The Dragon Lady of Hamilton High

  * * *

  3

  She was between me and the stairs. I didn’t know the school well enough to avoid her. Rita began strutting toward me. One of the other girls giggled. “Here comes Tony.” Rita paused and turned to look.

  Burns and his boys had stopped a short ways from the stairs. I wasn’t surprised by Rita’s interest. He was the center of attention on the guys’ side and she was center on the girls’ side. There seems to be some natural law in high school that the two centers tend to gravitate toward each other.

  Rita went over and leaned on his arm. “Heard you rearranged Davy’s face again.”

  The boy next to him laughed. “You should have seen it!” He began recounting the action and Burns quietly backed away from the group, leaving Rita surrounded by them. He’d disappeared before she noticed.

  I was amazed. It wasn’t what I had expected. I tried not to think about it as I escaped and flowed out of the school, following the others moving toward freedom. I left my books at school, as always, and began the two block walk toward the rest of my day.

  The dojo was open but there was a sign on the front desk. Come find us in class. It looked well used. I could hear soft music playing. I walked through the main room and found Max with a group of elderly people in the first classroom. They were doing yoga. It was a modified form for most of them but I was still impressed that many of the seniors had good flexibility.

  A soft chime sounded and everyone relaxed. Max slowly rose. “Remember to be gentle with your bodies tonight. Eat light foods and get plenty of sleep.”

  One of the older ladies laughed. “That pretty much describes life when you get to 92.”

  Max smiled and helped her up. “I only hope that I will still be as fit at that age as you are Miss Rose.”

  A man came in the front door and came up to me. “Is the class finished? I have the van parked out front.”

  I got out of the way. “It looks like it is.”

  Max was helping several of the older women out. He saw me and smiled. “Good afternoon, Erin. This is my Monday afternoon yoga class from the senior center.”

  I nodded politely to the seniors as they walked out. I had worked with elderly people before as a class assistant. They didn’t bother me unless they did inappropriate things.

  Max came back inside after the van left. “You’re the first one here.”

  “School is only two blocks away.”

  He frowned. “You’re going to Hamilton?”

  “It’s the closest school to our apartment.”

  “Tacoma does have a public transit system. I’ve heard Hamilton isn’t very good. Most of the junior masters go to Shoreview and a couple go to Ridgeline.”

  “I’m not that familiar with the area. It’s just a habit for me to go to the closest school.” I might as well get it over with. “I should warn you, we don’t stay in one place very long. My mom likes to move around a lot.”

  “Noted. Where were you before you came here?”

  “Omaha, Nebraska.”

  Max motioned back toward the office. “That’s quite a distance.” I followed him down the hall. He pointed to a door across the hall. “That’s the bathrooms and locker rooms. Feel free to change. I’m going to make some tea.”

  “Thank you.” I went through the door and discovered it divided between men and women. The locker rooms were beyond the stalls. It was a very nice setting. There were more urns of bamboo and the counters were covered in grouted smooth pebbles. The wallpaper was a bamboo forest print. The décor matched the rest of the outer rooms.

  I pulled my gee from the front pocket of my backpack where it lived when I wasn’t wearing it. I preferred a black gee. I had drawn Ri Riu on it. He was only visible when light reflected just the right way. I really liked the effect. I pulled out my belt, bowed, touched it to my forehead, and wrapped it around my waist with the traditional knot. This was the only belt I have ever worn. It had be a gift from Fusan on my fifth birthday. It was black with dragons embroidered down the outer surface. I don’t believe in earning belts. I never studied the arts to rank but simply to learn.

  I put my clothes in my backpack and went into the office. Max handed me a cup of tea. “You can put your backpack in a locker in my office if you’d like.” He pointed to where they stood against the wall. “Pick one that doesn’t have a name on it. It will be yours.”

  When I returned to the kitchen a boy entered from the hallway. His dark skin was almost ebony. “Hello.” His voice had an interesting accent and was deep and rich. “I’m Philip.”

  “Erin.”

  He smiled broadly. “Welcome to Inyo Dojo.”

  Max came back into the kitchen. “Oh, good. You two have met. The afternoon juniors’ class is getting too big and they are progressing at different speeds. With Erin joining us, I’m thinking about dividing the class. What do you think, Philip?”

