"Six times six is thirty six, right?" Tabby sat in the car. 

"Yes," grumbled her twin, Atheos. "I don't even know why you're doing math, Tabby. We don't even have math at our new school." She sighed.

"I want to remember it!" Tabby shrieked.

She and her sister were going to boarding school. Except this school didn't even have academics. It had magic. Each kid had a special power. But you had to unlock it. The classes were about finding it. Tabby hoped she'd do well at her new school. 

She'd always excelled in her classes. She especially enjoyed math. She was a teeny bit disappointed there would be no math at her own school. But she wasn't going to let that hold her back from unleashing her power! Atheous was far from excited, in fact, she seemed upset! Atheous had long orange hair that freely flowed down her shoulders. She was pale without a freckle on her face. She now wore a tie-die tee shirt and bell bottoms. Tabby had orange hair, usually wore in stubby pigtails. She was pale too, but her face tended to go red when she was embarrassed. (And that was a lot.) She had freckles and  wore a blue dress. 

"Tabby? Tabby! TABBY!" 

Tabby woke up to Atheous standing over her. She realized she'd dozed off. Her face became a tomato red. 

"We're here, slowpoke!" Atheous rolled her eyes at a horrified Tabby. Surely she hadn't slept that long! She got to her feet, and Atheous pulled her out of the car. Tabby gasped. A huge building loomed over her. It was very fancy. Atheous dragged Tabby into the building. A sign said: 'Welcome to Swan Academy!' There was a roaring fire and cozy armchairs in the check-in area. 

"Wow." Tabby breathed. 

She sunk onto one of the armchairs, and Atheous snickered. 

"Come on. You're room 117." 

She took Tabby to her dorm. Another girl was there too. She had shy eyes and a small smile. She had short black hair. She sat next to a girl with dark eyes and bushy hair. They both sat next to a rambunctious girl with flaming red braids and giant green eyes. 

"Hi!" The girl with the green eyes said. 

"Hey." The girl with the bushy hair raised her eyebrows. 

"Hi." The girl with the shy eyes peeped. 

"Hello. I'm Tabitha." Tabby said. "But call me Tabby."

"I'm Millie!" The girl with the flaming hair said. 

"I'm Danielle. But call me Danny." The girl with the bushy hair said. 

"I'm Alexis. Call me Lexi." The shy girl bit her lip. 

"And we're your new roommates!" Millie blurted. She squeezed in for a hug. 

Danny awkwardly joined in. Lexi smiled and gave her a heartfelt embrace. Tabby smiled happily. These girls didn't think she was weird! 

    In her own dorm, Atheous was with one other girl. She had dark brown hair, brown eyes, and wore the school uniform. 

"Hey." She said. 

Suddenly, she made a grabbing motion with her hand. A chair slid across the room. 

"Whoa." Atheous gasped.

"I'm Gwen. I can move things with my mind she said coolly.

"I'm Atheous." Said Atheous. "I don't know what my power is yet." 

"Cool!" Gwen smiled. She took Atheous hand. 

"D'you wanna eat lunch together." 

"Do I!" Atheous was giddy. "Yes!" 

Her new life had began! 

Just then, Tabby walked in. 

"The principal wants to see us." She said, biting her nails. Her face was red and sweaty. 

"Oh stop." Atheous smacked Tabby. "She probably wants to meet us." 

"Oh."  Tabby stopped sweating, but her face was still red.

The principal was a kindly woman with short blond hair, caring green eyes, and a gentle smile.

"Welcome children." She said softly. "How do you like your new roommates?" 

"Gwen's so cool, she can move things with her mind! Me and her a best friends!" 

"Millie, Danny, and Lexi are really nice. They get me." Tabby said. "Of course, I will keep up my studies and not get distracted by anything! Please don't expel me! I plead you not too, principal!"

The principal sighed. "Dear child, friends help with powers in this school. And call me Mrs. Laura." 

"Absolutely!" Tabby sat taller.

"You may go now." Mrs. Laura went to escort them to the door, but Tabby noticed Mrs. Laura wasn't walking, she was floating! Atheous must have noticed because her jaw had dropped. 

"Y-you are-" Atheous started but Tabby interrupted her.

"She's floating. It's-It's," She swallowed hard. "Magic." 

"Correct!" Mrs. Laura cried. "Very well said, Miss Tabitha." 

Tabby beamed. "Thank you, Mrs. Laura. You are too kind." 

Atheous was tapped on the shoulder. It was Gwen. 

"For lunch, meet me by the front porch." She hurried off.

Atheous noticed Gwen was popular. Like, really popular. Atheous would soon be a cool kid again! 

   At lunch, Atheous got to the front porch, trying to contain her excitement. There was nobody there. Atheous sat down, waiting. Twenty minutes turned into an hour. An hour came to two hours. Atheous stood up. 

As she walked back to the dorm, she though maybe Gwen had to go. Yes, that was it. Gwen was in the dorm. She was painting her nails an obnoxious shade of pink. 

"Why weren't you at lunch?" Atheous blurted. 

Gwen's lips curved into a nasty smile. 

