British Invasion I

First Step to Chaos

She felt her phone vibrating in her pocket out of the blue. Class was still in session, so who could be calling her right now?

She held up a hand. "Um, miss, may I be excused?"

The teacher only nodded and that was enough.

Her familiar classmates looked on as she walked out of class and took out her phone that kept vibrating. There was a soft frown on her brows when she looked at the screen:

'Querido Hermano
calling'

It meant one thing: Rafa.

-beep-

"Brother?"

What greeted her was something even she hadn't anticipated despite understanding well her brother's temper.

"VASILISSA! Get yourself here at the big willow NOW! I don't care what you're doing or where you are right now, drop everything and get yourself right here this instant. Do you understand??!"

She knew well where the big willow was, and she knew well her brother was dead serious whenever he speaks Russian. But the question was, what made her brother angry? Just now she saw him in a pleasant mood, sharing a laugh with the awkwardly tall boy Zoticus, had a comical moment with his childhood friend Andrea and even talked a little more with that new British student David. Something else must've ticked him off. Could it be another bout with Rene? Didn't they somehow or rather settled it already?

"Sestra!!"

"I know, I'm coming," she finally answered with a nervous hint, and hung up. She still wasn't ready to face whatever it was that her brother had in store for her, but she was really hoping it didn't have to involve Rene again.

*~*~*

(a day earlier)

Rafa had noticed something odd with his sister. There was, if he could even call it, an odd bruise in her left arm. He had asked her about it, but what made him even more curious was her reaction to it. She seemed...scared to talk about it.

"Sister? What happened to your arm? Accident in the dance hall?"

Vasilissa nodded, trying to cover up the exact reason which she would never dare to tell him, or even worse, their Father. "Y-yeah...I sprained my arm by accident while dancing. Couldn't get that one arm twist right."

"Since when?" Oddly he only noticed it just today. How long had she been keeping it secret?

She grew a little tenser. "L-last week."

Even that was enough to make him concerned. "Why didn't you tell me or Father sooner? Did you get it treated already?"

She nodded again, rather vigorously. "I didn't wanna make you or Papa worry, that's why..."

"...does Rene know about this?"

She shook her head this time. "...no...even he doesn't know it...I don't want him to get worried either." And she slowly walked away along with Zoticus who had been waiting for her to go to class together.

Rafa grew more concerned. He knew well how his sister could hide her emotions sometimes, and obviously he knew well his sister was never good at lying. But he let it go as he didn't see it as something serious. He reluctantly admitted, if Rene ever found out and fuss over Vasilissa like he sometimes do, it'd probably do her a little good.
But what he didn't know was that someone had witness their conversation, and had found out the real truth over the Russian Cinderella's little bruise, and something else. And the stranger was determined to shine the light over him, and said Cinderella's Romeo, even if it means another person would suffer greatly for it.

*~*~*

(2 hours earlier)

Rene wished Rafa hadn't been too enthusiastic when Coach Aziz had pitched the Spanish Tybalt (and his team) against him and his own team (which, luckily had Andrea backing up) for basketball in PE class. He swore his Princess's 'bodyguard' hadn't really let go of his grudges completely as he almost happily 'pulverize' him with the ball. Though in spite of it, he found the new student David was pretty skilled in basketball considering Rene assumed he would be more inclined to soccer, or football as he would put it.

Despite the 'pulverizing', the score was even as both teams had the best player, both black belt holders in Judo. "Clearly I need to separate you and pitch you both against each other often," the coach had said of Andrea and Rafa's competitive streaks. "But next time, Mr. Zakharov, try to tone it down, you might hurt somebody someday if you keep that up. Understand?"

Rafa only smiled almost cunningly, knowing all too well what the coach had meant, making Rene grew more (comically) tense. "I'll try and refrain myself next time, Coach, promise~"

"Jangan cakaplah, ayah, dia buat lagi jugak nanti esok~!" Zahid, the coach's son and also a judo member and the two judo top guns' friend, butted in, mentioning playfully how Rafa would never really stick to his 'promise' and would gladly do it again the next day. That earned a few laughter from almost everyone in the group (with the exception of Rene, obviously). They knew that Rafa, for some odd reason, sees Rene as an eyesore and a menace, even more so, his dear sister was dating the boy so well-known by his fangirls as 'the Prince'. There was a rumor that the two used to be friends, but what had caused the Russo-Mexican to hate the other, who was also his Father's godson, was unknown to most people.

Coach Aziz just shook his head despite his small smile. "Zahid, mind your language please."

To which said boy just grinned. "Okay~"

The boys were dismissed soon after. All seemed normal, every student heading for the showers and getting ready for next class. It didn't take Andrea and Rafa to finish their shower and back into their clothes, and both were about to leave when suddenly Rafa received a text message on his phone.

