Chapter 133: Fort Wars (1)

(4 chapters for this episode. CommunityXRelife )

[General POV]

A huge blanket fort was erected inside the music room, and the fort was extended all over the school's corridors, speedily encroaching the school's facilities and classroom as it grew continuously.

A camera crew was filming the entire process diligently, following the kids who were building the infrastructure with vigor.

Sitting on a brown, cushioned chair in the middle of the room was Edward. He wore a crown on his head, a leather jacket and ripped jeans. Next to him stood Jenna, Billie, Enid, and Alex. They were sitting on cushions on the floor, while Jacob guarded the door to the room.

Similar to the construction site, a lone camera-man was following Edward around with a camera and was exclusively filming him.

*Knockity Knock-Knock*

"That's the secret signal my lord. It must be the jester who ventured out of Fluffy-Shire in search of the news." Jacob muttered while saluting Lord Edward by placing his hand on his football under armor he wore on top of his red pajamas.

"Let him in." Edward ordered. Jacob saluted the lord before opening the door. Dressed in a green and red pajama paired with a jester cap on his head, Abraham kneeled in front of the chair and said, "Esteemed Lord of Fluffy-Shire…" He turned to the girls and said, "...Honorable members of the Royal Harem…"

"HEY!" Alex retorted while Jenna and Enid blushed. Billie's mind was blanking out, therefore she didn't respond to the salutations.

"Enough Jester, what's the situation inside the Council of Authority?"

"Yes my liege. The (teachers) meeting will continue for another half an hour. We estimate that 50% of the construction will be done by then." Abraham replied.

Alex rolled her eyes at the role play and stood up before walking next to Edward while he was still talking with Abraham.

"Good enough. Have we recovered the contraband snatched by the Ice Queen yesterday?" Edward asked. Abraham nodded and said, "Yes, we found your cello case inside the PE teacher's office, it will be retrieved and brought to the movie square immediately afterward."

A projector had been set up in that area. Students who wanted to just lie down and relax while watching a movie surrounded by the warmth of their friends and the softness of the pillow fort could go there.

"And how's the propaganda department faring?" Edward asked.

"I should be the one who answers that, my liege."

Instead of Abraham, Elsa who was wearing a black and white pajamas and fake glasses walked in through the door, gave Jacob a peck on the lips before kneeling next to the jester.

"We have recruited almost 70% of the students in this school, and even found some allies in our nearby alma mater. Some clubs decided to implement the 'wait and see' approach before joining us, such as the computer club and the mathematics club."

She continued, " May I be daring and suggest that these clubs need to be destroyed immediately, my liege, as to rid of unstable factors in these uncertain times." Elsa said in a cold and menacing manner while pushing her glasses upward.

Jacob swallowed his saliva and mumbled to himself, "I need to make sure she wears those glasses in our next make-out session."

"Wouldn't the principal be mad if he knew we stole his chair?" Alex whispered to Edward, but he grabbed her and made her sit on his lap as she got close enough to him. Alex blushed and wanted to move away, but Ed put his finger on Alex's lips while still focusing on Abraham.

"Shh Harem member number 3. Abraham, what did the chess club say again?" Ed asked in disbelief while Alex lowered her head in embarrassment, her face doing a perfect imitation of a tomato.

"There's rumors that they are planning a mutiny, my lord! They wanted you to finish building Fluffy-Shire before usurping the throne to build their very own ThreadCity!"

"Hmmm… Then, let's give them a chance to do that. Invite Joshua Liu, the president of the chess club for a one-on-one duel against me. Tell him, he can pick any match that he's confident in. If I lose, I will hand over Fluffy-Shire to him."

"But Sire!" Elsa exclaimed worriedly. Ed held one of his hands to stop Elsa while bruising Alex's hair like she was a kitten on the other.

"My administrator. Remember what I said to you when we started building Fluffy-Shire. I aspire to build a place, where we could finally realize our life-long desires, to finally pull a pillow, and sleep in class!"