"Darling, why would I want to sit with you?"

"You said-"

"I know what I said, stupid. It was a joke. You really think you're my best friend, loser?"

Atheous held back tears.

"You-" She choked. A dozen tears came spilling out. 

"I thought you were my friend! You lied!" 

Gwen smirked. "It's fun watching you suffer. First you stupidly fall for the joke, then you blame it on poor, innocent, me!" She did a convincing fake cry. 
"P-principal Laura! Atheous was being dumb agian!" She said between huge fake sobs. "A-and I have to e-endure it!" 

Atheous couldn't hear anymore. She bolted out the dorm, and went into a unknown direction. 

The unknown direction was actually the school garden. A girl with dark skin, bushy black hair, and dark eyes came forward. 

"Are you Tabby's twin?" She asked. 

"Yeah." Atheous sighed. Tabby was becoming popular!

"Cool! Tabby is sooo amazing. We're best friends!" She smiled. She closed her hand in a fist then opened it. A red rose was growing out of her hand! 

"Well, I'll leave you to it." She walked away. 

Then, Atheous spotted a pill bug on the ground. 

"Hello, little bug." She picked up the pill bug. 

Hello Atheous, it seemed to say. 

"How do you know my name?" Atheous asked. 

Rumors. 

That made Atheous angry. 

"What rumors? From who?" 

From that girl, I think her name is Gwen. 

"Why am I talking to a bug?" She shook her head, ready to put the pill bug down. 

Because I am your friend, Atheous. Don't be ashamed. 

Atheous put the bug down. 

Meanwhile, Tabby was hanging out with Millie and Lexi when Danny came running towards them. 

"Hey!" Tabby grabbed Danny's hand. 

"Your sister's in the school gardens." Danny shrugged. 

"Really? Atheous? She hates bugs, and there are plenty in there." 

"I'm going to see her." Tabby declared. 

Tabby froze. "BOOM BOOM BOOM!" 

Then she felt a horrible sensation. Like she was being stung by a million wasps at once. Like she was being pinched tight, so tight she couldn't even move. But she struggled. She looked up. Three misty figures appeared in the air. Tabby strained for a closer look. One had dark blue hair, with red eyes, and fangs. Another had blood red hair, with yellow eyes and fangs as well. The third had light green hair, pure black eyes, and shared the other's fangs. 

"I'm Despair." The one with the red eyes said. 

"I'm Anger." The one with the yellow eyes said.  

"And I'm Revenge." The one with the black eyes added. 

The whole school had seen by now. 

"We've come for the girl." Anger motioned to Atheous. 

"No." Tabby squirmed. "NO! DON'T TAKE HER!" she cried.

"Sadness." Despair breathed. 

"Madness." Anger smiled.

"Revenge." Revenge relished the moment. 

They grabbed Tabby and closed their eyes. They flew away. 

   Atheous was at loss. She walked into Tabby's dorm, tears in her eyes. Millie was on fire. Danny was sobbing hysterically. Lexi was sniffing sadly. All Danny's plants had wilted. Atheous sat down on Tabby's bed. She was gone. Maybe forever. Anger consumed her. She needed to save Tabby! 

"Guys," she spoke up. "We need to take action."

Millie's fire grew stronger. Danny cried harder. Lexi's sniffs grew louder. 

"ARE YOU GOING TO SIT THERE AND MOPE OR DO SOMETHING!" 

Millie burned out. Danny looked up. Lexi stopped sniffing. 

"I'm Tabby's twin. She has always annoyed me. But, just before she was taken, she was trying to make me feel better. That I can never repay. We need to show her how much we love her! Let's save her!" 

Sparks flew off Millie. "She's my friend, but we're all in elementary school. 5th graders." 

"With powers." Lexi said firmly. Everyone looked at her. 

"Look, I've been in the shadows forever. Tabby is our friend. If you don't save her, Millie, Atheous and I will." She stood up. "Let's go."

"Me too." Danny spoke up. "Millie?" 

"Fine." Millie grumbled. 

While, walking past Atheous, Millie made the biggest fire she could. 

"Show off." Atheous muttered. 

They walked through the front door of the school.

"Let's go save Tabby!" Atheous proclaimed, leading the way. 

"You don't have to be so vocal about it." Millie whispered. "People a S-T-A-R-I-N-G." 

    In the meantime, Tabby sat in a cave. She remained calm, however. She knew the school would save her. In the meantime, she listened to the witches chatter excitedly. 

"Finally!" Despair squealed. 

"I'm so pumped!" Anger jumped up and down.

Revenge had a sickening sneer on. 

   Later that day, Despair approached her.  

"Hello little one." She looked smug. 

"Ready for a goodnight kiss?" Suddenly, she sunk her fangs into Tabby's arm. Tabby screamed. Then she fell into a deep sleep....

   "Hurry up!" called Atheous. She and Tabby's friends had made it not that far. They were in a forest near the school grounds. Millie kept setting twigs on fire. Danny was growing random shrubs along the way. Lexi kept on lifting trees out of the ground for Danny to fix. 

