She sat on the red swing and held onto the chains. The weather was nice; sunny, few clouds, a soft breeze.

She was keeping watch at the playground, viewing Leon through a window. Before he went to class, Cecilia gave him a purple necklace, made from a swirl from her upper arm. If need be, the necklace could turn into a clone and protect him.

He did not know that, of course.

He was a sweet kid but she noticed that he mostly stayed by himself. He waved to the other kids as he walked to the back of the bus, but choose to sit by himself.

"You do not need to sit alone so I could sit with you. I choose to stand," she had told him when he sat in his own row.

"I like sitting by myself," he said back. He then gave her a smile and looked out the window.

The breeze returned and blew her curly purple hair in her face. With her left hand, she combed the hair back in place.

"He is a particular child," she heard a voice say behind her.

"That he is," she said without bothering to turn around.

He soon appeared in her peripheral vision as he sat on the swing next to her.

He had long blue hair that was tied in a low ponytail.

"Do I know you?" he asked her.

Cecilia continued looking at the window where Leon was.

"Not personally," she replied cooly.

"Where have I seen you before..." he continued to ponder.

"Perhaps your dreams..." she found herself saying a pick up line she had heard Victor say a millions time before.

Blue started laughing, "Perhaps. My name is Elijah Blue."

She looked at him face to face. His hair was navy blue, and straight. His eyes were like ice. It was a weird combination, but it worked for him.

She looked at his uniform and quickly counted twenty lines wrapped around the tight white shirt.

"Cecilia Purple," she said.

"John Red and Emily Blue are your parents! That's it!" he yelled.

Cecilia nodded and turned her attention back at Leon.

"I heard that their children were coming to this location," he said, "when I saw you walk Leon to class, I did not think it would be you. To think that Sillie's friend would be guarded by a famous Friend."

"I am not famous," she said.

"Oh, yes you are," he said.

"Cecilia Purple, the only Imaginary Friend to pass the tests with a perfect score. The child of the John Red and Emily Blue. Younger sister of John Red Junior. You're famous," he said, "All the Imaginary community knows you."

A bell started ringing.

"That means it is recess," Elijah said.

Cecilia stood from the swing. Elijah soon followed.

She saw Leon stand up and walk out the classroom. Moments later the doors to the school opened and kids started running out. They all had smiles on their faces and laughs filled the air.

"There they are," Elijah pointed to two children. Leon was holding hands with a bleach blond girl.

"Cece! Cece!" Leon shouted the closer her was, "this is Sillie."

The girl next to Leon had white eyes.

She was blind.

White eyes, white hair, white skin.

"Nice to meet you, Sillie," Cecilia said.

Elijah took Sillie's other hand.

"Nice to meet you, too, Cece," she smiled, white teeth.

"Her full name is Selene Valiant," Elijah said, "she was born blind, but she has the fight of a warrior inside."

Sillie's smile grew.

Blindness was rare. She must be the only child on the planet who could not see. Not even child, the only human on the planet who was blind.

"Let's go on the swings?" Leon asked Sillie. She nodded her head. Elijah and Leon guided her to the swing that Cecilia was sitting on earlier. Leon went behind her and started pushing her gently.

"Her parents put her through many surgeries but nothing worked," Elijah said next to her.

"How strange," Cecilia said. She kept her eyes on the children.

She looked at the green field beyond the playground and saw a glisten of green move through the grass.

Envy.

She felt a line on her upper arm slide down and slip off her fingers.

"Defeat it, my tiger," she whispered. The purple line then raced towards the field. She watched as the tiger formed and jumped out of the grass and pounced down on the large snake. She saw his strong jaws bite down right below the snakes head.

An instant kill.

Moments later the purple line returned to her. The line crawled up her leg, to torso, and then back to her arm. When it was back in its swirled position, a back line appeared across her torso.

She touched the line with her finger tips and smiled.

"Congratulations on your first kill," Elijah said.

"Thank you," she said.

"You made it look so easy and the children did not even notice something was wrong," he said.

"Thank you," she said.

