only bringing up the fact the cameras weren't recording yesterday as your... Dilemma..." Uh oh... She NEVER paused to consider her words... "Was the only problem that occurred yesterday. If anything else had happened yesterday I would never have told you... And as you were only absent from school, I didn't have to worry about the cameras." she stated. "W... How... No! It was early morning when Jerkwad broke my iPod! There was no possible way for you to know nothing would happen!" I exclaimed. Mrs. Norman ignored my name for Sally. "You're right. The camera tapes were borrowed by Mrs. Silverstern early yesterday morning. She wanted to see if her son was a good boy in the hallways..." Mrs Norman stated, turning her chair around. Mrs. Silverstern... AKA, Jerkwad's mother. No wonder the camera's weren't rolling, Mrs. Norman would've just knelt before Jerkwad's mother and offered the god damn tapes to her if she asked. Which she apparently did. Mrs. Norman sighed. "But that isn't why we're here." She stated, turning back towards the desk, slapping some papers down. "The attendance record has you missing nearly 30 days this year..." ... ... What. The first day I missed this year was yesterday! And seriously? 30 days and it's only November?! I quickly picked up "my" attendance record and looked it over. Sure enough, nearly 30 days were marked missing. I started to laugh at the absurdity of this. The feeling of pity around Mrs. Norman turned into confusion. "What are you laughing at?" she asked. "T... T... This! The absurdity off this!" I struggled to breathe. "30 days?! He... Hehe... Haha... Hahahahah!" I laughed. Mrs. Norman looked at me like I was crazy. "Mrs. Norman... I never knew you were this kind of prankster... You had me worried for a moment there..." I said once I calmed down enough. All she did was give me a no-nonsense eyebrow raise. I looked at her with curiosity. "You're not joking." I stated, she nodded. "You are aware that I've been here, at this school, every required day, eight til three... Right?" I asked. "You haven't been on my urgent list... So no... I don't personally know your attendance record." she stated. Her cloud of curiosity seemed to get more intense. "Before you try and suspend me... Could you at least ask all of my teachers about my attendance?" I asked, putting my hand on my forehead. "I didn't say anything about a suspension... They are planning on expelling you." Mrs. Norman deadpanned. Her cloud collapsed into pity again. "They?" I asked, looking up with worry. "The school board... Mrs. Silverstern was the one that recommended your expulsion over a suspension." Mrs. Norman said. "B... Bu... But I... I haven't done anything wrong!" I stammered, tears starting to fill my eyes again. Mrs. Norman's pity began to grow more and more intense. "I'm sorry, but it's out of my hands now..." Mrs. Norman said glumly, showing emotion on her face for the first time since I entered her office. Her pity however grew to monstrous proportions. "C... Can you at least ask my teachers if I've skipped?" I sniffed. Mrs. Norman smiled sadly. "I'll see what I can do..." she reassured me. "Thank you..." I muttered. "You're welcome Circe..." Mrs. Norman said sadly. "Go back to class... By tomorrow we'll see what's going to happen..." "O... Okay..." I murmured, standing up to leave. "And Circe?" Mrs Norman called. I turned back towards the one who would make me or damn me. "Try not to worry about it..." Ha... Haha... Try. Not. Worry... Haha... I made my way out of the office in silence. I could feel the feeling of pity and remorse from the office fade as I made my way down the hall. What was I gonna do? First I grow some weird gem on my throat, then I'm most likely going to be expelled! ...I don't think I've ever heard of Jerkwad's mother ever failing in a vote... Heh, my concerns about my iPod were starting to look insignificant now... Ugh... What was I supposed to do?! I was nearly useless in any work environment... I hardly ever got along with others... I had no ideas about what to do for college... Not to mention this stupid emotion reading ability and all the other weird shit that's happened since last night! I... All I needed was time to work this out... First hour went by in a blur. Second hour was a daze. Third hour... Was just a cluster fuck... Fourth hour blurred by without incident... But then came lunch. I had already found my usual seat and found out that it wasn't only cereal that was bland as cardboard... I was still thinking about what to do with my now destroyed life when I felt a VERY different feeling pass by with the pendent. It was as tantalizing as freshly baked bread, but with the spice of hot buffalo wings... And it's source sat down RIGHT behind me. The gem under my hoodie drank the emotion greedily... Even more so than awe struck attention. I looked behind me to see