When our group entered the changing room, Delilah was talking in hushed tones with the other girls. My ears caught the sound of her voice saying, “… those filthy car freaks…” but she shut her trap as soon as Melody opened the door. The moment that we passed the threshold and entered the room, over a dozen glares fell upon us. I don’t know for sure what she was telling them, but I had a pretty good idea that it wasn’t good.

Maybe she was telling them that we were responsible for her car being torched, or maybe she was planning something nasty against us. Neither would be a first, so I tried to put her nastiness out of my mind as the others and I hurried inside to get changed for gym. It took a moment for Delilah to notice Mallory though, since she had come in last and was half hiding behind Rose and Jess.

When she did see the Efreeti come in with us, Delilah looked ready to blow her top and practically snarled, “What are you doing with them, Mal? Get over here.”

For a moment, I was worried that Mallory might comply, she certainly looked terrified enough. The poor girl looked like she wanted to run out of the room. She looked from me and Melody, to Delilah, and then to Clarice before taking a deep breath, standing up straight, and carefully replying, “I don’t know, Delilah. Maybe it has something to do with when you told me we were through and that you never wanted to talk to me again. It could have been all the insults and names you called me in that rant too.”

Delilah’s eyes widened in shock as Mallory talked back. “You can’t… I was angry, Mal. You know how I get when I’m angry, I can be a bit of a bitch.”

“No. You’re a total bitch,” Mallory corrected, her confidence seeming to grow with every word. “Not just when you’re angry either, but all the time. I put up with it because it was always to other people, and maybe because I hoped that you actually viewed me as a friend, but today you showed me that I’m just like everyone else to you, disposable, and only worth keeping around as long as I’m useful to you. Well, fuck you, I’m done with your bullshit.”

The poor little rich girl just stood there for a moment with a stunned expression on her face. She looked like someone had just slapped her as she tried to process what the Efreeti just said to her. Then, once it seemed that the message actually sunk in, her expression turned to one of fury.

“Fine, it’s your loss, trailer trash,” Delilah snapped. “We’re done. Don’t come crawling back to me when those new girls stab you in the back.” She just had to try to get the last word in and make it seem like she was dropping Mallory instead of the other way around as she turned in a huff and headed toward the gym with the other girls.

My sister wasn’t about to let that go though. Jess called after her retreating back, “I think you proved to her who the backstabber is just fine already, Delilah.”

I could see the Fire Mage’s back stiffen as she led the other girls through the doors into the gym and once they had all left the changing room, Mallory practically collapsed onto one of the changing benches and let out a long, slow breath. “I… I can’t believe I said all that… I stood up to her.”

“Yep, and you did a great job of it too,” Clarice commented with a grin. “So, how did it feel?”

“Umm… scary? And kinda nice too, I guess,” she replied as we all started to get our gym clothes from our bags to change. It was strange hearing a girl who could probably roast most people alive scared of anything, but I think that was part of it. She was scared of losing control and hurting someone, and Delilah would have been relatively safe since her magic let her control fire and heat.

“Well, we’re proud of you for standing up for yourself,” Melody told her as she stripped off her clothes.

“Thanks, Melody. For that, and for coming to find me when I was upset. It’s weird, but kinda nice having people around me who aren’t just using me for my powers,” Mallory admitted with a faint blush. “I kept my real feelings about the way she treated people quiet for way too long. I was too scared of losing the only friend I had. I guess I was ignoring how bad she was because she wasn’t that way with me. It’s a relief to finally get some of that off my chest, and I guess she wasn’t really a friend.”

“Not a good one, at least,” Rose muttered behind me.

“No, I don’t think we were really ‘friends’ at all,” the Efreeti clarified with a sad shake of her head. “It was a transaction… for both of us. We were both getting something out of it, and I guess that made it worth it. After she used my flames to torch her car on Friday, she got pissed with me, like it was my fault, and wouldn’t answer my calls all weekend. Then she was such a bitch to me in Home Ec. that I was sobbing in the bathroom when Melody found me. I guess I realized then how bad she really was, and that the benefits of her friendship weren’t worth being treated that way.”

