Penny's Lucky Day

The Doomed Warriors

Penny sits at her desk in quiet contemplation.

Well, less that, and more very quiet inward screaming.

She really doesn't want to have to work with Dan, but from what she's hearing from everyone else, that's likely what will happen.

Penny's reluctantly in her final class of the day, the one with Damien and Tanner. Funnily enough, she's done a tag brawl with both of them and lost, both times. Rotten luck? Perhaps, or maybe she's had her one cool moment of glory and now it's back to normal. She should brawl Cyan again to be sure.

Penny sets her pen down and angrily redoes her pigtails for the fifth time this day. For some reason, they haven't felt correct today. Maybe she was distracted while putting them up this morning?

Penny then sighs quietly and puts her hands down, her fingers hurting a little from accidentally getting whacked by the hairbands she uses.

"You good, Penny?"

Penny, her usual brooding being completely interrupted, looks over at Damien, who looks to have just cleaned his glasses lenses. He stares at her through them as they seem to shrink his eyes a little.

"You've been acting all grouchy since yesterday."

Tanner pokes his head out from behind Damien. They sit next to each other, usually for prime annoy-Penny-for-homework-answers-positioning.

"Why's t-that?"

"Because Runo and Marucho, in their-"

She starts off a little too loudly, getting a look from the teacher and a few other classmates. Shifting gears, she changes to angry whispering.

"...their clearly infinite wisdom, decided to go get Shun, alone, and completely screwed the pooch! And now I have to deal with Dan and get Shun with him, because apparently a group of likeminded teens can't get anything right."

Tanner gets his usual "oh no what do we do" face that Penny has had the experience of accidentally inducing on a nearly daily basis.

"R-Really...? That's dumb..."

"Almost as-"

Dumb as you, Penny thinks. But she doesn't say that, since Tanner doesn't deserve to be yelled at, again.

"...anyways."

"Anyways?"

"Well, that look you're giving me is saying something, got any good ideas, Damien?"

"Gee, you're, like, even more irate than usual."

"Because it's Dan!"

"But he seemed to be acting pretty nice yesterday."

"I don't understand it! Why has he been acting like a jerk the whole time, and then the moment I brawl him, he gets all friendly?"

Damien gives a somewhat uncaring shrug towards that.

"...you have a point. But, uh, Dan's... not the most complicated."

"What do you mean? This is complicated. There's gotta be something going on. Maybe he wants something outta me, like everyone else."

"Well geez, calm down a little...?"

Damien gives Penny a nervous chuckle as his gaze shifts back towards Tanner. Then, Tanner gasps, seemingly getting an idea or something like that.

"...I know. W-Why don't Damien and I go with you...? If s-something happens, you have people you can t-trust to back you up. Remember, power i-in numbers."