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Description
Inlé found himself standing among the Goddesses of Magic again while they spun fast enough to blur together. As he stood among them, though, the world faded to blackness, and he heard three loud bangs accompanied by his mother's call of, "Inlé! Wake up! It's time for school!"

Inlé was walking through the hallway, headed for his first class. Behind him, someone was yelling, "Hey! Hey you! I'm talking to you punk!"

Inlé assumed, not recognizing the voice, that the calls were not directed at him, nor were they his business, so he simply ignored them and continued to walk on. Until a hand dropped onto his shoulder and pulled him about as the voice said, "Listen when someone tries to get your attention!"

Inlé looked up at the larger boy glaring down at him. The boy angrily grabbed Inlé by the shirtfront. "What the hell's your problem?" the large boy asked.

"I have not one," Inlé replied impassively.

The larger boy shook Inlé. "Don't give me that shit. Why the hell'd you beat up my brother?"

"Brother?" Inlé echoed. Inlé then noticed another boy standing behind the one holding him. Badly bruised, and with one arm in a sling, Inlé didn't recognize the boy. "I do not know what you are talking about."

Lifting Inlé off the ground with one arm, the larger boy spits, "What? Yesterday, you beat my brother up good after school. There isn't a mark on you, so I'm thinking you jumped him. Think hard."

So Inlé did. He thought, recounting the day as best he could, found nothing of interest, and ran the day through a second time looking at the injured boy. Still hanging, Inlé finally recognized Brad. "Ah."

Brad's brother said, "So you remember."

"Yes and no," Inlé answered. "I finally recognize the boy behind you. But I do not know how he was injured."

"What? You beat the hell out of him yesterday," Brad's brother said.

"No," Inlé replied. "I asked him not to bully other students in my presence. It annoys me. When I asked him to stop, he became angry and tried to attack me. I let him swing at me until he wore himself out."

"That is such a load of shit!" Brad's brother shouted, punching Inlé in the face. Inlé fell backwards with the blow, slamming his head into the door behind him as it was opening.

The door happened to be that of a women's restroom, and Inlé landed atop a girl who had been trying to leave it. She screamed and backpedaled as Inlé rose and turned to face his opponent unfazed. Cries of "Fight!" echoed up and down the hall, summoning a crowd that rapidly surrounded the two.

The second punch swung at Inlé was caught in one hand. Holding Brad's brother's fist, Inlé wiped a bit of blood from his mouth and coolly told him, "I rarely strike a person when not entirely necessary. Continue this, and it may become necessary."

"Then do it!" Brad's brother yelled. In the background, shouts of "Five bucks on Tony!" and "Take this guy, Tony!" could be heard as the circle grew.

Tony continued to swing wildly at Inlé as Inlé dodged around. If Inlé moved too close to the edge of the ring, hands reached out to try to push him back in, though none of them touched him.

Finally, Tony landed a blow squarely in Inlé's chest heavy enough to punch Inlé backwards into the wall beside the restroom, striking his head once more. Most of the crowd cheered.

Rising slowly, Inlé said in a voice just loud enough for Tony to hear, "Very well then. Hereafter, there shall be retaliation."

"Good," Tony responded, grinning. "I've been waiting."

But the grin didn't last long. Inlé jumped straight up, planted his feet on the wall behind him, and launched himself fists-first at Tony. Inlé hit Tony with enough force to push him backwards at the crowd, who had the sense to jump as best they could out of the combatants' way.

Tony's back hit the opposite wall hard. Inlé pinned him to it with one open palm pressed against his chest. The taller boy's feet were off the ground, and the crowd fell immediately silent.

Smooth as silk, soft as down Inlé's impassive voice said, "I am without intention to continue this bout. Whatsoever was cause of the damage upon you brother was not of my fashioning. Were he to have pestered me so much as to exact such from myself, he would very much be lifeless, presently.

"When I am to fight, I do not do so merely to wound. I do so to kill."

Inlé's palm spun into a fist holding fast Tony's shirt. "So this question I pose to you:"--He pulled Tony's face close to his own--"Do you still wish for me to fight you?"

Wide-eyed, Tony whimpered a pathetic "No" and was released by Inlé.

Inlé then turned to the crowd, saying, "What purpose have you all in remaining here? There is no spectacle for you to observe. Return whence you came."