“For what it’s worth, I’m sorry for my part in how she treated you. I probably made things worse with my antics in Home Ec.” I told her apologetically as I took off my bra and reveled in being completely naked for a moment before reaching for the clothes in my gym bag.

“At least you feel bad about it, Crystal, and I appreciate that. Delilah probably only feels bad that she won’t be able to use the threat of my fire to bully people anymore. Honestly, this is all on Delilah, she’s responsible for her own actions, and I’m kinda grateful that this happened now. Otherwise, I might have never admitted to myself how toxic our relationship was, Melody wouldn’t have come to find me, and I wouldn’t have had a chance at making some real friends.”

We all continued to change clothes in comfortable silence and soon we were out in the gym with the rest of our classmates who, from the looks they were giving us, were wrapped around Delilah’s little finger. I couldn’t be sure how many actually believed whatever stories she fed them, but even if they didn’t, it didn’t matter much. Her money, looks, and influence made her the queen of the school long before I showed up and, with Mallory’s coveted position as Delilah’s BFF now publicly rescinded, other girls were going to be competing in the suck-up Olympics to take her place.

Once we were all present, our gym teacher, Mrs. Shaw, gathered us all together. “We’re playing volleyball again today, girls,” she announced. “Let’s have Crystal and Delilah as the team captains again. We’ll do best out of three, and to make things more interesting, the winning team gets to hit the showers early while the losers have to stay and help put the net and equipment away.”

While the competition was a bit of a surprise, the rest made sense to me. The teachers were still trying to keep me and Delilah as far away from each other as possible due to our feud, so having us on separate teams and hitting the showers at different times made sense. She had made us team captains to ensure that during our last gym class as well.

Picking my team was easy enough since Delilah didn’t want anyone close to me on her team, while I did. The problem was that her supporters currently outnumbered mine by a lot, so I again had to choose four girls who I didn’t know very well and who seemed actively hostile toward me for Delilah’s sake. Shawna, Zoey, Sasha, and Heather started to become a problem when I noticed that any time the ball came their way, they would miss or screw up somehow. Even when the ball didn’t come their way, they would get in my friends’ way whenever they were on the court. They were trying to throw the game so Delilah’s team would win.

The first game was close thanks to my sister and Rose being awesome at the net, but we still lost due to sabotage, and I was starting to get pissed off. I hadn’t been the only one to notice their efforts to lose though, it was fairly obvious to everyone, especially Mrs. Shaw. While the gym teacher was reading the four girls the Riot Act between games, I had a little talk with the rest of my team.

This was a matter of pride now and I knew that even if the teacher gave them shit, I still couldn’t count on any of those girls to not try to lose us the second game as well, or the third if it should come to that. We would need to aggressively counter their efforts and, between the six of us, take every play that we could ourselves. It wasn’t fair, but it was what it was.

At least, that was the plan until Mrs. Shaw began a very heated conversation with the four girls and then ordered them to run laps around the gym. She approached us with a deep frown on her face and said, “I apologize, girls. I should have realized that making things more competitive would only cause issues when Delilah suggested it. I’ve talked with Heather, Sasha, Zoey, and Shawna, and they will be running laps for the rest of the period. Would you like to continue with just the six of you, or draft a couple of players from Delilah’s team?”

“Like this won’t just happen again if we do that,” I said bitterly about the second option. “We’re better off with just six of us, at least we can trust one another.”

“Very well then,” she said with a nod before leaning in conspiratorially. “I can’t take sides in whatever feud you and Delilah have going on, Crystal, but I can’t abide cheaters either. Give ‘em hell, girls.”

We were all pissed off and driven after that, so much so that the next two games were both routs in our favor. Mallory and Clarice were both actually really good at the game, Melody had a mean serve, and Rose and Jess completely dominated the net with nobody getting in their way all the time. When the games were done, we cheerfully bid Delilah and the other girls farewell and good luck with the cleanup, and then we headed to the changing room for our showers.

Donning shower caps to keep our hair dry, we all hurried through our showers so we could be done before the other girls showed up to take theirs. We were all changing back into our school uniforms when a very unhappy Deliliah led the other girls into the changing room. She gave us all a withering glare before grabbing her body wash and stuff from her gym locker and hurrying into the showers with the other girls hot on her heels. They didn’t have much time before the bell would announce the end of class, and only five minutes after that to get to their next one.

