Small Chapter 4: Schooled.

Izzellah really needed a smoke. She was currently stuffed in the inside jacket pocket of a Winton Heights Elementary school uniform for girls. Why an elementary school needed uniforms was beyond her, but Winton Elementary wasn’t like Winton High. Winton High was a public school of sorts; a very prestigious public school that you had to “donate” tuition to get into, but still a public school. Winton Elementary was actually a private school. A private school that often fed straight into Winton University. Sabrina had been strategically placed on a road for success. A very expensive road. Probably why they could afford fucking carnival days, and probably why she was stuck attending elementary school for the first time in years under the false pretense of helping her sister with her grades so that the hyperactive cherub didn’t wash out and blow tens of thousands of dollars in tuition. Deep breath. This was bullshit.

Izzellah felt a sudden pressure force her into her sister’s right pec.

“Stop squirming so much.” Sabrina whispered. “I want you to be a surprise.”

Izzellah scoffed. God forbid she spoil her big moment. How exciting it must be to be able to display your newly acquired toy sized sister! She scratched at the itchy fabric of her pink jumpsuit. The initials S.C. embroidered on the right pant leg and left pocket. Fuck.

“Sabrina! I’ve been expecting you!” Izzellah heard in a distinctive british accent. Sabrina seemed to freeze for a moment in dull surprise.

“What?” she asked blankly.

“We’ve been made aware of your, ummm special circumstances.” The voice said. Izzellah didn’t like the sound of that.

“Ms. Applegate?” Her little sister mewled lamely. Izzellah felt her sister being pulled by a force even stronger than her own.

“Class!” Ms. Applegate clapped her hands. “Sabrina here has a very exciting surprise for us.”

Dammit! Izzellah tried and failed to somehow burrow her way through the fabric of Sabrina’s coat pocket. She felt a finger touch her foot and gave it a futile kick. “Sabrina! Don’t you fucking dare!” she shouted. More fingers seized and entrapped her legs in their powerful grip and Sabrina’s new “little” sister was plucked limply out of her pocket and placed on display for a room of almost two dozen preteens. “Fuck.”

A small wave of chuckles erupted at Izzellah sudden swear. Sabrina stared at her red faced.

“Ms. Ivory I must ask that you refrain from such vulgar language.” Ms. Applegate requested. Izzellah finally got a good look at this woman. She was incredibly thin with and oddly square face that seemed unfitting for her. Like her head was a big box. She had red rosey cheeks and a head of salt and pepper hair tied in a bun. “Ms. Ivory here is a….”little person” and she will be joining are class for the remainder of the year.”

“Really?” asked a small bespectacled black girl with long braids. She sat in the front row next to an empty desk.

“Correct, Riri. We’ve talked with Sabrina’s mom and have already made the necessary accommodations.” Izzellah didn’t like the sound of that either. “Go ahead, Ms. Ivory. Introduce yourself.”

Izzellah stood up in her sister’s palm. She looked up at her gargantuan sibling. Her face was still red and her expression was crestfallen. Did she really think this would be some kind of secret? She turned toward the class. “I’m Izzellah Ivory. I’m sixteen years old. I shrunk. It sucks.” The class was quiet. Sensing nothing else was to be said Ms. Applegate gestured for Sabrina to take her seat. Fingers collapsed and secured Izzellah and her sister slumped down in the empty desk next to Riri.

“Alright class. Turn in last weeks homework.” Sabrina placed Izzellah on her desk then recovered a large pink binder from her bag. She huffed and dropped it carelessly. It slammed hard onto the desk mere centimeters from Izzellah.

“Hey!” Izzellah screeched.

Sabrina ignored her. She opened her binder and claimed the papers inside. Izzellah walked around the large rectangle to give her sister a piece of her mind.

“What the hell is your probl-” She paused when she saw the papers. Three worksheets and what appeared to be and essay. She could tell almost immediately that most of her answers on one of the papers were wrong. This was going to be a long day.