Slowly, the crowd disbursed as Inlé continued, "All persons return to their predetermined location. Do not compel a teacher to approach, continue to your destinations. Everyone out of here now ..."

Inlé noticed the door to the women's restroom open again, and the girl Inlé had landed on stepped cautiously out. "... except you."--He pointed to her.--"If I may detain you a moment, miss."

Looking surprised and uneasy, the girl stopped and faced Inlé as the last of the crowd vanished. She was vaguely familiar to him, in the way that many of his classmates were, but he could not place a name with her half-asian face and her gothic-lolita dress.

"To you, I would apologize, miss. Though I was hardly at fault for the fiasco you just witnessed, I was involved. I pray you were not injured when I struck you?"

"No," the girl replied, thumbing the corner of her mouth. "I wasn't hurt. Just scared. I don't much care for school fights. I don't want to get in trouble."

Inlé nodded. "I sympathize with such sentiments. I also find occurrences of this sort distasteful. It is all quite pointlessly sophomoric.

"If you are hale, then once more I apologize, and bid you adieu." He turned and began down the hall. "Please return to your routine proceedings."

Still looking confused and upset, the girl muttered, "Huh. Right. Okay."

Inlé sat in the back of his classroom, watching the teacher give his lecture. The man, dressed in professional but not overly well kempt grey business casual, walked the aisles of desks, passing--Inlé recognized for the first time--Brad, Jim, and the girl Inlé had spoken to only minutes before.

Stopping mid-sentence beside Inlé's desk, the teacher frowned slightly down at Inlé.

"Inlé," he nonchalantly said, "you seem to be bleeding. In a few areas." Indeed, Inlé had a small amount of blood running down the back of his neck, and a small amount out of the corner of his mouth. He had not thought to clean them away.

"Are you well enough to be in this class right now?" his teacher asked.

Inlé answered, "I am well, sir. I apologize, I did not notice that I was hemorrhaged. If I may, I would prefer to remain here."

"All right," his teacher answered. "Fell down some stairs, I'm sure." He turned to walk away.

"But," he continued, "have the nurse check on you later, your speech is off today. You're more ... formal than usual."

And the lecture continued as though there had been no interruption at all, from the middle of the sentence that had been cut short.

Description
Inlé found himself standing among the Goddesses of Magic again while they spun fast enough to blur together. As he stood among them, though, the world faded to blackness, and he heard three loud bangs accompanied by his mother's call of, "Inlé! Wake up! It's time for school!"

Inlé was walking through the hallway, headed for his first class. Behind him, someone was yelling, "Hey! Hey you! I'm talking to you punk!"

Inlé assumed, not recognizing the voice, that the calls were not directed at him, nor were they his business, so he simply ignored them and continued to walk on. Until a hand dropped onto his shoulder and pulled him about as the voice said, "Listen when someone tries to get your attention!"

Inlé looked up at the larger boy glaring down at him. The boy angrily grabbed Inlé by the shirtfront. "What the hell's your problem?" the large boy asked.

"I have not one," Inlé replied impassively.

The larger boy shook Inlé. "Don't give me that shit. Why the hell'd you beat up my brother?"

"Brother?" Inlé echoed. Inlé then noticed another boy standing behind the one holding him. Badly bruised, and with one arm in a sling, Inlé didn't recognize the boy. "I do not know what you are talking about."

Lifting Inlé off the ground with one arm, the larger boy spits, "What? Yesterday, you beat my brother up good after school. There isn't a mark on you, so I'm thinking you jumped him. Think hard."

So Inlé did. He thought, recounting the day as best he could, found nothing of interest, and ran the day through a second time looking at the injured boy. Still hanging, Inlé finally recognized Brad. "Ah."

Brad's brother said, "So you remember."

"Yes and no," Inlé answered. "I finally recognize the boy behind you. But I do not know how he was injured."

"What? You beat the hell out of him yesterday," Brad's brother said.

"No," Inlé replied. "I asked him not to bully other students in my presence. It annoys me. When I asked him to stop, he became angry and tried to attack me. I let him swing at me until he wore himself out."

"That is such a load of shit!" Brad's brother shouted, punching Inlé in the face. Inlé fell backwards with the blow, slamming his head into the door behind him as it was opening.

The door happened to be that of a women's restroom, and Inlé landed atop a girl who had been trying to leave it. She screamed and backpedaled as Inlé rose and turned to face his opponent unfazed. Cries of "Fight!" echoed up and down the hall, summoning a crowd that rapidly surrounded the two.

