Natalie’s head was a sledgehammered mess. The concert last night had been a total shitastrophe; the Kepler Sisters were still stuck in her skull like a parasite.
“Ugh, fucking Keplers… Oh, my fucking head…”
She dragged herself out of bed and into the shower. Dressed and damp, she checked the buzzing LED clock on her nightstand. She was going to be late.
“Shit, I’m gonna get another goddamn tardy if I don’t get out of here.”
Natalie grabbed her backpack and yanked on her hoodie. She took a deep breath and cracked the bedroom door. Her alcoholic mom was nowhere in sight.
“Great, where’s that bitch now?”
She stepped out, slowly making her way toward the front door.
“NATALIE!”
“Goddamn it, what?” Natalie turned to face her drunken mother.
“Where the fuck were you last night? Do you know how worried I was?”
Her mother’s words were a slurring mess. Her breath reeked of the hard stuff, her body barely upright.
“I was at the fucking concert, remember? You practically kicked all of our furniture to the curb!”
The woman’s eyes narrowed, her face flushed red.
“That was your fault! You live like a fucking slob, so you fix this shit!”
“Fuck you, you did that!” Natalie hissed.
SLAP.
“Don’t you EVER talk to me that way, do you hear me, you ungrateful bitch? NOW CLEAN THIS SHIT UP!”
Natalie screamed and with all her might, shoved her mother to the ground. The woman landed on her back. She looked up in horror as Natalie towered over her.
“YOU DON’T LAY HANDS ON ME, YOU BITCH! I HATE YOU AND I FUCKING HOPE YOU DROP DEAD!”
Natalie kicked the front door open and bolted, eyes stinging with tears she refused to let spill.
Her mother pulled herself up, legs wobbling as she stared out at the open door. She began to sob.
“Okay, Natalie… if that’s what you want…”
She grabbed a bottle of vodka, stumbled into the bathroom, and kicked the door shut.
The school was a media circus. Flashing cameras, floodlights, and a wall of police and paparazzi choked the entrance.
“This is Megan Santiago, Channel 4, on scene at the local high school,” Megan shouted into her mic. “Rumors are swirling that the Kepler Sisters will be making a surprise appearance to livestream a fight with the Sailing Star Cutie Princesses. We reached out to Powers Industries regarding the safety and legality of this stunt, but they’ve remained silent.”
The crowd erupted. A black limousine rolled through the parking lot, the tires grinding as it ran over six rabid fans. Limbs snapped and crushed under the vehicle. Megan turned and sprinted toward the car.
“It's the Keplers! They've arrived! We’re moving in for a comment before they head inside.”
A bodyguard threw the door open. Maddy and Bree Kepler stepped out to a wall of high-pitched screeches. Police deployed riot shields, shoving the crowd back with brute force.
“WE NEED BACKUP! REPEAT, BACKUP!”
Officers sprayed mace into the front line of fans. Megan shoved her microphone toward Maddy’s face, tailing her step-for-step.
“Maddy Kepler! Channel 4! Why host this livestream at a school? Do you have any concern for your fans' safety?"
“Get that camera out of my face!” Maddy hissed.
“Bree Kepler! Is this fight really necessary on school grounds?”
“No comment.” Bree pushed past the lens.
Courtney stood at the school’s front door, grinning wide and waving feverishly. “Bestie, hi! Are you ready for your big show?”
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Maddy didn't blink. She walked right past as guards held the doors.
“Maddy?!” Courtney’s voice cracked.
SLAM.
The door shut in Courtney's face. She stood there, stunned.
“Young lady, do you know Maddy Kepler?” Megan Santiago asked, thrusting the mic forward.
“FUCK YOU! EAT SHIT AND LEAVE ME ALONE!”
Courtney shoved the door open and disappeared inside. Megan faced her cameraman and signaled the cut.
“Bleep that. Let’s get back to the van for a recharge. This is about to get messy.”