"Yikes!" Millie, in her strange way of agreeing, had set Atheous's pants on fire. 

They still lagged behind. Danny grew some poison ivy and Lexi threw a tree across the forest. Then they heard loud crying from deeper into the forest. Atheous broke into a run. It was Tabby. She was perfectly healthy, with only a bite mark and scratch above her eyebrow. She was sobbing like her life had been ruined though.  

"Tabby!" Atheous cried. "What happened? Are you hurt? I'm so sorry. Please Tabby!" 

Tabby wept harder. 

"You come along, being horrible to me, like I'm the terrorist!" 

"Tabby?" Millie asked. "Atheous just wanted to be kind and considerate." She knelt down and took Tabby's hand. 

Tabby snatched her hand away. "Stop pretending you care! I know I'm a loser!" Big, fat, tears rolled down her cheeks.

"No, no, no. You are amazing, Tabby. Amazing." Danny pitched in.

Tabby just ran away, howling.

"Gosh, what's wrong with her?" Lexi asked. 

"I dunno." Atheous thought there was something Tabby wasn't telling her.

    After her long sleep, Tabby felt horrible. Then her friends found her. Tabby wanted to go with them, but she just felt so miserable she couldn't. Despair had let her out of the cave for ten minutes only. After her nap, Tabby had felt attracted to Despair, as though they were best friends. She walked back into the cave. 

"The ten minutes isn't up!" Despair commented. 

"Yeah, but this is the best place I have to be." Tabby sighed, reaching for Despair's hand.  

"Oh yes it is! Feel the sadness and grief! Feel it!" Despair hissed. 

Anger rolled her eyes. "It's my turn, Despair, give the girl up." 

Despair frowned and pushed Tabby towards Anger. 

In a flash, Anger bit into Tabby. Tabby flailed in pain then something more. Something big and boiling, such a strong desire to hate everyone but Anger. 

"Yes! Yes!" Anger squealed. 

Tabby felt sad and mad. She hated everyone she knew, but still wanted to be with them. 

"I HATE THE WORLD!" Tabby roared. 

     Atheous was angry. Tabby was nowhere in sight, and her friends wanted to take the night off.

"I'll go then!" She cried and fled into the darkness. 

She found a large cave. She peeked inside. Echoing voices sounded, and a angry cry hit Atheous. 

"What do you want?" Tabby stood in the entrance. 

"This is not you, Tabby." Atheous cracked her knuckles. 

"Oh yes it is. And it's great." Tabby cackled. 

"Why are you doing this? We love you. But this is not you." 

"DESPAIR AND ANGER LOVE ME!" Tabby exploded. "This is the new me and-" 

"I want the old Tabby. The one with kindness and compassion." 

Tabby faltered for a moment. "Atheous, what am I doing? Why am I here?"

Then Revenge came bursting through the doorway. 

"You are MINE!" She shrieked. Then, her long fangs cut through Tabby's skin. Tabby immediately looked like she wanted to strangle Atheous. Revenge pulled her into the cave and Atheous was left alone.

She sprinted back to Millie and Danny and Lexi. 

"S-she's got Tabby! Revenge!" Millie looked dazed. 

"What the? Who's Revenge? This is ridiculous, Atheous."  She added, glancing at a muddy Atheous, a single twig poking out of her hair. 

"It's an evil villain who's captured Tabby and made her evil too!" 

"Oh joy." Millie sighed.

   Tabby was dreaming. She dreamed she was with Atheous. They were doing math. Atheous was complaining, as usual. Then Tabby grabbed her by the arm, and Atheoes fell to the floor. 

"Tabby!" Atheous gasped. "You're turning evil! Help!" 

Tabby woke up with a start. Revenge was sitting next to her, grinning. 

     Atheous was dreaming. She dreamed she was with Tabby. They were at a basketball game. Tabby had grabbed her. And then Atheous knew. 

She dashed over to Millie. 

"Do you know anything about Revenge, Anger, and Despair?" Atheous panicked.

Lexi laughed and came over. 

"Calm down." She reached into a bag she packed and pulled out a big book. "The Book of Villains." She read aloud."

The Book of Villains was a dusty brown book. It was old with tiny drawings sketched on the cover. Lexi flipped through the pages. She stopped at a frayed yellow page. 

"Revenge, Anger, Despair." She read aloud. "They live in a magical cave. With their sharp fangs, they cause the emotion their name is to their target. Their target is a vulnerable person with a very emotional personality. They take the victim to their magical cave to bite them. Once all have bitten the target, they keep them in the cave and train them to cause havoc on the world. The only thing that can help them is..."

Atheous peered over her shoulder. Lexi had stopped reading. 

"The next page is torn out." Lexi said. 

Atheous groaned. This was helpless. 

"I had this dream," she said, "Where Tabby and I were at a baseball game. It was random, I know. But, the point is, we need to make Tabby happy." 

Lexi raised her eyebrows, then exclaimed, "Atheous, it's genius! It just might work!" 

Danny and Millie cheered and started to work on ideas to make Tabby happy. 

"Good job, Atheous!" Millie said happily. 

But Atheous was wrong.