Episode 1: Boxing Day WIP

Lily sighed with relief as the school bell finally rang, releasing her from another long day at school, and not just any end of the day, this was the day she and her sister got to hang out with Hana Harime, one of the richest girls in the school, and one of the only ones who lived on the surface.

As she dashed out the school doors, she was suddenly grabbed by the collar of her uniform from behind. “Are you trying to embarrass me?” Spoke the owner of said hand, Lily’s twin sister and near doppelgänger, Daisy. “If you make a fool of yourself after Hana so nicely allowed you to come along with me, I will personally make sure Mom finds out, we both know how she gets when she hears we’re around Surface people”

“Fiiiiiiiiine” Lily groaned,straightening out her uniform as she gave her sister a glare. “If my little sis thinks it’s important, I’ll do it” she says with a smile, sticking her tongue out playfully at Daisy. As she spoke, a limo with tinted windows rolled up to the sidewalk slowly, the door at the back opening.

“I can see the sisterly love already” speaks a calm, authoritative voice belonging to one Hana Harime, the uncontested “Queen” of the student body, she was one of the few students who actually lived in the surface district of the city. “Please do get in” she insists, the twins scrambling to get inside. “We have one more person to pick up, so I’m glad you two decided to be quick with it”

“Of course! Why wouldn’t we hurry when you tell us too?” Daisy replied before her sister could interject. ‘It’s an absolute honor for us to be invited into your home” she says, pulling both Lily and herself into a respectful bow, closing the car door behind herself as she begins taking a seat.

The moment the car door locked shut, Hana’s demeanor softened several magnitudes, the once princess-like girl how spreading herself across the plush seating inside the limo. “Ugh, finally schools over” she said with a groan, surprising both of the twins. “Oh, I suppose most people don’t see this side of me” she said after seeing Lily and Daisy’s reactions. “Yeah that whole uptight princess thing is just an act I put on to make my dad happy, even he doesn’t know I’m like this, so I’d really appreciate it if you two and the other person I’m picking up keep it a secret.”

The twins both nod quickly. “Of course, neither of us would tell anyone” they say as a pair.

“Who’s this third person?” Daisy asks, leaning back into the leather cushioning inside the limo. “I’m admittedly still a bit curious as to why you invited me over, you usually never really said why aside from wanting to study?” She inquired, looking over at her sister who looked like she was ready to fall asleep.

“Ah, that, yes” she replies, sitting up a little straighter. “That’s a bit of a tricky question to answer, to be honest, I need to get to know people who aren’t rich, everyone in my neighborhood is all stuck up and boring, I could never let them see me like this, but you two, you two are pretty normal, surely you understand what it’s like” she says, before quickly coughing out “also nobody who lives here on the surface would believe you two if you spilled the beans about this side of me”

“Hmph, you flub up one episode of the school news and suddenly everyone thinks you're a liar” Daisy says with an indignant tone in her voice, her sister giggling softly. “Wasn’t my fault they gave me a bad script that I could barely read”

“Yeah, that’s totally why you could barely read it Sis” Daisy said. “I read it perfectly fine when they switched us out, why do you think they actually aired it after that?” She teases back, getting naught but a pout in response, as the limo slows to a stop in front of the airport.

“You two wait here, I’ll be waiting with the driver for my other guest” Hana says with a smile. “And brace yourselves, she’s a hugger, a really big one” with that, she steps out of the car, her serious, commanding demeanor returning.

“What do you think she’ll be like?” Lily asked her sister after a few minutes, crossing her arms in a pout at the jab about the news incident. “Hana said she was a hugger, so I guess she’s nice, but that doesn’t really tell us much”. After a few seconds without an answer, she turned to see her sister in the arms of a gigantic dark skinned girl, the limos door opened. “What are you doing?!?” She says, leaping over to try and help her sister, only for the muscular girl to open her arms and wrap Lily in a tight, strong hug.

“Relax you two, this is just my third guest, Tania, please let them breathe, I know your excited, but I’d like them to make it to my place alive” Hana spoke, the burly girl releasing the twins and taking a seat.

“Oh my gosh Hana you weren’t kidding when you said these two were cute!” She said as Hana stepped back into the limo. “I just couldn’t help it!”

The twins were left gasping for air as Tania took up the rear end of the limo, she looked more like she was a bodyguard than a friend of Hana’s.

“I thought you were trying to mug me or something” Daisy said once she caught her breath again. “Like just out of nowhere, squeezing me so hard I could barely breathe, my sister nearly attacked you”

“She did? I thought she just didn’t want to be left out” Tania replied innocently. “I’m really super sorry about that! I just was so excited to meet Hanhan’s friends and I couldn’t help myself when I saw how cute you two were!”

“Tania, this is Lily and Daisy, my friends from school” Hana says, interrupting the excitable girl. “Please try not to crush them, I know you’re not always aware of your own strength, otherwise, have fun” she spoke, her relaxed personality shining through again. “It’ll be about half an hour to my place, so all three of you, take some time to just chill”

And so, the quarter would chat about simple things as they rode to Hana’s house, the limo driving past a heavy iron gate into a neighborhood reserved for only the absolute richest families in all of Atoll city. The twins explaining the city structure to Tania as they rode.

Daisy said, speaking to Tania, “So as you know, Atoll city is a city built in the middle of the ocean, miles away from land of any kind, here up on the surface level you have schools, shops, all the important commercial and health stuff a city needs, next, is what we here call “the reef” that’s where me and Lily live, it’s your average suburbs basically, every house built in little glass domes built in harmony with the coral reefs below, so as to not to disturb the wildlife.

“And then, you have the abyss” Lily interrupted. “A pitch black nightmare where most of the cities food and power are produced, I hate it down there.” She grumbles. “Most people don’t go down there unless they have a reason to, so just don’t go for a pleasant visit”

“Wow that’s uh, really cool!” The massive girl replied, her eyes sparkling with curiosity. “I can’t wait to see it all! Everything is all desert back home for me, so seeing this much water is just so cool!”

The limo slowly rolled to a stop, Hana straightening out her hair as the door was opened. “Welcome to my home, I hope it’s not too daunting” she said.

The sight before the three girls was certainly daunting, a gigantic manor laid out before them, built from marble columns and huge wooden sidings that looked like they had been cut from a giant redwood. A row of servants lining the way to the front door on both sides, all bowed before Hana and her guests, the display was even enough to silence Tania.

“Welcome home Lady Hana, I am sure the limousine was to you and your friends liking?” The head butler asked, looking at Hana’s friends, as if evaluating them.

“Yes, the limo was lovely, my friend all very much enjoyed it” she says with a small smile, her face still largely stoic. “If you don’t mind, I’d like for us to go up to my room now, Tania will be staying with us after all, and I expect you to treat her as family”.

“Understood M’lady, Henrietta will show your friends to your room” the butler said with a smile, the other three girls stepping out of the limo, still in stunned silence at the grandeur of it all.

“Right this way” one of the maids directed, leading the quartet of girls into the home, the foyer