The Joker

Chapter 1
Introduction

Chapter Description: No transformation in this chapter, but you do get an all-too necessary introduction to the characters.

"So, can anyone tell me what the preposition in this sentence is?", Ms. Rebecca Lee asked, pointing towards a sentence on a PowerPoint projection. Rebecca is a young fourth-grade teacher at George Washington Elementary. American-born, she is a slender woman of Asian descent, and is a very effective teacher. Her strong maternal instincts make a surprisingly great teacher at this level, but she was never great at teaching higher levels.

Her class was sitting in silence, as if they had been turned to stone, simply staring at the sentence. That is, until a small voice broke the spell with a quizical answer. "From?", the voice responded. It was a young boy, sitting in the back, named Andy. He’s very shy during school, despite what his scruffy blond hair would suggest.

"Yep, that’s exactly right," Rebecca assured, "Remember, class, a preposition is anything that describes placement. Now, for homework, I want you to complete the worksheet I gave you earlier, and have a great weekend!" With that, the students slowly and groggily packed up their things and left the classroom like zombies. Seeing Andy at the back of the pack, the young teacher pulled him back for a second, "Hey, you did very well today! You should comment more often, you’re very bright!"

"Sorry," he sheepishly replied, "I don’t talk very much."

"Oh, I’m not saying it’s a bad thing!", she tried to cheer him up, "I just mean that you shouldn’t be afraid of being wrong--mistakes are even more helpful than being perfect!"

"Alright," Andy shrugged, "I’ll try, I guess." And with that, Andy left the classroom and headed home. There was nothing she could say, but Rebecca felt bad for him, and felt that she may have made a mistake. Being a teacher, though, she put on her hard-skin and got back to grading at her desk, while she waited for her step-daughter to get out of High School to pick her up, having loaned her the car.

"Pouuaaaahhh," Joëlle sighed, "I can not stand these classes, as if calculus was not hard enough in French." Joëlle is a senior right now, but only transferred from France about a year ago, as her father moved to America for his now-wife Rebecca. Though she is French in nationality, her family descends from Afghanistan, though her family had abandoned Islam a few generations back.

"I know, I can barely understand it, and I speak English natively," Mark sympathized, "I just wish he’d lay off a bit." Mark is Joëlle’s boyfriend of just a few months. Frankly, it’s not hard to see why she would be interested in him, what with how often he hits the gym. "Anyway, I’m scheduled to be at the gym right now, babe, so I’ll see you tomorrow, at the Halloween party tomorrow, alright?"

"OK, I’ll be glad to there relax," she agreed with her slightly broken English, "though how about a hug right now?" With that, Mark slowly moved in to embrace her slender body. Her modest B-cups pressed up against his upper abdomen, he also managed to make a quick grab on her tight butt. "Hey! Save that for after the party, alright?"

"Fine, fine. Alright, later, then!"

"Bye bye!" With nothing left to do, Joëlle decided to head towards the Elementary School to pick up her step-mother, and go home. The schools were close together, so it only took a minute to get there, in fact it probably took longer for her to reach the classroom. "Hey, Beck! Ready to go?", she said, having snuck up upon Rebecca.

With a jump, and through a racing heart, she lectured, "Jeez! Don’t do that! It’s not nice, you know! Anyway, yeah, just let me finish up a few things. It looks like I won’t have to do much grading for the long weekend."

"Aww, but it is Halloween, after all! Uhm. How do you say...it is the spirit?", she laughed, "Alright, I’ll be in the car, whenever you’re ready."

The day came and went, night fell over the city, and it was time for bed. Some were afraid, some were struggling with guilt, some were simply excited, and others horny more than anything else. Though, being that in just a few hours, it will be Halloween, perhaps one of those feelings was more apt than the others. After all, anything could happen.[size=4][/size]