"Put your back into it kid! C'mon! First race is in two weeks!"
"Yes coach!"
"Just keep that pace until the last 100 meters!" Phil checked his watch. The splits during each lap were coming out with the expected times. Everyone on the team had grown in strength and speed over the winter conditioning. He was proud of all the hard work paying off. The students here were determined to get to the championship finals. Phil kept that goal in mind, and was ready to help them get there.
His hoof clicked against the track, stopping his stopwatch. Phoenix was the first to finish along with Maddie. The rabbit and the cheetah came to a halt at the finish line. The rest of the team followed after.
"Great start to a Friday kiddos! I'll keep you all posted for tomorrow's morning workout. Get some fuel in ya and hydrate well."
Maddie wiped the sweat off her white ears. "Got it coach Phil!"
Once Phil left the stadium the students made their way to the locker rooms to freshen up. Maddie and Phoenix walked together, both of them sweating bullets.
"Girl, you look like you need a nap. Get any sleep last night?"
"No," Phoenix sighed, rubbing her eyes. "I was up all night studying for Bahgeera's exam."
Maddie rolled her eyes. "It's easy stuff. You shouldn't worry about it too much."
"Yeah, but I just wanna stay prepared."
"That, coming from living with Baloo. The bare necessities guy."
"He can have his necessities. And I'll keep to mine."
Maddie huffed. "You're being an over-thinker. Tell me why you aren't staying with Bahgeera again?"
"I dunno. You're telling me."
The two animals made it to the locker rooms and changed into fresh clothes. Their first class didn't start til 8:00. Their first period teacher wasn't too strict with punctuality, so they decided to meet up with Lena.
Maddie insisted that they'd use a portal to get to Lena's place faster. Of course, being the daughter of the white rabbit had its perks. And for her, it meant popping and teleporting to other places in seconds.
"Last time we went through one of your rabbit holes, we nearly ended up across the globe!"
"One time! One time Phoenix! Besides, I can totally handle it now. Took a few days to master it, but I swear it works every time." Maddie perked her ears up, silently pleading for an excuse to use her powers.
Phoenix exhaled loudly. "Ok, fine. Let's go."
"YAY!"
Maddie opened the rabbit hole on the ground. It glowed with a baby blue hue, enticing and enchanting. She took the first jump inside with the dark furred cheetah beside her. Lena was residing with the Mcduck's all the way in DuckBerg. The other side of the portal was visible enough to show a large mansion in the distance. At least they weren't about to land in Africa or Greenland like they did last time.
Lena was already outside with her backpack waiting for them. The weather was still transitioning from winter into spring, so the mornings were always chilly. Lena wore an oversized sweater with a collared shirt underneath with jeans. Phoenix was wearing an AC/DogsC gray crew neck while Maddie had a softer sort of style. A white skirt with a navy blue long sleeve sweater vest complimented her dark brown eyes. Maddie was the first to hop over to Lena with a cheerful smile.
"Lena! What's up?"
"Nothin' much. How was practice for you guys this morning?"
"Phil was merciful enough to not make us do more mileage. We got out a few minutes early." Said Phoenix.
"Honestly, what you two do... I could never."
"Are you gonna go for soccer tryouts though?" Maddie asked.
Lena shrugged. "I'm thinking about it. That's like in a month, I think, right?"
"Yeah, Mads here can teach ya a lot before then. She's been playing for Varsity for a while now."
Maddie nodded.
"It's actually pretty fun once you get the hang of it."
Lena smiled at that, and the trio started making their way back to the portal. Once they were at the school, they caught up in each other's lives. Lena shared a few daring experiences she had with the McDuck's. Fighting monsters, looking for treasure and mystic artifacts, and even facing off the Phantom Blot himself. Phoenix chimes in here and there. Chatting about her new home with Baloo and the times when her voice cracked at Louie's bar. That ape would never let her live that down. Maddie, of course, was driving her dad mad over her teleportation skills. Always worried about where she'd go and getting lost in another place. Despite him being from wonderland, he was the definition of common sense. That, and never being able to manage time well.
Speaking of which, class had begun right on time. The bell for the school needed to be repaired over the weekend, and it was now able to ring at the appropriate times. The trio parted ways once they made it into the academic building. Phoenix and Maddie headed off to their first class of the day:
Math.
How thrilling.
Lena had Baghera first period, so she took the stairs to get to his class on the second floor.
The dark cheetah and white rabbit entered their class and took their assigned seats. Their teacher, Ms. Marian, was already gathering today's notes for the lesson. After class started, the rest of the day went by in a blink of an eye.
Phoenix maneuvered from class to class with swift ease. Bahgera's test was not as hard as she thought it would be. Thanks Maddie. The next few classes after that either continued their ongoing lessons or had notes for the students to write. The end of the day was what Phoenix dreaded the most. What day was it? Oh, yeah. It was Friday.
Cage fighting for Scar
Usually she'd go to Louie's bar after the fights, but today she felt rung out like a wet towel. Dry, and empty of energy once school shut down for the day. The cheetah left the school building, dragging her feet with dread across the concrete floor.
"Hey! You there! Phoenix!" A gentle yet cheery voice called out from the building. Turning around to the source of the voice, Phoenix saw her Math teacher.
Ms Marian walked up to her at a decent fast-like pace to catch up with her.
"You forgot your book. Just found it on your desk, and wanted to catch you before you left."
"O-oh, thank you," Phoenix gratefully took back her book, and tucked it under her arm.
The fox noticed the bags under her eyes. "Are you ok, sweetie?"
"Yeah yeah. Just a bit lacking on sleep is all."
"I see," she let out an understanding hum. Tapping her chin thoughtfully for a few seconds. "Do you find it difficult to fall asleep right away? I know you're an athlete, and sleep is one of the main priorities for your health."
"Well....kinda. Takes me an hour or more til I fall asleep. It's no biggie through."
"If you want to stay on top of your academics as well as sports, you need rest Phoenix. But, I think I know someone who can help you."
"Who?"
"I remember when I struggled to find any time to sleep during my classes in college. My schedule became so overloaded, that sleep was not an aspect of my daily routine," she started to dig through her purse, continuing her story. "Once I was on the edge of burning out, I found this doctor who specializes in sleep therapy. Let me tell you my dear, I never slept so well in ages after just one session!" The fox took out a business card, handing it to the cheetah.
"I really appreciate you helping me out, but I don't really know if I have time to—"
"Don't worry about the pay or scheduling. You look like you need this, and you're a good student. One of my best. Take this as a gift from me. You helped me tutor a few of my students last semester, so this is the least I can do."
Phoenix sighed with a smile. "I'll look into it. Thank you." Ms. Marian patted her shoulder, and headed back into the academic building. Phoenix stared at the small black and yellow card. Her eyes widened, and then shoved it into her bag.
She didn't need this! She could sleep on her own just fine. Push comes to shove, the internet was there for some sleeping tips and whatnot. Even still, there was a curious feeling in the back of her mind....
Baloo. She needs to show this to Baloo.
Let me know what you guys think of this book so far. I had this idea in mind for sooo long, and I finally decided to put it out there. Soooo, yeah. Here it is! Lol.
Baloo is like one of those funny or dad-joke making uncles at family gatherings. Like oh my gosh......im wheezing
Also, I realized I spelled Bahgeera's name wrong a few times in there.....oops....