Sabrina’s spirits had picked up about fifteen minutes into class. Izzellah could hear her whisper and giggle with this Riri girl. For her own part Izzellah minded her own business sitting on the edge of the desk. She dangled her feet over the side as she looked down to the hardwood floor. Would she survive a jump from this height? She remembered Brenda saying something about surviving falls from high places. Was that relative to her size or human size? It would be so easy. She could fall down and make a dash for the door. But what then? Maybe hide in a corner, a locker, someone’s-. She felt a bump to her back. Sabrina had prodded her with the eraser end of her number 2 pencil.

“What?” Izzellah groaned.

“Can you help me with this?” Sabrina waved one of her worksheets. Math it seemed.

Izzellah looked over the sheet. All the incorrect answers had been marked in red. Apparently this was Sabrina’s chance to redeem herself by correcting her own mistakes with the aid of the textbook and score full credit.

“Question 3. The answer is 16, question 5. The answer is four, question 13. The answer is-”

“Wait!” Sabrina interrupted.

“What?!” Izzellah snapped indignantly.

“You can’t just give me the answers. I have to show my work.”

“Oh for fuc-...ARRRRGH!!” Izzellah groaned. “Question 3. Solve for x.”

“Yeah…” Sabrina stared mutely.

“X=16.”

“How does x=16?” Sabrina chewed on her eraser sheepishly. Did she actually not know this?”

“X is what is known as a variable. It can be any number. They already gave you the answer in the product 224. 14x means 14 times x sooooo?”

“14 times 16 is 224?”

“YES!!! DUH!” Izzellah shouted. “ Divide 224 by 14 to get 16 as the quotient. X equals 16.”

This back and forth went on as Izzellah worked her sister step by step through each problem. This math was so...grade school. She couldn’t understand how anyone would struggle with it.

“Hey! Ms. Applegate, Sabrina’s cheating!” Izzellah heard.

“Who the fuck?” She whispered. Without warning the tiny climbed her sister’s sleeve and mounted her shoulder. She looked across the classroom and saw a chubby hand raised about two rows back. He was a pale kid with a round face and blonde hair. He had a pig nose and a pig body. Who was this fatass? He seemed familiar but Izzellah couldn’t place it. She knew she’d seen him before.

“Yes, Mr. Braxton.” Ms. Applegate peered up from a copy of Wise Man’s Fear to address the snitch.

“She’s giving her all the answers!” Braxton said pointing at Izzellah. She immediatly wished she could strangle the obese fuck.

Ms. Applegate rose from her chair and walked towards Sabrina’s desk. She inspected the worksheet. They’d only corrected three questions in the last ten minutes, but they were in Sabrina’s handwriting and showed the process rather thoroughly.

“You taught her this?” She asked down to Izzellah.

“Whatever.” She shrugged back.

Ms. Applegate took a breath and narrowed her eyes at the miniscule Ivory. Sabrina stared her down.

“Mr. Braxton. She’s tutoring Sabrina. Something the poor girl is in desperate need of.”

“I don’t think it’s fair Sabrina gets tutoring and the rest of the class doesn’t.” Braxton noted.

“Then think of it as remedial lessons. Do you want to take remedial lessons Mr. Braxton? ” Ms. Applegate queried. The rest of the class giggled and Sabrina hid her face in shame.

“Nooo.” Braxton answered. Izzellah chuckled and stuck her tongue out at the whiny bitch. She was shocked to see him extend a chubby middle finger back at her.

“You may continue, Ms. Ivory.” Applegate instructed.

And continue it did, for another fifteen minutes, after which only half the incorrect problems had been completed. Sabrina handed her worksheet towards Riri who handed it to the student left of her. As the papers collected Ms. Applegate went around passing back more sheets of paper. She placed one on Sabrina’s desk. In the top left hand corner was the number 46  bright red and circled. The title of the paper was. “Why the Civil War was really Bad.” by Sabrina Ivory. Izzellah facepalmed. She refused to believe her sister was actually this dense.

