Teach Me To Fly {Shrimpeh}

She wakes up early, like all days. Bette always wants to catch the sunrise as it spreads over District 1, whose residents have not yet awoken for their daily shifts at diamond mines, or toy-making factories. She yawns once as she looks out at the horizon, the bright reds and golds slowly ebbing away as it loses the twilight war with daytime. The event is a short one - eventually the whole sky is filled with a cloudy blue, and there are no traces of the majestic rainbow of fire that lingered just a half hour previously. She doesn't mind though; once something becomes too commonplace, it becomes banal.

The last few hours before school are filled with other events. As soon as she finishes brushing her teeth (soft, white loops and swirls float across her mind as the humming becomes louder) and donning her daily ensemble of nonchalance (this time with argyle and stripes and copious amounts of forest green because "dark green is the new chartreuse"), loud, banging noises and yelling are overheard downstairs, and as bright blue fills her surroundings, she dashes down to investigate, doe-eyes wide with excitement. Oh, what could they have brought in today? The surprise itself is a very tall, very rococo grandfather clock, which almost falls and breaks as her uncle almost trips on the foot-stool lying in his way. Curses are flung in the air as well, and Bette sees bright red before everything calms and the clock is set down with a loud (orange) thunk.

"It's from that old man down on Anchorage St. He kicked the bucket and left all his assets to 'whoever can grab it first', so it's almost like finder's keepers," her cousin Nardo states, panting and wheezing as the mile long trek back to the shop has finally ended (other articles collected consist of an ornate gravy boat, fine china with elaborate blue swirls and silverware so tarnished that she can barely make out her face in the metal). Bette runs to go get him a large cup of tea (her mother is also up and waves and speaks in chipper, purple tones as she welcomes her only daughter to the new day), and soon the entire extended family (There are her two uncles, Latif and Lykman; and her five male cousins, Nardo, Enrí, Hudson, Arav and little Rushi - today he followed them, sneaking out of his bed for a journey like no other and today aunt Savita joins them, her crooked teeth visible to her family only as she laughs and laughs) is sitting on antique objects, recounting the treacherous voyage across District 1 carrying nothing but a grandfather clock ("We could have been robbed and we wouldn't have been able to attack," her father states, his laughter resonating with vibrant, green hues). Soon though, a neighbor shouts at them to "Shut up, my children are sleeping you morons!" and the family resorts to laughing with hushed whispers and dull colors.

Her uncles, aunt and cousins soon join them for an early breakfast, complete with steaming scrambled eggs, fresh toast (her mother had run to the bakery while the two were out, dragging out her ten year old brother Yamir from bed for company; Bette was to engrossed in the story) and mystery meat from the butcher's that has been adorned and stuffed with so many spices that its origins are more enigmatic than before. Here Bette shines, able to laugh with high pitched, pink tones and smile as she jokes with Aray that "I'm getting taller than you, little by little! Just you wait and see," and giggles as her aunt examines her skin and makes comments about her interesting outfit choices ("I'm not saying that the style won't be hip or something like that in the future, but as of right now you look like an imploded clothing store." "But that's the cool part, and I don't have that many clothes anyways, so why not make it fun?").

But then schooltimes approaches, and as the family leaves for work (Her four older cousins, all over eighteen, spend most of their time in the toy shop, Enrí attaining the prominent job of toy designer; Lykman found employment as a doctor for the diamond factory, making sure that the air stays pure and its residents healthy and Latif is an avid Career trainer, walking away with his victor wife Savita as they wish the Sublino family a "good day, we'll see you at seven."). Rushi however, stays, for the seven year old is brought to school by Bette and Yamir (Rushi's backpack is delivered by his irritable 17 year old sister Acelynn, who simply drops the backpack on the ground and complains about how much she has to carry on her own back). The four of them leave for school a few minutes later, waving goodbye to Mr. and Mrs. Sublino as they depart the antiques shop that smells of dust and metal and home.

They foray into the deep dark depths of the school building, but then Acelynn dashes away to catch up with her vulture friends and Yamir leads Rushi off to the first grade classrooms with a quick wave and then Bette is left alone in the halls, a thick hurricane of too bright yellows and greens and reds and purples hitting her like a train. She walks forwards, closing her eyes and massaging her forehead as the noise grows louder and louder, finally ending with a very loud SMACK, and Bette is thrown onto the floor, the books in her hand flying every which direction.

Snickers of amusement are overheard and linger in the corner of her eyes as wispy marigold fangs. Rubbing her forehead (although this time it is not from the headache of synesthesia but from the headache of a fashion textbook slamming into her face), she is suddenly hit by a stream of hot pink as the girl babbles on about how sorry she is. Well that's nice, someone's being nice to me for once lingers in her cranium for a second before being swept away with the sheer appreciation as Ray picks up the fallen books and hands it back to the girl who so carelessly lost them. She smiles gratefully (without showing her teeth and the gregarious persona that is truly her personality, for how can she put it on display in here, with its too colorful noises and too poisonous children?), and responds in a far too soft voice, clouded with maroon with her name, "Bette."

She accepts the books from Ray, fashion textbooks exchanging hands before Bette realizes that this is the Ray that is in her first period fashion class. For a moment she simply stands there, astonished that she could be so oblivious as to forget that 4'9" Ray is actually in her fashion class (which she would detest even more if she wasn't allowed to use metals and such to replicate the ornateness of the various objects strewn across the family store. She would much rather take her business class first period, so at least her day starts with a trace of ambition and interest), before finally stammering "I-I guess... W-we should go to class n... now?" The nervousness in her voice is all too apparent, and as she waits for Ray's response, Bette feels like sitting in a hole and staying there for all eternity.