  “An excellent idea. They are getting to be quite a handful.” He glanced at me. “I’ve never seen a belt like that before. What did you rank in to earn it?”

  “I don’t rank. I simply study.”

  Philip’s eyes went wide. “Which arts?”

  I considered the list. “Karate, Taekwondo, Judo, Aikido, Jujitsu, Tai Chi, Eskrima, and Kendo.” That was a general list. I’d left a few lesser ones out but most people hadn’t heard of them anyway.

  “Wow! How long have you been studying?”

  I shrugged. “As long as I can remember. My mom and I lived with a Japanese family until I was six. The grandfather of the family was a monk. He would do Tai Chi every morning. I would get up and do it with him.”

  Philip laughed warmly. “How lucky! I can’t wait to see your form. I’ve only been studying Tai Chi for 3 years. Where I grew up in South Africa, we had our own form of martial arts that all the boys and even a few girls learned from the time they were little. It’s called Nguni. It’s a form a stick fighting that reminds me a little of Eskrima.”

  I was intrigued. “I know we have classes soon but I’d like to learn more about it.”

  He grinned. “Absolutely. But you’re right. I have to go change. It’s good to meet you!” He hurried away.

  Max stood in the doorway of his office with a grin on his face. “You’ll fit in well here. Come on. I’ll introduce you to your students. It sounds like some of them have already arrived.”

  I spent the afternoon with three classes of different aged kids. We took a half hour break for dinner, which Max provided. There were five junior masters there now, including myself and Philip. I recognized one of the others as Steven, the boy who had been at the desk the previous night. There was also an oriental boy who introduced himself as Yan and a girl who didn’t talk much. Philip told me her name was Amy.

  The shared dinner was different. I had been in a few other dojos where the instructors occasionally did potlucks but this sounded like it was a daily occurrence and that Max regularly provided the food. It was simple but sufficient – rice, steamed vegetables, broiled chicken, and a pan bread that was cooked fresh right in the kitchen. And of course tea.

  I had to ask about the bread. It was quite good. Max laughed. “It’s Pita. My wife, Susan, mixes all the dry ingredients at home and measures out portions into baggies. All I have to do here is mix the ingredients into a couple cups of yogurt. It’s a very simple traditional recipe. I’ll ask her to write it down for you.”

  “Thanks.”

  Amy paused as she was passing through the kitchen. “Is there something drawn on your gee?”

  Max started to laugh. “I wasn’t going to say anything. I wanted to see how long it would take for others to notice.”

  The light was just right where we were standing for Ri Riu’s head to be visible at my shoulder. I traced his bearded face with the finger. “This is Ri Riu, the Magnificent. According to legend, when he rose into the sky, he could be seen for a hundred miles in any direction.”

  Amy gasped. “I can see him now. How did you do that?”
br />   “It’s a special type of metallic fabric pen that I got as a gift.”

  Max moved to my side to see the rest of the design. “He goes well with Ka Riu on your belt.”

  The others had all crowded into the kitchen to see what was going on. It made the small space feel even smaller. I felt the tension tightening my shoulders. I didn’t want to be rude so I made the excuse that all girls use when they need to escape. “I should probably freshen up before we start the next set of classes.

  Max gave me an odd look but let me escape. I went into the bathroom and hid in a stall until I could breathe again. I’ve never cared for crowds. It just gets to a point where my lungs won’t expand enough and I have to escape.

  Other people starting coming in so I knew the next class set had arrived. I straightened my gee and went back out. The evening classes went well. The last class of the evening was a group of middle school kids that Max had pulled from a larger Karate class. They were struggling with the current kata and he wanted the rest of the class to be able to move on.

  I remembered my own challenge with this particular form. “Sometimes it helps if you think of a story while you are moving through the kata. Stories make the movements of the kata easier to remember.” I taught them the story my sensei had taught me and was pleased to see the improvement in the group. So was Max. He asked the students if they wanted to return to the rest of the class but they all wanted to continue with me. I hoped that I would have a few weeks at least to spend with them.

  After all the students when home, I changed back into my street clothes. Most of the other junior masters had already left for the evening. It was down to Steven, Yan, and me. The boys were discussing a particular Judo form in the front room when I came out. Max was watching them. I started to leave but Max called me over. “Will you be able to join us tomorrow?”

  “I hope so.”