Somehow an explanation on how to write a proper thesis statement had turned into a full lecture on scorched earth tactics during the American civil war. Izzellah looked up at Sabrina. Her large brown eyes were completely focused on her. She’d quickly deduced that Sabrina wasn’t actually that stupid. She wasn’t a rocket scientist by any means, but she also didn’t apply herself. Izzellah could sympathize. School was boring, especially elementary school.

“Look. History is useless okay. Nothing you learn about the civil war will actually help you out in life.”

“That’s not what Ms. Applegate says.”

Izzellah sighed. “Listen you want to get an A on your little makeup essay. Say that the civil war was fought over ideological and economic differences as much as it was slavery. Say something about Abe Lincoln being a republican. Stretch that over three to five paragraphs and it will blow her tea sipping mind.”

“I don’t think that would work.” Sabrina noted.

“You’re in the 7th grade, Sabrina. They’re not looking for some peer reviewed essay on the rarity of tree frogs in the Cuban rainforest. They just want you to parrot a few vocabulary words and names.”

“But mom said.” A loud bell rang through the room and echoed down the hallway. Izzellah had to cover her ears to protect herself from the earsplitting chime. “Yes!” Sabrina beamed.
“Lunchtime class.”

Izzellah nibbled on the babiest of baby carrots. At her new perspective it was still the size of a hotdog and way too much for her. She was surrounded on all sides by Sabrina, Riri, and some random redhead who floated in after the bell apparently name Mabel. The preteen titans cast a long shadow over her as they chit chatted. Izzellah rose to a stand, extended her hands up, then bent over onto her hands to crack her back. She’d been standing since the homework was passed out.

“She’s so cool.” Riri said. “You’re so lucky Sabrina.” She reached a finger to try and touch.

“Back off, Braids.” Izzellah swatted at the appendage.

“She’s just a little shy.” Sabrina explained.

Riri had to hold back a squeal. Izzellah could tell this little black girl really wanted to pick her up. No way that was happening.

“Does she do anything?” Mabel asked.

“You know I can hear you, right?” Izzellah asked. She already didn’t like Mabel at all.

“She dances….sometimes.” Sabrina informed.

“Can you dance for us?!” Mabel asked.

“No.” Izzellah crossed her arms.

“Why not?”

“Cause I don’t feel like it.” Izzellah peered at the redhead. “Do people just dance for you when you ask them to?”

Mabel scrunched her face in contemplation. “No?”

“Ugh!” Izzellah did a quick pirouette. “Happy?”

Mabel applauded. “So cool!” Izzellah grimaced. She was “cool” to a trio of prepubescent girls. Truly a highlight of her life.

Sabrina took the last bite of her sandwich. It was a quarter of a footlong her mom had prepared at the beginning of the week. “It’s recess time.” she said with her mouth still full. She scooped up Izzellah and charged for the door.

“Sabrina.” Ms. Applegate called. Sabrina stopped abruptly causing Riri to bump into her back. “You can’t take your sister with you to recess.”

“I’m responsible for her.” Sabrina justified confused. “I’m supposed to watch her at all times.”

“It’s been deemed too dangerous.” Ms. Applegate smiled lightly. “But don’t worry we’ve made the necessary accommodations.”

There was that phrase again.

Ms. Applegate put a hand gently on Sabrina’s shoulder and guided her to the corner of the room. Next to the window, bolted to a table, was a steel hamster cage with a lock on it.

“Hell no!” Izzellah scurried up off Izzellah’s palm and toward her shoulder. She tried to make a leap but was snatched up by Ms. Applegate. Sabrina went to snatch her back but hesitated under the authority of her teacher.

“Relax Ms. Ivory.” Izzellah flinched as long fingernails scratched down her backside. “I assure you, you’ll be absolutely fine.” She handed her back to Sabrina who seized her a little too quickly and cradled her close.

