If having to redo elementary school wasn’t bad enough, the shopping trip Felicia had been avoiding finally came. The “getting school supplies and tailoring the uniform” had just been an excuse for Kim to go shopping.

“It’s been ages since we’ve gone shopping together sweetie!” Kim had said excitedly as they got into the car. A chauffeur was driving, allowing them both to sit in the back. “Since we’re going to the tailor anyway, let’s stop by some department stores too.”

Felicia’s whole face stiffened.

Cautiously she objected, “Mom… I have so many clothes already… do I really need more?”

A perfectly sculpted eyebrow rose on Kim’s face. “What, you still want to wear the same old things until you outgrow them?” She laughed lightly and side hugged her daughter, “Sweetie, it isn’t like before where we had to pinch our pennies. We can shop ‘till we drop!”

A mixture of comfort and revulsion ran through Felicia at the hug. Even though so much time had passed, Felicia and her host could not come to an emotional agreement on Kim. Fortunately Felicia avoided Kim most of the time so the disharmony wasn’t obvious.

Kim didn’t notice the conflicted expression on her daughter’s face, happily continuing the conversation as if her daughter had agreed.

When they got to the first department store, Felicia didn’t even have a chance to feel annoyed. Kim grabbed her arm and practically hauled her out of the car and inside. The rest of the day was like that: getting hauled here and there by the arm. There were so many clothes that they all blended together into one big blur.

Every time Kim tried on another outfit, Felicia was forced to say “You look soooo pretty Mom!”. If she didn’t, Kim would get genuinely upset and even angry, triggering her host’s desperate need of approval. This made Felicia miserable so she just grit her teeth and lavishly complimented Kim rather than deal with the emotional fallout.

Somewhere between Kim shopping for herself, she found time to torture Felicia. As Felicia had guessed, all the pink frilly outfits were Kim’s fault. When Felicia suggested any other color, Kim would pout or get annoyed, all of which resulted in the same thing: she ended up with more pink frilly outfits.

It’s not that Felicia had a problem with pink. But there was such a thing as *too much pink* and *too many frills*, and this is exactly what was being forced on Felicia. It didn’t help at all that two era’s fashions, the 70s and the 80s, were mashed together into eye watering combinations on her body.

When they finally arrived home, all Felicia wanted to do was sleep. She almost missed Darius’ tiny form sitting in front of the door outside. It was only when he stood up that she noticed him.

“Darius, baby,” Kim said in surprise when she saw him, “Did you wait for us to come home all this time?”

Darius didn’t look at Kim at all but stared straight at Felicia. “Don’t care about you. Just waiting for sis.”

Kim’s face flashed with an ugly expression before going back to looking pleasant. She laughed stiffly and turned to her daughter, “How about you two go wash your hands and get ready for dinner?”

Felicia ran over and took Darius’ hand, quickly escaping, all thoughts of sleeping gone.

When they were inside and a good distance away from any adult ears, Felicia turned to Darius with exasperation written all over her face.

“Why did you say that?”

“Say what?”

“You told Mom you don’t care about her!”

“Should I not have told her?”

“Of course not!” Felicia didn't worry about how he didn’t care about Kim because, tactically, she approved that he didn’t. But those kinds of things couldn’t be said out loud!

Darius looked puzzled. “Why?”

“Because it’s rude!”

“Why is it rude?”

“Because… because...” Felicia blanked for a moment, then collected herself. “You wouldn’t want someone telling YOU they don’t care about you, right?”

Darius tilted his head. “It doesn’t matter if people I don’t know don’t care.”

Felicia pursed her lips. “What if your Dad said it?”

“Dad cares though.”

“Okay, but what if he said he didn’t care about you? How would you feel?”

“But Dad wouldn’t say that.”

“Just imagine if he did though!”

Darius furrowed his brow slightly.

“I would ask why he stopped caring. If there was a good reason, I would fix it. If there was not a good reason, then I would tell him he’s wrong and should like me again.”

Felicia pinched the bridge of her small nose. After a little while, she tried again, “I’m the big sister, so you gotta listen to me about stuff not math related, right?”

“Right.”

“Okay so… um… when you’re talking to people… if you can’t say something nice to them or about them, just don’t say anything. If they get upset because you’re being quiet, just excuse yourself and leave.”

Darius looked puzzled again. “How will I know if what I’m saying is nice?”

“Uh… well…. If… if you compliment them or show interest in what they’re saying… usually… uh… people consider that being nice. They like it.”

“...compliment…” Darius muttered, thinking hard. After a bit, he looked at Felicia and said very seriously, “Your eyes look like the grass in the yard.”

“.......”

“The dark spots on your nose are distinctive.”

Felicia gave a deep, heart weary sigh. “I guess this is something we’ll need to practice….”

