mandatory t e a m w o r k [Blossom)

[Nicki Burne Michigan]

Nicki was sitting in his third period American History, feet bumping lightly against the legs of his desk and his chin in his palm, staring blankly the the front of the classroom. They were learning about the whole revolution thing again, except this time the teacher wasn't holding back on all the bloody war facts, which, honestly, just made him dislike it even more. No matter how much he disliked the way schools censored the material, he also couldn't stand hearing about the unnecessary violence that his ancestors had resorted to. Well, no, they weren't his ancestors. His ancestors had lived across the ocean, in Korea, even though he himself had been born here. That made him a citizen and everything, and what with the high diversity, he was pretty much regarded as an honorary American. He didn't really think about Korea much, though there were times like these when he had to stop and correct himself about his family tree. He was completely zoned out, hidden deep in his world of thoughts when the teacher asked a question. By habit, Nicki raised his hand. After nine grades, it was just something you got used to; raise your hand when the teacher asks a question and you won't look stupid. "Mr. Michigan?" he heard the teacher ask from the back of his head, the words echoing strangely and blurring with the rest of the students' chatter. There was no way in the world that any teacher could get this group of freshmen to stop talking, though there were a few silent ones dotting the classes. "...Uh?" Nicki murmured, realizing that his name had been called. Dammit, he hadn't even heard the question. He looked around, a flush rising to his cheeks as he noticed that only a few other students had been raising their hands. Oops?

"Mr. Michigan, did you hear the question?" This time, he could actually focus on what the teacher was saying, and he didn't like it. He flush grew a bit brighter as he was forced to admit that he hadn't. "Uhm... no?" he said slowly, watching to see if there was any hint of disapproval on the teacher's face. Sure enough, there was more than a hint as she turned to call on another student. At least she hadn't given him detention or anything bad like that, though he had earned himself quite a few snickers from the rest of the class. He sighed, returning his head to rest in his hand. Honestly, he wasn't trying to make trouble; he just really wasn't interested in the topic. His test scores were near perfect and he always turned his homework in; it was just his lack of 'school spirit' that was bringing his grade down. His parents had told him over and over again that if his grades didn't raise soon, they were going to put him into summer school. Summer school, and a tutor. How much worse could it get? Nicki was smart, he really was, but he just lacked the motivation he needed to change things for the better. Maybe he needed a study buddy, or something. The thought made him giggle slightly. Him, Nicki Michigan, one of the most anti-social freshmen there was, have a study buddy? It would be another one of the wonders of the world if it ever happened! He sighed again, noticing that the teacher was talking. He had tuned the words out again; it was just a bad habit. He ignored anything that wasn't of interest to him, and he already knew all the things the teacher was saying. He couldn't pretend to pay attention because he really wasn't good at lying. He had told that line to teachers millions are times, and it had come from the sweetest little innocent boy face you could imagine. Of course, the teachers had still assigned him detention whenever he tried to explain that he simply didn't like the subject enough to listen to their speeches.

"... and you'll work in partners." That right there was the fragmented sentence that shocked the pika shifter into listening, his eyes wide as the teacher continued talking. "You do not get to choose your partners. I'll start reading down the list of pairs now." Nicki despised working with other people. It was the bane of the loner's existence, and he almost always got a better grade when he did solo projects. This was going to be pure torture. Again. The teachers all seemed to be obsessed with pairs; in the short amount of school that had taken place so far, he had been forced into about ten group projects, and none of them had gone well. Nicki was always sullen and silent, only speaking when he disagreed with his partner, and boy, did he disagree a lot. Half of the projects had actually ended up as solo projects with Nicki doing all of the work and his partner just sitting glumly to one side. Those were the ones that had gotten the worst grades, though Nicki would never admit that he had done anything wrong.

"Mr. Smith and Mr. Andrews. Mr. Michigan and Miss Durant." Nicki looked up when he heard his name, eyes narrowing. The teacher pronounced the s like a z, and in the back of his mind he wondered where she came from that made her speak like that. The back of his mind was always wondering things, it was just programmed like that. He groaned, returning to reality for the third time in this period and looking around, watching the other students stand up to find their partners. Only a few students were still sitting down, and Nicki reluctantly left his seat, gazing around the room. Just a handful of people weren't already attached to their partners, so Nicki must have been occupied with his back-of-the-mind thoughts for a few minutes, at the least. Okay, so there were a few students left, and one of them was his partner for this little project (which he still didn't know the instructions for).