Inside the Principal's office, Harmony fulfilled her duties as Student Body President, filing attendance records. She moved toward the Principal's desk with a massive stack of paper, but the weight tripped her. She hit the floor. Paper spilled everywhere.
“Oh no…” she quietly muttered. She got down on her knees, picking up each sheet one by one. If Joan were here, she would be helping, but Joan had kept her distance since the fight at the concert. Guilt and isolation gnawed at her; Harmony missed her.
“What have I done..? I pushed away my only friend, the only one who ever cared about me… I can't believe I let a stupid little crush tear us apart… I should apologize to her.”
Harmony pulled out her phone and dialed Joan's number.
Up on the rooftop, Joan was doing pushups, mentally preparing for the big fight.
“A knight must never back down! A knight must always be ready! A knight may never surrender! A knight will fight until her last breath!”
Joan's phone sat inside her sweater on the ground. It was on silent; phones were against the rules, and Joan was a strict follower of the rules.
Harmony paced back and forth, listening to the ringing. Each tone hit like a dagger to her heart.
“Please pick up… please pick up..” Harmony whimpered.
“Hello, you have reached Joan Knightly. Unfortunately, I'm not available at the moment, so please leave a message after the tone.”
Beep.
“Joan… it's Harmony. I just wanted to—”
The door kicked open. Principal Stone stormed in, face red and teeth clenched. The man was furious.
“YOU! DO YOU KNOW ABOUT THIS?!”
Harmony hung up.
“Know about what, sir?”
“The media! The cameras! WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON AT MY SCHOOL?!” the Principal barked.
“Sir, I can assure you I have no idea what you're talking about,” Harmony spoke firmly, fighting back her emotions for Joan.
Principal Stone walked to the nearest window and yanked back the curtains, revealing a large crowd chanting, “CLIMAX! CLIMAX! CLIMAX!”
Harmony had forgotten about the challenge, but there was no way the Keplers could have found out she attended this school. How on Earth did they find her?
The door opened again. Maddy and Bree Kepler stepped inside. Harmony's heart sank, racing in fear.
“So you're the Principal of this shithole?” Maddy said with disgust.
“How dare you! Who are you two and what are you doing here?!” Principal Stone bellowed.
“We're the Kepler sisters, the greatest pop duo on the face of this planet. And we want you to host an assembly at the gymnasium right now!”
“You can't just barge in here and tell me what to do! Do you two even have permits?!”
“Listen, bub, I'm not gonna repeat myself. You either do it, or I'll tell your superintendent you've been touching kids. So, what's it gonna be?” Maddy smirked.
“How dare you threaten me! You wouldn't have the spine to do something like that!"
“I would, I could, and I should. So what's it gonna be, tubby?” Maddy crossed her arms. She had the look of a house cat cornering a small mouse.
Principal Stone looked at Harmony, who simply shrugged while hiding her face behind the stacks of paper.
“Okay… alright… please don't threaten me again.”
“Peachy! Come on, sis, let's find that blonde little bitch and have her point out the Princesses for us.”
Maddy walked out, slamming the door. The Principal held onto his chest tightly and fumbled heart medication from his pocket. He swallowed, gasping while reaching for a water bottle on his desk.
“Good heavens! Principal Stone, are you alright?”
Principal Stone gulped the water and wiped his mouth.
“Yeah… look, get down to the gymnasium. I'll make the announcement.”
“Will you be alright, sir?” Harmony worried.
“I said I'm fine!... Sorry… just please get down to the gymnasium.”
“Okay…”
Harmony walked out as the Principal’s voice came over the sound system.
“Faculty, students, and staff. Please head down to the gymnasium for a surprise assembly. All faculty, students, and staff, please head down to the gymnasium for a surprise assembly.”
Natalie arrived late again, breathless and ragged from the long run and the blowout with her mom. The hallways were quiet as a tomb.
"Shit, class must have started already."
She headed for her first-period class, but the door was locked. She peeked through the glass; the room was empty.
"What the hell?"
She wandered the halls. Not a single soul in sight.