The second punch swung at Inlé was caught in one hand. Holding Brad's brother's fist, Inlé wiped a bit of blood from his mouth and coolly told him, "I rarely strike a person when not entirely necessary. Continue this, and it may become necessary."

"Then do it!" Brad's brother yelled. In the background, shouts of "Five bucks on Tony!" and "Take this guy, Tony!" could be heard as the circle grew.

Tony continued to swing wildly at Inlé as Inlé dodged around. If Inlé moved too close to the edge of the ring, hands reached out to try to push him back in, though none of them touched him.

Finally, Tony landed a blow squarely in Inlé's chest heavy enough to punch Inlé backwards into the wall beside the restroom, striking his head once more. Most of the crowd cheered.

Rising slowly, Inlé said in a voice just loud enough for Tony to hear, "Very well then. Hereafter, there shall be retaliation."

"Good," Tony responded, grinning. "I've been waiting."

But the grin didn't last long. Inlé jumped straight up, planted his feet on the wall behind him, and launched himself fists-first at Tony. Inlé hit Tony with enough force to push him backwards at the crowd, who had the sense to jump as best they could out of the combatants' way.

Tony's back hit the opposite wall hard. Inlé pinned him to it with one open palm pressed against his chest. The taller boy's feet were off the ground, and the crowd fell immediately silent.

Smooth as silk, soft as down Inlé's impassive voice said, "I am without intention to continue this bout. Whatsoever was cause of the damage upon you brother was not of my fashioning. Were he to have pestered me so much as to exact such from myself, he would very much be lifeless, presently.

"When I am to fight, I do not do so merely to wound. I do so to kill."

Inlé's palm spun into a fist holding fast Tony's shirt. "So this question I pose to you:"--He pulled Tony's face close to his own--"Do you still wish for me to fight you?"

Wide-eyed, Tony whimpered a pathetic "No" and was released by Inlé.

Inlé then turned to the crowd, saying, "What purpose have you all in remaining here? There is no spectacle for you to observe. Return whence you came."

Slowly, the crowd disbursed as Inlé continued, "All persons return to their predetermined location. Do not compel a teacher to approach, continue to your destinations. Everyone out of here now ..."

Inlé noticed the door to the women's restroom open again, and the girl Inlé had landed on stepped cautiously out. "... except you."--He pointed to her.--"If I may detain you a moment, miss."

Looking surprised and uneasy, the girl stopped and faced Inlé as the last of the crowd vanished. She was vaguely familiar to him, in the way that many of his classmates were, but he could not place a name with her half-asian face and her gothic-lolita dress.

"To you, I would apologize, miss. Though I was hardly at fault for the fiasco you just witnessed, I was involved. I pray you were not injured when I struck you?"

"No," the girl replied, thumbing the corner of her mouth. "I wasn't hurt. Just scared. I don't much care for school fights. I don't want to get in trouble."

Inlé nodded. "I sympathize with such sentiments. I also find occurrences of this sort distasteful. It is all quite pointlessly sophomoric.

"If you are hale, then once more I apologize, and bid you adieu." He turned and began down the hall. "Please return to your routine proceedings."

Still looking confused and upset, the girl muttered, "Huh. Right. Okay."

Inlé sat in the back of his classroom, watching the teacher give his lecture. The man, dressed in professional but not overly well kempt grey business casual, walked the aisles of desks, passing--Inlé recognized for the first time--Brad, Jim, and the girl Inlé had spoken to only minutes before.

Stopping mid-sentence beside Inlé's desk, the teacher frowned slightly down at Inlé.

"Inlé," he nonchalantly said, "you seem to be bleeding. In a few areas." Indeed, Inlé had a small amount of blood running down the back of his neck, and a small amount out of the corner of his mouth. He had not thought to clean them away.

"Are you well enough to be in this class right now?" his teacher asked.

Inlé answered, "I am well, sir. I apologize, I did not notice that I was hemorrhaged. If I may, I would prefer to remain here."

"All right," his teacher answered. "Fell down some stairs, I'm sure." He turned to walk away.

"But," he continued, "have the nurse check on you later, your speech is off today. You're more ... formal than usual."

And the lecture continued as though there had been no interruption at all, from the middle of the sentence that had been cut short.