I understood how Madeline was probably feeling, it was difficult whenever a friend had a problem but you knew you couldn't really help. She was helping of course, just by listening... or reading as it was in this case.
I wrote a quick note a passed it along.

'Thanks, I apprechaite it. Right now you can help with this maths question, have I got the right answer?'

I pointed out the answer I was refering to on my notebook. I was fairly confident I was right but I wanted to remind Madeline she was a help to me in other ways aswell. She seemed to have taken to her responsiblity as translator as though it were natural as breathing. I didn't want her to unapprechaite her own gifts though or how much I depended on her.

Madeline gave Jo a small smile. That was probably the sensible approach to the problem, if you didn't know how to fix everything, do what you knew you could. She supposed it was a bit silly, getting caught in hypothetical worries and the unkowns when they had plenty of down to earth matter that still needed to be dealt with.

They continued in that vein, moving on to the history lesson, until lunchtime rolled round. Heading out into the hall Madeline asked Jo if she wanted to use the restroom or eat first.

"Um yeah I'd like to go to the restrooms first." I happily wasn't wet this time when I stood up, the pull-up still felt dry and almost fluffy soft against my skin.
"Oh but would you mind waiting outside for me?" I looked down at the desk face for a moment, pretending to notice the repeative patterns of the acrylic faux wood grain that was imprinted into the hard pastic that covered most of (some students seemed to find trying to break of peices of it an irresitible challenge. The edges of most desks bore the scars of attacks from finger nails, metal tacks and compass needles) every desk in the classroom.

"It's just that I don't want to get ambushed my Kara-sue when I'm on my own. I'll feel better if your around when they do try something." I admitted to Madeline, then we went to private bathroom in the hall.
No luck peeing but at least that part of the routine was over now and their had been no mishaps.

"Okay let's get some lunch." I said confidently after I had washed my hands and come out. I was mentally preparing myself like Madeline had suggested. Trying not to feel frightened but stalwart, stubborn to resisit whatever the bullies threw at me... I hoped they would literally throw anything at me.

"No problem Jo." Madeline didn't mind waiting for her friend. She followed her to the restroom, and then waited outside while Jo did her business. Then they proceeded to the lunchroom. She had to say Jo seemed to be keeping it together pretty well. She was obviously worried, but seemed to have found the resolve to face it. Madeline was feeling catiously optomistic as they entered the lunchroom.

Madeline had planned to keep an eye out for the trio of bullies, but had not expected the site that greeted her upon entering the lunchroom. There was a table by the entrance, if slightly off to the side so traffic could move past it, with a red table cloth and several stacks of brightly covered paper on it, with a sign in the middle. Seated behind it were the trio in question, Mara, Sara, and Kara-Su.

Beggining to get the sickening feeling that her earlier optimism was misplaced, she looked closer at the sign in the middle of the table. It said Drug and STD Awareness Promotion! She wondered what the heck the three were up too.

Her puzzlement only lasted a few second before Kara-Su saw her and Jo and decided to tell them. "Hi Madeline, let me get you some fliers, we're supposed to give them to everyone that passes by. I know your friend can't read, but maybe you could explain them to her. Its important she knows." The bully giggled. "Everyone must know." She held out a small set of papers, one from each stack.

Taking the papers curiously Madeline noted they looked like fairly standard fliers on drugs, alchohol, ect. They listed effects, symptoms, hotlines to call for help, that kind of thing. She did note that on the alchohol one certain symptons, like memory loss and violent behavior, were in red ink to draw attention to them. Actually, all the sheets had somethings like that. Syphilis had brain damage highlighted. On the STD ones, its listed some statistics at the top. In red ink the genital herpes sheet said that England had the highest diagnosis percentage for the disease in the world, and that the most common female carriers were between 15-17 years old, as were the common english carriers of genital warts. On the drug sheets she saw in red that heroin was one of the most common drugs in England and linked to the spread of aids and hepatitus, and that girls between the ages of 14 and 19 were most likely to sniff glue in England.

In fact, all the statistics, red or not, were related to England, and that every use of the word prostitute was red as well. She looked at Kara-Su who was smiling. "We figured that since we have a new student" she looked at Jo meaningfully, "Everyone could use a reminder about the dangers of uncontrolled experimentation." She made a face that made it clear she was feeling terribly clever just now. "So we went to the Head for permission to distribute some awareness fliers, and she said it was wonderful to have students who were concerned about the wellbeing of their classmates. She gave us this table." She indicated it proudly. "Isn't it great, now everyone will be safe." She once more looked meaningfully at Jo.