"Is today MLK day or something? Where the fuck did everybody go?"
Inside the gymnasium,The teens chatted loudly. They heard the Keplers are at the school but have no idea why. Harmony sat near the teachers, her eyes scanning the crowd for Joan hoping to spot her.
"Joan, where are you? I really need you right now. I'm so scared..." she whispered.
The double doors groaned open. Maddy and Bree marched to the center of the gym toward a propped microphone. The school erupted in cheers and applause. The Keplers reached the podium and stood in an awkward silence while their cameraman dialed in the gear. He gave a thumbs up. They were live.
"Yoooo, it's your number one girl, Maddy Kepler!"
"And Bree Kepler!"
"And together, we’re the Kepler Sisters!"
They struck a pose. The teenagers howled, the sound deafening as it bounced off the rafters. Maddy cut a sharp smile at her sister.
"Hey sis, I know secret."
"Oh really? Spill?"
"There's a Cutie Princess here amongst us!"
"You don't say? Well then I guess it's..." Bree paused. Her stomach turned.
"Bitch, say the line!" Maddy barked under her breath.
Bree gulped and leaned into the mic. "It's time to hunt them down and reach MAXIMUM CLIMAX!"
The teachers looked on, appalled and jaw dropped. The kids went nuts, loving every second of this madness.
"Oh God, please kill me..." Bree muttered, the heat of embarrassment rising in her chest.
Maddy snatched the mic off the podium and prowled the gym floor.
"So I know you magical sluts are here, and there's nowhere to hide. So if you can kindly make it easier on us and reveal yourselves now, I promise I won't hunt you down and wipe you off my Ruby boots later!"
"Ooooooh!" the crowd hollered.
Harmony’s skin crawled. She wanted to slip out of the bleachers and run, but her legs wouldn't move. These were her heroes. She loved their music, why were they trying to kill her?
Maddy’s patience snapped.
"Alright then, I guess we'll need some help identifying these girls! Oh, Carrie!"
"IT'S COURTNEY!" Courtney shouted, sprinting toward Maddy. She expected a hero's welcome; she got dead air.
"YOU SUCK, SINCLAIR!" Piper yelled.
"FUCK YOU, COURTNEY!" the rest of the girls from the concert joined in, a chorus of spite.
"Hey, screw you bitches! I bought you all tickets!"
The room dissolved into boos.
"I unfriended you, heartless bitch!"
"Go to hell, Sinclair!"
The jeering intensified. A water bottle flew from the stands, then another. Maddy pulled Courtney's ear.
"Connie, what the fuck? I thought you said you were super popular!"
"It's Courtney! And I am! These hoes are just playing!" Courtney’s laugh was brittle and nervous.
"Dude! This shit is not helping our brand! We had a deal! Now show me which one of your friends are the magical sluts or I'll fucking kill you myself!" Maddy threatened.
Courtney was having a major panic attack She’d never been this hated befire, and it was breaking her.
"CINDY! I SAID FIND ME THOSE MAGICAL BITCHES NOW!" Maddy screamed.
The gym door swung open. Natalie stepped in, freezing at the sight of the Keplers in the gymnasium.
"What the fuck?!"
"THERE!" Courtney’s finger shot out. "IT'S HER!"
Maddy cut a look at Bree and nodded. Bree hesitated, then fell into formation.
"RUBY REVOLVER!”
“SAPPHIRE SPEARS!”
“ACTIVATE!"
The Keplers transformed. Blinding light washed over the crowd, replaced by the jagged gleam of Ruby and Sapphire armor. Courtney immediately regretted her decision and screamed at the top of her lungs.
"RUN BITCH! RUUUUUN!"
“OH FUCK ME SIDEWAYS!”
Natalie bolted out the doors and sprinted for her life.
The chase was on!
Will Natalie outrun the Keplers Sisters? Will Harmony and Joan reconcile? And will Courtney ever be forgiven for her betrayal? Find out next time for another exciting episode of Sailing Star Cutie Princess!
つづく
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