what was causing such a divine taste... It was a couple... Boyfriend and girlfriend... I didn't know their names, but it was obvious they were in a heated argument. I looked back towards my cardboard meal. It was supposed to be spaghetti and meatballs with garlic bread... But I couldn't bring myself to see it. And the raw emotion right behind me somehow felt like a more natural meal than anything I've ever eaten... Suddenly someone broke my concentration on the emotion by plopping down in the seat in front of me. I looked up to see one of the few people I got along with. Angela Michaels, a fellow senior that was part of a multitude of clubs, brainiac at anything she put effort into, and a renowned internet fanatic/fangirl... And she smelt of giddy excitedness. "Hey!" she cried happily when she got settled. "What's that song you're humming?" she asked. "I never heard you hum that one before..." "Humming? Was I hum..." I stopped as I realized I WAS humming, I stopped immediately... As soon as I did however, the hidden gem started to BEG that I continue "I... I don't know... I wasn't really paying attention..." The jewel started to whine like a begging dog. "How could you not pay attention to your own..." Angela stopped when she realized I didn't have my ear buds in my ears. "I've had a lot on my mind recently... Could you hum it back to me?" I asked. "Sure... I think it was something like..." she started to hum a few lines... And I've never heard that song before in my life... "Seriously? What are you humming?" she exclaimed. I realized I was humming along with her. I stopped immediately, once again causing the pendent to beg. "I... I don't know... I've never heard it before..." I answered hesitantly. "Lies! What is the name of it! I just want to know!" she exclaimed. "Wait... You... Like it?" I asked. "Hell yeah I do!" she grinned. "I'm sorry to let you down... But I don't even know what it's called... I guess I'm making it up or something..." I shrugged. "Well... Copyright it quick so someone doesn't steal it!" she exclaimed. "I'll do that... I promise..." I swore, only to start humming again. Angela looked at me funnily. "Are you okay?" she asked. "Never better." I hummed. "How come you're not eating then? And more importantly... What's with the sexy predatory walk all day?" "What?!" I asked, ceasing my humming at once. "Yeah, you've been swaying your hips and just prowling around like some sort of hungry tiger or something all day!" she stated. I was now even more confused. "I don't know what you're talking about Angela... I've been walking normally all day..." "Hey... What's that?" Angela asked, pointing towards my neck. Oh Tartarus... "Are you wearing a necklace?" she asked, reaching forwards to trying to grab it to get a better look. Before I knew what I was doing my hand slapped hers away... Hard... I looked down at my hand that hung in between us with shock. I then saw the look of hurt in Angela's face. "I... I'm so sorry Angela... I didn't mean..." I apologized. "No no... It's okay..." She said, but the look on her face and the feeling of betrayal she extruded disagreed. "You've said it yourself... You've had a lot on your mind recently... Particularity about yesterday..." "Oh... You heard about that..." I mumbled, dropping my head into my hands. Angela's emotional cloud then became even more pity. "Yeah... Sal was bragging to everyone how he broke your iPod and is gonna get you expelled..." "HE WHAT!!!" I roared as I looked up. "Yeah... Something about he and his Mom were going to try and get you expelled for some stupid reason... I wouldn't worry though... It sounded like a stupid plan..." Angela said in a bemused tone. I felt my fists clench. SO... This wasn't just some random system error... This was a DELIBERATE attempt to get me out of school... "Um... Circe? You're doing the predator thing again..." Angela stated. What did they have to gain with me out of the school? Why did they WANT me out of this district?! It made no sense... All I ever did was listen to my iPod in the corner! "Circe?" I mean come on! If they needed anyone to be kicked out... Why not someone who posed a threat to Jerkwad's "totally legit" GPA?! Why not dispose of someone in his own grade?! "CIRCE!" Angela yelled in my ear. "Huh? What?" I asked, broken out of my stupor. "That predator thing is seriously creeping me out Circe..." "Oh... Even though I have no idea what you're talking about... I'm sorry..." I apologized. "Are you sure you're okay?" She asked. "I'm fine Angela! I just..." I trailed off as I got an idea. "No, you're right... I'm not fine..." "Aha! I knew it! Sooo... What are the symptoms?" she asked, about to go full geek mode. "A severe urge to kick a certain someone's ass..." I hummed, relishing in the feel-good feeling of eating hatred. "And?" "And I'd like you to come pick me up around eightish..."