Madeline clenched her jaw in annoyance. She very much wanted to slap the smug little expression off her face, but knew that would only cause problmes. Of course how to respond to this she wasn't sure, technically they weren't breaking the rules.

Mara, Sara and Kara-su were giving up their lunchtime to preside over an information desk? Somehow I didn't believe it would be related to charity and as myself and Madeline were able to inch ourselves cautiously closer I saw the letters STD written on the main banner. I expect you didn't even need to be able to read to live in the modern world and recognise what those letters stood for. It left me feeling a little perplexed though, was this supposed to be targeted at me? Madeline had sympathically but prohaps over shelteringly omitted the rather disgusting parts of Kara-Sue's message to me.
Eyeing up the girls suspiciously but otherwise careful to control my expression so I couldn't offer them any sign of weakness or sense of satisfaction, I picked up one of the leaflets for further examintion.
The French word for England I recognised. The ages groups repeated I could read aswell. So they had done all this for my benefit then. I felt a pit suddenly grow in my stomach. What bitches.

I could see a self-rightious confidence in the pressing stare of Kara-Sue. She was willing me with her eyes, trying to push inside me, trying to be a beatle which crawled under my skin until I could stand it no more and needed to lash out. I remained restrained.
Madeline looked as rigid as tin solider, if I had set a hand on her at that point she probably would have been set of like loaded gun. It was definatly time to go. If I stayed and began letting myself think about the leaflets and who might read them and what they might start to think it would drive me insane. It was better just to leave silly children to their game and go enjoy my lunch.
What an adult response that sounded like. If only I had had the strength to act on good intentions.

"Wow, I'm flattered you went to all of this on my account. Fancy skipping your lunch to peeve someone off. I hope your spite will be enough to keep an empty stomach going. I on the other hand am going to get something to eat. Bye girls." I told them in obviously sarcastic tones as crumpled up the leaflet I had been holding and let it drop on the table.
It was a passive agressive way of responding to bullying but it was still responding and that was probably enough to make the plastic grin on Kara-Sue's face ring a little real.

Madeline followed after Jo. Kara-Su said somthing about if she planned to read the second apology, but they were out of earshot before she finished her quip. Madeline followed Jo to the lunchline. "I'm sorry you had to go through that Jo. But I am impressed you managed to handle it so well." She had been nervous the emotionally violatile girl might loose her temper.

Truth be told any response was bad in a situaiton like this, if they realized they could get a small rise out of Jo, they'd figure they could get more. Maybe there was a way she could discourage Jo from responding inthe future. "Although, you do realize they don't speak much english so they didnt' get your insult? And that the lunchlady took their order when they set up and will be sending her assistant to bring food in a few...now?" She pointed to the assistant in question, carrying a tray with three plates and drinks towards the three's table.

She felt a little bad shooting down her friends remark, but maybe realizing it had failed would discourage her from making more. A moment later Madeline's common sense kicked in and she realized how stupid her plan was. Feeling embarrased with herself, she decided to try the straight method. "I know this sounds easy to say, but its usually best to give people like that no response at all." She really had to come up with a better plan for dealing with the Trio, and soon.

A small idea struck her head. She took the set of fliers she'd been given and stuffed them into her bag. She might try that later. "Still, you're doing pretty good Jo." She hoped the encouragement would help the girl keep it up.

I shrugged deeply and sighed with agitation as Madeline felt the need to point out my words had been entirely fruitless. She even pointed out the assistant who brought food over to the bullies, I watched with a knot twisting in my middle, had the Headmistress read any of the material the Kara-Sue trio were handing out? How on earth had I manged to end up going to the one school in the world that seemed to throughly prepared for trying to browbeat me into some sort of nerveous wreck/polite model pupil, that the bullies recieved their own catering whenever they were taking time out of the usual lunch routine for an elaborate attempt to get under someones skin? It might have just been the angery part of myself speaking but I felt majorly like the some cosmic prescence was out to get me. Maybe this was even all part of that witch's curse?