I took my time getting dressed, earning suspicious looks from everyone but my sister and Melody. They both knew all too well how annoying it was for me to get dressed after being naked for a bit. This time there was also a purpose to my slowness though. Once I was sure that Delilah and her sycophants were all in the shower, I headed to the locker where I saw Delilah getting her shower stuff with my water bottle in hand.

None of the gym lockers had actual locks on them, so I just needed to open it up, give my bottle a very liberal squirt, and then work a little bit of that ole Ice magic after making sure nobody was watching besides my friends. I not only froze her school uniform and underwear but dropped the temperature inside the locker enough that they should stay that way until Delilah was ready to get dressed. I really hoped that she would use fire to try to dry them.

I would have to thank Ms. Norstrom later. We hadn’t had many magic lessons yet, but my control over both my elements was already starting to see marked improvements thanks to the focusing exercises she had been teaching me and Carmen. Speaking of which, I had to go meet Carmen when she got out of her class so we could get to magic class. With a grin at my friends, who were all trying to hide their smiles from my cool little bit of mischief, we left the changing room with about five minutes to kill before our last classes of the day.

For some reason, I got summoned to the Headmistress’s office not long after sitting down with Carmen for another magic lesson from Ms. Norstrom. The moment that I waltzed inside, Mrs. Collins gave me a tired and somewhat exasperated look. “Why, Crystal?”

Wow, that question was, like, super vague. It was like she wasn’t even trying this time. So many ways that I could answer that question. “Because my mom and dad loved each other very much,” I answered cheekily after a moment.

She sighed and rubbed at her temples; it looked like she had a headache. Well, talking to Delilah, which I was sure had led to my summons, would give anyone a headache. “You know what I’m talking about, Crystal. Don’t try denying it, Sasha says she saw you freeze Deliliah’s clothes.”

Bullshit. I made doubly sure that nobody but my friends saw me doing it. “Do you mean the same Sasha who had to run laps for most of gym class because she tried to sabotage my team so Delilah’s team would win? Yes, there’s an unbiased and reliable witness,” I snarked.

“Still, she has a witness, and you were the only Ice magic user in that class, Crystal,” the headmistress insisted. “Why did you freeze Delilah’s clothes?”

“You want I should make a list? I hope you have some coffee, and you might want to let Ms. Norstrom know I won’t be coming back to class because this could take a while,” I told her as I made a show of getting comfortable in the chair across from her. I wasn’t even going to try denying it this time. There was no point in it with a fake witness.

“If this is about what happened to your car…”

“That matter has been dealt with, and her father has paid me for the trouble it caused,” I said, cutting her off. “This is about her harassment and bullying since I started school here last week; the racist slurs, the insults, the petty little things she’s constantly pulling to try to humiliate me and make me and my friends miserable here. This is about her thinking that she’s better than everyone. This is about how she showed up, at my home, during my and Jess’s birthday party, to try and have me interrogated and arrested by a corrupt PDA official, and a thankfully honorable telepath, without any evidence.”

Her eyes went wide as I said the last. “She did what?”

“Oh, didn’t she tell you about how she conned her Daddy and a bribed official into paying me a visit to get me charged for the destruction of her car?” I taunted. “If the telepath was as dirty as the official who roped him into the task, and I hadn’t had video evidence to prove my innocence, we likely wouldn’t be having this conversation right now. Her dad is really mad at her now, has personally guaranteed the safety of my car here at the school, and encouraged me to not let her get away with her bullshit. If you don’t believe me, give him a call. If she can’t take a harmless prank or two for everything she’s done, then maybe she should learn to stop poking the Fey.”

The headmistress let out a long sigh as she rubbed her temples again. “Please go wait outside for a moment, Crystal.”

I did as she asked and after five minutes or so, I was called back inside after she asked her receptionist to call Delilah next. “Crystal, I will be having a serious talk with Delilah about her behavior toward you and others. Her father has confirmed what you just told me and asked that you not be punished for this incident. I recommend that you report further troubles with Delilah to me or your teachers rather than taking matters into your own hands though. If you get caught damaging another student’s property again, it could mean disciplinary action.”