Good as her word, Felicia would spend a little time practicing compliments with Darius every day after that. At DARS suggestioning, she made sure they practiced generic compliments that would work on the widest group of people. She also made sure Darius understood that some compliments could only be used for girls and some for guys, some for adults, some for children.

The first day of school came too quickly. Kim personally dressed Felicia in, what Kim believed to be, the absolute cutest way possible while still adhering to the dress code for the school. Mr. King had taken a day off from work and Darius had woken up early to see her off. Kim had a snazzy new compact polaroid camera and had Mr. King and Darius stand next to Felicia, taking dozens of pictures excitedly.

Finally they got in the car, all four of them, and drove to the school. The first day of school was apparently a big deal, with at least one parent present for every kid attending. Felicia vaguely recalled her first day of elementary school, it mostly involved a lot of crying and clinging to her Dad’s pants. It was one of those childhood memories that left Felicia feeling embarrassed, so she purposely tried to forget it.

This was the first time Felicia would attend a private school so she asked DARS all kinds of questions about it. Not only was this a private school it was an “all in one”. That meant it taught grades 1 - 12. Due to the obscenely high tuition, the student body was small but the facilities and educational standards were top notch. The classes for grades 1-5 were tiny, with less than a dozen students per class, while the 6th-12th grades were much larger owing to the attached dorms.

Yeah, that’s right. This private school also functioned as a boarding school. DARS had explained that it was one of the top ten most expensive schools in the whole world. Filthy rich parents from all over sent their kids to this school to live most of the year starting at the “ripe old age” of age of 12.

When the chauffeur drove up to the front of the school, Felicia’s eyes almost popped out of her sockets. DARS had described it to her, but seeing was believing!

How was this a private school? For kids under 18? Was everyone sure???

It looked like one of the old European universities! The campus was huge. Older students could be seen riding bicycles just to get from one place to another.

Felicia’s mouth felt dry the more she witnessed. Everything looked so sophisticated. She felt… out of place. Much to her chagrin, her host also felt the same. Why was this the one thing they both agreed on? That just made the feeling worse!

There was a long line of cars at the front of a smaller building. Parents and children were getting out. Felicia noticed they were all the same age as her and concluded this was the building where her classes were held.

She held Darius' hand tightly.

To make herself feel better, she talked to him while they waited for the car to pull up to the entrance.

“This is where I’m going every day except the weekends from now on. Next year, you’ll come here too.”

Darius nodded passively. She’d been teaching him to nod when people were talking to him.

“You remember what I said you should do while I’m at school right?”

“Play outside after breakfast, color at least a single page in the coloring book you got me, and write in my journal about anything interesting happening.” These were things she’d prepared in advance for him to do while she was gone, to make sure he didn’t revert back to doing only math problems and standing around in a daze.

“Good, good. When I get back, I’m definitely asking Mr. Howard if you went outside, so don’t try and skip a day unless the weather is bad. If you do, I’ll know!”

“Okay.”

“And don’t just write what you did word-for-word in your journal, make sure you’re looking for interesting things to write.” She paused and added, “And I don’t mean math problems!”

Darius' face scrunched slightly, as if he’d been caught, making a noticeable “tsk” sound through his teeth.

Mr. King was silently laughing at them. Felicia was always like this with Darius, bossing him around and nagging him. She was more his mother than the woman who birthed him. But that was alright, because Darius responded to her. The more time he spent around her, the more… human… he acted. This was something Mr. King and all the doctors in the world had failed to do.

Felicia knew how Mr. King viewed them, so never held back with her domineering behavior around him.

The car had pulled up and the chauffeur had gotten out and opened the doors. Felicia gave Darius’ hand a squeeze before letting go. There was a school staff member asking for names and then handing them a map that was marked with where they needed to go.

The King family was going to Classroom Apple.. Which was basically just Class A. There was a big apple painted on the front door of the classroom. Felicia’s whole face twitched when she saw it.

Somehow she had to survive these early years without being bored to death or standing out too much.

As DARS had stated, Felicia needed to have a deep connection with Darius so that when he was an adult, he’d listen to what she had to say. If she stood out too much academically, she’d get unwanted attention that would eventually pull her away from Darius. She was already a year ahead of him, which was annoying. If she got put into advanced classes or shipped off somewhere for special training or whatever weird thing rich people do when they find out their kids are geniuses, that was it. Game over for her. She’d have to restart the mission.

The idea of having to train Darius all over again made her break out into a nervous sweat.

The first day of school was mostly teachers giving the parents and kids a guide around the school, explaining how everything worked, and then doing some fun activities as a group. This was all to relax the children and make the new environment less scary to them. By the end of the day, most of the children who started off nervous had relaxed and started to properly smile. Some had even made friends.