After a claming deep breath and a little distraction provided in the form of arriving at the lunch station to make our selections, I concluded my irritation didn't really deserve to be pointed at Madeline and I eased up a bit. Only a little bit though, I made sure to keep looking back at the table, I was worried that if the girls weren't satisfied with how their table stunt had gone then they might resort to pulling up my skirt again. In a place as crowded as the lunch room that would be disasterious.
Still that being said we managed to pay and make it to safety of a table without incident. Allowing myself to relax a little further I observed Madeline curiously.

"What are you keeping those for?" I asked, refering the leaflets. I had considered myself it might be worth showing them to the headmistress since Madeline had said she thought the woman had been brought up in England so she might not be pleased with the baised implications but I had a sinking feeling that if I was the one to bring them to Head's attention then no good would come.

"I'm going to turn their little plan against them. If you look you'll notice they're not bothering to try to give the leaflets to any of the other students who pass by, they just sit there and gossip unless someone asks about the pamphlets." She continued to load up her tray with food then began walking over to where Arnett and Rose sat.

"The head hates it when people volunteer and then do a half assed job. And she also hates sloppy research. I'm going to go ask her, totally innocently, why these sheets all talk about England, and why didn't my friends get any if they were so important?" She smiled. "I'll have to phrase it right, but I should be able to manage." She left it unsaid that if they bullying anyone but Jo she might be able to accuse them of "using School welfare resources for unjust ends" another of the Heads pet peeves, but since it was Jo it might be best not to. She didnt' think the Head was sufficiently unfair as to tolerate bullying of anyone, but best be safe.

They took their seats. Arnett gave Jo a smile. "So how are you looking forward to your first day of gym Jo?" Madeline figured that wouldn't exactly be a happy topic, but might take Jo's mind off things at least. She translated the question.

It seemed that Madeline had the same thoughts as I had but what if there was a chance she got in trouble? It seemed considerably less likely, Madeline had worked hard to get herself in the good books but I supposed alot of that comprised of keeping a low profile when it came to the dirty areas of school life like this bullying thing.
I felt flattered but I frowned,
"You know you really don't have to do that for me Madeline. Like you said, I'll just ignore them and so should you. If we try to trun their game against them we're just getting involved as much as they and we'll get in trouble. It was silly for me to even talk back to them." I shook my head in reproch, the neat pony tail swaying behind like a someone waving a black silk scarf. I pleaded with my eyes. I knew she meant well but I didn't want her to get in trouble on my account... again.

I greeted Arnett and Rose a smile before cutting into my baked potato, the hot moist flesh inside wafting up little warm plumes of steam. Madeline translated something Arnett had just said, by attention already caught because I had heard my name at the end of it,
"Oh right..." I hadn't exactly forgotton about gym but it been pushed right to back of mind through the course of the day. "Yeah I suppose looking forward to it." I guessed she was probably already aware we had found a uniform so she knew that was all sorted and I didn't really feel comfortable discussing the issues of hiding my pull-up, which was the only bit I was really apprehensive about... well that and the fact I had been in this body for less than a week and thinking back to that vase of Colette's I had broken my cooridnation didn't seemed to be the greatest, but I hoped I would be okay at sports, otherwise Arnett was going to pretty disappointed she had agreed to let me on one of her teams...
"What sport are we playing today?"

"I don't have to do anything for you Jo. I don't have to tutor you or even talk to you. I want to, and they're never going to find out. The Head never discloses people who tip her off to wrongdoing, which students slacking on the job counts as to her. Trust me on this, I've done it before." She assured Jo. This was indeed somthing she'd done before, and was also somthing that had been done to her once. Of course that time she hadn't been trying to get someone, just honest slacking, but still she never found out who tattled.

It was in fact the reason she choose this method. Get the girls back, discourage them from trying that method in the future, and unlikely to escalate the conflict as they'd never know. The Head would act as if she'd found out herself.

Rose was looking gloomy about the prospect of gym. Arnett on the other was happy to reply to Jo's request. "Football. They divide us into the boys and the girls, then have us pick teams and compete seperately on different parts of the field. That's kinda important, staying to your side, cause if you disrupt the other team it tends to annoy the coach, one of the few things that can get him riled up really. Its not to bad, not as boring as some of the other stuff we do. Better than field hockey where nearly everyone on the girls team is half assing it. Here people at least try." Madeline couldn't honestly blame anybody for half assing field hockey, but dutifully translated.