Alex rolled her eyes while the rest of the 'harem members' giggled at Ed.

"For years we have been tormented by sleepiness and the rigid atmosphere of school, where we were forced to relive the same numb-minded lectures instead of spending our days frolicking in the meadows, and living our childhood lives to the fullest."

"Fluffy-Shire is more than just a place, it's a symbol. It's a symbol for every single teacher in the world to fear! For an idea of escape, where we can finally become free, it is immortal!"

"Alright, tone it down." Alex whispered to Edward before he could get more heated.

"If Joshua wants to become the leader and carry on the symbol, I will be glad to step aside, provided he has the capability to do so. That's why I'm giving him a chance. But, if he loses, then I want the unconditional surrender of all the members of the chess club. He has 20 minutes to decide, or else…he would learn our ways of peace…by force!"

"Great decision my lord. I will pass on the message personally, and even drag Joshua to kneel in front of you if need be." Elsa said before standing up, saluted Ed and then walked away.

The camera-man smiled as he watched Ed's generous character. Enid then walked silently behind Ed and asked, "My lord, what do you want me to do to Joshua?"

"He has 10 minutes to surrender, if he doesn't then all members of the chess club are to be conscripted to build our encampment on the front lines. As for Joshua himself, throw him into the dungeons for even daring to think about the idea of usurping me. I'll trust the shadow guards to handle this."

Enid coughed twice, causing Ed to look at her in confusion before he remembered, "Ah, Wolf guards. Sorry. I will trust the Shadow Wolf Guard to handle this."

"Right away my lord." Enid said before she bowed and slowly walked out of the room. Alex turned to the camera in disbelief as she witnessed the entire thing.

[Alex's commentary- Documentary style]

"Okay this is quickly getting out of hand. And to think that the reason this whole thing started is because Mrs Herderson told him he's a 'Good boy'? I have never seen this level of pettiness before."

[Jenna's commentary]

Jenna tied her pajama shirt into a crop top to reveal her belly button. She said, "Although I was demoted to be the 4th member of the Harem, I will work hard to earn the affection of his majesty and claim my rightful seat on top of his majesty's lap for a session of patting-"

[commentary ends]

"Now that the kingdom's affairs are in order. Billie, are you ready?" Ed turned to Billie and asked. He stood up and walked to the blanked out Billie and grabbed her hand, snapping her back to reality.

"Wha-" Billie exclaimed.

"I'm asking if you are ready?" Ed asked in a calm manner while flashing a charismatic smile.

"We—Um…Can we draw the straws again?" Billie asked worriedly.

"I already asked you if you wanted to do this before, now, Finneas has already set up the stage for you in the East wing."

"NOW TO THE TEACHER'S LOUNGE!?" Alex suddenly shouted in horror. Ed turned to look at Alex behind him and smiled mischievously, "Yes. If we want to declare the beginning of the war, they should be able to hear it right?"

…

[Edward POV]

As we crawled through the blanket fort corridors on top of a cushioned floor, I turned to the cameraman who had to duck walk while holding the camera on his shoulder and asked with a laugh, "You okay mate?"

Breathing hard, the cameraman replied, "I'm alright. I just wish I knew earlier that I would be squatting so much today so that I could have prepared myself for it."

"Sorry, we could walk, but it'd be rude to the citizen's of Fluffy-Shire as we pass by and disrupt them."

"Nah-nah. I understand." The camera-man replied. I then looked into the camera and explained, "Right now, we're going to the East Wing where Billie, a member of my band for the school show where we are going to perform in front of over a thousand people, will sing a cover for us. It will be her first time performing for a crowd."

I then added on, "Not only will Billie sing for us, but even Alex and Finneas will have to do the same thing as they need the experience of performing before being pushed in front of such a large crowd tomorrow."

"You should've told us sooner!" Alex retorted as she crawled in front of me. I smacked her ass, causing her to yelp in pain as she dared to question my methods and crawled pass her as I talked with the cameraman.

