Persie Merlin and the Door to Nowhere by Bella Forrest Page 0,31
saying we don’t have our bad eggs, but so do you. Davin wasn’t Atlantean, was he? Neither was Katherine Shipton—a way worse scenario, which you’re conveniently ignoring. Or am I getting my histories crossed?”
“Katherine Shipton and Davin Doncaster were two individuals. Your whole race is messed up,” the ebony-skinned guy shot back.
“How did you work that one out?” I tightened my grip on the mug. “I came from the SDC, where the heroes who saved your mostly unborn asses from Kaya and Davin all live. They don’t have a problem with me, so what makes you think you have the right to? Did you fight Kaya and Davin? No, you didn’t. You don’t know anything except what you’ve been spoon-fed by your bigoted parents who, by the way, didn’t fight either!”
Our argument was attracting attention, and classmates had begun to crowd around us like bloodthirsty spectators at a boxing ring—the kind who wanted to smell the sweat of the boxers and feel the splash of blood on their faces.
“Typical of an Atlantean to start with low blows. Who says this has anything to do with our parents, and who do you think you are, branding us as bigots?” This attack came from a young woman with a sleek dark braid and smug blue eyes, someone I knew to be a part of Charlotte’s hunter clique, although Charlotte herself was nowhere to be seen. Apparently, this had turned into a free-for-all. Hurl an insult at the outsider for two dollars a pop. Unleash your anger at an Atlantean, five for the price of three. Win a stuffed seahorse every time.
“Uh, are you listening to yourselves? Would you like me to whip out a dictionary and show you the definition of ‘bigotry?’” I retorted. “You don’t know anything about me. You see these tattoos on my face and you judge me without having ever interacted with anyone of my race! I’ve tried talking to so many of you in the hallways, and you’ve run away or turned up your noses like I’m covered in frigging scales. Which I’m not, by the way, contrary to popular belief.”
Okay, maybe I’d been wrong. It really hurt now. They were hitting with the low blows, not me. I liked to think I could keep my cool in almost any situation, but I was getting a serious lesson in self-control today. I hadn’t realized just how much venom the wider world had stored up for my kind. And the acid of it burned me, deep in my heart. I might not have considered myself a “proud” Atlantean, but they were prodding at a defensive streak of patriotism I hadn’t known existed. How dare they? How could they spew such hatred as though it were nothing?
Bike-Pump Biceps snorted. “And who cares if you came from the SDC? They’re a bunch of saps for letting you people in in the first place. They might be happy to integrate with your kind, but that doesn’t mean everyone else is. As for your ‘hero’ friends, they cause more trouble than they prevent. Funny you mentioned Katherine Shipton—she’s got family at that beloved commune of yours, so who’s to say they can be trusted? Maybe they saved us from Atlantis because they saw an opportunity. I hear the SDC has secret technology they got from your people, so it’s not hard to believe.”
“Are you out of your tiny mind?” I hissed back, my anger rising uncontrollably. “Their lives were ruined by Katherine, just as much as everyone else’s. They killed her, you freaking idiot. And they stopped Davin. And they’ve saved the magical world more times than you’ll ever know, and they don’t ask for anything in return. As for the SDC having secret technology—how about you take a long walk off a short pier? You’re clearly a few sandwiches short of a picnic.”
“What did you say to me?” He leaned across the table and slammed his palms down, hunching over so he could get right in my face.
I didn’t even flinch. “You heard me.”
For a moment, everything was dead silent, punctuated only by the sound of the door swinging open as Charlotte Basani walked in, joining the dark-haired friend who’d attacked me. She looked around, sizing up the situation. “What’s going on? she asked.
“Oh, just some run-of-the-mill discrimination. Specifically, your friends attacking me for being Atlantean.” At this I made eye contact, briefly, with Charlotte, and I knew we were wondering the same thing: would she side with her friends or