But which one was Miss Durant?

[blossom]

Today was going fairly well for the little freshman. The weather was pretty decent and she managed to slip in and out of her classes without much flaw. No one seemed to pay too much attention to her but she didn’t mind. This little butterfly was still hidden away in her cocoon and didn’t exactly want to be too social. At least not yet. Granted, she did want to change. Her low self-esteem was something that needed work and she was just way too shy and nervous around people for her own good. She was so anxious half the time, she stuttered and hardly anyone could make out what she was saying. The only person she wasn’t like that around was her brother.

Hopefully, those problems will be fixed by the end of the year. It was difficult going around without a best friend to cling to. Her brother was a senior so he wasn’t an option. The only time she really saw him was at home. Most of his classes were on the higher floors. Her’s have been mainly restricted to the first floor of the school. Besides, it was probably better for her to find a friend in her own grade, right? That way she wouldn’t have to worry about them leaving her behind when they graduate. Just… finding the right person was going to be tough. She was always so worried she was annoying someone for one reason or another.

Though, she could worry about that later. She had more important things to take care of. While other students slept or doodled or did whatever they normally did in class, Blossom was being the studious, little thing she was. Her tiny hand hurried to scribble down notes with fury. She worked hard for her grades, just like her older brother, and she intended to get only the best of the best.

A quiet sigh parted her lips as she sat back in her seat and looked down at her notes. Her poor hand was cramping and she had to pop her knuckles. Absently, her almond-shaped eyes glanced around the room as the instructor asked a question. Only one person raised their hand… Blossom would have offered to answer the question if she weren’t such a shy little thing. She was glad she wasn’t the one put on the spot. Especially when the student that raised his hand was floundering for an answer. Did he even hear the question? Why did he raise his hand? She couldn’t figure it out.

But now there was another issue on hand. Group projects. Blossom despised them. She’d much rather work alone because… Well, she didn’t want to be mean but no one really did anything right. She was a perfectionist with her grade and if something wasn’t exactly right, she panicked. This probably didn’t help her anti-social behavior much… This time she was going to actually try to be social. Blossom listened quietly for her name… And when she realized who she was working with, she just sort of… sat there for a moment. She didn’t know much about ‘Mr. Michigan’ besides the fact that he failed to answer the question he raised his hand for. Maybe she should just do this by herself…

Slowly she gathered her belongings and stood up to make her way to her partner. All the while, ideas were popping up here and there in her mind. She didn’t know what they could do but it had to be extravagant. It had to be over the top and fantastic. Even if she had to take it home with her to work on it alone, she would make sure it ended up this way. Though, with her record of being a klutz, she should have been more worried about where she was going than what they were going to do. The little freshman managed to stumble into a desk, completely fall all over it and then to the floor, her belongings following her down and scattering about her… Great.

[/blockquote][/blockquote][/justify]

[Nicki Burne Michigan]

Well, here he was, standing like a complete idiot while everyone else was paired up. Most partners were giggling behind their hands or doodling on sheets of paper, but some were looking at the board with an intense look on their faces. Nicki supposed that they were the clique most people called 'nerds'. He was still getting into the whole categorization thing, and so far he didn't like it. He didn't know what group he was in, but he was guessing that it wasn't at all accurate. If anything, Nicki was floating between groups. He was pretty smart, but he hated the school and therefore didn't try very hard. He was athletic and loved sports, but despised groups and refused to play in any teams. He was... contradictory, to put it nicely. Maybe other people would call him weird, maybe even insane. But whatever, seeing as the nerds were looking at the board, Nicki assumed there was some necessary information on it. He turned around, looking at the board and reading the simple instructions when there was a loud noise that made him flinch.