  He smiled. “So do I. I like your teaching style. We have master classes on Tuesday and Thursday evenings and Saturday and Sunday mornings. You mentioned practicing Eskrima. How’s your Sinawali?”

  “Passable. I know some dance forms but I’ve found they vary by master.”

  “I’d like to compare notes with you. There’s an open house coming up. I thought a Sinawali performance might be fun.” The boys finished their workout, said good night, and moved toward the locker room. Max looked contrite. “I apologize if I made you uncomfortable this evening.”

  I shrugged. “Others don’t make us uncomfortable. We make ourselves that way.” It was something I was still working on.

  Max bowed slightly. “But it’s one of my failings. I’m very outgoing and I forget that not everyone is. If you feel uncomfortable at any time, please don’t be afraid to say something.”

  “Thanks. I really do need to get home. My mom should be done with her shift soon and she worries if I’m out too late.”

  “Of course. Do you need a ride?”

  “It’s only four blocks. Have a nice evening, Master.” I bowed and left.

  The streets were fairly quiet for a city. I saw a few people but none of them saw me. I made sure of it. All the little shops along the street by the diner were already closed. The diner was closed, too, but there were still lights on. I didn’t see my mom inside so I went to the apartment.

  She wasn’t home yet but I found a stack of clean clothes on my cot. My leotard was in the pile. I added it to my backpack and got ready for bed. I did have an assignment to finish so I worked on that while I waited for mom to get home.

  She was tired when she walked in the door. She managed to smile. “Have you eaten dinner?”

  “I did. The master at the dojo makes dinner for all of his junior masters every evening.”

  “That’s different.” She put several containers into the fridge. “How did you like what I left you for breakfast?”

  “That was really good. I took some with me for lunch, too.”

  She sat down in one of the folding chairs and pulled the netting off her hair. “This is really a nice little diner. I like the couple that owns the place. And the food is good, too. The customers like it.”

  I put away my finished paper and moved to the other folding chair. “I made sure to ask the school not to give anyone our personal information and the counselor said she’s talk to Lincoln, too, and made sure they didn’t give anything out.”

  She sighed. “I hope that helps.” She got up, hugged me, and started getting ready for bed.

  I sat and watched her. It was her normal routine. I felt the tension ease out of my shoulders. I hadn’t realized it was even there. I moved over to my cot. She eventually slipped into her own and turned off the lamp.

  The next day I got up and began the routine all over again. I wore Tiamat today. I always thought of Tiamat in the feminine although I don’t know what the Babylonians would have thought about that. I’d seen a picture of a famous wall relief that gave Tiamat a head similar to a horse, claws like a lion, and wings like an eagle. I’d stylized her a little but kept the general idea. The design was black on blue denim, which didn’t stand out nearly as much as the tan had.

  Tony was on the steps surrounded by his boy pack. Rita and her groupies hung in the background. Some of the faces began to look familiar. I stayed at the edges and did my best to avoid attention.

  I actually saw the confrontation between Davy and Tony this time. I paid attention to the fight. He was definitely throwing his punches. This time there was no teacher to break things up. Davy gave up and threw his lunch money at Tony before fleeing into the school.

  I went to my first period class and met my science teacher. He turned out to be one of the youngest teachers in the school. Fred Yenny was probably in his late twenties. The class wasn’t bad – Science and Technology. Mr. Yenny made it interesting.

  He came to my desk near the end of class. “I realize there’s no way you can do the assignment I just gave unless you have a text book. Let’s correct that problem. Follow me.”

  We went into an office that was obviously shared by all of the science teachers. He had to get a ladder to get the textbook off of a higher shelf. I was amazed by all of the various books the different teachers had. “I didn’t realize psychiatry was considered a science.”

  He put the ladder away. “I’ve never considered it one but Professor Marsh does. That’s not what he teaches here, though. He’s the chemistry teacher. I think he just needed a place to store all his old books.”

  We didn’t make it back into the classroom before the bell rang. I hurried to add the book to the collection in my locker and ran off to art. I picked up where I’d left off and got all of the bulk shading finished. Ms. Gilbert finally gave me a comment. “Good tonal contrast between your darks, mid-tones, and highlights.”

