Graham sat by himself, taking a good sized chunk out of a habao, the Home version of a hamburger on an unusually chilly morning, marked by many of the students wearing sweaters, Graham wore a grey sweater that resembled a woollen one if it came from Earth. The animal was similar to a sheep but it also spat a caustic venom that could dissolve steel, setting it apart from its Earth counterpart; that and that fact it had two heads so and a barbed tail. He often felt guilty when ate them, particularly those from the stand at the foot of the apartment building he lived in with his parents. The man who sold them was a small thin man, no taller than him but he lacked Graham’s girth.

 He remembered when Dawn would often ask him to switch to something healthier, she often went on a lengthy sermon about the importance of a healthy diet and while he did try to follow her advice, he found him running back to the very food she condemned, it put his mind at ease; something a salad had never accomplished for him. He chuckled as he remembered the special name she had for this kind of food: Stranglers. Named because she believed that excessive consumption of them would strangle your arteries.

 Even so, he still loved the smell and taste of the habao, this one had what resembled beef and a golden cheese like goo splattered on top of the meat which itself was lightly toasted, soggy from absorbing the juices given out by the meat. Graham thoroughly enjoyed it, even over the smell of Dawn’s butt, the residual odour still present but fortunately, it had gotten progressively weaker

 “ So Graham, it’s just you , all alone. No Dawn, no giant freaks to get in between us,” said a voice that dripped with happiness. Graham found it unsettling for the sole reason being the person who said it had that effect on him.

 Graham looked up and sure enough, spotted the sight of his least favourite people in the entire world ambling up to him. George and Edmund took delight in flanking their lone target, sitting either side of him.

 Graham knew better than to engage in any sort of banter with them, mostly because he’d be on the receiving end of any jokes, jokes that left both physical and mental scars in the past.

 “ What’s the matter Graham?” Edmund gave him a punch in jest, his fist smashing against Graham’s arm with enough force to knock the habao out of his hand, it fell to the floor and spread itself over an area the size of his stomach, resembling a crater.

 Graham sighed, his breakfast now rendered inedible.

“ What do you want Edmund?” Graham asked with trepidation, he had been this enough to know where its going.

 “ Just popping by to check on you, make sure you’re alright. You took quite a blast from Dawn didn’t you?” Edmund  recalled with delight how Graham had been literally blown away by Dawn, he did not remember much but he did remember that scene and it had been playing in his mind.

 “ You all saw what happened but why so concerned about me?” he recalled, not too fondly over what his best friend had done.

  “ Because…” Edmund extended that one word, “ We need to make sure you didn’t lose a few IQ points after inhaling all that gas. Can’t have you making mistakes on our homework can we?”

 “ What even makes you think I’ll do it? Go do your own work,” Graham replied, neither George nor Edmund expected such a ballsy response from him, their former victim mostly bending over for them as and when they liked.

 Edmund shoved Graham to the ground, his head smacking against the pavement. Graham grunted as he lifted himself off the ground, “ You really shouldn’t do that,” Graham was concerned until an epiphany came to him, his lips curling into a knowing grin, the kind of grin you got when you knew something your enemy didn’t. Something crucial, something important.

“ You’re doing all this because Dawn isn’t here aren’t you?” He asked, anticipating Edmund’s next response as he hauled himself off the floor.

 Edmund nodded with a chuckle, balling up his fists, “ She won’t be here today or tomorrow or even next week. Dawn won’t dare to show her face, she’ll get a transfer out of here and honestly, the world will be a better place without her. I can’t understand why they even let her mix around with us normal people,” Edmund went on a rant.

 “ Well, not you Graham, you’re no less grotesque as Dawn,” Edmund corrected himself, not wishing to leave him out.

 “ She should be on a some rock far away from us where all the other monsters are. It doesn’t even make sense that the government would even allow it. Maybe after yesterday she’ll put herself there, her self esteem is the only thing lower than her IQ,” Edmund mused, laughing at what he thought was a wise crack while Graham listened, letting the words float in and out of his ears, he wasn’t really paying attention but waiting for Edmund to be proven wrong.

 “ You see her as a monster because she’s different but maybe it’s also because you got your asses kicked by a girl,” Graham rebutted Edmund.

“ She’s a pretty big girl, it’s not even fair!” George blurted out, he glanced over Graham’s head and got the shock of his life.

 “ George, don’t talk, you’re only making it worse,” Edmund moaned, “ I’m trying to put the fear of God in Graham in here and you’re only making us seem like a bunch of wusses. Please, let me do the talking-”

 “ No no, look over there!” George pointed off in the distance.

Edmund rolled his eyes at George’s defiance, couldn’t he just do as he was told?  