He sighed and slowly turned back to the rest of the classroom, dark eyes taking in the scene of the girl on the floor, surrounded by her belongings. He warily looked at the rest of the class; everyone seemed to be paired up. So... the girl on the floor must be his partner. Well, that was embarrassing. She would probably mess the project up if she couldn't even walk without slamming into something. He smirked, walking forward a few feet and settling himself down on the floor next to her, resting his head and back against the desk. ”So, we're working down here? Fine with me, but your supplies look a little scattered,” he said, raising an eyebrow. He was just teasing, but Nicki had an odd sense of humor. Most of his jokes were quite offensive, and nobody could defend him by saying he didn't mean them to be, because he really did. Especially what he had just said; that was meant to be offensive. Honestly, he was annoyed that he had gotten stuck with a partner that would probably ruin the whole thing and lower their shared grade, and so he was taking it out on her. It wasn't very nice or mature of him, but he hadn't been very mature in the first place. And nice? Well, he could be sweet when he wanted to, but now wasn't one of those times.

Nicki wasn't a perfectionist at heart, but his parents made him seem like one. What with multiple letters threatening to get him a tutor and concerns that he would be kicked out of the private “scholarship” highschool (though that probably wouldn't happen because of his grades), Nicki was getting a little stressed about his average of Cs and the occasional B that popped up in a class he liked. He yawned and stretched, watching her try to pick everything up. It was just sad, really sad, and so Nicki sighed and leaned over to help. ”You know, you really should be more careful,” he said, the words kind but his tone biting. He glanced up at the board again, then back to Blossom. ”No power points, okay? We're doing a model, and it has to be bloody.” Nicki didn't mind blood like he minded violence. Hearing about what caused the blood was what made him sick, not the red stuff itself. Anyway, it would just be ketchup, Nicki knew that. Facts always helped you get over your fear, as long as they were relevant to what the fear actually was. Doing math in your head while confronted with a serial killer; that didn't help.

He sighed; this was going to be boring. The board said that it had to be some sort of visual presentation about the Battle of Saratoga, and Nicki honestly hadn't been paying attention when they were teaching crap about that. So he would be relying on Blossom for the facts, which he didn't like. Well, he could always research it himself, but that was too much work. Leaning back again, Nicki lazily listened to what everyone else was planning. The nerds were making power points, the artists were drawing things, and the musicians were making little songs about the battle. Nicki had to admit that the clique thing really was convenient for organizing, even if it was a tad rude. He wondered which one he and the girl fit in to. He knew that he wanted to do a model of sorts, but he could also see himself making a song. Sure, a song that was utterly stupid and written that way on purpose, but Nicki adored singing. Always had. It was with a little jolt that he realized he had been referring to Blossom as 'the girl' this whole time. ”What's your name, anyway?” he asked, his voice a tad softer after thinking for a while.

[blossom]

It was bad enough that Blossom had managed to end up on the floor but the fact that her belongings were all over the place didn’t help. A soft blush clung to her face as she hoped no one was paying any attention to her. Worried eyes darted around as she hurriedly gathered her things and stuffed them back into her bag and the binder she had for the class. Most of all, she hoped that ‘Mr. Michigan’ didn’t notice her spill. The last thing she wanted was to be deemed worthless and a total klutz (even though she thought she was) and not be allowed to work on the project. Honestly, Blossom was a hard working student. She didn’t mess up projects and always got the best grades. She just… had trouble with walking sometimes. It wasn’t really that big of a deal or that much of a problem. Just a thing that happened on occasion.

Blossom glanced up when she realized someone had accompanied her and panicked a little when she found it was her partner. The girl remained quiet, her jaw dropping a little at the comment he made about her being on the floor. Her cheeks darkened as the blush that already dusted her cheeks darkened. He must think that she was just a goof or something. Biting her bottom lip, timidly accepted his help but his biting tone made her flinch. “I-I’m sorry,” she had already stumbled over herself but now she was stumbling over her words, “I… I tripped. We can work at desks…” But she refused to move unless he wanted to.

Not once did she meet his gaze. Her eyes mostly remained fixated on the floor, even as she thought about his idea for a moment. Quietly she agreed with a little mumble, “Power points are too easy, anyway. I… I like the idea of a model…” She wasn’t so sure about the bloody part. Perhaps if he did the bloody part of the project. Blossom was fine doing whatever else there was to do. She knew the project was over the Battle of Saratoga which was the turning point of the revolution. It shouldn’t be that hard to do even if they were planning on doing something as complicated as a model. Their project should blow everyone else’s out of the water.

