“Now, remember, Vinyaya, to please keep your temper in check. It’s as fiery as your hair,” Her mom said, smoothing her daughter’s incredibly red hair back from her eyes.

Vinyaya grinned. She had been blessed with a headful of thick red hair, the reddest she had ever seen. Not only that, but her temper was the worst in her family. She was feared by all the boys in the neighbourhood for firing up whenever they called her “carrot top” or something such. Vinyaya didn’t care.

“Don’t worry, Bibi. I’ll behave myself,” she assured her mother. Vinaya was her mother’s favourite out of all the seven other children in the family.

Her mother beamed. “You do well, my little girl. Make your old Bibi proud.”

Vinaya hugged her mother affectionately around the neck. “I will,” she whispered.

“Hurry up, Mammy. They’re loading the shuttles now,” Vinaya’s little brother called.

Her mother pressed a little locket into Vinyaya’s brown palm. “Keep this safe.”

Vinyaya hugged her mother once more, and rushed off towards the shuttle, her red hair bouncing on her back. She stopped and waved on last time, then boarded the shuttle.

Her luggage would be arriving on another bus in a little while, so she didn’t  have to worry about that for now.Good thing, too. Judging by how full the shuttle was, something could easily get stolen.

 

 

There were boys everywhere, laughing, playing handheld games, and running all about the shuttle. The bus driver was having a whale of a time settling all of them down. Vinyaya thought it was very funny, how the short, fat driver was screamng in his squeaky little voice at the noisy boys.

“Can I sit here?” She said politely to a red faced looking boy who was arguing with another boy about the purpose of neutrinos against redboy lasers.

He turned to her with a look of immense surprise. “Er- are you a girl?” he said , his gray eyes opening wide. Vinyaya’s right eyebrow dissapeared under her bangs.

“What, never seen one before? Now, can I please sit here? All the others are full.”

The two boys sitting next to him looked at each other. Vinyaya sighed and plopped down on the empty seat anyway, her tolerance nearing an end. Her small face was pinched with the effort of trying not to lose her temper as The biggest one in the group said,

“You’re not trying out for Recon, are you?”

The one Vinyaya had spoken to gave him a little shove. “It’s none of your business, Turnball,” he said uncomfortably.

But Vinyaya was determined to give him one of her snappy answers. ” No, I’m not. And even if I was, it isn’t any of your business anyway.”

“I’m Julius. This is Briar,” he said nodding to a sour faced one who had turned around in the seat in front of him and was playing Rock ,Paper ,scissors with another elf. “And this is my Brother, Turnball.”  Vinyaya nodded.

“Nice to meet you, Julius,” she said, shaking his hand. It was warm. He was probably always like that, considering his face was always red. Hmmm. Another bad- temper. She might actually like this place.

Then Julius turned around in his seat and resumed the argument they had had before she interrupted.

Then she opened the hand that held the little locket in it.It had left a soft imprint upon her pink palm. she took it out and opened it.

There was a picture of all ten members of her family ,waving at her happily, including herself. In the background was the LEP acdemy. She smiled. This must have been about a decade or so ago, on their first family trip to the academy. There’s Bibi with her hand on my shoulder, Vinyaya thought proudly as she saw her mother.

“I’m going to sleep,” she announced to Julius.

“Go ahead,” he said, without looking at her.

Vinyaya rested her seat back and dozed off, Bibi’s locket still clutched in her palm.

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“Vinyaya, we are here,” said Julius, giving her a sharp poke in the ribs.

“Ouch!” she yelped, slapping his hand away angrily. “You didn’t have to do that,” she said, glaring at him. He glared right back.

Some other stories by captainshort101:

• Shadow of the day
• Artemis Fowl and the quest with king lief( the REAL part II)
• Artemis Fowl and the quest with King Lief, Part II
• Artemis Fowl and the quest with King Lief
• I'm baaaaaaaack!

Skip to chapter: 1, 2, 3, 4,