"Ami? Anything wrong?" Andrea was slightly concerned, more so, the text message made his best friend uneasy.

Rafa didn't answer. The text message did indeed make him uneasy, even disturbed...

...because it came from the new student.

'Meet me at the big willow at the thicket behind the gym. I will tell you a secret your sister had kept from you. Come alone.
-David'

Why David? How did he knew my number? And what secret did my sister kept from me that he knew??

He stormed off without a warning, making his French-Japanese friend even more concerned. Whoever this new Brit was, Rafa was determined to make him spill everything, from A to Z.

----

Rafa sprinted despite in his high heeled boots straight into the thicket and towards the big willow tree. He half expected to see David at the place, but instead, he met face to face with the last person he intended to see at any circumstances.

"...Rene?"

Said owner of the name turned around at the voice, and was more or less surprised to see the slightly built young man.

"Rafael...?"

Rafa felt the familiar contempt slowly creeping into his heart again at seeing Rene. But he somehow managed to refrain himself, and took a deep breath before asking, rather kindly by his standard, "...what are you doing here?"

Rene acknowledged Rafa's verbal gesture with a nod. "I could ask the same thing to you."

"David told me to come here, something he wants to say about my sister."

Said 'Prince' took out his cellphone, slightly frowning. "That's odd, David told me to come here too, also something about Lissa."

Rafa couldn't help but also frowned at what the other just said. "What?" So both young men were called upon to meet at one place, by the same mysterious new student, regarding the one woman they both care. Somehow, they could feel something sinister, a sort of conspiracy going on.

The dark phoenix approached the merangel slowly, and so did the latter. "Rene...you don't think it's a set-up, do you?" Rene couldn't help feeling the same thing. Being the thoughtful youth that he was, always thinking of every possible explanation to almost everything, Rene thought hard, but it was more complicated than he had expected, because this matter had something to do with his beloved Cinderella.

Even more so...the voices that he heard...the dream he saw back in America...of being in the story he knew as a child...of not being able to stop his Vasilissa from completing the storyline...the spirit lingering in her just waiting to be awakened, should she ever crack and be overwhelmed by her emotions... Could that be it??

"Glad you're both here, and alone."

Both quickly turned to the heavily accented voice. "David??"

Said owner of the name was sitting high up on one of the branches of the big willow, his tousled hair blowing in the wind. He looked at the two boys below him before getting down almost gracefully despite wearing a pair of Doc Marten's. He walked up to them slowly and stopped. "Beg pardon if I seem a little disturbing to you both, but there is something you both need to know about the lady of both your hearts."

Rene remained composed, though deep inside he was getting more and more worried. Next to him, Rafa tried hard to control his temper; one small slip, and he could burn David in an instant. David seemed to sense this and actually smiled. "At ease, gentlemen, I promise that the lady is unharmed...at least, she is now."

"What do you mean, now?" Rafa's voice grew darker. "Are you implying she was hurt before this??"

Rene had to interject. "If she was, how could you know it all and we don't?"

David grew quiet, his eyes a vision of somber. He gently took out a crystal sphere, and peered intently at it.

What had appeared inside the crystal was the last thing both young men had wanted to see.

*~*~*

Vasilissa looked around, making sure no-one saw her going out. The last thing she needed was someone catching her outside class and getting herself into trouble. She ran straight behind the gym before slowing down as she made her way into the thicket where the big willow was there. It didn't take her long enough to reach it as slowly she saw the familiar figure of her brother. She was about to call out to him when she saw another figure nearby, and another just right behind them. She knew the second one, but who was the other one behind them?

"Brother? Rene?"

Both looked up to her, Rene's expression that of obvious worry. But the moment Vasilissa set eyes on her brother, she felt her heart sank so low in her gut...

...Rafa had the look that almost seemed like he felt utterly...betrayed.

"Lissa...tell us the truth..." he walked up to her, his brown eyes never left her violet ones as he gently took her left arm, the very arm that was hurt before. "Who did that to you?"

Rene looked at her, silently pleading for her to speak up. She knew well what her brother was getting at, but she never thought it would be like this. The images running through her head was too painful to mention, but seeing both the men she cared for right in front of her looking disappointed (especially her dear brother) was even more unbearable. She knew she couldn't hide it any longer; she had to come clean about her bruises.

The one that almost caused her left arm to be unmovable...and the very painful one in her stomach, which she managed to hide it so well.

"Lissa..."

She could almost feel the pain coming back to her as she tried her hardest to say it. And what did come out from her lips was shocking enough to make both Rene and Rafa declare bloody murder on said culprit.

"...T...T-Tiho did it...it...was Tihomir."

~Tsuzuku