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it’s going to be tough to outdo him.
    The fairy’s name is Julie, and she’s very excited to be here. “I’ll probably die but that’s okay because just the experience is great, ya know? And I love your armor! Where did you get it? I went to a Renn fair once and there were some awesome knight guys on horses and stuff. Their armor was pretty cool, too. Have you ever been to a Renn fair? You should try it.” And on and on she goes.
    My phone dings, so I have a reason to step away from Excited Julie.
effyeahFinityGirl: What are you going to do?
     
    That’s the question of the night, isn’t it? When I got here, I reminded myself that even if I saw Zelda, I wouldn’t engage. I would ignore. I would not care. Then I saw her and my normally cold, black heart rebelled. Apparently it doesn’t matter how many times I tell myself that I can just forget about her, because the second she comes into view I wish she didn’t straight-up hate me. And that’s exactly the situation with her. I don’t care what Logan or Maddie say. I talked to them when I got here and saw Zelda bouncing from person to person in the backyard. The whole time she fidgeted with that helmet.
    “She really needs to just take that thing off before it causes her to fall or something,” I’d said. It was just an observation, but Maddie blew it way out of proportion.
    “Aw, you’re protective of her. You two are adorable. Go talk to her.” She shoved me surprisingly hard in the back.
    “I am not protective of her. I’m a conscientious observer. Don’t you know how clumsy she is? She basically supports the Band-Aid and ice pack industry,” I said, dodging Maddie’s attempts to get me to move in Zelda’s direction.
    In the end, Maddie pulled out a play that was hitting below the belt to get me to go talk to the girl. “So, you’re afraid of her then?” She tilted her stupid head and crossed her stupid arms.
    Logan literally gasped.
    The story of how Maddie figured out that one simple statement could get me to do anything is a long and complicated one involving a vintage Playstation 2 game and Maddie’s inhuman ability to kick everyone’s ass in it. We all have those irrational things that can really get under our skin, no matter how thick said skin is. Someone insinuating that I’m afraid is my thing.
    So, I tried to make conversation with Zelda. And it ended horribly, as all our interactions seem to. I’m not surprised at the way things went, just disappointed. Which is why I messaged FinityGirl. An outside opinion would be welcome at the moment.
Me: What am I going to do? I have no idea.
     
    Zelda finally comes back from the bathroom, and something is a little off, but I can’t get a read on her. She won’t turn her face fully in my direction. Then Tommy jumps into the mission at hand and it’s time to put everything else aside. I’ll put Zelda’s loathing, along with Maddie’s ability to mind control my behavior, over on this shelf marked “deal with later.”
    We follow Tommy to the stairs that lead up as he speaks. “A pecan farm a little outside the city limits has been inexplicably turned into a labyrinth.” His British accent has gotten a million times better since the last time I was here, I’ll give him that. “The council is concerned, even though no one has been stupid enough to enter the maze and get themselves killed. Yet.” He crosses his fingers, signifying that he is talking “out of character” as he says the next bit. “You’ve probably all seen this place before. It’s a large field filled with really old pecan trees. They are planted in rows with the grass trimmed beneath them. Sometimes the owners let the cattle run free in the field, their hulking bodies snorting beneath the gigantic barken trunks, their breath visible in the dewy morning air as the sun rises over—”
    I hold my crossed fingers up and interrupt him. “Dude, can we get on with it? Your third year creative writing class is doing