Applegate unlocked the cage and opened it up. “Go ahead, Sabrina. Put her inside.”

“Can’t I just stay in class for recess?” she pleaded.

“Sorry, Sabrina. You know that’s against the rules. You’d have no supervision.”

“You could watch us.” Riri tried. Izzellah was starting to like Riri.

“But then I wouldn’t be able to eat lunch like you three just did would I?” Izzellah started to hate Ms. Applegate. “Izzellah will be fine. Look and see.”

Sabrina relented and inserted her hand into the cage. It was lined with a soft hay like substance, had a water dispenser, and a small tin bin behind a curtain. She opened her palm for Izzellah to walk off but she refused. Sabrina was forced to turn her hand over and literally drop her small sister inside. Izzellah immediately bolted for the door, but Ms. Applegate was too fast. She slammed the door shut as soon as Sabrina withdrew her hand.

“Give it a try, Sabrina.” Applegate urged. Sabrina glared at her teacher. She put both hands on each end of the cage and gave it a hard shake. It didn’t move.

“Sabrina don’t leave me in here!” Izzellah begged. “I’m not a fucking pet!”

“Language, Ms. Ivory.” Izzellah really hated her now.

Sabrina moved her face closer to the cage. She looked her sister in the eyes. “I’ll be back as soon as recess is over. I promise.” she said. She reached her finger in between the small holes of the cage. The pad of the giant digit wouldn’t fit. Izzellah met her halfway and touched her sister’s finger. “I promise.”  

She, Riri, Mabel, and finally Ms. Applegate left the room and the door audibly locked behind her. Izzellah took a deep breath. She was alone.

Izzellah spread eagle on top of a pile of fluffy hay she’d stacked in a corner. This was an all time low. Those were happening a lot lately. She was less than a human now. She was a subhuman, a pet, equal to a hamster in how she was treated. She couldn’t believe this was deemed acceptable for her. She failed to escape the cage. She was only capable of squeezing her arm through the caps in the bars. Whoever made this cage knew what they were doing. She was only two inches tall for fucks sake. So there she reclined, resigned to her momentary boredom and the dark thoughts they brought. Was this really her life now? Was this all she had to look forward to? She couldn’t bear the thought of spending her remaining time what, tutoring her sister? Performing basic stunts for the amusement of children? Spending recess in a hamster cage?! She had to make a change. She’d only been shrunk for two days and it already felt like an eternity. A living nightmare. She heard a metallic clunk and shake. The door unlocked. Was recess over already? She didn’t hear a bell. The door opened and Izzellah thought it might be Ms. Applegate. It wasn’t. He walked, well more jaunted straight for her cage. She stared up at his fat face with disgust. She remembered who he was now. It was the fat fuck. Darren’s annoying ass pimple of a little brother. Braxton Winton, and he wasn’t alone.

“Do we really have to sit here all recess?” Riri asked.

“You guys can go play if you want.” Sabrina said. “But I’m staying here.” The trio sat on the bench closest to the door of the school in the outside eating area. Sabrina planned to make a b-line for the classroom as soon as the warning whistle went off.

“I’m sure your sister’s fine.” Riri comforted.

“I’m not taking any chances. Sabrina stared at a clock hanging on the outside wall of the eating area. There were ten minutes left to recess.

The trio sat there quietly. Sabrina’s friends were unwilling to abandon her.

“Sooooo...you’re sister.” Mabel started.

“Yeah?” Sabrina looked at her.

“She’s kind of a bitch isn’t she?”

Sabrina gasped and fumed and grit her teeth. There was a tense pause. Then she broke out laughing. “Yeah she is!” All three girls giggled at this. They laughed and waited together for recess to end.

She remembered his fat face, covered in pimples and just the hint of a mustache. Braxton Winton was fourteen! What was he doing in the seventh grade? He should be a freshman in highschool by now. The answer hit her immediately. He’d been held back. A miracle for sure in a school with such stringent and rigid academic criteria. Must be a perk of having your name on the building.