"You deserve to be famous," he said after a moment of silence.

"You need to stop saying that," she said.

He gave her a cheesy smile, "Why?"

She looked at him sideways.

"Cecilia Purple," Elijah Blue said, "I hope we become great friends like how our children have."

Cecilia looked at the two children on the swings. Sillie was laughing and Leon was smiling as he pushed her.

"Higher! Higher!" Sillie squealed.

Cecilia looked at the other children and could see other Imaginary Friends hovering. Yellows, greens, indigos, oranges, reds, blues, purples. They were all here.

She knew who she was searching for but he was nowhere to be seen. They must have located her brother on the other side of the city.

"I heard you have a younger sister that is blue like your mother," Elijah said, pulling her from her mind.

"Yes," she said.

"What is her name? She is young and the community almost forgets about her since she has not done anything like you or your brother. I would not like to be in her position," Elijah said.

"Her name is Jaylin Blue," Cecilia said.

"Is she to be a healer like your mother?" Elijah asked, "the blue section is known for healing."

"Why must you ask questions about my family when I know nothing about yours," Cecilia looked at him momentarily before looking back at the two children on the swing.

"You want to know more about me?" Elijah asked with a smile, "Great! My parents are both blue. My father is an Imaginary Friend. My mother works in the main building, she monitors Earth. I have a younger brother, his name is Jacob. He is still just a child and has not chosen what academy he wants to join yet. Is there more you want to know?"

Cecilia looked at him. He willingly opened himself like a book. The whole time with a smile and a laugh. Why was he being so nice? Why did he not care if she could see inside him? The mask she wears protects her.

She touched her heart.

"Where is Jacob thinking of going?" She asked.

"He wants to be like his father and brother but I don't know if he can handle the training. He cries every time he gets a bruise or a cut. Sometimes when he falls, he does not want to stand back up. I tried to get him to change his mind. I told him he should work with Mother," Elijah said. His smile faded when he was saying this.

"If you don't fall, you don't learn to stand up taller. But you cannot stand up, if you don't know how to. He will learn. He just needs time," Cecilia said.

"Jaylin attends Healer Academy. She is towards the top of her class but not the very top. She is aiming to be like our mother," Cecilia added before hearing a bell.

"Recess is over," Elijah smiled. She felt arms wrap around her waist. She expected to see Leon hugging her but instead it was Sillie.

She was smiling and looking up at Cecilia with those white eyes of hers.

"I can't wait to see you again, Cece," she said with a sweet, soft voice.

"Likewise, Sillie," Cecilia smiled and brushed the girl's hair out of her face.

Sillie let go of her and Leon took hold of her hand.

"I'll be back once school is over!" Leon yelled over his shoulder as he and Sillie headed back inside the building.

Once all the kids were inside the building, Cecilia took her place on the swing. She then noticed that the other Imaginary Friends were walking towards her and Elijah.

She could pick up on their small chatter.

"That's John Red's daughter."

"I heard she had a perfect score on the final exams."

"Cheater."

"She's been handed everything in life."

Cecilia took a deep breath and stood up.

The Imaginary Friends formed a curved line in front of her and Elijah. She found herself being thankful that Elijah stayed at her side.

"Hello, Friends," Elijah said next to her.

Some of them muttered "hello".

"My name is Cecilia Purple. I look forward to working beside you," she said. She looked every one of them in the eye. At the same time, she decided who had the most black lines and how many Friends there were in total. There were fifteen of them. There was no majority of one color. Not one of them was purely white but that must be expected for a Friend in this city.

"Working beside us? You must think you're above us," a green girl with short hair and a scar on her jawline said.

"Hush, Evangeline," a blue girl at her side said, "let her talk."

Cecilia looked at the blue girl. She had the most black stripes. Quickly counting, Cecilia found at least fifty. Blue girl had royal blue long straight hair that was in two separate braids running down her back. Her eyes were the same color. She was the tallest girl from the fifteen friends but was not the tallest in whole. She had a lean build. Her outfit was a tight crop top, pants that hugged tightly to her legs, and sandals. On her middle fingers, were silver rings. Those were her weapons.