  Tony managed to scatter Kevin’s books down the length of the hallway. Kevin and David were late getting into class. I took the seat I’d essentially been assigned and turned in my completed work. It was another lecture on investments, this time focusing on interest calculations. I had just enough time to finish the homework before the end of class.

  I moved on to lunch, taking the far corner seat again. The room seemed quieter than the previous day. I listened to several groups of people around me. The name Kelly came up several times and before I’d finished my lunch, I’d picked up enough pieces to learn that Kelly was the girl I’d seen in the hallway and she was dead.

  There were various reactions to this among the other kids. A few were crying, most were at least subdued, and a few didn’t seem to care one way or the other. I was with the last group. Death is a past tense sort of thing. When it happens, that’s it. That person is over. I’ve gone to schools where death is quite common. Kids get shot or stabbed by gangs, they overdose on various drugs, or they party too much and throw chunks of metal and plastic at bridge pylons with themselves inside. The end result is always the same. That person is no more.

  From what I could tell by the general comments, death wasn’t a
ll that common here but it had obviously happened before. A few compared Kelly’s death to others. Some worried who else was going to die. I went to the library and pulled my bubble of stillness around myself. I finished my science homework before the bell rang.

  I went to my locker to exchange books and walked into a drama scene. Rita was weeping on Tony’s arm. His expression was somewhere between confusion and panic. David came down the hall from the other direction. He scowled at Tony. “That’s all you’re good for, a snot rag.”

  Tony growled and freed himself from Rita’s clinging arms. He almost looked relieved to have an excuse. “I’m gonna mop the floor with you!” He grabbed David by the arms and planted him against the lockers. The boom was deafening. I noted that the sound had actually come from Tony’s foot kicking the locker not David’s impact.

  But David made a good show of being in pain. The kids gathered around them, shouting catcalls at David and suggestions to Tony on how best to mess him up. He proceeded to give him a couple of soft gut punches that curled David over and then he dropped him to the floor. “Keep your opinions to yourself.” He stomped away.

  I went to my locker and swapped out books. I noticed Rita was completely oblivious at what had just happened. I shook my head and went to class. I managed to get in the door before the bell rang and went to the back of the room. Ms. Green wasn’t there yet. I sat down and began reading the textbook assignment for the day.

  Someone sat in the desk in front of me and turned around. “Do you draw on all of your clothes?”

  I looked up at the girl and recognized her as one of Rita’s circle. “Yes.” I went back to reading.

  “Even your underwear?” There was snickers from several others around us. I ignored her. “You’re weird.” She moved to a different seat. I was happy with that.

  Ms. Green came in and called everyone to settle down. “I realize some of you knew Kelly Talbut, who passed away yesterday afternoon. The family has announced that there will be a memorial service for her Sunday afternoon. If you’re interested, you can find all the information on the main bulletin board by the front office.”

  There was quiet chatter as the kids debated over going or not. The lecture picked back up where it had left off the day before. By the end of class, Ms. Green had wrapped up her talk on the Ozark people and warned of a test the next day. There were groans around the room. I had read the syllabus and noted the test already. It wasn’t exactly a surprise. I spent the last few minutes of class choosing which of the projects to complete by Friday. That was also on the syllabus. I liked the idea of a cultural map and found it really wouldn’t be difficult as there where many small pieces of the map in the textbook. I got the required blank form from Ms. Green as I left class.

  I walked out the door and tensed. I don’t know how to explain it. Maybe it’s something that comes with years of martial arts training but I can feel when things are too close. And things were definitely very close. Tony and Davy were locked together next to the door. Tony had an arm across David’s neck, and to anyone behind them, it must look like he was squeezing the life out of him. The expression on David’s face added to the effect. Tony was almost snarling. “Did you tell on me?”

  David was gasping. “I swear. I didn’t.”

  Movement down the hall caught my attention. Principal Granger was headed in their direction. I didn’t want to get caught up in their issues, whatever game they were playing. I turned around and went back into the classroom.

  Ms. Green looked up from her desk. “Do you have a question, Erin?”

  I thought fast. “I’m not sure what kind of tests you give. Are they multiple choice or essay questions?”

  She grinned. Multiple choice. I think if I gave essay questions, half the class would faint.” There was a commotion in the hall. “What in the world?” She got up and went to the door.

  I followed. Principal Granger’s face was a dark purple. “I’ve had more than enough of you, Mr. Burns! My office! Now!” He pointed down the hall.