A little smile finally appeared on her full lips. Finally, she glanced up to meet her partner’s gaze. “We can use little army men and paint them to look like the soldiers from the revolution,” her proposition was quiet, held on a timid voice. She wasn’t even sure if he had heard that since his follow up question was about her name. Blossom blinked before replying, “O-Oh, I’m sorry… I should have introduced myself to begin with. I-I’m Blossom Durant…” How stupid was she to not do that at the very start?

[/blockquote][/blockquote][/justify]

[Nicki Burne Michigan]

Nicki was surprisingly comfortable on the floor. It was better than sitting on rocks, after all. Desks had some sort of confining air to them, not that Nicki minded being in small spaces. It was just disorientating to be squeezed between a desk and a chair while there was all that empty space around his head. Nicki either liked pure open areas or small and confined holes in the ground. He didn’t like desks at all. So even though his little jibe had been meant as a joke, it had some truth behind it. He really didn’t mind working on the floor. In fact, he preferred it. ”No, let’s stay down here,” he said, snickering. ”It makes us unique.” It did, seeing as most of the other groups were either standing up or sitting at their desks, already beginning to work. And here Nicki was, helping some girl pick up her school supplies. It wasn’t exactly going to get the project any farther along, but they would hopefully get started soon, right? It wasn’t like she could hold off the project forever. ”Didn’t I say working down here was fine with me? I wasn’t lying or anything, you know. You should trust your partner.” He pretended to look hurt, dramatically placing a hand to his forehead like he was about to faint.

People should really give him more credit. He wasn’t completely unobservant… just when it came to things he didn’t like. It unnerved him how this girl refused to look at him. ”Hey, at least look at me,” he grumbled, now actually a tad bit hurt. For real this time. It wasn’t like he was terrifying monster or anything, right? Well, he had made himself out to be a bit of an ass by teasing her… but she could at least look him in the eye. It wasn’t hard, after all. They were about the same height, even though Nicki didn’t like admitting that he was only as tall as a girl. But still… Nicki wasn’t scary, right? He just couldn’t understand why Blossom refused to look at him.

Power points were too easy? Was this girl a nerd or something? Nicki watched her carefully, looking for some hidden pocket protector or glasses in her pocket. She didn’t seem like a nerd to him. Maybe she was a daredevil, but her with stutter Nicki just couldn’t imagine that. Actually, she reminded him of himself a bit. Not easy to automatically fit into a group. It brought a large grin to his face, this one without any malice in it. Maybe they would get along… but only if she did good on the project. If she dragged his grade down, he didn’t think that he could stand being around her. If she liked his idea then she couldn’t be that bad, right? Probably. Maybe she was just going along for her own reasons. Maybe she was an idiot, but she didn’t seem like one so far. Just clumsy. To be honest, Nicki was clumsy too, but only when he was nervous. He couldn’t be nervous in this class, seeing as there weren’t any bullies in it. It was only the older students that he was afraid of, and down here in the freshie classes he considered himself to be above everyone else. Sure, he might have been skittish by nature, but only in certain situations. Like classes with multiple grades in them. A lot of the freshmen, like him, weren’t that good at shifting yet, so he considered himself safe from being gobbled up, unlike when he was around more experienced kids.

His grin widened when she finally met his gaze. He didn’t like having a meek partner, but he didn’t like having a strong-willed one either. Nicki was insanely picky like that. Maybe Blossom would be somewhere in the middle, the type of partner that he liked. ”Mmm, painting army men sounds good,” he said, making a little noise of agreement. ”And that’s a pretty name,” he said, smiling and trying to make her more comfortable. He didn’t like being thought of as a monster. Telling her his name simply didn’t cross his mind. After all, she hadn’t asked, right?

[blossom]

Blossom wasn’t exactly comfortable working on the floor. The cold tile hurt her bottom and the fact she was in a skirt didn’t make it any better. But she wasn’t going to complain. She wanted to get along with her partner as much as she could and starting trouble this early in would just get them nowhere. They had already lost time thanks to her little spill. Blossom wouldn’t dare put them any farther behind than they already were. She would just have to be careful and sit with her legs stretched out in front of her. Hopefully no one would trip over her. Though, with her luck it’s bound to happen. She just had to learn to remain positive.