"What is your name, if you don't mind me asking," Cecilia said.

"My name is Nikki Blue," she smiled, "I graduated two years before you did."

Cecilia had heard of her. She was known as the Blue Storm in the Academy. Everywhere she went she brought destruction. She graduated top of her class.

"I remember you, Blue Storm," Cecilia said.

Nikki Blue bursted out laughing. The others around her looked at her quizzically.

She regained herself, "it's been a while since someone had called me that. Thank you."

Nikki walked to Cecilia's side and faced the crowd, "does anyone else want to say something or can we get back to work?"

Slowly the group dispersed but the green girl, Evangeline, stayed behind.

"What is it, Evan?" Nikki asked.

"How can you take her side so quickly?" The green girl had her fists pressed against her sides, "she calls you a nickname you had in the Academy and you just go along with her?"

Nikki started laughing, "I can do whatever I want to do, Evan. So can you."

Cecilia saw Nikki's eyes change. It was the storm inside them. You cannot tell a storm what to do. It goes where is pleases and forces the ones around them to adapt.

Evangeline took a step back. Her eyes darted at Cecilia, "You! Why are you here?"

"I'm here like the rest of you. To be a Friend. To protect the innocent," Cecilia said.

Evangeline was wearing a white dress with thigh high boots and Cecilia counted fifteen stripes wrapped around it. Around her waist was a chain, that was her weapon.

"Why should I believe you?" Evangeline asked. Her frame was rigid.

"Why should you not. Why do I make you think otherwise?" Cecilia asked her.

"Your family is different than the rest of ours," Evangeline replied.

"Why."

"What do you mean 'why'? You know why! You were raised with one of the best leaders and healers in our World! You and your brother were given everything!" She yelled.

"What makes you think that? My siblings and I went to the Academy like the rest of you and if anything, we had to work harder to uphold the image you all see us as. I had trainers try to tear me down. I had professors try to make me fail. I fell many times but I always picked myself up because if I didn't I would not be like my father or mother. If I stayed down, I would not be able to accomplish my dream. Elijah calls me famous. But I don't care to be famous. I just want to be Cecilia Purple," Cecilia had only shown the green girl a sliver of her actual self, enough to let the girl think that Cecilia cared.

Evangeline did not know what to do. Nikki and Elijah were also shocked. Cecilia knew the crowd had gathered again, another reason why Cecilia said her little speech.

It was important for her mission to gain these Friend's trust.

"I know it is hard for you to accept me quickly. I am the new girl, after all. I understand," Cecilia bowed her head.

She could hear some of the gasp at her gesture.

"All I ask is that you give me a chance," Cecilia then put her hand over her heart.

Nikki broke the the silence.

"That was so beautiful," she was crying and hugged Cecilia around the shoulders.

Cecilia froze at her touch. She was not used to this.

"That was so good, Cece," Elijah hugged her on the other side. She was sandwiched in between them.

It took everything in her to not tell them to let go of her immediately.

Eventually they let go of her.

Evangeline walked up to her. She looked shy and was rubbing the back of her neck, "I feel as if I should apologize for my behavior earlier. Can I call you Cece?"

"You can, Evangeline. And you don't have to apologize," Cecilia said.

"You can call me Evan. Evangeline is way too long," Evangeline said.

"Evan," Cecilia smiled.

"Hello! I'm Caleb Yellow," a boy walked up to the group. He was the second highest marked person in the group with around forty black stripes. He was shirtless and was only wearing white pants and army style boots. Around his neck was a silver dog tag.

"Nice to meet you Caleb," Cecilia smiled.

Caleb patted her on the back, "that was a really cool speech you did back there. Brought a tear to my eye."

"It's not that hard," Evangeline muttered.

"Hey!" Caleb yelled. He then pouted, "that was rather mean."

Nikki and Elijah started laughing.

Other people in the group started introducing themselves. Towards the end, Cecilia's cheeks started hurting from all the forced smiling she was enduring.