I had a strong feeling that she was just covering her ass there, and she seemed a little stunned in general by whatever conversation she just had with Mr. Devereaux. I also had a feeling that Delilah had gotten away with a lot because her father was a major contributor to the school, but he wouldn’t be protecting her anymore. The fact that he was protecting me in this case instead was a very pleasant surprise and said a lot about how pissed off he was at his daughter.

It was a warning basically, but the wording was interesting. She recommended it and specifically mentioned that ‘damaging property’ could get me disciplined. I could read between the lines loud and clear. These were the ground rules that she and Delilah’s father were setting should Delilah not learn her lesson. Meaning that anything other than that, and presumably damaging Delilah herself, was still fair game as long as I wasn’t caught doing anything that was explicitly against school rules.

“Yes, Ma’am,” I replied after a moment of considering the situation and my warning. “I will point out though that her clothes were not damaged, just very cold.”

“Regardless, see that it doesn’t happen again, Crystal. Going against the dress code, or causing another student to do so through malicious action, is strictly against school rules,” she pointed out. I was going to have to take another look at the school rules to see what I could get away with, thanks for the warning. I didn’t say that though as she added, “You may return to class now.”

I left the office to see Delilah, still in her gym clothes and glaring daggers at me. I smiled at her and asked sweetly, “Still in your gym clothes, Delilah? That’s against school rules, isn’t it? I should get back to class. Have an ice day.”

I was grinning from ear to ear as I left the office and a fuming Delilah behind and heard the receptionist say, “You may go in now, Delilah.”

After classes ended for the day, we met up with all our friends at the school entrance to walk together to our vehicles in the parking lot. Most of the conversation revolved around my summons to the office, quickly followed by Delilah getting summoned as well. I explained to everyone what happened, the false witness, and my insights on the matter, and after some laughing, the others were trying to see if they could get Mallory to see about getting transferred into Auto Shop class like Carmen did. Unfortunately, Mallory had English that period, a class she and Rose shared, and since it wasn’t an elective, she couldn’t get out of it.

“That’s a shame,” Trixie said sympathetically as we approached our vehicles. “We’re all restoring cars that will be ours to keep, and it would have been nice for you to have a car when you graduate at the end of the year.”

The Charger hadn’t been defaced or damaged, causing me to breathe a sigh of relief as Alison glanced pensively at her own vehicle and said, “I love the Jeep Cherokee I picked out and can’t wait to drive it. I’ve kept my Taurus in pretty good shape though, so maybe we can arrange something once I get the jeep running, if you want a car by then, Mallory.”

Just like with Clarice’s earlier offer of a possible job, Mallory stared at Alison in shock for a moment, as if not quite believing that people would be willing to do nice things for her without some kind of price or condition attached. “I… umm…”

“We can talk about it later,” Alison told her with a gentle smile. “I won’t have a use for a second vehicle, and I’d rather it goes to someone who is going to appreciate it. We might not be able to get you into Mrs. Svenson’s class, but we can all teach you a few things about maintaining and repairing cars if you want.”

“Yup, we’ll talk about educating Mallory later,” Clarice agreed with a laugh. “Right now though, we all have to get home, and some of us have jobs to get to. Let’s get going, girls, I need to get Mallory to the café so my parents can put us both to work.”

“B-but… you said we would just be talking to your parents about the possibility,” the Efreeti protested, “What if they don’t like me, or don’t think I can do the job?”

Clarice gave Mallory a wink as she told her, “I already called them and talked to them about it. You’d need training anyway so, based on my recommendation, they’re willing to give you a shot if you want the job. Today will be filling out the proper paperwork and starting your training in the kitchen, so let’s get going, you don’t want to be late on your first day.”

Teary-eyed, and looking like she was about ready to start bawling in happiness, Mallory engulfed the young Deer Woman in a hug. She mumbled, “Thank you,” repeatedly before Clarice assured her that that’s what friends are for. Then we all climbed into our respective rides and headed home.