We finally arrived at the bulletin board area where the pillow fort was big enough for a crowd of people to stand up in. Finneas waved at us while setting up the microphone stand. The twerking kid Barnes was holding the dolly carts with the speakers on it. He was tasked to run away with the speakers if we were interrupted later on.

Billie was standing behind the microphone with a worried expression on her face. Holding an acoustic guitar in my hand, I walked to her and put my hand on her shoulder. "Hey, you okay? I know I said you had no choice, but I won't force you if you really don't want to."

"No. It's alright. I want to do it." Billie said before brushing her long, silvery blonde hair back, eyes filled with determination. She was wearing a black sweater and black sweatpants, and she took a deep breath before giving me the signal to start.

I held the wireless microphone in my hand and looked at the small crowd of around 20 people in front of me before starting the show, "Good Morning everyone. Are you guys comfortable?"

The crowd cheered, holding up their blankets and pillows in the air and shook them as I asked. I laughed a bit and said, "Alright, We're not going to dally any further, as the longer we stay here, the more dangerous it'll be for us all. Today, there will be 4 different performances being played all over the school. Make sure to catch all of them. To start it off, we have Billie, a good friend of mine with an amazing voice."

Billie blushed a bit, and I turned to her and spoke as if I was only speaking to her, "It's true."

"Okay Shut up." She muttered with her face all red.

"Billie is going to sing a cover for you guys. We all know the song that shook the entire school in January. Now, I'm not going to tell you guys the name of the song, as I know you will definitely know this one. Give it up for….BILLIE EILISH!!!!"

The crowd clapped and cheered for Billie before I counted the cue and started strumming my guitar.

[Song: All star | By: Smash Mouth | Acoustic cover ft. hunter (Youtube Female Cover) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l0-dZH-cQEE&t=1s ]

The crowd exploded into excitement as they heard the intro. I turned to Billie and muttered, "I told you they'll know the song." Finneas played the piano while Alex was responsible for making the beat. The cover wasn't as intense as the song, as it carried out a more mellow vibe and the songs focused more on Billie's vocals.

Billie took a deep breath, closed her eyes and then sung, "♫♪Somebody once told me the world is gonna roll me, I ain't the sharpest tool in the shed.♫♪"

"SHREKKK YEAHHH!!!" Jacob screamed from afar while hitting his armor a few times.

Billie smiled seeing the people's reaction and she grabbed the microphone with one hand, and made a gesture with another, "♫♪She was looking kind of dumb with her finger and her thumb in the shape of an "L" on her forehead.♫♪"

The beat dropped, and the crowd jumped around and sang the song together with Billie.

♫♪Well, the years start coming and they don't stop coming,

fed to the rules and I hit the ground running.

Didn't make sense not to live for fun,

your brain gets smart, but your head gets dumb.♫♪

She took out the microphone and was finally comfortable singing in front of the crowd. Students all around rushed to the East wing, and the number grew to more than 40 students quickly.

♫♪So much to do, so much to see,

so what's wrong with taking the back streets?

You'll never know if you don't go,

you'll never shine if you don't glow.♫♪

She turned to me and pointed her finger at me while I faced her.

♫♪Hey now, you're an all star,

get your game on, go play.

Hey now, you're a rock star,

get the show on, get paid.♫♪

She made a money gesture before looking upwards while slowly raising her hand.

"♫♪All that glitters is gold,

Only shooting stars~ break the mold~~.♫♪"

"♫♪It's a cool place, and they say it gets colder,

you're bundled up now, wait 'til you get older♫♪"

The students who were holding a blanket wrapped it with their friends as they swayed to the music.

"♫♪but the media men beg to differ,

judging by the hole in the satellite picture.

The ice we skate is getting pretty thin,

the water's getting warm so you might as well swim.♫♪"

"It's SUMMER BREAK!" I shouted, causing the crowd to cheer once more.