“ Alright, I’ll look but just keep your mouth shu-” Edmund’s words came to a halt as he saw the person he really didn’t want to see right now. Dawn, and she was coming closer, almost with a spring in her step.

****

 Dawn approached the school anxious to know how she’d be received but at the same time she felt contented to know that she had a friend like Graham who would forgive her for almost any wrong, her awesome father who knew how to rouse her spirits with a speech and of course, her mother who was always by her side, her fellow giantess in a world she sometimes felt was too small for her.

 Her hair fluttered in the wind, Dawn jammed her hands inside the pockets of her jeans to keep her extremities warm, her normal attire of long sleeved giving way in such frigid weather to a short sleeved turquoise shirt resting beneath a long sleeved brown sweater she had gotten from her grandparents for Christmas, her grandmother had knitted one that featured reindeer and Santa Claus delivering presents.  For her bottom half, she had opted for what was standard for her, a pair of blue denim jeans that clung to her legs.

 If not for them, Dawn would probably have locked herself in her room and refused to come out until everyone forgot about her. She knew her father was right and if her mother, one of the most beloved people on Home could show her face in public after Rammun’s failed attempt at galaxy wide domination, then it only made sense that Dawn could go to school after a bad case of gas.

 As she stepped inside the school grounds, she noticed no one seemed to even react to her, they carried on with whatever they were doing as if it were a normal day at school. Dawn didn’t mind but she had expected a reaction from them, their indifference was the last thing she expected. As she studied the scene before her, she was not particularly surprised to see Edmund and George manhandling Graham.

“They’ll never learn will they…” Dawn said to herself, shaking her head at their incorrigibility.

“ Guess I better step in before Graham gets hurt,” Dawn finished and moved faster through the school yard, past the fountain until she was right on top of the three boys, two of whom were terrified to see her.

 Her shadow fell over them and she could sense the fear in the bullies. Dawn squatted, her willowy frame descending and stopped once she was close enough. She was furious with George and Edmund, particularly the latter as he was the mastermind behind most of their machinations against her, their most recent plot drawing her ire. Her eyes narrowed into a glare, Edmund wished he were dead right now but he wouldn’t have that luck, he’d have to face Dawn with no route of escape.

 “ Good morning Graham, how’s your day so far?’ Dawn asked sweetly although she very well knew what was going on.

 Graham looked at Edmund and George, knowing full well that both of them were done for now that Dawn was here, “ Fine but Edmund and George here knocked my habao to the ground before doing the same to me,”

 Graham made a pouty face at Dawn.

 “ At least you won’t be filling your arteries with that junk but Edmund, that isn’t very nice of you. It’s very rude to do that to your friends, don’t you know?”

 Down below, Edmund and George were quaking in their shoes and realising this was one of those fight or flight situations, they opted for the latter. Dawn sighed, disappointed that both of them had chosen to run. Not that it mattered to her, she could always give chase.

 Getting on to her knees and using both arms, Dawn scooped up George and Edmund in one swift motion and brought them closer to her face, enjoying the hold she had over them. Both of them had their arms pinned to their sides and

 “ I know what you did to me and honestly, it’s a very dirty trick and I bet you thought it’d give me rashes or maybe a swollen face but you’re really too stupid for your own good,” Dawn chided them although she wanted to do so much more to them,pay them back in full for what they did to her.

  “ I can’t even tell you how I felt when I got home yesterday, everything I felt when I was on the toilet, it was excruciating,” Dawn paused, deciding it wouldn’t be the best idea to delve too much into what did on the porcelain throne although in truth Dawn and Jessica used one made of a special metallic alloy that didn’t corrode and was strong enough to support their weight.

 “ But it was nothing compared to the humiliation I endured. Me, a girl producing the worst farts in this school history? Much worse than if any boy did it and I bet you thought I would just stay away but thanks to my Dad and Graham down there,I found it in myself to step out of my house and live my life.”

 “L-look, just let us-” Edmund stammered but Dawn would not let him speak, giving him a little squeeze to shut him up.

 “ Not yet,” Dawn said in a commanding tone. Neither of them even let a squeak get past their lips, fear having put their tongues to rest.

 Meanwhile, Graham was enjoying the scene unfold. This wasn’t the first time Dawn had put them in their place but it never got old, the satisfaction he derived never once diminishing. With nothing left to do, he sat back on the bench he had occupied before Edmund and George had arrived.

 “ Maybe you just enjoy hurting the people close to me? Maybe you’ll want to pick on my Dad next? Do you?” Dawn shook her enclosed fist, George thought he was going to take flight if Dawn had so much as relaxed her grip while Edmund was more concerned about seeing his breakfast again.

“ Answer me or else I’ll shake you harder,” Dawn ordered.

 “ O-ok,” George started but like before, Edmund cut him off.