Felicia didn’t make friends, but she didn’t plan to. No matter how much she channeled her host, it was impossible for her to be friends with a 6 year old. Not because she hated kids, but because she would never think of them as her equals. And being friends meant you thought of the other person as your equal.

The best she could hope for was to blend in during recess and not attract attention during the rest of the day. She didn’t plan on being purposefully cold to anyone, but she also wasn’t going out of her way to be friendly either. Hopefully by staying lowkey and not being overly friendly, that would be enough.

Felicia under-estimated 1st year elementary students. Unlike teens and adults, who had all kinds of prejudices and strict standards for making friends, 6 year olds were pretty open minded. It’s not that they’d play with anyone, but they’d play with *almost* anyone. And a person like Felicia, by trying not to attract attention, somehow attracted more attention.

Her temperament all by itself was enough to interest them. During recess she became the de facto referee for every game played because she always knew the rules, even for games that technically had no official rules. If a big argument broke out, she’d always find a way to get both sides to make up, because she hated watching little kids fight. It was annoying, loud, and sometimes borderline bullying. And because she always answered people who asked her questions, the kids all found out that Felicia knew the answers to all the workbook questions. She was polite, friendly and even the kid who sniffed glue was treated well by her.

Unexpectedly, her tyranny with Darius expanded until she’d also conquered all the 1st Graders.

Felicia didn’t expect it at all and came home exhausted every day from the attention she got from the other students. She survived only because her host was a natural “social butterfly” and enjoyed all the attention. Felicia really began to appreciate extroverts' ability to thrive in a social setting. This wasn’t something that came naturally to her and she heavily depended on it to make it through the week.

Everyday at dinner Mr. King asked about her day at school and every day Felicia would give an entertaining anecdote. During these conversations, she made sure to include Darius. This was an unspoken agreement between her and Mr. King: get Darius thinking about the future, about school, and setting the standard so he understood what was expected of him.

As for the educational portion of school…. Felicia spent a lot of time staring at her work in class and waiting till the last minute to finish. Sometimes she’d just talk to DARS to keep herself occupied, making it look like she was daydreaming during the lesson, and then miss the chance to finish her work. This was why, even though she was smart enough to help other students, she wasn’t a “teacher’s pet”.

In fact, the teachers were frustrated with her to the point of feeling ill. They knew she understood the class material. When reading and writing, she was flawless. Her math, when she bothered to fill it out, was always correct. She could perfectly recite information back to people who asked. Her comprehension was at the level of an adult.

The teachers excitedly thought she might be a genius during the first half of the year, even rushing to test her for it. But when they did the test, unexpectedly her scores were average. Her verbal responses were even considered a little slow.

They were puzzled, wondering if they’d misunderstood, but as time passed they realized: this student was purposefully avoiding getting labelled a genius! She would simply leave questions blank to lower her score. Did this student think they were stupid? How could they not notice how each test was always exactly 90%?! Just being able to get such exact scores was a kind of genius in-and-of itself!

But what could they do about it? If the student refused to be honest about her own intelligence, they couldn’t force it out of her. And her grades were high enough that they had no rational reason to complain. They could only bitterly watch as a bright mind slipped through their fingers, a raw diamond never to be refined.

Felicia left a trail of heartbroken teachers behind her.

A year passed like this and then it was Darius’ turn.

Originally, Mr. King had been toying with the idea of hiring a private tutor for his son. After all, he wasn’t cruel. He didn’t want his son teased and mocked for being… verbally slow. But with Felicia’s guidance, he now spoke more frequently and learned how to hold proper conversations. His personality was still a little on the cold side and sometimes it was clear he was just going through the motions, but this was far better than before. And it was certainly enough that he could go to school and survive.

Furthermore, his daughter was there. Even if she was a grade ahead, she would be in the same building. The day before Darius’ first day, Mr. King had a private conversation with his daughter.

“Felicia, I’m sure you noticed by now that your brother is… special.”

Felicia tilted her head, as if thinking and then nodded seriously. “He’s really good at math.”

“Ah, yes, he is but… I mean… that he doesn’t… quite know how to talk to people…”

“Oh that!” she smiled brightly, “He’s kinda dumb with talking, isn’t he? But that’s ok,” She patted her chest, looking proud, “I taught him how!”

Mr. King chuckled slightly, “Yes, yes you did. So… about school tomorrow… you will watch over him for me, won’t you?”

Her eyebrows rose. “Of course?”

“If… if anyone makes fun of him or tries to bully him—”

“Bully?!” Felicia raised a fist angrily and shook it, “If anyone bullies my little brother, I’ll knock them in the head until they can’t see straight!”

Mr. King choked slightly from trying not to laugh, “...let’s not resort to violence.”

She lowered her fist, looking skeptical about the idea of being peaceful.

“Don’t worry Daddy, I’ll make sure no one dares to do anything Dee.” She raised her head arrogantly. “Everyone listens to me, they won’t be mean if I tell them not to.”