  Tony turned and plodded down the hall. Ms. Green looked over at David. “Davy, are you okay?”

  David was breathing hard and almost doubled over. He looked up at her. “Yes, ma’am. I think so.”

  I could hear someone sobbing and glanced around the group. It was Rita. Ms. Green was focused on David. “What’s your next class?”

  “Senior Literature.”

  “Are you going to be able to get to class? Maybe I should call the school nurse.”

  David waved his hands. “No, Ms. Green, really, I’ll be okay.”

  She didn’t looked convinced. She turned and looked at me. “Erin, what’s your next class?”

  I felt a chill creeping around me. “Senior Lit.”

  She sighed. “Good. Could you make sure Davy gets there?” She turned back to him. “I’m really concerned.”

  “It’s nothing, honest.”

  The bell rang. We were late. Not a good thing. Ms. Green pulled a tablet out if her sweater pocket and filled out two of the sheets, handing one to each of us. “Here are some hall passes. Davy, if you start to feel sick…”

  He nodded. “I know. Go to the school nurse. I got it.”

  The halls had cleared. I looked at him. “Well? Class?”

  “I have to get my books from my locker.”

  I looked at the textbook in my hands. “So do I. Mine is upstairs not far from the classroom.”

  “Mine is down here.”

  I pointed. “After you.” I followed him down the hall. Tension threatened but there was no way to ease it. I waited while he swapped his books. We went up the stairs and I swapped mine.

  He leaned on the locker next to mine. “I’m sorry I got you into this.”

  “You didn’t. Ms. Green did.” I had to ask. “What’s the deal with you and Tony?”

  He gave a short laugh. “He’s my cousin. He and his mom came to live with us after his dad went to prison. My dad thinks he can change his ways.”

  I could hear the tone. It was a practiced speech. I wanted to ask more but a teacher came down the hall. We held up our hall passes and made for class.

  Professor Linton paused in his quiz as we walked in. He met us at the door and took our hall passes. He frowned but said nothing. I took the last empty seat in the back. David sat up front.

  I tried to focus on the lecture. Professor Linton was actually pretty good. Tony came in with only five minutes left of class. He didn’t look at anyone, just slumped in his desk. I managed to answer a question about a character I had read about two years ago and made it sound convincing. I figured I’d better reread the book.

  The bell rang and the class flowed out. I was behind Tony and David. Tony shoved him before walking away. I saw the note passed in the process. I tried not to think about it as I moved onto gym class.

  I went to the locker room and changed into my leotard. I was actually quite proud of it. The original suit had been white, a mistake for anything that a girl sweats in. The result had been blotchy stains that had landed the garment in the free box. I love stains. They are my inspiration. I used the stains to form the claws of Galeru, the rainbow dragon of Australian legend. I wasn’t sure what the aboriginal people had thought she looked like but I liked the idea of her having front arms that looked like they were clasped under my armpits and lifting me upward. The effect was particularly stunning when I posed on a balance beam.

  The girls in class stared at me. Rita scowled. She was in a particularly bad mood. I had a good idea why. It looked like she was hitting on Tony and he was doing everything he could to ignore her! Shakespeare would have loved it.

  I began my stretches and moved into warm-ups with the rest of the class. Ms. Addison then called us together and spent about fifteen minutes talking about good floor routine patterns. I liked some of her ideas and decided to try them. I had numerous floor routines that I’d been working on since sixth grade or so. I picked one and added in a couple of her suggestions.

 
There was no equipment set up today. Four large mats were spread out and she split us into groups of three to share the mats. I was with a couple of girls who weren’t on the team. That was fine by me. I learned their names, Jill and Carol. Neither of them had much of a routine. They kind of threw a bunch of different things together without considering flow of energy or motion.

  When it was my turn, I squared up in the corner and made my first pass that included a round-off, two back handsprings, and a full backflip. I landed solid and moved into the new section that Ms. Addison had suggested. She had been watching my set and gave me a nice comment. I finished my routine and cleared the floor for the next girl.

  Rita stalked up to me. “You’re copying my routine!”

  I dislike confrontation. It’s a waste of time. I didn’t feel like dealing with her attitude. I turned and walked away from her. She ran up behind me. That was a mistake.