“How’s it going fuckface?” Izzellah spat.

“Big talk from such a tiny bitch.” He snorted. God his voice even sounded fat. Like there was a layer of phlegm permanently lodged in the back of his throat. He moved closer to the cage and squinted at her. Izzellah spit at him landing a small dab of saliva under his left eye. “Ah!’ he squealed. “Ronald open this up.”

A weasel faced young man with a crooked nose approached the cage. He pulled a needle out of his jacket pocket and forced it into the lock.

Izzellah’s blood went cold. They weren’t actually.

Click.

The lock came loose and Ronald tossed it aside. He went to reach his hand in but Braxton rudely shoved him over. He forced his large hand into the cage after Izzellah. She ran to the corner of the cage as fast as her little legs willed. His hand missed her by a whisper and she dived into a pile of hay for even the illusion of safety.

“You get her yet?” Izzellah heard. Was that Ronald, or someone else.

“Shut up!” Braxton barked. “I’m trying!” He sifted through the hay with his rotund fingers until he found purchase.

“NO!” Izzellah shrieked as a greasy finger pressed against her waist. Another one wrapped around her left leg and she was dragged out of the cage.

“Got ya!” Braxton laughed. His breath stunk of rotten cheese.

“Put me down!” Izzellah ordered. Her heart was beating a mile a minute. If only she were big. She would strangle him where he stood. Stab him in the eye with a rusty nail.

“Hey I remember you!” Braxton gripped her tightly in his hand. “You’re my brother’s whore.”

“She knows your brother?” The voice from before asked. Izzellah turned her head to see another boy in the room. He was smaller and had a girl’s face. He looked like he didn’t really want to be there. “Maybe we should put her back. We don’t want him to get mad at us.”

“No I got a better idea.” Braxton grinned. He gripped the collar of Izzellah’s jumpsuit and tore it open easily. He pressed his index finger roughly against her breast and grinded it against her nipple. “She’s got tiny boobies.”

“STOP IT!” Izzellah shouted. She bit down. Hard. Her teeth rattled and she tasted blood in her mouth.

“The bitch bit me!” Braxton howled. He tossed her into the air on reflex. She hung in the air for an instance then plummeted back down. She saw the hardwood coming up fast. She landed. In the hands of weasel face.

“Damn she’s hot as hell!” He observed. Izzellah vomited from the nausea and whiplash of being tossed so abruptly. “Gross!” Ronald threw her away in revulsion. She hit the ground this time, hard. She landed on her side at the sneakers of girly boy. He looked at her warily. He reached for her.

“Stay back!” Izzellah waved her arm at him and gripped her ribs.  They felt cracked or at least bruised. She was slightly impressed she was even alive. She thought she heard a whistle, or maybe her ears were ringing from the pain. He reached again. She got up and tried to run but stumbled from a sudden pain in her knee. He flinched then gingerly picked her up. She spasmed in pain in his open palm. He looked on with worry.

“Are you okay?” he peeped.

“Of course I’m not okay! Izzellah roared. She tried desperately to cover herself with the tattered top of her jumpsuit. “Look umm.”

“P-Peter.” he stammered.

“Peter. Run. Okay.” Izzellah pleaded. This kid at least seemed like he had a shred of concience. Maybe she had a chance. “Just run. Run to the office. I know you’re faster than that fat bastard.”

Braxton sucked on his bloody finger and looked at Peter. “Hand her over.” he ordered.

“Look, maybe we should just put her back.” Peter suggested. “We can pretend a rat got in or something.”

“A rat got in?” Braxton shoved Peter into a seat. He snatched Izzellah with his good hand.

“How do you suggest we get away with this?” He asked. “She’s gonna tell Ms. Applegate.”

“No she’s not.” Braxton informed. “Because she ran away.”

“You can’t hide her man.” Ronald interjected. “They’ll check your pockets, they’ll check your bags.”

