The Bold: Part 2

THREE YEARS LATER


Arwen hurried downstairs to greet Kelly Autumns. “Good morning, Auntie Kelly,” she called warmly.


Kelly smiled back. “Mornin’, hon.”


“What’s on the menu?”


“Oh, nothing,” Arwen’s aunt referrenced to the boiling pan which sizzled on the stove. “Just pancakes.”


“Oh.”


Arwen drummed her fingers on the kitchen table, deep in thought. She seemed lost in so many memories which technically never happened.


“Auntie,” wondered the girl, “am I normal? I’ve read on the Internet about schools. Like, you know, high schools. I’m sixteen, so I should be going there.”


Kelly froze for a moment, thinking of what to say. Finally she replied; “Well, you definitely can’t believe everything you read, I’m afraid.”


“Oh. So you’re saying ‘high school’ is just this made-up place, right?”


“Right.”


Soon nothing could be heard but the sizzle and crackle of the stove.


Arwen broke the silence with another question. “Spy school is great. I really like R.O.A.R, but I’ve been hearing lately that we’ve got new foes. You know all about R.O.A.R, Auntie; what’s the other side called?”


Her aunt sighed and shook her head. “Arwen, too many questions! It’s not healthy for a girl your age, you know.”


“I know, but…”


“No ‘buts’. Dear, you are beautiful, and perfectly normal, and there is absolutely nothing in the world you need to be thinking about right now.”


After a silent meal, Arwen packed her spy gear and drove off to R.O.A.R. At least I’ve got a car, she thought on the way there.


“Mr. Leashworth,” said the teenager to him as she headed inside. “Good morning.”


Her boss nodded. “Mornin’ to you too, Copper.”


Mr. Cyan Leashworth was a skilled, twenty-two-year-old, fresh-out-of-college agent who ran R.O.A.R: Revelation of Agent Rebels. Cyan had recently begun to call everyone by their last names; it roughened his appearance.


Arwen walked into the darkened, as if purposefully vignetted, training facility. She could obviously see her task today was to conquer a sturdy stone wall.


…Somehow.