Charlotte was never going to get anything done if that brute behind her didn't stop chewing his
pencil. Her hands were shaking and her palms were sweaty. She didn't need her stomach rolling in
disgust at the noise, too. She was about to do something dangerous and crazy. She was about to be an
Elite. Brad Jensen didn't seem to realize the gravity of the situation. Charlotte was considering
blowing all the pencil shavings on his desk into his perfectly coiffed hair, when a small white
bundle landed on her desk. Her eyes flicked up nervously to her austere math teacher, who wrote
imperiously and forcefully on the board, as if the chalk had offended her. Charlotte smiled, and
then looked furtively down at the note, written in a neat and all too familiar hand. Charlie' If
you don't act soon, we will have to believe that your courage has failed. Consider the gravity of
this situation. Act, Charlie, and you shall be rewarded' NOW! Charlotte mentally rolled her eyes,
and grinned. 'Dodge the bullet, Neo,' she muttered under her breath. She was nervous, but had to
smile at the drama that the Elites felt the need to inject into everything. She looked up at the
girls she so admired, and felt a thrill. She was pleased that they'd given her a nickname. That
had to be a good sign. She was ready. Suddenly calm, she stood. The plan was in action. 'Miss
Hodge,' she called, trying not to let her voice tremble, 'Miss Witherspoon, you are the worst teacher
in the school. The other teachers hate you, and your hair looks like you stood under an elephant on
a prescription of Ex-lax. Your nose is constantly runny, and if you tried to think, your three
remaining brain cells would die. You smell like a skunk with indigestion, and you eyes are the
colour of mould.' By now, Miss Witherspoon was stalking down the aisle. Charlotte shivered, but
continued nonetheless, fishing around in her bag as she did. 'You give us bad marks because it's
fun to you. The other day you gave me a 72%, and I thought you were telling me your IQ. To top it
all off, you put the pear I had for breakfast today to shame! I am not the only one that believes
this, so on behalf of the student body, I'd like to present you with these!' Charlotte pulled
four garden snakes out of a bucket in her bag and dropped two of them down the teacher's baggy
cardigan. Next, she opened a small purse with tiny holes in it and set loose six mice. For a final
touch, she dumped the mouse pellets in the bag onto Miss Witherspoon's head. There. The prank was done.
Miss Witherspoon was screaming and spluttering with a passion, and the students were laughing. Charlotte
looked to the Elites for approval. They smiled and nodded at her, and Charlotte knew that the
initiation was done. She was in. Three days later, when her suspension was fulfilled, Charlotte- no,
Charlie returned to school. She was grounded for three months and had a sixty-two in math, BUT it
was worth it. She was living out her dream! At lunch, she walked to the Elites' exclusive lunch
table and stood by, waiting. Their leader, Marcella, stood up and gave a warm smile. 'Hey
Charlie,' she said, and the aura of exclusive Elite cool seeped off of her. 'Welcome. Welcome to
the Chess Club.'