Ugh, but it still didn’t look like she was getting along on the right foot with her partner. Not only did she come off as scattered and clumsy but did he also think that she wasn’t trusting? Of course she trusted him. They were sharing a grade and with his bold demand to make a model it sounded as if he at least cared about what he was doing. Yet she couldn’t help but wonder what other assumptions he might have made about her. Did he find her rude because she wouldn’t look at him? She wasn’t trying to be mean. It wasn’t like she was afraid or terrified of him. Well, not him personally. Just the fact that he’s there. She always had a slight anxiety and fear around people. Especially ones she had no idea about. Though, she would never get to know him if she didn’t try, now, would she? And she realized this. She had to try to be comfortable around him or else she never would be. And it wasn’t like he was being mean. From what Blossom could tell, he was trying to make her more comfortable. He was smiling, at least… And Blossom couldn’t help returning the smile even if the smile was just as timid as her voice.

She would have to make up for the first impression she gave him. As soon as he agreed to the army men idea, she pulled a notebook from out of her bag that was labeled and neat, clear handwriting ‘American History’ and grabbed a pencil. Opening up to a clean page, she started to make a list of all the supplies they would need – army men at the very top and then paint. She just stared at the two things on her list, unsure of how to respond to his comment about her name. Deciding he meant nothing by it, she nodded her head. “I think so, too… What’s you name?” He hadn’t offered his name and she thought it would be best to know it. They were partners, after all.

[/blockquote][/blockquote][/justify]

[Nicki Burne Michigan]

After multiple hiking expeditions and sleeping on the ground, Nicki had a high tolerance for the uncomfortable. He watched her try to find a good position, his eyebrows coming together a bit in a worried expression. Did she not like sitting on the floor? Anyway, they were sort of in the middle of one of the aisles, and there was a danger of being tripped over if they worked here for the entire class. He brought out a little drawing pad from his schoolbag, bending one knee a bit and placing it on that as a makeshift table. He himself found it easier to work this way, when he had more room to stretch out, but he wasn't sure if Blossom did. ”Uh... you know, if you want to, you can sit at one of the desks...” he said, shrugging absently and looking for a pencil in the bottomless abyss that was his backpack. Even if she decided to work at a desk, Nicki guessed that he was going to stay down here. It came easier to him than sitting in the fake plastic chairs that dotted the classroom, once orderly but now grouped together in pairs and a triangle, for the group of three that had been mixed in. Apparently, there had been an odd number of students in the class. It occurred to Nicki that the teacher could have just had one student work alone. Oh, what he would give to be that student... but so far, this Blossom girl didn't seem that bad. Maybe he would be able to cope with her for the rest of the project.

He started doodling, at first just little shapes but soon hills and... army men. They weren't very good drawings, but even if Nicki had been trying harder, he had never been good at art. Just singing and hiking. He drew a little flag on one side and a different one on the opposing side. Had their been flags in the battle? He was too lazy to check his textbook as he continued drawing. They had plenty of time, he could fix up the details later. Looking down at her short little list, the freshman blinked. ”I have some old army men in my house....” he started to say, then trailed off. Sure, he had to key to his parent's house in Florida, and sure, there were army men in the attic. Boxes upon boxes of them, and probably some paint, too. The only problem was that it was on the other side of the city, and they would have to get a ride from a teacher to be there and back by nightfall if they started off right after school. And there was the little fact that Nicki really didn't feel comfortable going into that house, so empty and dead, and being reminded that his parents had left him here alone. ”Nevermind,” he muttered angrily. It wasn't the girl's fault that his mood was now spoiled, it was his. Though it might not seem that way unless she asked him to explain, which he would do willingly.

He smiled hesitantly, just a small little twitch of his lips. ”Normally you would learn my first name first, not last,” he said, his little joke falling flat. Nicki sighed. ”My name's Nicki.”