Billie laughed while continuing, "♫♪My world's on fire, how 'bout yours?

That's the way I like it and I'll never get bored.♫♪"

She walked closer to me and muttered without the crowd could hear, "Sing it with me."

"Sure." I replied.

We shared the microphone she was holding as we harmonized.

Together: ♫♪Hey now, you're an all star,

get your game on, go play~

Hey now, you're a rock star,

get the show on, get paid.

All that glitters is gold,

only shooting stars break the mold.♫♪

Billie vocalized during the bridge, "Whoo~ YEAHH~~"

She stepped into the crowd and danced together with them as she sang.

"♫♪Hey now, you're an all star,

get your game on, go play.

Hey now, you're a rock star,

get the show on, get paid.

All that glitters is gold,

only shooting stars...♫♪

I swear I could see Finneas wiping his tears as his socially awkward sister had finally shown her true self to the world.

♫♪Somebody once asked, could I spare some change for gas, "I need to get myself away from this place."

I said yep, what a concept.

I could use a little fuel myself,

and we could all use a little chaaange~. ♫♪

Billie turned to Alex and said, "You're next." Alex almost froze, but she didn't miss a beat because of it.

♫♪Well, the years start coming and they don't stop coming,

fed to the rules and I hit the ground running.

Didn't make sense not to live for fun,

your brain gets smart, but your head gets dumb.

So much to do, so much to see,

So what's wrong with taking the back streets?

You'll never know if you don't go,

you'll never shine if you don't glow.♫♪

Jacob, who was keeping an eye on the teacher's room, suddenly made a gesture to me. "They're coming out!"

Billie didn't realize it and was still engrossed in the song. Finneas stood up while playing the keyboard, and two students helped him to move the keyboard while he kept playing on it.

I walked next to Billie and we sang together, "♫♪Hey now, you're an all star,

get your game on, go play.

Hey now, you're a rock star,

get the show on, get paid.

All that glitters is gold,

Only shooting stars break the mold~♫♪

Billie ended it with an amazing vocal bellowing, "♫♪All that glitters is goooold~~,

only shooting stars~~~ break the mold~~~.♫♪

The crowd cheered as she finished the song. The number of students there had grown to over 60 people, and then Jacob shouted, interrupting the atmosphere, "THE TEACHER'S HERE!!!!"

"RUNNNN!!!" I shouted as I grabbed Billie and we ran away together following Alex and Finneas who were already ahead of us. I had to sling the guitar to my back as I crawled on the floor again, giving one last look at Mrs Henderson who just arrived at the previous stage.

"What is going on here? Who's responsible for this?" She asked, but no students were answering her questions, which truly surprised her because it was the first time it happened ever since she started teaching.

[Billie's commentary]

"When Edward first asked me to join his band, I thought Finneas had talked him into it. My brother…is a bit nosy sometimes." Billie explained, her eyes were glossy.

"I had always wanted to sing in front of people, but…I was always too afraid to do it." She continued. "But today, when Ed told me that I needed to rehearse…I needed to get out of my comfort zone… I honestly wanted to run away." (Remember she's 11 at the time)

"But when Alex and Finneas agreed to it, I also felt pressured to agree to it. And right now, I…Love Ed for making me do it." She chuckled a bit before adding, "Finneas will freak out when he finds out I said that. Just to be clear, I don't "Love" him like 'like' him, I just Love LOVE him. He's an awesome person, and I truly think that I could never love anyone more than I love him, which is unfortunate for my future boyfriend."

[Finneas's Commentary]

"I knew Billie could sing. But When she stood behind that mic, My hands were clammy, my breathing got quicker, and even my mind started to blank out. It's just… I was the one who had to start the melody, and if I made a mistake then the whole performance would be fucked up."

"Thankfully the star was there. Well…Billie's ordeal has passed, so right now, Alex is becoming exactly like Billie before she performed. I hope that she will do well." Finneas said in concern.