I'm On My Way

Chapter 18

Mr Jeffries’ face melted from confusion to neutral, and Maddy felt her heart slow slightly. But only slightly. Her keen ears tuned in on the draw of breath he sucked in before he spoke.

“Ah, Maddy!” his voice brought a strange moment of déjà vu as her mind was cast back to after her first transformation. Maddy shrunk away from the class of eyes that stared at her like she had two heads. A few people had noticed that she had returned, but their mouths had remained shut. But now, everyone was staring, their eyebrows asking the questions which appeared in their heads. Maddy's heart beat even faster, filling her ears with the steady thud of its drum. She stared fixedly at him, and couldn’t help but notice the grey that had invaded his face. His eyes were tired, and Maddy was reminded again how much people change.

"Hope your family is ok now?" He ignored the collection of startled faces, which Maddy was thankful.

Nodding slowly, Maddy cleared her throat.

"Yes." Her voice snagged in her throat, the words barely reaching the surface. She swallowed and tried again. "Yes, thank you, Sir." The words were calmer this time, and slipped around the silent room. Maddy glanced at Rhydian, and found the courage to smile slightly. The room slowly filled with chatter; at first once voice mumbled, and gradually others joined in. Maddy sighed as it became clear that everyone had lost interest in her. Once you couldn’t pick out one snippet of gossip to another, Maddy dared speak again.

"Who said that?" She whispered, slightly awed, as she looked round at her circle of friends. Rhydian opened his mouth to speak, but Shannon's voice was the one which rung out.

"We all did it." Shannon's smile was proud, but not arrogant. She was just glad that they're initiative had saved their friend. "We discussed some options and this seemed the best."

"It was the only one which would avoid questions if you came back." Rhydian whispered, face slightly down as he thought back to when all he could do was hope. He looked up for a split second. Maddy had a moment of revelation. If they had said something different, it may have been weird if she had returned. Even from the beginning, her friends had planned for her return. Maddy felt her heart warm slightly.

"Thanks guys." She smiled, not only referring to the excuse.

Maddy thought she would adjust to human life again quickly; she was already fine with sleeping in a bed again. Surprisingly, she soon felt the longing to be running outside again. During her lessons, she would start staring out the window longingly. Her concentration during school had always had problems remaining focused, but now she could barely keep it in check.

It was English, the lesson before lunch, and Maddy was slumped in her seat. The teacher was babbling on about literature during the renaissance. Shannon was watching intently, Rhydian and Tom were also slumped, doodling on scraps of paper. Jana was leaning on her hand, and was listening to small snippets. The words crawled around the sleeping classroom like slime, and as much as Maddy tried, she couldn’t tune in.

The sun was streaming through the clouds, which were thin and weak against the grey sky. Through the window, she could see the moor and the forest; the brown and grey collection of branches advancing on the school fence. Although she was slumped in her seat, her mind was elsewhere, running through the forest. She was leaping over logs, chasing Rhydian, tumbling over and over down hills. She was even accompanied with some memories of the wild.

“Maddy!” Ms Fitzgerald cut through the groggy silence.  Straightening up, Maddy looked fixedly at her teacher’s feet as she felt her cheeks warm. “Sorry Miss” she mumbled. Ms Fitzgerald nodded, acknowledging the apology, and continued. She held a book open in one hand, and beckoned with it as she instructed the class. “I want you to get into groups, and discuss how literature during the Renaissance affects what we read today.” There was a bumble of groans and rolled eyes.

Maddy watched as Shannon and Tom turned their chairs back to face them, and saw Shannon get carried away with the words that streamed out of her beaming mouth.

Her eyes travelled back to the forest, and she imagined running through it again, following the bends of the stumbling paths, dodging the rocks and trunks. It was once she started skipping parts of the forest that she realised she was doing Eolas again. She tried to snap out of it, but couldn’t tear her mind away from the sights. The rope swing, the ray of dandelions at the bottom of her garden. Her mind was at eye height, and she could almost feel the wind and chills, as if she was actually running.  She sensed something odd, and followed it. There was a small rustle, a slight twinge in her ears. It grew louder, and she rounded the corner. She could almost see the shadow…

Rhydian gently shook her shoulder, his eyebrows knotted with concern. Startled, she gazed around to see all her friends staring at her. She smiled timidly and awkwardly. “Sorry” she said.

“Are you okay?” Tom asked, head ducked, just like after the argument she had had with Rhydian all those years ago.

“You don’t seem with it.” Rhydian added, eyes studying her. She shoved him away lightly. “hmmmm, I,” she glanced at the clock, to see the hand ticking towards the bell. Their gazes remained locked on her, concern echoing in all their faces.

“I was exploring the moors…” she admitted, but her voice was uncertain, not guilty. Shannon and Tom looked at each other, frowning in confusion.

Jana’s eyebrows rose, and she leaned forward. “You were doing EOLAS?” she whispered cuttingly. She paused, and looked round the room. “In HERE?”

“I didn’t mean to!” Maddy spat back, becoming defensive. Rhydian put his hand softly on her shoulder, and pulled her back. Jana opened her mouth to retort, to say how was that possible, but Maddy continued.

“Sorry, I-” she bit her lip, and looked up at the classroom. The teacher was about to tell them to pack up, and the clock was even closer to reaching lunch time. The room was too quiet, and they were too close to spying minds. “I’ll explain at lunch.” She explained.

They nodded, and relaxed.

“Cafeteria?” Tom asked.

Maddy and Rhydian looked each other. She grinned.

“Cafeteria.” They nodded.

I'm not sure about this chapter...