[blossom]

His offer for her to sit at a desk was politely declined. Quietly, she shook her head. “I’m okay,” she said softly in reassurance. She wasn’t uncomfortable or anything. She just didn’t want to flash anyone since she was wearing a skirt. Not like anyone could see anything. Leggings clung tightly to her legs and carved out an interesting, floral design in black. But she had gotten the situation figured out nonetheless. If she just kept her legs straight and one crossed over the other, everything should be fine. It wasn’t her first time sitting on the floor, after all. Though, it did remind her of kindergarten. “It’s kind of fun,” she piped up after a moment, “It reminds me of doing art projects on the floor as a little kid.” She missed those days. She wasn’t as shy when she was younger and, honestly, she didn’t know what happened. She couldn’t remember when exactly she had went from being a happy, little girl to clinging to her brother and shying away from social contact. At least she was trying to change it, right? She didn’t want to stay like this forever. She had more fun as a little kid when she was happy and active. She’ll get back to that.

Her chocolate eyes wandered over to his doodling. She assumed it was their soon-to-be model and she had to admit… It looked like it would turn out pretty good. Slowly, she started to add to her list of things they would need. Her mother could help her make the flags out of some kind of cloth so she put her name in parenthesis beside that. They’d need a board for the base… She was about to put his name beside the army men when he started to tell her about how he had some at home… That was until his mood turned rather sour. Again, her gaze raised to meet his. She didn’t know what had caused such a foul mood to appear but she wasn’t going to poke at it. Blossom was curious but she knew better than to pry. If he wanted her to know, he would share. Curiosity killed the cat, after all. “It’s okay,” she said with a slight smile in her voice, “We can go to the crafts store in the mall to get everything we need. I… I’m sure we can find army men somewhere in here.” She dropped her gaze down to her notepad. “We could use that fact Astroturf stuff for the grass in the hills. Maybe. How much is it?”

She blinked at his comment about his name. Was that a joke? She didn’t get it if it was… But all she said was, “Nicki? I like that name.”

[/blockquote][/blockquote][/justify]

[Nicki Burne Michigan]

Nicki nodded when she said that she was okay. He never asked questions about things like that, because it was rude. If somebody was lying about their state of mind, they probably had a good reason, and didn't want Nicki to know. So he didn't say anything like 'are you sure?', because, well, he had just explained why. If she was fine with sitting on the floor then he wasn't going to protest. He was staring intently at his drawing, thinking. It took a few minutes before his voiced what his head had been working so hard to figure out. ”How are we going to show who wins? I don't think that we're allowed to give a speech along with the model, so we have to do it visually somehow...” This was going to be tough. Nicki lacked creativity and motivation for things that he didn't like, and he didn't like this project. Hell, he didn't even know who had won, or if it had been a tie or something. Didn't they have a more sophisticated word for tie? Draw, maybe? Or did people just say that nobody won with no fancy words tacked on? It was probably that.

Nicki had always been anti-social. It was just something that was ingrained into his system, and he didn't want to change it. He nodded slightly at her comment. ”Yeah, guess so...” he said absently, still looking at his drawing. He had never done projects on the floor, not even when he was a kid. He normally opted out of projects, sat to the side watching everyone else have fun. When they became mandatory...? Well, he had held pretty much the same opinion as he did today; it all depended on his partner. And the project that he was being forced to do, of course. If he was actually interested in it his partner didn't matter as much. It was just a matter of dividing the tasks so they were both working on what they were good at. ”What kinds of art projects did you do?” he asked, trying to look curious as he watched Blossom make her little list. Curiosity had killed that pika many times, but as the old rhyme went, he came back to life once he had gotten an answer. ”Sorry...” he said, stretching his arms above his head. He was referring to his sudden bad mood, of course. ”I just said something without thinking. I shouldn't have.”

”Yeah, the mall sounds good... but you'd have to show me the way around. I... uh, I don't shop much.” The male blushed, rubbing the back of his head nervously. He didn't like having to ask for her help, but it would make him seem stupid if he made her go alone. Well, rude, not stupid. After all, he would probably be paying for a lot of the stuff they bought. It was only fair, right? He had money, he should use it for school. Put it to good use. The only other thing he used to for was food, after all. It wasn't like he needed to go shopping for clothes that often. Or other things... He snapped back to reality when she started talking again. ”Oh, that sounds good. There are bound to be army men in the mall somewhere. We could check a toyshop or something, right? What's Astroturf?” Nicki had kind of imagined using some sort of precision cutting knife to make styrofoam hills, then just painting them green or something... but if Blossom had another suggestion, he was up for it. He was willing to listen to her not because he liked her, but because so far, her ideas had proved to be okay.