“I know somewhere they can’t look.” Braxton smirked. He put his hand on his zipper and open up his pants. He lowered Izzellah down until she hung over his undies. He pulled the waistband open and she got and eyeful of his gross, underwhelming penis.”

“You fat fucking shit!” She tossed and turned in his grip to escape but he was too strong. She felt tears start to well up. Fuck now she was crying.

“That’s dark fucking genius man!” Ronald howled.

“You can’t do that!” Peter spoke up. For a moment Izzellah thought he might do something but he still sat in his chair impotent. It seemed he would verbally protest but was too chickenshit to take action. The bell rang. The door flew open and Sabrina rushed through it .”Who left the door unlo-.” she stopped. Before her eyes was Braxton Winton holding her sister in his hands with his pants open.

Braxton felt it before he saw it. A tiny fist pushed viciously against his nose. It cracked under the pressure and blood flooded out.

“You fat piece of shit!” Sabrina screamed. She pressed another fist into his cheek and he crumbled. “How dare you put your repulsive fucking hands on my little sister!” Izzellah fell with him and tumbled off his leg onto the floor.

“Riri!” Sabrina started.

Braids jumped into action. In a flash she was through the door and on top of Izzellah. She was all too eager to get her hands on the tiny. She cooed and hushed to try in comfort the traumatized shrink victim. Izzellah couldn’t get herself together. The sobs were coming even harder. It was so easy for Braxton to get his hands on her. What is Sabrina wasn’t there? What if he had taken her? She was such a weakling.

Sabrina went to her sister. She reached to her and Izzellah recoiled.

“S-stay back.” she croaked.

Sabrina turned back towards Braxton in rage. She pumped her pink Sketcher right into his biscuits. He doubled over in renewed pain. She kicked him over and pressed her other foot into his face and grinded it hard against his teeth. “I’m gonna kill you, you shitface.” she grinned and pressed down even harder.

“Stobth.” He choked. She removed her foot mercifully...then pressed it against his throat. He gagged on his own blood and saliva.

“You say something shitface?” Her foot stomped hard against his chin. A large squelching sound was heard followed by a fart. The smell of feces leaked into the air.

“Did you just shit yourself?” Sabrina taunted.

Izzellah had never seen her sister like this. Cute, innocent, little Sabrina had never said a swear in her life. Now she’s was literally kicking the shit out of another human being, possibly strangling him to death with her foot, and swearing almost as much as she did.

“Sabrina maybe you should stop now.” Riri commented. Izzellah looked at her and Peter? The meek boy was staring over Braid’s shoulder with marked shame. Riri rose up to approach Sabrina but was stopped by one dark look. She sat back down as Sabrina kicked Braxton again.

Finally deciding to do something, Ronald approached and yanked Sabrina from behind.

“Get off of him!” He tugged at he again and his face was introduced to the literary works of Patrick Rothfuss. Hardcover.

Sabrina cackled and grinned widely as she pressed her foot back into Braxton’s throat.

Maryanne Applegate wiped a bit of sauce from her mouth. She sashayed down the hall from a particularly satisfying lunch of shrimp scampi and cheddar bay biscuits courtesy of Red Lobster. She even managed to flirt with a dapper man eating alone at the bar. She gotten a meal and a date all in just under an hour. Sure she was a little late, but her class was one of the most well behaved in the entire school. What harm could five minutes do? She was certain she’d see her students adoring faces as they waited patiently for her in the hall.

She turned the corner to her room. Room 339. Something was wrong. Her students were crowded around the door. The open door. How? She pushed past the crowd and nearly fainted at what she saw. Braxton Winton was on his side doing his best to defend against an almost feral assault by Sabrina Ivory. Ronald Montgomery was sitting in a corner rubbing his eye and crying. Riri Samson was huddled in the back most wall cradling something like precious cargo while Peter Silver looked on in terror.  

“What the bloody hell happened in here!?”