 “ I’ll explain it. Of course not Dawn, we don’t want to hurt your dad. Why would we ever do that?” He assured Dawn. He had no intention of ever hurting Tucker but he was insanely jealous of Tucker, most boys were and some had even considered driving Tucker away only for the sight of Jessica to remind them that to harm a single hair on his body would be the equivalent of having a death wish for it was common knowledge that Jessica would protect Tucker at all costs and she had the means to fight off anyone who.

 “ I don’t know, why would you ever want to pick on me or Graham?” Dawn responded, her tone increasingly flustered as she held Edmund and George.

“Alright, you got me! I don’t know! Just let me go,” Edmund pleaded. Seeing his friend doing so, George joined in.

 “ Yes, don’t hurt us! We may have done the thing with the peanuts but don’t hold it against us,” George begged and Dawn’s scowl softened, giving the two hope she’d let them off.

 “ Of course, I’ll move on but maybe you should get a taste of your own medicine!” Dawn moved the two boys,holding them with her thumb and forefinger against her butt. Edmund feared what was coming, he had smelt it and if Dawn could send Graham to dreamland with just one blast, he wondered what it would be like it to take a fart at point blank range.

  “ I think you two deserve some sort of punishment before I let you guys go, a reminder not to mess with me. Don’t you?” Dawn pressed the two against butt, the denim of the jeans in their face. Both of them held their breath, waiting for the inevitable. For the next ten seconds, they waited, their breaths held , each second only made it harder as their lungs demanded oxygen. When it seemed they could no endure no more, Dawn made her move.

 “ But…” Dawn moved them away and brought them back up to eye level, “ I won’t be punishing you that way, I have my own way of going about that,”

 Dawn took a couple of steps, and stood in front of the school fountain, a rather ornate looking one that had a few serpents at the circular stone base, most of the water came out in gentle streams from the heads of various stone snakes positioned at the edge of the basin, resembling the placing of the various numbers on an analogue clock.

Dawn crouched down and held the two about ten feet over the fountain, each one of them very well aware of what was coming next.

 “ Oh come on, not that! We’ll get wet, please think of something else!” Edmund asked Dawn but he doubt she would listen to him, he had not given her reason to.

  Dawn shook her head, “ No.” She then released them.

  Edmund and George barely had time to scream before they hit the water, causing a very raucous and large splash, Dawn’s hand was splattered with water. She wasted no time in checking on their well being, she had made sure that they wouldn’t break any bones or tear any muscles from the fall, hence the relatively low height.

“ Where the bloody hell is a teacher when you need one!” Edmund blasted as he waded out of the waist deep water and back on to dry land, his wavy locks hair now pressed against his head by the water.

 The teachers weren’t far away, most of them had watched the scene and some might have intervened on his behalf if not for his boast the previous day over how he had driven Dawn away.

****

 From his window, Principal Baldrick had seen everything and he picked up his phone, a small transparent rectangle. The screen lit up and he pressed a few numbers on the touchscreen interface.

“ Hello? Mrs. Meeks? You might want to go check on a couple of your students, they’re in the fountain. Yes, I’m aware Miss Martel did it, we all saw. No, don’t go after her, just make sure Edmund Black and George Hansen are okay. Alright? Thank you.” He ended the call and swivelled his chair back to observe the courtyard activities.

 ****

 Dawn sauntered up to Graham, feeling pleased with what she had done.

“ I hope they didn’t hurt you too badly,” Dawn enquired as she extended her hand and Graham climbed on. From his gait and his pace, he seemed to be no worse for wear.

“ I’m fine, just happy to see you back in school. You gave me quite the scare yesterday, I thought I was going to have get through this all by myself,” he smiled up at her, sincerity in each word.

 “ No you won’t. We’re friends and I couldn’t imagine letting you out there on your own. You need me to deal with Edmund and George and I can’t let them pummel you like they used to. I still remember the first time I met you,” Dawn recalled. She could still remember that day, Graham colliding with her foot as he tried to run from Edmund and George.

 Graham also remembered that day well, it was the day his school life finally climbed out of the pit it had stayed in since he moved to Adder High, the day when he met his closest friend and also a guardian angel, Dawn being the only person who cared enough about him to actually stand up for him and although it was seen as embarrassing for a boy to be defended by a girl, Dawn was no ordinary girl.

 “ Thanks for looking out  for me, you’re really the best friend I’ve ever had, no one else comes close.”  

 Dawn giggled, “ You’re welcome, it’s no hassle,”

 If she could only have one friend in her life, she’d pick Graham. Lucky was her pet but she’d choose him as her pet for life if the option was available. She had a feeling Graham would feel the same way too if posed with such a conundrum but for now it didn’t matter, their relationship worked and why tamper with something that isn’t broken?