[blossom]

Showing who won the battle of Saratoga was going to be a little difficult. From what Blossom understood, it was supposed to be solely a visual presentation. No spoken word would be allowed to explain what was going on. The students were supposed to represent their understanding via creativity. Those with the power points were taking an easy way out, though. But that wasn’t Blossom and Nicki. They were ready to put up with the work this would undoubtedly create. Still, there had to be some way they could show it. After a silent moment of thought, Blossom came up with an answer, “We can tatter up the flag meant to represent Burgoyne’s men and since they surrendered, we could make all their army men kneeling and all of Washington’s and Gate’s men standing… So it looks like they’re submitting. How does that sound?” Blossom timidly asked, toying with the corner of her notebook paper. She had her head tilted down but her gaze was looking up at Nicki. She personally thought it was a good idea. It was the only she could think of, though, so if Nicki rejected it, she didn’t know what they would do.

“Uh,” she stalled, having been distracted by the question about showing who won. “We did finger painting and drawing and making things with Popsicle sticks…” at least that was all she could remember from her little kid days. She was pretty sure that’s what she did when working on the floor in kindergarten and preschool. It wasn’t like little kids could do that much. But that didn’t matter. What mattered was the here and now. This was what they needed to work on and think about. And she felt a little more comfortable when they were back on track and talking about a trip to the mall. Blossom always freaked out internally when she had big projects like these to do. She was so worried about turning them in late because she always wanted to go the most painstakingly complicated route they could go. Overachiever was an understatement for her. Though, despite the fact they weren’t really doing anything at the moment, they were talking about making this real. They were going to go to the mall, get what they need, and make this the best that they could.

“Of course I could show you around,” she reassured him with a little smile, “When would be the best time for you to go?”. Even though she didn’t have much of a social life, she still knew her way around the mall. “Astroturf is the stuff that looks like grass. It’s really itchy…” She didn’t know how to explain it better than that. “But if we can’t find it or figure out how to make it look good, we can just use paint.” They would need paint. And lots of paint.

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[Nicki Burne Michigan]

Nicki wrinkled his nose when she mentioned surrender. Didn't that mean that Burgoyne's men gave up? Didn't that make them weak? Nicki didn't react well to perceived weakness, even if that made him a bit of a hypocrite, but did it really make him a hypocrite if he didn't react well to himself either? He would have to think about that later. Nicki just thought that people should be strong, that they should stand up for what they believed in, even if it meant dying. Even if they weren't very good at standing up for something, they could still try, right? ”The kneeling sounds like a good idea, but knowing school, they'd take the tattered flag as a sign of racism or something,” he said, sighing. He wondered how they could get army men to kneel. Weren't they just little plastic green guys? He didn't think that they had bendable joints, but maybe there were a special kind where you could change their positions? He didn't know, but it sounded like a good idea to him.

Popsicle sticks didn't sound very fun to the freshman. He was pretty sure that in kindergarten, his class had sat in a circle of chairs and listened to children's stories for most of the day, sometimes with a bit of academic stuff mixed in. It had never really been interesting to him, but the art projects that Blossom was describing didn't sound very interesting either. Maybe kindergarten just wasn't interesting in general, or maybe he had found it all interesting back then and just couldn't remember. That was possible. After all, his mind had changed a lot since he was a kid, hadn't it? He liked to think it had...

”Uhm... any time after school, really. I normally do my homework later at night, so...” What he didn't want to say was that he didn't have much of a life. Not a social one, not even one outside of school in general. His day after school consisted of homework, homework, more homework, and sometimes a bit of hiking. It was sad how much of a hermit he was, actually. ”The stuff on... uh... golf places?” he asked, forgetting the proper name for the places that people golfed on. Courts? Country clubs? Probably neither of them. ”That sounds like it could work. But it's pretty bright... so, maybe we could do something to make it darker, or something?” Now he was just throwing out random suggestions, hoping that she would like one of them. ”If that doesn't work, yeah, paint sounds good...”

notes It was short and late, I'm sorry!