27: Physical Education
“Phantasia, I was looking for you!”
It was Hermia, clad in her sports gear, racing down the corridor towards her. Phantasia stopped to wait for her. “The way you played earlier was,” Hermia continued, hands on hips, “Far beyond what I’d given you credit for.”
Phantasia grimaced, eyeing up the exit that was only a few metres away. A slight twitch towards it, and Hermia moved to cut her off. There was no escape. “I think I just got too into things,” she said with a false giggle.
Hermia waved a dismissive hand. “Oh no, not at all! You got into the spirit of things! That’s the mindset you need to cultivate–” she leaned forward “– If you’re going to win anything at the Games,”
A series of sports for local schools held in the weeks before a solstice, ‘The Games’ were Hermia’s obsession and the ‘highlight’ of her year. Phantasia was less enthused, though. “I don’t know if that’s really my thing…” she said, careful with her words so as not to offend Hermia’s overactive sense of honour.
“Of course it is! I saw the passion in those, eh,” Hermia focused on Phantasia’s eyes, “…white… eyes?” She shook her head and blinked, but couldn’t shake the slight twitch in the corner of her eye. “Anyway, when you played – really played – you were like fire! I want to see those flames again. We’re having a quick game of netball after school, if you’d like to join us?”
No, I just want to go and explore the church!
“Well, it’s not my kinda thing really,” she found herself saying, “But I’ll give it a try!”
“Excellent!” Hermia grabbed her by the elbow and pulled her outside and towards the courts that sat outside the front of the school. There were some first years playing tennis, and what looked like a couple of third years practising Kendo in a corner – Hermia’s clique was gathered together in a tight-knit group, waiting for her return. Horatio, Korrigan, Deneb and Ceres made up the core members, with a small pack of first years hanging on nearby, watching their seniors with eyes shining with admiration.
“Ooh, you found her!” said Korrigan, skipping over to Phantasia, “I’ve been saying to them all day that we need to get you involved in the team. You are, like, easily the most amazing talent I’ve ever seen!”
It was too late for Phantasia to pretend her gymnastics earlier were a stroke of luck – not that these people would believe her – so she played as best she could without making it obvious she wasn’t human. At first she was worried she might outperform the accepted masters, but Hermia, Horatio and Korrigan upped their game to equal hers. A simple game of netball soon turned into a ballet, with the first year students backing out to watch in awe as the second years took it in turns to impress one another with their acrobatic feats. Sensing things were getting out of hand, Phantasia grabbed the ball and tossed it into the net rather than let the show continue.
“Well,” she a breathless Hermia, “Your reflexes and agility are certainly upper tier, but…” She crossed her arms and looked at Phantasia with the sort of stern expression she’d expect from a teacher, “One thing I have picked up on is your lack of teamwork! Acting on your own impulses is no good when you have others to help and support you!”
“I’m kinda not good at doing what I’m told…”
Hermia stamped her foot. “That’s no good if you’re going to compete in the Games! You have to do what you’re told, or else everyone suffers! Are you so arrogant you’d ignore your companions just because you thought you knew better? How—”
“Gee, give the girl a break, Mia,” interrupted Ceres before Hermia’s face could turn an even brighter shade of red, “We’re not all such rigid do-gooders as you, ya know? A little rebellion’s good fer ya,”
“This isn’t some tree-hugging, sociological babble, this is serious sporting business!” Hermia huffed and pouted her lips.
There was another of those awkward human silences Phantasia had grown accustomed to. Her instinct was to try and remedy the situation – and Hermia’s flaming aura – but Korrigan chirped in before she had a chance.
“Oh! We have got to get you on the course!” she said, “You’ll love it! It’s this totally amazing race we devised in the forests where Ceres lives, you know? And we practise on it all the time so—”
“Ah, yes, a real test of your athletic skills!” said Hermia, her flames subsiding, “We’ll work on your teamwork later,”
Another distraction? “I’ve kinda got stuff to do…”
Again, Hermia wasn’t about to accept defeat. “Homework can wait!”
“But…”
Korrigan fluttered over, her hands clasped and green eyes wide, pleading. “Please? Just this once?”
Ah well, those buried secrets had waited centuries for someone to find them – they could wait another hour! And it was a chance to socialise with a new group of people.
“Oh, okay, you win,”
~ Will Phantasia ever escape?! ~
~ Next: Hippies and Athletes! ~