“Oh? They all listen to you?”

She smirked, “Aren’t you my Daddy? That makes me the King of the school! They can’t ignore the King!”

Mr. King burst out laughing.

The next day, Darius woke up before everyone else. The chef was the first to arrive out of all the servants, prepping food for the day and getting breakfast ready. Darius wandered out his room and, without making a sound, stood in the kitchen and watched the chef. The chef had no idea he was being watched and almost had the life scared out of him when he turned around to find a silent boy standing in the middle of his kitchen.

If not for this, no one would have known that Darius was feeling anything akin to excitement or nervousness. His face didn’t show it.

Felicia laughed when the chef retold what had happened during breakfast and said to Darius, “So you ARE excited about going to school!”

“Excited?” Darius blinked. “What’s that?”

“What do you mean what’s that? Isn’t that why you got up so early? Or were you nervous?”

Darius lowered his eyes, brows slightly furrowed.

“Is that why?”

“How should I know?” Felicia said with some exasperation. “Aren’t you the one who’d know?”

He was quiet for a long moment.

“How can you tell when you’re excited or nervous?”

Felicia’s mouth opened and closed and then she let out a sigh. It’s not like this was the first time he’d been confused by something other people would consider common knowledge. There were still strange gaps in his understanding of how things worked, even how his own mind worked. It was only after a year of working with him that he got to the point where he’d verbalize his confusion in a way that made sense to her.

“Let me think…” Felicia took a few bites of her scrambled eggs. “Excitement is looking forward to something. You want to know or experience more about that thing, place, or person. Because it’s something you really really want, sometimes you can’t sleep, or you only sleep for a short time, or you find yourself thinking about the thing or person or place you’re excited about all the time. Excitement is a good feeling, but it’s also a little bothersome if it makes it so you can’t concentrate or sleep. Do you understand?”

Darius had been seriously listening to her explanation. At the end, he nodded.

“Nervousness is similar to excitement, but instead of looking forward to something, you’re dreading it. You don’t want that day or thing or place to come. You want to avoid it. Maybe you feel like running away or hiding. Just like excitement, you might find yourself thinking about that thing or person or place all the time and have trouble sleeping.” She raised an eyebrow. “So were you looking forward to today or wishing it didn’t come?”

The younger boy looked down again, clearly thinking. After a time he looked back up and said slowly, “...can it be both?”

Felicia giggled, “Yes! Oftentimes it is! So do you feel nervous and excited about school Dee?”

A look of enlightenment appeared on his face.

“I think so.”

Just like last year, Mr. King and Kim went to school and walked around with Darius. Felicia, however, had actual classes starting the first day. She could only spend a little time with them in the morning and hang out during lunch. The first day of school was only a half-day for 1st graders, so they went home before Felicia’s school day ended.

Darius' first day went about as expected. He was polite, a little cold and disinterested, but easily followed instructions. It probably helped he saw all this last year and knew what was expected of him. As for making friends… that didn’t happen. But Felicia didn’t make any friends the first day either. Mr. King felt Darius did very well, all things considered.

The teachers were warned in advance that Darius was a “special” student. The teachers were well educated, highly paid, and their classes were small. As long as Darius could follow simple instructions and didn’t have violent outbursts, his uniqueness wouldn’t be too difficult for them.

As for the other students… The first week was particularly awkward. Though Darius went through the motions of socializing, he didn’t have any of the interest. As Felicia had taught him, if he couldn’t think of anything “nice” to say, he simply excused himself from the conversation. By the end of the week, he’d excused himself out of talking to every single child in the class.

Rather than saying the class isolated him, it would be more accurate to say he isolated himself from them.

In terms of school work, he did well. This made sense because, unlike socializing, all he had to do was follow the instructions. Once he was done, he could occupy himself with things he was really interested in… mostly math problems.

The teachers watched this all unfold without being able to do much. Forcing a child to socialize, to the point that the other students become annoyed, was counter-productive. It could easily lead to bullying. Darius was the son of Damien King, one of the wealthiest parents in the school, and the wealthiest local. If they allowed Darius to get bullied because of incompetence on their part, Damien King could make their lives a living hell.

But they didn’t have to worry, no child dared bully Darius because Felicia was watching. As the “King” of 2nd grade, messing with her was like messing with all the 2nd graders. Even older students who might be tempted to pick on the “little weirdo” didn’t dare. A single second grader wouldn’t hurt them, but being surrounded by a mob of ankle-biters was intimidating and even scared them a bit. Thus, though Darius never made friends, he wasn’t mistreated.

As for Felicia, she never made friends either despite how popular and well liked she was by her peers. The children themselves didn’t realize it, but rather than being considered Felicia’s friends, they were more like her henchmen.